86: Chapter 86 Can we watch the sunrise together?

It was 6:30 in the morning, and the morning mist along the Han River had not yet completely dispersed.

A black business van pulled up in front of the Sky Entertainment building. Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin stepped out from either side of the vehicle. Both were dressed in simple sportswear, faces bare, hair tied casually into ponytails, looking like college students heading out for a morning workout.

As soon as Park Hyomin got out of the car, she hopped in place twice, rolling her shoulders. Her eyes were sparkling, and her face was full of excitement: "We're finally going to special training! How will Oppa train us? Will it be physical training? Or facial expression management?

Ah, will he teach us how to react in front of the camera? I really want to learn that effortless vibe that Lee Hyori sunbaenim has!"

She spoke very quickly, gesturing with her hands as she talked, looking like a little rabbit ready to spring into action at any moment.

Standing beside her, Kim Taeyeon seemed much quieter by comparison. She kept her head down, clutching her backpack straps with both hands, her fingers twisting unconsciously, her lips pressed into a pale line.

Hearing Park Hyomin's words, she looked up and whispered: "Hyomin-ah, aren't you nervous at all?"

"I am nervous!" Park Hyomin turned her head to look at her, her eyes curving into crescent moons as she smiled, "But it's an excited kind of nervous! This is recording 'Family Outing' with Oppa! The national variety show! And we'll get to see so many great sunbaenims! Just thinking about it..."

"Alright, get in the car."

Song Tianhao's voice came from behind them.

Both turned around at the same time and saw Song Tianhao walking out of the building. He was also wearing sportswear—black, a very simple style, but it gave him an inexplicable sense of sharpness. He held a tablet and a black folder in his hands, his pace brisk.

"Oppa!" Park Hyomin waved immediately.

"Oppa." Kim Taeyeon greeted him softly.

Song Tianhao nodded and opened the car door: "Get in, we'll talk on the way."

The interior of the business van was very spacious, with three rows of seats and a retractable small table in the middle. Song Tianhao sat by the window in the second row, with Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin sitting across from him.

The car started and drove toward the suburbs.

Song Tianhao opened the tablet, clicked on a folder, and turned the screen toward the two of them.

"This is an analysis of the program flow of 'Family Outing' over the past three years," he said, his voice calm but every word clear. "I've compiled statistics on the game types, camera time distribution, interaction patterns between MCs and guests, and the segments with the best audience response for every episode."

The screen was densely packed with tables, charts, and notes.

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin were both stunned.

The special training they had imagined involved practicing singing, dancing, facial expressions, or memorizing scripts and learning how to banter.

But they hadn't expected Song Tianhao to throw a pile of data analysis at them right from the start.

"Look here." Song Tianhao's finger slid across the screen and stopped on a bar chart. "This is the distribution of camera time for guests. Look, as fixed MCs, Yoo Jae-suk and Lee Hyori maintain a stable camera share of around thirty-five percent. The remaining sixty-five percent is shared by guests and other MCs."

He paused and looked at the two of them.

"What does this mean?"

Kim Taeyeon blinked and whispered: "Does it mean... guests don't get much camera time?"

"Correct, but also incorrect," Song Tianhao said. "The camera time won't be much, but it is crucial. Because when the audience watches 'Family Outing', they are watching the interactions between the MCs and the guests—that natural, authentic, and interesting chemistry."

He tapped the screen with his finger.

"Therefore, we don't need to fight for screen time. What we need is to leave enough of a lasting impression within that limited time."

Park Hyomin leaned closer to the screen, watching intently: "Oppa, then what kind of performance will create a lasting impression?"

"Authenticity," Song Tianhao said, his tone firm. "But not complete authenticity. It's 'designed' authenticity. You know where the camera is, you know what can be said and what cannot, you know when to laugh and when to be quiet, but what you express must be a genuine reaction."

His explanation was convoluted, but both Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin understood.

It meant "Acting," but you couldn't let the audience see that you were "Acting."

"So," Song Tianhao closed the tablet and looked at the two of them, "our special training content for today is not about talents, not physical fitness, and not even variety show instinct."

He paused, and said, enunciating every word:

"It is 'speaking'."

An hour later, the car stopped in front of a detached Homestay on the outskirts of Seoul.

The Homestay was in a traditional Hanok style, with white walls and grey tiles. The courtyard was large, planted with a few persimmon trees. In this season, the leaves had already fallen, and the bare branches reached toward the sky. There were stone tables and benches in the yard, as well as a small swing.

