The Reborn Genius of an Arts High School - Chapter 35

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 35.
[Park Sehee: Yeji, Yeji]
[Park Sehee: Did you make it in before you were late?]
Yeji managed to slip into the classroom just one step ahead of her homeroom teacher.
“All right, everyone, take your seats!”
The moment the homeroom teacher appeared, Yeji set down her bag, and her neighbor Dahye offered a greeting.
“You’re late today?”
“I ran into Sehee in front of the school gate.”
“Sehee?”
Who was that again?
While Dahye racked her brain, Yeji picked up her phone.
[Yeah, I made it in time.]
[What about you?]
[Park Sehee: I’m good too~]
At the conversation filled with cute, noisy emoticons, Yeji let out a soft laugh.
It was a bit bewildering, but the bright energy was nice to see.
[I’ll reach out to your uncle during break time too]
[Park Sehee: nah]
[Park Sehee: no need]
[Park Sehee: my uncle’s super shy with strangers anyway so he probably won’t even know what to say.]
…He hadn’t seemed that shy when she saw him so briefly.
Since she’d only seen Park Sungsu for such a short time, she hadn’t had the chance to really know him.
[So I don’t need to contact him?]
[Park Sehee: yep]
[Park Sehee: probably he’s sleeping anyway and wouldn’t pick up right now]
If he wasn’t commuting regularly, it was probably still early enough in the day.
After the morning assembly, which consisted of nothing but minor announcements, first period began.
Math class felt obligatory and the atmosphere was terrible.
Most art college applications didn’t require math at all.
Even when they did, it was only needed to meet minimum requirements.
The teacher, too, seemed to focus only on the students actually keeping up.
[Park Sehee: I think it’d be better to meet in person.]
[Park Sehee: When works for you?]
Was she in math class too?
She kept her phone glued to her hand.
The constantly glowing screen inevitably caught Yeji’s attention.
Carefully, Yeji laid her phone in the desk drawer and typed back her reply.
[How about this weekend then?]
***
Saturday afternoon, when the weekend had finally arrived.
On the bus, Yeji was sketching something in her drawing notebook.
The practice pad where she scribbled whatever came to mind was worn and frayed from constant use.
With a click, she pressed the thick 4B mechanical pencil lead and let her mind wander as she doodled.
“…….”
Blue is usually thought of as a cool color.
But colors, strangely enough, operate by many different standards.
Wasn’t there even a famous film title about it?
The Warmest Color, Blue.
Next to the scattered words, a small jellyfish was drawn.
Strange creatures drifting beneath that warm, blue light.
[The next stop is Buam-dong Community Center. Buam-dong Community Center.]
Yeji, lost in thought, jolted awake at the bus announcement.
She’d already arrived at her destination.
“Thank you.”
Offering a light farewell to the bus driver, she stepped out into an unfamiliar neighborhood.
Park Sungsu’s studio was a bit further from school, so it wasn’t far.
But she’d never actually been to this area before.
“Wow….”
This insane hill.
She’d felt it from school too, but why were there so many hills in this neighborhood?
Yeji let out a light sigh and moved forward.
She’d thought it was close—less than 200 meters from the bus stop.
She hadn’t known it would be all uphill.
Complaining a little, she climbed the slope and arrived at the building, where she paused to scratch the back of her neck.
‘Why is no one here?’
The first floor of the building looked like a café.
Large folding doors made it look like an operating café, and inside were various tables and facilities.
But all the lights were off, and there was no sign.
‘Even the address….’
There was just the street address for the building itself.
No floor number, no detailed address.
Yeji called Sehee and peered carefully through the glass at the first floor interior.
Even in broad daylight, it was somewhat dim, being on the first floor of an alley.
As the signal went through, she studied the strange, quiet space inside carefully….
“Yeji!”
“Ah!”
Yeji was startled by Sehee suddenly popping out from behind her with a loud shout.
Unable to help herself, she let out a small scream and jumped, and Sehee laughed uproariously while patting her back.
“Sorry, sorry. Did I scare you?”
“Of course!”
How could she not be startled when someone appears so suddenly like that?
Despite Yeji’s retort, Sehee naturally linked her arm through hers and casually checked the lock on the door.
Though there was no one inside, the door was secured with a simple fingerprint recognition lock.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. But when I see you concentrated like that from behind, I just want to scare you, you know?”
Sehee spoke as if everyone was like that naturally, and opened the door.
Of course, Yeji found this to be a strange way of thinking, but she said nothing.
“My uncle’s away from Korea a lot, so I come and go here sometimes.”
As she unlocked and stepped inside, the interior was filled with a peculiar scent.
It seemed to be something like wine—a rich, deep fragrance.
“This is where my uncle meets clients or has business meetings.”
Saying so, Sehee headed up to the next floor.
The building wasn’t very large.
“I told you my uncle’s shy with strangers, right? I guess he finds it easier to see people here than in some complicated café.”
Wouldn’t that be even more awkward?
Yeji, thinking again that this family was completely odd, followed her upstairs.
“The second floor is used as storage, and the third floor is the studio.”
Though modest, the building was clean and well-organized.
Oak-colored wooden floors and walls painted pristine white.
Small artworks hung throughout.
As they climbed the stairs, an elevator came into view, and Sehee spoke.
“There’s an elevator, but since my uncle uses it alone and probably only a few days a year anyway, it’s off right now.”
Yeji listened without much thought and tilted her head.
“Does your uncle own this entire building?”
“Oh, yeah. That’s right.”
Wouldn’t that make him the most inefficient landlord in the world?
As she climbed, Yeji glimpsed the second floor.
