NOVEL WEB Chapter 22
A week since I checked out the company building.
Today, I finally received a call from the Director that the trainee contract has been finalized, and my mom and I came to the company to sign the papers.
The Director, who guided us to the reception room, went out to fetch the documents.
A short while later, the Director returned with an Uncle who looked important.
The Uncle greeted us.
“Hello, Do-hee’s mother. I’m Kim Wi-dong, the representative of Topist Entertainment.”
“Oh! Hello.”
Gasp, the Representative.
“Hello, Representative!”
I immediately stood up and bowed at a 90-degree angle.
“So, you must be Do-hee? Nice to meet you. Just as the Director said, you’re really pretty.”
“Thank you!”
“Yeah, yeah, just sit comfortably.”
As the Representative sat down, he started to speak.
“Oh wow, I heard that Do-hee is pretty, but seeing you in person really surprised me.”
“Hehe, thank you!”
Looks like the Representative thinks highly of me.
“Do-hee takes after her mother, so she’s a beauty.”
“Haha, Do-hee does resemble me a lot.”
That’s nice to hear.
“Now that we’ve introduced ourselves, shall we talk about the contract?”
“Honestly, as the representative, I don’t get involved in trainee contracts at all. The staff always handle those really well.”
“But both the Director and Team Leader Kim insisted on outrageous conditions.”
“So, since the conditions are exceptional, I came to see and judge for myself.”
Then the Representative looked at me.
“Do-hee-ya…”
“…”
“Do-hee-ya…”
What about me…?
After staring at me for 30 seconds, the Representative finally pulled the contract from the envelope and said.
“We can’t avoid signing the contract.”
Phew… that was nerve-racking.
Is this the Representative’s negotiation skill?
Calming my pounding heart, I looked over the contract with my mom.
There were absolutely no clauses that were unfavorable to me, just as the Director had proposed.
My mom looked at me and said.
“Do-hee, do you think you can do it?”
“Yeah, you know I’ll get it done. You don’t trust cool girl Lee Do-hee?”
“Haha, of course I trust you, Do-hee. So, should I sign it?”
“Okay!”
Mom stamped the contract.
And from today, I’m officially part of the company.
The Representative smiled and extended his hand for a handshake.
“Do-hee, I look forward to working with you from today. If you have any issues, feel free to tell me.”
“Yes, Representative! I will work hard!”
.
.
.
Two days after the signing date,
I finished my first day at school and headed to the entertainment agency for my first day of work.
Arriving in front of the building, I called Team Leader Kim Jin-woo, who had cast me.
I arrived early and called Team Leader Kim Jin-woo from the rookie development team who had cast me.
“ Team Leader, I’m here~ ”
– “Ah, Do-hee, you’re starting today? I’ll open the door for you~” –
A little later, the company’s door swung open.
But instead of Team Leader Kim Jin-woo, a scary-looking woman stepped out.
I have a feeling this intimidating person is going to take care of me from now on.
“Come on in.”
“Sure.”
“Since you’re our trainee, I’ll speak casually, okay?”
“Sure.”
“You said your name is Do-hee?”
“Sure.”
“You just got out of school?”
“Sure.”
I keep responding with “sure” because her scary appearance makes it hard to say anything else.
“Did your mom drop you off?”
“No, I live close, so I took the bus. Mom only picks me up when I go home.”
“You came alone? Impressive. Let’s go up, and the teacher will explain your trainee life.”
“Sure.”
I followed the scary-looking woman up to the third floor.
We arrived at a department marked “Rookie Development Team.”
“Okay, first off, the teacher in charge of the A&R team is Team Leader Jung So-hyun. You can just call her Team Leader Jung So-hyun.”
“Sure, but can I ask just one question?”
Team Leader Jung So-hyun looks so intimidating that I find it hard to ask anything.
“What is it?”
“What is the A&R team?”
“Oh, A&R stands for Artist and Repertoire. It oversees everything from discovering artists to production. All the trainers who will train you in the future are in this department.”
“Ah, got it.”
“No more questions, right?”
“Nope!”
“Alright, then I’ll explain the rules now.”
Team Leader Jung So-hyun handed me a key card.
“From now on, you can open all the company’s doors with this card key. Just don’t lose it.”
“Understood.”
Then she pulled out a document binder from the bookshelf and handed it to me.
“This is the attendance and work log. You’ll always keep it here. When you come in, sign in, and before leaving, you need to check in again and write down what you learned every day, okay?”
“Understood.”
After finishing the basic explanation, Team Leader Jung So-hyun took me to the underground dance practice room.
As I entered the dance practice room, a dance teacher who looked like a choreographer was teaching a female student.
“Mr. Moon!”
“Oh, yes, Team Leader. Is this the friend who’s starting today?”
“Yes, Do-hee, greet her. She’s Teacher Moon Ye-rim, who will train you in dance.”
“Hello, Teacher. I’m Do-hee Lee.”
