Ch.18018. A Treasure Trove

A chuckle escapes my lips.

Ah. What am I doing?

I felt pathetic for having been intimidated even for a moment.

In reality, Suhyuk wasn’t even interested in that sort of thing, yet here I was making a fuss all by myself.

“Yeah. It’s okay to try playing it.”

My voice had become much more relaxed.

“Really?”

Those bright, sparkling eyes barely visible through his bangs.

Hana moved toward her guitar for his sake, as he asked once more for confirmation.

Taking it from the stand, she plopped down on the bed and plucked each string from top to bottom.

The tuning seems pretty much right.

“Hey. Go wash your hands first!”

Come to think of it, I washed my hands but he hasn’t yet.

As soon as Hana gave the instruction, Suhyuk dashed into the bathroom.

Just to be safe, Hana attached the tuner to the headstock and felt the corners of her mouth twitch.

It was because of a thrill that came for a different reason than before.

During her time with Spirit, no one had ever shown this much interest in her guitar.

Sure, people had casually mentioned it was pretty, but no one asked what made this guitar special.

Which artist made it famous.

What kind of sound justified its price range.

Only someone who truly knew and loved guitars could appreciate the value of this instrument.

In that context, Suhyuk’s reaction was nothing short of explosive.

To think that such a timid guy would show such an intense reaction.

Feeling inexplicably pleased, Hana hummed a tune while playing a fingerstyle song.

The resonance was excellent, as expected.

“I washed my hands.”

Suhyuk emerged from the bathroom.

Knowing that guitars are sensitive to humidity, he had thoroughly dried his hands on the towel until not a single drop remained before appearing in front of her.

“Sit here.”

Hana gestured for him to sit on the bed.

While before coming here he had been focused solely on the fact that this was Hana’s apartment, now Suhyuk’s attention was completely captivated by this luminous guitar.

“Here.”

Hana held out a pick to him.

It meant he could play.

“Will the noise bother the neighbors?”

“It’s fine if we play without the amp. I do it at home all the time.”

An electric guitar without an amplifier doesn’t produce much volume.

Suhyuk’s hand wrapped around the somewhat hefty rosewood neck, heavier than his own guitar.

“Wow…”

Just as its appearance suggested, the feeling of resting it on his thigh was distinctly different.

It was an impressive guitar, but Suhyuk’s repertoire was quite limited.

He began playing the examples Hana had taught him earlier.

And Hana watched him contentedly from the side.

A desire to teach him more about guitar welled up inside her—something difficult to define, but if she had to put it into words, it was like a teaching impulse.

“Guitars are really amazing.”

Suhyuk smiled broadly as he strummed an F chord.

“…Want to hear how it sounds through an amp?”

“Huh?”

“The amp. We can plug in headphones and play even now.”

Though Suhyuk had been satisfied just with the brief demonstration, this felt like an unexpected windfall, and he quickly nodded.

“Wait a moment.”

Hana got up from the bed, crouched down on the floor, and began fiddling with the amplifier.

She naturally handed the end of the cable to Suhyuk.

He inserted the cable into the socket.

After connecting the headset, Hana knelt in front of Suhyuk, who was waiting to play.

“Could you lean your head forward?”

He did as instructed, but…

Hana’s face drew closer, apparently intending to put the headset on him herself.

Only then did Suhyuk awaken from the “guitar” hypnosis.

A girl’s room.

A girl’s bed.

And Hana looking somewhat defenseless.

As she leaned forward wearing her oversized box tee, he caught a glimpse inside her shirt…

“Ready?”

Hana’s thin, long fingers arranged Suhyuk’s long hair.

The soft leather sensation covered his ears.

Being this close, wouldn’t she hear his heartbeat…?

Suhyuk had no ability to control his wildly beating heart.

But Hana, unconcerned with such things, pressed the power button on the amp.

As soon as the red light came on, the second hypnosis began.

The heavy distortion sound penetrated Suhyuk’s eardrums.

A very hard rock sound that perfectly matched the guitar’s form.

Suhyuk tried playing “Standing Luxury” again, which he had just been practicing earlier.

-Jing jing jing jing jijijing jing jing

The smooth sound that took gain so well made the player feel even better.

As Suhyuk’s gaze fixed on the fretboard, Hana quietly moved to sit beside him.

He was a strange guy.

Coming to someone else’s place and immediately asking to play the guitar.

Anyone watching would think he came to play guitar, not watch a movie.

