* * *

Jang Haejin observed the reactions of the other judges.

Despite her experience, she wasn’t a professional dancer, so she was curious about the dance trainer’s opinion.

He looked at Chae Hamin with eyes akin to a child finding a fascinating toy.

“He passed.”

Having at least one successful candidate made the audition worthwhile.

“Well done. Your skills aren’t bad.”

“Thank you!”

Chae Hamin’s mischievous demeanor vanished, replaced by a gentle smile.

Jang Haejin turned her attention to Ji Donghwa, who had been waiting.

“Next, Ji Donghwa, can we see what you’ve prepared?”

Ji Donghwa briefly replied and switched places with Chae Hamin.

“We’ll start with the song, as before. Shall I play it right away?”

“Um, yes.”

As she signaled, the intro began. The metronome sound filled the room, followed by a trendy guitar sound.

“The song is good. What song is this?”

Just when it seemed to lose momentum, a synthesizer sound caught her ear as it rose and dropped, leading into the melody.

“I’m sorry, I’m a bit uneasy now

When I open my eyes, it’s an unfamiliar space

Breathing in, it’s a bit hard

The anxiety of an emergency landing, it’s so brutal”

His voice, singing the rhythmic lyrics softly, was refreshing like a breeze on a grassy field.

However, the song’s mix of excitement and poignant lyrics created a sense of longing more than coolness.

“What does this mean?”

Forgetting she was a judge, Jang Haejin found herself just enjoying the new song.

After a brief pause where only the metronome filled the space, the chorus began with electronic sounds resembling a siren and Ji Donghwa singing in a slightly higher pitch.

“Oh, Our love travel, the landing site is break up

Left alone after the emergency landing”

Listening to the lyrics, Jang Haejin was impressed.

“Comparing a breakup to an emergency landing and the narrator to a spaceship, nice.”

The song suited Ji Donghwa well.

His skill wasn’t top-tier for a main vocal, but with this song, it felt like he could be.

It was believable that someone had written the song just for him.

With such a knack for choosing songs that fit him perfectly, he could even work in the planning or A&R team with some training.

The song ended quickly, perhaps because it was only arranged for the first verse. Jang Haejin, feeling a bit disappointed, asked,

“Did you arrange the song to only sing the first verse?”

Ji Donghwa tilted his head, confused by her question, and answered,

“It was only composed up to the first verse, so I hurriedly completed the ending. I would have liked to show the whole song, but time was short…”

What did he mean? She tilted her head, just like Ji Donghwa had earlier.

However, when she heard the A&R team leader exclaim in admiration, she realized it.

“Is this an original composition?”

“…Yes.”

“The lyrics too?”

“…Yes.”

Team Leader Jang Haejin reflexively looked at the A&R team leader. As their eyes met, the A&R team leader discreetly gave a thumbs-up under the table, out of Ji Donghwa’s sight.

‘That means the song is good. If that picky person says it’s good…’

She slowly turned her head towards Ji Donghwa. His singing skill was above average, his voice was one you’d want to keep listening to, his appearance had a unique charm with a slightly cold, cat-like look, and he could write lyrics, compose, and arrange music.

My goodness.

Ji Donghwa seemed a bit uneasy about the somewhat chaotic atmosphere among the judges.

Watching him, Jang Haejin muttered to herself.

‘I need to decide which religion to believe in.’

---

Watching the judges exchange signals among themselves, I muttered internally.

‘Unless they have no ear for music, it’s probably just a matter of taste. This isn’t a bad song.’

But their lukewarm reactions kept bothering me. I couldn’t help it. I turned my head towards Chae Hamin. He smiled and gave a small thumbs-up.

‘…So the song isn’t bad.’

Then why are they leaving me standing here while they make a fuss among themselves?

After a slightly tedious wait, a woman sitting in the middle of the judges’ table began to speak with a small smile.

“Your composition skills are not bad. Can we see you dance next?”

Ah, after seeing Chae Hamin dance, it’s quite embarrassing to follow that.

From what I could tell through knowledge synchronization, Chae Hamin’s dance skills were impressive enough to amaze anyone.

But what could I do? I had to do what was asked of me.

