“You’re still practicing singing, huh? But why are you so nervous when there’s no one here? Someone might here to audition.”
The voice that asked the question was filled with laughter. Sol blushed with embarrassment and gulped down water.
“I felt like I didn’t explain properly earlier, so I came to find you. I didn’t even ask how you’ve been.”
Although it wasn’t Ju-hwan, the way he casually asked how Sol was doing and slipped into the practice room seemed to overlap with Ju-hwan’s mannerisms. Sol nodded a beat late in response to Eun-gyeom’s greeting, indicating affirmation.
“I’m trying to do well.”
“How’s that going?”
“What do you mean... Oh, I’m slowly getting better? It’s a bit easier when I wear a hat.”
“Oh, a hat! Did Tae-oh tell you about that?”
“How did you know?”
“Tae-oh used to wear a hat 24/7 for a while.”
When Sol picked up the hat next to him and waved it, Eun-gyeom chuckled and asked with a slight smile. He laughed loudly, as if he already knew, saying he had expected as much, resembling a dog happily going for a walk. Understanding Eun-gyeom’s reaction, Sol realized that there must have been such times with Tae-oh as well. Suddenly, Eun-gyeom came into the practice room and sat next to Sol, gently patting Sol’s shoulder.
“I’m glad you’re doing well. Your face looks better than last time. Of course, minus the bruise on your forehead.”
It hadn’t been long since they last saw each other, just a few days, but his environment had naturally improved. Thanks to the members, especially Tae-oh, he slept on time, woke up early, and even had three square meals a day. He maintained a relatively less stressful interpersonal relationship, and while the exercise regimen was somewhat challenging, he was still staying physically active.
Compared to the time when he lived like an invalid, his current lifestyle was naturally much better. Moreover, when he neatly tied up his hair, it made him look a bit refreshed. Of course, Sol still found himself gloomy and unpleasant to look at.
“Really?”
“Yeah. But aside from that, you should work harder on your vocal exercises.”
“Oh, right.”
“So, tell me what’s the problem this time. Friend.”
As Eun-gyeom continued speaking beside him, Sol, momentarily distracted, nodded absentmindedly and went along with what he was saying. Eun-gyeom lightly nudged Sol’s arm with his elbow, as if sensing his lack of enthusiasm. It was only then that Sol snap back to reality and stared at Eun-gyeom.
“Once again, as a friend, I’ll provide my service.”
When Sol looked at Eun-gyeom intently, Eun-gyeom shrugged and winked. His tone was playful and intimate, without any stiffness.
“Because you’re nervous, your voice gets muted and your breathing becomes short.”
“It’s a common problem for people who haven’t sung much in front of others or for those who get nervous on stage.”
It was a remark repeated by the vocal trainer and Ji-ho until it was firmly ingrained in his ears. They instructed him to relax and sing louder. But for Sol, who could barely show the outline of his dance moves, it was a struggle.
While he didn’t face as severe penalties as in dancing, the task wasn’t easily manageable for someone who had never sung in front of others before and suddenly was asked to become a singer one day. It was even more challenging because he hadn’t been confident about his singing ability from the beginning. Even if he started singing energetically, his voice would quickly become as quiet as the sound of ants crawling.
“Would wearing a hat help with this?”
Sol shook the hat in his hand once again.
“You can’t debut while wearing a hat, right?”
“That’s true. Haha...”
Eun-gyeom was right. Even though he could perform with a hat on, at least his face should be visible on camera. Sol shook his head vigorously. Right now, he needed to focus more on the upcoming weekend evaluation than anything else. That way, he wouldn’t disappoint Tae-oh and the other members.
In fact, the quest he had now was not evaluating his vocals. His proficiency was only being checked in dance, and honestly, digesting the choreography properly was also difficult for him at the moment. Above all, he couldn’t predict his own reaction in the actual evaluation. Maybe focusing solely on dance would be safer just to clear the quest. But at least he had to keep up appearances, right? So, he decided to make time separately for vocal practice.
“I thought I was getting used to one thing, but now another problem has come up. I have too many issues.”
“You said you seemed to be doing well, but now you’re feeling down again.”
“I have a lot of problems, but still, I suddenly wanted to do well.”
“That’s good. I’m glad.”
As Sol softly continued his introspection, Eun-gyeom couldn’t help but notice the calm yet slightly melancholic expression on his face. Perhaps because of this, Eun-gyeom smiled brightly, like a big puppy, lightly nudging Sol’s shoulder with his own, offering words of encouragement.
“Having enthusiasm and goals, no matter the situation or circumstances, is a good thing. It’s what drives people... It’s better than just sitting idle, right?”
“Yes. I think I’ve gained a bit of that drive.”
“Then let’s start with vocal practice.”
“Was it really that bad?”
“Well, for starters, your voice lacks power...”
Eun-gyeom glanced at Sol discreetly. Sol nodded slowly with a slight smile, not showing any signs of being upset.
“But your voice itself is good... It’s calm and clean. But you need to work on the basics first. Are you still doing vocal exercises?”
“I am, but there’s an evaluation coming up the day after tomorrow.”
