[NAVI] 楽園 - Eden

[CHAPTER XXIII] 'Myself', Again

ACT I Scene iii

The last thing he remembered was being strangled by the caretakers back in the orphanage. He thought he was doomed and he thought he had died. Even they thought he was dead as well, that's why they tried to get rid of his body and flushed it down the river.

But the child was alive.

When Noah woke up, all he saw was darkness, but he heard the sounds of the water flowing down stream and muffled sounds of birds chirping outside. He banged desperately against the cascade and after several attempts, the cover opened up.

He sat inside the cascade and looked around him to see where he was. A large river where he luckily floated off-shore, rocks and forest, but nothing more. The sky was gloomy and cold. He shivered from the thin layer of clothes he had on and his stomach started to rumble as well. He had nothing with him aside from the cascade he came from.

He got out of it, but rather than leaving it behind, he decided to drag it along with him as his only companion. He cried and cried in silence as he went through the eerie forest. After a long journey, he came across sounds of wood chopping nearby. Though he was scared at the anonymous sounds, he decided to approach it with hope of finding salvation. As the sound got closer, he saw an old man up ahead.

The old man was startled by the rustling of bushes from behind him, thinking that it was a wild animal, so he immediately grabbed his rifle and ready to shoot. But it turned out to be a child.

"What are you, boy?" the old man asked in caution.

The boy mouthed the words 'help', but obviously there was no sound that came out. The old man looked at the boy from top to bottom and noticed the horrifying cascade the boy had dragged along with him.

"Why do you have that?" he asked another question.

That's when Noah finally broke down and wailed as loudly as he wished he could.

"You can't talk?" the old man realized.

He saw the poor child crying and suffering after whatever he may have gone through alone. After calming down the child, the old man asked the boy what happened. Since Noah couldn't speak, he could only write or draw on the ground of his story. He used his motions and gestures to tell the old man what he's been through and how he ended up here.

After listening to the boy's story, the old man reached out his hands for the child.

"Why don't you come home with me, boy?" he welcomed Noah warmly.

The child was thankful and moved. He wiped the remainder of his tears and nodded in agreement.

The two took the chopped lumber from the ground, placed them into the cascade and together, they head for home.

One schedule after another, there was no end to his schedule. Wonshik was back to the frantic lifestyle he used to have but this time was a little different. Everything felt different somehow.

He's been attending interviews to promote his musical and his official name in the industry. Many people had their doubts about the project at first especially since he has no prior experience working within the field.

But the success of the musical proved many others wrong.

Other producers within the musical productions industry also came to contact him. They were intrigue with what Wonshik was able to do despite being new. Wonshik also wanted to learn from the veterans to help him improve as a producer.

Ding.

Wonshik looked at his phone and saw Hakyeon sent him a message.

[Thank you for the lilies.] Hakyeon sent along with a photo evidence.

Wonshik was relieved that Hakyeon received the gift and even though he's sent the lilies multiple times already, he still worries whether or not the older would get it.

Knock. Knock.

"Are you ready?" Jaehwan came in.

"Yeah," Wonshik got up and grabbed his suit. There was another interview awaiting him and this time, it was an interview he prepared for.

"Thank you for coming today. Please have a seat," the reporter offered.

Wonshik took his seat.

"Congratulations on the success of your musical productions debut. What brought you into this field? It's quite a shock for a lot of your colleagues and fans, don't you think?" she asked.

"You're right. It's a big risk I took, but it's one I'm willing to take. A few months ago, I was still in a slump, but I took some time off and found a new purpose being in the industry."

"A slump?"

"Yes, and it's been awhile since I had it..."

Wonshik revealed to the reporter of what caused his hiatus and the reason behind going back to his name. He wasn't looking for sympathy after revealing his motives, but more so to raise awareness for others in a similar situation he was in. He thought awhile about himself and his own situation and although it's true he's been through a lot. He knew many who had it much worst.

Wonshik learned to strive forward rather than dwell on the past. And this wouldn't have been possible if it wasn't for his encounters made during the production of this musical. He really did end up learning a lot through this experience and he was thankful to those who helped him find his way.

"The cast for your debut project was specially selected by you and for what we know, the main actor for Noah is a new actor. How did you come across him and why did you choose him? Since it's your big debut, most would think that you'd choose a more popular actor, right?" the interview continues.

"You're right. Normally, people would choose someone who's well-known to play their protagonist. But as you know, Silence is not your typical musical and Noah cannot speak. So, we needed someone who can express and tell a story with their facial expressions and movement alone. And Cha Hakyeon is perfect for that. He was introduced to me at first by KiYeol-hyung, but I've seen Hakyeon's performance before and I'm truly confident that only he can become Noah."

"Well, it seems your choice was perfect. The feedbacks for the musical have only shown success after success. After Silence is over, do you have any plans to continue producing musicals?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I've taken an interest in this field on top of what I've always been doing since the start."

"Does that mean you'll continue producing and composing songs for the music industry?"

"Yes, but not just that. Over the years, it seems that many people like myself included, have forgotten that I started out as a lyricist. I have plans to write songs again because I've rediscovered who I am once more. With these new inspirations and feelings that I've obtained, I want to convey that feeling to other people once more."

Wonshik never once forgot his origins. He never forgot what brought him into the industry. Throughout the years, he still kept his notebooks of words wherever he went. It's true he had a slump for awhile and the songs he wrote sounded repetitive. But now, he knows for a fact that he'll be able to write again.

After a long day of work and schedule, Wonshik finally got to go home. He was honestly too tired to even go back to his studio for once and instead, decided to rest. But when he got back to his condo, he noticed Hakyeon standing around in the front of the entrance.

"Hakyeon?" Wonshik called out.

"There you are. I was just going to call you," the older said.

"What are you doing here?"

"Wonshik-ah, can we... talk?" Hakyeon hesitated for a second.

"Sure, let's talk upstairs," Wonshik opened the doors through the lobby.