"This is a place I rented. For the entire day today, it's just the three of us here." Song Tianhao got out of the car, pushed open the wooden gate, and said, "Come in."

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin followed behind him, walked into the courtyard, passed through the entryway, and entered the living room.

The living room had modern decor but retained the layout of a Hanok. The floor was covered with thick rush mats, and a low table with cushions was placed in the center. A large television hung on the wall, with a sofa and carpet opposite it.

What was most conspicuous was that cameras were set up in every corner of the living room—six in total—aimed at the central area from different angles.

"This is..." Park Hyomin's eyes widened.

"A simulated recording environment," Song Tianhao said, placing the folder in his hand on the low table. "These are all professional cameras, but they won't be turned on today. It's just to let you get used to the presence of the cameras."

He walked to the sofa and sat down, patting the spot next to him.

"Sit."

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin sat down across from him, sitting cross-legged on the rush mats, their postures somewhat reserved.

Song Tianhao didn't look at them, but instead pulled a printed document from the folder and pushed it in front of the two.

"This is the special training teacher that Section Chief Lee Jae-hoon helped invite," he said. "A former writer for '2 Days & 1 Night', now working as a freelance variety show planner, surnamed Kang. He arrives at ten o'clock. Before that, we'll do a warm-up."

Kim Taeyeon picked up the document and looked at it. It was Writer Kang's resume, densely listing the programs he had participated in and the awards he had won. At the very bottom was a line of handwritten text: "The core of a variety show is the 'person,' and the core of the 'person' is 'speaking.'"

"Speaking..." Kim Taeyeon read aloud softly.

"Yes, speaking." Song Tianhao looked at her. "Taeyeon, say something now, anything."

Kim Taeyeon froze, opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything. Her cheeks flushed slightly, her fingers twisted together again, and she lowered her head, whispering: "Say, say what..."

"See, this is the problem," Song Tianhao said, his tone calm, without any intention of criticism, just stating a fact. "In front of the camera, you are not Kim Taeyeon, you are 'Girls Generation's Kim Taeyeon.' You must speak, but you don't know what to say. So you get nervous, you stutter, you want to hide."

Kim Taeyeon lowered her head even further.

Park Hyomin whispered from the side: "Oppa, then what about me?"

"You?" Song Tianhao looked at her and smiled. "Your problem is that you talk too much."

Park Hyomin let out an "ah," her expression a bit dazed.

"You want to perform too much, you want to be seen too much, so you interrupt, overreact, and unconsciously cut others off," Song Tianhao said, his tone still calm. "That's a big taboo in variety shows. The audience will think you're noisy, rude, and only focused on showing off."

Park Hyomin's face turned red too, but unlike Taeyeon's shyness, hers was the embarrassment of being "called out."

"So, so..." she whispered, "should I talk less?"

"No," Song Tianhao shook his head. "You should 'know how' to speak. Knowing when to speak, what to say, and how to say it."

He stood up, walked to the TV cabinet, opened a drawer, took out two small, silver objects, walked back, and placed them on the low table.

They were two mini microphone pins with a very unique design—the Sky Entertainment logo, shaped like a feather. The craftsmanship was exquisite, emitting a faint metallic luster under the light.

"These are custom-made," Song Tianhao said. "Pin them on your collars. They aren't conspicuous, but they can remind you: You are 'speaking' right now, and every word you say could be heard and remembered."

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin each picked up a pin and held it in their palms to look at it.

"You must wear them for the entire day today," Song Tianhao said. "While eating, drinking water, going to the bathroom—except for when you sleep, you are not allowed to take them off. Until you are completely used to their presence, until you forget their existence."

He paused and looked at the two of them.

"Can you do it?"

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin exchanged a look, then nodded firmly at the same time.

"Yes!"

Writer Kang arrived promptly at ten o'clock.

He was a middle-aged man in his forties, not tall, slightly chubby, wearing black-rimmed glasses, with thinning hair, but his eyes were bright. At a glance, he was the type of person whose brain turned very quickly.

He shook hands with Song Tianhao, nodded at Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin, and then immediately entered work mode.

"President Song has already told me the situation," he said, speaking quickly but articulating clearly. "Both of you are idols and have camera experience, but variety shows are different from stages and MVs. The stage is performance, MVs are Acting, but variety shows are 'life.' Or rather, they are 'what looks like life.'"

