章 142: Spring, the Season of Harvest (4)
His wobbling head pressed against the beer bottle.
"Seeing Seo Jijoon sunbae and Chief Lee stick together like that!"
"Made you envious?"
"That's right! I was so envious I felt like I would cry. I feel like I'm suffocating whenever I go meet the team leader. My team leader. Than my homeroom teacher in my last year of high school!"
"Your team leader is scarier?"
"How do you know me so well? Can you hear my thoughts?"
"Yeah."
Since you've been saying the same thing over and over again.
Looking at the time, it was getting late. It had already been an hour since Song Inho has been crawling around on my rug. He's even started rolling on it now. I couldn't even get off my sofa with him flailing his long limbs around.
Song Inho rolled over to me and grabbed my ankle.
He looked up at me like a puppy and mumbled,
"I wish you were my manager."
Something surged inside me.
I barely managed to contain it.
I shook him off, but he came back and held my ankle again like it was a lifeline. I stood still as I watched him go on and on about me being his manager in a teary voice.
It felt like a trial whenever I saw him.
It started ever since he handed me the independent film scenario that day.
Looking back, I had struggled with temptation so much that it was a wonder that I could hold back. My throat felt like it was burning. I had thought about taking it for myself countless times.
Since he was also filming the movie the Team 2 Leader had got for him, it was unknown which movie Song Inho got an award for, but the independent film had seemed like an unscratched lotto ticket at that time.
If I wasn't so cautious that I might stray onto the wrong path and become a piece of trash…
If I hadn't become confident in Nam Joyoon and Lee Songha's success after seeing them try so hard.
I might have snatched that scenario away. I was that tempted.
After overcoming the temptation of the scenario, I was now tempted in the actor known as Song Inho.
The result of which was in front of me right now. I lured him in. I made it so that he would say, 'I wish hyung was my manager,' out of his own volition.
I was waiting for the right moment. If I wanted, I could do it right now.
I could snatch the actor, Song Inho, from the Team 2 Leader.
However, a thought kept crossing my mind.
Song Inho was troubled because of the Team 2 Leader. And the fact that the Team 2 Leader acted against Nam Joyoon in the shadows. The strained relationship between the Team 2 Leader and me. What would I think if I didn't have these circumstances that enhanced my temptation?
Would I still be able to snatch Song Inho for myself?
"Hyung, I have a shoot tomorrow…"
"I'll wake you up early so sleep. Don't throw up after rolling around everywhere."
"I want to work with you."
Soon.
I unconsciously mumbled just as my doorbell rang.
I wasn't expecting anyone. I pushed Song Inho to the side and opened the door.
The first thing I saw was a helmet. A helmet the size of a rice cooker that race car drivers would wear. Seeing that the person's leather pants wrapped around their long, slender legs, it was a woman. Her gloved hand was holding an almost bursting convenience store bag.
The woman held the bag out. Bottles clinked inside.
"It's a bribe."
The moment I thought her voice was familiar, she flipped up her helmet visor.
Lee Taehee's exhausted face was revealed underneath.
"Did you come alone? How did you get here?"
"I rode the scooter."
Lee Taehee said while shaking her helmet.
"Scooter?"
"It's Seoyoung's. I made sure to be careful of any reporters along the way. I even disguised myself with LJ's clothes."
"No, reporters aside, it's good that you came here in one piece."
Truly.
I led Lee Taehee to the sofa and asked,
"If you needed something, you should have called. And what's all this alcohol? Bribe?"
"I have a request."
Lee Taehee fumbled through her leather pants.
Then she stopped.
"What's that?"
Her gaze was locked on a curtain on the other side of the living room.
To be precise, her gaze was locked onto Song Inho's feet, which were poking out from beneath the curtain.
And here I thought he went to the bathroom.
"A thief?"
"No. What are you doing in there?"
I pulled the curtain aside, and Song Inho slowly walked out.
"I thought the team leader had come to take me away."
"Are you some runaway slave?"
