Chapter 9
The REC lamp turned off.
“…If this gets aired, Hyeseong’s definitely going to blow up, right?”
“You just don’t know yet. He’s already going viral on YouTube.”
“Oh, right. They’re calling him the ‘Korean Franz Liszt.’”
“That’s Ji Jaewon, the pianist….”
“Oh…”
After the shoot ended, the staff relaxed and shared their impressions.
Most of their talk was about Yoo Hyeseong.
“…But don’t you think Hyeseong is just fascinating?”
“You mean his playing?”
“Obviously that too, but did you see him run his hand through his hair while playing? That relaxed gesture—most pianists wouldn’t dare. That kind of stage presence…”
“And the vibe he gives off—so confident and aloof, right?”
Put plainly, it gave off the aura of “I know I’m amazing.”
But strangely, it didn’t feel unpleasant.
That’s probably because the boy had the skills to back it up.
Yoo Hyeseong walked over to his family.
The first to greet him was his uncle, Bae Hyeonseok.
“This is just between you and me, but honestly, you should’ve just given him 100 points from the start. Then it would’ve been an even bigger twist when you flipped the board.”
“……”
“100 points… and 1 point.”
“That’s a bit much.”
“Oh, but isn’t that disrespectful to Pianist Ji Jaewon? I mean, it’s still a show. Maybe you should’ve gone for the drama… Ow!”
Bae Myeongseon pinched his ear sharply.
Though her violence was a familiar thing, the pain was something he could never get used to.
“You did great, son. You looked really cool up there.”
Yoo Bongjae reached out to ruffle his hair.
“Oh, quick reflexes this time too?”
But Hyeseong dodged him effortlessly.
Franz Liszt had been very particular about his appearance—and apparently, so was Yoo Hyeseong.
Even before he remembered his past life, he had never allowed anyone to touch his hair.
And then—
“Where did Hyeseong go?”
In that brief moment, he had vanished.
Bae Hyeonseok looked around, but he was nowhere to be seen.
He definitely wasn’t in the studio.
‘If you were going somewhere, you could’ve at least said so…’
About ten minutes later, he spotted Hyeseong walking back from a distance.
The closer he got, the more Hyeonseok’s eyes widened.
“…Where’d you go? Are you okay? Why are you sweating so much on your forehead?”
Even his bangs were slightly damp.
He looked unwell.
Naturally, concern followed.
“Why do you look so shocked? I just went to the bathroom.”
“Then what’s with the cold sweat…?”
“I was just in a hurry.”
Hyeonseok burst into laughter.
How urgent must it have been to break out in a cold sweat?
Then again, the shoot had dragged on for quite a while.
While he was laughing hard, missing the thick drop of sweat rolling down behind Hyeseong’s ear, Hyeseong walked over to Ji Jaewon.
“Thank you for today.”
“Oh, uh, y-you too…”
“Only 17 missed notes over two pieces—that’s seriously impressive.”
They were now face to face, and Hyeseong genuinely admired his playing.
Seventeen mistakes across two entire pieces—an impressively low count.
‘Holy crap… He even caught that in “La Chasse”?’
The fact that Hyeseong accurately counted them was shocking to Ji Jaewon.
Even he hadn’t realized how many mistakes he’d made.
‘Wait, did I even miss that many?’
Meanwhile, the two casually exchanged phone numbers.
“Hey, Hyeseong.”
“Yes?”
“…What are you?”
Ji Jaewon slipped his phone into his back pocket and continued.
“I’ve always wondered… What would it be like to hear Franz Liszt play live?”
Hyeseong smiled faintly, encouraging him to go on.
“But listening to your performance today, I just… sigh…”
“Felt like Liszt was playing right in front of you?”
“…Sounds a bit crazy, doesn’t it?”
Hyeseong spotted his family waiting for him.
He gave Jaewon a slight nod, as if saying he had to go.
“Not at all.”
When he turned back, he was smiling.
Sure, it meant he understood what Jaewon meant—but Jaewon could only blankly stare as Hyeseong walked away.
The atmosphere gradually shifted to wrap-up mode.
PD Kim Kisik was discussing the next shoot with the key staff.
This wasn’t the end—since it was part of a special feature, Part 2 was already planned.
Hyeseong was confirmed to appear again, alongside Ji Jaewon.
Then—
Jaewon approached hesitantly.
His face looked troubled.
Sensing something serious, PD Kim paused his meeting.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
They stepped into a corner of the studio.
Kim cautiously opened the conversation.
“Mr. Ji, you don’t need to worry too much.”
He had a good idea why Jaewon had come.
“I was surprised too during the shoot, but we’re not going to edit it to make it look like you were overshadowed or anything.”
“…That’s not it.”
Jaewon gave a bitter smile.
“As you saw, I really was overshadowed in the performance.”
