Geon Kim returned home carrying Kiska and headed for Gregory's room. When he handed over the heavy cigar that Kiska was carrying, Gregory, with tears in his eyes, affectionately rubbed his prickly cheeks against Kiska's, causing Geon to smile before quietly closing the door not to disturb their father-daughter time and headed to the annex. Opening the door of the annex, Geon sighed and shook his head at the sight of Byungjun lying on the sofa in only his underwear, browsing his phone.
"Bro, at least wear some clothes."
Ignoring Geon, Byungjun just waved his hand dismissively. Geon, after taking a seat on the sofa, glanced at Byungjun's underwear and asked, "Did you shower? Why don't you try on the underwear Kiska gave you?"
Byungjun's phone slipped from his hand as he shot a glare at Geon, his eyes trembling. Suddenly, Byungjun jumped up, entered his room, and came out waving a package of underwear, shouting, "What on earth did you teach Kiska!"
Puzzled, Geon looked at the underwear box Byungjun was shaking.
"What? Why?"
Byungjun angrily ripped open the box and spread out a hot pink pair of boxer briefs, yelling, "Did you tell her to engrave her name when giving gifts? It's written 'Kiska' all over the underwear with a marker!"
Geon noticed the name 'Kiska' written in tiny letters on a crucial part of the underwear.
"Pff, hahaha!!!" Geon burst into laughter, tears streaming down his face.
Byungjun, looking incredulously at Geon laughing, threw the underwear at Geon's face.
"How am I supposed to wear this! You wear it!"
Geon, still laughing, held out the underwear again, his eyes filled with tears of laughter.
"Pff, haha!! This, this is from Kiska, haha! Bro, you have to wear it! Haha!"
Byungjun swatted the underwear away with his hand, saying, "Forget it! How can I wear this! It looks like Kiska wrote it herself, not wearing it!"
Geon kept offering the underwear, still laughing.
"Ah, but it's from Kiska, you should at least keep it, haha."
Byungjun, after a moment of thought, took the underwear and stuffed it back into the box.
"Eh, might as well keep it, or she'll get mad if I throw it away later. Sigh."
Still laughing so hard he had to wipe tears from his eyes, Geon looked at Byungjun who asked, "Did you receive something too? What did you get?"
Geon showed a pick necklace around his neck.
"This. Kiska engraved her name on it too."
Byungjun's face crumpled at the sight of Kiska's name crudely written on the underwear and the necklace, and Geon burst into laughter again. Annoyed, Byungjun kicked Geon's butt repeatedly, shouting, "Stop laughing! Stop, you brat!"
"Ow! Ow! That hurts, bro, haha!"
After tormenting Geon with playful kicks, Byungjun looked down at him and said, "You have school tomorrow, right? Go to bed early."
Rubbing his sore buttocks and still unable to wipe the grin off his face, Geon replied, "It's okay, I'm not going until 11. I have to put Kiska to sleep first."
"Alright, is Kiska going with you tomorrow?"
"Yes, I got permission from Gregory. Kiska will be at school with me, attending classes with Professor Corigliano."
"Well, we're in different classes anyway, right? Just going to school together?"
"Yes, we'll go to and from school together but attend different classes."
"Fine, I'll accompany you to and from school then."
"Got it, bro. Phew!"
Geon, still unable to stop his laughter, burst out laughing again as Byungjun, sighing, picked up the underwear scattered around the sofa and went into his room. Geon rolled around on the sofa, laughing until he got dressed in his pajamas and opened the door of the annex to see Kiska looking at him with curious eyes. He continued to laugh until he saw Kiska. Stretching out his arms from the sofa, Kiska ran into them and hugged Geon. Seeing Kiska's innocent face made Geon laugh even more, and he hugged and laughed with Kiska for a while before taking her to bed. After dimming the lights and reading a fairy tale until Kiska fell sound asleep, Geon quietly returned to his room and fell into a deep sleep.
**
The next morning.
Geon hurriedly got ready, filled his guitar case with necessary school supplies, and stepped out of the annex. K
iska, holding Byungjun's hand, was waiting in front of the car, which made Geon happy as he hugged Kiska before getting into the car. They arrived in front of Juilliard soon after, and as Byungjun turned to look back from the passenger seat, he asked, "What time does school end?"
"I guess around four?"
"Then I'll start waiting around three, so call me when it's over."
"Okay, bro. See you later."
"Ah! The security personnel will be on standby in the parking lot around the school, so let me know if you need anything."
"Alright, bro. We'll be going. Let's go, Kiska."
Holding Kiska's hand, Geon got out of the car, and the students heading to Juilliard turned to look at him all at once.
"Kyaaa!! It's Kay!"
"Oh my! It's Kiska Miocic!"
"It's really Kay! Coming to Juilliard was worth it!"
