Devil’s Music

Director Tim, who had been in Washington, flew in at a moment's notice. He had arranged to meet Geon and Shizuka at the Crown Plaza Hotel located in downtown Manhattan. Tim was at the hotel's 10th-floor Sky Lounge, deeply engrossed in the storyboard outlines for the music video created by Lyn, sipping on his coffee.

"Mm.. Should it have an animation-like feel?"

Lost in thought as he gazed at the ceiling decorations of the hotel Sky Lounge, Tim turned his head towards the sound of the elevator in the empty lounge. As the elevator doors opened and a person stepped out, Tim quickly got up and spread his arms wide with a bright smile.

"Kay! Long time no see!"

Geon, whose face was hidden, was immediately recognized by Tim, who ran towards him with open arms and hugged him warmly.

"Director Tim! Have you been well?"

Tim's bright smile quickly turned into a frown as he rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Am I that old that you need to ask if I've been healthy?"

Geon laughed awkwardly and pulled him by the arm.

"Haha! In our country, it's customary to greet one's elders like this. Ah, let me introduce, this is Shizuka Miyawaki, you know Director Son Lin, right?"

Tim's gaze shifted to Shizuka, who was hesitating and looking around nervously from behind Geon, and to Lyn, who always had a confident and cool expression. Tim extended his hand towards Lyn first.

"We've talked on the phone quite often, but it's our first time meeting in person, isn't it?"

Lyn glanced down at Tim's hand before shaking it with a grim smile.

"Ha.. That's right. I was hoping we wouldn't have to talk over the phone anymore."

"Ha! Well, this isn't a movie shoot, and I don't think you've met my demands, but for now, I'll say my immediate desires have been extinguished, so I'll hold off for a while. Haha!"

Lyn's expression soured, but Tim, unfazed, turned to Shizuka and extended his hand.

"I'm Tim Curtain. Nice to meet you, Miss Shizuka."

Shizuka grasped Tim's hand with both of hers and bowed deeply.

"Ah, hello, Di-director! It's, it's truly an honor to meet you!"

Tim looked down at Shizuka, who continued to bow excessively, and asked Geon, pointing at her.

"What's with her? Is she new to America? She seems too Japanese in her greetings to be a student at Juilliard."

Geon chuckled and pulled Shizuka, who was still bowing and looking thrilled, by the arm.

"Let's stop the greetings here and go sit down to talk, Shizuka."

"Yes, yes? Okay, okay."

As Shizuka was led away by Geon, still sneaking glances at Tim, Tim turned to Lyn with a bemused look.

"Is she always like this?"

Lyn, having taken off his coat and holding it in one hand, slightly nodded.

"Yes, probably."

"Probably? Ah, you said she's a new signee, right? It seems all the talents signed with Fantagio are so innocent and nice."

Lyn and Geon took their seats on the sofa, with Shizuka looking over with sparkling eyes. Tim, looking annoyed at Lyn's departing back, quickly joined Geon on the sofa at his gesture. Sitting down, Tim looked at Geon with a newfound curiosity.

"Phew, you still look like a student just like when I first saw you in Germany, but your status has changed. It's become so hard to meet you now. Ha."

"Ha, my phone number changed. I'll give it to you later. Call me anytime you're near Manhattan."

"Is that so? I thought Fantagio had blocked my number from reaching you."

"Ha, no way. After I returned from military service, someone else was using my number."

"Hmm? Not sure who got that number, but they might be getting threats from scary hip-hop musicians now? Ha!"

Geon momentarily imagined a giant with sunglasses pointing a gun at him while shaking a bottle of liquor, breaking into a cold sweat.

"That's true. I need to give you my new number before I forget... I should make that call today."

"Who? Ah, those scary guys, huh? Still haven't told them?"

"Yes, I forgot. This could be serious."

"Ha, that'll be fun."

As the two indulged in small talk, Lyn tapped the table with her fingernails, signaling a shift in the conversation.

"Director, shall we talk business now?"

Tim cleared his throat and showed her the storyboard.

"Ahem, I've seen the storyboard. It's not bad. I can shoot it to the level required."

L

yn slightly nodded.

"Good to hear, Director."

Tim looked intensely at Lyn, interlocking his fingers and resting his elbows on the table.

"But it's overly Japanese in its sensibility. It feels like something out of a Hayao Miyazaki animation. Is there really a reason you needed to call me to shoot a music video with such a Japanese vibe? If you're just trying to annoy me, I'll refuse, and you might want to consider hiring a director who can do a better job."

