Chapter 65
Thinking about a composer for the Oasis girls…
There was one person among our girls I could talk to about it.
“The composer from our old agency who was going to make our debut song?”
“Yeah. Do you remember who it was?”
“Of course. I still have his number.”
Seong Se-ri, who was once again making a list of luxury goods she planned to buy someday, nodded.
“Let’s see. Park Sang-oh. Composer Park Sang-oh.”
I’d assumed he was just another unknown, no-name composer, so I casually looked him up online.
Well, imagine my surprise.
“Oh my.”
“Hmm.”
He’d become an incredibly famous composer.
You could say he was practically one of the top three composers in the sexy-concept song scene.
“He wasn’t this impressive when we signed with him. We got the song almost right after signing, too.”
“Did he seem like a nice guy?”
“Oh, he is nice. He’s incredibly picky in a lot of ways, though. Basically, he has that Japanese mindset of not wanting to inconvenience other people?”
“Hmm.”
“Maybe that’s why. I heard he really likes erotic stuff. But even when he makes sexy-concept songs, he never crosses the line?”
“You’re not supposed to cross the line in the first place if you don’t want the broadcasting commission on your back.”
Nod, nod—.
Seong Se-ri nodded and ran a finger over her nail as she spoke.
“You’re suddenly interested in this composer because you want to help the Oasis girls?”
“Yeah.”
“They want to go with a sexy concept? I didn’t think they were like that. They’re not forcing themselves into it just because they want to succeed, are they?”
At first, I wondered that too.
“Absolutely not.”
The Oasis girls were incredibly lewd, too.
To the point that, if I gave them a sexy concept,
I worried they might even hand over the panties they were wearing as a special service if someone liked seeing that side of them.
“Hmm. Well, in that case, I’ll give the composer a call. It can’t hurt, right?”
“Right. Do me a favor.”
“Maybe he’d say yes if I took a sexy photo for him?”
“Hey!”
“I’m kidding. Kidding. And like I said, he really likes erotic stuff, but he doesn’t want to cause trouble for anyone else. He’s basically just an obsessive Japanese porn fan. If I sent him a naked picture, he’d probably get uncomfortable and avoid me.”
A little while later.
Seong Se-ri told me after finishing her call with Composer Park Sang-oh.
“He says he wants to talk in person.”
“Really?”
I saw a positive possibility there.
He wouldn’t ask to meet if he weren’t interested.
“Here’s his number.”
“Thanks.”
When I entered the number Seong Se-ri gave me into my phone,
Composer Park Sang-oh’s profile was added to my friends list through auto-add.
I didn’t really need to check his profile, too.
But I tapped it out of curiosity.
There was a photo of him at home with his younger sister.
If it had just been a picture of the composer by himself, I probably wouldn’t have cared.
But since he was with his younger sister, I checked it without thinking.
And then.
I was shocked.
[100% chance of success]
I stared at the status message floating over Composer Park Sang-oh’s photo.
‘I have to land this guy no matter what.’
It’d be perfect to sign a contract before going to shoot the music video.
There was nothing else I needed to do in Korea after that.
* * *
[Real Neighborhood Cafe]
Around lunchtime the next day.
I arrived at the cafe before the composer and prepared his drink and dessert in advance,
reviewed the Oasis girls’ profiles,
and familiarized myself with their strengths and selling points before waiting for him.
“There’s plenty of potential.”
If there weren’t any positive prospects, there’d be no need to meet in person in the first place.
Right?
The composer must’ve seen some potential, too, or he wouldn’t have suggested meeting to talk.
That was what I firmly believed, anyway.
“Um. I’m sorry, but…”
A guy who looked like a hardcore gamer eyed me nervously and spoke cautiously.
“I appreciate the offer, but recently… I guess you could say I’ve hit a bit of a slump? I’m not in very good shape right now, so I was thinking maybe we could talk about it again some other time…”
It didn’t sound like a rejection, but
anyone could tell it was.