Among the crowd, some freshmen seeing Geon for the first time caused a commotion. Kiska, used to such scenes from being at Geon's side, showed no particular reaction and continued towards the school with Geon. Waving and greeting the people, Geon opened the main gate of the school, and the noise from outside prompted the security guard to come out.
"Hello?"
"Ah! Student Kay. You're back from military service?"
"Yes, sir."
"Alright, then. Go on in. I wondered why it was so noisy outside. It was because a student was coming to school. The little lady with you must be Kiska, right? Professor Corigliano has already informed me. Please, go ahead."
"Thank you, sir."
Geon knelt on one knee in front of Professor Corigliano's office on the second floor to match Kiska's eye level.
"Kiska, I'll be in the building too, so if you need me, just tell Professor Corigliano. Okay? We'll go home together."
Kiska smiled broadly and nodded before opening the door to Professor Corigliano's office. Professor Corigliano's teaching methods seemed to suit Kiska well, and she liked him. Hearing the professor welcome Kiska inside, Geon smiled and headed to his classroom. Checking his wristwatch, he started walking a bit faster, nearly late due to taking his time. Rushing, he opened the back door of the classroom and saw the backs of the students filling the room.
Trying not to disturb the murmuring students, Geon slightly bowed and took a seat in the very back row. The boy next to him leaned over and said, "Knew you'd sit here again."
Surprised, Geon looked at him and laughed, "Fabio? Fabio Marchetti? Haven't you graduated yet?"
The long-haired Italian beauty, Fabio, smiled wistfully and said, "Haha, I took a leave of absence too. Had to help with my parents' business. Kay, you were in the military, right?"
"Yes, in our country, all men have to serve in the military."
"Haha, sounds exhausting. Well, I'm also back as a junior, so please take care of me."
"I was worried I wouldn't know anyone here. That's a relief."
"Haha, same here. By the way, Professor Sharon's first class always starts with a mission. I wonder what mission she has for us this semester? Oh, remember our first mission? It was Asturias' performance, in the studio class."
"Right, haha. I was a lot of help thanks to you."
"Help? If anything, my skills improved a lot after that performance."
As they chatted and laughed, Geon suddenly said, "We're about the same age, can't we just talk casually?"
Fabio glanced at Geon and said, "Actually, I usually suggest talking casually after meeting someone twice.. but with Kay being such a star, it felt a bit awkward to say it first. Haha! Alright, let's do that!"
"Haha, so I should call you Fabio?"
"Yeah, feels strange to be friends with Kay, huh?"
"Pfft, I'm just a regular person too. Looking forward to it."
"Me too."
As they were chatting, they noticed the classroom had gone quiet and looked up in confusion. The entire class of about a hundred students was staring at them, and Fabio, realizing someone was sitting next to him, chuckled. He grabbed Geon's arm and whispered, "You're not familiar to the other students since you just returned. Maybe introduce yourself?"
Prompted by Fabio, Geon, with an awkward smile, said to the quiet students, "Uh... hello, I'm Kay. I'll be spending this semester with you all. Please take care of me."
After a brief silence, the students began shouting.
"Kyaaa! It
's Kay! We're taking classes with Kay?"
"Wasn't he a senior to us? We're in the same class?"
"Idiot! Kay is Korean, he went to the military and then returned. I knew that!"
"Is this a dream or reality?"
Just as the students were about to rush towards him, Professor Sharon entered the classroom. Seeing the professor, the students quickly returned to their seats, and Sharon, noticing Geon sitting in the back, slightly smiled in understanding. She walked to the lectern and lowered the scroll with the projector remote. Waiting for the scroll to descend, Sharon spoke into the microphone.
"Students of the guitar department, did you have a good break?"
"Yes~~!!"
"The break was too short!"
"I couldn't even go home because I was practicing!"
After a moment of noisy chatter from the students, Sharon pressed the remote, and text appeared on the scroll.
"Alright, alright. Let's put aside the excitement of the break and start the new semester. You all know what it says without me having to explain, right?"
The scroll displayed 'Mission', and the students murmured in anticipation. Sharon tapped the lectern a few times with her palm to quiet the students and said, "This is the first mission for juniors. You're all in the guitar department, right? A guitar is an instrument that can be played solo, but it's often used in collaboration with other instruments. Of course, this is true for other instruments as well. The first class for juniors will be a joint class involving guitar, drums, bass, and keyboard departments."
As Sharon pressed the remote, 'Band Score' appeared on the large screen.
Sharon looked around at the students and stepped forward from the lectern, saying, "The first mission for juniors is about band scores. That handsome student sitting in the back?"
The students turned to look at Geon, who awkwardly stood up. Sharon asked with a playful smile, "What's a band score?"
After checking the room, Geon replied a bit louder, "It's a sheet music detailing the scales for all instruments used in a band, professor."
"Good, take your seat."
