Chapter 24 — Music Sent After School

The listening session had two rows of chairs and a coffee table. Everyone is given colored cards: green means they agree, yellow means they need to ask more, red means they want to stop. When a recording makes the sender uncomfortable, just raise the red card. No one asked why on the spot. Ms. Mai said the right to withdraw should be as easy as the right to press play.

Lam was the host but left out all the jokes in the opening. She said that sometimes respecting the listener means knowing how to stand still for a while. Khang checked the indicator light, Duy sat at the back of the room recording everyone's reactions in short words. Nhien did not look at the screen. She looked at each hand holding the card, and understood that trust is measured in very small gestures.

When the clip spread, the group did not turn on their phones in the studio. Ms. Mai suggested that each person write down their feelings on paper before responding. Duy wrote "angry", Nhien wrote "afraid of being misunderstood", Lam wrote "wanted to say right away". Khang wrote "need to check file".

They read the papers, then open the analysis software. The process doesn't make the feelings go away; it just prevents emotions from holding the microphone for them.

Anonymous account

The cut appears at 7:05, right before students enter class. In it, Duy's voice says: "I need a song to leave Aunt Huong's counter." Nhien said: "I will buy back that right." The two sentences are assembled from different conversations, the background sounds do not match.

But social networks don't wait for analysis. The clip spread through class groups, then to a news site. The caption calls Duy the person who took advantage of his father's memories to ask for money, and Nhien the young lady who bought the story.

Lam wants to release an explanation immediately. Ms. Mai asked to stay calm. Khang traced the file and discovered it was exported from a school account issued to a temporary employee. Username: **media_guest_04**.

“Dat used to use this account,” Khang said.

School attorney submits data preservation request. SoundSeed denied involvement. Vu Tan did not answer.

Nhien called Duy. You're at the studio, haven't seen the clip yet. When he knew, he remained silent.

“I said something about Aunt Huong's stall,” he said. “But not that way.”

“I know.”

“The listener doesn't know.”

“So we give them the data.”

“I don't want them to hear anything else.”

“We just need to prove that the clip was spliced.”

Duy asked Nhien not to use his own recording. They chose public background sounds in the program: 3C room fan, library door sound, pen tapping sound. Khang compares the sound spectrum and creates a short explanation. Lam reads slowly: “You may not like a word, but check to see if it was actually said at the same time.”

However, additional rules: do not publish the original file without the speaker's consent; publish only enough data to refute the bias.

17:10, program broadcast. Do not mention the names Duy or Nhien. After listening, some of you deleted the old shares. Some still hold their views. The club is not trying to convince everyone, just keeping a clear version.

Meanwhile, Duy at the studio received an email from a record label inviting him to sign a contract. They want to exploit the story of "the boy and the stolen music". Duy forwarded the email to Nhien.

“They want to turn this into a franchise,” he said.

“You can refuse.”

“If I accept, I will have money to fix the counter.”

“But the terms?”

“Exclusive image rights, rights to tell stories, rights to use all personal recordings.”

Nhien does not advise. She asked: "What do you want after reading?"

“I want to write music but I don't I have to tell old stories every time I pick up the guitar.”

“Then don't sign.”

Duy exhaled. “Easy for you to say.”

"Are not. I only say what I would want to hear if it were me.”

That night, Duy sent a new guitar part. No more mysterious sounds. Just the rhythm of the train, the sound of footsteps, and one lingering note. Nhien heard and saw the distance the city lay within.

At school, Khang discovered that the media_guest_04 account had logged in from the principal's office on open mic night. The principal said he lent Dat his account to play the slides, but did not know there was a strange memory card. Dat disappeared from his old phone number.

Ms. Mai decided to hold a public listening session earlier, inviting Ms. Lan, Bao, Ngoc and Minh Quang. They will publish terms, logs and rights rules, but will not play the entire tape unless Duy agrees.

Vu Tan sent a lawyer to stop. The school's lawyer replied that they have the right to protect their honor and data. The dispute turned into a procedural battle, no longer a mere matter of sound.

Nhien came home and saw his father watching the cut clip. He didn't get angry, just said: "I want to remove it."

“Can't remove it all.”

“Dad can sue.”

“We can talk facts.”

“You don't have to bear it yourself.”

“I refuse to be alone.”

