Chapter 92: The Weight of a Lyricist

"Fan song?"

At Stardust’s dorm.

It was late at night when we returned from the practice room, and while we gathered to have a late-night snack, the topic finally popped out.

Kang Siwoo lifted his head abruptly while munching on kimchi fried rice.

"You mean releasing it as a single before the mini 2nd album?"

"Yes, I brought it up briefly with the manager."

"What did they say?"

The deal had already been closed thanks to the drama appearance.

It wasn’t something that would burden Doubles' side, and since we said we’d make it ourselves, there wasn’t much reason for them to object.

Surprisingly, they agreed without much resistance.

So before we officially got the approval from the A&R team, I figured we should first get the members’ permission.

Looking around at the hyungs, I slowly opened my mouth.

"We still have a bit of promotion left, and everyone’s schedules are tight with radio and personal stuff, but… I thought it might be okay if we squeezed in some time to prepare."

To be honest, it was true our schedule was tight for fitting in anything else.

But if we started preparing right after promotions ended, I thought it might be doable.

"Since it’s common for debut albums to include a fan song, I don’t think the timing would be too early."

"Fan song… I like it."

"I think it’s a really good idea too."

Leader Kang Siwoo and eldest hyung Ha Junseo responded immediately.

Their faces lit up—it was clear everyone had been wanting to do it at least once.

Seo Ian also nodded vigorously and opened his mouth.

"I really… really like it."

"There’s no reason not to do it."

Everyone was on board, so then…

"What about the song?"

Ah, that.

Srrk—

My gaze shifted to Cha Seongbin.

He might be bashful in other areas, but when it came to composing, our eldest-line was someone to be proud of.

Reading the meaning in my eyes, Cha Seongbin burst into laughter.

"Me?"

Cha Seongbin stretched and smiled slyly.

Then he pulled out his phone from his pocket and began rummaging through it.

"Actually, it’s not like I don’t already have a beat made…."

"What the—this level of preparation?"

"Hyung, are you a genius?"

Seo Haim turned his head, startled.

"I have about three or four ideas…?"

Not just one or two, but three or four, he said.

And they weren’t just rough sketches—they were complete pieces that could be released as is with just a bit of polishing.

I figured he might have something if we probed, but this went beyond my expectations.

"Wow~."

"This is seriously amazing."

As awe erupted among the members, Cha Seongbin grinned and continued.

"From what I think would suit the vibe of a fan song, there’s probably one that fits. The other two were written with hip-hop and dance songs in mind."

"Can we listen to it?"

"Of course, of course."

With a quirky sound effect, Cha Seongbin played the track.

The playlist hoarded by Stardust’s composing member was clicked on.

And then—

Dda-dang-dang.

A bright melody that captivated the ears right from the intro began to play.

It was a guide track that Cha Seongbin had personally recorded.

Feel the free feeling

That vibe that feels like I could fly

"……."

I unknowingly leaned forward as if hypnotized. It was instinct—I wanted to listen more closely.

With sweet lyrics that were hard to believe came from Cha Seongbin, a delightful melody resonated.

You already know

This thumping feeling is excitement

I followed it as if bewitched

Those footprints we embroidered together

Just two lines of the chorus.

And I was already blown away.

"This is good."

"Ah, it’s really good."

A simple yet instantly catchy melody.

It was a song based on money chords, layered with Cha Seongbin’s signature vibe.

That trendy and slick beat was alive.

So this kind of bright and warm song suits him too.

Realizing once again how wide his spectrum was, I couldn’t help but gape.

Wasn’t this hyung seriously a genius?

"You wrote it yourself? Wait, when did you even make this?"

"Let me ask again. Hyung!! Are you by any chance a genius?"

Even Seo Haim was making a fuss over Cha Seongbin’s incredible composing skills.

"I mean, how can someone pull off a beat like this? Honestly, I think we could release it as-is."

"Ahem. N-no, it’s not that good…."

Was he secretly the type who was weak to compliments?

Cha Seongbin awkwardly cleared his throat, seemingly shy, which was unusual for him.

"The lyrics aren’t really done yet, and if we’re using it as a fan song, we’d need to refine it a bit more."

It didn’t seem like the song was originally written with a fan song in mind. The lyrics felt more like the humming he’d done while composing, now attached as-is.

As for the beat, in my opinion, it was already a finished piece, but it would definitely need to go through arrangement work before being released.

At those words, Jin Sehyun quietly raised his hand.

"I can do that too."

Time was tight, so it seemed he was eager to help however he could.

I nodded and casually added,

"As far as I know, Sehyun hyung knows his way around the tools."

"Oh~ you said you’ve done arrangements before, right? Let’s do it together, then."