Sharon looked around at the students again and smiled, "This mission is not about solo practice, but about forming bands with students from other departments and performing together."
Students gathered in one of the individual practice rooms at Juilliard School that could accommodate a band rehearsal. Among them were a blonde woman with heavy eyeliner, casually dressed and wearing Converse shoes; a clean-cut black man with a rapper-like style; and a Japanese woman with long hair, sitting quietly in a white dress. The atmosphere was initially awkward until the blonde woman, pulling up a chair to sit, broke the silence with a bright voice.
"My name is Anna Sentina. I'm majoring in bass. Let's do well on this mission."
Following Anna's lead, the black man soon sat down with a new makeshift chair, twirling drumsticks in his hand.
"I'm Anthony Burns. I'm with the drums. Pleased to meet you."
As Anna and Anthony glanced at the standing Japanese woman, she spoke in a careful tone.
"My name is Shizuka Miyawaki. I'm from the piano department."
Anna, looking at Shizuka, placed another makeshift chair beside her and said,
"Sit down. But piano department? Not synthesizer but actual piano?"
Shizuka bowed her head in thanks and sat down gracefully.
"Yes, I'm indeed in the piano department, originally majoring in classical music."
"We're in the same year, so let's speak more comfortably, Shizuka."
"Yes, I will."
"No, I mean, talk to us more freely."
"Yes, I understand."
"Sigh…"
Anna shook her head in disapproval upon hearing Shizuka's polite manner, while Anthony chuckled and commented,
"Japanese folks are usually like this. They'll start speaking more casually once they're more comfortable. Just leave it."
Anna glanced at Anthony, then turned to Shizuka, asking,
"But why did you come to band rehearsal from the piano department? Your department doesn't have this kind of class, right?"
Shizuka replied in her modest tone,
"Yes, that's correct. However, I was interested in this area, so I applied."
Anna shrugged at Anthony,
"Really? It's unusual... considering you also have to practice for your major. Anyway, got it. But it looks like the person from the guitar department hasn't arrived yet?"
Anthony glanced at the wall clock and said,
"We still have five minutes left. We just came early."
Anna leaned back against the short backrest of the makeshift chair, clasping her hands behind her neck,
"Ah... I hope it's not someone too arrogant."
Shizuka tilted her head and asked in a cautious, polite tone,
"Are people from the guitar department usually arrogant?"
Anna, half-reclining, responded,
"Yeah, guitar department guys think they're the center of the band. Well, it's true that most band leaders are guitarists and they do compose most of the music."
As Shizuka nodded deeply in a very Japanese manner, Anthony interjected,
"Not everyone is like that. Just a few with too much pride. I'd rather have someone competent join us."
Anna looked Anthony up and down before saying,
"Do you think you're good?"
Anthony smiled, revealing his teeth,
"I'm decent. Not as famous as you, though."
Anna sat up, eyes wide,
"You know me?"
Anthony twirled his phone, saying,
"You're a Youtuber. And not just any, but one with over 400,000 subscribers. I've seen your bass guitar play videos."
"Oh? There's someone from our school who watches my channel?"
"Yeah, I clicked because I saw a sexy beauty in the thumbnail. Haha."
"Hoho, really? That's something I need to take as a snapshot strategy then. I'll try to work harder on that."
"Ha, try focusing on improving your skills instead."
As they spoke, Shizuka listened in silently before asking,
"Anna is a Youtuber? Uploading videos of playing the bass guitar?"
Anna nodded and stood up,
"Yeah, it's been about a year? Initially, I just recorded my practice for monitoring, but it turned out to be fun, so I kept uploading. And now, I have 400,000 subscribers. I'm at a point where I'm not sure if I'm a student or a Youtuber anymore. Hoho."
"Is it fun?"
"Yeah, it's fun. Why? Want to try?"
"Ah... No, I was just asking."
Anna looked Shizuka up and down and joked,
"Shizuka, you're pretty enough to be popular with guys. Sexy style might not suit you, so try going for a pure look."
Shizuka blushed and looked down, feeling embarrassed by Anna's gaze, causing Anna to burst into laughter,
"Hahaha! You're an interesting type, blushing at a joke."
Seeing Shizuka still bowing her head, Anthony waved his drumsticks,
"Hey, cut it out."
Anna waved her hand and nodded,
"Ah, got it. Sorry, Shizuka. Anyway, since it's our
first meeting, how about we have a brief meeting and then go out for a beer?"
Anthony raised his finger in agreement, and Anna looked at Shizuka, who was still looking down but nodded quietly after noticing Anthony's glance. Anna smiled and looked at the wall clock again,
"It looks like it's about time... When will our guitarist show up?"
Knock, knock
Right on time, a knock on the door was heard, and Anna stood up, sarcastically remarking,
"Wow, even for the first meeting, couldn't they come even a minute early instead of just on time?"
