Chapter 123. Upholding the Promise (1)

Translator: Chamber

Editor: Illidan

Jung MinAh thought she was dreaming right now.

She was about to give up on her profession as a musician, and KangYoon popped up right in front of her just in time!

“Ahjussi, ahjussi….”

KangYoon’s embrace was warmer than anyone’s.

Ever since her debut, she hadn’t shown her weak side to anyone.

However, when she met ‘him’, all of her emotions burst out.

“Sheesh.”

Seemingly understanding her, KangYoon calmly patted her back.

The sun had set, and when the sky was getting dark, Jung MinAh finally left his arms.

“…I’m so sorry. I just….”

Jung MinAh kept wiping away her tears while her face looked down. KangYoon took out a handkerchief and wiped away her tears.

“Sheesh, you really do cry a lot.”

“…I don’t.”

She grumbled in embarrassment. She wouldn’t do this in front of anyone else.

When she calmed down, KangYoon hopped into his car. Unlike Korea, it wasn’t safe to walk in the night.

(T/N: I’m sorry to all that may be offended by that statement… Keep in mind, this is 2011)

“Where are we going?”

“Somewhere good.”

“Are we going on a date?”

“Maybe.”

Jung MinAh became excited by his words. She was looking forward to where KangYoon would take her.

The drive wasn’t that long. The place KangYoon went to was a cafe that ran 24/7 which was quite rare in America. It was a place not that far from the branch office and had a good atmosphere.

KangYoon parked the car, and the two grabbed a table to sit down. The faint light shone on the two.

“I still can’t believe it. You really are KangYoon-ahjussi, right?”

Jung MinAh pinched her arms to see if this was a dream. Naturally, it hurt. KangYoon felt bitter to see the always cheerful and powerful MinAh acting this way.

“Yes, it’s not a dream so stop pinching.”

“Yes.”

She seemed embarrassed and pouted.

Despite everything that happened, she started to calm down. It was as though she just went through a surprise event. When she calmed down, she calmly spoke to KangYoon.

“I heard you were in Korea, that you were running your own business….”

“Yeah. It’s called World Entertainment, and it’s a small company.”

“I’ve heard pieces of news about you. I also heard that Kim JaeHoon went to World. The 4 years of absence should have been big…. but he still managed to return to the industry. Amazing.”

“He practiced a lot during his absence. So there wasn’t a big problem. I only gave him an opportunity.”

Matters regarding Kim JaeHoon were a big issue amongst musicians. Eddios was no exception.

Jung MinAh then started asking KangYoon about other things. Although she was aware of bits and pieces about him through the news, it would be different from listening to it in person. KangYoon’s stories about his company were very fun. She was especially interested in Jay Han’s story where he rose from the crisis, as well as Kim JaeHoon’s new album.

KangYoon faintly smiled. She didn’t look that different from her trainee days. Eddios, and Jung MinAh in particular, followed him a lot.

“…I never knew you’d delve into compositions as well.”

“HeeYoon does the composition, while I usually do the rearrangement and editing. Oh yeah, I heard Ris met HeeYoon recently.”

“We were surprised too. I heard she met with JooAh-seonbae. I heard that HeeYoon-unni was tall and is a beauty.”

“Hahaha.”

KangYoon could only laugh listening to compliments about his sister. Who would hate that?”

Putting down the half-empty coffee mug, Jung MinAh continued speaking.

“I also heard that you made a song for DiaTeen.”

“I did.”

Jung MinAh breathed deeply. After sipping coffee, she continued.

“It’s natural for you to work with DiaTeen since you are a professional after all. But I was still disappointed. Did he forget about us? was what was on my mind. I know that it’s a bad thing to think about this… but I didn’t want you to give a song to our rivals, even though it was the right thing to do as a professional musician. It just… felt sad and… confusing. It feels like you no longer belong to us anymore.”

KangYoon silently listened to her words.

‘She shouldn’t be thinking just that, right?’