"Leave it to me."

Back during the Starf days, Jin Sehyun had worked on the arrangement for ‘On the Way to School.’

As a teammate who had experienced that reliability once before, I was sure of it.

With those two combined… there was nothing to worry about when it came to the song.

Ha Junseo gave a short nod and murmured in admiration.

"From what I can see, we’ll definitely finish this in time."

"I’m already getting a good feeling about it."

As the saying goes, compliments make even whales dance—and they definitely made Cha Seongbin dance.

Humming to himself, Cha Seongbin lifted his head.

With both composition and arrangement roughly outlined already, there was just one last important thing left.

"Alright, then. Lastly. Who’s writing the lyrics?"

"……."

With that question, Cha Seongbin stared straight at me.

What was with this heavy gaze?

Smiling, Cha Seongbin opened his mouth again.

"Do Seohan on lyrics?"

"Me?"

I pointed to myself and asked back.

Kang Siwoo nodded at Cha Seongbin’s suggestion and added,

"Since Seohan brought the idea of the fan song, why not give it a try? You helped with the lyrics on ‘Spacewalk’ too."

I had participated partially in the lyrics for Spacewalk, but honestly, my contribution had been minimal.

To put it humbly, I’d say I just provided some ideas.

Above all, being the sole lyricist for our first fan song—it was a bit too heavy a role for me.

If it were one of the hyungs in the rapper line, maybe, but me taking it on...

Trailing off, I scratched my head.

"I’m not really good at writing lyrics."

"I’ll help you."

"You must’ve had some lyrics in mind when you said you wanted to make a fan song."

The hyungs pushed me, telling me not to back out.

How could I say no to that?

"I’ll write something awesome and bring it."

A week later,

While wrapping up our scheduled second week of music broadcast promotions, we managed to snag another trophy.

The fan signing event ended safely, and all the radio appearances were completed as well.

During those hectic days full of schedules, everyone still found time to work on the fan song.

As for Cha Seongbin and Jin Sehyun, who had boldly claimed they could finish the composition and arrangement in a week…

"Tada."

"Wow, you crazy geniuses."

They really came back with a flawless finished track.

Seo Ian was so blown away upon hearing the guide version that he looked stunned.

"How… how can a song like this exist…."

The addictive chorus part that had hooked me right from the beginning.

The hopeful and bright melody completely captured my heart.

"It’s exactly like a fan song."

"You feel it right away when you hear it, right?"

"Yeah yeah."

It felt perfectly suited to the mood of a fan song, and I thought it could preserve Stardust’s unique color too.

‘Amazing….’

Seo Ian repeatedly expressed admiration, giving a big thumbs-up.

They would have to take it to the A&R team and get confirmation before recording could begin, but if those people had ears, they wouldn’t turn down a song of this quality.

Cha Seongbin had only been taking proper composition lessons for a few months, but he was growing at a crazy pace.

Seo Ian’s eyes sparkled as he cautiously opened his mouth.

"Seongbin hyung, have you ever thought about doing our full album title track in the future…?"

"Ayy, you guys are praising me too much~."

"No, really. Both of you are seriously talented…."

They were members so impressive it was almost enviable.

I truly felt it was a blessing to be able to work with people like this.

‘They said it’s a fan song, but I’m the one getting emotional.’

Thinking that to himself, Seo Ian turned his head.

"Ah."

There was another amazing member here.

Our most reliable maknae, someone who did well no matter what you gave him.

There was probably a good reason the team members had entrusted the lyrics to Seohan.

He danced well, did great on variety, and had even been main vocal during the Starf days—he was an all-rounder in every sense.

We all secretly had pride in the fact that he was the center of our team for good reason.

"Seohan, are the lyrics finished?"

"Yup…. I think the result came out pretty well."

"Ooo~ as expected of Do Seohan~. Looking forward to it, okay?"

Back during ‘Spacewalk’, the one who had first clearly defined the song’s concept direction had been Seohan.

Watching him explain things so smoothly, almost like someone who already knew the full picture of the song, had genuinely surprised us.

If the lyrics were written by someone like that, then they were bound to be amazing this time too.

Cha Seongbin grinned slyly as he accepted the lyrics sheet.

"This is it?"

"Yeeep."

Seo Ian fixed his gaze on the fluttering lyrics paper, ears open.

And then—

"I’ll read it."

Cha Seongbin began to hum the lyrics to a melody.

나는 우주가 될게

너는 내 먼지가 되어줘

이 넓은 우주에

먼지는 오직 너뿐이야

dust dust we are stardust

dust dust we are stardust

"Dust dust we are stardust… that’s it."

Cha Seongbin nodded and lowered the lyrics sheet.

