Chapter 103 : Round and round, it came back to STaY
Chapter 103: Round and round, it came back to STaY
I had been scared to go to work these days.
Even if Tomorrow Entertainment had always been a company that was performance-driven, squeezed its employees like parts, and expected artists to pretend they would die if told to — even so.
It hadn’t been like this.
It had been getting worse and worse.
Signum had released <Avalanche>.
And up until now, as it swept the charts.
The A&R team had been treated like traitors and picked off like rats.
The repertoire was always the same.
I had heard it so many times I could have memorized it.
A&R, are you doing nothing these days?
If it wasn’t working, just take a bundle of cash and go, I said.
Busan Goblin? Fine, fine. But isn’t STaY the hottest right now?
The answer was “STaY”!
Round and round, it had come back to STaY.
Today was the same.
As soon as I got to the office, I heard the sharp voice of the Content Executive Director.
“Hey, is there nobody who knows STaY? Why are they not giving us songs? Manager and ToMe, fine — but what makes us worse than KIM Entertainment?”
“Shall I send a lead?”
“A lead, what are you talking about. When they give you something, you should accept it with ‘thank you.’ Bring them in right now!”
A warrant for STaY had even been issued.
“Hyoeun is having a fit again; she’s crying and making a fuss. Han Yujin is about to go on an Asia tour and she’s asking what she is. Haah.”
It wasn’t like anyone had committed a crime.
I bowed my head and quickly joined the line.
“Try contacting them somehow. If they won’t give the song, steal it and bring it here. Meet any condition. STaY’s even their grandfather — money makes no exceptions. Remember. Industry best! Radical! You know what I mean?”
At the Executive Director’s words, nobody answered; we all only nodded half-heartedly.
“They’re giving a bonus to the team that brings the STaY demo this time. I swear. What is this mess….”
There was even a bounty.
Whether the employees spoke or not.
Every day the Content Executive Director would come down to the A&R team and spill the same lamenting scolding.
I couldn’t blame how he felt.
Lee Hyoeun had been smashed by <Super Ride>.
Neo Nova, the boy group, had been smashed by <Avalanche>.
Everything had been utterly shattered.
We couldn’t take it anymore.
It was our turn to smash something.
“What are we going to do….”
The Director, who had been walking around with his hands clasped behind his back, stopped in front of me.
Everyone already knew my skill.
They said I had the keenest ears in the company.
“Assistant Manager Seo Dongyun.”
“Yes.”
“What do you think about STaY as songwriters?”
I bit my lip tightly.
What was there to think — they were amazing.
Even though I had been chanting to myself that they were great and astounding.
That didn’t mean I was the kind of person who would be so tactless as to say to the Director’s face, “It’s true they’re the most notable composer-producer in the current K-pop scene. Whether we catch STaY or not will determine the album’s success,” so I answered simply.
“STaY…. I was a little scared of them.”
A wrinkle formed between the Executive Director’s brows.
“Scared….”
I pretended to be nonchalant, but
it was an expression that couldn’t be disagreed with.
Scared.
That single word carried a lot.
There was nothing left but things to be afraid of.
If we kept not getting STaY’s songs.
“Then….”
Success could wait.
The whole industry was watching.
Whether we got a STaY song or didn’t would change our weight class.
“What should we do?”
I answered briefly again.
“We had to create an artist who made STaY want to give us a song.”
“……!”
The employees who had been bowed down all lifted their heads at once. All eyes turned to me.
It was the thing everyone had wanted to say but couldn’t bring themselves to voice.
All the A&R team swallowed in admiration.
‘Wow, refreshing.’
‘Assistant Manager Dongyun can say things like that.’
‘It’s the right thing to say….’
‘I feel like a ten-year-old worry has been lifted.’
Ahem.
Everyone avoided the Director’s gaze and only cleared their throats.
The one who probably felt the most relieved was Team Leader Bang.
Thinking about the humiliation he’d suffered dragged into the leaders’ meeting made him want to twist the Director’s wrist on the spot.
But he couldn’t show it.
He decided to hide his true feelings and act the part of a leader.
A leader should shield their team and be a breakwater, right?
Team Leader Bang stepped in to defend at exactly the right moment.
“So, what Assistant Manager Seo is saying is this: STaY is top tier, so it’s better to adapt to them. These days, songs choose the artist. And furthermore….”
When someone’s words got long, what did that mean? They had something to hide.
The Executive Director surely knew this.
So he cut Team Leader Bang off and asked.
“You mean we failed to capture the charm point in the concept or planning. Right?”
His face was gentle, but his tone wasn’t.
In a moment like this, any office worker would think the same.
‘Scratch?’
Even in the awkward atmosphere.
My gaze stayed sharp.
Was there any regret about being visible? No. It was all true.
Sometimes telling hard truths in front of the boss was genuine loyalty.
Anyone could say flattering words.
Objectively, Tomorrow Entertainment was in a crisis.
Managers pressed down from above; KIM Entertainment was climbing from below.
We needed a breakthrough.
It wasn’t necessarily only because we hadn’t landed STaY.
I met the Executive Director’s eyes squarely and answered.
“A turning point is definitely what we needed, regardless of STaY or Busan Goblin.”
It had been a bold thing to say, but
the Director still had only STaY in his mind.
“Alright. So this is the conclusion. The probability of working with STaY is slim, so take care of artist care. Yes. Understood. Everyone, good work then.”
The morning meeting ended today too with no real gain.
After months of being nagged and burned out until I felt scorched inside, I had, for the first time in five years, thought sincerely.
‘I wanted to quit the company.’
My brother had broken down!