“Oh my, you’re so cute! But just because the teacher thinks you’re cute doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on you, so you better work hard, got it?”
It happened. Still, the teacher said I was cute, so I have to work hard, got it?
“Yes! I’ll do my best!”
“Alright, Woo-ah, come here and say hi. This is your younger sibling who will learn with you from now on.”
A girl who had been dancing together came over and greeted me happily.
As an idol trainee, she had a cute appearance and was very lively.
“Hi! I’m Jiwoo! Nice to meet you! How old are you?”
“Hello, senior! I’m 11 years old.”
“I’m 13, so just call me Woo-ah, not senior!”
“Okay, Woo-ah unni, nice to meet you!”
Once I finished greeting Woo-ah unni, Team Leader So-hyun said,
“Woo-ah, you’re going to the upper level for your vocal lesson now.”
“Yes, Team Leader!”
After Woo-ah unni left, the dance trainer teacher started the lesson.
“Do-hee said she has no interest in dancing, right? Is this your very first time?”
“Yes, it’s really my first time.”
“Then let’s start with the basics.”
“Yes.”
“This is called isolation, a fundamental dance move where you isolate each body part. Let’s start by moving just our necks like the teacher!”
“Yes!”
“Good job! Now, let’s do the shoulders~”
“The chest~”
“The hips~”
Oh… why am I doing well? Perhaps I might have a talent for dancing?
“You said it was your first time, but you’re doing great! This time, we’re going to apply that and do a simple dance. You’ll bend and straighten your knees while doing the moves we just learned. Watch and follow me.”
“Yes!”
I enthusiastically danced along with the teacher.
Is this groove?
The dance prodigy Do-hee is making her entrance.
…
“Hmm… Do-hee, let’s try that again, shall we?”
Huh…?
Maybe I over-exaggerated because I was feeling it too much.
I need to dance properly again.
“Yes!”
The dance prodigy Do-hee taking the stage for round two.
…
“Hmmm… I think Do-hee is a bit of a klutz when it comes to dancing.”
Ah.
The dance prodigy Do-hee has tragically perished.
Enter the dance troublemaker Do-hee…
“It’s okay, Do-hee. You said you’ve never danced before, so it’s understandable.”
“Yes…”
“Really, it’s fine! You’ve improved a lot compared to the first time. It’s just the first day, so you’ll get better quickly.”
“Ah! Yes!”
Team Leader So-hyun, who had quietly observed the lesson from the sofa, stood up to speak.
“Do-hee, let’s go for your vocal lesson now.”
“Yes~”
Right, my talent might be in vocals.
My talent might be in vocals.
Following Team Leader Jeong So-hyun, I entered the second-floor vocal room where the trainee senior I introduced earlier as Jiwoo was learning to sing from a male teacher.
“Mr. Kwon, this is Do-hee I mentioned yesterday.”
“Oh, Woo-ah, you can continue practicing in the other room for now, and we’ll finish the rest after Do-hee’s lesson.”
“Okay~”
Once again, Woo-ah Unni got kicked out immediately.
I feel a bit bad; it seems to be because of me.
“Hey, Do-hee, the teacher’s name is Kwon Hyuk. Let’s do our best.”
“Yes! Hello, teacher. I will work hard to learn!”
“Right, I’ve heard Do-hee won first place in the piano competition?”
“Yes!”
“Wow… that’s amazing. So, can I have high hopes for you?”
“Of course!”
After consistent piano practice, I not only developed a strong sense of rhythm but also absolute pitch.
So, would someone like me really be unable to sing?
“Good, I like your confidence. How about you try singing a song you know?”
“Well… Actually, I’ve only been playing the piano, so I don’t know many songs.”
“Huh? So you’ve never sung a song before?”
“Not exactly, but I can’t remember any songs…”
“Hmm… then I’ll sing a girl idol song, and you can try to follow along one line at a time?”
“Okay!”
“Riding on freedom, flowing out of control~”
The vocal teacher played the piano and sang.
Sure enough, as a vocal trainer, his singing skills were perfect.
But with my electronic-like brain, I had registered every pitch and rhythm perfectly.
It’s not hard to follow along.
“Alright, Do-hee, let’s hear you sing.”
“Okay! Riding on freedom, flowing out of control~”
“Hmm…”
Ah.
“Good, now let’s try the next line?”
Phew.
“Okay!”
“No matter what you say to me, I’m different~”
Alright, this time I definitely copied it perfectly.
“No matter what you say to me, I’m different~”
“Hmm…”
Ah.
“I can definitely feel that Do-hee has done music before.”
Oh!
“But you’re singing with the correct pitch and rhythm, but your tone sounds weird.”
Ah.
“Yes…”
“You did well enough, though. It’s the first day, right? You can fix your tone quickly.”
“Yes!”
Really, is it reasonable to perform well from the very first day?
Both studying and playing the piano were terrible at first.
After all, time is what remains.
I just need to get better going forward.
Too much perfection isn’t fun.