Chapter 2

Spotlight of a Genius Vocalist Chapter 2

Chapter 2. Misfortune

“So, what about the compensation?”

Park Cheol-ho smiled bitterly and poured soju into his glass.

He was my manager during my trainee days, and we got along so well that even after a long time, we kept in touch as friends.

“I got it all because I was recognized as the at-fault spouse. It took longer than I thought. Those bastards.”

It had been six months since that incident.

I went through the divorce proceedings with Da-young and became single again.

“Come on, forget it all here today!”

I avoided meeting people by making various excuses.

Right after that, I also left the company and kept drinking alone.

“Hey, what was so special about that guy that he made our ex-sister-in-law fall for him head over heels?”

“I don’t know. I heard he’s a singer, much younger than us.”

“Ha, that’s funny too.”

He said that and downed a glass.

“Anyway, it’s a good thing you didn’t hit him with that wine bottle. You almost went to jail.”

Park Cheol-ho laughed heartily and accidentally swept the soju bottle in front of him with his arm.

The bottle, which had just been opened, spilled soju all over.

“Are you drunk? The table is all wet.”

While wiping the table with a napkin, he laughed even louder.

There were about seven bottles of soju in front of us.

Of course, we had finished them all.

As the alcohol kicked in, the conversation flowed smoothly.

“So, what are you going to do now? You quit your job and have nothing to do. Do you want to work part-time at our distribution company?”

“I’m fine.”

I had something I wanted to do.

After spending six months on the sofa, killing time, a dream that I had once abandoned came back to me.

“Music... should I try it again?”

Park Cheol-ho’s eyes widened a bit.

“You hated it so much back then.”

“I thought the way the agency treated me was really unfair.”

I didn’t like how the manager scored my singing every day, and how they tried to mold my dance moves and gestures like mass-produced products.

After working in a company, I understood.

The entertainment industry is a business.

The agency knew how to create people who could make money.

“Right. Back then, my debut kept getting delayed too.”

“Yeah, that was a bit of a setback. When I turned 25, I started to think my dreams were too grand.”

“There were some areas where you were lacking. Everything was good, but you lacked something that could really draw people in. Kids with lower evaluation scores than you got your spot.”

Park Cheol-ho casually sipped his drink while digging into my heart.

“I got that kind of evaluation... Anyway, I want to enjoy singing. I’ve been thinking of myself as a provider for too long.”

“So, think about it more. Back then, you were young, but now that you’re older, things will be different, right? Are you going to debut as an idol in your 30s? Will there be fans? What if your divorce history is known? Will any agency want to sign you?”

Park Cheol-ho kept emphasizing reality to me.

Maybe because of the alcohol, his words were a bit harsh, but they were all true.

The more I listened to him, the more I thought of the silent house I lived in.

It was time to get out of there.

I want to make music.

No, I’ve always wanted to.

For years, the desire I had hidden deep inside tortured me.

Ding dong.

Just as I was about to say something, an alert sounded.

It was my first time at a hunting pocha, and it was interesting.

If you liked a table, you could see which table it was and even play games together through the tablet on the table.

“Hey, what about table 73? She was really pretty.”

“Cut it out, we’re old men now...”

Park Cheol-ho.

He looked like a grumpy bear trying to charm much younger girls.

“No, I’m not going to do it. I said I wouldn’t come if it was going to be like this.”

I didn’t want to come in the first place.

I had forgotten about Da-young, but I didn’t want to meet anyone else.

It felt like my heart had turned cold since that day.

I realized for the first time that love could not last forever.

Until then, I had only known practice.

I came here because I heard there was a live hall, and it intrigued me.

“You’re so picky at times. Come on, have another drink.”

Park Cheol-ho laughed and poured more soju.

Again, clink.

As I finished one glass after another, my head started to spin.

“Hey, how are you going to start with music?”

“I don’t know... My head hurts, just leave me alone.”

Even as we talked, a few women approached me.

Each time, I forced a smile and shook my head.

“You’re really popular...”

Park Cheol-ho looked at me enviously.

I shrugged.

“Am I?”

“Yeah, man... Wherever you go, you’re in your mid-20s.”

Mid-20s... It made me think of the past.

Park Cheol-ho, who seemed to be losing his mind, buried his head on the table.

I was also feeling dizzy.

“Hey, Cheol-ho, do you regret quitting your job as a manager?”

“What, regret? You know it was hell there.”

As I mentioned earlier, Park Cheol-ho and I met at the same agency.

It was one of the large agencies, but the culture was very military-like.

Even the friendly Cheol-ho had a hard time adapting.

“I don’t regret leaving either. But now that I’m here, I want to sing.”

“Oh, so when I tried to stop you from leaving, you should have just stayed quiet.”

“Hey, I was in my mid-20s back then. I kept getting selected for debut groups but never made it. I had a family then. I was feeling anxious.”

“That’s why you couldn’t make it. If you have a dream, you have to give up something.”

A late-blooming trainee.

That was me.

I heard that one girl group leader was a trainee for 10 years, but I couldn’t bear it.

Married idols were unheard of.

Living in a fantasy world, from debut to marriage.

There was no part that made sense to the company or to me.

In the end, I couldn’t keep either the music or Da-young.

“Is that so...”

Then, I looked around blankly.

Hongdae night pocha.

Everyone was trying their best to join other tables.

It reminded me of my past efforts, and a bitter smile came to my face.

“Hey, Cheol-ho, when can I sing here?”

There was no response.

He seemed to be asleep, his head on the table.

He must have had four bottles of soju, including the one we just ordered...

