Ch.7007. Peperoncino Americano

“I have a class, but…”

“When does it end?”

“Around 12?”

“Can you come to the club room after that?”

Various possibilities flashed through Suhyuk’s mind.

Hana calling him out separately meant surely…

‘W-withdrawal recommendation!’

Suhyuk considered himself quite self-aware.

The scenario where someone like Hana would confess to him at first sight was something that only happened in comics.

His inability to play the F chord earlier had clearly become his downfall.

Otherwise, what could she possibly need to tell him alone in that empty, awkward club room?

“…We can just talk now.”

His long bangs fell, covering his eyes.

Rather than spend a night trembling in fear and anxiety!

Suhyuk decided it was better to hear the verdict now, lowering his voice.

“Huh?”

Hana tilted her head, not understanding the context.

“You want me to… leave the band, right…?”

“What?”

Hana’s eyes, which had been kindly planning to teach him guitar, grew round with surprise.

“No! Why would you leave! Don’t leave!”

Wait. She just asked if he had time, and he jumped straight to quitting?

“No?”

“Of course not! I was going to show you the parts you need to know so you can join our ensemble?”

“Uh…?”

Suhyuk blinked in surprise while Hana looked up at him.

Hana, who had been wearing a dumbfounded expression, broke into a smile.

“Hey, Lee Suhyuk. Seriously, I praised the music you recommended and even confirmed it for our setlist—why would I try to kick you out? Hmm?”

There was something about Hana’s playful smile that tickled his heart, almost blindingly bright.

“Ahaha. Right~”

An exaggerated, uncharacteristic laugh escaped from Suhyuk’s embarrassed lips.

“Tomorrow, you can use the guitar we have here, or bring your own. I was thinking we could meet at two. Is that okay?”

“Yeah. That’s fine.”

“See you then? I’ll head out first?”

Hana turned around and strode toward the door.

Suhyuk just watched her retreating figure from a distance.

Once he confirmed the door had closed…

“I… I want to quit…”

Suhyuk was more embarrassed by his misunderstanding than by his poor guitar skills.

* * *

-Diriririririrorong

A technique that could hardly be categorized as human.

After finding a video of the original artist of the song Suhyuk had played, Hana let out a deep sigh.

Seriously! How can he play this but not know an F chord?!

The order was fundamentally wrong.

How could someone who doesn’t know do-re-mi-fa play Mozart?

With a headache, she pulled out guitar textbooks from her room one by one.

Books she had collected while studying since middle school were all filled with memories, which was why she still couldn’t throw them away.

“Hmm… should I use this one…?”

Hana chose a textbook containing examples she had practiced the most.

It had enough basic theory and examples that weren’t too easy, so it seemed perfect for Suhyuk.

Can I teach him well?

Hana, who had only learned but never taught others, found herself feeling slightly nervous.

Even when she occasionally helped juniors, she always wondered how much she should explain, and now she had to teach a classmate…

Still, Hana had no intention of taking this process lightly.

After all, this was the band she’d joined.

In middle school. In high school.

She couldn’t even attempt joining a band because her parents said it would interfere with her studies and to do it later.

She thought she could put in a little more effort for this happiness she had finally grasped.

Yeah.

Though today would have been perfect if it weren’t for her free period.

Hana reluctantly pulled up her jeans to get ready to teach Suhyuk.

Wearing a t-shirt with her favorite band’s logo and a casual shirt over it, Hana packed her bag and headed to school.

The journey took about 15 minutes.

Arriving 15 minutes before their appointment time, she pushed the door open and entered…

-Jiiiing

A guitar sound rang in her ears.

It was a chord sound that Hana knew well.

Of course, it was the F chord she had asked Suhyuk to try yesterday.

“Oh?”

Suhyuk, just noticing her presence, stopped playing and awkwardly raised his hand.

“Hi…?”

What’s this?

Did he practice because of what I said yesterday?

While feeling slightly guilty, Hana didn’t dislike this side of him.

“F chord. You can play it today, huh?”

Hana put down her bag and smiled brightly at Suhyuk.

“I memorized all from A to G.”

“Ooh~ What about minors?”

