Chapter 38

It was right then.

A week ago, in the car on the way back from Gangwon-do, his expression was exactly the same.

He had plugged in his headphones, which didn't even play music, and stared blankly out the window, lost in thought.

At the time, I didn't think much of it.

He soon returned to his usual calm expression.

But now, it seems different.

His expression looks much more serious than it did then.

Why is he like this?

As I was lost in thought, Jiho and Rihyeok's school uniforms suddenly caught my eye.

The blue jackets with red ties.

The uniforms of the performing arts high school, known for having many idols, seemed slightly worn out today.

Well, I can understand Jiho's uniform being like that.

He always comes home covered in dirt.

But Rihyeok's uniform seemed similar to Jiho's today.

I'm telling this story because every time the kids go to school, our main dancer gets up early in the morning to iron their uniforms.

It seems Biju didn't iron today.

I thought it was because I woke up late and didn't see it, but it seems that wasn't the case.

Not just the youngest, even Rihyeok's usually neat uniform looked shabby.

When I realized this, strange things started to catch my eye.

Biju's recent odd behavior, perhaps.

He seems fine when everyone is around, but when he has some alone time, he just zones out.

Like he has something on his mind.

What should I do about him?

If it were any other kid, I would just go over and put my arm around his neck, act friendly, and joke, "Got any worries lately? Want me to listen?"

But with him, it feels awkward.

He has a good personality, but his aura isn't easy to approach.

There's something about him that makes me feel I shouldn't be too casual.

Plus, I can't really follow his emotional line.

Over the past five months, since December last year, I've observed the kids and have a rough idea of their characters.

Especially Jihyun, Rihyeok, and Jiho were easy to figure out.

But I still don't really understand Biju.

He seems to have a lot on his mind, but he doesn't talk much.

“Uncle, what are you doing? Aren't you eating?”

Rihyeok, sitting opposite me, looked at me.

When I came to my senses, everyone was already eating.

Biju, who had looked so serious, was back to his usual self.

He laughed along with Jiho's tantrums and comforted him.

Was I imagining things?

He looked so normal that I thought I might have seen things, but that wasn't the case.

No one else had noticed, but Biju was holding his chopsticks backward while eating.

The kid who always irons his uniform neatly doing this is definitely not normal.

Well, anyway, let's eat first.

We have a long day ahead today.

It's also the day we decide the direction of our work.

But the amount of meat seemed less than usual. After the music cafe, we always got 1.5 times the usual amount.

There was no need to find the culprit.

The sauce from the bulgogi plate was dripping like ants chasing sugar, all leading to one spot.

“...”

Jiho, who met my eyes, flinched with food in his cheeks.

Then he boldly defended himself.

“I'm still in my growth spurt, Uncle. Ah!”

I pinched his cheeks like cheese.

* * *

After finishing our meal, we each picked up an ice cream and walked down the alley, watching the sunset.

“Uncle, are you still mad?”

“Not really.”

I wasn't really mad at all.

Unlike the others, I held an expensive Haagen-Dazs bar.

Enjoying the crunchy texture of the hazelnut, I walked along.

Seeing that I was in a better mood, the youngest stuck to me like an excited puppy and chattered away.

“I really had a hard time. The kids kept teasing me because I laughed at everything, thinking I was fine.”

“Then don't laugh.”

“I'm an entertainer now, Uncle. I need to manage my image.”

His young face took on a mature expression, making me laugh.

If you're going to say that, at least put down the lollipop.

“Plus, Gil Chae-kyung subtly dissing me while pretending to be friendly is really annoying. She's so cunning...”

“Gil Chae-kyung?”

It had been a while since I heard that name.

The youngest member of Girls on Top, who openly ignored us when we went to Hwa Entertainment.

A girl group member who became our arch-nemesis after rejecting Jiho's confession in elementary school, saying he was ugly.

“You go to the same school as her?”

“Now we're in the same class. She started posting memes in our class chat on Friday morning and led the teasing.”

“If you were in the same school in middle school and now in the same class, you should almost be getting married.”

“Uncle, are you crazy?”

Jiho shook his head.

“I don't even want to imagine it. Even if dirt gets in my eyes, I won't do it.”

“Do it if dirt gets in your eyes.”

Hearing this, Jihyun, who had been silent, put down his red bean ice cream and asked seriously.

“Jiho, if she had a hundred billion won, would it be possible?”

“What are you talking about, Uncle? Our dad has a hundred billion won.”

“Then what about a trillion?”

Rihyeok, throwing his ice cream stick into a street trash can, interjected.

“Jihyun, if you had a trillion won, would you marry Jiho? I might consider the uncle over there.”