It was understandable.

The atmosphere was getting heated.

It was already midnight, so it made sense.

Then, a man’s voice came through the microphone.

“Hello, everyone! Welcome to the night pocha! To heat up this atmosphere even more, our staff has prepared the Ultimate Singing Contest! The first prize is a free table! Second prize and above will receive other gifts! Sign-ups are open!”

As he said that, EDM music started, and the guests cheered.

Finally, the moment I had been waiting for arrived.

“Hey, hey. I’m going up there.”

Shaking Park Cheol-ho didn’t get a response.

Maybe because of the alcohol, I wanted to sing in front of people for the first time in a long time.

To fill this empty feeling.

* * *

After signing up and sitting down, Park Cheol-ho was already back to his senses.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah, I feel better after a nap. I guess I’m really getting old.”

Park Cheol-ho, despite his bear-like build, sighed and said.

“I just signed up.”

“What? For the singing contest here?”

“Yeah.”

I took a sip of water.

Maybe because I had been drinking, my throat wasn’t in the best condition.

“Didn’t you stop singing completely after leaving the agency?”

“Yeah. This is probably the first time I’ve sung properly. And after getting married, I felt more responsible.”

“What kind of responsibility?”

“At least I had to support her. I didn’t want her to be ashamed of marrying me. I avoided looking at the stage because I was afraid I might get attached again.”

Park Cheol-ho finished the remaining soju in one gulp.

“You did the right thing. The problem is, it’s definitely too late now. Who would hire someone over 30 these days? There are so many young and talented people.”

“That’s true.”

“Of course, one in ten thousand might quit their job in their 30s to pursue music and succeed.”

He sighed for a moment after saying that.

“But that’s not you. Think about it. If you switch to something else at this age and lose your career, it’s really the end. You won’t be able to get a job as a new hire anywhere.”

I nodded at his words.

He was right.

Losing even a year of experience at 31 is almost the same as being out of the competition.

There are employees like me everywhere.

Office workers are fighting to stay relevant in the field.

“Still, I want to do it. I’ve never had a backup plan.”

My mindset was simple.

Now that I was free from the weight of being a provider.

I just wanted to live freely.

Supporting two people is tough, but as a single person, I can manage.

If it doesn’t work out, I can always do something like loading and unloading packages.

“Then, why don’t you look into a company band or something? What are you going to do? You don’t have a plan, do you?”

Park Cheol-ho’s words stung.

I wanted to do music without any specific plan.

I might have lost my way because of Da-young.

I felt like I was drifting aimlessly in a small boat on the Pacific Ocean.

“Still, you were the singing AlphaGo back then. I admit it. Your pitch, breathing, and stage presence were top-notch. No wonder the trainees called you AlphaGo and said you were a robot. But it’s been a while, so it might be tough...”

Park Cheol-ho looked at me with concern.

I was also unsure.

I signed up on a whim, but it was still a stage.

About 10 people had already participated and did pretty well.

I was the last one.

“Don’t lose your composure here?”

Park Cheol-ho, hiccupping, tried to encourage me like he did in his manager days.

“Hey, you’re back to your manager habits. Am I a kid?”

“You used to cry easily as a trainee... It was really hard to take care of a grown kid back then.”

Thinking about it, that was true.

“I’m fine. I won’t do that anymore.”

I smiled.

I had no more emotions to cry over.

I was completely drained.

After circling the alley, I hit a wall.

At first, I just wanted someone to look at me again.

I wanted to get my family back.

Of course, everything was over.

There was a lump in my chest.

I wanted to live following that lump.

I bit my lip.

I wanted to fill my body with that lump.

I just wanted to rise higher.

Now, I want to touch the stars.

I wanted all the spotlights to shine on me.

For no other reason.

“Now, our last participant, Mr. Gangbaram? Please come up!”

The stage was calling me.

Again, something rose from my chest.

I didn’t know if it was the alcohol or something else.

I was that drunk.

As soon as I stepped onto the stage in the center of the bar, a microphone was handed to me.

“Ah, ah.”

I smiled, satisfied, and the intro music started naturally.

There was a karaoke machine in front of me.

The song I chose was Ian’s “Smoke City.”

They weren’t as popular now, but a few years ago, they dominated the music scene.

Just as I was about to follow the melody slowly,

“I’ve seen everything...”

My voice didn’t rise as high as I wanted.

It had been a while, and I had been drinking.

I heard people laughing.

Everyone had performed quite well today, singing famous songs.

My performance was the weakest.

I looked around slowly.

Everyone was watching me.

I missed a line, flustered.

“Ah, it seems this participant is having a hard time adapting~”

The host’s voice was grating.

People clapped and laughed even more at his words.

Would I become a comic character here?

Surrounded by the dark lights of the hunting pocha, I was the brightest one.

Could I lose?

I didn’t know who I had to beat, but I wanted to sing.

I wanted to express my honest emotions.

I didn’t want my voice to be drowned out by people’s laughter.

I looked away from the karaoke machine.

I stared at the opposite side, and two more lines passed.

“Ah, are you giving up? If so, please put down the microphone and come down!”

People laughed again at the host’s words.

This must have been the scene they wanted.

The atmosphere is heated by such unexpected situations, not by the ambiguous voice of an ordinary person.

I moved the microphone away from my mouth.

Just to take a moment to gather myself.

“Then, we will consider this participant as a forfeit...”

At that moment, the lyrics I had in mind came out.

My voice came out.

I thought I could finish it with more emotion.

I wanted to show myself and let my voice out.