When I thought about the Team 2 Leader bursting into my home, I felt nauseous with no need for alcohol.
As soon as he came out of the curtain, Song Inho got on his knees and greeted Lee Taehee before rolling around again. Lee Taehee just stared at him.
"Him being here is a secret. The situation is a bit complicated."
"Okay. And me being here is a secret as well. Especially to Songha."
"Yeah, okay. What is it you wanted to request?"
Lee Taehee handed me a USB drive.
"These are the songs I've been working on until now."
"The one for the full album?"
"Yes. I made three songs, but I wanted you to listen to them first."
While I was setting up my laptop, Lee Taehee placed the alcohol she had bought on top of the table. Then she cracked open a rice wine once I told her I would drive her home.
Song Inho followed suit by bringing an empty beer bottle to his lips. What a sight.
I inserted the USB drive. While I looked for the files, I asked,
"If it was a request like this, you could have asked me anytime. Why did you come alone at night?"
"The girls and even the company employees are all waiting for me to finish my songs. Once they are handed over to the Audio and Recording Team and are approved, we'll start preparing for the album right away. That's why I wanted to hide it."
Lee Taehee calmly replied.
"If you don't like it after listening to them, I wish you would remove them from the album."
"What?"
I turned around before playing her songs.
Lee Taehee wiped her mouth after gulping down the rice wine.
"Neptune is fine right now. But I don't know if it'll continue to be fine in the future."
"Did you hear some bad rumors?"
It has now been four years since Neptune debuted, and there were a lot of discussions about what to do amongst the people up top. Lee Taehee, Im Seoyoung, and LJ were all working hard to find their place, but Lee Songha was just too far ahead.
It was unfortunate, but at some point, some people began calling them 'Lee Songha's group'.
"There's a limit to a one-man team. Even teams that are like family to each other break up due to issues or business. That might happen to us if our next album flops. It needs to be a success, but I don't know if that'll be the case with my songs. So…"
Lee Taehee looked at me with eyes full of trust.
Her gaze fell heavily on my shoulders.
"I hoped that you could listen to them first. To see how they are."
"I think this song will be a hit. It's the best song I've heard in my life!"
Song Inho admired when I played the first song.
"This, this is the song of my life. It's so good!"
Song Inho danced like an inflatable tube dancer with a beer bottle in hand when he heard the second song.
On the third song, he teared up and began shouting Lee Taehee's name. Even with such a devoted fan, Lee Taehee didn't take her eyes off me while holding the rice wine bottle like she was going to crush it.
Once the songs ended, the living room became silent.
Lee Taehee waited a moment before asking,
"How were they?"
"Hmm, let me wash my face first. Let's talk once I clear up my mind."
I entered the bathroom with Lee Taehee's gaze still fixated on me.
I turned on the faucet and walked in circled.
I had no idea which song would be successful.
To be honest, I had some confidence beforehand since Royal Family and Alive were heading towards success through my own judgment, not from seeing the future. I had thought that I had a decent discerning eye now.
Damn it. I didn't know which of the three songs was the best.
Thinking back, I was confident that Satellite would take first place because I had seen the future.
What should I say to her?
Should I tell her I didn't know?
Although her gaze was full of firm belief, without a hint from the future, I was no different from one of those fortune tellers. The Audio and Recording Team, who were experts at this stuff, and the Team 3 Leader would know much more about this than me.
The music director was the one who rightly predicted Lee Taehee's Royal Family OST would be a success.
First, I should let Kim Hyunjo and other employees listen to her songs first…
But, even if Lee Taehee's songs were chosen in the end, if the album flops…
Lee Taehee's concerns weren't completely unfounded.
Lee Songha was definitely pulling Neptune up, but if the difference between her and the other members continued to grow like this, there was a likely chance some conflict would break out, whether it was within the team or in their fandom.
Team 3 had multiple meetings regarding this exact issue. How could we make Neptune a more robust team? How could we increase the other members' presence in the group, instead of it becoming 'Lee Songha's group'?
There was no doubt that their full album would either greatly improve or degrade their current situation.