“That’s unavoidable. Instead of aiming for high scores in the first evaluation, focus on leaving a good impression.”
From Sol’s perspective, who lacked confidence in himself, Eun-gyeom’s words were to be expected. It was actually a rather lenient assessment. Tae-oh had given similar advice. Although evaluations were imminent, and they would be judged based on their skills, Tae-oh had reminded them that listening to the entire song and dividing the activities into individual parts would make things much easier. Of course, they hadn’t forgotten that ultimately; they needed to reach a certain level of vocal proficiency.
“I wanted to do well, but now I feel impatient.”
He understood that not everything could improve at once, but despite this knowledge, he found himself growing greedy for more. Sol shrugged his shoulders and smiled slightly. Eun-gyeom met Sol’s smiling gaze.
Despite being confined indoors, even in the late evening within the basement, it felt as if a breeze of spring day was somehow wafting through. It wasn’t a particularly bright smile, yet for some reason, when Eun-gyeom met Sol’s smile, he couldn’t help but burst into a hearty laughter.
After helping with practice for a while and giving Sol’s head a final pat, Eun-gyeom left about an hour later. Sol, once again alone, practiced until his throat felt sore. After a dry cough, his throat felt slightly parched.
Sol checked his phone screen, which he had been holding for a while. Hoping Tae-oh might show up, he waited a bit longer, but Tae-oh didn’t return either.
Sol believed that practicing beyond this point would probably have a greater impact on his condition the following day rather than on improving his skills, so he decided to call it quits for now. In his hand, he held a phone on which videos of his fervent practice until a moment ago were recorded.
Observing Tae-oh and the other members, he noticed that they were either dancing, singing, or consistently recording and reviewing their own performances. Inspired by this, he decided to do the same.
He deleted some of the recordings early on because he was embarrassed that they sounded so lifeless and shaky, as Eun-gyeom pointed out. It felt strange sitting in the practice room holding his phone. In his pocket, he also had another phone, the usual phone he always carried. It was ridiculous to carry two phones around thinking he’d become some kind of celebrity. Neither phone was likely to ring, anyway.
As he was about to tidy up and go back to the dorm, Sol’s phone in his hand rang. It seemed to mock himself for carrying two phones when there was hardly ever a call to answer. Sol, who had been absent-minded for a moment, was startled and reflexively answered the phone.
The caller was Ga-ram. Although he’d been told to call him when he’s done practicing, he didn’t feel comfortable doing so and was considering going home alone.
“Hello?”
[Hi, it’s Ga-ram. Are you still practicing?]
“I was just about to tidy up and leave.”
[Deuk-yong and I are coming out for a short exercise, we’ll come over there.]
“Oh, yes, thank you.”
After ending the call with Ga-ram, Sol glanced at the clock hanging on one side of the practice room. It was already past 12 o’clock in the evening, heading towards 1 o’clock. Exercise at this hour?
[Current fatigue level 63/100]
Checking the precarious fatigue level, Sol slowly got up. As usual, he leisurely cleaned up and left the company, only to find two people waiting for him at the entrance, wearing padded jackets over black track pants. The three of them who had gathered together began to walk slowly in the direction of their dormitory.
“Exercising at this hour? You’ve been practicing all day. It must be exhausting.”
“Those naturally skinny like Hyung don’t know my suffering.”
At Sol’s question, Deuk-yong glanced at him, scanning him up and down. Sol, who looked so thin to the point of being weak, didn’t seem to have a body type that gained weight easily.
“We should be careful with our exercise, too. If we do a little, muscles will quickly build up and become stiff, and if we eat a little, fat will accumulate on those muscles and turn into flesh.”
“He’s likely panicking about the weekend evaluation, so he’s doing all this, fretting about what the weighing scale would show.”
“But you practiced longer than I thought.”
“Yeah... It just kind of happened that way as I kept going.”
“Oh. But, um, try to take it easy, okay?”
“Huh?”
“I noticed your stamina is really bad. You might end up hurting yourself for no reason if you’re not careful. So, take it easy.”
The always deep and resonant voice of Deuk-yong softened slightly. Sol tilted his head, observing Deuk-yong, who appeared a bit awkward, as if he was stylishly tugging at the tip of his nose with his hand for no reason. Deuk-yong’s face, which met Ga-ram’s gaze between them, was flushed even in the dim light.
“You’re... worrying about me, aren’t you? Thanks.”
“And also, speak comfortably. I’m the youngest, you know. If you use honorifics with me, others might misunderstand and think I’m bothering you or that I’m trying to assert dominance.”
“Well, you did do that, didn’t you?”
“No! At first, I didn’t know what kind of person he is, so I kept my distance!”
Ga-ram, who had been silently listening to Deuk-yong’s words, suddenly interjected. Deuk-yong’s face turned red and blue as he clenched his fist and let out a frustrated grunt.
“That’s asserting dominance. Kim Deuk-yong.”
“Oh, Garam hyung, you’re acting like you didn’t do that as well!”
“I did, yeah... I’m sorry.”
“Oh... it’s okay. I understand the situation, and I was a bit rude back then, too.”
It's good seeing their relationship improving 🥹
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