Chapter 123

“Do-hee, fighting! Come back after doing well on the test~”

Why on earth did Manager Da-hong prepare sweet rice cakes for me?

“I’ll definitely get 100 points and call you. I’ll be back!”

After receiving the sweet rice cakes, I pretended to make a call and got out of the car.

The place I got off was the parking lot of a high school near Shock Enter.

This was the exam venue for the GED test.

It’s held every early April or early August, and you can’t take it right after dropping out, so I had to wait for half a year.

Today is finally the day I become a middle school graduate.

Of course, the results come out a month later.

-Hehe… middle school dropout.

Thinking of the members who teased me about being a dropout made my chest feel tight.

“Huh!?”

There are students pointing at me with their hands.

Even though I was all wrapped up in a mask and hat, I guess I can’t hide my unique aura.

‘Well, with this ratio and vibe, how can I hide it?’

Of course, vanity is a no-no.

Humility is crucial for the fans who always come to support me.

“Yes, that’s right…”

“Hey, Woo-ah! The cherry blossoms here are so pretty. Let’s take a picture!”

…Sakura?

I floated my hand in the air, naturally catching the drifting cherry blossoms, and pretended to be immersed in the scenery by gazing dreamily at the cherry blossom tree.

‘It’s early April with cherry blossoms in full bloom. The scenery is beautiful.’

But two students approached me.

“Um… can we take a picture…?”

I knew it.

“Oh~ Of course!”

I knew they would recognize me.

As I was about to take off my mask,

“Ah, thank you! Woo-ah will take the picture! Hurry, pose!”

They handed me their phone and stood in front of the cherry blossom tree.

“Ah… you guys are taking a picture together.”

“What? ”

“Nothing…”

Why does it always make me feel embarrassed?

After taking their photo, I hurried into the exam hall, flustered.

The familiar scent of the classroom and the spring breeze flowing through the windows momentarily calmed my heart.

‘It’s only been half a year since I left school…’

But the atmosphere of school makes me find a piece of my childhood.

In fact, when I see symbols like cherry blossoms and school,

I often think about wanting to be a symbol that evokes some kind of image.

It might sound childish and immature…

But it’s also a pure inner desire.

Still, admitting it made me feel a bit shy, so I brushed it off as being emotional because of the spring scent, and received the test paper from the supervisor.

‘It’s only been a year since the last test.’

Thus, I took the test smoothly all the way to the sixth period.

I worried if anyone might recognize me in the exam hall, but maybe that was just my vanity too.
I guess it was just arrogance.

Today, I’m feeling quite embarrassed about myself.

“I have to try harder to be recognized even if I wear a mask…”

Anyway, it seems like I’ll continue my 100-point streak.

Maybe because it was just a qualification exam, the difficulty of the test wasn’t too high.

When I returned to the dorm after the exam, I was greeted by the beaming smile of Sara Unni.

“Do-hee~ Did you finish the test?”

Today is a day off.

Most of the members probably went out to have fun, so I wonder why this Unni is alone in the dorm.

“Oh, Unni, what are you doing in the dorm?”

I intended to rest alone, but considering how Sara Unni clings to me for fun, it feels like I can’t really relax.

“Ha-rang Unni and Seo-yoon went to the PC room… I don’t know how to play games…”

“I figured those two would do that.”

These days, Seo-yoon Unni has gotten into gaming.

And she’s playing League of Legends, which is famous for its hardcore player base.

Ha-rang Unni, who loves games, has been teaching Seo-yoon Unni.

In fact, gaming was a hobby that the company encouraged.

– Damn, what’s this raccoon doing?!

For a newbie, there’s nothing quite like gaming.

– Aaaaah! Unni, this raccoon keeps killing me!

It’s a healthy way to relieve stress.

– I’m not doing it!

And because you can enjoy it comfortably at home without worrying about scandals.

There’s a reason why so many idols enjoy gaming.

However, after repeating work and gaming in my past life, I got so fed up with it that I don’t really feel like doing it in this life anymore.

“And Hana Unni and Ye-eun went to meet friends…”

“Ye-eun Unni…?”

That’s a bit surprising.

As I listened to Sara Unni and went into my room to put down my backpack, I couldn’t see Chae-rin Unni, who would usually be lounging in bed on a holiday.

“Chae-rin Unni isn’t here either?”

“Chae-rin went to work on a song…”

Chae-rin Unni, who is skilled at playing the guitar, was the only one in the group able to compose songs.

She learned composition as part of the trainee curriculum at the company.

“Oh, really?”

When I was a trainee, I was suggested to take composition lessons, but at that time, I was lacking in both singing and dancing, so I wanted to focus more time on those.

Besides, between managing my studies and piano, I didn’t have much time to learn composition separately.

But these days, I’ve been thinking about maybe learning to compose.

