Episode 12: Leave the Dog Alone
Is this a butterfly effect or a snowball effect?
I know they’re similar yet different, but without knowing their exact meanings, I’m not sure what to call this.
‘Blind Singer’ Season 3 isn’t the only thing that’s changed from what I remember.
“What’re you watching?”
Fresh from a shower, Zia towel-dries her damp hair as she sidles up to me, asking. I tilt my phone to show her the screen instead of answering.
“Oh, them…”
Zia trails off, spotting the five boys on the screen.
Dressed in sleek suits, they nail intense choreography with perfect precision, the word ‘POLARIS’ flashing boldly behind them.
Seonghun, the only one holding a mic, showcases his live vocal prowess.
Jun flies in from the left wing with flair, balanced by Hikaru on the opposite side.
As Seonghun steps back, visual ace Haeyoung takes center stage, sparking cheers from the crowd. The cheers peak during main dancer Sugeom’s solo part.
Without me, Polaris scatters radiant sweat instead of rain, heating up a sweltering summer night.
“Their showcase video dropped today.”
The five Polaris members, now disconnected from me, feel like a sore finger.
‘What did they do wrong?’
Seonghun’s been a trainee since elementary school—10 years.
Hikaru’s spent 7 years in Korea, far from home. Even Jun, with the shortest trainee period, has 5 years under his belt.
‘I can hate Lee Heekyung, but how could I hate them?’
Choosing a sweaty practice room over a lively school, they never once rejected me, a mere rolling stone.
Sure, over drinks years later, they admitted to initially resenting my presence, but I never felt their discomfort.
That’s why they’re a sore finger.
I know better than anyone that their path, without me, won’t be as dazzling as they dreamed.
‘Of course… they went with that debut song.’
“Rising Star,” composed by Kevin Lee.
The toxic ash that’ll rain on their shining path is called “plagiarism allegations.”
They’re not singer-songwriters; they just sing what’s given to them. How much could they be involved in plagiarism?
But in such cases, the artists take the most hits, especially with a debut song that’ll haunt them forever.
‘Who could’ve known?’
That Kevin Lee, the trendiest composer right now, had plagiarism and theft as his default skills.
Even the A&R team, who live and breathe music, didn’t catch it.
I found out by chance.
While setting aside my angsty teenage songs to study idol-appropriate tracks, I was cramming countless online demos into my head.
That’s when I noticed the melody and chords of our debut song, “Rising Star,” were near-identical to two different tracks.
‘Well, if you call that skill, it’s a skill.’
Picking crowd-pleasing elements from a flood of online demos and stitching them together takes some talent.
Kevin Lee’s mistake was regurgitating them as-is instead of making them his own.
It was subtle enough to pass as “inspired” if he argued it.
His name carried that much weight, and he did claim as much.
Unfortunately for him, Lee Heekyung wasn’t the type to tolerate the “plagiarism” label on her idols.
‘Then the Kevin Lee assault scandal broke right after, didn’t it?’
Buried by the industry and society, I brushed it off as “Wow, lucky break!”
But learning later that Baek Kyungmin got caught in the fallout left a bitter taste.
‘Was it really a coincidence?’
Back then, I avoided the thought.
Now, I see clearly that Lee Heekyung was more than capable of orchestrating it.
‘At least I helped Kyungmin hyung somewhat.’
That’s one reason I rented Baek Kyungmin’s studio through Seo Yoonje.
I kept playing him the original sources of Kevin Lee’s past songs, casually mentioning, “Heard these tracks before?”
Telling him outright that Kevin Lee’s a shady bastard would sound like petty gossip, and I could get sued for defamation.
‘If he doesn’t get it after I spoon-fed him, that’s his fate.’
Judging by his pitying looks at Polaris lately, he’s caught on. But Polaris is doomed.
That’s why I can’t look away.
I won’t blow the whistle, so it might fizzle out for now, but as long as Kevin Lee keeps at it, it’s a ticking bomb.
‘I should just stop caring…’
Let’s be real—aren’t I the worst guy for the Polaris members?
The songs that launched them skyward came from my head.
Without me, they’ll likely never grasp the glory they were meant to.
“Haa.”
With that thought, a sigh escapes, and I turn off the showcase video.
“Why? Keep watching. I was imagining you up there.”
Zia’s playful comment is proof she’s letting go of the guilt from three months ago, but I can’t just laugh it off.
“How’s it look?”
All I can do is force a smile and ask back.
“Hmm…”
Framing me with her thumb and index finger, Zia shakes her head and says something that makes me burst out laughing.
“Well, it’s kinda meh? They’d be riding your coattails to catch a bus. I told you—you’re Grammy material. They’re good, but they’re a dime a dozen. Doesn’t that make our Yujin a bit too precious for them?”
“Pfft!”
How could I not laugh at her bold confidence?
She doesn’t know it actually happened, but I get why she’d see it that way.
That’s why the words slipped out.
“Leave the dog alone.”
“Then I’ll grant your wish.”
