Episode 36: I’ll Give You Everything
Back in the private waiting room after Unmask Time—
‘Ugh, I messed up.’
Smiling wasn’t part of the plan.
The original idea was to maintain a stoic expression throughout, leaving a strong impression.
‘How could I not smile seeing her like that?’
Zia, clutching her hands to her chest, her eyes brimming with worry, anticipation, excitement, and more—my smile slipped out instinctively.
‘Well, smiling’s not a big deal.’
Sixteen years as an idol.
Hundreds of live music shows, caught on camera as the “ending fairy” at least a hundred times.
Switching from serious to a sudden smile is a classic idol move—nothing strange about it.
The problem is, I don’t even know how I smiled.
For the first time, I have no clue how my face looked on camera.
‘Judging by the reaction, I didn’t grin like an idiot…’
But you never know how it’ll turn into a meme online.
Just as I consider checking the internet, a voice interrupts.
“Yujin, can I come in?”
Song Jaeryung’s face peeks through the door.
“Of course.”
Setting my phone down, I answer, and Song Jaeryung scans the room.
“How’s the waiting room?”
“Really nice.”
With only ten contestants left, we get private waiting rooms.
Compared to the ones I had with Polaris, it’s tiny, but for me—alone, no members, manager, or stylist—it’s almost too spacious.
She didn’t come just to ask that, especially not this late.
Waiting silently, I watch as Song Jaeryung sits cautiously on the sofa and speaks.
“I’m curious about something.”
“What’s that?”
“Why’d you smile? You didn’t during rehearsal.”
Half-expected, but not an easy question to answer.
“Was it weird?”
Instead of answering, I ask back.
“Wanna see the reaction?”
She counters with another question, handing me her tablet.
On the screen, a post from the Blind Singer gallery:
[GIFs grabbed]
Below the concise title, a set of three GIFs:
Me detaching the mask’s lower part, revealing my jaw.
Me yanking the mask off overhead, shaking my hair into place.
And me scanning the stage impassively before breaking into a radiant smile.
‘So that’s how I smiled.’
The tablet shows a bright, polished smile—not the goofy grin I feared.
Relief washes over me.
Sixteen years of professional instinct held strong, even in that moment.
- Gallery king’s face revealed!!
- Right-click, save as
- Bless you
- Work less, earn more
- Never thought a guy’s smile would make my heart skip…
└ You too? Same.
Scrolling through the comments, the reaction’s not just good—it’s explosive.
Being called the “gallery king”—the most buzzed-about figure in the Blind Singer community—is a great sign.
The post already spans three comment pages.
Song Jaeryung’s cheerful voice cuts in.
“Weird? It was better. The reaction’s insane. The viewer board’s crashed, your YouTube views are spiking, and PD Hong’s probably overdosing on dopamine.”
Seems like it.
Scrolling further, eight out of ten posts are about me, including one about a fan café forming.
“So, why’d you smile? Was it planned?”
“No, it was a mistake.”
“Hmm.”
My honest answer to the overwhelming response draws a playful hum from her.
“I knew it!”
I realize she came knowing the answer.
Managing VIP seats is part of her job—she’d easily know who was in the spot I looked at.
“Wow… if my husband were half as charming as you, Yujin. That smile just from seeing her? You said you met in high school—how do you still make that face? Guess we’ll keep giving that VIP seat a prime spot.”
Her teasing tone carries genuine delight, and a great seat for Zia is something to be grateful for.
But I’m not immune to embarrassment.
“Hey, writer-nim.”
Handing back the tablet, I counterattack with the fact she tried to gloss over.
“That post with the GIFs—why’s there an edit/delete button? The poster’s not even a guest.”
Cough! Ahem!
Monitoring the show’s reactions isn’t odd for a writer, but showing favoritism so blatantly?
It’s fine now with the explosive response, but what if it backfires later?
“Oh, look at the time! I’ve kept the star too long. You’re second-to-last, right? Prep well, fighting!”
Guess my counter hit hard—Song Jaeryung flashes an awkward smile and bolts out.
Chuckling at her retreating figure, I pull the metal case on the table toward me.
‘Been a while since I took this on stage.’
The secret weapon gleams with its signature metallic red sheen.
How long did I stare at it?
“Han Yujin-nim, time to prep for—huh?”
