Ch.9696. Preparations for the End

With just one day left until the competition, a special guest who wasn’t from the 23rd batch had come to visit the club room.

“Ta-da!”

Seo-eun smiled brightly.

The person she had dragged along was her boyfriend, the former club president who was busy job hunting.

It was Jae-jun.

“Hana! Is this what you were talking about?”

Seo-eun lifted up a hard guitar case, notorious for its weight.

“Well, yes…”

At Suhyeok and Hana’s request, Seo-eun had successfully captured her boyfriend and managed to finalize the guitar rental deal.

“But unnie, is it really okay for Jae-jun oppa to lend this?”

“Yep! We came to an agreement!”

“An agreement? Not just out of kindness?”

“I told him I wouldn’t kiss him if he didn’t lend it to us.”

Is this what they call being embarrassed for someone else?

Watching Seo-eun throw her arms around Jae-jun, Suhyeok found himself awkwardly scratching his cheek.

“Haah…”

Despite his protests, Jae-jun had ultimately lost to his girlfriend.

The epitome of a tsundere, he sighed as he took the guitar out of the case.

It was a brown sunburst Les Paul, similar in style to Seo-eun’s bass.

The Gibson logo engraved on the headstock had something that resonated with amateur guitarists.

“Hey. So which one of you is going to play it?”

Since he’d already decided to lend it, Jae-jun wanted to give them some basic tips.

“Lee Suhyeok! You should play it.”

“Uh… I guess so…?”

Since Suhyeok handled most of the backing parts in the lower register, it made more sense for him to take it.

“Hmm… Well, it’s still an electric guitar, so it shouldn’t be that different.”

What concerned Jae-jun more than lending the guitar was how it would feel to play on stage.

For a musician, an instrument is like a baseball player’s glove. The more you use it, the more it conforms to your hand.

“Breaking in” was the perfect expression—instruments inevitably become more familiar the more you play them.

“Want to try playing with the strap on? It’s better to judge after trying it out.”

“…Yes, sir.”

As soon as Jae-jun handed over the guitar, Suhyeok couldn’t help but grip it more firmly.

It was heavy.

Not just the sound was weighty. Les Pauls were actually quite famous for being physically heavy instruments.

“…How is it?”

Suhyeok, with Jae-jun’s guitar strapped over his shoulder, awkwardly asked Hana.

“If you hadn’t said anything, it might have looked fine.”

With that one comment, he suddenly looked like a son wearing his father’s clothes.

“Okay! Since we’re not going to practice much today anyway, let’s try it out quickly!”

The 23rd batch had planned to go shopping for outfits together in the afternoon.

“Ready!”

“Let’s go!”

Clap clap clap clap

The drum sound signaled the start.

Jae-jun crossed his arms and leaned on the desk, watching their ensemble.

Though he had come at his girlfriend’s desperate pleading, he genuinely wanted to offer some advice.

After all, when it came to understanding music as a domain, he was probably the most knowledgeable among them.

Jae-jun hoped they would do well, since they were representing Spirit.

“Without even having the chance to wither”

A voice both wistful and compelling.

Even to Jae-jun’s ears, the vocalist’s talent was overwhelmingly impressive.

“I’m drying up…”

When the song ended, all the members turned to look at Jae-jun.

Seeing them looking like children waiting for their homework to be checked, Jae-jun stroked his chin.

“It’s good. The song.”

That was his overall assessment.

The song was indeed well-made, fitting the concept of a sad unrequited love.

The performance wasn’t bad either.

It was stable, and no one stood out in a jarring way.

Hearing it in person, he could understand why the juniors had been going on about wanting a Les Paul.

For this kind of song, a Telecaster would have a slightly sharper, brighter sound.

“Really? You’re not just saying that?”

“Have I ever done something to you, Hana?”

“Tons of things.”

“Fair enough. But not this time.”

Jae-jun turned to look at Suhyeok.

“Suhyeok.”

“Yes.”

“Think you can handle it?”

He only had one day to get familiar with the new instrument.

“The strings feel a bit tighter…”

Jae-jun’s guitar did have significantly higher tension than what Suhyeok was used to.

“I think I can do it!”

Though he felt some anxiety inside, this guitar could complete their sound.

It was close to the ideal sound Suhyeok had been imagining, so he decided not to refuse the offer.

“Alright then. Just don’t scratch it and return it safely.”

“Thank you!”

After repeating the ensemble about ten times, Jae-jun said he had something to do and needed to leave.

