Chapter 301: Editing Done
Dayo woke up before his alarm as usual.
He sat down slowly. He felt the chill as the morning breeze blew in through the slightly open window.
Dayo sighed. He felt lighter than he had yesterday, although he would be lying if he said he was not still hurting or still thinking about calling her. But a certain part of him felt at ease.
With a deep breath, he stood up and first went to splash water on his face before doing so light stretches, after which he wore his kit and did his usual jogging around the estate.
After about forty-five minutes, Dayo ca back with his shirt sweat-soaked. He felt lighter and made a light breakfast.
He made gukbap. It’s a simple Korean breakfast soup made with rice, broth, and so vegetables and at.
After eating his fill, he went to take his shower.
The drive to the office was quiet as a slow tune played on his radio, with Korea up and bustling as people from different workplaces rushed to get to their respective offices.
The JD Label building looked the sa as always as people rushed in and out.
Reaching the studio reserved for him, he t Yura and the three artists waiting for him. Dayo greeted them with a warm smile that was rare.
"Good morning, you all. I hope you had a nice rest."
"...."
"....."
"...."
"....."
The four artists looked at each other, confused by how Dayo’s smile felt warr than before. Not that he didn’t smile, but the way he did today was less controlled.
Dayo saw the stunned looks on their faces and could almost guess their thoughts. He didn’t bla them, as he felt a lot better than yesterday, at least.
"Director, you look... better today," Yura said hesitantly as she looked at him.
One artist smiled and asked, "You finally slept, huh?"
Dayo nodded, returning the smile. "Sothing like that."
"Oh, that’s why you’re glowing, haha," Yura said.
The entire studio, filled with engineers and staff, laughed, with Dayo joining them.
Dayo smiled, feeling the whole area calm. "Alright, nice try, you all. I am not going easy on any of you today, hehe."
This made the now-quiet studio burst into another round of laughter, as a few staff mbers found it hard to hold themselves back.
Dayo smiled at all of this, waited for a while, then clapped his hands.
"Alright, let’s get today’s session started."
The staff all nodded and went to their respective positions, waiting for Dayo’s instructions.
Dayo started giving orders and the session began. Unlike other sessions that were fully serious, jokes were cracked in between mistakes, and laughter filled the room.
Two of the three featured artists had already completed their recordings. Instead of leaving, they lingered in the studio, sitting quietly during other sessions with notebooks in hand. At first, Dayo thought they were waiting for sothing specific. Then one of them spoke up during a break.
"Director, if it’s okay... we’d like to stay," she said. "Just to listen. Watching how you correct people helps a lot."
He studied them briefly, then nodded. "As long as you don’t interfere."
They bowed with a smile and thanked Dayo. Even though Dayo was young, he had experience that didn’t match his age, and they were willing to learn.
Relief crossed their faces. They stayed out of the way, listening carefully as he worked with other artists, absorbing how he explained phrasing, breath control, and emotional timing. It wasn’t sothing they could learn from a manual. It was sothing they picked up through exposure.
Late morning, his phone rang.
The na read: Jang-Wook.
Dayo stepped into an empty room and answered. "Talk to . Any update?"
"We’re done with editing," Jang-Wook said without ceremony. "Honestly, there wasn’t much to fix. Your direction carried most of the weight. Editing just tightened things."
Dayo leaned against the wall, absorbing that. "That was fast."
"You gave us clean footage. Even I was surprised, considering I was on set when you took it," Jang-Wook replied. "So that made everything easier."
There was a short pause before Dayo said, "We should et. Tomorrow. Full team. It’s ti to talk about the release date and finalize the details."
"Agreed," Jang-Wook said.
Dayo nodded. "Don’t forget to send the invites."
"Hmm, alright."
After the call ended, he stayed where he was for a mont, phone still in hand. Editing was done. One phase was over, and now ca the next—and most important stage.
The next day, the screening room filled quietly.
The movie played, and the small room remained quiet.
When it ended, the room stayed silent for a few seconds longer than usual. Not awkward silence. Considered silence.
Then the team clapped together, praising Dayo and each other for a few minutes.
They talked briefly about pacing, transitions, and sound balance. Minor points. Nothing structural.
Eventually, the conversation shifted.
"So," Jang-Wook said, leaning forward. "Release date."
Dayo had already done the math. Album progress. Marketing windows. Audience overlap. He didn’t rush his answer.
"Five to six weeks," he said.
Several heads turned toward him.
"That soon?" soone asked.
"Yes," Dayo replied. "That’s a pri ti to release. I’ve done the research, and it shows it’s the best window."
Technically, Dayo had done the research with his system, which pinpointed five to six weeks as the pri ti to release.
But the rest didn’t know that. They believed Dayo had done traditional research.
So no one argued. They understood the logic imdiately.
Discussion moved to promotion. Teasers. Limited previews. Controlled exposure. Dayo listened carefully, adding input only when necessary.
By the ti the eting ended, everyone knew their roles.
The machine was moving.
That night, Dayo returned to the studio instead of going ho. Not because he felt trapped there, but because he wanted to be.
The album would also be released around the sa ti as the movie, and that was one of the reasons he was working hard to complete it on ti.
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