The Genius Composer Starts Again - Chapter 47
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“Hah. That was hectic.”
I let out a small sigh. Kang Se-a and Jeong Tae-seong headed to the administration office for the payment procedures, and Mun Ah-rin followed behind them.
Jeong Tae-seong told Cho Yun-je and me to go ahead and leave, so we had just stepped out of the hospital entrance.
“We were practicing and suddenly this happened. What a situation.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Are you going back to the practice room? It’s getting late. Why don’t we just continue tomorrow?”
Cho Yun-je thought for a moment, then answered like this.
“I’m going to the practice room.”
“Really? …Should I come with you?”
“No. Let me organize my thoughts alone.”
Since he was going to practice until late, I felt awkward about just going home by myself, so I casually asked, but Cho Yun-je firmly declined.
Right. I also want to go home soon since I need to clean Nuri’s litter box.
But somehow the atmosphere has been strange since he came back from the restroom with Mun Ah-rin. He seems a bit dazed, I guess.
“Did something happen earlier?”
I asked subtly, but Cho Yun-je only wore a faint smile.
“What do you mean?”
“…Never mind. As long as nothing happened.”
It bothered me that his condition became strange right after spending time with Mun Ah-rin.
But it would be weird to pry suddenly, so I just awkwardly shook my head.
“Should we head out then?”
“Huh? Yeah.”
“See you tomorrow.”
“Yeah.”
I gave an awkward farewell at Cho Yun-je’s words.
We turned around and walked in our respective directions. But I couldn’t take more than a few steps before stopping.
Because somehow I felt unsettled.
Cho Yun-je said he was fine, but something bothered me. In the end, after standing there for a while, I suddenly realized.
“Ah! My bag!”
I just remembered that I had left my bag in the practice room in our rush to leave.
I hurriedly turned around, but Cho Yun-je had already disappeared.
***
Cho Yun-je gripped the practice room door handle, took a breath, and slowly opened the door.
The piano sitting alone under the lights seemed to resemble himself. As he pulled out the chair and sat down, the fluorescent lights danced over the keys, creating ripples of light.
Cho Yun-je habitually placed his hands on them.
It was perfect posture. Whenever he sat in front of the piano, his mother’s scolding would follow like a shadow.
-Cleaner! You need to press more accurately. Again!
This time he heard Seol’s voice too.
-Running away again. You’re running away from your emotions.
The two voices mixed together chaotically.
-You have to replace me. Why do you think I quit piano?
-Break it. The framework you’ve built up.
-Start over from the beginning. It’s not beautiful. Why are you doing this?
“Stop it.”
Cho Yun-je talked back to his mother for the first time.
“Stop, stop, stop!”
Crash!
He slammed the piano and shot up from his seat. Huff, huff. Only his rough breathing and pounding heartbeat echoed in his ears.
The noisy chatter finally disappeared.
Then his head cleared. Only the piano in front of him came into view. Without caring about anything else,
Cho Yun-je pressed the keys for perhaps the first time with his complete, genuine will.
-♪
His hands naturally continued.
-♬♪♬♩
Cho Yun-je deliberately drew out rough sounds. It wasn’t to rebel against his mother’s voice.
It was to express his emotions as they truly were.
When he chose expression over accuracy, dull noise emerged like that of someone who had just started learning piano.
Like crying before learning to speak. Vocalizations not yet standardized by meaning and grammar burst out in succession.
Eventually, Cho Yun-je gradually incorporated accuracy. Like water pooling in a puddle, the notes began to stabilize.
From then on, it was a state of complete absorption.
Cho Yun-je struck the keys as his hands led him, as he wanted to play.
That itself brought a thrilling sense of liberation.
“Hah, hah.”
When he came to his senses.
He had already completed a piece.
The moment he was looking down at his trembling palms.
Clap clap clap.
Applause came from behind.
“…!”
Turning around, he saw Seol leaning against the wall. Since when? He had been so absorbed in playing that he didn’t even notice someone entering.
This was a first-time experience.
As Cho Yun-je was too immersed in the afterglow to say anything, Seol silently sat at the auxiliary piano across from him.
And without any explanation, she began to play.
-♬♪♩♬….