“Who, Uncle Woo? He doesn't do housework, but at least he looks good. It would be fun to look at his face.”

“True, I agree.”

Hearing this, I nodded.

“Yeah, Jihyun. If it were a trillion, I'd do it.”

The youngest's eyes, which had been following the conversation, turned triangular.

After a while of chuckling, we tried to console the sulking youngest.

“Don't you like being teased?”

“I can tease others, but I can't be teased.”

“You have a twisted mind. I admire you.”

Patting the youngest's shoulder, I said.

And I realized something again.

The audio is missing again.

Turning my head, I saw Biju walking alone in a distant spot.

His gaze was far away, looking at the sky.

He was staring at the sky, which had turned red at sunset.

Just as I thought his brown hair looked golden in the sunset, Rihyeok asked, sticking to my side.

“Uncle, why has he been like that? He's holding his chopsticks backward.”

“You noticed too?”

“Of course. I wanted to point it out, but he seemed in a bad mood.”

“Me too. Biju was completely different today. He even didn't iron my uniform... Ah!”

I might get addicted to the feel of his cheeks.

They were so soft, stretching like sticky rice cake.

“Grow up a bit, kid. Is Biju your servant?”

Hearing this, Rihyeok tilted his head.

“A few days ago, Biju ironed Uncle's laundry that had piled up. He pretended to be sleeping on the sofa after finishing the work.”

“I don't remember that.”

“Really?”

“...I always feel sorry for Biju. That's why I work hard.”

Ignoring the eldest brother's sarcastic looks, I changed the subject.

“Jihyun.”

“Yes?”

“Do you know anything? You're the closest to Biju.”

“Ah.”

But Jihyun's reaction was strange.

It was like a computer.

His face looked like it was about to show a loading bar with a percentage.

“Um, everyone has things they can't talk about, right?”

At this unexpected statement, Jiho, Rihyeok, and I exchanged glances.

“Is he sick?”

“No, it's not that.”

“Then what is it?”

“Um...”

I realized one thing.

I won't tell Jihyun anything if I have a secret in the future.

How can he not hide his expression?

“Um...”

“Alright, let's stop here. From your reaction, it seems we shouldn't interfere.”

“Why? I'm curious.”

Rihyeok, who hadn't caught on, glanced at me and the sprawled-out youngest.

I nodded.

“Well, let's ask next time.”

Only then did Jihyun visibly relax.

He had felt like a hard rock, but now he seemed like a soft plastic lump.

“Let's focus on the work. It's urgent.”

“Oh, I forgot about that.”

Rihyeok asked.

“So, what are we going to do today?”

* * *

In the New Black studio on the second floor of the company.

It had only been a few weeks since we got the studio, but thanks to our team housewife's interior design, it looked neat and tidy.

Toothbrushes and daily items were organized.

The storage cabinet was neatly arranged.

Compared to the Scarlet studio next door, which had a pink sofa and spotted cushions, ours felt very modern.

Standing in front of the sofa, Rihyeok asked on behalf of everyone.

“So, what are we going to do now?”

“Nothing much.”

Jihyun spoke for me.

“We're going to listen to music. Just listen. There's no need to do anything special, just sit quietly and listen.”

“So, how long?”

“Uncle, how many songs?”

I clicked on the folder icon on my laptop screen.

Calculating the time based on about three minutes per song, I said,

“Well, not too long. About five hours.”

“Wait, what? Five hours?”

I smiled at the youngest, who was glancing at the entrance. I used the evil smile I learned from our manager.

Blocking the door, I clapped my hands.

“Anyone else have questions?”

I laughed at the sight of my siblings closing their eyes and accepting their fate.

“I knew it.”

* * *

The premise of the experiment Jihyun and I were conducting was simple.

The musical color we like the most is our color, our identity as a group.

I had this thought while watching the music cafe.

Just like the expressions on the kids' faces when watching Between, there must be music we subconsciously like and dislike.

So, if there is a common musical color that everyone likes, it could be our group's identity.

Of course, everyone's tastes can differ.

But if we find music that everyone likes and wants to do, there must be a common ground.

When light passes through a prism, it splits into various colors according to the wavelength.

If we consider a song as a genre of music, there must be a song that can encompass all our colors when we listen to it carefully.

This is the process of passing light through a prism.

The differences among us are not a problem.

If we know the musical foundation, adjusting the rest is as easy as eating cold porridge.

For example, if Jihyun likes hip-hop, we can make a song centered around him under the overall direction.

We can add hip-hop elements to the music we like and want to do.

That's why Jihyun and I carefully selected music by digging through the Billboard charts and various Korean music sites.

Roughly 300 songs, categorized by genre, atmosphere, and the emotions they evoke.