Anna halted midway to her feet, a perplexed stance overtaking her as Anthony stopped twirling his drumsticks, dropping one. Shizuka covered her mouth, eyes wide with surprise, as the man standing at the door flashed a grin and set his guitar case down.
"Hello, am I a bit late? Sorry about that."
Stammering, Shizuka pointed at the man.
"Ke... Kay?"
Geon laughed, looking at Shizuka.
"You're the student from Japan, aren't you?"
"Ye... Yes? Yes! That's, that's right."
"Nice to meet you, neighbor."
"Yes! Yes! Nice to meet you too. I'm Shizuka Miyawaki."
"Pleased to meet you."
Geon then approached Anthony, who was still gaping, and patted him on the shoulder.
"A drummer? I thought you were a rapper with that style. Looks good on you."
Anthony, looking up at Geon touching his shoulder, stuttered,
"Ah... Ah, yes, yes! I'm Anthony Burns!"
"Nice to meet you, Anthony. So, the blonde lady is the bassist?"
Anna, who had been awkwardly standing, sprang to her feet and hugged Geon. Geon looked down at Anna, who had suddenly embraced him, and smirked, making her exclaim joyfully,
"Our guitarist is Kay!! Hurray!!"
As Anna raised her arms high, shouting, Shizuka, caught up in the moment, timidly raised hers in support, and Anthony, with an incredulous look, hurriedly set up another makeshift chair.
"Here, take a seat, Kay."
"Thank you."
Sitting down, Geon laughed at Anna, still running around the studio, cheering.
"Anna, calm down and sit."
"Ah! Yes!!"
Geon smiled warmly, meeting the admiring gazes of the three, and after a moment, grinned widely.
"Since it's our first day... How about we just have a meeting somewhere else instead of this cramped practice room? Let's go for a beer. My treat."
Anna leapt up again, cheering.
"Yesss!!! That's our Kay!! Let's go, let's go!"
Quickly slinging on his guitar bag, Geon chuckled as he watched Anna, who was hesitantly pulling Shizuka by the hand. After tapping Anthony's shoulder once more and slinging his guitar bag over his shoulder, a touched Anthony hurriedly followed.
Walking through the school corridors, Anna, clearly delighted by the attention they received walking with Geon, kept smiling and pulling Shizuka along. Shizuka, while being dragged, sneakily admired Geon's profile and blushed, while Anthony, still in disbelief about practicing with the band and Geon, observed Geon's back with a dazed expression. Reaching the school's main gate, Geon, now wearing a hat and sunglasses, addressed the group.
"There's a pub called 'Off the Wagon' about 300 meters to the left from the school's main gate. I'll meet you there. It'd be inconvenient for you if we walk together, so I'll go ahead."
As Geon exited the school, a swiftly approaching security guard inquired about his situation and started the car. Watching this, Shizuka murmured quietly,
"So it really is Kay."
Anna nodded, seeing Geon being escorted into the limousine.
"He may be a fellow student, but he's a huge star."
Anthony, feeling the lingering warmth on his shoulder where Geon had touched him, boasted,
"Hey, Kay touched this shoulder twice. I might not wash it for days."
Anna glanced at Anthony and pinched her nose.
"Ew! Just the thought smells bad! Stay away!"
"Uh-huh, but you hugged Kay too? You gonna skip showers as well?"
"Ha! As soon as I get home, I'm showering!"
"Oh, really?"
"Of course! Because I plan to greet him warmly with a hug every day at practice! Can't let Kay think I smell bad!"
"Ha, do that."
Listening quietly to their conversation, Shizuka, perhaps out of curiosity, sniffed her clothes and sighed in relief. Spotting the pub 'Off the Wagon' marked by a dark brown sign after about ten minutes, Anna pointed and shouted,
"There it is! Off the Wagon!"
Anna was the first to enter, scanning the almost empty pub as it was still early. Geon hadn't arrived yet.
"He must be on his way by car. Eh, he'll show up. Let's go, guys."
As they followed her in and sat at any available spot at the bar, a chubby Caucasian bartender approached and inquired,
"Are you Shizuka, Anna, Anthony by any chance?"
Anna's eyes widened.
"Yes? How did you know?"
The bartender smiled and gestured towards a section.
"VIP room is this way
. Someone has already reserved it for you."
Anna, excited by the mention of a VIP room, stood up.
"See! Totally different class! Let's go, guys!"
"Class? VIP rooms in pubs like this aren't that expensive."
"Still! Have you ever been to a VIP room in a pub?"
"Ugh... Well, Kay could afford VIP rooms in much pricier places, not because of the money but because it's hard for him to eat comfortably in a bar."
"Let's just go. Where's Shizuka? Shizuka?"
Anna spotted Shizuka already holding the VIP room's doorknob.
"Hey! That fox!! Wait for me! The seat next to Kay is mine!"