Chapter 3.4

A familiar song played on the car’s radio. It was a song from a musical that was so uptempo and naive that it automatically made his heart beat faster to its beat. Thinking about it, he thought of the name—maybe it was ‘It’s On’?

Lee Seop found himself in a quandary of wanting to change the channel because it was too loud and also wanting to turn the volume on blast. His thumb hovered over the volume button on his steering wheel. He let his thumb down, pressing and holding the button. The inside of the car was filled with cheery beats. It was such a foolish and loud song, but it pulled all the worry and residue out of his mind.

The highlight of the introductory training camp for new employees was a musical competition between each group on the last night of the camp. Min-kyung decided on this song and created the choreography and the lines. Every time the group took a break, she would walk around with her notebook, critiquing the choreography and coming up with new movements for us to try out. 

We would listen, work on changing any choreography, and rearrange the movements to suit people’s abilities.

“Why are you working so hard?” Without realizing it Lee Seop spit out what was on his mind.

“If you get first place in the whole training, we all receive some great benefits. For one, there is an incentive to get first place overall because it will help with department placement. The musical has a lot of points that count to the overall score. Also, there’s a fun souvenir given to the first-place winner in the musical.”

She knew, of course, that he didn’t know any of this nor did It matter for him. Only a slight disdain was revealed on her face. “My dear TK Prince,” Min-kyung smiled and awkwardly raised the corner of her mouth. “This is the best opportunity, everyone is tired from camp and can’t choreograph or dance well. Right now, from what I saw, our group is in second place overall. I did some research, singing won’t help us win because everyone sings…. So we have to compete with using our choreography.”

The group was the camp’s dream team with Tae Yi-seop in it, they had a lot of talent but still ended up missing a lot of points. This was their last chance. Min-kyung, with puffy eyes from not sleeping, held her arms upwards and shook her waist and hips at Lee Seop to demonstrate.

“I couldn’t ask you first to do this because in case it was too difficult. But I’m positive you can do this move, right? All you have to do is line up, hold up your hands, and spin around to the beat.”

“Sorry, I don’t dance.”

“It’s easy, just like this, look.”

Min-kyung suppressed her irritation and gave one more example, but this time with more prominent movements. “One, two, three, four, ta-da. Two, three, one spin around.” As she stretched out one arm forward and shook her hips then while she spun, her body, which was always buried under baggy clothes, was revealed. 

‘Shit.’ She had a big chest and a tiny waist; Lee Seop frowned getting heated, and turned his head quickly. 

“I’ll assume that you got it. Sorry for taking any of your break time.” Min-kyung said briskly and then walked back to the other group members.

Lee Seop chewed on his thumb, memories from 11 years ago as a new hire quickly filled his mind. The music started to amplify the memories to fill his mind more and more. Right after the entrance exam for TK before camp, he was called to Songbaekjae, and that was when he heard that name. ‘Lee Seop, when you start the training, pay attention to the people around you. Is this person a piece of wood that can be picked up and carved using it as a pillar? Or is it just some small person with a quick mind who only does well in tests? You will be eating, sleeping, and working together for a month at camp, everyone’s talents will become clearer.’

There was one person in particular. Kang Min-kyung. Her name was engraved in his brain, thinking about that woman taking first place. It was only after Lee Seop read the names in his training group list that he finally saw the name he wanted to find.  Kang Min-kyung, the woman who had beaten him and took the first position from him.

While the group took turns introducing themselves, Lee Seop kept glazing over at Min-kyung every so often. Every time he looked, they happened to make eye contact, and she laughed lightly. It was an awkward laugh, maybe because she was embarrassed or shy. When Lee Seop laughed in response, her laugh became even more awkward. He was used to receiving this kind of favor and attention from women. Most of the time, when Lee Seop responded with a laugh, the woman’s face would get red, and she’d shy away, unable to look at him. But when Min-kyung reacted to his laughter, it was in more of a combative way.

‘This is fun.’ he smiled.

Now, whenever Lee Seop made eye contact with Min-kyung, he actually laughed. The two continued their eye contact and smiling cat-and-mouse game until introductions ended.

After shaking off the trance the two of them were in, the team took some time to focus on their first assignment. Min-kyung turned her head to the side to stretch, rubbed her cheeks, and squeezed the muscles beside her lips. ‘Ugh…’ Min-kyung sighed tirelessly as if she had worked hard for hours already.

Lee Seob deliberately passed closely by Min-kyung to check on the printout for their assignment. Yet, she was too engrossed in the content, staring at it with an indifferent expression, to notice him. ‘What the…’ his heart ached for no reason. Lee Seop was bewildered since this was the first time he felt this emotion. He wondered if this was what it felt like to like someone and be ignored... a crush.

Throughout the training camp, Lee Seop observed Min-kyung as cool-headed in everything she did as the senior in the group. She didn’t expose any of her thoughts, and her judgment was always quick and accurate. And it was the same for him.

"Is that so? Tae Yi-seop is great, but I think Kim Cheol-un can lead this much better, he has a broader reach."

"I have to ensure the entire choreography is smooth, so there is no question about the lead roles. The female lead roles should be played by Song Eun-joo first. She fits the lovely and lively image we’re going for well. The problem is with the male lead… Well, let’s look at the recommendations; first, there’s Tae Yi-seop…. It may be too burdensome for him to play the lead role, and most importantly, the highlight of the choreography will be the lifting. So we need someone with the power to do it so there’s no problem. I immediately thought of Choi Seon-yong while planning the movements. He was in judo club, so he seems to have good flexibility, strength, and physical skills…"

Even though her evaluation of Lee Seop’s intelligence and leadership was good, he couldn’t bear the idea that she thought of him as a sloppy guy with no strength to lift a woman. He wouldn't let her win and choose the lead.

“Ah, why is this so annoying…”

Lee Seop changed the radio station, cutting off his reminiscing from camp that was so long ago. He had arrived at the Hotel. Handing over his keys to the valet service at the hotel’s entrance, he walked straight forward, buttoning his jacket and adjusting his horn-rimmed glasses.

It had also been 11 years since Lee Seop’s photo ID was leaked to the media after he joined TK Group. This resulted in some people recognizing him. He often changed his style, even his hair, to combat it, especially when it was a very personal appointment. Tonight was a grade school class reunion, the first in a long time where he could relax and stay for as long as he wanted. He couldn’t attend the beginning half because of dinner at Songbaekjae, but he didn’t want to miss another moment. His phone chimed, and he glanced at the screen.

[Tae Lee Seop, are you coming? We left a bottle of wine for you.]

[Just a couple of minutes] Lee Seop typed. He walked towards the lounge bar, feeling a lightness in his step.