Siblings Work in Business (41)
After CEO Park started uploading videos to O-Tube, the stars of the channel, ironically, hadn’t seen any of the comments.
They could have checked them anytime, but Eun-ho, despite being the one who suggested uploading videos, showed no interest in the channel, as if his personality had changed.
Their busy schedule also contributed to his lack of interest.
‘Eun-ji is interested, but not the type to actively seek them out.’
CEO Park desperately wanted to show them how much attention they were getting.
But he decided to wait.
Until they reached 10,000 subscribers, or perhaps even before that, just in case…
He kept it a secret, like a treasure chest, to encourage them when they felt discouraged.
CEO Park finally tore his gaze away from the O-Tube channel and went back to editing.
He was adding Eun-ji’s narration to the concept video she filmed and he edited.
—I’m Lee Eun-ji of E-UNG, the composer of this song.
—And this video is a concept video for our new song, “DUO.”
The day of the Dark Ocean Production meeting…
The meeting was held in a conference room at Dark Ocean Production.
Eun-ji’s concept video was projected onto the white wall.
It was a video carefully prepared by Eun-ji and the CEO to briefly and effectively introduce E-UNG, their music, and the concept of “DUO.”
—Doesn’t everyone have thoughts like that?
—Like when you’re a kid, you imagine a monster behind a closed door, or as an adult, small but significant anxieties like, ‘Did I turn off the gas?’
The video showed Eun-ji filming herself composing and Eun-ho calmly immersed in the recording.
—“What are you filming?”
—“It’s a secret.”
Crazy.
I covered my face with my hand and sighed quietly.
The inserted clip showed me sitting in a corner of the practice room after dance practice, muttering the lyrics.
‘Why did she put that in there?!’
I couldn’t yell during the meeting, so I glared at Lee Eun-ji instead.
“Putting that scene in there… during a meeting…”
I whispered to Lee Eun-ji and the CEO, worried that it might disrupt the video viewing.
—This is Lee Eun-ho. My older brother.
Lee Eun-ji and the CEO made a ‘V’ sign with their hands and smiled meaningfully.
I felt even more frustrated by Lee Eun-ji’s calm explanation.
—When we were young, he was like a parent, a sibling, and now… well…
—“Hey, don’t film this kind of stuff!”
A chuckle came from beside me.
It was Lee Eun-ji.
—Just an idiot?
I wanted to scold her after the meeting for bringing such a video to a serious meeting.
But it seemed like I was the only one embarrassed; the previously stiff atmosphere in the conference room had lightened up thanks to this scene.
I didn’t know if this was intentional, but it made it difficult to scold her now.
‘If the atmosphere is better…’
If it had a positive effect, using my image wasn’t so bad.
—I’ll continue to write songs based on all my emotions and experiences.
Eun-ji in the video continued her narration seriously.
I found myself listening intently to her sincere voice.
‘All emotions and experiences.’
Before the regression, listening to Lee Eun-ji’s albums, I could clearly see what she was thinking, feeling, and experiencing at the time.
That’s why some of her diss tracks even charted.
—So, for the first single, I tried to capture the anxiety of my older brother, Lee Eun-ho, the person closest to me.
—Lee Eun-ho and I are family and the closest to each other, but we also don’t understand each other at all.
My shoulders relaxed.
I must have been tense without realizing it.
—People say we look like mirror images of each other.
—But is that really true?
I felt the corners of my mouth lifting slightly.
Just as Eun-ji narrated, people often said we looked like identical twins of different genders.
But we were actually very different in many ways.
—Oppa has been having strange dreams lately. Nightmares where I disappear.
A few days ago…
The day we had tteokguk with Hyun-woo.
“Lee Eun-ho.”
“What.”
“You know the reason I wrote the lyrics for ‘DUO’…”
“Yeah, my nightmares?”
“Can I include that in the concept video?”
“Go ahead. It’s your song, why are you asking me?”
“Because it’s your story.”
“Do whatever you want. Isn’t it necessary for the project?”
“It is.”
“It’s for work.”
“Yeah…”
“I don’t care what you use for work, as long as you’re confident in the results.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
That’s probably why she included the clip of me practicing and muttering nonsense like “idiot.”
The meeting atmosphere had improved, so I had no complaints.
‘Besides…’
Director Go Tae-seo, who had been watching the video with an indifferent gaze, suddenly looked serious.
Eun-ji’s door appeared on the screen.