Minh Quang asked about Duy. Nhien said he refused the contract. He said: “I used to think that if I bought enough rights, no one could harm others with their stories.”

“But buying rights can also make others lose their reputation.”

“I understand.”

Father and son together drafted Ha Audio's response: confirming the history, admitting errors in the process, withdrawing all ownership claims, and agreeing to provide legal support for Duy if he wanted. Nhien read and edited the words to avoid turning the apology into an advertisement.

“You don't need a logo at the end,” she said.

“I know.”

Response posted in the evening. The number of people sharing was not as large as the cut clip, but interested people began to ask questions about the file's origin.

Near midnight, the after.school.archive account posted an apology: **I sent you the file, but I couldn't stop others from cutting it. I know the person who released the file first. I will speak during the listening session.**

Signature B.

Bao immediately called. He said his account was accessed, and he saw Dat give the memory card to someone wearing a school jacket. The face is covered, but the person is wearing a square ring.

“Vu Tan,” Nhien said.

“Maybe.”

“Maybe not enough.”

"I know."

Duy returned before the listening session. He stood in front of room 3C, looking at everyone. Nhien didn't ask if he was afraid. She just gave her headphones.

“New demo?”

"YES."

They listened together. The song ends with a sentence without a voice: just the sound of the door opening, then the sound of the school yard.

“Have you named it yet?”

“Thinking.”

“If it's 'Don't Let Them', Ms. Lam will chase you away.”

“I was going to put ‘After Listening’.”

Nhien nodded. “Beautiful.”

Duy looked at her. “Thanks for not uploading our clip.”

“Thank you for asking permission.”

Outside the door, the class bell rang. This time, no one used it as background music. They just listened, then entered the room.

In the afternoon, the group cleaned up the warehouse after the incident. Duy asked each person to tell one thing they learned from the clip. Khang said "don't use convenient files". Lam says "don't laugh before knowing if the other person wants to". Nhien said "don't let a single apology be cut out of the story".

Ms. Mai writes the sentences on the board, without turning them into slogans. She wants people to remember through action: asking first, save the source, protect the original.

Minh Quang sent a certificate confirming that Ha Audio did not use the clip, and requested the page where it was posted to be taken down. He did not ask to post compliments. Reading, I see that the way he works is different: less promotion, more documents.

Duy received an email from the record label for the second time. They offered a shorter contract, but still wanted the right to tell the story. He replied that the story belonged to many people and could not be sold as a single package.

Nhien asked him if he regretted the opportunity.

“Yes,” Duy said. “But regret does not mean choosing wrong.”

They hand out a number about the opportunities that require reading the terms. Students submit questions about scholarships, part-time jobs, and image rights. Ms. Mai invited career counselors to answer, avoiding turning the radio into a place for unfounded advice.

At the end of the number, Duy plays an unnamed piece. Nhien asks the listener's permission before saving the response. A friend sent back the sound of footsteps, agreeing to use it in a new article.

Open Frequency begins to have its own rhythm, no longer revolving around one incident. But the old version is still the reason they learned how to do it right.

At night, file 24 changed its name to **25 — listening session**. Khang locked it, did not delete it. Nhien looked at the file name and said: "Tomorrow we won't let others choose the story."

Duy replied: "We invite them to listen, but reserve the right to stop."

The listening session took place in a small hall. No livestream, no likes displayed. Listeners receive a sheet of paper stating the source and conditions before wearing the headphones.

One friend wanted to remove the sound of footsteps after hearing it again. The group stops playing immediately, deletes the working version and records the log. No one asked why. That friend came back later and sent another paragraph with the condition that she would only listen to it in class.

Nhien sees that the right to withdraw does not make the project poorer; it makes faith thicker. Duy adds silence to the music so as not to cover up small sounds.

Lam asked the listener what they wanted to keep. One person responded to the sound of the bicycle, another person responded to the sound of his breathing before speaking. No one mentioned the clip for half an hour.

After clearing the hall, Khang reported a strange traffic but it was blocked. The group did not panic; They took a log, reported it to the school, and changed the lock. The process gives fear a place to put down.

Duy took Nhien to hear the sound of the train at night. She realized he wrote a new, lighter chorus, not trying to prove anything.

“The song doesn't need to win,” he said.

“It just needs to be heard properly.”

“The song doesn't need to win,” he said.

“It just needs to be heard properly.”