NOVEL WEB Chapter 9
Stuck at home, living my daily routine for three months.
The advertisements that tormented me are finally over today.
For the past three months, whenever commercials came on while watching TV, I was caught and forced to watch by either my dad or mom.
As I was forced to endure watching them, I realized.
The ‘me’ in the advertisements was putting on a tear-jerking performance.
Those tears were an act of desperation, convincing even myself.
Damn, showing this level of acting at five years old? Am I meant to receive the Academy Award for Best Actress?
What am I lacking in this world?
Ah, but I guess this is where my child acting career ends.
What if other child actors feel despair at my talent?
Pitying others? I’m quite the gentleman.
“Oppa, Do-hee has been talking to herself for a while.”
“She’s still a kid. It’s the age where playing alone is fun.”
“Is that so?”
And today marks ten months since I started learning piano; I’m staring at the finish line of Czerny 100.
During piano lessons,
I lean against my teacher’s chest while learning the piano.
Could I have endured my crumbling mental state with those perfect breasts? It would have been impossible without them!
“Teacher, I like you.”
“I really like you too, Do-hee~”
“Does that mean you accepted my confession?”
“What are you talking about~?”
“I’ll take that as a yes and proceed to touch!”
Over the past ten months, I lowered my guard around my teacher’s chest.
As a result, I can now even touch my teacher’s chest with my hands.
The first time I touched it was nothing short of heavenly.
Of course, it still feels like heaven now.
Even while touching, I want to touch it again.
“Do-hee, you need to play the piano. Enough with the teacher’s chest!”
“Hmph…”
Looking up at the teacher with my sad eyes, she eventually softens.
“Alright, just a little more and then let’s get back to the piano?”
“Hehe, okay!”
Big breasts represent peace. Justice. Embrace.
But what if someday my own breasts become big?
Nah, thinking of my mom’s chest, large breasts seem impossible.
What’s the point of worrying?
After having my fun with the teacher’s chest, I resumed the piano lesson.
“Do-hee, you’ll finish Czerny 100 next lesson, won’t you?”
“Hehe, then as a reward, I’ll get to touch the chest~”
“Do-hee, do you want to prepare for a competition from the next lesson?”
“Huh? Not Czerny 30?”
“That’s good too, but I think you’re ready for the competition now.”
I couldn’t even read sheet music in my previous life.
To think I could participate in a competition—what an overwhelming feeling!
“Teacher, if I enter the competition, can I win an award?”
“Of course~”
Me, a competition winner?
Wow… Please let me win if I’m Korean, Do-hee must win.
“But actually, in the preschool competition, if you play through the whole piece, everyone gets an award.”
Huh?
“There are many awards in competitions. They give a grand prize, excellence award, best award, merit award, gold award, silver award, bronze award, and encouragement award. The names differ slightly by competition, but in preschool, since there are fewer participants, just completing the piece guarantees a prize.”
“Well, since there are fewer participants in the kindergarten category, just completing the piece is enough to earn something, right?”
“Then is there any need for me to go out…?”
“It’s a prize that can’t be bragged about, but I want to receive one to show off to others.”
“Does that mean my 10 months of practicing the piano for hours every day won’t get rewarded?”
“Oh dear, are you disappointed, our Do-hee?”
“Yeah…”
“It means that you can still win a prize; it doesn’t mean that the grand prize doesn’t matter. Even in the kindergarten category, winning the grand prize requires great talent.”
“Yeah…?”
“Moreover, the grand prize even awards over a million won?!”
“Yeah!!!”
“Haha, then let’s start practicing for the competition from the next lesson?”
“Okay~”
“What piece do you want to play? You can choose from the songs you’ve learned so far.”
“Please choose a piece that could win the grand prize, Teacher.”
“Hmm, then let’s try Mozart’s Rondo.”
“I haven’t learned that piece; will I win the grand prize if I play it?”
