Chapter 57: < Protect – Episode 56 – Anna-Anne Karusis [1] >

After he picked up his little sister, went grocery shopping, and then came back home, Mrs. Park and Seol Hyun were there. What kind of situation was this? The two women started a fuss as soon as they saw him.

“Oh my! Son, if you had a girlfriend, you should have introduced me. How could you?”

“Pardon?”

“Right? He really should have.”

Who would be able to imagine the star of Asia to be sitting next to her and say nice things? This wasn’t a scene from a movie or a drama. It was real life. If a paparazzi saw this, they would have gone crazy.

“Seol Hyun! Long time no see.”

“Hey. How have you been?”

When Ahn Soo Ho saw Jang Seol Hyun leave Mrs. Park Ok Nam and hugging Lee So Hye with a laugh, he grabbed his forehead with his hand. When he heard a lisp, he was suddenly reminded of Kang Mi Na from Yesterday. Was it a trend to have a lisp these days? He went into his room to get changed.

Jang Seol Hyun boldly followed him to his room. The dressing room was separate from the bedroom, so no one would be able to see them.

“What about your schedule?”

“I only had a pictorial shoot. I’m free until next week!”

He got a glimpse of her feet when she jumped onto his bed.

“Hey.”

“You smell good.”

“Geez.”

Who would see her as a woman in her twenties? She was young when he first met her, but she seemed to get younger by the day. His first impression of Seol Hyun wasn’t all that great. Since she worked in the entertainment industry where she had to separate her outer appearance from her true feelings, she was used to having relationships that weren’t too close but not too distant either.

Ahn Soo Ho thought that was refreshing.

He also heard that he was like an old man, but the way Seol Hyun acted was worse than that of a politician. But when she took off her thick mask, she was soft. She was a tender woman behind her strong act.

‘She’s not just tender. She’s clever too.’

But it wasn’t the kind that made people feel insulted.

“Don’t you think you’re pushing yourself too much?”

Her random question made him stop in the middle of changing his shirt.

“Pushing myself?”

“Your company. The pep rally and the town project…you’ll be at a deficit.”

“Probably.”

In response to his calm answer, Seol Hyun just looked up and stared at him with an absurd look.

“Why are you acting like this is someone else’s problem?”

“Because I’m not the one managing it.”

“You’ll go bankrupt if you don’t be careful.”

After he finished changing, he came out and shrugged his shoulders.

“Even if I do, I won’t be in debt.”

“Wow! Listen to you.”

She showed an exaggerated attitude, but she was actually very apologetic. The way Jang Seol Hyun dragged Ahn Soo Ho into this was like her having a tantrum. It was also a resistance with the hope of having her feelings reciprocated by the one she liked.

‘I’m not a little kid!’

She was upset and tired of having one-sided feelings. When she just stared at the ceiling with a blank look, Ahn Soo Ho sighed. He knew. Who wouldn’t? But he didn’t have the time to leisurely date someone. But that didn’t mean Ahn Soo Ho was always single either. When a charming woman crossed his path, he had a one-night stand.

He laid next to Seol Hyun and stared at the ceiling with her.

“What is it?”

“I’m tired, Soo Ho.”

“Of what?”

“A middle-aged man is giving me a hard time.”

Ahn Soo Ho smirked at being called a middle-aged man. Being addressed that way felt more familiar than how she normally addressed him. So he thought about it carefully. Did he hate her? No. Then did he like her? He did. He did have interest in her. And since Seol Hyun was an adult, she was allowed to date. Even though Ahn Soo Ho was much older, if they liked each other, it wasn’t going to be a problem.

“Why do you like me?”

It was a cringy question, but he had to ask.

“Just because.”

“There are tons of good-looking guys around you.”

“That’s all hair and makeup. Oh! There are tons of guys with a lot of plastic surgery too.”

If one would try to find flaws, there would be no end to it. Seol Hyun’s justification made Ahn Soo Ho feel better. He even lent his arm to her. If someone saw them, people would misunderstand them as a couple.

“This is the first time you let me rest on your arm since Hollywood.”

“Is it?”

“Yeah.”

She attempted Hollywood with passion, but unless a person was Caucasian, it would be hard to be treated fairly there. Seol Hyun wasn’t acknowledged for her good experience in Korea and Asia, which meant she had to start over like the rest of the newbies. Even though she felt hurt by it, she refused to give up.

“That Donald son of a bitch. He looks just like Donald Duck. Who is he to tell me to start off with a role of a teenager?”

“Westerners do have better proportions. Ugh.”

Ahn Soo Ho screamed at the jab he received on his side.

“I have a good body too, Mister.”

“Hey, hey.”

Seol Hyun hugged Ahn Soo Ho and rubbed herself on him as if she wanted to show off her body. This behavior was so clear that it didn’t need an explanation. But why was a sad prediction never wrong?

“Soo Ho! Seol Hyun! Mom said food’s ready!”

What strange timing. She was taken aback and tried to get up, but Ahn Soo Ho grabbed her by her neck.

“Huh?”

“Why? You don’t want to?”

