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Episode 08
On the desk, numerous sheets of music were piled up haphazardly, all jumbled together.
Dozens of empty coffee cups were stacked in a corner, and hastily scrawled Post-it notes were stuck everywhere.
In the middle of it all, a man was scratching his head.
A crumpled shirt, worn-out jeans, and disheveled hair hinted at his temperament.
Jung Tae-seong, a full-time professor in the Composition Department at korea University.
He scratched his head with a ballpoint pen, then began filling in a blank score.
He was humming softly, writing and erasing the piece repeatedly, when suddenly.
-Ah, rest one beat, ah, rest two beats, ah, rest three beats and then one two…!
“Hello?”
He grabbed his loudly ringing phone and wedged it between his ear and shoulder. Tilting his head awkwardly, he continued the call in an uncomfortable position.
One hand was still busily moving, sketching out the score.
“Oh my, Director Jung! To what do I owe the pleasure of this old servant receiving a call from you~?”
Despite his playful tone, the voice on the other end of the line was unwavering.
-Long time no see. Professor Jung Tae-seong.
“Yes, indeed. It’s always such a struggle to hear your voice. You must be very busy with work?”
-Yes.
“Well, well. What business does someone as busy as you have with me?”
Jung Tae-seong, never stopping his chatter, spun his chair around to face the piano.
He played a few notes, then swiftly spun back to the staff paper.
-I’d like to find someone. Among the current students in the Composition Department at korea University.
“A current composition student?”
Jung Tae-seong eyes widened slightly, finally piqued with interest.
“Hey, don’t tell me you’ve finally found a clue?!”
As he jumped up and asked loudly, he could hear Jung Do-hyun let out a short sigh on the other end.
-It’s not that.
“Not that, my foot~. I’ve clearly seen with my own two eyes you going through all kinds of trouble since you were young to find some unknown composer…!”
-Uncle.
As Jung Do-hyun called him in a low, subdued voice, Jung Tae-seong quietly backed down.
“Ahem. Right. So it’s not that. Then who are you looking for?”
-I don’t know either.
“What nonsense is that?”
-I don’t know their name, age, or student ID.
“What?”
Jung Tae-seong raised his voice incredulously.
“Explain in detail. I can’t understand a word of this!”
At his urging, Jung Do-hyun explained about finding the USB. Jung Tae-seong nodded along as he listened.
“Oh-ho. A USB, huh? That’s unlike you, boy.”
-It was a mistake.
“You little rascal. You were so against it when I suggested you meet some students. But you were pulling this kind of trick behind the scenes? Returning a USB you happened to find? For someone like you, that’s pretty romantic.”
-That’s not it.
“Ah, stop being so stiff. Fine. My nephew is so desperately looking for someone. Of course I’ll help! Was there any other distinguishing feature?”
Jung Tae-seong, despite his appearance, was a professor who devoted passion and effort to teaching composition students.
If he could just explain a few characteristics, narrowing down the candidates wouldn’t be difficult.
-…They compose very well.
“Huh?”
Out of the blue, composition skills?
-There was a piece of music inside the USB.
“What?”
-They handle harmony well, and they know how to build technique on top of a solid foundation. The completeness was hard to believe it was from a student.
“Hold on, wait a minute!”
Jung Tae-seong finally cut Jung Do-hyun off mid-sentence.
“You’re saying there’s someone with skills that meet your standards? Among my students?”
Having known Jung Do-hyun since he was very young, Jung Tae-seong knew his fussy nature better than anyone.
He tended to be meticulous about everything, but he was especially sensitive when it came to his hearing.
He was even more so than Jung Tae-seong, who made music his profession, so that said everything.
‘Composition,’ in particular, was the field Jung Do-hyun judged most harshly.
Not only would he blatantly show displeasure upon hearing an amateur’s clumsy piece,
But if scholarship students held a recital, he would commit the atrocity of sitting for exactly one minute before leaving.
“There’s no such student…”
Jung Tae-seong thought hard.
But while there were students with good sense for their age, or those with excellent skills compared to their peers,
There was no one who would suit Jung Do-hyun’s temperament.
-Are you sure?
“Ah, I’m telling you. If there was a student like that, do you think I’d just let them be?”
The implication that he would have immediately brought them under his wing and made them his prize pupil made Jung Do-hyun quietly concede.