“Of course! It’s a piece that typically wins a lot in the elementary category. If you play it flawlessly, you could win the grand prize even in the elementary category.”
Looks like it’s quite a challenging piece.
“Then I want to do it!”
“Great! I’ll bring the sheet music next time. Let’s end today’s lesson here?”
“Yes! Teacher, then hug me now~”
Once the lesson ends, instead of going out by myself, I just cling to the teacher while leaving the room.
“Oh my, our Do-hee is such a spoiled child, haha! When will you ever go out by yourself?”
“Meh, hug me.”
Holding onto the teacher, I opened the door and called for my mom.
“Mom, the class is over~”
“Mother, our class has ended~”
“Good job~ Also, hey, Do-hee, I told you to stop clinging because the teacher is tired.”
“Haha, I’m okay, Mother.”
“The teacher says she’s okay too.”
“Sigh, but the teacher is tired. Come here and hug Mom.”
My mom opens her arms and looks at me.
And I look at my mom’s chest.
“Sigh…”
I guess I won’t be that small when I grow up, right?
Of course, I don’t want to be too big, but as a girl, I need to have some to wear nice clothes…
“Hey! Did you just sigh while looking at your mom’s chest, Do-hee?”
“No…”
“What’s wrong with your mom’s chest! You’re still her daughter, don’t you think you’re different?”
“I’ll bet 50% on Dad’s genes; I’ll put all my chest on the line.”
Mom, seemingly annoyed, finally gave me a playful slap on the head, something she hadn’t done since the last commercial shoot.
“Ouch!”
But I don’t cry.
At that moment, it was truly acting.
“Sniff… sniff… huff… phew…”
After countless imaginations and training, I finally overcame it.
No longer can that day’s nightmare make me cry.
“Haha, my mom’s playful slaps can’t make me cry anymore? I’ve won.”
“Feeling proud, are we?”
“Ouch!!”
I was hit again where it hurt.
“Wahhhh!”
It seems my body can’t take two hits.
Two days later, it was time for piano lessons again.
The teacher brought the score for the competition piece she mentioned last time.
“Alright, Do-hee, let’s give it a try?”
“Okay.”
My skill, honed over 10 months, means I can now play most new pieces with both hands right away.
With my skills, I can now play most songs I see with both hands right away.
“Of course, Do-hee, you’re doing so well.”
“Hehe.”
“But there are a few mistakes, so let’s try again.”
“Okay.”
“As I mentioned before, this piece is aimed at winning a top prize even at the elementary level, so it might be quite difficult for a 5-year-old. Let’s take it slow.”
I nodded and kept repeating the piece.
But every time I played, I felt weak, and mistakes kept happening.
As a 5-year-old, my fine motor skills aren’t fully developed yet, making it hard to play with consistent rhythm and volume.
“Do-hee, if it’s too hard, you don’t have to stick with this piece. You can pick an easier one and still win a prize.”
“I want to keep trying with this piece. We have time until the competition, and I think I can do it.”
A man’s pride—once you draw your sword, you must cut through something.
“Haha, Do-hee, you’re so hardworking; it’s adorable.”
The teacher hugged me, saying she was proud of my effort.
With this heart, there’s nothing impossible, not even Mozart or Beethoven.
*
About a month later.
It’s the day of the Korean music competition.
“Daughter, hurry up and get dressed.”
“Can’t I wear something else?”
“What kind?”
“Let’s put that princess dress away for now.”
“Aww, Mom saved up so much money to buy that for this day.”
“You can return it.”
A pink princess dress with lots of frills… Absolutely unacceptable…
“Sob… then can you at least let me wear this…”
After a dramatic compromise with Mom, I settled on a big-collared black dress.
“Big brother, are you all ready?”
“Yeah~ I’ll be right out~”
On my first competition day, Dad decided to go with us too.
“The teacher is waiting below, so let’s hurry.”
“Okay.”
We left the house, got in the car, and drove to the street where the teacher was standing.
Wow, her chest looks great today too.