Judging by the way he was talking, if I let him go now, I’d never see him again.
[100% chance of success]
If not for the message floating above his head, I would’ve given up right away.
[But what exactly does “looks like a hardcore gamer” mean?]
There’s a look.
The kind of guys who look like otaku at first glance.
‘Wow. But I don’t get it.’
From my perspective, I couldn’t understand why he’d asked to meet if he was just going to reject me.
If he was going to turn me down from the start,
he could’ve just said no firmly without meeting me.
Why go out of his way to reject me face-to-face like this?
Did he want me to cling to him?
Did he want to watch me beg like a dog?
If that was what he wanted, I could do that.
“Oh, come on, Composer! It’s fine! A slump, you say!”
“W-Why are you doing this, Team Leader?”
“Any song you make would be great. Even if you wrote a nursery rhyme, it’d be a hit.”
“Pardon?”
Park Sang-oh was incredibly startled when I suddenly threw myself on the floor and clung to his leg.
“Y-You can’t do this. I’m not comfortable with this kind of thing.”
“Then step on me if you have to! I’m waiting for your songs. No, not just me—the young women doing everything they can to get through this difficult time are waiting for those golden hands of yours.”
“N-No, that’s… I…”
Even after I went this far, his negative attitude didn’t change in the slightest.
He didn’t seem like it, but this guy was stubborn as a bull.
The type who absolutely wouldn’t budge on what he’d decided.
‘Ugh. This is exhausting.’
This was practically a battle between an unstoppable spear and an impenetrable shield.
A contradiction in its purest form.
He seemed like he might easily give in, and yet?
Park Sang-oh.
His desire to refuse had gone past 100 percent and reached 200 percent.
“Then why did you even ask to meet me?”
“W-Well, I thought it’d be rude to turn down something this important over the phone. I figured I should at least do it face-to-face.”
No.
He could think of it that way?
It was a little absurd, but
if that was what he said, what could I do?
“Ugh! I’m sorry, but my stomach suddenly hurts a lot. I’m going to the bathroom.”
“Oh, sure. Take your time.”
He’d been happily eating the patbingsu I’d ordered,
and now Composer Park Sang-oh hurried toward the bathroom in the corner of the cafe, apparently with a mild stomachache.
“Wow. Why are there so many weird people among composers?”
Nampo-dong Nuclear Fist. Composer Kim Gi-bok.
And Composer Park Sang-oh, whom I met today.
They all had at least one distinctive quirk.
“He looks so nice and gentle, but he’s basically an invincible shield?”
The more I thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed.
Why meet me if he was going to reject me?
Was he messing with me or what?
“And his head just happens to say 100% chance of success, so I can’t just give up and walk away.”
I was struggling with how to get out of this impossible situation when
[Han Hye-eun: Oppa, what are you doing?]
“Huh?”
A text came from Han Hye-eun, who’d been so quiet lately I’d wondered if she’d forgotten about me.
What was up with her?
[Kim Hyun-woo: Me? I’m at a place called Real Neighborhood Cafe near Donghae-dong, meeting with a composer and talking for a bit. There are some girls called Oasis preparing to debut, and they need a song.]
[Han Hye-eun: Donghae-dong? Seriously?]
[Kim Hyun-woo: Yeah, seriously. Aren’t you the one who hasn’t contacted me in forever?]
[Han Hye-eun: I’ve just been so focused on filming. I guess it’s just like Writer Lee Yu-jeong to make another hit. The drama’s doing great, and so many parts of the character line up with me. Once I got immersed in it, I didn’t have a chance to contact you. I guess you could say I felt like I’d become someone else.]
Is it that intense?
I didn’t know enough about acting to say.
Was that what people called method acting?
[Han Hye-eun: Anyway, filming the drama was so much fun, but it was just as exhausting. Oh, and now the company keeps asking if I want to start a MeTube channel. Ah, I’m seriously so tired. Oppa, I want to suck your dick and get fucked by it already.]
