Chapter 191: A Way that Suited Me (3)
TL: emptycube / ED: Isleidir
“Manager?”
The Team 2 Leader wheezed heavily. His face was still in disbelief.
“Why is this guy your manager?!”
“I need to call him that at least temporarily. He’s the one who set up this meeting.”
Son Chaeyoung replied as she walked over to me. The Team 2 Leader snatched her arm.
“Meeting? What meeting?!”
“Director Seo Byunghwe’s new project.”
“You…!”
The Team 2 Leader’s faced reddened even more. I felt like I might get burnt if I touched him.
I spectated whilst thinking these leisurely thoughts.
“You said you weren’t going to do a project! You said you had no intention of doing another project even if someone clung to you and begged!”
“I changed my mind.”
“What?”
“I’m saying I was persuaded.”
Son Chaeyoung brushed the Team 2 Leader’s hand off her and tapped my arm.
“He does a good job.”
Then she smiled brightly. While her smile seemed to be at the epitome of innocence, but to me, it looked like her smile could ruin an entire country. However, regardless of what I thought inwardly, I made a similar smile.
Since we decided to use each other, I needed to dance to her tune.
It was easy to smile because there was something to smile at.
The Team 2 Leader’s entire body trembled. If me being with Seo Jijoon was stabbing him in the back, me being with Son Chaeyoung was hacking the back of his neck with an ax. His wooden neck was chopped off as it crashed to the ground.
Then Son Chaeyoung continued to slowly saw at him.
“If there’s someone who does a good job, then that’s who I’ll work with. Isn’t that right, team leader?”
Son Chaeyoung said casually before turning around.
“I’m going in first. If there’s any unsettled business, handle it amongst yourselves.”
“Chaeyoung!”
“Someone might hear you, team leader.”
She grew distant without looking back. Chief Lee Bongjoon stuck to the wall to make way. Chief Jo, a nervous wreck, chased after her and tried to talk to her, but he didn’t last more than a few steps. The Team 2 Leader returned to his senses once Son Chaeyoung’s footsteps could no longer be heard.
His unbridled anger poured down at me.
“And you still-!”
“What did I do wrong?”
I asked, tilting my head.
“Wasn’t I assigned to persuade Ms. Son Chaeyoung? I remember you saying good luck to me. Hmm, it seems to be going well.”
On the surface.
“Or is it because of Mr. Jijoon?”
“… Did you drag Jijoon to this meeting?”
“I didn’t drag him here. I asked him. Mr. Jijoon came because he owed me a favor.”
To be honest, I didn’t really need to ask Seo Jijoon. But I still decided to call him. It wasn’t for the AA Studio employees, who were jumping up and down, or because I wanted to show off my friendship with Seo Jijoon.
It was only because I wanted to see the Team 2 Leader make that face.
“Ah, you did say you found it unpleasant when I loitered around Mr. Jijoon.”
I felt so wronged by being falsely accused of backstabbing that I felt I would only feel less wronged by doing this. I was expectant of what kind of face the Team 2 Leader would make when he heard I was in a meeting with Son Chaeyoung and Seo Jijoon.
I thought that I would feel refreshed like drinking a cool soda.
“But.”
I was wrong. It felt much better.”
“Thinking about it, I was wondering why I needed to concern myself with all that.”
“What?”
“So I don’t plan to.”
I added in an almost whispering voice before smiling.
The Team 2 Leader glared angrily at me. My flesh tingled like it was being burnt. His gaze was more vicious than ever. To be honest, his gaze was pleasant. It was dangerous, but it gave me a thrilling feeling.
Something similar to people who do extreme sports feel when standing on the edge of a cliff.
“Are you saying that while sober?”
“I’m sober. Rather, it looks like you’ve had a drink.”
“You bastard, you’re completely audacious. Just because you were able to persuade Chaeyoung’s fickle mind, you think you can look down on me?”
The Team 2 Leader’s face gave off a chill.
“Do you think you can handle the aftermath?”
It sounded like a threat that he would do everything in his power to screw me over from today onwards.
Of course, I was prepared to do everything I could to screw him over as well.
I smiled brightly as I asked back,
“How about you, team leader?”
*
“Then goodbye.”
“Yes, team leader. Please take care of us.”
The AA Studio CEO held my hand and bowed multiple times. Since the CEO was acting like this, his employees’ heads bowed like a wave. My waist became sore from the amount of bowing I did.
“I will discuss it with Ms. Son Chaeyoung and contact you as fast as possible.”
I turned around after sending them off when the CEO grabbed my arm again.
“Team leader! Team Leader Jung. Uh, team leader.”
He kept calling me by the position I hadn’t yet gotten used to.
“Yes?”
“Mr. Seo Jijoon, I guess it’ll be difficult to sign him too?”
