Chapter Seventy-Six: The One She Is to Me

After being shooed away by Pei Xiuyong, and with nothing pressing to attend to nor any suitable reason to stay, Kim Jungmin and Xia Jun had no choice but to obediently follow his orders and leave.

Watching the two idle onlookers depart without protest, Pei Xiuyong nodded in satisfaction. He paid no further attention to Jung Soojung and Chen Zhe, who were still absorbed in studying the songbook, and instead returned straight to his seat. He put on his headphones and busied himself once more with adjusting the equipment.

“Huh, Director Pei didn’t even bother with us?” Freed from the company of her own manager, Xia Jun, and the rather intimidating LOEN president Kim Jungmin, Jung Soojung became lively again. Glancing at Pei Xiuyong, who had gone right back to work, she nudged Chen Zhe with her elbow and lowered her voice curiously.

“That’s normal. Teacher Pei is very serious and focused when he’s working—he completely immerses himself. As long as we don’t disturb him, we’ll be fine.” Chen Zhe instinctively caught her elbow, but realizing what he’d done, he quickly let go and tried to explain himself in a calm, collected manner.

“I see. Well, Zhe, why haven’t you contacted me these past few days? You were so drunk that night, I was really worried. If Sooyoung and Yuqi hadn’t told me about it, I’d have been afraid something bad had happened to you.”

Noticing Chen Zhe’s reaction, Jung Soojung looked over at him and immediately caught the faint blush spreading across his usually pale face. His eyes darted away, unable to meet her gaze.

Seeing him like this, Jung Soojung arched her brows, the corners of her mouth curling into a subtle smile. An urge to tease him welled up inside her. She reached out, tapping his shoulder lightly with her finger, and complained in a low, almost coquettish tone.

“Sorry, noona. The morning after, I went straight to LOEN, and since then I’ve been busy every day. After getting home and washing up, I’d fall asleep as soon as I hit the bed.” Chen Zhe scratched his head in embarrassment, his voice lacking conviction. After all, he couldn’t possibly admit that he’d avoided contacting her simply because he didn’t know how to face her, preferring to bury the matter at the back of his mind.

He might not be an expert in romance, but he knew well enough such things shouldn’t be said aloud—doing so would only court trouble. So Chen Zhe improvised an excuse to gloss over the situation.

“Hmph, I’ll let you off this time. Yuqi noona did mention how hard you’ve been working these days—practicing acting late into the night, barely doing anything else but eating and sleeping. With a schedule like that, it’s no wonder you didn’t have time.”

With a deliberate huff to show her displeasure, Jung Soojung relayed what she’d heard from Chen Yuqi. Almost without thinking, she reached out to ruffle Chen Zhe’s hair, but midway realized something and paused, her hand lingering awkwardly in the air before she switched to patting his shoulder instead.

“Those days were tough, but at least all the hard work wasn’t for nothing.” Thinking back on those four hellish days of intensive acting training, Chen Zhe couldn’t help but shiver. Yet the thought that he’d landed the lead male role in “Reply 1997” made it all worthwhile.

“Mm, it wasn’t for nothing! Wait—Zhe, does that mean your audition…” At his words, Jung Soojung immediately caught on, staring at him in surprise, momentarily at a loss for words.

She’d assumed he’d failed the audition and, by bringing it up, she’d touch on an old wound—giving her a chance to be the comforting older sister. But now the story had taken a different turn; he’d succeeded. Not only did she not get to console him, but his news stung her just a little. Clinging to a final strand of hope, she asked again.

“Yes, noona, I passed the audition for the ‘Reply 1997’ crew. I’m officially the male lead!” Chen Zhe patted his chest with pride. The fact that he’d trained intensely for just four days, auditioned, and then landed the starring role in what would become a wildly popular drama was, to him, almost unbelievable. Still, on the surface, he kept up a confident, even slightly smug demeanor, as if to say, “It was nothing.”

“Still showing off in front of your noona!” Jung Soojung, both amused and exasperated by his attitude, struggled to contain her laughter. She reached out and poked his cheek. Her playful gesture caught Chen Zhe off guard, leaving him momentarily stunned.

“No more fooling around. Let’s get back to practicing!” After tapping his cheek, Jung Soojung quickly withdrew her hand, pink coloring her cheeks. It seemed that even for her, such a display of intimacy took real courage. Once it was done, she hurried to change the subject, a bit flustered.

Looking at her, Chen Zhe felt an intense sense of déjà vu, but couldn’t quite place it. He frowned slightly, but agreed inwardly that she was right: work came first.

After the two spent a while longer studying the song, Pei Xiuyong finally called them over. Once he was sure they were both ready, he announced the official start of the recording.

With headphones on, Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung filed into the recording booth, sheet music in hand, each marking the passages they were to sing. They stood before their microphones.

Once they were set, the two gave Pei Xiuyong a thumbs-up from behind the glass. He returned the gesture, and as the distinctive melody of “Melody” began to play, the session commenced.

“At last I understand—you’ve become a memory, with no words left to explain.”

“When others ask, I can only hum a tune with no ending, unable to continue.” (Chen Zhe harmonizing: Unable to continue.)

“Like a certain scent lingering on the street, passing by and suddenly recalling old laughter and tears.” (Chen Zhe harmonizing: Recalling old laughter and tears.)

“Suddenly, my heart aches, unable to suppress it any longer—turns out, I never forgot.” (Chen Zhe harmonizing: Unable to suppress.)

Jung Soojung’s voice, carrying her distinct and powerful timbre, rang out. Listening to this voice—familiar, yet strangely distant—Chen Zhe was briefly lost in thought. Though he quickly recovered, a small misstep occurred in their coordination.

The first verse ended. With the music and Jung Soojung’s unique voice, certain memories that Chen Zhe had deliberately tried to forget began to resurface, broken and chaotic. Only one sentence remained vividly clear in his mind:

“That girl, the one who meant everything to me…”