He sat down by the low table, took a laptop out of his briefcase, opened it, and clicked on a video.

It was a segment from 'Family Outing' where Yoo Jae-suk and Lee Hyori were cooking in the kitchen, chatting while chopping vegetables. They were talking about very mundane topics, like "What did you eat yesterday?" or "What drama are you watching lately?"

But the rhythm of their conversation, their expressions, and their body language were so natural that it was just like they were really chatting in their own kitchen.

"Look here." Writer Kang pressed the pause button and pointed to the screen. "Yoo Jae-suk is cutting onions, and Lee Hyori is washing rice. The two of them aren't making eye contact, but the conversation keeps going.

Yoo Jae-suk says, 'Hyori-ah, have you gained weight recently?' and Lee Hyori replies, 'Oppa is the one who has; your belly is sticking out.' Then both of them laugh."

He looked at Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin.

"This conversation wasn't in the script; it was improvised. But look, the effect is very good. The audience likes to watch this kind of daily, slightly sharp-tongued interaction. Why? Because it's authentic."

He closed the video and shut the laptop.

"So, what we are going to practice today is this kind of 'authentic conversation.'"

The next three hours were the longest three hours in Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin's lives.

Writer Kang didn't teach them any techniques; he just had them sit in front of the cameras and then gave them various topics to talk about.

"Talk about a movie you've watched recently."

"Talk about your favorite food."

"Talk about your childhood dreams."

The topics were all simple, but Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin's performances were at two completely different extremes.

Kim Taeyeon was "unable to speak."

She sat in front of the camera, her back straight, hands on her knees, fingers tightly gripping the fabric of her pants. When Writer Kang gave a topic, she would freeze for a few seconds, then start to organize her words, but what she said was always very formal and stiff, like she was reciting a script.

"I, I recently watched 'Mother,' it's a work by director Bong Joon-ho, the actors' performances are excellent, the plot has a lot of depth..."

She spoke very slowly and very earnestly, but it was just... not vivid.

While Park Hyomin was "unable to stop."

Once she started, she couldn't stop. She spoke quickly, with rich expressions and animated gestures, but she would always get sidetracked—going from movies to directors, from directors to behind-the-scenes trivia, and from behind-the-scenes trivia to her last trip to Jeju Island...

"Stop." Writer Kang interrupted her for the thirteenth time, adjusted his glasses, and looked very serious. "Hyomin XI, you've been talking for three minutes, but two of those minutes were about things unrelated to the movie. Conversations on variety shows need focus; they can't be scattered."

Park Hyomin let out an "Ah," her face flushing red again, and said quietly, "I'm sorry..."

"No need to apologize," Writer Kang said, his tone softening a bit. "Your problems are very typical. Taeyeon XI is too nervous and wants too much to 'say the right thing,' so she ends up unable to speak like a normal person. Hyomin XI is too relaxed and wants too much to 'say a lot,' so she ends up unable to grasp the main point."

He paused and looked at Song Tianhao.

Song Tianhao had been sitting on the sofa nearby, watching quietly without interjecting. Seeing Writer Kang look his way, he nodded, signaling him to continue.

"So," Writer Kang turned back to look at the two, "let's try a different approach."

He stood up, walked to the wall, and with a "snap," turned off the living room's main light.

Then, the floor lamp, the wall lights, all the light sources.

The living room was instantly plunged into darkness.

Only the moonlight from outside, filtering through the glass window, cast faint, silvery-white spots of light on the floor.

"W-Writer Kang?" Kim Taeyeon's voice rang out in the darkness, tinged with a hint of panic.

"I'm here," Writer Kang's voice came from somewhere in the corner, very calm. "Now, forget the cameras, forget the script, forget that you are 'Girls Generation's Kim Taeyeon' and 'T-ara's Park Hyomin.' Just pretend there are only the three of you here, just pretend it's late at night, you can't sleep, and you're just sitting here chatting."

He paused. "President Song, you lead."

In the darkness, Song Tianhao's voice rang out, calm and steady: "Alright."

He paused for a few seconds, then spoke: "Now, tell me one thing you fear the most."

There was a moment of silence in the darkness. Only the sound of three people breathing could be heard, light and slow.

Then came Kim Taeyeon's voice, very small and thin, as if afraid to disturb something: "I... I'm afraid of cracking my voice while singing."

