Chapter 157 : I Liked That Song
Chapter 157: I Liked That Song
Pretending not to care, acting nonchalant.
For Kim Minsoo, meeting his family always felt like a performance.
“Haah… I thought I was going to suffocate.”
Reading the room, putting on a front.
Everything tangled up in a complicated web of interests, not affection.
When did it start?
What even is a real family? Are other siblings like this too? Such thoughts began to creep in.
Because of that.
At some point, Kim Minsoo began observing Taeyoon and Dongyoon closely.
Same industry, same path.
Normally, that would lead to jealousy, comparison, and eventually conflict.
But these brothers were different.
Seo Taeyoon, Seo Dongyoon.
The two brothers genuinely supported each other.
No selfishness, no calculations, no need for adjustment.
It felt like a bond that grew stronger just by being by each other’s side.
Sometimes, they did ridiculous things like a couple of dummies.
But they didn’t feel like two people—they felt like one.
So this is what real brothers look like.
Just watching them made him feel warm inside.
‘Little punks.’
To Kim Minsoo, the Seo brothers were the kind of people who made the corners of his mouth lift just by thinking of them.
Enough to instantly erase the tension he had felt at the KW building.
That’s why the conversation from earlier lingered so vividly.
‘What am I to Hyung? And what is Hyung to me?’
He left the lobby with a self-mocking smile.
Why was that? The message from the lone protester earlier came back to him.
He hoped things would turn out well. For Hyung, and for that person too.
Just as he began to walk away, his phone rang.
[ KW Group Kim Jinsoo ]
It was his brother.
“Did you miss me already? I just left.”
A small laugh echoed from the other end.
That laugh… actually sounded pretty nice.
— Minsoo-ya.
“Hm?”
— If I asked your whole team to move over to KW Entertainment… would that make me a selfish person?
“CEO Kim Jinsoo of KW Group personally headhunting us? I’m kinda touched, you know?”
What came next was a faint sigh.
Kim Minsoo pretended not to notice and waited for the next words.
— About what we talked about earlier, you’ll be hearing from them soon.
“Okay. Hey, Hyung. Wait.”
He didn’t know why.
Just for today, he wanted to be the beloved youngest again.
“Could you… maybe call me yourself instead?”
— ……?
“No reason really. Just thought it'd be nice to use that as an excuse to hear your voice more often.”
Like back when he thought his Hyung was the coolest, most reliable person in the world.
About ten days. It felt like a vacation.
On days without Sierra performances.
I sat in my room watching YouTube.
A music channel I often watched came up through the algorithm.
About 200,000 subscribers.
Pretty big for a channel that only covered music.
Not even mainstream pop, but music from ads, dramas, and the hidden meanings behind old OSTs—a pretty niche focus.
[ Uncle Who Reads Music ]
[@MusicReadingMan]
Even Mom subscribed to this channel.
I’d peeked at it while checking comment reactions before.
Anyway. I didn’t know who ran it, or what they did.
Never showed their face. All I knew was they had a pretty nice voice.
“Think I saw this here before.”
There were two videos on this channel that stuck with me.
First, the Interstellar OST.
Apparently, when Director Christopher Nolan commissioned Hans Zimmer, he purposely didn’t mention it was for a sci-fi film.
Instead, he handed him a short note.
— This is a story about a father and child. I want this music to speak about love.
Hans Zimmer composed the piece based on just that hint.
Instead of the usual grand, eerie electronic sounds typical of sci-fi films, he used a sacred, religious-sounding pipe organ.
“Seriously, this is f***ing epic.”
Hans Zimmer revealed in an interview—
That the story of his composition felt too delicate to be used in such a grand film.
But in the end, that unexpected charm made the film even more flavorful.
The solemn, emotional sci-fi music became Interstellar’s overwhelming emotional signature.
And the other one.
The early version of an Almond Young commercial.
From way back in 2002.
World Cup, Red Devils, street cheering…
A commercial that captured the atmosphere of the time.
And the cheer song used in it wasn’t just disposable music—it stayed with you.
No matter how many times I watched, it moved me.
“2002 World Cup. It’s still amazing every time.”
I could feel the World Cup I’d only seen in textbooks come alive.
It wasn’t the official World Cup anthem,
But the CM song captured the passion, emotion, and cheering of the time.
— Shining, together.
The cheering scenes begin in black and white.
A noona with the Taegukgi painted on her face, a Hyung hanging from a bus.
A grandmother and granddaughter holding hands as they walk.
No sound. Just a gentle background track playing.
Then, the commercial turns to color.
After the match ends, citizens are crying.
