TM Chapter 106

Chapter 106: Important Between Manager and Celebrity, Compatibility (4)

TL: emptycube / ED: Isleidir

“Cut! Change your outfits, we’ll be moving onto the next scene!”

As soon as the director gave the signal, the actors entered the resort to change their outfits, even Nam Joyoon. I tapped the dirt with the tip of my foot as I looked at the resort entrance like a budding stalker.

“Nam Joyoon’s done with his scenes, right?”

Good god. I clearly heard his name over the loud commotions.

Clicking my tongue, I perked my ears at the conversation behind me.

“Yes, the scene just now was his last.”

“He’s probably going to stay for dinner, right? Tell him to help with moving the rails.”

“Uhh, he probably can’t today? The director told him to just go for today.”

“What? We’re already short on manpower, why would he send manpower away? We just need to give him a few 10,000 won as pay^{1}. We don’t even have enough budget for that?”

“That’s not it. It seems Lee Sunghyun said that he would like him to leave.”

The woman’s voice lowered.

“He said he bothered him, but that’s just an excuse. A chief from W&U is here right now. He wants to get closer to him, but that chief seems to be interested in Nam Joyoon. That’s why he’s chasing him away.”

The voices gradually became more distant until I couldn’t hear them anymore. Well, I already heard what I needed to. I leaned against a thick tree trunk and waited a few minutes until the actors, who had finished changing their outfits, left the resort.

“Ah, chief!”

Lee Sunghyun was the first to discover me. He approached me with delight.

“The next scene will be much more impressive. It’s a scene where I fall into a pond…”

“Ah, sorry. I have to go back to Seoul so I won’t be able to see the next scene.”

“Pardon? Uh, so, you’re busy? The next scene is the real deal.”

“I have an important meeting.”

While there was still time before the dinner meeting, there was no longer any reason to stay here. Leaving Lee Songhyun, who felt it was a shame, I turned my gaze towards Nam Joyoon. While standing, he downed a bottle of water before wiping his lips with the back of his hand.

“Mr. Nam Joyoon. I heard that you were leaving now that you’re done. Are you going to Seoul?”

“Yes.”

“Since it’s on the way, should I give you a ride?”

Just as Lee Sunghyun, whose gaze alternated between Nam Joyoon and me, was about to cut in, Nam Joyoon lowered his head and said,

“I’ll be in your care.”

“Lee Sunghyun’s expression just now was killer.”

The man wearing the baseball cap, who also came along, giggled.

“Well, who’s he going to blame but himself. Good riddance, bastard.”

“What are you saying?”

Nam Joyoon, who had been drinking another bottle of water, asked. The man wearing the baseball cap simply shrugged.

“There’s something like that, man. Anyways, why are you drinking so much water?”

That was what I wanted to ask. This was his third bottle since before we left. Was he easily affected by the heat? Should I turn on the air conditioner?

Just as I was thinking this, I heard a sound behind me.

The rumbling sound of a stomach. A very loud one at that.

When I looked to the side, Kim Taewoong shook his head, saying it wasn’t him. When I looked in my rear-view mirror, the man wearing the baseball cap was looking at Nam Joyoon. And Nam Joyoon, with a slight frown, was rubbing his flat stomach.

“Hey, did you come with an empty stomach?”

“I thought we would eat on set.”

Even while talking, Nam Joyoon’s stomach rumbled for food. He placed the bottle with not a lot of water remaining on his lips again. Overlapping his figure with an unfortunate neighbor who filled his empty belly with tap water might be going too far, huh?

“When was the last time you ate something? Did you have breakfast?”

There was no reply.

“You didn’t eat anything today? What about yesterday?”

Still, there was no reply. The man wearing the baseball cap seemed stunned as he said,

“Did you use all your pay from your part-time job? You crazy bastard, you watched movies with your food money again, didn’t you?”

“No.”

“What do you mean ‘no’? Do I not know you? Is this the first time? What movie were you fixated on this month? Haaa, you alone are keeping the country’s movie industry alive. How many times have I told you to wait for movies that you want to watch multiple times to come out on DVDs? Are you out of your mind? Surviving comes first, not those movies!”

“I know, right?”

Nam Joyoon smiled faintly.

I looked away from my rear-view mirror and tapped on the steering wheel. So he starved himself to watch movies? Really, I was so stunned that I didn’t know what to say.

Kim Taewoong, whose ears were perked towards the conversation in the back, whispered to me with a pale face,

“It’s my first time seeing someone worse than you.”

No, I also spent my days in the theaters, watching multiple movies, without eating at one point, but that was because I had to watch them all at once since I didn’t have much time. My situation was different from his.

I was already going crazy because of my complicated thoughts. It was my fault that he didn’t get to have dinner on set.

