Genius Composer Who's a Dedicated Fan - Chapter 6

Baek Yerin.

Having safely finished the song she prepared and come down from the stage, she was a bit bewildered.

─ You’re crazy!!

─ I really cried while listening!

First, her friends’ reactions were nothing short of chaotic.

Moreover, the atmosphere was as if she had been confirmed as the first-place performance even though all the performances hadn’t finished yet.

─ The first place for this festival’s stage is…! Student Baek Yerin!

In reality, she won first place with the most overwhelming votes.

Baek Yerin couldn’t help but wear a dazed expression as she had suddenly become an incredibly popular figure at school in just one day.

But what made her most bewildered was an encounter with someone on her way home.

“Hello?”

“…?”

A male student clearly wearing the uniform of a different middle school.

That male student suddenly blocked her path with a friendly smile.

And…

“Hey, have you ever thought about becoming a singer?”

He started saying strange things.

Unable to understand the meaning at all, Baek Yerin tilted her head with a puzzled expression, and at that moment, someone barged in shouting.

“Hey, hey! What are you doing jumping out alone like that!”

“K-Kang Beom-joon?!”

Kang Beom-joon.

He’s quite a famous musician, enough to be picked as a representative figure in Korean folk music centered around acoustic guitar.

To the extent that you can occasionally hear his songs on the street.

But why is such a person here…?

“CEO, you kept muttering to yourself and hesitating, so I stepped in because it was frustrating.”

“Sigh… You know, the first impression is the most important in these things. I was carefully considering my first words.”

“The water has already been spilled, so please try to handle it well somehow.”

“You’re not even helping to handle it, but asking me to handle it…”

Kang Beom-joon let out a deep sigh and approached Baek Yerin.

Then, handing out his business card, he slowly opened his mouth.

“It’s exactly as you heard from that guy. It might be a bit sudden, but I’d like to cast you for our agency.”

“Cast… me?”

“Yes. I heard your song well in the auditorium. Honestly, you sang so much better than I imagined that I couldn’t help but be surprised. Your voice is so good, your rhythm is good, your vocal power seems innate, and especially the way you control your emotions…”

“In short, he’s saying it was really good. You can be confident since it’s coming from someone who’s musically amazing.”

The male student interrupted Kang Beom-joon’s words and said so.

The casting offer, and this situation where they’re showering her with praise…

For Baek Yerin, all of this was sudden, so she couldn’t help but be a bit confused.

And contrary to this confused state, something new began to bloom in a corner of her heart.

Yes. It was probably.

“But… who are you?”

Doubt.

Or curiosity.

Baek Yerin asked, looking straight at the male student.

The fact that he boldly appeared and made a casting offer,

And the fact that even the great Kang Beom-joon was flustered,

He clearly didn’t seem like an ordinary student.

And as if Baek Yerin’s intuition was exactly right.

“My name is Ryu Won. I’m the same age as you. Hmm… I guess it’s right to describe myself as a composer for now?”

Ryu Won introduced himself as a ‘composer’ with a bright smile.

However, this grand self-introduction might have been a somewhat meaningful moment for Ryu Won.

Unlike in his previous life.

It was a signal flare announcing the beginning of a new connection with her.

* * *

What might be the best place for people to have an intimate conversation?

Preferably, a small enclosed space where conversation sounds are well blocked and they can focus only on each other would be good.

In that sense, the inside of Kang Beom-joon’s car was truly the optimal place.

Currently, Baek Yerin and I were sitting side by side in the back seat of the car Kang Beom-joon was driving.

By the way, the destination was Baek Yerin’s family home, and we decided to put the casting matter on hold for now.

Of course, it would be unreasonable to expect an answer about the casting offer on the spot.

Whether she expresses a positive or negative intention, shouldn’t she at least go home and discuss it with her parents first?

Anyway, to make use of the brief time taking her home, I made one proposal.

“You’ll let me hear a song you composed?”

“Yeah. Looking at the navigation, it seems to take about 10 minutes to the destination. It would be awkward if only the CEO and I talk during that time, and it might be burdensome to keep talking to you.”

“And knowing that, you still blocked my way out of the blue and asked if I wanted to become a singer?”

