At Kim Raebin's mountain lodge song-writing camp for encouragement, only praise feedback was possible.
So even if beginners were a bit new to development, everyone was laughing and moving on. Because we were just there to play.
But when it came to 'work', the words changed.
Let's take a look at Bae Sejin's carefully brought-out opinion.
"… Well, anyway, it was the song 'Promise' that won the grand prize. Then, how about doing this as a series of basics?"
"A common sense suggestion!"
It seemed that the feedback would end warmly like this, but that wasn't the case.
"Yes. It's good to push the one with the best results. However, the overseas reaction had no major changes, even for grand prize-winning music."
"I-is that so?"
"Yes. Overseas, I think they'd prefer something strong like 'Drill'~"
"That's right. I am against it!"
In an instant, responses were relentless.
"… Okay. We can cancel!"
"I liked it. Sejin-ah, I'm sorry."
"Hmm. Okay. Well, then what do you guys think!"
No criticism in particular. However, if he got caught by the majority, it would pass naturally.
"Is there anything else fresh?"
"I came up with a unique idea! The concept of a robot by making use of mechanical sound with MIDI and electric noise…"
"Ooh~ Cheesy~~"
No, there were some who were blatantly booing.
"Cha Eugene, you haven't given your opinion since a while ago and you're only criticizing, so it's a very inappropriate attitude!"
"Ok! I'll tell you guys. I like transformation heroes!"
"We did it for
"Oh…"
It was a self boo.
Anyway, most of the members made sensible remarks in this way. It just didn't fit the current situation, so I implicitly knocked it out quickly.
As a result, the brainstorming turnover rate was unusual.
"Since the story is so confusing, let's touch it with a diagram. We only grabbed the core of the concept that received the best response overseas and the OST concept for a hero movie."
"Okay~ Did Moondae make it?"
The work came naturally.
"Sorry, Moondae. We need to learn some of these things too."
"It's okay. You have a lot to do, so what can you do about that?"
In the end, it took just half a day to pick out the concept traits we should be aiming for.
-1. Intense (hero movie)
-2. Uniqueness (TeStar)
-3. Friendliness (American)
I cleaned up without even breathing.
"A concept that is American-friendly based on intense action beats and has the uniqueness of TeStar."
"… …"
"… …"
"Wow."
If such a request came from the company, there would be a proposition to beat the boss to death.
But we had to. Art and physical abilities were originally like that.
"From now on, this will be the central frame… Let's talk about the concept and song we want."
"Yes…"
The bloody meeting, which had been going back and forth like crazy, went into a lull for a while.
"My throat hurts…"
"Eugene, from now on, let's not scream and whisper. Because you can't perform with a hoarse voice at a concert."
Hearing Ryu Chungwoo hitting Cha Eugene with a fact, I checked the others.
'First of all, Kim Raebin is doing well.'
He was almost at the military level. Pass.
'Keun Sejin has a good view too.'
On the contrary, he was more competent here than at the creative camp, which was just for a hobby. He was at a high level to weed out good opinions and gather public opinion.
'Cha Eugene puts vitality into it.'
Saying the opposite without hesitation at an unpleasant level kept the meeting going.
'… It's a good group.'
Now, rather than just coming up with good ideas, they were more than happy to spit out usable stories without getting discouraged even when they were driven by the limits of the frame.
And when we entered the composing part, even one unexpected guy did a great job.
It was Bae Sejin.
"… Since it's American, how about taking some metaphors from American literature?"
It was an approach no one had ever thought of.
"American literature?"
'It sounds good.'
I asked right away.
"Have you been thinking about anything specific?"
"I am… Among the classic novels, I thought of the Edgar Allan Poe novels."
Edgar Allan Poe.
He was a pioneer of American mystery and horror novels.
"Well, there is something grotesque about it. It's very famous and distinctive…"
"Ohhhh."
Perhaps thanks to the response, Bae Sejin spoke quickly with a slightly flushed face.
"You know the 'Black Cat' written by that writer, right? It's creepy and there's a twist… Isn't that the kind of uniqueness TeStar is trying to do?"
"… !"
"Yeah, I guess… !"
Oh.
As a person who read a lot of books, he talked about symbolism quite plausibly.
'Is it classic horror literature?'
It was okay.
For now, Kim Raebin was widening his eyes.
"If the concept is right, I think a very cool composition will come out even if I quote it in rap lyrics. I will make sure to write it down."
"… Okay."
It was almost the first time Bae Sejin himself came out and gave his opinion on producing.
'Surprisingly, he has talent.'
Bae Sejin's face showed bewildered pride, probably not knowing that it would be accepted so well.
Ryu Chungwoo smiled and cleaned up.