“Hey, bear. Open the glove box in front of you.”

With a doubtful expression, he opened the glove box. His eyes widened at the sight.

“What is all this? Man, do you carry around a convenience store?”

“Take out a few. Those that seem filling,”

“You’re not the type to carry around snacks like this. Are you pregnant?”

“It’s not mine, you crazy bastard.”

They were Lee Songha’s.

Since she started sitting in the passenger’s seat, my glove box was never empty. There were ones that I bought for Lee Songha and others that Lee Songha brought herself.

She always ate them whenever she got in my car. She would eat two then give one to me, who was driving. Eat three, then give me another. I wasn’t the type who ate while driving, but at some point, it became a part of my life.

Because it seemed Lee Songha really enjoyed it.

Either way, I felt a strange sense of guilt because I was about to give Lee Songha’s emergency food rations, which not even the other members touched, to someone else, as though I was committing a crime.

While thinking that I should refill the glove box with the same snacks, I handed the bread and cookies Kim Taewoong passed over to me to Nam Joyoon.

“Eat this.”

“I’m fine. You are already giving us a rid-“

Nam Joyoon shook his head, but his body was honest. I heard his stomach roar now that it saw food. Only after suggesting it a few more times did he finally lower his head and accepted the snacks. Then he finished them up in a blink of an eye.

I licked my dry lips and asked,

“Did you not think of quitting? Acting, that is.”

“Many times.”

He replied with a parched yet calm voice.

“But I couldn’t.”

“Are you still looking for a company? Do you have any conditions?”

The mood inside the car became strange, especially the eyes of the man wearing the baseball cap, which kept moving around. It seemed like he barely managed to contain the urge to join in on our conversation.

Nam Joyoon’s voice was still calm.

“I don’t care as long as I can act.”

His words nailed into me like a wedge.

As soon as we arrived in Seoul, I dropped the two actors and Kim Taewoong off and immediately went to my apartment. Sitting in front of my laptop, I watched all the independent films Nam Joyoon was cast in.

Then I wrapped the ‘reasons why I shouldn’t’ that had made me hesitate and chucked them into the trash. Yeah, there was nothing impossible in the world. If it doesn’t work, then I just needed to find a way to make it work.

Let’s think about what I had to do to make him my actor.

Persuading the team 2 leader was the most certain method. Having to meet the team 2 leader because of Im Joowon’s contract had become an opportunity. Perhaps one that would never come again.

Yeah, let’s try to settle my bad relationship with the team 2 leader today.

“Do you have any complaints about me?”

“… No, none.”

I lied with a smile. The team 2 leader stared at me.

He was giving me that look ever since I arrived at the restaurant.

“But you come here with a busted lip after fighting at work? You know how many billions of won this contract is worth, right? When it’s not enough to only show Im Joowon our good side, you want to advertise that our company’s internal situation is a mess?”

I took care in wearing a suit, but it failed because of my face. Rather than settling our bad relationship, it felt like I was hated even more. I might be able to fill a truck with all that hate.

“I’ll just say that I got hurt from crashing into something.”

“Since I already told Im Joowon you’d be here, I can’t send you back. Team 3 really is a mess.”

Haha, if we were talking about which team was a mess, yours would take the top spot.

I smiled while hiding my thoughts. The one with a favor to ask needs to endure, damn it.

“Hey, don’t you dare cause trouble today. Even if the team 3 leader might gloss over your actions because he’s soft, I’m not like him.”

The team 2 leader scolded me for a long while before saying he was going out for a smoke to calm his burst of rage because of me. The room was quiet. The Team 2 and legal team employees, who gathered today for the meeting, glanced at me.

As if they were infected by the team 2 leader, the looks I received from other Team 2 employees weren’t friendly.

“Don’t worry about them.”

The man sitting next to me, who introduced himself as Chief Sung of Team 2, whispered.

“They are like that because the team leader scolded them, asking what they did while the newbie from Team 3 brought over an actor. The team leader is depressed these days because the issue with Son Chaeyoung isn’t being resolved.”

As usual, that woman was really of no help to me.

I looked to my side while clicking my tongue. But why was this person acting so friendly?

I had seen his face a few times at work. I remembered him because he gave me a good impression even though his eyes were narrow and they curled up at the end like a fox. Maybe it was because of his freckles. While I have never talked with him before, his voice strangely felt familiar.

“Please take care of me.”

Chief Sung abruptly said.

“For what?”

“The contract today, if it goes through, then I might be assigned to Im Joowon. And if it doesn’t, I’ll be assigned to Son Chaeyoung. That’s why I’m desperate.”

That really was worth being desperate for.