“Oh no, not at all.”
Kim waved his hands.
Jaewon, of course, knew it was just politeness.
“But…”
“Yes, go on.”
“…Would it be possible to reshoot the scene where I score on the board?”
He had realized that scoring during “La Chasse” was the right move.
But the result would’ve been the same.
His score board had remained completely blank to the end.
And his face?
He must’ve looked like a fool with a broken brain.
He didn’t see it, but he could imagine it clearly.
Jaewon was worried.
If that footage aired as-is, it would be humiliating.
Even though he managed to keep up with the performance in the end, not writing anything on the board was… not okay.
So instead, maybe he could just look relaxed and clap generously…
A moment later—
“Hmm, Hyeseong’s performance was truly outstanding.”
Clap – Clap – Clap –
Jaewon clapped slowly and deliberately.
“Honestly, I’ve got nothing but this score to give you.”
[100]
A wide, relaxed smile.
He nodded across the room as if to say “I acknowledge you.”
Of course, there was no one there.
Hyeseong had already gone home.
“…Pfft. I’m sorry.”
One of the passing staff couldn’t help but laugh.
My first shoot ever.
It was actually more fun than I expected.
And Ji Jaewon’s playing was way better than I thought too.
A skill level that made him worthy of winning a competition bearing my name.
As a composer, I watched with pride—but for some reason, I spoke less and less.
Well, anyway…
“Haha, son! Congrats on your first shoot!”
“You worked so hard~”
“That’s my little bro. Sis saw it too, right? The crowd’s reaction at the studio was crazy.”
After the shoot, it was evening, and they decided to eat out to celebrate his first broadcast.
It wasn’t as fancy as the place they went after his discharge, but—
That didn’t matter.
What mattered was being together.
“Eat up! That’s how you’ll grow up healthy like your uncle.”
Kindly, his uncle heaped side dishes onto his spoon.
The problem was, it was all eggplant, cucumber, onions…
Okay, healthy, sure—but still.
“You eat it. You.”
His mom scolded him.
Told him not to offload food he didn’t like.
Come to think of it, his uncle was pretty picky with food too.
“You heard her.”
“……”
He handed the spoon right back.
Honestly, he didn’t want to eat it either.
Even if he used to be Franz Liszt, his tongue now was still Yoo Hyeseong’s.
No way his tastes had changed.
“That’s why you’re short—because you’re picky.”
“Wow, sis, can you talk to her? She says whatever she wants to me.”
In times like this, his uncle stepped in.
“You’re probably going to catch up to me in height soon.”
“…!”
His dad laughed heartily and gave him a big thumbs-up.
It wasn’t even wrong—he and his uncle were almost the same height.
At this rate, he’d pass him within a year.
“My son, nice one.”
“Don’t join in, bro-in-law.”
“…It’s really different with all four of us together like this.”
“It is, but what brought that on?”
“Just saying.”
“You’re always randomly sentimental.”
Suddenly, Hyeseong asked something.
“What was it like with just the three of you?”
“…You really don’t have a sensitive bone in your body, do you? Asking that so casually…”
“Quiet down, will you?”
Chatter, chatter, chatter—nonstop noise.
“When it was just the three of us… I don’t really know.”
“…?”
“I don’t really want to think about that time anymore. Anyway, we’re all together now.”
His dad really had a gift for setting the tone at the table.
Like last time, the mood again…
Not that it was bad.
‘It’s just a bit… hard to take sometimes.’
But that was from his perspective.
From the perspective of the family who’d been waiting for his return—it was probably deeply moving.
Maybe that’s why both his uncle and mother simply nodded in silence.
Feeling the mood, he nodded along as well.
Dinner ended on that note.
Once in the car, they were back to laughing and joking.
Eventually, they got home, and Hyeseong entered his room.
Click—
He shut the door.
He’d wash up later.
Because…
“……”
His head still felt slightly dizzy.
He’d been fine during the performance in the studio, but the moment he stood up, the world started spinning.
He lay down and pressed a hand to his forehead.
No fever. Maybe it would’ve been better if there was one.
If it were just a cold, he could take medicine and get better.
As he lay there, he spotted some books under the desk.
One stood out from the rest.
‘A diary?’
Apparently, he didn’t even remember writing a diary.
Three years of being in a coma might be the cause.
Then again, for him, it wasn’t three years.
He had lived an entire life as Franz Liszt in the 19th century before coming back.
So in a way, it was like returning after several decades.
And yes, post-coma partial memory loss was part of it too.
At least the diary might help fill in some gaps.
His old phone had broken, so his current one had no past data.
He felt grateful.
He eagerly opened to a page.
“……”
His eyes tensed up involuntarily.
The page was filled top to bottom with the same sentence, repeated over and over.
This wasn’t… a diary.