……

I was left speechless by Baek Yerin’s fact bomb.

Actually, my appearance in front of her at that timing was quite an impulsive action.

Should I say I was a bit high after seeing her performance in person after such a long time?

What’s clear is that when I came to my senses, I was already standing in front of her.

From the moment I realized that, it was already spilled water, so I had no choice but to act as shamelessly as possible.

Conversely, from Baek Yerin’s perspective, I probably looked like a crazy person.

But if such a person suddenly acts sensibly, it would certainly seem a bit strange.

It was then.

“I’m joking.”

As I lost my words for a moment, a chuckling sound came from Baek Yerin’s direction.

Judging by the reaction, it seems she had quite the intention to tease me.

Of course, I wasn’t offended.

Rather, hmm, should I call it a reward(?)?

While I was having such meaningful thoughts, Kang Beom-joon, who was driving in the front seat, opened his mouth.

“By the way, you’re already showing your trump card.”

“Trump card?”

At Baek Yerin’s question, Kang Beom-joon grinned.

“Once you listen, you’ll immediately understand what I mean. The songs this guy composes are that kind of songs.”

Oho…

Kang Beom-joon provided quite a tactful support.

By the way, the reason I wanted to let Baek Yerin hear my self-composed song was extremely simple.

It was in the hope that her heart would move even a little bit towards our side.

Well… yeah.

To be really honest, I was too curious about how my song would sound to her ears.

The problem was that this was also a kind of test for me.

If my song doesn’t sound good to her ears…

‘I think it would be very sad.’

This was what I feared the most.

17 years old.

When I first encountered her song, for the first time in my life, I had a dream. It was for her to sing a song I composed someday. I worked hard for 10 years just for that.

But implicitly, I had this thought.

What if she thinks my song is not good?

That was too… scary.

Although I started late, I was afraid that all the efforts I had made so far, the happy dream I had cherished, would crumble in an instant.

So I think the past me never once thought about having a proper point of contact with her.

Making excuses that I hadn’t become a first-class composer yet…

Thinking about it now, it was such a ridiculous thought.

First-class means someone who receives recognition from people in the world for their outstanding talent and ability.

But truly, the one I needed recognition from wasn’t the people of the world, but only one person.

Baek Yerin.

If only you thought my song was good,

If only you felt like singing my song, that would have been enough.

…Stupidly.

I realized this obvious fact far too late.

Sometimes arguing due to conflicting opinions, sometimes smiling together at the completed result, I wanted to work on songs with you like that.

I wanted to see you shining brighter than anyone while singing my song on stage.

But when you suddenly passed away, the fact that it could never happen drove me crazy.

What could I do for my dream, for you who had left this world?

There was nothing.

Of course there wasn’t.

So I regretted it like crazy, and even though I knew it was selfish, I prayed for a miracle.

That I wanted to go back to the past.

Go back to the past and…

Although frightening, because I wanted to let you hear the dream of a composer born because of you this time.

I polished the ‘regret’ inside me into the form of a song.

Yes.

That is <Rewind>.

* * *

Hah…

It came.

In the end, that moment came.

When the sound flowing from the speakers stopped, the car interior instantly fell into silence.

It meant that the song Ryu Won had played for the girl had ended.

As expected, he had played <Rewind>.

<Rewind> that he had personally recorded with none other than his own voice.

This song was Ryu Won’s all-out effort, and a song with more sincerity than any other.

So.

“……”

Now it was the girl’s turn to respond to his sincerity.

The girl… no, Baek Yerin pondered.

Please listen to my song once.

Usually, such a request also meant wanting an opinion on the song.

That’s why Baek Yerin couldn’t help but hesitate even more.

I wonder if…

‘Would it be okay for me to evaluate the song I just heard?’

How dare I?

It was ridiculous.

The song that the boy named Ryu Won had just played was so good that it was on a completely different level from the songs she had heard until now.

She wanted to express it better, but to the extent that she had no words to express it.

Only then did Baek Yerin understand.

Why someone like Kang Beom-joon was flustered over a middle school student.

And she realized.

“You, you’re a genius!”

The amazing fact that she had encountered an incredible composer.