NOVEL NEXT Chapter 24 - It's a Joke
Kang Beom-joon, who confirmed that a crazy guy called on his golden weekend.
He let out a deep sigh.
It seems he must have had a terrible karmic connection with this guy in a past life.
With such thoughts, Kang Beom-joon answered the call.
“So. What’s the matter?”
– CEO. I’m going to use the company studio.
“Ah, was that it? I told you to use it freely. I even gave you a separate key.”
– Still, I should get permission from you. You declared a ban on weekend work from last week, right?
Until recently, RT Entertainment employees had to work weekends almost forcibly.
Especially since there were so few staff.
But now that they’ve reached a stable period with staff reinforcements, there was no need to overwork on weekends.
However, the current Ryu Won didn’t have that luxury.
– I’ll use it until tomorrow morning. There’s a song I need to make urgently.
Kang Beom-joon tilted his head.
Because there were only contradictory words.
Use it until tomorrow morning? (Tomorrow is Monday. Ryu Won is a middle school student. Then what about school?)
There’s a song that needs to be made urgently? (It’s only been a month since Baek Yerin’s album was released. But why is it urgent?)
Kang Beom-joon couldn’t understand, so he had to ask the reason.
“Explain slowly what’s going on. I’ll help as much as I can.”
– Oh… This is a bit touching?
“Think of it as repayment for Music Save. So what’s going on?”
– I told you that day that I had a new dream.
“Right. You said you wanted to see Yerin’s stage in a bigger place.”
– Yes. But I think we need to move that time up a bit. Regardless of the place, within 2 weeks if possible.
“T-Two weeks? Suddenly?”
– Actually…
Kang Beom-joon quietly listened to Ryu Won’s following story.
And as he listened to the boy’s story, he found himself smiling bitterly at some point.
“Geez… When I hear such a story, I can’t refuse.”
* * *
Ryu Won, who entered the studio after finishing his call with Kang Beom-joon.
He took out a small notebook from his pocket.
And he stopped his gaze on a page with neat, pretty handwriting.
It wasn’t Ryu Won’s handwriting, but Baek Yerin’s.
Baek Yerin, who honestly poured out her sadness while crying yesterday.
Ryu Won knew from the beginning. How much she loves her mother.
But since he wasn’t the person directly involved, he couldn’t know the depth of it.
That’s why he made this request to her.
To put her true feelings in this notebook.
To write down the words she wants to say to the precious person in her mind right now.
And the moment he checked the writing… no, the lyrics written in the notebook again, he finally realizes.
This was a ‘letter’.
A letter left for the person Baek Yerin loves the most.
I was thinking of making a song with this letter.
“It seems it will be quite a sad song.”
So the song might be composed of obvious titles and obvious lyrics.
But what I was worried about wasn’t that.
Just one thing…
What I was truly worried about was that the person singing this song would be Baek Yerin.
* * *
Monday.
RT Entertainment held a regular morning meeting after a long time.
Even this was changed due to Kang Beom-joon’s urgent notice on Sunday.
And as soon as the meeting started, Kang Beom-joon made one proposal.
“A concert, you say?”
“Yes. Although the timing is a bit early, I think it’s not bad at this timing.”
The world was full of talk about Baek Yerin.
In simple terms, it meant it was a good time for marketing.
If there was a problem…
“W-Within two weeks?!”
Everyone couldn’t help but be surprised because the timing Kang Beom-joon was thinking of was too early.
“CEO… Everyone here will agree without dissent to holding a concert. But isn’t two weeks a bit too tight?”
“That’s right. Starting from renting the venue, it will surely be difficult for the outsourcing side as well.”
A concert involves really many experts.
Starting with the directing director who takes charge of the overall direction of the concert, like a movie director for movies.
From the stage side to sound, video, broadcasting, special effects, safety, and even the generator truck team gather to create one work called a concert.
That’s why most outsource to performance planning companies.
But even from the outsourced side, two weeks is inevitably a bit tight.
There was no way Kang Beom-joon didn’t know this obvious fact,
And to explain the reason, he had to bring up the story about Baek Yerin’s mother.
Additionally, along with a certain plan Ryu Won had told him.
“……”
As Kang Beom-joon’s story ended, the atmosphere in the meeting room inevitably became solemn in an instant.
In such an atmosphere, Oh Do-hwa, the director of the Creative Department, scratched his head and opened his mouth.
“Somehow I feel like I’ve become the bad guy for trying to persuade the CEO until just now. In that sense, I actively agree with Ryu Won’s opinion. That kid… has romance.”
“I agree too. And probably not just me and Director Oh, but everyone here will think the same.”
“Yes. We’ve grown too attached to those kids over the past few months.”
Kang Beom-joon smiled faintly as he heard the directors’ decisions.
