Chapter 257: Featuring (3)

Kang Ra-Eun was paying close attention to Kim Han-Gyo’s actions from the comfort of her own home while waiting for the song to be completed. She wanted nothing more than to personally check what he was up to, but...

‘My face is far too well-known; that would be dangerous.’

Her plan would be all over if rumors about the top star Kang Ra-Eun stalking Han-Gyo were to spread, which was why she had created the ‘masked woman’ persona to prevent such rumors from spreading. She did not want all the work that she had done to crumble when she was so close to the end.

/p>

‘I have no choice but to get detailed information from Mr. Ma and Team Leader So.’

Han-Gyo was under 24-hour watch, so Ra-Eun would be immediately alerted if he were to do anything worthy of suspicion. She decided to trust her subordinates and wait.

Ra-Eun then listened to the melody of the song that she would be featuring in, especially the part where she would be singing in harmony with Je-Woon.

‘The lyrics aren’t ready yet, but I’ll be able to get straight to work if I get myself used to the melody.’

Now that she had decided to do this, she wanted to execute it with perfection. Her competitive spirit had set ablaze once again.

‘Come to think of it, I’ve never sung with someone before.’

Je-Woon had promised to teach her, so she decided to trust him for now.

***

Ra-Eun and Je-Woon went right into the recording process as soon as the song had been completed. Ra-Eun memorized what she needed to do on each part while focusing on the singing of a woman that she had never heard the voice of before.

“Sunbae. Should I sing in falsetto here?”

“Mm... If you can sing a little higher, I don’t really see the need for you to use falsetto. Is this part too high for you?”

“No, it’s fine.”

Ra-Eun cleared her throat and sang the part that she had been referring to so that she could prove herself.

“That was great! Sing it just like that during the recording. If I could be a little bit greedy, it would be better if you could put a bit more heart into it.”

“Got it,” Ra-Eun answered as she wrote down Je-Woon’s feedback on her lyrics sheet.

“Don’t feel pressured to let me or the producer know if any of the parts are too high-pitched for you. We can change it anytime.”

“I’m fine. It’s more than doable.”

The song was not as high-pitched as the wedding song that Ra-Eun had sung. Je-Woon smiled as she expressed her confidence.

“Then should we try singing in harmony?”

“Okay.”

The two of them sang in their own pitch as if they were having a script reading session. Je-Woon’s heavy baritone voice harmonized perfectly with Ra-Eun’s light tone. The producer, who had been listening to their harmony, nodded in satisfaction.

“I guess it was worth staying up all night to complete. You guys sound perfect together.”

Je-Woon had harmonized with many songstresses before, but he had never matched so well with someone like this. Not just that, Ra-Eun was not even a singer, which astonished the producer even more.

“I bet you two will be cast as protagonists in a drama together once Je-Woon’s solo album is released.”

There was no way that drama and film producers would leave the two of them to be when they matched so well with each other. They had already been an imaginary couple in a variety show.

Je-Woon replied with high expectations, “That would be great. Even better if...

“If what?” the producer asked.

“Nothing.”

Je-Woon almost blurted out that It would be even better if the production contained a kiss scene.

***

Ra-Eun had sung a wedding song in front of others before, but had never officially participated in producing an album. She had been like a fish out of water at first, but had gotten used to it in a flash. She was simply featuring in a song rather than producing her own solo track, so the recording had finished faster than scheduled.

“Okay, that was great. That wraps up the recording,” the producer said.

“Thank you very much.”

As Ra-Eun took off her headset and left the booth, Je-Woon, who had been waiting for her outside, handed her a canned drink.

“Great work, Ra-Eun.”

“Good morning, sunbae. Didn’t you say that you had something scheduled in the morning?”

Ra-Eun’s recording session began at 9:30 AM. She had expected for Je-Woon to be unable to come, so she couldn’t help but find it strange for him to be here.

“It finished earlier than scheduled. Not just that, I can’t afford to miss your recording.”

“Did you come to make sure that I wasn’t screwing up?” Ra-Eun asked jokingly.

“No way. Everyone here knows how competent you are.”

“Your recording is in the afternoon, right?”

“Yeah, and I have to practice my stage choreography. What will you be doing?”

Ra-Eun had only been offered to feature in the song, but humans were greedy creatures. Hoping to bring more attention to Je-Woon’s first solo album, his agency had requested Ra-Eun to perform with Je-Woon just once, during his solo debut stage.

