From the front row, Liisi waved cheerfully at her. "Sister! Come sit with me and my group!"
Kaija had no choice but came to the front row, though she wasn't exactly fond of the idea. If she rejected someone as famous as Liisi in front of this many people, she'd not only embarrass Liisi, but also earn herself a basket of hatred right on her first day.
As she took her seat, Karl took the stage. The moment Liisi turned her smiley gaze from Kaija to the stage, her smoky brown eyes sparkled with something that resembled admiration as she looked up at Karl.
"Listen up, idiots," Karl said lazily into the mic, his voice echoing through the vast hall. "I'm bored of this. You're bored of this. Let's get it over with. As usual — seniors first, juniors last. Get your ass up here." As soon as Karl finished, he stepped down from the stage, took a seat at a table right in front of it, then leaned back casually with both legs propped up like some jaded judge on talent shows.
One of the big-name artists took the stage. He picked up the mic, and started singing without any background track. Just his raw, powerful, beautiful voice, and a song that Kaija was pretty sure wasn't his.
Of course, Kaija didn't have a single clue what the hell was going on. "Hey," she leaned over Liisi, "Can you please tell me what's happening?"
"You got your homework, sister?" Liisi asked back.
"What homework?"
"Karl always sends out a homework song before class. When you come in, you go up on stage and sing. Then he judges you."
"But what's the point of having everyone doing vocal training together? You're already famous. You're not on the same level as trainees like me?"
"Karl says it's to train us to sing under pressure. We feel pressured being watched by our peers, and trainees feel pressured being watched by us. It's supposed to make everyone better."
She thanked Liisi and sank back into her chair, her nerves twisting in her stomach. Not only did she have no preparation and no assigned homework song, but she'd also happened to call the instructor scum just yesterday. Given how Karl had slandered her without even knowing her, and his general lack of manners, she could already guess what judging meant in his vocabulary.
Before the singer on stage could even finish, Karl suddenly raised a hand.
The singer stopped mid-line.
"Not bad, but not bearable either," Karl said flatly. "You sing like you're begging the audience to love you. Next."
The next artist went up. Then the next. And then the trainees. Karl's comments only got nastier each time.
"Too mawkish. Next."
"Boring. Next."
"Just give up on singing altogether. Next."
Even Liisi's group was called "tone-deaf, talentless dolls who couldn't do anything right except shake their hips."
Kaija's frown only deepened at Karl's every comment. At that point, she was fully convinced that not only did the guy have serious ear problems, but being an asshole was also written in his DNA. He didn't single her out. He simply treated everyone like trash.
Liisi's lovely face was visibly hurt when she left the stage. "You're okay?" Kaija asked, feeling sorry for that pretty face.
"It's fine," Liisi quickly replied with a smile, "Karl is always like that. It's his method."
Kaija sigh, giving up on her concerns for Liisi altogether. She had no idea why this girl defended Karl that much. Along with the sparkly way Liisi's eyes became whenever she looked at Karl, Kaija had started suspecting Liisi had something more than admiration for the guy.
Hours later, it was finally Kaija's turn. She was the last one to go.
By then, the air in the room had grown suffocating. When Karl saw her step onto the stage, his bored face suddenly lit up with malicious interest.
She clasped both hands behind her back, hiding how shaky they were. She wasn't nervous because she feared Karl's judgment. She already knew he'd rip her apart just like everyone else. She was nervous because it was her first time standing on a stage that massive.
The pressure was unreal. Her chest wouldn't stop heaving. She had no idea how the people before her had even managed to sing in front of that many pairs of eyes. "I have no homework," she said into the mic, her voice calm and steady, testing the volume.
"Of course you don't," Karl scoffed. Then he turned to address the audience behind him like some smug MC, his voice suddenly bright, drawling every word out, his tone dripping with mockery.
"Anybody know who this little birdie is? This is Kaija Sepala. She just signed with KE yesterday. With Charles Kosonen himself!"
The entire theatre hall went dead silent. At KE, an artist signing with Charles Kosonen himself was unheard of. Very quickly, murmurs rippled through the crowd. Everyone started pulling their phones out, eager to hear what kind of voice could possibly win over such a privilege from the CEO of the label himself.
Unfortunately, their curiosity wasn't helping her nerves at all. She rolled her eyes, bracing for whatever words Karl had lined up next for her.
Karl's tone dripped with derision as he continued, "Kaija here didn't go through any audition, passed no rounds, and yet here she is. One of you. Aren't you all curious to hear how she sings?" Then he turned back to Kaija on the stage, smirking. "Sing away, little birdie. Any song's fine. Consider it my welcoming gift to you."
Ha, what a gift, she thought, smirking. She'd rather he just threw a technically demanding song at her, than challenged her like this. She gripped the mic, eyes wandering upward as if searching for an idea on the ceiling.
Alright, Karl Hanski. She took a deep breath. If you want to play, I'll play.
"Hi, everyone," she said, her tone measured. "I'm Kaija. Today I'll sing one of my favorite songs. This song carried me through the darkest time of my life, back when I still didn't know where I belonged in this world. Even now, I still don't. But I hope I'll stay here at KE with all of you for a long time. Here's Sociopath — by Karl Hanski."
The smirk on Karl's face vanished instantly. His lips parted like he was about to say something. But before he could, Kaija started singing.