Ch.33033. Effector

Being an outcast is never something to be proud of.

Nor does it mean you don’t need to express gratitude.

Suhyuk had always thought he shouldn’t be someone who only takes.

He arrived at the club room a little earlier than their agreed time and fidgeted with the gift box tucked inside his pocket.

It wasn’t anything extraordinary, but still, a gift should look presentable, shouldn’t it?

That morning, he had prepared new wrapping paper and, feeling like an elementary school student again, carefully cut it with scissors.

A green ribbon bisecting the center of the red wrapping paper.

Though not done by professional hands, it was still neatly and prettily wrapped.

I hope Hana likes it…

Despite Juyeon’s assurance, Suhyuk was still nervous.

Perhaps it wasn’t the contents but the act of giving a gift itself that embarrassed him.

Just as he swallowed nervously, the door clicked open.

“Hi.”

Was something bothering her?

Her voice sounded somewhat dry, devoid of any humor.

Hana placed her pedal board bag on the sofa and plopped down in her usual spot.

“Hello.”

Suhyuk’s already stiff body tensed even more.

“Where did we leave off last week?”

He glanced up, trying to read her mood.

Today, Hana seemed…

excessively businesslike.

Like a part-timer dealing with the last customer of the day, showing minimal effort.

Nevertheless, the way she swept her hair back was enough to melt any man’s heart.

“Ah, we were practicing cutting techniques.”

Suhyuk decided to quietly observe her reactions for now.

“Then today, let’s focus on muted picking.”

Hana opened the textbook.

She was hiding her emotions behind a facade of stiffness.

She had thought the gentle spring breeze would improve her mood as she walked.

She had felt better until she entered the room, but seeing Suhyuk’s face soured her mood again.

“By the way, Hana.”

“What?”

“This.”

Suhyuk, cradling his guitar, pulled something out from his inner pocket.

A small question mark appeared above Hana’s head as she looked up from the textbook with disinterested eyes.

“What’s that?”

“A gift.”

“A gift?”

“Yeah.”

Her fingers carefully reached out to pick up the red box resting in Suhyuk’s hand.

“But why are you giving this to me?”

Hana was confused by Suhyuk’s behavior.

Yesterday he acted like he was excluding her.

Today he suddenly gives her a wrapped gift?

“Just… you taught me guitar, and took care of me in many ways, so I wanted to thank you…”

Now that he was actually giving it, Suhyuk felt awkward and trailed off.

What could be inside?

Hana held the box up to her ear.

With a slight flick of her wrist, she shook it, hearing a rustling sound from inside.

It sounded like small pieces rolling around.

“Can I open this?”

Unable to guess what it might be, Hana asked Suhyuk.

“Oh. Yeah. But don’t expect too much.”

“As if I’d expect anything from you.”

Though her words were harsh, Hana’s lips had been twitching for a while now.

Don’t smile, Yoon Hana.

You’ll look like a psycho.

She found herself strange.

Just moments ago, she was creating a cold atmosphere, and now she was grinning over receiving a gift.

Both yesterday and today, the thought of her own ugliness dominated her mind.

Since both guitarists kept their fingernails very short, it took Hana several attempts to remove the tape.

What revealed itself was a toy that seemed too rugged to be a gift for a girl.

But there was no better item to hit Hana’s taste.

“An SG?”

Her closed lips parted slightly.

Simultaneously, an exclamation of joy escaped.

Noticing that the plan with Juyeon had succeeded, Suhyuk inwardly rejoiced.

“Yeah. When I saw it, I immediately thought of you.”

“Ah…”

Her ears felt hot.

Her body temperature had clearly risen.

But at Suhyuk’s words, Hana’s heart began to beat steadily.

Hana’s head drooped.

Yet she still couldn’t let go of the box in her hand.

“…Thank you.”

“Do you like it?”

“Yes.”

Her upset feelings about being ignored yesterday disappeared like snow melting on a clear day.