His eyes rolled ever so slightly.

"Hmm. So this is it."

"Wow, those are some really nice lyrics."

Reflexive reactions echoed from all directions.

Seo Ian also replied in a slow, drawn-out voice.

"Mm…. I like it."

Was it good?

It felt like going back to the Starf days, being evaluated after a long time.

Seohan rolled his eyes, glancing at the hyungs.

They were saying it was good, but something about their mechanical reactions…

Felt off.

"I’ll be the universe. You be my dust…."

"What do you think?"

"But, Seohan."

Gulp—

Seohan swallowed and perked up his ears.

"Y-yes…?"

Kang Siwoo, who had been staring intently at the lyrics sheet on the floor, cautiously opened his mouth.

Kang Siwoo had been mulling over the lyrics for a while now.

‘I'll be the universe’—that part wasn’t bad.

But then—

"You’re telling the Dusty fans to be dust…?"

"…!"

"Is this really okay?"

Seohan’s eyes went wide. Startled, he flailed his hands and stood up.

"That’s not what I meant."

He knew that Dusty meant ‘dust’, and it was clearly a play on that, but…

The lyrics that followed were a bit too innovative.

"In this vast universe, the only dust is you… pfft."

Cough.

Kang Siwoo couldn’t hold it in anymore and burst out laughing.

Seo Ian’s eyelids also began to twitch.

‘He really… got stuck on dust.’

The one to finish it off with a low kick after a couple of light jabs from Kang Siwoo—

Jin Sehyun raised his hand seriously.

"I know a bit of English. Can I speak up with a bit of honesty?"

"What is it?"

There were plenty of lines in the lyrics to comment on, but what Jin Sehyun pointed at was the chorus part—the 싸비 part that repeated twice.

dust dust we are stardust

dust dust we are stardust

"If you translate this literally, it’s ‘dust dust, universe dust’."

At that single sentence, Seo Ian, who had barely been holding it in, finally collapsed.

Dust dust we are stardust….

"Pffft…."

"Ahahaha! Ahahaha!"

Eventually, the original lyricist began to hum the tune again.

"Duuust duuust~ universe duuust~."

Was there ever a lyricist who captured the team name so well?

While the hyungs laughed holding their stomachs, Seohan’s face began to turn bright red.

He’d tried to write lyrics that sounded meaningful when he wrote them….

But his English skills were admittedly a bit lacking.

Dust dust universe dust.

‘This is insane.’

With a determined expression, Seohan sprang to his feet.

"…!"

And then—

Riiip—

He tore the lyrics sheet in half.

Cha Seongbin, panicked, shouted out loud.

"Hey! Why’d you tear that up!"

"This never existed in this world."

"No! That was going to be our fan song behind-the-scenes content! Guys, film this quick with your phones!"

These guys were crazy about broadcasting.

As Cha Seongbin hurriedly gathered the ripped lyrics sheet and grumbled, Seohan seriously considered something.

"Should I just eat it?"

"…!"

"Even the ripped part needs to go in the behind-the-scenes~. Argh!"

In the end, the teasing Cha Seongbin was shoved far back by Seohan’s shoulder tackle.

Still flat on his back, Cha Seongbin laughed so hard it looked like he couldn’t breathe.

"Puhahaha!"

"It’s too embarrassing, so please erase this from your memories. I’ll come back with something amazing."

"Like you did during ‘Spacewalk’."

"I had a lot I wanted to say, I just couldn’t organize it."

He wasn’t usually this bad at writing lyrics.

With his face now beet red, Seohan pressed his head to the floor.

Seeing that, Cha Seongbin—who had found “dust dust universe dust” so hilarious—finally stopped laughing and nodded.

"Alright, I’ll help."

"Sssup, looks like it’s time for this hyung to step in~."

Still holding onto the shredded ‘lyrics sheet’, Cha Seongbin began giving sincere feedback on what had been written.

"My guess is, you focused the lyrics around the word Dusty, or dust. But maybe you could think of it from a different angle."

As the original composer, his understanding of the song’s interpretation was naturally above the others.

"Speaking of which, how about ‘nebula’?"

A beautiful cloud of dust woven into the pitch-black universe.

Seohan’s eyes sparkled at the lyrical suggestion Cha Seongbin casually dropped.

"Wow, hyung, you’re a genius?"

"Not bad, huh?"

"I got it. I’ve got it now."

Seohan hurriedly picked up a scrap of paper and started scribbling.

"Nebula, nebula. Memo…."

It was right at that moment.

Jin Sehyun calmly dropped a brutal truth bomb.

"Wouldn’t that just turn into ‘nebula nebula, universe nebula’?"

"…Get out."

Absolutely not.

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