With a professional mindset, they shouldn’t be despairing that their rivals were doing well. KangYoon believed that Jung MinAh wasn’t that sort of person. Matters regarding DiaTeen was not his wrongdoing. It was an opportunity he should obviously grab as a professional. If Jung MinAh was that short-minded, KangYoon would be very disappointed in her.

Fortunately, though, she did not disappoint him.

“But, I know that those thoughts are very childish. If I think about it differently, it means that you and Miss HeeYoon are capable enough to write songs for DiaTeen, isn’t it? Those girls are titled as one of the best idols in Korea, and they wouldn’t be asking anyone for a song. A good musician met with a good song. I felt myself to be stupid for feeling like that. Even though you were just doing your best in your position, I was disappointed in you….”

KangYoon smiled lightly. He was inwardly very satisfied. Jung MinAh was no longer the precocious girl of the past. She had matured as the leader of Eddios.

KangYoon ordered another mug of coffee before speaking again.

“You’ve grown up.”

“Really? Hearing that from you, I feel that really is the case. Hehe.”

Jung MinAh lightly shrugged. She looked like a child that was acknowledged by her parents.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

When she brightened up, KangYoon switched the topic.

“Are the others doing well?”

“You’re talking about JooYeon or Ailee, right? And Ris too.”

Jung MinAh sighed when she heard that question. KangYoon was able to predict her answer from that.

“Well, I guess it is a bit of a stretch to ‘do well’ in a situation like this.”

“Honestly speaking… you’re right. We are not doing well.”

She shook her head. KangYoon kept asking.

“Are you girls continuing with practice?”

“That’s… I’ll just tell you everything.”

KangYoon preferred things to be that way. Jung MinAh knew that making excuses wouldn’t get her anywhere. She thought for a moment before speaking about the others.

“It has been a month since JooYeon started ignoring practice. SamSoon became addicted to the internet due to stress, while Ailee keeps eating without any exercise. Ris… she became addicted to shopping and is splurging her money everywhere. The only one better off would be HanYu, who exercises to keep fit, but she doesn’t come to practice either. Just exercise…”

“Phew.”

KangYoon closed his eyes. From her words, he could imagine what MG Entertainment had done to the girls. His insides were boiling.

“So you are the only one doing practice?”

“……”

It was a silent yes.

KangYoon told her that he was feeling lightheaded and stood up for a minute. He was craving a smoke, which he usually didn’t. He entered a smoking booth in the cafe and lit up his cigarette.

‘I need to meet them to be sure, but this won’t be easy.’

He thought about it while glancing at the dissipating smoke. Why did he spend a lot of money to fly to America? It was to decide whether to scout Eddios or not. However, from what he heard from Jung MinAh, this wouldn’t be easy.’

‘Well, I’ll only find out if I meet up with them.’

He couldn’t come to a hasty decision. KangYoon decided that he would meet the others before deciding and left the booth.

When he returned, Jung MinAh had emptied her coffee already and was looking outside the window.

“Ew, you smell like smoke.”

“Haha….”

Jung MinAh pinched her nose. The smell of the cigarette stimulated her nose.

KangYoon remembered back to the past when he saw that.

“I remember you asking me to light your cigarette when we first met.”

“When have I ever done that?”

KangYoon started talking about Jung MinAh’s dark history. She waved her hands in a flurry and did not acknowledge that. However, KangYoon kept on going.

“You were wearing your school uniform, asking me so boldly, can you light me one?, I mean…” (T/N: Chapter 3)

“Stop, stop!”

Jung MinAh put her hands over his mouth in an attempt to stop him. KangYoon laughed when he saw her do that.

Jung MinAh’s face was red from embarrassment when he continued speaking.

“Well, seeing as you are disgusted by the smell, it looks like you didn’t pick the habit back up.”

“Well, duh. I’m bad at singing, and if I smoke, then it would make matters worse. It’s not just me, the others don’t smoke at all either.”