She spoke very slowly, word by word, but clearly. "It's not fear of a mistake, it's fear of... fear of disappointing those who are listening. Afraid they'll think, 'Ah, so Kim Taeyeon is just average after all.' Afraid that I'll stand on stage, open my mouth, and the sound that comes out won't be the sound I want. Afraid of that silence in that moment, afraid of the disappointment in the audience's eyes... I..."

Her voice choked up, and she stopped. In the darkness, Park Hyomin reached out and took her hand. It was ice cold and trembling slightly.

Park Hyomin squeezed it tighter, then spoke, her voice lower and slower than usual: "I'm afraid of people saying I only have a good figure."

She said, enunciating every word clearly. "Afraid they'll say my dancing is average, my singing is average, my variety show sense is average, and that I only look good. Afraid they'll say I make a living off my looks, afraid they'll say I have nothing besides this body. Afraid that one day, when I'm old and no longer look good, no one will like me anymore. Afraid... afraid I don't deserve everything I have now."

She finished. Silence returned to the darkness.

Then, Song Tianhao's voice rang out, very calm, but with something indescribable in it: "I'm afraid... that I can't protect you."

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin both looked up, though they couldn't see anything in the darkness.

"Afraid that I'm not doing well enough, afraid I can't give you the best resources, afraid I can't shield you, afraid you'll get hurt, afraid you'll be criticized, afraid that because you followed me, you'll lose what you originally should have had."

He paused, his voice very light, but very clear: "Afraid that I'll betray your trust."

In the darkness, no one spoke. There was only the sound of breathing, and the faint, distant chirping of insects from outside the window.

Then, there was a soft "snap." The lights came on.

The living room was restored to brightness. Song Tianhao stood by the switch, his hand still resting on it. He had no expression on his face, but his eyes were very bright—bright enough to be almost dazzling.

"Remember that feeling," he said, his voice returning to its usual calmness. "In front of the camera, you need to be as real as you were just now. You don't need to be perfect, you don't need to be brilliant, you don't even need to be 'right.' You just need to be real."

He walked back to the low table, sat down, and looked at the two who were still stunned.

"Fear isn't scary; what's scary is not daring to admit that fear," he said, his tone flat, but every word felt like a hammer striking their hearts. "Once you admit it, face it, it's not that scary anymore."

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin looked at him for a long time.

Then, Park Hyomin smiled first, a slightly forced smile, but very sincere: "Oppa... were you Acting cute for us just now?"

Song Tianhao smiled too, a faint but gentle smile: "I suppose so."

Kim Taeyeon lowered her head, looking at her hand still being held by Park Hyomin, then smiled too, saying quietly: "Oppa... so you have things you're afraid of too."

"Of course I do," Song Tianhao said. "I'm human too."

As he spoke, he stood up, walked to the window, and with his back to them, looked out at the night scene.

"But it's precisely because there are things I'm afraid of that there are things I want to protect."

He turned around and looked at the two. "So, for Wednesday's recording, don't be afraid. I'll be there."

The special training continued until late at night.

Writer Kang had left at eight in the evening, leaving behind a thick stack of notes, all containing specific advice for Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin. Song Tianhao saw him out, and when he returned, he saw the two still sitting on the straw mat, watching the playback of the earlier recording on a laptop.

"Here, look, my expression was too exaggerated when I said this line," Park Hyomin said, pointing at the screen, frowning.

"And here I am... completely expressionless, like a piece of wood," Kim Taeyeon said quietly.

"But this part is good." Park Hyomin fast-forwarded a bit and paused. "Look, Oppa asked us our favorite season, I said spring, you said summer, then we both said at the same time, 'Because we can eat ice cream,' and then we laughed. This part is very natural."

"Yeah..."

Song Tianhao stood at the doorway for a while, then walked over and sat down beside them.

"That's enough," he said. "Let's stop here for today and rest. There are guest rooms on the second floor; go pick one yourselves. All the toiletries are new."

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin exchanged a look, then both looked at him.

"Aren't you going to sleep, Oppa?" Park Hyomin asked.

"I'm going to read the script for a while," Song Tianhao picked up the folder from the low table. "You two go on up first."

The two nodded, stood up, and walked toward the stairs.

Reaching the stairs, Kim Taeyeon looked back at him, opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, didn't say it. She just whispered, "Goodnight, Oppa," and followed Park Hyomin upstairs.

Song Tianhao sat in the living room, opened the script, and read it page by page.

The night outside grew deeper, and the chirping of insects became clearer.

