Shadows of the Spotlight

Chapter 67

Even when we landed in London, I stuck close to the crew and exited with them rather than with Arc and came to the hotel in the crew bus. In the America tour there were odd number of females so I got the solo room, but this time there was 1 less female member so I was sharing the room with Young-seo from the styling team. We has spend time during the shopping trip in Seoul so it wasn't awkward to share a room with her.

It was during rehearsal at the concert venue when I saw Arc again. He and Ji-hoon were explaining the concert set to the backup dancers. I naturally walked over and started translating what they were saying without being asked. It felt instinctive—like slipping into a role I knew by heart.

After the initial dance practice, everyone was taking a break when Ji-hoon turned to me and said with a grin, "릴라, 당신이 영국식 악센트로 말할 수 있다는 걸 몰랐어요?"
"Lila, I didn't know you could speak with a British accent?"

I laughed lightly and replied,
"아, 그렇군요. 언어 외에도 현지 방언으로 말할 수 있어야 더 잘 소통할 수 있을 것 같아요."
"Oh, yeah. I think besides just the language, speaking in the local dialect helps with better communication."

One of the crew members chimed in curiously, "그럼 영국식 악센트 외엔 어떤 걸 할 수 있어요?
(So apart from a British accent, what else can you do?)"

I gave a casual shrug and said, "제가 말하는 대부분의 언어는 악센트도 알고 있습니다. (Most of the languages I speak, I know their accents too.)"

Ji-hoon raised an eyebrow and asked in challenging tone,"한국 사투리도 알아요? (Do you know any Korean dialects?)"

I grinned and leaned in, ready to show off, I said, "전라도 사투리 할 수 있어요.(I can speak in Jeolla dialect)," I said, switching into a thick Jeolla tone. "거시기, 밥은 묵었어라? 안 묵었으면 얼릉 묵어야제~(Hey, did you eat? If not, you better eat quick~)"

Laughter broke out around me.

Without skipping a beat, I switched again, "부산 사투리도 할 줄 압니다.(I'm fluent in Busan dialect too.)", and continued, ""와, 나 이래 말하면 사람들이 내가 부산 사람인 줄 알겠네.(Wow, when I talk like this, people might think I'm from Busan.)"

Finally, for the grand finale, I added, "제주 사투리는 좀 서툴지만, 해볼게요.(I'm not too experienced with Jeju dialect, but I can manage it.)" and then showed off by saying, "혼저 옵서예~ 밥 무러 가게 마씸~ (Come on in~ Let's go eat together, okay~)"

The crew burst into applause and laughter.

Arc looked genuinely impressed—his eyes lit up with something close to wonder—as he spoke to me directly for the first time since Busan, "진짜 대단하네요, 릴라. 다재다능하네.(Seriously impressive, Lila. You're multi talented.)"

I met his eyes, keeping my tone even and said, "당신의 재능은 다양한 음표를 연주할 수 있는 능력이고, 제 재능은 여러 언어로 말할 수 있는 능력입니다. (Your talent lies in being able to hit a range of notes while my lies in being able to talk in multiple languages.)"

That moment—brief as it was—stood out to me.
It was the only direct conversation we had during the two days of rehearsals and the two days of concerts.
Yes, we did talk—but only when necessary, and always in a professional tone. Nothing beyond what was required.

Even on our last day in London, when I joined Arc and the documentary team for some sightseeing footage, the atmosphere was completely different from Rio. Back in Rio, we'd kept our connection hidden, but there had still been laughter and casual conversations slipped between camera takes.
This time, it felt like a script—polished, distant, and cold.