It seemed he read the pity in my eyes as he continued,

“I’m not assigned to anyone right now. I was assigned to two rookies, but both their contracts ended. That’s why I might have been pushed to Son Chaeyoung, but I was put on hold because of Im Joowon. I was lucky. I don’t think I’d work well with her. If a manager’s compatibility with their actor isn’t good, then the job becomes difficult.”

It probably wasn’t a problem of compatibility. Also, who would be compatible with that woman?

“If things go well today, I will return the favor. So please help in making this contract go through.”

That was what I hoped as well since it was the only way to get the team 2 leader to be kind.

“I’ll do my best since that’s what I came here to do.”

I prayed that Im Joowon’s reaction would be okay.

“To be honest, if it wasn’t for Mr. Sunwoo, I wouldn’t have considered W&U very much.”

I felt like I would become his fan from now on.

I was worried because Im Joowon’s personality was famous for being picky, but what was this? The mood was peaceful from the start. There was no need for me to help. It was more than enough to talk about what happened during the previous recording.

Because of this, the team 2 leader’s face was filled with benevolence.

“Is that so? It seems Mr. Joowon was very impressed with our employee.”

“I had some prejudice against W&U, but after seeing Mr. Sunwoo, my impression of W&U became better. His ability to bring good synopses to his actor and obtaining the opportunity for Neptune to perform while everyone was busy because of the accident. He was impressive.”

His detailed, handsome face smiled at me.

Hmm, I didn’t think I would become a fan, I already was one.

The team 2 leader rubbed his beard while listening before placing his hand on my shoulder.

“Chief Jung is the face of our company these days. He’s doing a good job because he was taught well by his superiors. Since all chiefs are good workers, don’t worry and trust them.”

His nickname for changed from ‘you’ to ‘our employee’ and finally ‘Chief Jung’.

Im Joowon asked with round eyes,

“Chief Jung? You were promoted already?”

“Yes, yesterday. My promotion was probably partly thanks to you.”

At my reply, Im Joowon laughed,

“Congratulations. If it’s was partly thanks to me, then take care of me if we end up working at the same company. If it wasn’t for Lee Songha, I would have asked you to be my manager. What a shame.”

It seemed the fact that I became a chief made Im Joowon more inclined towards us. Soon, a member of the legal team joined in and became discussing the contract.

Im Joowon requested a few other things that weren’t in the contract like how he wanted to bring over his stylist and road manager. When I listened to their discussion after taking a step back, since it was a big contract, the number of things that needed to be adjusted on either side was no joke.

The team 2 leader usually nodded his head without hesitation. He looked like he would even get him the moon.

“Then I will examine the contract with my lawyer and get back to you.”

“Of course you need time to examine it. Call us whenever it’s convenient for you.”

Ending the conversation, Im Joowon left the restaurant with a smile. While they hadn’t yet signed an exclusive contract, the mood couldn’t be better. Even the gazes on me were much gentler.

Seeing the team 2 leader happily drinking his beer, I prepared to speak. This moment was the most optimal time to request something.

First, I should open up by saying how there was a really good rookie who was too good to pass then ask him to take a look at his profile…

Just as I was about to open my mouth, the team 2 leader’s phone rang. As soon as he answered the phone, his expression instantly took a turn for the worst. He yelled,

“What? What did you say? Are you crazy? So where is she right now?!”

The team 2 leader cursed continuously. The heated mood from concluding the meeting in success quickly froze as though it was submerged in ice water.

Though I didn’t know the specifics, I was sure it had something to do with Son Chaeyoung because the team 2 leader immediately called her after hanging up.

While the Team 2 employees were gathered around the team 2 leader and murmuring to each other, I threw around a hundred cakes at Son Chaeyoung in my mind. Why did she have to at this moment? At this optimal moment?!

“She’s not answering. Ah, I’m going crazy. Chief Yoon, give me your phone.”

It seemed she wasn’t answering his phone as he took another chief’s phone and called her. However, even though the phone switched multiple times, it was the same. She didn’t answer any of them.

Anxiously clicking his tongue, the team 2 leader’s gaze eventually landed on me.

“Hey, give me your phone for a second-“

“I’ll do it. I know her number.”

I quickly took out my phone. Though I didn’t have the slightest desire in calling Son Chaeyoung, it was better than handing the team 2 leader my phone.

I had saved her phone number as a precautionary measure ever since she suddenly called me last time. As ‘the crazy bitch in this neighborhood’.

She probably wouldn’t answer my phone since she didn’t answer the team leader’s or any of the other employees’. While thinking this, I pressed the call button. Even though the team leader and other people were staring at me, they didn’t look like they had high expectations.

Yet, the phone stopped ringing after two times.

-What is it?

^{1} ~9.39 USD

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