Kwon Junghyun, opening the door to call me, freezes at the sight of the weapon strapped to my back.
I brush past her lightly, heading for the stage.
***
“An electric guitar?!”
Sally’s the first to react to the distinctive hollowless shape.
But, sadly, she’s wrong.
My Blind Singer concept is all about twists.
After filling stages with guitar, would an electric guitar now be too weak a twist?
Especially in this jet-black riding jacket, screaming my intent?
“No, it’s a bass.”
Bang Hokyung, spotting the four strings, corrects her.
“I expected an electric instrument from the outfit, but a bass? Didn’t see that coming,” Lee Ahjeong says.
“Singing with a bass isn’t easy… but if done well, it’ll be insanely cool,” Yoon Ichae adds, nodding.
Ji Sehyuk, likely prompted through his earpiece, approaches with eyes full of anticipation.
“I hear a bass performance is a Blind Singer first. And you’ve prepared something huge for the song?”
I don’t hide my amusement at his reaction, delivering the planned line casually.
“Yes, the song I’ve prepared today is…”
Pausing, I let my prerecorded interview on the screen take over.
“Ji Sehyuk-sunbae’s ‘You’ll Fall in Love with Me.’”
As the audience’s eyes shift to the screen, I continue.
“Sorry to Ji Sehyuk-sunbae, but for this moment, I’ll sing this song as if it’s mine.”
The stage darkens, staff rush in for final checks, and—
Dum. Dum. Dum.
In the shadowed silence, low notes begin filling the vast stage.
“Whoa!!”
An unidentified exclamation, like a wolf’s howl, rings out.
“Hoo.”
“Kyaa!”
“Why’s that so cool? It’s just a light breath.”
My usual routine draws contrasting reactions from the audience and Lee Sangwoon.
Moments later—
Dan-dan-daran. Dan-dan-daran.
Dum-dum-dudung. Dum-dududung.
Fingers dancing over the strings to a prerecorded guitar riff, the bass’s deep, heavy resonance shakes the stage.
The original, Ji Sheyuk’s dance-pop track, was recorded with synthetic sounds.
“Today, I’m running to you again,
Because my heart demands it.”
Lyrics brimming with confidence that my beloved will love me back surge over my solo band sound.
“You try to push me away,
But your eyes say otherwise.”
Looking back, the lyrics could pass for a stalker’s if taken alone.
Yet, it’s a love song because it’s the OST for a drama about a chaebol heir’s Cinderella story with an ordinary woman.
“Alright, you stay right there.
I’ll be the one standing by your side.”
The chaebol’s confidence, played by Ji Sehyuk, is grounded in the bass’s solid, low tones.
“I don’t believe your ‘no’ anymore.
You’ll fall in love with me.”
A love that defies the world’s gaze melts into rising high notes.
“Take my hand, Ah-Ah-Ah-Ahoo-Ah-Ah-Ah.
Stop wasting time, Oh.
Now take my hand, Ah-Ah-Ah-Ahoo-Ah-Ah-Ah.
You’ll fall in love with me.”
Unlike the prerecorded guitar’s leaping pitch, the bass through the amp remains unshaken.
Dudududung-dudung-dudududung.
The bass’s charm, unnoticed by those indifferent to music, is amplified by a setup that transforms it into magic, captivating even the uninitiated.
“I know our path is long and rough.
I know that’s why you push me away.
But to give you up for such a reason?
This heart’s too big—I can’t bear it.”
In a powerful symphony of soaring guitar and voice—
““Ah-Ah-Ah-Ahoo-Ah-Ah-Ah.””
Ji Sehyuk, the original artist.
Judges meant to watch objectively.
Audience members no longer caring about such things.
Even the crew, meant to stay hidden in the shadows.
All unite, singing the chorus’s highlight with me, completing the spell.
I pour that love’s magic into the gaze I’ve never once broken.
The song carried by my voice.
The melody born from my hands.
All of it stems from the fan who first saw me.
‘Not just this stage, Zia—I’ll give you everything.’
With that feeling pressed deep, I shout the final line.
“You’ll fall in love with me!”
““You’ll fall in love with me!””
In the unified roar of the crowd—
Only Zia’s lips form a different shape.
“Yeah, I’ll fall in love with you too.”
That inaudible confession reaching me—that was the true magic.