—Every night, Oppa knocks on my door.
—And he says,
—“Ah, you’re there. You’re here. It’s nothing.”
—Watching him like that, I had a sad thought.
—Oppa and I have always been together.
A large, cursive ‘D’ appeared on the screen.
—So I thought,
—Perhaps the nightmares Oppa is having are about one of us disappearing.
Then, ‘U’ and ‘O’ appeared, connected.
It was a rough yet steady handwriting.
—That’s how I made this DUO.
—Please keep an eye on us siblings.
—Similar, yet different, we are Lee Eun-ho and Lee Eun-ji.
—E-! U.N.G! E-ung!
Clap, clap, clap, clap.
As the short video ended with Eun-ji’s cheerful greeting, the staff and Director Go Tae-seo applauded.
Eun-ji quietly stood up and bowed her head.
‘Eun-ji, stand up and greet them.’
She followed CEO Park’s silent instruction, nudging her with his elbow.
“What’s your expected production time?”
“Including the review process, it has to be released by February 8th.”
CEO Park answered Director Go Tae-seo’s question.
The review process for distribution usually took about three days to a week.
So, they weren’t exactly on a relaxed schedule.
“Can we listen to the song today?”
“Yes.”
CEO Park smiled, taking out a Bluetooth speaker he brought.
Director Go Tae-seo and the staff listened attentively to the guide version of “DUO.”
“It’s almost the final version, so there won’t be much difference after mastering.”
The vocals and basic melody were almost finalized.
And since the concept had been thoroughly explained through the video, the discussion went smoothly.
“Are there any specific outfits, scenes, or meanings you have in mind?”
Director Go Tae-seo asked us gently.
“I want to include a scene of falling asleep under a cherry blossom tree.”
“A sleeping scene…”
The director pondered, piecing things together, and then nodded.
Judging by his previous reactions, it seemed to mean ‘not bad.’
“Um…”
Then, Eun-ji quietly raised her hand and spoke.
“Yes, Eun-ji, feel free to speak your mind.”
“I have a specific outfit in mind…”
Eun-ji continued, unusually timid and hesitant.
“I want a scene where I’m dancing barefoot in a large shirt that reaches down to my knees…”
It was a surprisingly specific and stubborn request, considering her hesitant start.
Since she hadn’t mentioned this to me before, I was puzzled.
Especially the part about the large shirt…
“Why a shirt?”
“Do you know how tall I am?”
“How tall?”
“174cm.”
Oh.
“You’re that tall?”
“Yeah.”
She was quite tall.
It was often the case that our eyes weren’t at the same level when we walked together.
Especially because of her shoes.
Thanks to her preference for high heels, even I, at over 180cm, sometimes had to look up at her.
“Anyway, what does your height have to do with a shirt?”
“I have broad shoulders too. So even if I wear your clothes, they fit like a loose boxy t-shirt.”
Hmm.
Like siblings, Lee Eun-ji had a large frame, similar to my shoulders.
And perhaps thanks to her broad shoulders, her long legs seemed even longer, and her head seemed smaller.
She looked good in clothes.
‘Wait a minute.’
But come to think of it, ‘even if I wear your clothes’ meant…
“Hey, when did you even wear my clothes—”
“Just listen. It’s my fantasy! Looking attractive in oversized clothes!”
Lee Eun-ji interrupted me and continued, as if the topic was making her uncomfortable.
“Okay, fine, the shirt. But why barefoot?”
“If I’m wearing a large shirt, bare feet are the key point.”
“What’s that even supposed to mean?”
“It’s my preference. Respect it.”
“You mean ‘accept’ it. Why dancing?”
“I just thought it would look pretty.”
“Ah, okay.”
Since it was her preference, I had nothing to say.
‘Everyone has different tastes.’
While we were whispering…
The CEO and Director Go Tae-seo were discussing the contract, including the filming schedule and the exact amount.
‘Huh?’
I overheard the amount…
And I was quite surprised.
The amount CEO Park offered was incredibly generous, even for someone like me who knew the market.
It was a high price, considering his request for a high-quality music video, but it was still a substantial amount.
I suddenly felt uneasy about something I hadn’t paid attention to in the past, when I lived carelessly.
We were raised by the CEO since we were students.
He gave us a home, food, and even education when we were living in saunas.
From the day we met in front of the TaKa Entertainment building until now…
‘But why don’t I know anything about the CEO…?’