The Siblings Do Business Together (16)
The unexpected dagger pierced through my conscience.
“Still, I think it would be nice if I could do some recordings too. Haha.”
I belatedly and awkwardly added a complaint.
But it wasn’t a lie, so there was no uncomfortable part to the story.
The representative raised the corners of his lips without any particular answer to Eun-ho’s response and focused on the front again.
‘Maybe because it’s late.’
According to my memory, the bridge that was always packed with cars was quite empty.
It was a peaceful night scene, but on the other hand, there was a sense of emptiness rushing in.
Although the cheers were not directed at me, it was hard to believe that the dream-like stage covered in cheers was just a few minutes ago.
It felt like the world would change as soon as I got off the stage.
But when I actually got off the stage, there was no change in my world.
‘Because it wasn’t my stage in the first place.’
Eun-ho’s eyes darkened as he looked out the window.
Even in the middle of the night, the unchanged night view overlapped with the feast of purple lightsticks he had seen from the stage.
At first, there was excitement about standing on the stage after a long time, but I was more afraid of making mistakes.
My body trembled with tension because it was the stage of a senior I respected.
But the moment I heard the cheers for senior.
The tension was still there, but it cooled down like a calm and deep sea.
“Representative, please let me immerse myself in work so I don’t have these pointless thoughts.”
My stage.
My fans.
Everything I had during the year after Eun-ji passed away, when I was busy with performances, recordings, and new songs.
The emptiness that came after leaving the stage, I was busy filling it with the next recording instead of alcohol during that time.
Recording studio, performance, event, event after event.
Interview, recording, monitoring new songs, event, event after event.
This wasn’t even a weekly schedule, but a daily or two-day schedule.
Meals were in the car.
Without a moment to breathe, I got in the car and went to the next place.
And the next place.
When my physical battery was about to run out, I went home and took a nap, and the next morning, I got an IV at the hospital and ran through another day.
‘I never imagined I would miss that time.’
It feels new, but I realize my current position.
Maybe that’s why.
I was thirsty.
I want to sing.
Not someone else’s song, but my song…
‘No.’
It’s not my song anymore.
It’s ‘our’ song.
It’s been a while since the corners of my mouth went up thinking about Eun-ji.
“Eun-ho, since you said you want to do it too, that’s great.”
That’s when it happened.
“Yes?”
Lost in thought, I asked urgently, recalling what conversation I had with the representative until then.
But the last conversation I could recall was…
“I think it would be nice if I could do some recordings too.”
No way.
Eun-ho turned his head and looked at the representative.
Representative Park couldn’t make eye contact since he was driving, but he was raising the corners of his mouth with a meaningful smile.
“Well done, Eun-ho ya.”
“For what…?”
I asked back in surprise at the sudden praise.
But the only answer I got back was a meaningful laugh.
* * *
OST
“Not long after the showcase ended, we got a call from CK E&M Studio.”
The next day, Eun-ho was able to hear the reason for the representative’s sudden praise in the car that day in the representative’s office with Eun-ji.
“CK E&M Studio is…”
At Eun-ho’s muttering, Eun-ji tilted her head and turned to look at him.
“It’s the tvL drama OST team, and it seems that Team Leader Min Gi-ho there quite liked Eun-ho’s stage yesterday.”
Eun-ho’s eyes widened.
Eun-ji surprisingly didn’t have a particularly surprised reaction.
But at the representative’s next words, Eun-ji took a deep breath and covered her mouth.
“So they contacted us saying they want to entrust one of the tracks for the upcoming drama <He is 1+1=1> OST to you two.”
“That’s…”
“You know about it?”
“Yes! Of course! It was a novel I liked, and I was interested in it because they said they were making a drama! Oh my gosh!”
Eun-ho, who had been quietly watching Eun-ji, blinked his widened eyes in disbelief and asked.
“You read books?”
“I’m not illiterate like someone.”
“I’m not illiterate!”
“Illli-tuh-rut!”
Clap!
Before the childish sibling fight could begin.
Representative Park clapped loudly and stopped the two’s quarrel.
“Eun-ji ya, what was it about?”
“It’s about a CEO named Choi Jin who has dissociative identity disorder and a normal office worker named Oh Ye-jin solving their misunderstandings and helping to integrate Choi Jin’s personalities into one. Something like that.”
“Was it a romance?”
“Yes. An extremely heart-wrenching one!”
When Representative Park raised his eyebrows as if he didn’t understand, Eun-ji continued with excitement, her eyes shining.
“You see, Choi Jin has three personalities…”
‘Hyun’, a playful personality but has no memory when not out.
‘Jun-i’, a personality opposite to Hyun, calm and lacking the will to live.
And lastly, ‘Jin’, who acts as a control tower and knows the memories of the two personalities.
Oh Ye-jin accidentally gets caught in the radar of the playful Hyun and becomes Choi Jin’s lover.
But when Oh Ye-jin belatedly finds out that Choi Jin has a dissociative identity disorder and decides to break up, at that moment.
She falls in love with the second personality, Jun-i.
Jin, the third personality and the control tower, had a desire to make the three personalities divided into Hyun and Jun-i into one.
But after fighting that war, he wanted to be the personality that took over the body.
“Hyun eventually disappeared, being pushed out by the fight between the two personalities.”
But ‘Jin’ and ‘Jun-i’ who were fiercely fighting.