Though her mind knew it was strange, her emotions were moving ever so slightly in the opposite direction.

-Jiiiiiing

Having finished playing just up to the part he had practiced today, Suhyuk removed the headset.

With an excited expression, he turned his head sharply.

He moved closer to Hana sitting beside him.

“Hana. This is seriously amazing.”

Like a fan meeting their idol.

Hana felt somewhat proud, like when childhood friends showed off toys others didn’t have.

“Hey. Put the headset back on.”

Hana took the guitar and commanded Suhyuk.

“Huh? Why?”

“Since you’re here, you should at least hear this guitar’s signature song.”

Suhyuk put the headset back on.

After confirming the volume was on, Hana began playing AC/DC’s “Back in Black.”

That song that all electric guitar beginners must try at least once.

And the guitar model primarily used by AC/DC’s guitarist was the same SG line as Hana’s guitar.

The familiar riff echoed in Suhyuk’s ears.

Hana continued playing, happily nodding her head up and down.

Even while listening to the music, Suhyuk thought there was nothing Hana couldn’t do.

Not only was she this pretty, but she could play guitar well too.

It wasn’t a particularly difficult song, but her performance was clean and smooth without any noise.

Eventually, after the first verse ended, Hana grinned at Suhyuk.

“How was it?”

Her tone was triumphant.

“…It was good.”

“What’s with that reaction? Did I make a mistake somewhere?”

“…No, that’s not it.”

Suhyuk was afraid that expressing his genuine feelings might sound like a confession.

“Haah~ It would be nice if our band could play songs like this.”

Hana put the guitar back on the stand and stretched while complaining.

“Why can’t you?”

“Come on. How could Juyeong sing this?”

That was true.

Nine out of ten vocalists in mega-hit bands were male.

And most had rather husky or sharp voices.

Juyeong wasn’t a bad singer by any means, but this kind of song would definitely be too much for her.

“I just copy these for fun by myself. That’s all.”

“I see.”

“Are you satisfied now?”

“With what?”

“You know… anything else you’re curious about…”

Since her room was full of guitar and band-related items, she could show or bring out anything if Suhyuk wanted.

Suhyuk’s eyes once again scanned Hana’s room.

From his perspective, her room was a treasure trove.

If given time to explore, he would want to examine each album on that bookshelf one by one.

But if there was just one more thing he wanted to see…

His eyes fixed intently on the sparkling pedal board.

“The effects pedals. You’re curious about them?”

Effects pedals.

Devices connected between the guitar and amplifier to add various effects.

The pedal board full of effects was truly Hana’s second most prized possession, each one researched and purchased with her saved allowance.

“Hmm… but these definitely taste better when connected to a big amp.”

She was fine with showing them, but they wouldn’t demonstrate their true value in this tiny room.

“If I bring this next Tuesday, I’ll show you then.”

“…Won’t it be heavy?”

It clearly had at least seven pedals.

It looked like it would weigh several kilograms.

“Hey, I’ve carried this plus my guitar to concert venues an hour away. School is nothing.”

Having joked around, Hana picked up a CD, thinking it was finally time to watch the movie.

“Are we watching the movie now?”

“Yeah. Sounds good.”

Hana’s worries about being alone with a guy had long since melted away.

Sharing the same hobby was an element that formed bonds more easily and strongly than anything else.

Honestly, Suhyuk would have preferred to continue talking about guitars, but the vast expanse of space was already unfolding on the monitor.

“I’ll get some popcorn.”

When Hana mentioned food, Suhyuk finally remembered the cake he had brought as a gift.

“Ah! Right!”

“Hm?”

Hana, who was rummaging through the cupboard, looked at him with an expression that seemed to ask why he was following her.

“This… this.”

Suhyuk pulled out a small box from his bag.

“What is it?”

“Since it’s my first time visiting… a gift…”

“Is it bread?”

“Cake.”

“Oh~ How thoughtful~ Shall we eat that instead?”

Hana closed the cupboard and took out two forks instead.

The two cleared the keyboard and placed a plate on the desk, then opened the box…

“Oh…”

“Pfft.”

Suhyuk blushed while Hana failed to hold back her laughter.

The cake had sunk on one side like a partially wrecked cruise ship.

Suhyuk felt disappointed that the cake he had carefully selected was ruined.

“Hey. Let’s just eat it. Once it’s in your mouth, it all tastes the same anyway.”

And there was Hana, comforting him with rather boyish words.