He thought he might as well do some dating while he was having fun. It wasn’t bad to date a top star that everyone wants. The next day, Kim Woo Jung wasn’t against their dating, but he said revealing it wasn’t right. He didn’t want to go around telling everyone either.

“I knew this day would come.”

Didn’t he say this before? He looked sad as if he was her dad sending her off for marriage, but then he switched back to his businessman face.

“We’ve decided on the project name. Comma. It’s Project Comma.”

“Comma?”

“Yes. I think it suits the project perfectly.”

The pep rally in Boracay, Philippines would be broadcasted live on the internet, and it would also be edited as a documentary and broadcasted on cable. Depending on how it was edited, it could be a variety show too.

“The theme is a modern man who goes on a volunteering vacation to heal.”

“Do you think that’ll be interesting?”

“We have to make it interesting and touching at the same time.”

“Then do that. Oh yeah! What is Director Shim doing?”

“I’m not sure. There’s been a lot of changes for the actor…so he’s probably very busy.”

“Is it a problem with JT?”

JT Entertainment was having a hard time due to Seo Joo Kyung. As soon as Hosoo Entertainment paid for the cancellation charges and took away all of their talents, they went crazy. The other agencies trembled in fear and the ones who profited watched the show with interest.

“There are no legal issues, right?”

“No, Sir.”

“But let’s not let our guard down. Oh! Please send Director Kim in.”

“Sure.”

The former president of Shinhwa Entertainment, Kim Yoo Seon became the director of singers. It might seem like a downgrade, but scale-wise, Hosoo Entertainment was 10 times bigger than what Shinhwa Entertainment was. It was a burden to be the president, so he enjoyed his new position.

“Did you call for me?”

“Have you heard?”

“Um, yes. I have.”

“I’m going to step down from the CEO position this year. And from now on, everything will be mediated by the operations team.”

“May I ask why?”

“I know why you’re worried, but I’m only stepping down from the position. That doesn’t mean I’m going to take my hands off of the business. My reason is…I’m at the age where I should get married, and I should rest. You understand. Mothers don’t like their sons aging without a family of their own.”

“Oh, sure.”

Kim Yoo Seon nodded as if he understood. His circumstances pushed back his marriage date, but whether if a person was a woman or a man, once a person reached forty, he or she would start feeling anxious. Ahn Soo Ho was thirty-seven years old, so he wasn’t young in the marriage department.

“If you ever have questions, you can talk to Daniel or Director Oh Joo Kyung.”

“Sure.”

As soon as Kim Yoo Seon left, Ahn Soo Ho tapped the desk with his finger. His work concluded there. As long as problems don’t arise, he won’t have to worry about the company.

‘All that’s left is Father.’

There wasn’t a single person who had the guts to stop Ahn Soo Ho from leaving work early. After a fairly long drive, he arrived at a residential building near Seoul. It was just a country house. The elder who saw him drive in greeted him with a lukewarm face.

“You’re here.”

“Yes.”

“You didn’t come empty-handed, did you?”

When he pulled out liquor, Ahn Dae Man ran over. Even though he was over sixty, he still loved alcohol and women. After he got a divorce, Ahn Dae Man roamed about. When he was young, his behavior made him angry. However, after all these years, he just pitied him.

Ahn Dae Man looks happy as he opened the bottle of liquor.

“Drink it with food. It’ll be delivered soon.”

“Oh yeah?”

He felt like the world was very convenient since food could be delivered anywhere around the country. At that moment, a motorcycle dropped by and left Chinese food including spicy seafood noodles and sweet and sour pork. The father and son sat on the bench and clinked glasses without a word.

Ahn Dae Man spoke first.

“What brings you here?”

“Did Kyung Ho drop by?”

“He dropped by with his father a few days ago.”

Do Kyung Ho was a troublemaker, but he was good with parents.

“I heard you’re going to stay in Korea.”

“I’m not young anymore.”

“You bastard!”

The father scolded him for saying such a thing in front of an elder.

“When you were born, the queen grandmother said you had itchy feet.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. He said you would do great things. That’s why we even had a party to celebrate having such a capable baby.”

“That was a lie though.”

“I’m not sure…The queen grandmother had never been wrong.”

The village liked and respected the queen grandmother. It wasn’t just because she was talented in guessing people’s fortunes. She was the village’s mental pillar, and she was also a capable woman who received protection from the Korean government at the time.

“Wait here.”

Ahn Dae Man put down his glass, disappeared somewhere, and then came back with a wooden box.

“What’s that?”

“When you were born, she gave me this and told me to give it to you one day. When I asked when that would be, she said I’d know when the time comes. She was right. I knew.”

He had forgotten after all this time and just remembered.

“Open it. I’m curious about what’s inside.”

Ahn Dae Man didn’t tell him that he actually did all sorts of things to try to open that box. It might just look like just a wooden box, but hammers and drills didn’t make a single dent on it. He was worried he would receive a divine punishment for it and forgot about it until now.

Ahn Soo Ho received the box in surprise.

‘Is this…’

This object shouldn’t be here. It should be in the afterlife.

‘A stone?’

In other words, it was a box for memories of souls.

< Protect – Episode 56 – Anna-Anne Karusis [1] > The end.

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