Shizuka looked unsure of what to do as the atmosphere suddenly turned serious, watching Tim and Lynn closely, while Geon quietly observed Lynn. Lynn, seeing the steadfast belief in Geon's eyes, slightly smiled and said to Tim,

"It is indeed troublesome."

"What?"

Tim was surprised by Lynn's blunt statement and raised his eyebrows, to which Lynn responded with a deep smile and picked up the storyboard.

"It's true that you are troublesome, but there's a different reason why I entrusted this project to you. When I created this storyboard, I did indeed think of Hayao Miyazaki's films, but as you can see, this storyboard only explains the primary mood, right?"

Tim nodded heavily, and Lynn continued,

"I judged that you could bring out this atmosphere better than Hayao Miyazaki himself. That's why I chose you. I won't deny that it's troublesome, but it's also true that I accurately assessed your abilities and chose you."

Tim squinted his eyes and glared at Lynn, at which point Geon chimed in,

"That's right, Director. Hayao Miyazaki is indeed a great director, but you are second to none in this field, aren't you?"

Tim felt slightly better as Geon flattered him and snatched the storyboard from Lynn's hands, glaring at her.

"Make sure of it. If you match this atmosphere, I will create the rest as I see fit. Do you agree?"

After a standoff with Tim, Lynn slowly nodded, at which Tim suddenly stood up and started dancing a strange dance he had shown in Germany before. Shizuka looked up at Tim, who had suddenly started dancing a bizarre dance out of anger and then laughter, with a look of utter disbelief, while Geon gestured with his eyes to let it slide with a smile. After watching Tim dance for a while, Geon grabbed his arm, pulled him back to his seat, and asked,

"What are you planning to do, Director?"

Tim, now seated by Geon's force, slightly crumpled the storyboard in his hand and revealed his teeth,

"What to do? You'll know once you start working on the storyboard. Ms. Lynn, the shooting location is still undecided, right?"

"Yes, Director. We'll decide after seeing the storyboard."

"The shooting location must include Japan, no matter how you plan the storyboard."

Tim's sudden declaration made Lynn look puzzled, then Tim showed her the last page written by Shizuka and said,

"Ms. Shizuka. This lyric, it's your story, isn't it?"

Shizuka, taken aback by Tim's sudden question, hesitated before answering,

"Yes, yes? Ah, right."

Tim leaned in to make eye contact with Shizuka and asked,

"Where did you spend your childhood?"

Feeling pressured by Tim's approach, Shizuka leaned back and said with sweat forming,

"In Oga City, Akita Prefecture."

Tim straightened up and pondered for a moment before asking,

"Your childhood and the current cityscape must have changed a lot. Is there still a place near where you lived that remains the same?"

"Ah... My parents are still there. The house we lived in when I was a child is still there, too."

"Ah, that's good. What do your parents do?"

"They farm. So, the house, the fields, and even the mountains around are all still there."

"Ho? I thought Oga was a pretty big city since it's a 'shi', but they farm?"

"It's on the outskirts, a bit away from the city center. There's an air force base nearby, so no city has developed around it."

Tim clapped his hands a few times and stood up excitedly,

"Perfect! We absolutely need your memories to bring these lyrics to life. Only in such a place can your expressions truly come alive. Haha! Ms. Lynn, please arrange the schedule to shoot in Japan immediately."

Lynn immediately took her phone and went outside to contact the location manager. Watching Lynn making arrangements from a distance, Tim sat down and said,

"That Ms. Lynn, she's excellent at handling work. Normally, partners who work with someone like me get stressed out. But she, on the other hand, shakes me up. Look, she's making arrangements as soon as I mention it. She's not just a talker. She acts and responds immediately. Kay, you're pretty much using up most of your luck meeting a woman like her. Haha."

Geon, too, smiled at the sight of Lynn on the phone and then looking at Tim's profile, said,

"I think so, too. Meeting Director Lynn or Mr. Byungjun is really fortunate. You know, there are many bad agencies out there, those that scam or exploit celebrities."

Tim chuckled and started to tidy up the storyboard documents spread out on the table,

"Hey, who do you think you are? Do you think a company that

scammed Kay would survive? The United States wouldn't just leave it be. Heh."

Feeling a bit embarrassed by Tim's words, Geon looked at the storyboard documents he was organizing and asked,

"By the way, what role do I have, Director?"

Shizuka also looked curious as they both looked at Tim alternately, who then revealed his teeth and said,

"Piano."

Geon and Shizuka looked at him with baffled expressions, and Tim, after putting the storyboard into his bag, laughed,

"After watching the opera PPV, I too had an epiphany. You, Kay, are someone the word 'music' itself suits."

>

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