“Wish?”
“Yeah, you said if I don’t win a Grammy, I owe you a wish. I haven’t won yet, so tell me.”
My wish has already come true.
Not just seeing Zia again, but keeping her by my side—200% achieved.
‘So I should grant Zia’s wish too.’
Knowing Zia, she’d probably demand I win that Grammy, no questions asked.
That might finally let me look past the guilt over Polaris.
But Zia’s response was a bit different from what I expected.
“What’s with that shady nonsense? Forget it, play a ballad so I can relax. Something around 32nd on the Cocoa chart would be perfect.”
She glares at me like I’m a pervert before flopping onto the bed.
I’m offering to grant her wish—why am I getting treated like a creep?
Opening the Cocoa app to find the song she mentioned, I burst out laughing.
[32. For You, a Moment (Second Time With You, 1st OST) – EUJN]
***
[32. For You, a Moment (Second Time With You, 1st OST) – EUJN]
Jeon Seonwoo, head of MyWay Music’s rookie development team, sighs at the name on the monitor.
“Ha… It’s him… It’s gotta be him…”
Even at a company like MyWay, Seo Yoonje’s treasure chest, the rookie team isn’t just for show.
Take the six-member girl group ‘Hylliy’—only two members were personally scouted by Seo Yoonje.
The other four? Fruits of the rookie team’s labor.
And that’s not all.
The Hylliy member driving their popularity, Sora, was scouted by Jeon Seonwoo himself in Hokkaido.
He may not have Seo Yoonje’s genre-spanning eye, but he’s got a knack for spotting talent suited for today’s industry.
And that eye landed on ‘EUJN’.
A faceless rookie who held his own against Ko Yo-han with the same song.
With no prior work, this monster landed on Korea’s streaming charts with just one track.
Sure, compared to Ko Yo-han’s ‘For You, a Moment’ bouncing between 8th and 9th, EUJN’s 32nd place isn’t stellar, but—
‘It’s a matter of name recognition.’
You can’t compare a top-tier solo balladeer like Ko Yo-han, reigning for years, to EUJN, who just dropped his first song.
‘And EUJN has something Yo-han doesn’t.’
Yo-han’s talent is confined to ballads, but EUJN is different.
EUJN can do it all, not just ballads.
Jeon Seonwoo, who scouted Sora singing enka at a rural school festival, trusts his instincts fiercely.
‘It’s gotta be him.’
Not a limited ballad singer like Ko Yo-han.
Not even Hylliy, including Sora, who’s still far from the top.
The only one who could be MyWay’s second pillar after AZ, now a renowned actor, is this MBTI-vibing singer.
But—
“Leave him alone. Leave EUJN alone.”
No matter how much Jeon Seonwoo believes in him, he can’t defy Seo Yoonje’s direct order.
That order only fuels his impatience.
There’s no way Seo Yoonje, who’s seen EUJN in person, missed the potential Jeon Seonwoo saw.
On a KTX ride, EUJN is a dead-on match for Seo Yoonje’s taste.
So why, when Seo Yoonje signs countless singers he likes, is he passing on EUJN?
‘Is his face a dud? Or is there a personality issue?’
If only Seo Yoonje would explain, Jeon Seonwoo wouldn’t be this anxious.
But with just a “leave him alone” and no reason, his sighs grow heavier.
That’s when it happened.
“Why all the sighing? You’re killing the team vibe.”
“Gah, you scared me!”
Startled by the soft voice beside him, Jeon Seonwoo whips around.
There stands someone unmistakable, despite oversized sunglasses covering half her face.
“What? When did you get here? Make some noise next time.”
“I did. You were just too absorbed to notice. What’s got you so hooked?”
“Ugh… don’t ask…”
AZ, Lee Ahjeong.
A superstar living in a different world now, but to Jeon Seonwoo, who remembers her as a naïve middle schooler, she’s not intimidating.
He starts to vent but changes his mind.
The biggest financial backer of MyWay, arguably wielding more power than Seo Yoonje himself.
Maybe Lee Ahjeong could sway him—or at least get answers.
“Ahjeong—sorry, Director Lee. Have you heard this guy’s song? The CEO…”
“Who? Oh, EUJN?”
Her tone, as if she knows the name, briefly lights up Jeon Seonwoo’s face.
But—
“Didn’t the CEO tell you to leave him alone?”
“Huh?”
Hearing the same words from Lee Ahjeong as from Seo Yoonje, Jeon Seonwoo feels a deep sense of betrayal.
Unlike him, she seems to know the reason.
“Hey, everyone~ Don’t worry about the team leader’s mood—it’s nothing. Just keep working hard~”
Clapping twice to lift the office’s sunken atmosphere, Lee Ahjeong walks away.
Jeon Seonwoo can only stare, dumbfounded.
“Yes, PD Hong. What do I need to do as a Blind Singer judge? It’s my first time, so I’m not sure where to start.”
His shattered mental state blinds him to the hint in Lee Ahjeong’s faint phone conversation.