---

After finishing the audition, on my way out. They said they’d let us know the results by tomorrow since today was the last audition.

Will I make it? My skills are generally decent, so unless I lack uniqueness, I should be able to pay my rent.

“Donghwa, you’ll make it!”

…Are you a shaman? How do you know that?

He’s comfortable because he’s someone who is valuable just by his dancing alone.

“Your emotional delivery when singing was really good. It was a good idea to listen to the MR and sing together during practice. Are the lyrics based on personal experience?”

‘It’s hard to answer that.’

If you ask if it’s based on personal experience, it certainly is.

I wrote the lyrics based on the confusion and bewilderment I felt when I first arrived in this world.

The love story is just a garnish and a smokescreen. Still, it wasn’t bad for hastily written lyrics considering my experience as a writer wasn’t for nothing.

Hmm, I guess it’s better to be honest.

“…Yeah.”

Chae Hamin looked at me with a sympathetic expression.

He probably thought I had experienced a heartbreaking breakup, but that’s far from the truth.

I’ve never loved anyone in my 29 years, how could I?

Chae Hamin, seeing me walking silently, asked,

“Donghwa, since the audition is over, how about we go eat?”

I felt a strong sense of déjà vu.

I didn’t mind eating together, but I didn’t want to eat that horrendous pork cutlet mixed with mushrooms again.

“…What do you want to eat?”

Chae Hamin smiled and proudly said,

“Wiener Schnitzel!”

‘……!’

Didn’t you not even know what that was last time?

“…Did you look it up?”

“Yeah, since you said you liked it, I looked it up. I’ve never tried veal before, so I was curious.”

My evaluation of Chae Hamin shot up. He’s quite a good friend.

“Then let’s go to a place I know this time.”

I didn’t even realize how excited my voice sounded as I told Chae Hamin to follow me. As I started walking ahead, Chae Hamin immediately followed and asked,

“But is there no mushroom in Wiener Schnitzel?”

‘Shut your mouth, you rabbit.’

I pretended not to hear and yawned once. Chae Hamin, not feeling offended, just beamed.

---

The place I took Chae Hamin to was a Wiener Schnitzel specialty restaurant near Itaewon.

It was a small place with about 12 tables, where I used to come often in my previous life.

The atmosphere was reminiscent of the restaurant I visited when I worked my bones off to save money and study in Germany.

Having such a place in Korea is nothing short of the greatest blessing.

However, there’s a reason this place isn’t famous.

“Gute Abend. (Good evening.)”

When I greeted upon entering, the store owner was momentarily surprised before asking,

“Guten Abend! Wie viele Personen? (Good evening! How many people?)”

“Zwei. (Two.)”

That’s right. The owner couple only speaks German. They can’t even speak English, so why they’re working in Korea is a mystery.

“Folgen Sie mir bitte! (Please follow me!)”

I pulled the dazed Chae Hamin along and followed the owner. Once seated, he handed us the menu.

“Hier ist die Karte. Möchten Sie zuerst etwas trinken? (Here is the menu. Would you like to order drinks first?)”

I told him to wait a moment and asked Chae Hamin,

“Do you want to drink anything in particular?”

Looking bewildered, Chae Hamin hurriedly said no. Both of us had just come of age this year.

“They have good beer here. Are you okay with alcohol?”

“Sure!”

I turned to the owner.

“Zwei Glas Bier vom Fass, bitte. (Two draft beers, please.)”

After ordering food and drinks, I looked ahead.

Chae Hamin was looking at me with a mix of admiration, surprise, and slight confusion.

Feeling a bit burdened by his gaze, I asked bluntly,

“…What.”

“…Donghwa, you’re really amazing.”

That’s so embarrassing.

“What language was that? It sounded really fluent.”

“German.”

“Can you speak any other languages?”

“…A bit of English and French.”

He then clapped his hands in surprise and asked,

“Can I ask how fluent you are?”

Why is he suddenly interrogating me? …But it didn’t feel too bad to brag about my language skills.

“I can manage in England if I were dropped there suddenly, and I can hold everyday conversations in French.”

Then, thinking about something, Chae Hamin suddenly said something strange.