“Minors, not yet…”

Suhyuk’s expression changed in real-time even though she hadn’t said anything malicious or even spoken much—was it funny?

Hana began to understand why Seo-eun called Suhyuk “male lead #2.”

“No, no. You can memorize them slowly. Honestly, for covers, as long as you can read sheet music, you don’t necessarily need to memorize all the chords.”

Knowing the hand positions and names would be convenient, but it wasn’t essential for ensemble playing.

“Instead, I was thinking we could practice strumming today.”

“Strumming?”

“Yeah.”

Strumming, playing rhythm with the right hand, was one of the fundamentals of guitar playing.

Hana took out her phone and turned on a metronome app.

-Tak. Tak. Tak. Tak.

The signal sound repeated slowly for beginners.

Hana took a guitar from the stand, held a pick, and sat next to Suhyuk.

“You know what strumming is, right?”

“It’s hitting the strings with your right hand.”

“You know well. So, when you hit downward, it’s a down stroke, and upward is an up stroke.”

Suhyuk nodded like an obedient child.

Though his bangs covered his face, making it hard to see clearly, he seemed to have quite bright, attentive eyes.

“Today, we’ll try to match the chords you just memorized with strumming techniques, aiming to coordinate your left and right hands to play together. For example, if you hold a C.”

Hana held a C chord and moved her right hand up and down steadily to the metronome beat.

-Jing jing jing jing jing jing jing jing

“Easy, right? Not difficult?”

Even in her own beginner days, Hana hadn’t found this particularly challenging.

“Can I try?”

Suhyuk, who had been carefully observing Hana’s demonstration, followed her actions.

Many beginners struggle with holding chords, but that wasn’t an issue for Suhyuk at all.

The result of two years of extreme training:

He could cleanly hold even the most bizarre chords without difficulty.

“Wow! You’re good!”

Hana felt relieved and somewhat proud.

“Then shall we try other chords? F is good, D is good too.”

The chords he had memorized by searching the internet yesterday combined with the technique Hana taught him to create various sounds.

Unlike the rocking sound he usually played, the bright tones of the chords progressing slowly made Suhyuk feel a ticklish sensation rising from below his chest.

“Does it look okay?”

It seemed similar to what Hana had shown him.

“Yes! As expected, you learn quickly because of your experience! I thought we’d be lucky to get this far today, but since you’re doing well, let’s try this too.”

Hana took out the textbook and opened a bookmarked page to show Suhyuk.

Hana demonstrated while Suhyuk struggled but somehow managed to follow.

Both were so focused that the clock had already passed 3 o’clock.

“Lee Suhyuk.”

Hana, after placing the guitar back on the stand, plopped down next to him.

Thinking today’s lesson was over, Suhyuk felt a creeping sense of disappointment.

“Yeah?”

“Do you have anything after this?”

If Hana’s lesson ended, Suhyuk had planned to go home and practice the songs chosen for the ensemble.

“No? Not really.”

“Want to go for coffee then?”

“Coffee?”

“Yeah. I’ve been talking so much today that my throat’s all dry.”

Seeing Hana’s bright smile, Suhyuk’s response came automatically.

“I’ll pay for the coffee!”

“Ooh~ Really?”

“Well, you taught me guitar and all…”

“Great! Is it okay if we go to the place in front of the main gate?”

He had been thinking of a convenience store or somewhere on campus.

But then again, a café is a café, right?

“Yeah. That’s fine.”

“Then let’s go as soon as you gather your things!”

The two left the club room and exited the welfare building.

A pleasant spring breeze tickled Suhyuk’s nose as it passed by.

This was the first time Suhyuk had gone for coffee alone with a girl, and even though he knew it wasn’t that kind of outing, he could feel his heart pounding.

I should say something…

Hana walked steadily ahead, looking forward.

Suhyuk lagged slightly behind.

Noticing his absence, Hana turned around and waved at him to hurry up.

“Hey. What are you doing back there!”

Now’s the chance for conversation!

She’s talking to me, so I should say something refreshing that girls might like…!

“Pe-Peperoncino Americano, do you like it?”

“…Pe-what?”

Suhyuk had mixed up the peperoncino he’d sprinkled on pizza yesterday with the drink he was planning to order at the café.