I would have no other qualms if I could see the future at a time like this.
I held onto the cold sink and looked in the mirror. I saw a frowning face.
I hadn't seen a future for Royal Family or Alive either.
Can't you help me just this once?
***
The tap closed. Lee Taehee and Song Inho, who were both staring at the bathroom with bottles in hand, held their breaths. However, the tap began flowing again. They let out their breaths and exchanged glances.
"Umm, sunbae."
"Me?"
Song Inho nodded his head in a big motion as he said,
"If the chief, I mean, hyung says they aren't good, then are you really going to give up on them? It must have been hard to produce three songs."
"The success of the album is more important."
Lee Taehee replied without hesitation.
Song Inho opened and closed his mouth before mumbling,
"Amazing. You must really trust him a lot."
"His judgment has never been wrong when making important decisions."
"Well, since you've seen him work all along. I'll also think something will be a success if he says it will. I showed him an independent film scenario before, and at that time, he said…"
Song Inho stood up, a little tilted, as he attempted to imitate him,
"It looks really good to me. Enough that I want to steal it."
"Ah."
"Then he said that he would help out whenever I came upon any difficulties while filming. That's why I've been coming here in secret. My team leader hates him. It'll be a big problem if he finds out. But if I just stay there, I feel like I'm going to suffocate-!"
Song Inho suddenly got up and flopped onto the sofa.
So abruptly that Lee Taehee flinched.
He snatched the cushion Lee Taehee was leaning against and hugged it tightly.
"I'm envious of Neptune sunbaes and Nam Joyoon sunbae, who joined the company recently. I'm envious of all of you. I wish hyung was my manager too. I can't even call him my manager!"
Song Inho shouted while rolling on the rug.
His eyes, which burned with fighting spirit, became teary again.
Seeing this strange sight, Lee Taehee laughed a little.
"If Songha learns about this, she'll order a ton of late night snacks."
"Pardon?"
"No, you just made me think of someone."
Lee Taehee pointed to the bottles placed on the table.
"Stop crying and have a drink."
"You too, sunbae."
Soon, two bottles clinked together.
"I hope we get to work together sometime. With oppa."
"I hope so too. Though it's an empty dream. It won't happen anyways."
Song Inho said with one hand holding the cushion and the other holding the bottle.
"Hyung is a chief, and the team leader is a team leader."
***
"You seem very busy these days, chief."
A man with an easygoing appearance said as he entered carrying coffee.
"You must have no time now that both the movie and drama are huge hits"
"I can always make time for you no matter how busy I am."
He was Producer Choi Hongsun, who cast Im Seoyoung and LJ as regular cast members on an IBC entertainment program. Familiar producers, production assistants, and writers entered the meeting room behind him.
I received my cup of coffee while examining their expressions.
They had suddenly called me saying that they needed to meet me urgently so I was worried the girls were being kicked off, but that didn't seem to be the case seeing as they weren't avoiding my gaze.
What a relief.
I would have had a tough time thinking about what to do if it was the worst case scenario.
"But what was the important thing you wanted to discuss?"
"Ah, that. It's about our spring restructuring."
I almost poured steaming coffee down my throat.
Something felt off. Why was he bringing that up?
Was the program getting canceled? No, it wasn't like their ratings were bad.
Were they changing their members?
"Will something change during the restructuring?"
"Something has to. Even though our program is constantly getting good ratings, we aren't very topical. The director keeps bringing that point up as well."
After seeing my expression, the producer quickly added,
"Ah, Seoyoung and LJ are really doing a good job. The other members are doing their best for the program as well, but we just aren't trendy. It's all because the production team's plans are lacking."
He was being long-winded.
The way the staff glanced at me made me feel uneasy.
I thought about a few terms I could add in case they wanted to boot Im Seoyoung and LJ.
"That's why we plan on changing the format and trying a long-term project."
"… A long-term project?"
The producer's dark face abruptly leaned forward.
"And we were wondering if you could lend a hand with that."
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