“Maybe it was a huge opportunity to leave the company to debut with you?”

“…What nonsense.”

I answered indifferently to the absurd statement. The expectations for a mere writer like me are too high. Besides, he would have received some attention no matter who he debuted with.

“With your skills, you could have succeeded on your own.”

Chae Hamin looked moved by my words. Oh please, you rabbit. It’s obvious, yet he can’t see his own skill level objectively.

As we were having a trivial conversation, the Wiener schnitzel and beer arrived.

I quickly squeezed some lemon juice on it, cut a small piece, and put it in my mouth.

It seemed that Chae Hamin hadn’t fully researched how to eat it because he promptly imitated my actions.

Crunch.

With just one bite, the juicy meat burst out, followed by the crispy coating and the tender veal, all enhanced by the fresh lemon aroma.

I closed my eyes and savored the taste deeply.

In that moment, the anxiety of being in an unfamiliar environment vanished, replaced by a profound sense of fulfillment.

How could I express this feeling?

‘…Tonight, I’ll definitely write a story or compose a song!’

Chae Hamin looked at me, chuckled, and put a piece in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully.

“Oh, Donghwa, this is really tender.”

“Right? Originally, Wiener schnitzel is made with veal tenderloin, but in Korea, the ones sold as schnitzel are usually made with pork. When I discovered this place, I felt like I was saved…”

Why is he looking at me like that? Chae Hamin was staring at me with a curious expression as I spoke. Did I say something weird…?

“…What?”

“It’s just that it’s the first time I’ve seen you talk so much.”

…Damn, saying it so bluntly makes even me feel embarrassed.

Unable to find a suitable reaction, I turned my gaze to the window.

Fortunately, the mushroom soup arrived at that moment, and I greeted the owner, trying to hide my embarrassment.

Chae Hamin looked at the soup with curiosity. Oh, did I not explain what I ordered to him?

“What’s this?”

“Mushroom soup. I thought you might like mushrooms.”

Chae Hamin looked at me with the same expression as when I complimented his dancing skills earlier.

Ha, no matter when I receive that kind of look, it always makes me uncomfortable. I lowered my head and focused on cutting the Wiener schnitzel again.

---

Chae Hamin looked at Donghwa, who was sitting across from him, and thought.

‘He must be embarrassed.’

His expression seemed calm, but the tips of his ears were bright red. It must be because I looked at him with a touched expression.

Donghwa probably thinks he’s good at hiding his emotions, but unfortunately, when he’s embarrassed, his ears are too honest, no matter how much he tries to control his facial expressions.

Honestly, I wanted to tease him a bit, but I held back because he might not play with me anymore.

Chae Hamin sliced his Wiener schnitzel and recalled the audition.

To be honest, when the song first started playing, I doubted that it was an original composition.

I knew he was talented, but I didn’t expect him to produce a song of that caliber.

It was a trendy song that could easily be heard on the streets of New York.

And to top it off, he can sing and dance well, and he’s fluent in four languages? Donghwa might lack social skills, but he’s definitely a genius.

“Donghwa.”

Donghwa paused, about to eat some salad with the Wiener schnitzel, put down his fork, and looked at Chae Hamin.

“If you succeed, don’t abandon me.”

Donghwa looked at me blankly, then smiled and replied.

“…If I succeed, you’ll succeed too, won’t you?”

Not understanding immediately, Chae Hamin tilted his head, and Ji Donghwa explained.

“…We’re debuting together, right?”

“…You’re right. What you said makes sense!”

Chae Hamin took a sip of beer while watching Ji Donghwa focus intently on his Wiener schnitzel again.

‘He’s unexpectedly good at touching people’s hearts.’

Of course, Donghwa himself seemed to be speaking naturally, not aiming for such an effect.

Feeling good, Chae Hamin drank his beer.

“Oh, this is my first time drinking, and it’s really refreshing and tasty.”

“…Your first time drinking?”

“Yeah, when I turned twenty, I was busy preparing for the debut group audition, so I couldn’t attend any drinking parties.”

“…Well, it’s just beer, so you won’t get drunk.”

…However, unfortunately, Ji Donghwa’s prediction was rarely wrong this time.

* * *