Someone quietly hands over bottled water, tissues, mist spray, and energy drinks.
Those products all came from ‘Almond Young’.
What makes someone shine the brightest is the heart that cheers them on.
Shine together. Almond Young.
Krrrr.
I could watch it over and over.
Especially, the music inserted in the CF was criminally good.
A soft band sound, warm strings.
And then, a lightly echoing children’s chorus singing “La la la~” that made my nose tingle.
Even now, the remix version could still be heard from time to time—a national CM song.
“This is so Almond Young.”
Music that moves people, relationships, hearts.
This CM song captured not just the heat of 2002, but also the hearts of those who were passionately cheering for someone on that street.
I wanted to create music like that too.
Music that stays by your side even as time passes.
A simple line tossed out casually.
“It’s okay.”
Music that could become a small comfort through just those few words.
That was the simple reason why I came to like Almond Young.
What’s unfortunate is that the person who made that song was never revealed.
Tsk. Now that I’ve seen it again, I want to do it even more.
I was sitting blankly, staring at the monitor, when my hyung came into my room without a sound.
“Geez, you scared me. At least knock.”
“I called you a hundred times and got no answer, so I wondered if you died.”
…What? I didn’t hear anything.
Hyung, saying that, casually approached and stood next to me.
“But what are you watching? Oh? This is the Almond Young CF. Doing your research already?”
Huh? What’s he talking about?
What research?
As I turned my head and blinked up at him, hyung shrugged and continued.
“Man, you really don’t know anything yet.”
“Ugh, what now?”
“There was a pitch request from Almond Young. I just heard about it too. The CEO told me to make sure to tell you…”
Gasp. CEO Kim Minsoo, of course.
He was someone who always found a way!
The fact that an opportunity had come.
That alone was already half of success.
They say getting your song pitched is a matter of luck.
To put it more dramatically… it’s the will of the heavens or something.
Who said that? My hyung!
And my hyung’s not the type to say nonsense.
So all I needed to do was focus on what I could do.
“What are you grinning about already?”
“Was it obvious?”
“You really are Seo Taeyoon. You’re in a good mood just thinking about making something again, huh?”
“Yeah, I’m happy. But…”
Wait, is there no guide?
It was like that when we met the Daebak Sound guys.
Talking about luxury and breakthroughs and whatnot.
If there was anything like that, hyung would’ve mentioned it first.
But he hadn’t said anything?
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I was wondering if there’s no pitching guide or something.”
To my question, hyung shrugged.
“Dunno. But CEO Kim said this—if he just throws you the task, Stay will handle it well on his own.”
“Really?”
Hyung’s not the type to overlook anything important.
Maybe the plan changed already? If that’s the case, that’s great for me.
Or… maybe CEO Kim Minsoo intentionally didn’t say anything.
He was always like that.
Not someone who tried to win with music that simply fit the theme.
But someone who tried to flip the table with music.
If it’s Kim Minsoo… that’s entirely possible.
As always, I just needed to keep doing what I do.
Trust Kim Minsoo and focus on what I can do.
I flung off my loungewear and quickly changed into my outdoor clothes.
“Where are you suddenly going?”
“Backstage.”
“Without dinner?”
“I’ll just grab some tonkatsu out front and go.”
Hyung shook his head and picked up his jacket again.
“I’ll go with you. My treat.”
“Oh yeah. And cola too.”
Wrecked a combo meal with a cola.
The weather was nice, my mood was good. My steps were light.
Not because the new tonkatsu place near our house was delicious or anything.
We were heading out for some coffee.
These days, I intentionally walked through busy streets like this.
Slowly, leisurely.
From the cosmetics shop, to the café—
Because I could feel the reactions of people listening to and singing along with my song firsthand.
Ding-a-ling—
As soon as I opened the door of the café we frequent, a familiar melody poured out.
Dan dan dan
Ah… It was right when the killing part played.
At the rare sight of the women at the café table laughing as they mimicked the dance, I rubbed my eyes and stood frozen.
Even the café staff swayed and sang along with the killing part.
Then, as if they couldn’t help it, they stopped mid-pour of coffee and did the hand-palm dance while glancing around.
“Seo Taeyoon, close your mouth. You’ll catch flies.”
Ah, I must’ve opened my mouth without realizing it.
Barely managed to tuck in my chin and shut it.
“Sit down. I’ll go get the coffee.”
I sat down sluggishly as if under a spell.
While hyung went to buy the coffee—
I could hear the conversation of the women sitting at the next table.
“This song’s nice.”
“What’s the title?”
“<Not Yet>.”
“Oh, it was Lumière’s song.”