Don't know how much time passed, but there were faint footsteps on the stairs.

Song Tianhao looked up and saw Kim Taeyeon holding a pillow, wearing pajamas, barefoot, walking down cautiously.

"Oppa..." she said quietly, standing at the foot of the stairs, feeling a bit awkward. "I... I can't sleep."

Song Tianhao looked at her without speaking.

About ten minutes later, footsteps were heard on the stairs again.

This time it was Park Hyomin. She was also holding a pillow, her hair a mess, her eyes a bit red—it was clear she had been lying in bed for a long time but couldn't sleep.

"Me too..." she said quietly, walking over to Kim Taeyeon. The two exchanged a look and both gave a bitter smile.

Song Tianhao closed the script and looked at them. He watched for a few seconds, then stood up.

"Then let's not sleep," he said, picking up the car keys. "Come on, I'll take you to see the sunrise."

At four in the morning, by the Han River, it was very cold.

The car stopped at the observation deck by the river. Song Tianhao took two blankets from the trunk and handed them to Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin. The two wrapped themselves in the blankets, got out of the car, and stood by the railing, looking at the pitch-black river surface.

The sky was still very dark, with only the lights of the distant city creating a faint, orange-yellow glow on the horizon.

"So cold..." Park Hyomin shivered and wrapped the blanket tighter around herself.

Kim Taeyeon didn't speak, just watched the river quietly, her breath condensing into white mist in the cold air.

Song Tianhao stood beside them, also watching the river, without speaking.

The three of them just stood there quietly, waiting.

The sky gradually turned a fish-belly white, and that orange-yellow glow grew brighter. Then, a touch of golden-red seeped out from the horizon, slowly spreading and dyeing half the sky red.

Light began to appear on the river, sparkling, like crushed gold.

The sun slowly rose—first a golden edge, then a small semicircle, then a large semicircle, and finally, it leaped completely over the horizon. The light instantly washed over the river and spilled onto the three of them.

"So beautiful..." Kim Taeyeon said softly, her voice very light, as if afraid to disturb something.

Park Hyomin leaned against the car, watching the sunrise, her eyes bright: "Oppa, after the recording is done... can we often watch the sunrise together like this?"

Song Tianhao didn't answer. He took out his phone, opened the camera, and aimed it at the two.

Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin both turned their heads at the same time, looking into the lens.

In the morning light, their hair was dyed gold, and their faces still bore the fatigue of staying up late, but their eyes were bright, very clear, and held an indescribable determination.

Song Tianhao pressed the shutter. "Click." The photo was frozen.

In the photo: the morning light, the Han River, two girls wrapped in blankets, and their clear, determined eyes.

Song Tianhao put away his phone and looked at the two.

"Go back and sleep," he said. "There's still training in the afternoon."

He turned and pulled open the car door. Kim Taeyeon and Park Hyomin exchanged a look, then smiled simultaneously. The smiles were faint, but very real.

The two wrapped their blankets tighter and trotted to the car. The car started and drove toward the Homestay.

In the backseat, Park Hyomin suddenly spoke, her voice very light: "Oppa."

"Hmm?" Song Tianhao looked at her curiously. "Thank you."

Song Tianhao glanced at her again in the rearview mirror without speaking. Kim Taeyeon also said quietly: "Thank you, Oppa."

Song Tianhao still didn't speak, just pressed the accelerator and increased the car's speed. It was very quiet inside the car, with only the low hum of the engine and the warm air blowing from the air conditioner.

Park Hyomin took her phone out of her pocket, unlocked it, and saw an unread message on the screen from Park Gyuri.

"Hyomin-ah, heard you're going to record 'Family Outing'? Fighting! We, KARA, are also preparing for a new album recently; shall we eat together next time?"

She smiled, replied "Okay," then put the phone down, leaned back against the seat, and closed her eyes.

Kim Taeyeon also closed her eyes but didn't fall asleep. She replayed everything from today in her mind. The cameras, the conversation in the darkness, Song Tianhao's words, "I'm afraid that I can't protect you," and the sunrise just now.

Then, she quietly opened her eyes and looked at Song Tianhao in the rearview mirror. He was driving with focus, his profile looking clear and determined in the morning light.

Kim Taeyeon watched for a while, then closed her eyes again, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly.

The car drove through the morning light, heading toward a new day. And Wednesday's 'Family Outing' was waiting for them not far ahead.