The two personalities were split due to hating people, and they became one when Oh Ye-jin, whom they loved, was in danger.
…Eun-ji explained really hard, saying that was the content.
“You have to watch it yourself to know. They really love each other heart-wrenchingly.”
When Eun-ji got excited and squealed in a way that didn’t suit her, Representative Park and Eun-ho exchanged surprised looks and shrugged their shoulders.
‘…It was heart-wrenching indeed.’
Because it was the first time I cried while watching a drama.
In fact, I knew the drama <He is 1+1=1> better than anyone else here.
Moreover, I had experienced this kind of reaction from Eun-ji once before.
‘The title was <Last Day>, wasn’t it?’
Eun-ji’s solo song that was the biggest hit among the OSTs of <He is 1+1=1>.
Maybe it was because she knew the original work.
‘Last Day’ was even named by the <He is 1+1=1> cast as the song that best matched the story among the OSTs.
I’m not the type to keep up with dramas, but thanks to Eun-ji, I was forced to watch it together every episode and got quite into it because it was interesting.
“You may not like it, but…”
“Pardon?”
“Why?”
While recalling the drama scenes, I raised my voice in response to the representative’s call.
As if there was no part she wouldn’t like, Eun-ji aggressively asked back to the representative.
“Huh? Because it’s a love song, and you two have to do it together?”
“Ah. That’s fine.”
“Me too, I don’t really care about that anymore.”
At Eun-ji’s nonchalant answer, I also nodded and answered.
Representative Park let out a hollow laugh, wiping his philtrum lightly with his index finger as if moved by the two’s growth.
Afterwards, there was a brief discussion about the upcoming schedule and simple plans.
“Then, I’ll go up first and finish the work.”
“Okay.”
Eun-ji said, bowing her head.
After Eun-ji left, only Representative Park and I, who were examining the ‘E-ung’ logo that resembled a power button, remained in the representative’s office.
“Eun-ho ya.”
“Yes?”
“You don’t feel bad?”
“…?”
“Because it’s a job you brought in.”
“Well, we’re a team now. It’s ‘our’ job.”
When I answered, deliberately emphasizing ‘our’, the representative widened his eyes for a moment as if surprised.
But he soon quietly closed his eyes, curling the corners of his lips.
Representative Park’s gaze, now open again, shifted to the pile of documents.
“You really have grown.”
Haha.
A light laugh escaped.
If it were the old me, I would have whined about why I had to share a job I brought in with Eun-ji.
‘I was so immature.’
That’s how I was back then.
I swiped the logo that would be engraved on our future album with my thumb.
‘Our team, huh.’
Actually saying it out loud feels kind of tingly, but it’s not bad.
The corners of my mouth curled up slowly, twisting awkwardly at the embarrassing feeling.
* * *
A few days later.
We headed to the Seoul CK E&M Building, where the CK E&M Studio team was located, for a meeting and recording together with the representative.
“Hey! Lee Eun-ho! There’s a photo of the Sibling Musicians here!”
“Lee Eun-ji, be quiet. Oh, you’re right.”
While the representative was talking first.
Eun-ji and I were looking at the celebrity photos posted on the cork board in the studio.
“Ji Ye-chan senior is here too! As expected, he looks handsome even in a Polaroid.”
“The real thing is the best.”
“Ah, I want to see him too.”
“You should say you want to meet him.”
“Don’t be so nitpicky. Oh, there’s Ji Ye-chan senior again.”
“This must be from when Toxin was active.”
“The mohawk was in vogue back then.”
“Mohawk… Do you remember that? You pestered me to give you a mohawk style with clippers, and when the representative saw the result, he foamed at the mouth.”
“Ahaha. That hairstyle was the masterpiece of my life.”
“Masterpiece my foot, more like a traitor.”
As if provoked by the word traitor, Eun-ji opened her mouth wide to shout.
But there was no chance for a sound to come out.
“Eun-ho ya, Eun-ji ya, come in here.”
Thanks to the representative who had disappeared for the meeting returning.
I ran to the representative as if escaping Eun-ji’s anger.
Eun-ji couldn’t help but follow the representative’s order.
Although she was still huffing as if she couldn’t cool her anger, she followed into the conference room relatively quietly.
“Team Leader Min kept singing praises about the handsome rookie every day.”
“Saying he looks like an actor…”
As we entered the conference room, the seats on the opposite side of the round table were filled with employees who seemed to be from the CK E&M Studio team.
“Hello! We are Team E-ung!”
“E-ung!”
The moment we entered the conference room, I bowed my head with a composed posture.
Eun-ji looked at the employees and Eun-ho alternately with a surprised face, then followed and bowed her head in greeting.
Hahahaha.
Perhaps because of the team name that sticks in your memory once you hear it.
A big laugh floated around the conference room for a moment.
“The team name is cute, unlike you two’s appearance or vibe.”
“Why is it ‘E-ung’?”
A male employee who seemed to be in his mid-30s and in a quite high position asked.
“It’s because we siblings are named Lee Eun-ho and Lee Eun-ji!”
“The pronunciation is also playful.”
When Eun-ji added a short explanation after Eun-ho’s answer, a short laugh circulated in the conference room again.
But when the two sat down and the actual meeting began.
“As you said, we will work hard to be able to sing ‘properly’.”
At Eun-ho’s answer, the atmosphere in the conference room froze coldly as if it had never been bright.