“By the way, Do-hee, how about we make scones together…? I have the ingredients ready!”

Now that I’ve debuted, the routine of attending school has disappeared.

During our inactive periods, I had enough free time that I could even feel like I was on vacation when there were no schedules.

“Never mind. I’m going to the studio to take a look.”
“I guess I should go check out the studio.”

“Do-hee’s favorite… chocolate scones…”

“I’m really craving chocolate scones.”

“I should grab some on my way out.”

*

Shock Entertainment’s MIDI composition studio.

As I walk in, I see Gong Chae-rin Unni lazily leaning back in her chair.

In front of her, the composition software—DAW—is open on the monitor.

She turns her chair to look at me, surprised by my presence.

I thought she’d be startled by my sudden visit, but she calmly asks,

“What brings you here?”

“What’s with that reaction? Why aren’t you surprised?”

“You’ve been poking your nose into everything around here.”

…Me?

“I’m just here to look around… and I’m curious about how composing works.”

“There’s nothing to see right now. I’m stuck without any projects.”

Chae-rin Unni looks frustrated, as if composer’s block has hit her.

“Actually, I was about to leave, since nothing’s coming out.”

“Then can you at least show me how to compose?”

I mean, there’s no special method to the noun ‘composition’.

You just hum a tune and stick it together; that’s composing.

But of course, everyone knows there’s more to it than that.

I’ve heard that these days, most songs start with a beat.

You build a basic skeleton with a catchy beat, then layer the topline—melody—on top.

Next, you add the root notes and main chords to fit the melody and beat.

It takes skill and understanding for sequencing and mixing.

Creating a beat, crafting a melody, and structuring the root notes aren’t easy tasks.

These days, K-pop composing doesn’t just end with a little humming.

“So, it’s no wonder that more composers are teaming up to create innovative songs.”

Moreover, there’s a saying in the K-pop scene:

“Good songs depend on arrangement.”

A captivating melody alone can make for a great song, but a song that you can listen to over and over has to deliver rich sounds, a distinctive atmosphere, and solid beats and chords to truly shine.

“It’s not surprising that composers from the hip-hop scene, who are good with beats, are thriving.”

I, on the other hand, have limited ability.

Having only played classical music, I feel like an outsider when it comes to beats.

“If I’m going to learn, I’ll have to put in the effort.”

Moreover, just because I’ve played countless classical piano pieces doesn’t guarantee that I can effectively create melody lines.

It just means I have a high understanding of tones.

“Um… how about I show you how to lay down a beat?”

Right now, I have no idea how to handle MIDI equipment or use composition software.
It was about understanding composition.

“Yeah. Show me. I was curious.”

Gong Chae-rin Unni sat up straight at her desk, skillfully clicking buttons with the mouse to add virtual instruments.

She cut and pasted samples, moving some synth sounds around, copying others, adjusting graphs, and fiddling with a button labeled “detune.”

She adjusted the pitch of the bright and clear sounds from bells called chimes, adding points along the way.

“I still don’t get it.”

“Honestly, if you learn from pros, you can do this in a couple of months. I’m just practicing what I learned, so I pick it up quickly.”

They say famous composers can create a song in just a day when inspiration strikes.

I have no idea how that’s even possible.

“Do-hee, since you play piano well, you could pick it up quickly, right? As long as you can craft a good melody, you can participate in composing.”

Even if Unni says that, there are too many MIDI buttons to learn, so it’s definitely going to take time to get proficient.

Of course, if I do learn, I’ll get lessons from a pro, so it’ll be faster than self-study.

But still, when would I be able to learn, after our disbandment next year?

“Honestly, I do want to challenge composing.”

Lyrics, composition, stage performance—all of it could be possible for me, which would make me a symbol reminiscent of K-pop.

In other words, I might even become an icon of K-pop.

Like ‘a reincarnation of GD’?

Maybe I’d be the celebrity of celebrities.

That would be cool if I became that kind of person.

“But will I have time to learn?”

Chae-rin Unni chuckled and pulled out her laptop.

“You can compose on a laptop. I’ll show you sometimes.”

That sounds good to me.

“So, what genre do you want to create? Classical? Ballad?”

Of course, I want to write piano pieces too.

Sweet songs sound nice as well.

But the most I want to try writing is—

Dynamic and energetic stages.

A stage that gives thrills and chills.

You could listen to it over and over without getting bored.

Even walking the same distance, it breathes new energy into the songs.

Most importantly, a stage that’s fun.

“Dance tracks.”

The truth is, the reason I stopped playing piano and tried to become an idol was fundamentally because of dance tracks.

Hearing my words, Chae-rin Unni nodded her head.

“Yeah, I figured that would be the case.”

Strangely, I felt a bit bad about that.

Lately, the members have been responding nonchalantly with “It’s Do-hee, of course.”

Why is that?

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