If it were this talkative Jung Tae-seong, he probably would have spotted their potential from the start and wouldn’t have been able to resist blabbing all about it to Jung Do-hyun.
“Are they definitely our department’s student?”
-I found it near the College of Music building. And the piece’s solid fundamentals made me naturally assume they were a major.
“They could be a student from another department.”
Jung Tae-seong closed his eyes for a moment, then quickly offered a clear answer.
“Well then, I can’t find them, can I?”
-…
“I mean, isn’t that right? This music college is huge. It’d be different if we were searching only within the composition department.”
-…I’ll hang up now.
Click.
“Hey, don’t be so heartless to just…! Huh? This guy. Did he really hang up?”
Jung Tae-seong let out a hollow laugh as he looked at his phone.
“Ugh Ugh
He clicked his tongue and put the phone down. The half-finished staff paper came into his view.
“Ah! I was sure I had a great musical idea! Now I’ve forgotten it all!”
He tore at his hair with both hands. Not that it would bring back the vanished inspiration.
“Phew. Anyway, so there’s a student like that in another department?”
If Jung Do-hyun was talking about solid fundamentals, this wasn’t just someone composing as a hobby.
“Ah, right. Isn’t the transfer exam coming up soon?”
Jung Tae-seong spotted a red circle on his calendar and clapped his hands together.
“A transfer applicant, perhaps.”
Thinking that way made things fit a bit better. There were often cases where students studying another major transferred to the composition department midway.
Jung Tae-seong grinned and muttered.
“This is getting interesting, isn’t it?”
Haa, as I exhaled, white breath decorated the air.
On campus, in front of the College of Arts building, it was crowded with students. Some were clutching sheet music, others were tuning their instruments.
Sounds of people gathering in small groups, muttering and practicing, leaked out from here and there.
‘So noisy.’
The sounds of the world were still unfamiliar, so I frowned slightly. Usually it was fine, but coming to a crowded place like this always made my head throb.
I stood as far in a corner as possible.
Among those stiff with tension, I alone seemed perfectly at ease.
“Huh? Seol-ah!”
Just then, I heard someone call my name. Turning my head, I saw Lee Hyun-ji.
Beside her stood the study group members. Lee Hyun-ji waved her hand enthusiastically, greeting me happily.
“Fancy meeting you here! Have you prepared well?”
“Just. So-so.”
As I answered vaguely, Han So-yeon, who was listening nearby, chuckled and spoke.
“Why? You should say you prepared well. After walking out saying you didn’t even need the study group.”
“Uh, Hey, why are you like that?”
Lee Hyun-ji glanced at me, seemingly flustered. But Han So-yeon snorted loudly as if to show off.
“Did I say something wrong? No, it’s true. It’s because you look down on the exam, relying on having a bit of arrangement sense.”
Did I say something like that? I tilted my head.
“What’s wrong with you, seriously? Are you trying to pick a fight with someone a year younger?”
Yoo Da-yeon tried to restrain Han So-yeon from the side. Han So-yeon silently turned her head away and walked off ahead.
Lee Hyun-ji, fidgeting nervously between us, finally managed to speak.
“A-are you okay? Sorry. I’ll apologize on her behalf.Even has been sensitive lately because of exam preparation.”
“It’s not something you need to apologize for. I don’t mind.”
I hadn’t really cared in the first place. If she had made more noise, it might have been annoying, though.
“Let’s go in. The exam will start soon.”
Lee Hyun-ji took my hand and led me inside.
I entered the assigned exam hall and found my seat. People began filling the densely packed desks one by one.
Soon, the door opened.
A black shirt and thoroughly disheveled hair. His style was so free-spirited you’d believe he’d just woken up.
“Yawn~.”
Even yawning widely, he lacked the dignity befitting a professor.
“Alright, everyone. Please sit.”
Despite his drawling tone, the lecture hall fell silent instantly.
“As you probably know, the first exam is dictation~.”
A brief explanation of the exam followed.
Just transcribe the music played onto the score. An extremely simple method.
‘Finally starting, huh? ‘
I tapped the desk with my fingertips and muttered inwardly.
Nervous? Not at all.
Rather, I felt a boredom hoping it would end quickly.
Contrary to me, the students around seemed extremely tense. I could see the hands of the student in front of me trembling.
Amidst that, I leaned back comfortably in my chair and took a breath. I slightly closed and opened my eyelids, gently lifting the corners of my mouth.
‘Now, it’s time to show them.’