We even consulted the A&R team members for classification. They seemed to wonder why we were doing this, but whatever.

There's no harm in trying.

“Alright, let's start.”

We all gathered on the sofa, with a camera set up.

Then we started playing the songs.

One song, two songs, three songs.

As the songs continued, we skipped the ones that didn't get a good reaction from everyone, especially the heavy metal songs that made everyone go “Ugh.”

We originally planned for five hours, but after about two hours, Jiho complained about hearing things, so we took breaks and continued.

How long did it take?

We ended the experiment and sprawled out on the sofa, exhausted.

“...Do you really think this will work?”

“Let's see.”

Hearing Rihyeok's voice, which sounded like a wet sponge, I also got up, feeling heavy.

Then I asked Biju, who was sprawled out next to me.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, I'm fine...”

“I didn't ask you, but are you not fine, Uncle?”

Seeing my exhausted siblings, I felt guilty.

It seemed like a good idea before we started, but now it feels a bit silly.

We should have just discussed and decided on the musical color.

“...I'm sorry, guys.”

Saying this, I sat at the studio table.

Jihyun, munching on a banana, rolled his chair over.

“Are we monitoring now?”

“The sooner, the better. You'll help, right?”

“...”

“Trying to mumble while eating a banana?”

“Why is my throat tight?”

While drinking water, the kids alternated their gazes between the sprawled-out sofa and me, then approached me as if resigned.

“Play it, Uncle.”

The analysis began with those words.

At first, Jihyun and I sat at the table, quickly flipping through the videos and checking O, X, etc.

This one is liked by four but not by one.

This one is liked by two but not by three.

While making the checklist, we started to notice a strange pattern.

“Hey, this...”

“Works?”

Songs that all five of us preferred and liked started to emerge, showing a pattern. The emotions, atmosphere, and narrative they shared.

The common theme we liked was love.

Not just the typical romantic love, but a broader sense of human affection.

It wasn't limited to gender, but rather the love between children and parents, friends and friends.

The atmosphere we liked was warmth.

Even Rihyeok, who seemed to prefer a cold atmosphere, liked a warm one.

It wasn't just about cheerful songs, but the tone of the songs. We liked songs that viewed people from a warm perspective.

Broad love as the theme, warm songs.

Finally, the emotion we liked was joy.

There was no specific limit.

We liked both the joy of a spirited dance and the calm joy.

“Seems like we're getting a clearer picture. Can you see it too?”

“Yes, I can.”

Jihyun nodded repeatedly.

The two of us were combining the results of our analysis with the work we had done on Untitled.

Our goal concept was a refreshing summer vibe.

The musical direction we wanted was broad love, warm, and joyful songs.

The picture is starting to form.

Five boys playing joyfully all day, then gathering by a bonfire on the beach at night, singing and chatting.

Imagining the atmosphere of Jules Verne's "Fifteen Little Men on the Isle of California," I also started to envision the stage.

Then everything clicked in my head.

It was as if the previously blocked ideas were now perfectly formed. I could even imagine the audience's expressions.

“Jihyun, look at this.”

Quickly pulling out an A4 sheet, I turned on the composition program and enthusiastically drew shapes while explaining.

“Move this part a bit to the back, and this part to the front. Extend the chorus a bit.”

“Wow.”

“Doesn't it fit perfectly?”

After about ten minutes of deliberation, Jihyun and I looked at the paper as if it were a treasure.

“Does it work? Does it seem to work?”

“It seems to work.”

We opened our eyes wide.

Then we looked at each other and smiled.

Jihyun looks adorable right now.

About 0.3 Kim Deok-soon level.

Everything seemed beautiful as all our worries were resolved. Just as Jihyun and I were feeling moved,

“What is it? Is it done?”

Turning around, I saw Biju standing behind us, rubbing his eyes. Rihyeok and Jiho, like goldfish waking up from a nap, blinked and approached.

Jihyun and I excitedly explained.

The process we went through, where we got stuck, and how we solved it.

It seemed like we were rambling, and the kids didn't understand.

Only then did I explain the purpose of the experiment and the process step by step.

The kids' expressions gradually changed.

Why are they reacting like that?

Just as I was wondering, Rihyeok laughed, his facial muscles trembling.

“Uncle, instead of doing this, why didn't you just ask each of us to make a list of our favorite songs?”

“Huh?”

“Then you could have just found the common points.”

Jihyun and I looked at each other.

“Oh, right.”

“Right.”

Rihyeok's face twisted like a demon's.

“Oh, right? You guys are really something!”

The joy of finally being able to title "Untitled" was short-lived.

That day, Jihyun and I were scolded by the kids for almost an hour.