Siblings Work in Business (51)
E-UNG
A reporter, invited in advance, arrived early at the surprise showcase venue and sighed, looking at the shabby stage.
“It’s outdoors?”
E-ung?
He looked around and read the name of the rookie group on the signboard.
That was it.
NRY Entertainment, a new agency established by Team Leader Park Chang-seok, who left TaKa.
He wouldn’t have come all the way to Hongdae if it weren’t for the news that this was Park Chang-seok’s first carefully crafted unit.
“Excuse me! A g-gift for you!”
The reporter turned to the commotion beside him.
A small woman was handing a bouquet of freesia.
The man receiving it was partially hidden by the signboard, so the reporter could only see the back of his head.
“Freesia, to support your new beginning!”
At first, he thought it was a public confession, but…
The word “beginning” caught his attention.
The man smiled kindly at the woman who gave him the flowers, and they seemed to be talking.
The woman, covering her mouth and blushing, seemed flustered, like someone seeing a celebrity for the first time.
Then…
Long, black hair fluttered in the wind, and a strong scent of soap wafted through the air like pheromones.
“Lee Eun-ho, what are you doing?”
Lee Eun-ho?
The name of one of the E-UNG members he was going to write about today.
The reporter’s eyes widened as he turned his head, drawn by the scent.
He could tell from her face alone that she was Lee Eun-ji, the other member.
She had the height and visuals to be a successful actress or model.
‘They’re siblings, right?’
He didn’t have high expectations. Not many sibling groups lasted long, especially those following in the footsteps of the Sibling Musicians.
More accurately, he hadn’t had high expectations.
“Hello everyone! We are E-! U.N.G! E-ung!”
He had a dismissive attitude, thinking, ‘How successful can a group from a newly established agency be,’ even though it was created by Park Chang-seok.
The piano accompaniment stopped, followed by the sound of an acoustic guitar changing chords.
Lee Eun-ji calmly lowered her eyes and began playing and singing.
The Last Day we shouted, claiming each other
Their first song was “Last Day,” the OST that gained renewed attention after the drama ‘He is 1+1=1’ ended.
‘Are they introducing themselves through a song?’
It wasn’t a bad song choice to draw a crowd.
It was enough to introduce the unfamiliar group ‘E-UNG.’
“Wow, her voice is exactly the same as the original ‘Last Day.’”
“Of course, it’s the same singer.”
“Wow, really?”
The reporter casually answered the gathered audience,
“They’re the singers of the ‘He is 1+1=1’ OST.”
The word spread from person to person.
Click.
The reporter took a picture of the rookie sibling duo, focused on their singing.
Eun-ho fiddled with the microphone, waiting for his turn.
“The woman’s voice is so captivating.”
“It is.”
Since it was a street performance, the audience was close enough that their conversations were clearly audible.
I smiled faintly.
「I also want a soft, high-pitched, cute voice.」
It was a line from Eun-ji’s diary, which I received after she passed away.
I also acknowledged that Lee Eun-ji’s natural voice was good.
But she had considered it a weakness for a long time.
“The man’s voice is very ordinary.”
“It’s decent. Just… a good singer, nothing special.”
“Yeah, that’s the feeling.”
Somehow, comments like these were always clearly audible, even over the speakers.
‘The audience is close.’
That meant good communication, but it also meant negative comments were easily heard.
Compared to Lee Eun-ji, my voice wasn’t special.
But I liked singing.
Being ordinary made it easier to try anything.
Lee Eun-ji’s part ended, and I held the microphone for my turn.
Don’t hurt me
If you care, don’t move
Just do what you like and what you’re good at.
There’s no right answer.
Remember that day
The Last Day we first whispered our love
The murmuring voices behind me quieted down.
I didn’t know if it was because I was focusing and tuning them out, or because they found my singing decent.
I continued singing, controlling my emotions.
Some audience members closed their eyes, immersed in the music, while others sang along to the familiar chorus.
We’re already trapped on each other’s islands
It’s hard to even breathe
In the more intense second verse, Lee Eun-ji and I switched parts.
Lee Eun-ji took my part, changing it on the spot.
I didn’t like such improvisations, but I had a feeling she would do this, so I practiced for it…
And it was a good thing I did.
Don’t hurt me
If you care, don’t move
No matter how much I practiced, I could never replicate Lee Eun-ji’s natural deep resonance, as if she had swallowed a subwoofer.
But I had stopped comparing myself to her and started focusing on my strengths.
What I was confident in.
Trying to break me with resentful breaths, I can’t breathe
Breaking the hateful word, “Last”
As the relay continued, the song reached its climax.
I unleashed the emotions I had been suppressing.
My heart is too poor to hold more than you
I know this is excessive
I was in good condition today.
The notes I wanted came out cleanly, without a hint of instability.
