Siblings Work in Business (138)
The black screen was filled with the sound of faded papers rustling.
As a sweet piano and guitar melody played, the scattered papers magically gathered, forming a neat stack. A red cloth covered the stack, wrapping around it, transforming it into a red hardcover book. Then, sparkling dust rained down, forming the words ‘The old days’ in gold lettering on the cover.
The music paused momentarily as the title appeared.
[Goosebumps]
[Wow]
[Whoa]
The E-Percenters watching the live broadcast understood the meaning of those words – ‘the old days.’
And they all felt chills.
It meant Eun-ho and Eun-ji had seen the discussions on E-FAN and were going to tell their story through this song.
The pause in the music seemed to be a plea to stop fighting.
The music resumed as a pale hand, presumably Eun-ho’s, opened the book.
A cat popped up from the page. It was a pop-up book.
A black cat with orange spots, carrying a small, pumpkin-shaped bag.
Despite its cute appearance, its sharp, yellow eyes resembled Eun-ji’s.
The man’s hand turned the page.
Another cat, with tuxedo-like markings, popped up. This cat was wearing a gray, fish-shaped mask.
The hand removed the paper mask, revealing a cat with similar markings to the orange cat, but with slightly downturned eyes and dark patches around them, like closed curtains.
The next page unfolded like a fan, revealing a night sky. The orange cat with the pumpkin bag was looking up at it. The camera zoomed in on the night sky, the painted image becoming increasingly realistic, the stars twinkling.
Then, the scene changed, and the orange cat from the pop-up book appeared in 3D, a soft, plush-looking animation.
A darkened night
Light on this path, stillness
Settling down, I close my eyes
As Eun-ji’s deep, resonant voice filled the air, the orange cat lip-synced the lyrics and then turned its head. The camera followed its gaze.
Under the yellow glow of a streetlight…
…a smaller version of the orange cat, holding a tiny pumpkin bag, was lying on a bed made of cardboard boxes, covered with a newspaper blanket.
Next to it was a larger black cat wearing a fish mask. The black cat patted the smaller cat and sang.
Sleep tight
A farewell I only imagined, like a mother to her child, a father to his child
A farewell to you
May the end of this path not be what I think it is
The small orange cat frowned in its sleep, as if having a nightmare. A large, child-like drawing of a fish-man’s hand grabbed the cat by the scruff of its neck. The larger black cat watched, tears streaming down its face. It was a nightmare.
Every day, I wonder when this dream-like day of mine will end
I wanted to believe things would gradually get better
The cute animation and Eun-ho’s sweet voice in the background were a stark contrast to the nightmare.
Meanwhile, the small orange cat’s dream continued. The black cat rescued the orange cat, which was trapped somewhere. They hid in a small box, escaping from the fish-men. And then they grew older, now walking on two legs. The scene shifted to 3D animation, the black cat holding the small orange cat’s hand as they walked.
But the more I believe, the more my anxieties consume me
Growing larger, they devour me
The black cat clutched its chest, as if in pain, as it sang.
Then, the small orange cat gave it a crudely made mask, a replica of the fish-man’s face.
The black cat put on the mask and opened its mouth.
The scene changed.
The black cat was looking at the sleeping orange cat with an affectionate gaze.
Good night
A whispered goodnight
I’m always afraid, but you’re always so cheerful
The black cat took off the mask hanging on its ear and put it on. Then, it stood up and stepped out of the alley, into the darkness beyond the streetlight.
Before disappearing into the darkness, it looked back at the sleeping orange cat.
I hoped my pain wouldn’t touch you, but why are you hurting now?
But you’re always so cheerful
I’m relieved, yet my heart aches
The black cat ran into the darkness.
A bright night, on this road, only my path is dark
May you only walk a bright path
May you not even see the stumbling blocks, I, your foolish brother, wish and pray
But do you even know how I feel?
Eun-ho’s melancholic voice contrasted with the desperate look on the black cat’s face.
As it reached the next streetlight, the pages of the book turned rapidly, revealing only the red cover before stopping.
Then, the book was placed on a black table by a hand with long, white nails and small red jewels.
It was Eun-ji’s hand, just awakened from sleep in a normal bed, not the cardboard box.
On this path, I pray
That the end isn’t what I’m thinking of
Every day I wonder when this dream-like day will end
Let’s believe things will get better
Unlike Eun-ho’s melancholic voice, Eun-ji’s singing was brighter. Then, Eun-ho’s voice took over.