"Then how about mixing our concept with the feel of a Hollywood movie based on classic American literature?"
"For now, we'll hold the production strand like that."
I rubbed my chin.
To be honest, it was a bit… lacking.
'It just doesn't feel like it's coming from somewhere.'
First of all, I decided to focus on the fact that we had an idea after grasping the strands.
'The key is that it can be completed simultaneously with the movie OST.'
In fact, pushing this camp was not intended to produce high-quality results right away.
Rather, it was closer to checking and encouraging each member's producing ability.
'I was just trying to see if the label would work.'
Because now the group was really halfway on the road of standing alone.
'When you become an independent label, you have more decision-making authority, but there are definitely guys who need a period of adaptation.'
And from what I had seen so far, most of the members had been good savers. Everyone was chatty and cooperative.
'Ryu Chungwoo has a talent for tuning, so that's fine.'
I gave almost everyone a passing grade.
But after looking around like that, there was only one left.
"… …"
"Seon Ahyeon."
"Yes… !"
The guy who had been chiming in for most of the day raised his head.
"About the drafts that have just come out, I was curious what you think about them."
"Yes… It s-sounds like a good idea… !"
"Which part?"
Seon Ahyeon flinched, but answered slowly.
"Ho-hollywood movies… It's a very popular feeling. I think it's good to add a deep feeling like classic literature… ."
"… Alright"
Yes. If I asked them openly and slowly, one by one, they would give pretty good feedback.
The problem was… The most important thing in working is that real-time was not working.
'He can't give an opinion.'
Seon Ahyeon was amazing when it came to expressing a given task well, but he was a bit weak when it came to novel ideas.
However, even if it was not a moral issue, even if there was an opposing opinion, he did not fight well.
Because of consideration, he tried to take a step back and listen to the opinions of others, so he couldn't find the timing to intervene at all.
In short, in this kind of thing, he just added more heads to the majority.
I knew that myself.
-Hyung! Any comments?
-I-I… Not yet.
-Hm~ Okay.
-… …
After this conversation with Cha Eugene, Seon Ahyeon lowered his head.
I sat next to him.
"It's okay if you take it slow."
"… … Yes."
Seon Ahyeon didn't quite agree, but he nodded his head.
That was rather good.
'He has his own pride.'
I guess he felt a strange sense of competition for not being able to do it. There was room for improvement…
"What, why's the atmosphere like this?"
"… !"
Keun Sejin laughed and intervened.
"Ah~ Moondae said something about Ahyeon not being able to express much of his opinion!"
"… …"
"N-no… !"
Seon Ahyeon reacted a beat late. He must have felt that way…
"Ah, why do you care about that? There are a lot of friends who are good at producing like this. Let's just enjoy it, Ahyeon-ah!"
Of course, these words did not work for Seon Ahyeon.
"Because the moment I have to do it myself will come…"
Keun Sejin smiled.
"At that time, Moondae can do it for you!"
"… !"
"Won't Ahyeon have a solo album later?"
"My, my solo??"
"Yes! We're going to do a unit or solo at least once in the future~"
He skillfully omitted the sad situation description of 'when the other members go to the army'.
Anyway, I laughed.
"If you want, I'll do it for you, of course."
"… !"
"See? You can relax now."
"Yes."
Seon Ahyeon gave a faint smile and stood up with a much more comfortable face.
"Thank you."
"What?"
Still, looking into his eyes, the 'psyche to try' didn't seem dead. I felt a little more at ease.
"You should go in now."
"Yes."
"See you tomorrow, Ahyeon~"
Today's camp was almost over, so some of them had already left.
With a thoughtful face, Seon Ahyeon followed them out of the living room of the suite.
"… …"
Keun Sejin kept his mouth shut until Seon Ahyeon disappeared.
And suddenly he spoke out.
"Ahyeon takes care of us a lot, every time."
"Because we're members."
"Hm~ Really?"
Keun Sejin added in a comfortable tone.
"Moondae, did you know Ahyeon is really good when we're ready for production and preparation?"
I knew. Still, I wanted him to grow a little bit.
"In the time to worry about friends of the same age, let's take care of each other~"
"Okay."
No, in fact, they were all younger than me. I endured Keun Sejin giggling and patting me on the back.
'This guy is still fine.'
It seemed that he had some stamina left, so if I spoke bullshit to him now, I wouldn't be able to get anything sorted out.
I got up from my seat, thinking that I would have to look at the timing to reveal my 'circumstances' again tomorrow.
"Where are you going?"
"Restroom."
Just then, an unexpected text message came to my smartphone.
[The concert was so cool, it was the best. ㅠㅠ]
"… …"
It was Keundal.
[Did you follow the tour?]