That was the conclusion I had reached after observing him for the past few days and giving it serious thought.
The more Signum succeeded, the darker his face became.
“Hmm….”
I hoped it wasn’t my imagination.
My brother had been a bit sensitive, perfectionistic, and sharp, but only about work.
He had complained jokingly, but he had never looked this serious.
He wasn’t the sort to drag his emotions home with him.
But these days, watching from the side, it was almost frightening.
Sometimes, like he was seeing ghosts, he’d stare blankly into the air, then mutter to himself, clutching his head — and at night, he’d jolt up from sleep screaming, “Aaagh!” while kicking off the blanket.
“Hyung.”
“……”
“Hyung!”
“Huh? Oh? You called me?”
See?
He couldn’t even hear me calling him.
“Something wrong?”
Up to that point, it was still fine.
He was an office worker, after all.
Even Assistant Manager Go Minseo from Manny Entertainment, who lived and breathed work, sometimes tore at her hair and let out heavy sighs.
Wasn’t it the same for anyone working at an entertainment company?
But my brother…
“No, nothing like that.”
“Then… why aren’t you eating chicken?”
“No appetite.”
“Gasp!”
Not eating chicken.
Now that was serious.
He was the kind of person who thought skipping a meal was a catastrophe.
“Still, try some. I brought it from far away ’cause you like it.”
“Yeah? Thanks.”
I studied my brother carefully.
Now that I looked, he did seem thinner.
Even the snacks at home were untouched.
When I held out a drumstick, he finally spoke his mind.
“Taeyoon.”
“Yeah?”
“Did… did our company contact you?”
“You mean Tomorrow Entertainment?”
“Yeah.”
They’d been reaching out to me a lot lately.
But I’d turned down every offer.
Not because I had any hard feelings toward Tomorrow Entertainment.
I just wanted to focus on other things than composing for a while, and more importantly, I had a clear reason.
So I spoke honestly.
“They did, often. Even yesterday. They asked to meet, but I refused.”
“Can I ask why?”
“It’s nothing special. They wanted songs for Lee Hyoeun and Neo Nova. But I don’t think our styles match.”
My brother just listened quietly.
He knew me better than anyone — my musical preferences, how I’d worked up until now.
So I added more, just as honestly.
“It’s partly because I don’t really know those artists, but more than that…”
Should I even say this?
I hesitated a bit.
My brother was a veteran in the field — he’d met countless composers, worked with industry pros for decades. So maybe it was presumptuous for someone like me, who’d only done a handful of tracks, to say something like this…
Eh, whatever.
If not to him, who else could I say it to?
So I said it.
“Nothing comes to mind.”
“Huh?”
“When I see a character, there should be an image that comes to me. But with them, nothing does. I can’t picture them singing my song. Maybe because Tomorrow has built their characters too rigidly?”
“There’s no artist without that kind of image. The real pros pull it into their own direction. STaY’s that kind of creator — no, producer.”
My brother took a sip of cola and continued.
“I realized that after seeing Signum this time. STaY composes by looking at the character. There are some writers like that.”
“It’s not always like that, though.”
“But objectively, yeah — Tomorrow doesn’t really have a singer who fits with STaY.”
That was just how he was.
When he talked about music, he always sounded detached and objective, as though standing outside it all.
And that’s what made him easy to talk to.
I scratched my cheek awkwardly.
“Taeyoon.”
“Yeah?”
“It’s crazy out there. They’re all yelling to bring STaY in.”
“Really?”
I picked up another piece of chicken, took a huge bite — chomp! — and spoke with my mouth half-full.
“Then go grab them. They’re right here in front of you.”
Even after I said that, his expression didn’t change.
He just gave a faint, bitter smile.
“It’s fine. If I’d wanted to use family connections, I’d have begged long ago.”
Ah, come on!
…That’s what I shouted inside.
But I knew. From the moment he first found out I was Blackhole until now.
My brother had always only thought about me.
So now it was my turn to think about him.
No — to be precise, there was an artist at Tomorrow Entertainment I’d been interested in working with.
“Go on, grab me. Hurry.”
“Did you hear something?”
“There’s someone at Tomorrow I’d like to work with.”
“You said you didn’t like Lee Hyoeun or Neo Nova.”
“Like they’re the only ones there? Think about it. Three, two…”
“Wait, why are you counting down…”
“One, half, half of half, half of that half…”
“Hey, wait, don’t tell me you mean Kar!”
“Ding-dong-daeng!”
I took off the headphones hanging around my neck and waved them.
“Kar gave me these, right? I should return the favor.”
“Oh, come on. Seo Taeyoon’s beat with Kar’s rap… forget it. You’re just doing this for me, aren’t you?”
“For you? Please, you know me better than that. I like Kar. I listen to his tracks all the time. He’s a great rapper. I can make him a killer beat.”
My brother blinked at me.
Ugh, with that mountain-bandit face, that look was intense!
“Not this week. Next week’s better. Oh, and make sure you say this — proudly.”
“What?”
“‘STaY! I, Seo Dongyun, brought them in!’”
I thumped my chest as I said it.
Then the corners of his mouth twitched.
Pffft—
He couldn’t hold back his laughter.
Finally, my brother laughed.
His expression softened.
At last, I could relax.
Why had he been torturing himself instead of just asking me for help?
Honestly, he could’ve just gone, “What’s the point of brothers if not this? Help me out once!”
With this mood, it felt like he’d agree to anything.
I seized the chance and declared boldly:
“Oh, and one more condition.”
“…What is it?”
“I’m eating all the wings tonight.”
We looked at each other and laughed.
That was the beginning — the start of what later became the ridiculous “STaY Paradox Incident.”