He looked like he was on the verge of asking me that question throughout the meeting. It seemed his desire overpowered his hesitation. Well, the CEO wasn’t the only one. The writer and director looked at Seo Jijoon and Son Chaeyoung like they were seeing a masterpiece, and the UBS general manager’s smile hung up to his ears.
“I’m not managing Mr. Jijoon, but I’ll ask him.”
“He’s an actor who came to a meeting the day you asked, who could I ask if not you? As long as it can happen, we will try to agree to the signing fee and all conditions the actor may have if possible. Please. Please talk about the project in a positive light.”
I barely managed to send off the CEO, who tried to go for another two rounds. I had thought I had gotten used to dealing with persistent people from all the love calls Lee Songha receives, but this wasn’t being persistent, it was begging.
After sending the AA Studio employees off, I went back inside the restaurant. It was noisy at the front. Seo Jijoon was signing autographs for the restaurant employees. They probably saw a lot of celebrities because they were located in front of a broadcast company, but they glanced at his face and body as their faces flushed, regardless of what sex they were.
As soon as I walked over, Chief Lee Bongjoon grabbed my arm.
“Hey, are you all right?”
“About what?”
“About what? Hey, I knew you would clash with the team leader one day or another, but I never thought it would be a head-on collision like this. Do your guts get an upgrade when you become a team leader? You didn’t even press the brakes when you collided.”
Chief Lee Bongjoon said, astonished.
“The team leader will be a pain if you get on his bad side. Your life might get messed up if you’re not careful.”
“I had already gotten on his bad side long ago. This is better than just testing him.”
Seo Jijoon even took pictures with the employees before coming over. When they broke out in sighs behind him, he waved at them. The employees couldn’t approach and simply watched while stamping their feet from a distance.
“Scary bastard. How can you give fan service at a time like this?”
“Hyung, fan service is like speed dial. It just comes on as soon as I press it.”
Seo Jijoon put his arm around Chief Lee Bongjoon’s shoulder.
“Where do I poke for it to come on? Let me have some service too.”
Chief Lee Bongjoon poked Seo Jijoon’s side and arm. Seo Jijoon laughed. He had kept a smile on when he suddenly met the Team 2 Leader before too.
“Thank you for coming out today. It was a sudden request.”
“I told you I’d pay it off with my body. You can use me whenever you need me.”
Seo Jijoon said while his eyes curved into a smile.
“I was wondering when you would let me repay you.”
I stared at Seo Jijoon. I wiped my lips twice before asking,
“Should we go have another drink? We can talk too.”
Seo Jijoon readily nodded his head. He headed over with Chief Lee Bongjoon while scratching his stomach.
The now near empty private room was quiet. Son Chaeyoung sat alone at the empty table while reading the proposal. She looked over as though she had been waiting for the door to open yet frowned as soon as she saw Seo Jijoon.
A strange mood hung in the room. I entered and closed the door behind me.
***
A chief ran up the stairs like he was fleeing from something.
“Is a ghost chasing you from below?”
“No, Son Chaeyoung.”
The chiefs who were on their way down turned around. To the Team 2 employees, who had suffered thanks to her, Son Chaeyoung wasn’t a ghost but a disaster. One where an emergency alert had to be raised when she appeared.
“Why is she here?”
“Did she come to see the team leader? Since the CEO has already arrived, she might be here to see him.”
“Do you think she came to see them? Probably came to stir up a storm.”
A few Team 2 chiefs and road managers gathered at the fourth-floor lounge like they were seeking refuge. If they loitered around Son Chaeyoung, they would become perfect targets for Son Chaeyoung. Whether that her flipping out at them unexpectedly or being unfortunate enough to be assigned to manage her.
“What is it? Did something happen in Team 2?”
The Team 3 Leader yawned as he walked out of his office. He was with Kim Hyunjo and Lee Kwanwoo.
One of the refugees replied,
“No, we just heard that Son Chaeyoung was downstairs.”
“And here I thought something happened. How can you not manage a single actor that you have to hide in a group? Is she the plague?”
The Team 3 Leader chuckled as he inserted coins in the vending machine. His chuckles rubbed the Team 2 chiefs the wrong way. Once the Team 3 Leader bought coffee and went back to his office, the Team 2 chiefs expressed their dissatisfaction at Kim Hyunjo and Lee Kwanwoo, who remained.
“It seems the Team 3 Leader has forgotten because there hadn’t been any progress but isn’t Jung Sunwoo the one who should be managing Son Chaeyoung?”
The chief with the most experience ridiculed,
“I wonder what he’s doing?”
Jealousy, envy, and dislike flashed in his eyes.
With him as the start, the others began to join in.
“Isn’t he just counting the days after giving up? He can’t give a favorable impression if he quits immediately after telling the CEO he could do it.”