He saw some hope in that. When the girls of Eddios were still trainees, KangYoon always emphasized them not to smoke. Although the girls were getting lax, they did not throw away his advice. They were doing the basics at least.

“I want to meet everyone first. Can you get everyone to meet me?”

“It’s not that hard. They’ll all come out if I say it’s you. Are you fine with tomorrow?”

“Yeah. Then shall we see each other tomorrow afternoon?”

The two split up after deciding when to meet up next.

***

The next day.

KangYoon was currently waiting in a cafe near Eddios’s dorms.

‘10 minutes left.’

Since he had some time, KangYoon opened up a browser on his phone.

– Kim JaeHoon’s music chart monopoly. How long will this last?

– Kim JaeHoon crowned as emperor of music charts.

– Kim JaeHoon’s 6th mini album tyrannizing the rankings for 2 weeks.

Although the internet was horribly slow, he was glad to see news articles about Kim JaeHoon. With this momentum in hand, he should currently be undergoing a tight schedule. Everything was going well.

KangYoon had a smile on his face as he read down the articles when 6 Asian ladies entered the cafe. They looked around and soon discovered where he was.

“Over there.”

“Where? Oh!”

The girls all headed towards KangYoon’s table.

“Team leader!”

Everyone shouted in unison. KangYoon was surprised by the sudden voices and looked up to see that all members of Eddios were looking at him.

“Hi girls. It’s been a while.”

“Hello! We’re Eddios!”

They shouted in unison again. KangYoon was dumbfounded for a moment.”

“Huh, these girls, sheesh…”

“Everyone told me that they want to do that in front of you.”

Jung MinAh represented everyone’s opinion. KangYoon chuckled when he saw that. He then shook hands with all of them one by one before starting to chat about things.

After ordering some coffee and some snacks, they started chatting. Eddios seemed excited and they did not stop their chatter. Even Seo HanYu, who was usually reserved, spoke a lot to the point that she was spitting desserts out of her mouth. Everyone had a lot to talk about to KangYoon.

KangYoon listened to them about what happened to them in Korea as well as in America. There were things that overlapped with what Jung MinAh told him yesterday as well as ones that did not.

After everyone finished catching up and talking about what happened in their time apart, it was on to the main topic. KangYoon was the one to start.

“I wonder what you girls will think about this, but I’m here to talk about entering a contract with Eddios.”

The girls widened their eyes when they heard that. No one had offered them this before. No entertainment companies, big or small, had extended their hands to them. However, KangYoon, whom they could trust, was the first one to talk about this and he had flown all the way to America to do it. They were very touched.

Han JooYeon was the first one to reply.

“Team Leader, you are the owner of World Entertainment, right? The one that Kim JaeHoon belongs to.”

“Yeah.”

“We do not have any information about World Entertainment. Which musicians do you have?”

“There’s Kim JaeHoon, and there’s a band called White Moonlight. I have one trainee, named Kim JiMin. As for the composers, there’s Muse.”

“So we can say that you have three teams.”

Since this was about the contract, Han JooYeon was very meticulous and started talking about the scale of the company. Listening to their conversation, the other members also started thinking about their conditions to join. This was a different matter to having trust in him.

Lee SamSoon was the one to ask next.

“Can I ask… what the conditions for the contract are?”

She was very cautious when asking that. This was a very sensitive topic. The other members of Eddios also listened in because this matter was concerning money.

However, KangYoon spoke about something else entirely.

“Before Summer next year, I will put you on the top of the K-POP charts. This is my condition.”

“Eeeeh!?”

They all shouted in unison. If they weren’t the center of attention before, now they were, but they couldn’t be bothered about them since this was important to them.

Seo HanYu, who was the most meticulous out of all of them, asked

“Do you have a plan?”

“I do have some things in mind, but it’s not something I can talk about here. Yes, if there’s one thing….”

KangYoon pointed to Jung MinAh.

“MinAh. Don’t you want to debut solo?”

“What? Me, a solo?”

A solo debut.

Those words were like thunder to everyone.