Han Hye-eun, whose lewd switch had flipped all the way on, kept sending me filthy messages.
At this point, it was practically an entire erotic novel.
[Kim Hyun-woo: I want to do it with you again, too. But I’m a little busy right now.]
“What are you so busy with? You said you were talking to a composer. Where is he?”
“Huh?”
I tilted my head, wondering if messages came with voice support these days, then
noticed a small shadow fall over me and looked up.
Han Hye-eun stood before me, proudly showing off her cleavage as she swept her hair behind her ear.
“How did you get here?”
“I just happened to be on my way home, and I was right near Donghae-dong. So I hopped off right away. I thought I’d take you with me as soon as you finished talking to the composer.”
“Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue softly.
Maybe it was because it had been so long since I’d seen her.
Or maybe Han Hye-eun looked especially beautiful today.
I wanted to take her right away, too.
But I wasn’t a sex machine. I was the team leader of N&P Management.
I had to keep business and pleasure separate.
What mattered right now wasn’t Han Hye-eun’s pussy, but getting a song out of Composer Park Sang-oh.
“You should go home first. My conversation with the composer might take a while.”
“Why?”
“Well, the composer said he wanted to talk face-to-face, so I came out, and now he says he came intending to reject me in person from the start.”
When I said that, sounding a little aggrieved,
Han Hye-eun nodded slightly, too.
“What a strange person. If that’s how he felt, he should’ve just said no from the start.”
“Right? I’m not the weird one, am I?”
“If he’s like that, wouldn’t it be easier to just give up? Give up and have sex with me instead. I heard you’re going abroad soon for the music video shoot.”
“I’d like to, but regardless of his personality, he’s talented. So I’m going to cling to him somehow.”
When I answered firmly,
Han Hye-eun smacked her lips and nodded.
“If you say so, then I guess that’s how it is. More importantly, they want me to start a MeTube channel. If I do, what should I call it?”
“Hmm. A channel name.”
I thought about it for a moment, then told her,
“How about ‘Han Hye-eun’s Yearly Diary’?”
I’d come up with it on a whim, but
you weren’t supposed to agonize over a MeTube channel name.
It was better to just toss out ideas casually.
“Oh, that’s pretty good. Then I’ll go with that.”
“Yeah. The composer should be back soon, so go home first and wai—”
“No. I’ll wait here.”
She didn’t listen to a word I said,
and naturally sat down beside me, stroking my thigh lewdly.
“It might be fun to do something naughty next to the composer if the opportunity comes up.”
“Do what? These tables are open on all sides. Do you want to end up at the police station in broad daylight? Go on! I’m seriously going to get mad.”
“Hmph.”
When I hardened my expression as if I was really about to get angry,
Han Hye-eun reluctantly got to her feet.
But then.
It happened right then.
Park Sang-oh, who had finished his business in the bathroom and was coming back while shaking the water off his hands with a refreshed look, spotted us and came hurrying over in shock.
“C-Could you possibly be actress Han Hye-eun?”
Huh?
“Yes, that’s right.”
When Han Hye-eun smiled at him,
Park Sang-oh melted on the spot.
Literally melted.
“C-Could I get your autograph? I’m a huge fan.”
“An autograph? I can give you one, but the team leader here is really important to me. He’s the one who saved me when I was in a slump.”
“Ah! In that case…”
Park Sang-oh kept his eyes fixed on Han Hye-eun while reaching out to shake my hand and said,
“When do you need the song by?”
That day, as I safely signed the contract with Park Sang-oh, I realized one thing.
Han Hye-eun had more fans than I expected.
“I’m this popular, Oppa.”
I gave Han Hye-eun a smack on the butt and sent a text to CEO Cheon Tae-o.
[Kim Hyun-woo: I found a composer for the Oasis girls.]
A little while later.
A reply came.
[CEO Cheon Tae-o: I’ll talk to Team Leader Park myself.]