The more I believe
The more anxiety consumes me
(The more anxiety consumes you)
Growing larger, it devours me
(Growing larger, it devours you)
Eun-ji’s harmony followed Eun-ho’s singing.
I walk and walk
(You walk and walk)
Trusting you, who believes in me
(Trusting me, who believes in you)
Eun-ji looked towards a distant white door at the end of a hallway and walked towards it, her long nightgown trailing behind her.
On this path
So that even the time we shared can’t follow us
Farther, farther away
Eun-ji’s low voice whispered softly.
She turned around, as if sensing someone behind her.
She smiled at someone, seemingly a welcome presence, and then they disappeared together through the brightly lit door.
Sleep well
May a bright star shine on your path tonight too
The screen turned white as Eun-ho’s voice faded.
[Is that the end?]
[?]
[Did it freeze?]
[What?]
[????]
The song had ended, but the video continued, and the confused E-Percenters filled the chat with question marks.
A moment later…
The white screen turned gray, as if a shadow had fallen over it.
Footsteps echoed, and someone appeared.
Slightly messy hair, dark makeup that hinted at exhaustion…
Eun-ho, wearing only a suit jacket, stepped through a door frame.
The gray background turned into a cool, pre-dawn sky.
A distorted birdsong played as the intro to a new song, “Hae-ga (The Sun),” began.
As the vintage acoustic piano melody played, Eun-ho walked slowly to a sofa and leaned against it, the jacket falling open to reveal his bare chest.
He opened his mouth, a decadent aura surrounding him.
You know
I always told you
Let’s believe that morning will come for us too
That’s why I’m here now
As Eun-ho started singing, the chat sped up.
[OMG]
[♥♥]
[Is that Rangi’s voice?]
[What? Is that really Rangi’s voice?]
Eun-ho usually sang in a higher, almost artificially created tone, to reach the high notes more easily.
You stopped there before you left
I pray for the sun to rise on this shadow
May the sun also shine on your sky, now blue with sorrow
But this time, he was singing in a lower register, closer to his speaking voice.
His voice was a bit raspy, as if he wasn’t used to singing in this range.
Eun-ho hadn’t liked it at the time, but Eun-ji kept it in the final version. Since editing was her domain, Eun-ho didn’t argue.
Let’s not be apart anymore
I won’t say it lightly because I know its weight
We’ll be together longer
There’s not enough time because I’ve learned about regret
There’s more to see
Because I’ve learned so much in my time
Meanwhile, a woman with a lace veil covering her eyes and nose appeared on screen, facing Eun-ho. Only her red lips were visible.
Eun-ho reached out and waltzed with her briefly to the violin melody.
Then, as he let go of her hand, she disappeared from the frame without hesitation.
Joo-yeon, watching the video, stuffed tissues up her nose, which soon turned red with blood.
‘This is insane!’
Eun-ho’s sensual aura and his unusually low voice were a dangerously attractive combination.
You know
We said every day
We believed that morning would come for us
That’s why we’re here now
Eun-ho stood up from the sofa, holding a messy bouquet.
Then, the scene changed.
Eun-ji, leaning against a wall, holding the same bouquet, was waiting for someone.
You stopped there where you first approached me
You wait for the sun above that will shrink your shadow
The sun has risen on our dawn, once sunk in sorrow
The screen flickered and showed Eun-ho sprawled out on a sofa.
He got up, put one hand in his pocket, and started walking.
Three, until I believed your miraculous story about a new beginning
Two, until we found this peaceful life and connected our broken ends
One, the last piece for your new beginning
As he counted down, his foot casually kicked a bottle aside on three, swept away the scattered potato chips on two, and turned the doorknob and walked out on one.
Now, let’s not be apart anymore
Then, the music stopped, and the scene changed.
Eun-ho, in a suit, was holding a red hardcover book titled “The old days.”
He checked his watch, then turned his head as if sensing someone’s presence.
He approached the camera and handed the red book to someone.
As the unknown hand took the book, the song resumed.
I won’t say it lightly because I know its weight
We’ll be together longer
Because I’ve learned about regret, there’s not enough time
There’s so much more to cherish
There are so many things we can do together in this restarted time
The scene changed, and Eun-ho and Eun-ji were standing under bright lights.
They slowly looked up, as if to face each other, then turned their heads away in opposite directions.