The floor used as storage was a spacious area packed with artworks stacked in layers under wrapping.
She’d have been thrilled if he’d just given her that empty space to use as a studio.
Since that’s where her thoughts keep drifting lately,
She chuckled without realizing it, and Sehee grumbled.
“Right? Even you think it’s weird. Anyway, why wouldn’t he just use the storage on the first floor instead?”
That’s not what she’d been thinking about.
Though it was admittedly a bit strange.
Moving large works would definitely be easier from the first floor.
“I don’t get why he’d needlessly set up the first floor as a meeting space. I really don’t.”
“Maybe because the artworks are so expensive…. Could be for security reasons?”
When Yeji came up with a reasonable explanation, Sehee tilted her head.
“Oh, maybe?”
She didn’t think her uncle would come up with something that clever.
Following Sehee, who was being rather harsh in her judgments of Park Sungsu, she climbed to the third floor.
There, with dishes laid out before him, sat Park Sungsu.
“Oh! You’re here? Student Yeji.”
Park Sungsu sprang up with delight, and the wooden chopsticks on the table scattered everywhere.
Then, with an “Oops,” he bent to pick them up, but his phone caught on his sleeve.
“Oh! Your phone!”
Yeji called out a warning before they could even greet properly, but it was already too late.
With a loud crash, the phone clattered to the floor.
“Ugh, uncle! I keep telling you to keep things in the center of the table.”
“Ah… haha…. I forgot again.”
With a clumsy smile, Park Sungsu’s answer confirmed he wasn’t exactly sharp.
“Hello…. Um, is your phone okay?”
“Oh, yeah, yeah. It’s fine. It’s fine. Have a seat. You haven’t had lunch yet, right?”
Since this was supposed to be a lunch meeting, she hadn’t eaten before coming.
The table was covered with malatang.
“I heard kids these days like this stuff, so I ordered it. Is it okay?”
Listening to Park Sungsu, Yeji finally understood what Sehee had meant about his shyness.
He was conversing smoothly enough, but he seemed to be forcing his social skills, and his expression was somewhat strained.
“Yes, we eat all of it. Please, be comfortable.”
“Ah, haha. Thank you. Thank you. Well, let’s eat then.”
At Yeji’s words, Park Sungsu dropped his formality with an awkward laugh and offered her the food.
Perhaps he thought having food would make things less awkward?
Besides the malatang, there were also all sorts of macarons and other desserts laid out.
“First of all, thank you for inviting me.”
“Oh, no, no. You gave me the chance to purchase a piece. I should be thanking you.”
Did she have trouble getting here; has she been well since the exhibition?
As they ate and made small talk, Park Sungsu’s peculiarity became very clear.
“You’ve been well yourself, haven’t you?”
“Oh, yes. Haha….”
With a very kind and gentle tone, he cut off the conversation thread in one clean motion.
After Park Sungsu shut down the conversation that way a few times, Sehee tried hard to keep things going.
“So my uncle met with people from the Seoul Museum of Art and the Cultural Heritage Administration lately.”
“The Cultural Heritage Administration?”
“Yeah! Something about working with artists on cultural heritage things or whatever….”
Even when Sehee successfully steered the conversation and found things to talk about, it was ultimately futile.
“Uh, yeah, so I heard….”
Park Sungsu, who only picked mushrooms from his malatang, had no talent for conversation.
Just as Sehee was about to glare at her uncle, Yeji broached the main subject.
She wasn’t social enough to make small talk with someone who didn’t enjoy it.
“By the way, what did you want to see me about?”
At the main topic, Park Sungsu finally lifted his gaze from his food and looked at Yeji.
“After seeing your work, I found myself wanting to ask you for something.”
What could it be?
With no sense of what was coming, Yeji focused on his next words.
“I have an upcoming project, and I was wondering if you could help with it.”
“A project… Would that be photography work?”
Park Sungsu nodded at her question.
“Next time I’m working on themes about nature and humanity again, but I want to incorporate more design elements into the pieces.”
Once he started talking about the work, Park Sungsu seemed like a completely different person.
Someone clumsy, perhaps a bit awkward for his age.
Though he’d seemed like an adult who needed looking after, once he spoke about his work, even his tone seemed to change.
“This isn’t a finished piece. You could call it a concept cut.”
With that, Park Sungsu pulled out a tablet and showed her a photograph.
In the photo Park Sungsu showed her was a canvas placed in the middle of a desert.
In front of it stood a camel, silent and still, and a person leading it.
Human and beast, placed in the center between golden sand and blue sky.
Though it was but a single photograph, the deep bond between the two beings was vividly apparent.
“With this concept, I plan to work in various settings with various subjects.”
Enormous canvases and beings before them.
A work expressing the bonds between living creatures dissolving into diverse nature.
“I’m planning to imbue this canvas with other kinds of symbolism. So I’d really like it if you could help with that and collaborate with me.”
Park Sungsu continued through his long explanation without hesitation or stumbling.
After hearing his explanation and seeing the photo, Yeji was a bit taken aback.
“Are you sure you can show me everything you’re preparing? Not that I’d tell anyone, but….”
Yeji and Park Sungsu didn’t really know each other.
Just being Sehee’s friend wasn’t much of a basis for trust, and she wasn’t even particularly close with Sehee.
But instead of being concerned, Park Sungsu laughed.
“Even with the same recipe, a master chef’s taste can’t be easily replicated. It’s the same thing.”
She’d briefly been fooled by his clumsy, bumbling manner, but he was ultimately one of the country’s most renowned photographers.
His casual confidence was quite impressive.
Realizing he was a brilliant artist, another question arose in Yeji’s mind.
“Why did you decide to ask me specifically?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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