Thinking that he had really hired good people.
“By the way, according to Ryu Won’s plan, doesn’t the song need to be completed within the remaining period? It will take quite some time to write a completely new song, not an existing one…”
Hearing those words, Kang Beom-joon smiled bitterly for some reason.
There’s no way that could happen.
That composer is definitely not an ordinary composer you can find anywhere.
The most important part here is that this matter is related to Baek Yerin.
‘He’ll probably put his heart and soul into it more than anyone else.’
So we just need to wait.
Expecting what kind of amazing picture that guy will show us this time.
* * *
Monday afternoon.
Baek Yerin, sitting in a chair in RT Entertainment’s studio, blankly watched Ryu Won operating the computer.
When she honestly poured out her feelings two days ago, he said this.
Let’s try to make a song out of the feelings I have for mom now, the words I want to convey.
And let’s play it directly on the big stage of a concert.
─ Now, in that sense, you write it directly.
─ W-What?
─ The lyrics, of course. It’s meaningless if I do everything, right? I’ll help as much as I can, so write comfortably.
It was so sudden that at first, she couldn’t write a single letter.
But because the subject was what it was, and with Ryu Won’s help…
Baek Yerin completed the lyrics in just 2 hours.
And.
─ I’ll try my best to let you hear it on Monday.
Ryu Won kept that promise.
He had completed the song just over the weekend.
“Want to listen?”
At that moment, Ryu Won carefully asked Baek Yerin.
Baek Yerin nodded and answered immediately.
“Yes. I really want to hear it.”
From Baek Yerin’s position, she couldn’t refuse, and there was no reason to refuse.
Because she knows what he worked hard for over the weekend.
It was solely for her and her mom.
Even just thinking about that sincerity, she had to listen.
No, she wanted to listen.
Since Baek Yerin started singing, Ryu Won’s songs have always been by her side.
‘Honestly, when I first heard them, they were all so good that I was shocked.’
Ryu Won’s songs are really charming. Sometimes they’re flashy, sometimes they’re eloquent, and sometimes they make your heart warm…
Yes. If expressed in color, his songs are white that can become any color.
That’s why she couldn’t help but look forward to it.
Even if the song he’s about to play now is a sad song.
Ryu Won smiled bitterly for some reason at the sight of Baek Yerin nodding. And he operated the mouse to play the song.
Eventually, the melody of the song started flowing through the speakers, and Baek Yerin opened her eyes wide, realizing a certain truth.
Now she seemed to understand why he smiled bitterly before playing the song.
Until now, his songs were always comfortable to sing like perfectly fitting clothes. But this song…
Was completely the opposite.
* * *
“What’s this… Why is the atmosphere like this?”
Kang Beom-joon, who entered the studio where Baek Yerin and Ryu Won were together.
He tilted his head, seeing Baek Yerin and Ryu Won’s expressions that somehow felt gloomy.
“Don’t tell me it’s because of the song?”
“Well… You could say that.”
At Ryu Won’s affirmation, Kang Beom-joon couldn’t help but be curious.
What kind of song did he make for the kids to react like this?
“This is perfect timing. Please listen once too, CEO.”
With those words, Ryu Won played the song again.
And a moment later.
After listening to the entire song, Kang Beom-joon’s eyes reddened for some reason. If you listen closely, he was even sniffling.
As expected, it was worthy of a song made by Ryu Won. Perhaps it might be the best in terms of stirring emotions.
If Baek Yerin sings this song directly at the concert venue…
‘We’re in trouble.’
Kang Beom-joon felt tremendous excitement to the point where he wanted to see that scene quickly.
But he wasn’t planning to see that scene from the audience’s perspective.
Originally, Ryu Won was thinking of not revealing this song to anyone until the day of the concert.
But as he made the song, naturally the sound of a certain instrument went in, and the person he naturally thought of who he wanted to play it live came to mind.
“You want me to join in too?”
“Yes. There’s acoustic guitar sound in the first verse and last part of this song, right? I was hoping you could take charge of that part, CEO.”
If Kang Beom-joon stands on stage like a special guest, the atmosphere will brighten up in an instant.
If this song is dropped in such an atmosphere, it will come as a big reversal to the audience just by that.
Ryu Won continued:
“After all, when it comes to folk songs in Korea, you’re the person mentioned, CEO.”
“Well… that’s true.”
“There’s no way your guitar skills have rusted just because you took a break from activities.”
Every word Ryu Won said was correct.
But as he kept listening, Kang Beom-joon had one question.
“Anyway, my role is a supporting role, so of course it’s okay to stand on stage… Don’t tell me for free? I’m quite expensive, you know.”
“……”
“It’s a joke.”
Ryu Won thought.
Was it really a joke…