Hana’s eyes gazed intently at the box decorated with blocks that looked just like her guitar.

Feeling embarrassed, she quipped sarcastically:

“But it’s so small, it must hurt your eyes to build it.”

“Huh?”

She seemed to like it, but then came the complaint.

Suhyuk was confused by Hana’s reaction.

“Looks like you’d need a magnifying glass to build it.”

“Sh-should I exchange it for something else? I kept the receipt.”

As Suhyuk fumbled in his wallet for the receipt, Hana quickly snatched it away.

After briefly checking the price, she tore the receipt to pieces.

“No need. I appreciate the gift, but we should get on with the lesson.”

With a scraping sound, the chair moved back.

Hana stood up, crouched in front of the sofa, and began taking out her precious pedal board to connect it to the amplifier.

“Weren’t we practicing muted picking?”

“Canceled. Today I’ll teach you how to use effects pedals.”

Since Suhyuk had given her a gift, Hana wanted to give him something he wanted too.

He had mentioned being curious about the pedals when he visited last time.

To others, they might look like expensive pieces of metal, but she thought Suhyuk might appreciate how amazing these things really were.

-Ziiing

When she pressed the power button on the amp, the clean, unaffected sound came through.

“Ahem… Ahem!”

After clearing her throat, Hana called Suhyuk over to stand beside her, as if telling him to focus.

“Do you know much about effect types?”

“No, not really.”

Suhyuk, who had focused all his attention on playing, wasn’t particularly interested in equipment.

“Then listen carefully.”

Hana explained each pedal one by one as she pressed them with her foot.

Suhyuk listened to her explanation with attentive eyes.

“This one is a delay. When I press it.”

-Ziiing

-Ziiing Ziiing Ziiing Ziiing Ziiing

Though she had strummed only once, the chord she played was still repeating through the amplifier.

“Like this, the sound comes back like an echo, over and over.”

“Wow. So songs like ‘Deadly Heaven’ are made using this?”

“That’s right. Of course, they probably mix in other effects too.”

Since it was a song Hana knew as well, she demonstrated the riff from the chorus right there.

A cool metal sound overlaid with repeating effects created a unique composition.

It was the first song she tried when she bought her delay pedal, and one she had practiced quite a bit.

“Cool, right?”

After the demonstration, Hana wore an expression that said, “Didn’t I do well?”

Suhyuk nodded his head vigorously up and down.

It wasn’t a joke—he genuinely thought it was amazing.

“Can you teach me?”

“This? This song?”

“Yeah.”

“Of course. It’s not that difficult, so you should learn it quickly.”

The two switched places.

Now Suhyuk held the guitar while Hana watched from above.

“First, memorize this. 3 0 0 5 0 0 3 2 0 5 3 2 0.”

Hana called out the finger positions one by one.

Suhyuk awkwardly moved his fingers accordingly.

“No, no. You need to change strings there. You can’t keep going on the same one.”

“Like this?”

When he lifted his hand, an abrupt open string sound rang out.

“No, you dummy.”

It seemed he was confused with parts of the song, being his first time.

If only they had sheet music.

If he couldn’t understand verbal instructions, she had no choice but to use her hands.

Hana quietly moved behind Suhyuk and bent over.

“Here, look.”

Her golden hair cascaded down toward the floor.

Hana’s warm palm covered the back of Suhyuk’s hand.

Like a puppeteer, Hana controlled Suhyuk’s left hand.

-Ziiing

Hana slowly played through the riff once so even a beginner could understand, then turned her head as if to ask if he got it.

Something felt off.

Suhyuk’s face had turned as red as a ripe persimmon.

Before she could even realize why,

The heat seemed contagious, as a light pink blush bloomed on Hana’s cheeks too.

They were so close that if either moved a little more, their noses would touch.

Still, she thought she should say what needed to be said.

“N-now you can remember it, r-right?”

A hiccup escaped from Hana’s mouth as she hastily backed away.