Cho Yun-je immediately understood. This was Seol’s response song.
An improvised piece unfolded that seemed similar to yet different from Cho Yun-je’s. Seol’s characteristically bold progression that seemed to cross boundaries gave Cho Yun-je a strong impact.
As soon as Seol’s piece ended, Cho Yun-je played his response as if he had been waiting.
The two didn’t speak, but understood each other’s intentions through their playing.
Cho Yun-je moved forward step by step like he was learning to walk. As he followed Seol’s gentle guidance, it felt like a new world was unfolding.
Cho Yun-je had an intuition.
This was it.
What Seol had been talking about all along—breaking the framework and creating his own music.
This thrilling sensation was exactly what she meant. This was what Seol had wanted to show him all along.
-♪….
As the last note resonated long, they could tell without words that it was the end.
Though he couldn’t explain how, Cho Yun-je felt it. That Seol had been with him, if only briefly, through the music.
The texture of the keys touching his fingertips felt unfamiliar.
It was strange. These were keys he had played to the point of exhaustion, yet they could feel so new.
“Congratulations.”
Seol broke the silence first. Cho Yun-je couldn’t give any response.
“You finally broke through.”
At those words, Cho Yun-je felt his heart sink with a thud.
“Ha, haha….”
A small laugh escaped from his lips. Along with overwhelming emotion, deep joy came rushing in like a tide.
“Haha, hahaha!”
Cho Yun-je buried his face in both hands and burst into loud laughter.
Seol closed the piano lid and stood up from his seat. Cho Yun-je was rubbing his eyes roughly with his sleeves.
“Are you crying?”
“I’m not crying.”
“This is the second time. Showing me your crying face. You’re unexpectedly a crybaby, aren’t you?”
“I said I’m not crying.”
Saying that with reddened eyes had no credibility whatsoever.
Cho Yun-je swept the keys once with his fingertips.
“I don’t think I’ll ever forget this feeling.”
“You shouldn’t forget it.”
Seol said bluntly.
“You’ll experience it to the point of getting sick of it from now on.”
Cho Yun-je chuckled and wore a gentle smile.
The unpleasant feeling he had while talking with Mun Ah-rin had completely disappeared, leaving only a refreshing sensation.
“Thank you.”
“Why are you being so embarrassing?”
“Just. Thank you.”
The sky outside the window had already been pitch black for a long time. Cho Yun-je gazed at the scattered stars and murmured.
“…Now I feel like I finally understand what ‘my music’ is.”
***
“What? But CEO, that won’t do.”
Kim Secretary was unusually startled.
“You have the Asia Headquarters meeting tomorrow, and you still need to review the Singapore investment matter.”
“I know.”
Jeong Do-hyun replied calmly.
“But suddenly going to Korea? Considering the round-trip flight time, you’ll barely get any sleep! It’s such a waste of your schedule.”
“I said I know.”
“Besides, it’s not even an important meeting, it’s a scholarship recital? Couldn’t you go to something like that next time?”
“Kim Secretary.”
At the low, sunken voice, Kim Secretary flinched and trembled.
The past two weeks had already been a murderous schedule, and now adding more to it seemed like he might actually collapse.
It was advice born from such concern. But Jeong Do-hyun widened his eyes and asked back.
“Have I ever asked Kim Secretary for your opinion?”
“…No.”
“Book the plane ticket. I’ll review the Singapore matter on the plane.”
Kim Secretary eventually nodded. If the CEO says he’ll do it, there’s nothing to do but comply.
Jeong Do-hyun checked his wristwatch. To catch the flight to Korea, he had to finish everything as quickly as possible from now.
Normally, even he wouldn’t have arranged such an unreasonable schedule.
But this time, he had no choice.
‘…You better be there.’
Jeong Do-hyun recalled Professor Jeong Tae-seong’s grinning face and furrowed his brow deeply.
He wasn’t the type to boast, so it would be fine to have expectations.
Other matters aside, when it came to finding a composer who could make his heart race, he absolutely couldn’t postpone it.
‘See you soon.’
Jeong Do-hyun slowly closed and opened his eyes.
‘Composer.’
The price for making him go through all this trouble would have to be repaid with music from now on.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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