“Screw that. Rather than a favorable impression, I heard he annoyed Son Chaeyoung even more.”
“There are many outside our company who think that Jung Sunwoo is Son Chaeyoung’s new chief.”
“I think Lee Janghyun is setting up her schedule. Jung Sunwoo’s just taking all the credit.”
Someone mumbled that they wished Son Chaeyoung stirred up a storm over there. It was mixed with malicious expectations. Others commented on how he would probably grab the CEO’s legs and beg to quit after experiencing that.
Although they were whispering to each other, it wasn’t so quiet that Kim Hyunjo and Lee Kwanwoo couldn’t hear them. Kim Hyunjo frowned deeply. Even Lee Kwanwoo, who had an innocent appearance with his slightly drooping eyes, creased his brows.
Kim Hyunjo uncrossed his arms and approached the Team 2 chiefs.
“Shouldn’t you watch what you say? He’s a team leader now.”
“Well, he needs to act like one to be one.”
An experienced chief grumbled when the elevator opened. The people who looked over out of habit became shocked like they were hit by a bolt out of the blue. It was the human disaster they had tried to avoid, Son Chaeyoung.
Why did she come to the fourth floor instead of the Team 2 Leader or the CEO’s office? Did she come to the lounge to rest? Did they come to the wrong refugee shelter? The Team 2 chiefs and road managers hastily exchanged quiet glances.
However, it was for naught. Son Chaeyoung wasn’t interested in them. Holding a short box in her arms, she took a look around the office. Then she walked over to Kim Hyunjo.
“Where is he?”
“… Who? Sunwoo?”
“Who else would I be here for?”
Son Chaeyoung said indifferently. Lee Kwanwoo quickly made a call when Kim Hyunjo gave him a look. Son Chaeyoung sat alone at a table in the lounge until Jung Sunwoo, who had been sleeping in the sleeping quarters, arrived.
Kim Hyunjo and Lee Kwanwoo were sitting in the table next to her with dazed expressions. Even the Team 3 Leader had come out of his office.
The Team 2 chiefs, who had been about to quietly leave, sat their butts back down. Their gazes alternated between Son Chaeyoung and the elevator doors. They looked like they couldn’t wait to see what they would talk about, no, what would happen once they met.
A few quickly took out their phones and told their colleagues the news. Their phones vibrated continuously with replies.
Soon, the number displayed on the elevators’ display panel stopped at four.
Jung Sunwoo got off while brushing his ruffled hair. He looked around with still drowsy eyes before going over to Son Chaeyoung. He then sat down in front of her.
“Why did you come so early? We still have some time before the meeting with the CEO.”
“I’m not going in there. You just go in and talk.”
“If you aren’t going to the meeting, why did you come?”
“I wanted to give you something.”
Their conversation with extremely normal. However, it wasn’t to the people spectating. It was stranger because it was normal. The sight in front of them was more surreal than one where scripts and swears were hurled.
The people’s eyes concentrated as they tried to find the hidden trap.
Son Chaeyoung pushed the boxes placed on the table over to Jung Sunwoo. Jung Sunwoo opened the box with an odd look. At the same time, the others discovered something even weirder than a trap. Inside the box was an assortment of donuts, covered in chocolate and syrup.
“What is this?”
Jung Sunwoo asked as he stared down at the box.
“I bought one because I thought of you. For you to eat.”
“You came to give me this?”
He observed her with a gaze that read, ‘Are you high?’
Son Chaeyoung smiled brightly as she replied,
“I’m the type to takes care of my people.”
A silent tsunami swept the lounge. It seemed someone had dropped their coffee as sounds of water splattering on the floor could be heard. While the Team 2 chiefs sat there at a loss for words, their phones continuously vibrated.
Requests for what was going on, what kind of storm Son Chaeyoung was stirring, and even for live details poured in.
Soon, the dazed Team 2 chiefs went back to the second floor with stunned expressions.
With a donut in one hand.
Jung Sunwoo succeeded in persuading Son Chaeyoung. Son Chaeyoung brought over donuts. And the phrase ‘my people’ came out of Son Chaeyoung’s mouth. The rumors spread like wildfire to the basement and even up to the CEO’s office.
This issue set the company in an uproar.
***
As soon as Son Chaeyoung made her decision, everything proceeded rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, we had multiple meetings with AA Studio, and UBS. Although we hadn’t yet signed, UBS released an articled about how Son Chaeyoung was positively examining a UBS drama for her return.
However, Son Chaeyoung’s article didn’t garner as much attention as they anticipated. It would be the same even if it wasn’t Son Chaeyoung. At some point, social media, online communities, and entertainment reporters shifted their attention to one place.
The newly released Love Again.
And the new actor, Song Inho.
A wave that no one anticipated surged.