I immersed myself in the song, letting the emotions I had been holding back reach the audience.
Lee Eun-ji, unlike before, didn’t shy away from the high notes and harmonized with me smoothly.
We, stranded, are nothing but disasters to each other
The high notes faded, and the remnants of the exploded emotions created a quiet atmosphere.
I glanced to the side, and Eun-ji’s eyelids trembled as she sang with her eyes closed.
You know, Last Day
Don’t forget, Last Day
I looked around as I whispered the last lines.
The initial gazes of the crowd had been indifferent, just curious about what we were doing.
But now, having heard our song, they were curious about us.
The Last Day we shouted, claiming each other
That Last Day we shouted, claiming each other
That Last Day
As Eun-ji’s hands left the guitar, the song ended with the lingering sound from the soundbox.
—Woooow!
Applause erupted.
I stood up, and Lee Eun-ji also got up, gathering her blanket.
“Let us introduce ourselves again.”
“Last Day” was a song to introduce ourselves.
Singing a song was more effective and approachable than rambling on.
That was why we prepared this song.
“I’m Lee Eun-ho, the older sibling of E-U.N.G, the sibling duo who sang ‘Last Day.’”
“Hello everyone! I’m Lee Eun-ji, in charge of visuals in the sibling duo E-U.N.G.”
…?
I thought I misheard.
I looked at Lee Eun-ji, and she was smirking, glancing at me.
I unconsciously held the microphone and said,
“Did the meaning of ‘visuals’ change?”
“What?”
“Well, I have a younger sister in charge of ‘aunt’ or ‘hair loss,’ but… I’ve never heard of ‘visuals.’”
Lee Eun-ji glared at me.
It was still just Lee Eun-ji.
‘Whatever.’
I made the face she hated the most, raising my eyebrows playfully.
Instead of a verbal response, her face contorted in annoyance, which was quite satisfying.
—Hahaha.
Contrary to the tense atmosphere between Eun-ji and me, laughter erupted from the audience.
‘Hair loss is your domain.’
‘No, it’s not. Pumpkin, you could make a wig with the hair clogging the bathroom drain.’
‘Pumpkin my ass. Go eat some pumpkin candy, rockfish head.’
‘You should make some spicy fish stew, pumpkin.’
Since there were many people listening, we couldn’t curse openly, so we resorted to exchanging glares and mouthing words.
—Hahaha.
Fortunately, our silent, hostile exchange seemed like a comedic skit to the audience, so there was no problem.
“Those two, again…”
But Hyun-woo and CEO Park, knowing their personalities well, sighed and rubbed their foreheads.
“CEO, should I go over there?”
“Yes, Hyun-woo. Give them some water and tell them this.”
CEO Park whispered to Hyun-woo, and Hyun-woo froze for a moment, then nodded and rushed towards the stage.
“Hey, guys.”
Eun-ho and Eun-ji looked at Hyun-woo with surprised expressions.
“The CEO says, ‘Don’t fight here unless you want to hug each other and sing ‘We won’t fight’ back at the company’…”
Eun-ho and Eun-ji looked at each other in shock.
Then, they slowly turned their heads towards CEO Park.
CEO Park was smiling calmly.
Just the corners of his lips.
It was a chillingly terrifying smile.
So, the two came to their senses and focused on the performance again.
“The next song is, ah, right…”
Eun-ji nodded at Eun-ho, giving him a silent signal.
“Ah.”
Eun-ho, seemingly understanding the signal, picked up the O-Tube promotional panel the CEO gave him before going on stage.
“Before we start the next song! Is there anyone here who came after seeing us on O-Tube?”
“Can you raise your hands?”
As Eun-ji led and Eun-ho asked, hands started rising among the audience.
I was surprised by the unexpectedly large number.
Honestly, I brought up O-Tube because of its positive promotional effect on Lee Eun-ji’s channel.
When CEO Park told me we had over 10,000 subscribers, I was simply impressed by the ‘number.’
‘10,000.’
There were friends, couples, and even families with children.
The moment I saw the people who were part of that ‘10,000’…
The number was no longer just a number, but the faces of the people in front of me.
“Thank you sincerely for coming all the way here to see us.”
Eun-ho bowed his head, looking around at the audience.
“Thank you!”
Eun-ji echoed his sentiment.
We wanted to personally greet each and every one of them, but we couldn’t.
“We’ll do our best so you won’t regret coming here today!”
I steeled my resolve.
We had to do our main job well to be able to provide fan service.
Whether it was a flashy, expensive stage…
Or a street performance…
Whatever it was.
‘We have to enjoy it.’
Because that was what we were good at, what we had to do.
“Before the next song, if you go to our O-Tube channel, you’ll see a newly uploaded video.”
Eun-ho raised the panel high, emphasizing the word “our.”