“Jae-jun oppa, if we win the prize money, we’ll treat you to something delicious.”

“Don’t lie. I heard you’re using it for a trip.”

“Eh? Unnie, you already told him?”

“Ahaha, it just came up?”

Suhyeok and Hana repeatedly expressed their gratitude to him.

Choi Gang and Juyeon, standing nearby, also bowed their heads.

“Well… now that oppa’s gone…”

Seo-eun set a new meeting place.

First, everyone would go home to gather any equipment they needed.

They would meet at the bus stop at 1 PM.

For the first time in his life, Suhyeok found himself heading home carrying two guitars.

Carrying instruments in hard cases in this hot weather.

He felt like crying.

If not for his body being strengthened by Choi Gang’s hellish training, he would have stopped to rest several times already.

Arriving home, Suhyeok immediately wiped off his sweat and put water in a pot.

Frugality was essential for the upcoming events.

Today’s lunch would be instant noodles.

Although he had received wages from working at Hana’s uncle’s store, he would need to work several more shifts to save enough for the trip.

And today’s outing would likely involve significant expenses.

While clothing expenses were unavoidable, he’d at least need to eat cheaply.

The concept for their stage outfits was black and white—colloquially known as the “Monami look.”

Most people imagine leather jackets or studded boots for band competitions, but those would be too hot and didn’t match their song concept.

Hana’s suggested keyword was “sophisticated sadness.”

She thought that if they looked as depressing as the song sounded, they might come across as truly pathetic.

So they wanted to create a composed appearance that contained emotions that were anything but composed.

Hana, who had already bought a statement hat for Juyeon, had strong confidence in her planning.

After quickly finishing lunch, Suhyeok put on a white t-shirt and headed out.

The first to arrive at the bus stop was Juyeon.

Suhyeok sat down next to her while she was looking at her phone, not even noticing his arrival.

“…What are you looking at?”

“Huh?”

Startled, Juyeon frantically pressed the exit button.

“Ah, nothing special, just an article.”

“I see.”

“Y-you’re early.”

“Yeah, somehow.”

Since the day he walked her home, Suhyeok had become more attentive to Juyeon.

That day, Juyeon had seemed very—

Very anxious.

“Juyeon.”

“Yes?”

“Should I walk you home later?”

Her eyes trembled slightly.

“…Okay.”

She didn’t ask why.

Suhyeok also didn’t press her for an explanation.

“Hey guys! Will this work?”

Seo-eun, who arrived next, pulled out a snow-white blouse from a bag.

“I think so?”

Hana was in charge of the overall concept, so Suhyeok and Juyeon could only respond with question marks floating above their heads.

“Couldn’t you have just taken a picture of it instead of bringing it?”

Suhyeok wondered why she needed to bring the actual item.

“We need to try it on with the bottoms to see if it matches well!”

…Is that how it works?

The world of fashion still felt like a distant fairy tale to Suhyeok.

“Lee Suhyeok! Behold!”

Choi Gang appeared wearing a dress shirt and black tie.

“Is that your stage outfit?”

“The perfect shirt fit requires muscles!”

“But won’t you sweat wearing that now?”

“The judges won’t smell it.”

Hana was the last to arrive.

She took out the hat she had prepared for Juyeon from a paper bag.

Like a scene from a certain anime where a straw hat is placed on someone’s head, Hana covered Juyeon’s head with the hat using one hand.

“…So cute! Seo-eun unnie, come look!”

“Hey, Juyeon, let’s just take one photo.”

“Eh?”

Suddenly forced to take an ID photo at the bus stop, Juyeon’s silly expression came out quite adorable today as well.

“Let’s go now!”

Choi Gang needed accessories.

Hana needed tops and bottoms.

Seo-eun just bottoms.

Suhyeok and Juyeon needed complete outfits.

The Spirit members had a long day ahead.

Boarding the bus, the 23rd batch all flocked to the back row as if by agreement.

“Oh.”

Wondering what this feeling was, Suhyeok could only identify it after a brief flashback.

The back of the middle and high school field trip buses.

The so-called “popular kids” always occupied these five seats together.

Of course, this wasn’t a school bus but public transportation, but the scene of the five of them sitting in a row and chatting loudly awakened both unfamiliar and new sensations in him.

“Hey, Lee Suhyeok.”

Hana, sitting next to him, poked him repeatedly.

“Yeah?”

“How much money do you have?”

…This wasn’t the kind of situation he had hoped for.