[Yes! Since it's the country next door, I worked hard on the weekend. I think you did really well. This is healing… ]
Yeah, he had enough money to fly very first class.
I shrugged my shoulders after estimating his wealth. As long as he didn't get scammed, it didn't matter how he used it.
However, another text message arrived in succession.
[Are you okay with video calls? There is something I want to check.]
Hmm.
I guess this was what happened.
[Okay. Wait a minute.]
[Yes!!]
I went into a small room where Ryu Chungwoo was typing on his laptop.
"I'll have a video call with Ryu Gunwoo for a moment."
"Hm, yes."
I even thought about getting a new room and talking on the phone, but I gave up because I thought it would lead to more suspicious misunderstandings. This suite was my room.
Since this guy was with me, he'd cut it if someone else snooped around.
'… It's reassuring because he knows who I am.'
"Can I say hello too?"
"You can do as you please."
I made a video call to Keundal, and the call was accepted as soon as the sound went out.
-Hello!
"… Hyung, you keep saying the opposite."
-Ah, that, sorry… Are you outside?
"Yes."
This time, there was no such thing as the last accident.
-Have you been well?
"Yes."
Keundal immediately corrected his tone, and only then did I ask him how he was doing and got right to the point.
"Why do you want to call…"
At that time, Ryu Chungwoo called from behind.
"Moondae-yah?"
I said he could say hello. Was he asking for permission again?
"No, not that… Sejin said he wants to say hello too."
"… !"
"Ah, I meant Bae Sejin, not dongsaeng Sejin."
When I turned my head, I saw Bae Sejin, who looked a bit nervous, standing over the door.
Ryu Chungwoo looked a bit flustered.
"Because he claims to be someone he knows… Is that right?"
I was going crazy.
I looked at Bae Sejin, and Bae Sejin cleared his throat.
"That… I guess you make video calls like this often. I thought I'd say hello too…"
"… Um, yes."
If I said okay here without thinking, I'd keep telling useless lies. I searched for a way to end this crazy situation and rolled my head.
It was then.
"What are you all doing there… hmm?"
Keun Sejin, who saw the three of us gathered in front of the door, approached.
I immediately hit the end call button.
Diring.
"Park Moondae, he's on the phone… !"
"Ah."
Bae Sejin was frightened as if he knew it was a mistake. Keun Sejin burst out laughing.
"Were you on the phone? You said you were going to the bathroom, but you were here?"
"I got a call from someone I knew for a while."
"Really?"
Keun Sejin looked back at Ryu Chungwoo and Bae Sejin and shrugged.
"… Do you all know each other?"
"Ah… He's the one who helped Moondae when he was young."
"Ah, I see."
"This is the person Park Moondae has been looking for since last year. That… Ah."
Bae Sejin saw the atmosphere and belatedly shut his mouth.
'Damn it.'
Of course, he thought Keun Sejin would know, so he told him and realized that he didn't know, but it was worse than not doing it.
"Anyway, it happens that I know a little bit…"
"Ah… yes."
"… …"
Keun Sejin kept his mouth shut. An awkward silence for no reason lay between the visitors.
"… First of all, shall we go to rest too? This is Moondae's room originally."
"Well, yes."
Bae Sejin looked back at me with an expression that showed how he knew he made a mistake, but when I shook my head, he quietly kept his mouth shut and followed Ryu Chungwoo out of the room.
"Sejin-ah, let's go in too."
"… …"
Instead of responding to Ryu Chungwoo's call, Keun Sejin rubbed his shoulder.
And after a while, as if he was about to turn around, he suddenly opened his mouth.
"A little… Isn't this too much?"
"… !"
It was an emotional tone.
"How many times have I… Everyone knows, but it seems I'm the only one who doesn't."
Fuck.
It was misleading.
"No, not everyone knows. It's not that kind of thing, but the situation I told you about before…"
"Then why do they know everything if you're saying that it's hard to explain? Even now, hyung…"
For a moment, Keun Sejin seemed to hold back his next words. And shut his mouth.
"… …"
'Open your mouth.'
I barely remembered what to say. And I opened my mouth as calmly as possible.
"I mean…"
"Park Moondae was just flustered. Aren't you sorry for me at all?"
"… !"
Words came out reflexively.
"It's not like that."
"Really? However…"
Keun Sejin opened his mouth as if he was about to shoot, but… he sank again.
"… No, now I… Let's talk later."
"Wait a minute. You…"
"Later."
Keun Sejin muttered to himself in a voice that was not so angry, and in an instant opened the room and left.
Bang.
I could hear the door closing immediately with how fast he left.
Bae Sejin muttered in the hallway.
"… Sorry."
"… …"
I fucked up.