“Big brother, that’s Do-hee’s teacher. Just park the car up front.”
“Got it.”
In that split second of parking, I saw something.
Dad’s eyes were headed toward the teacher’s chest.
“Mom, Dad just stared at the teacher’s chest.”
“Really?”
“Oh… no, what are you talking about? Lee Do-hee, you’ll get in trouble for lying.”
“Aiya, madam, I saw it with my own two eyes.”
“Oh, no!”
“Just wait and see when the piano teacher isn’t around…”
Phew. This is why guys are all about the chest, tsk tsk… Someone with a family saying this.
As soon as we parked the car in front of the teacher, she opened the door and got into the back seat where I was.
“Hello, ma’am. Do-hee~”
“Hello.”
“Nice to meet you, Do-hee’s father. I’m Joo-yeon-ji, Do-hee’s piano teacher.”
“Oh, hello, I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“I thought Do-hee was pretty because her mother is beautiful, but her father is handsome too. Haha.”
Uh oh… Teacher, you shouldn’t say that right now…
“Haha… thank you.”
Mom glared at Dad sitting next to her.
Mom poked Dad in the side with her finger and whispered softly so only he could hear.
-Do you like that? Like it to death?-
Oh… Did I say too much?
Did I say that for no reason?
The suffocating atmosphere in the car continued until we arrived at the art hall, the venue for the competition.
After arriving at the art hall, checking the performance order, and getting our tickets, my teacher and I headed to the performer waiting room while my mom and dad went alone to the audience seats.
Dad, fighting! Hang in there!
My teacher and I sat in the waiting room chairs, waiting for our turn.
Looking at the kids performing ahead of me, it’s clear they were making frequent mistakes, their finger strength uneven, and lacking in dynamics where emphasis was needed.
“If I hadn’t done such a difficult piece, I might have won the grand prize?”
Before I knew it, my turn was approaching.
I sat at the piano on stage.
Honestly, I was nervous.
Well… as long as I don’t mess up all the practice so far should pay off.
I calmly placed my hands on the piano keys and started playing.
As I began, the piece I had practiced countless times over the past month flowed effortlessly from my body, even without consciously remembering it.
After a brief one-minute performance, I bowed to the audience and came down.
Back in the waiting room, my piano teacher welcomed me.
She hugged me and said, “Do-hee, you did so well today! You’re definitely getting the grand prize!”
“Yeah, I think I played really well today.”
Even I thought it was a clean performance.
As the tension eased, my hands trembled slightly.
Feeling an inexplicable thrill, I headed to the audience seats where mom and dad were waiting.
When I reached the audience seats, my mom lifted me up and said, “Our daughter did so well! So amazing!”
“Yeah, I did alright.”
Curious about why Dad was being so quiet, I looked at him and saw he was waiting for mom’s cue.
Sigh… I guess I have to help him out.
“Dad, give me a hug.”
Dad, taken aback by my words, happily scooped me up.
“I love our Do-hee the most.”
“Okay, but tell that to mom.”
Still, it seemed like the mood had lightened a bit thanks to me.
The remaining time was spent sitting in the audience, listening to the performances of the kids who were next.
I could definitely feel it now.
I was several times more skilled than those kids.
Once all the participants had finished their performances, the awards ceremony began.
My name was not called for Bronze, Silver, Gold, nor for Best and Excellent awards.
Finally, at the end, my name was called for the grand prize.
A wave of elation washed over me.
Even though it was just kindergarten level.
Winning the grand prize at the competition wasn’t just a point of pride for me.
It was the first tangible result of my steady efforts since being reborn.
I felt like I confirmed that I wasn’t mistaken through the small award plaque and prize money.
–
That day, my mom’s SNS
Kwon Joo-hee
November 4, 2012, 7:43 PM
Today is the day our princess won the grand prize at the competition.
Mom is so proud and happy for our princess ♡
(Video of me playing the piano)
(Photo of me receiving the award)