The customer who asked the question started looking up Lumière’s photos on her phone.
“Wow, were they always this pretty? Lee Jeongin lost a ton of weight.”
Then she dropped the fork she’d been poking the cake with.
The other woman sitting across from her laughed playfully and teased.
“You already ate all of it… Do you think not eating the rest will make you look like Lee Jeongin?”
“What? You’re the one who ate all of this.”
I quietly hid my laughter, amused by the squabbling between the ladies, when hyung put down the tray and said,
“Hey, let’s move seats.”
“Why? It’s just getting good.”
Hyung leaned in and whispered into my ear.
“You wanna announce to the whole neighborhood that you’re Stay?”
…Hmm, yeah, that wouldn’t do. Sounds exhausting.
I left my regrets behind and went into a private room where no one was around.
The voices of the people outside were muffled, but <Not Yet> rang out clearly.
Hyung looked up toward the speaker and said,
“Lately, this is the only song you hear outside.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed.”
“Yeonhee was saying—”
“Saying what?”
“She said it’s the best song I’ve ever worked on.”
“Oh?”
Yeonhee noona was a textbook ‘muggle’—someone who only listened to the most mainstream picks.
A review like that from the general public? Rare and precious.
I took a sip of coffee and asked,
“Why?”
“She said it’s easy to listen to. She’s always liked girl groups. Listened to Han Yujin’s songs for a while, now it’s Lumière.”
By now, I was getting curious.
Did Yeonhee noona know I was Stay?
“But hyung, did you tell Yeonhee noona that I write songs?”
Hyung answered with a hint of regret.
“No? But even if I did, she wouldn’t really get it.”
“You think?”
“Yeah. Yeonhee just listens to whatever sounds good. She’s not interested in composers or stuff like that.”
“I see.”
As I replied dejectedly, hyung smiled and handed me his smartphone.
“What’s this?”
“Just look.”
It wasn’t anything special.
A message exchange with Yeonhee noona.
“What, are you bragging that you have a girlfriend?”
[Our Yeonhee♥: Ah… I’m really curious… (cat emoji)]
“Tch, start from the top.”
The heart was a little cringe, but—
Hyung kept pushing, so I scrolled up through the messages.
[Our Yeonhee♥: Babe, have you seen Blackhole in person? Is it true he’s ugly?]
[Our Yeonhee♥: This is my first time seeing a DJ, and he’s really cool.]
Huh? Yeonhee noona was curious about Blackhole?
But hyung’s response was something else.
[Blackhole is ugly. Not cool at all.]
Ugh. That’s totally him.
I threw him a side glance and opened my mouth.
“She’s not curious about Stay, but she asks about Blackhole?”
“Yup. Guess she got curious after hearing <Velvet Trigger>. Watched the video too.”
It’s not like anyone was listening, but—
Hyung lowered his head and whispered like he was spilling a secret.
“She’s practically ready to go find Sierra. If she found out it was you, she’d probably faint.”
Gasp. That intense?
I rolled my eyes around.
I didn’t know how to respond.
Still, I thought he’d at least tell Yeonhee noona. Made me think this job really was hyung’s calling.
Keeping secrets. Maintaining tight security.
That’s apparently the biggest virtue for A&R teams.
“What if she’s disappointed later?”
“I promised to get her Lumière’s autographs instead. Her niece is a fan.”
“That little rascal?”
“Yeah. She started elementary school. These days, Lumière’s the most popular among elementary kids.”
“They’re like kid-presidents, huh?”
“Ha! Right?”
Hyung laughed loudly at my comment.
Then he started sharing all kinds of stories with me.
For girl idols, targeting teenage girls.
For boy idols, targeting women in their 30s and 40s—that was the key.
“Why’s that?”
“It’s the same in any industry. That age group controls the actual spending power, and if their kids like something, they’re more likely to open their wallets.”
Whenever I had conversations like this with hyung, I felt the need to act a bit more serious.
Like I was finally a real industry insider.
Trickle—
I finished my coffee and stood up with the tray.
“You’re really leaving?”
“Yeah. Gotta get to work.”
“You’re so you. Hold on a sec.”
Hyung opened his wallet and pulled out two 50,000-won bills, handing them to me.
“What? I’ve got money.”
“Did I say you didn’t?”
“Then what’s this?”
“Just. Pick up some snacks for the Cheongseong teachers now and then… and if you miss the last train, take a cab. Don’t be stingy and wait for the first train while tired. Got it?”
Hyung grabbed the tray out of my hands like a snatch-and-run and headed to the return counter.
He glanced back at me and gestured as if telling me to hurry on.
…Times like this, he looked kind of cool.