Of course, it was all up to Ra-Eun whether or not to accept. She had seen many occasions of people who had featured in a song, performing together with the singer on stage. Since she was already helping Je-Woon, she decided to be a bit more generous.

“I’ll perform on stage with you.”

“Really?”

“Yes, but only once, on your debut stage.”

Ra-Eun would not do any more than that, but Je-Woon was more than satisfied since he put more significance on the fact that he was able to perform on stage with Ra-Eun on his debut stage.

“But sunbae. Do I have to dance too?”

“It’ll be extremely short. You don’t have to be up on stage dancing with me from beginning to end. You can just come on stage to sing when your part arrives and then strike an ending pose with me.”

Since Ra-Eun had made a difficult decision, Je-Woon planned the stage to be as simple for her as possible.

“Have you danced before?” he asked.

“No, never.”

“Really? Then I guess I should make the choreography as easy as possible.”

“You’re making the choreography yourself, sunbae?”

“Yeah. I’ve created the choreography for Bex a few times.”

Ra-Eun had not known this.

‘I didn’t know he was talented in that aspect as well.’

She had known that Je-Woon loved to dance, but she had not known that he even created choreographies. It was better for Ra-Eun if Je-Woon would be making it, since she could ask him to modify it right away if she was struggling while they were practicing together.

‘Singing and dancing... I feel like an idol singer.’

Ra-Eun had sworn that she would never become a singer, but she was working hard to prepare for a singing stage before she had realized it. Her words were not matching her behavior at all.

***

Je-Woon’s solo debut date had finally arrived. His solo album would be released on every single music platform as soon as his debut stage began, and Ra-Eun would be paid a portion of the profits made. In other words...

‘The higher rank it gets, the more money enters my bank account.’

Hence, Ra-Eun did her absolute best in her choreography practice with Je-Woon. No one in the world hated money.

“Let’s get ready for a rehearsal!” the director exclaimed.

“Yes, sir!”

People moved busily. Ra-Eun placed a large name tag with her name on it on her stage outfit. Fortunately, she would be wearing short shorts instead of a skirt since she would be dancing.

‘Shorts are far more comfortable to move around in than a skirt.’

Not just that, the chances of broadcasting accidents became null. Pants were great in many different ways. The title track of Je-Woon’s solo album Love & Peace played as soon as the signal was given to begin the rehearsal. Je-Woon began his stellar performance as he stared at the camera while holding a mic. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

As the performance was at its halfway point...

“Please stand by, Ra-Eun.”

“Okay.”

Ra-Eu got ready to go on stage right away. She stood on top of the stairs of the stage’s second floor as soon as the staff member gave her a signal. Moments later, the door opened; Ra-Eun walked through it and onto the stage. She was momentarily taken aback by the blinding spotlight on her, but she didn’t stop singing.

Your voice travels to me through the winds

And it shakes my heart.

I love you, I love you.

Before I know it, I’m listening to your whispers,

The stage was to be held live, so Ra-Eun unintentionally clenched her mic a bit too strongly. She felt her voice trembling a little, but the director gestured to keep going. She stepped down to the first floor when it was time and performed the choreography that she had practiced with Je-Woon.

Je-Woon wrapped his arm around Ra-Eun’s waist and brought her closer to him. They just needed to strike their ending pose while looking into each other’s eyes. The program director, audio director and other staff members showered them in applause despite it only being a rehearsal.

“Fantastic. You both did amazing! We’ll be counting on you to do just that during the live show as well!”

Compliments made people happy. Ra-Eun unknowingly smiled as the staff members showered her with praise.

***

The broadcast finally began. Unlike dramas or films, live singing performances could not be cut when mistakes were made. Hence, Ra-Eun made sure to stay focused. Ra-Eun stood on the top of the second floor stairs for a second time and walked onto the stage. This time, her voice was far more stable than during the rehearsal.

‘All that’s left is to perform the choreography and strike the ending pose.’

Je-Woon wrapped his arm around Ra-Eun’s waist. They momentarily distanced themselves, and then rapidly closed that distance. However...

‘Aren’t we a bit too close?’

There seemed to have been a slight error in their steps, because their faces were far too close.

“...”

“...”

They could feel each other’s warm breaths. They just needed to strike a pose after pretending to kiss, but Je-Woon did not seem to have any intention of pulling away from Ra-Eun. His mind seemed to be racing with all sorts of different emotions. However, that was not the end of it.

‘W-Wait...! Why aren’t you stopping?!’

Je-Woon suddenly began to close the distance between them even more.