Chapter 152
Chapter 152
As soon as I stepped onto the commercial set, I saw an unwelcome face.
“Have you been well? You seemed to have a lot on your mind lately.”
It was VTIC’s Cheong-ryeo.
‘Give me a break.’
Why was he popping up here?
For the record, I hadn’t received a single word of notice from the company. They had just rushed me here, saying they’d landed a great ad on short notice, so I’d only had time to look over the storyboard.
If the person I’m working with is someone I know, shouldn’t they at least give me a heads-up?
‘I want to quit.’
I really wasn’t feeling the motivation to work.
But showing it would only feed the rumor mill. I simply nodded.
“Yes. Thanks to your advice, everything was resolved well.”
“Ah, really? That’s good to hear.”
Cheong-ryeo smiled and held out a hand.
“I look forward to working with you today.”
“Likewise.”
I didn’t do anything childish like squeezing too hard, but the handshake ended in an instant.
“Then, I’ll see you in a bit.”
“Yes, sunbae-nim.”
I’d rather not.
Recalling the storyboard, I felt a strange sensation as I changed into my outfit and prepared for the shoot.
The costume was a trendy style of tracksuit. However, it featured a corporate logo.
‘I already know why I’m wearing this, of all things.’
First of all, the filming location was a grassy field, and there was a lot of physical activity involved in the shoot.
It went like this.
“Alright, release them!”
At the director’s command, a pack of four-legged animals swarmed toward Cheong-ryeo and me as we stood in the field.
It was a group of various three-month-old retrievers and mixed-breed puppies.
“Yap!!”
Following the storyboard, I was stroking the scruffs of various pups when one of them jumped up and headbutted my nose.
‘They’re excited.’
Once one started, three or four others followed suit, jumping up in succession. Hey, don’t lick me.
I picked up the fluffy lumps with both hands.
…They were cute, I’ll give them that.
“Pfft!”
Now one was sneezing right in my face.
I almost fell over while trying to adjust my hold on them.
I struggled to keep a straight face while covered in saliva, with four or five puppies tucked under my arms.
“Cut! Ah, that was great~!”
“…Thank you.”
A staff member ran over to fix my ruined face. We were both suffering.
“Try to hold the puppies more firmly! Like you’re giving them a big, sturdy hug~ and give us a bright smile!”
Right. A ‘sturdy feeling’ was important.
After all, what we were filming right now was an insurance company commercial.
To be precise, it was a corporate brand image advertisement promoting a major insurance company’s support for abandoned dogs and the training of guide dogs.
‘Usually, they use someone with broad public recognition for things like this.’
It seemed I was cast as a replacement after the actor originally intended for my spot was hauled away following a sexual harassment scandal.
The recognition I’d recently gained among the older generation through I Made This Singer probably played a part, but…
“Good boy.”
…The fact that my public friendship with this guy might have influenced the decision left a bit of a bitter taste in my mouth.
Even though filming had paused, Cheong-ryeo was handling the pack of dogs with uncanny skill.
I noticed several of them rolling over to show him their bellies. Talk about being photogenic.
‘I kind of want to take a picture.’
But it would be awkward to go grab my smartphone. It wouldn’t look professional.
At that moment, Cheong-ryeo spoke up.
“Do you like dogs?”
“…They’re not bad.”
The staff happened to be away. Since they were only capturing the visuals and the voices would be added via narration later, there were no clip-on microphones either.
That meant it was the perfect timing for this bastard to start talking nonsense.
But my prediction was off.
“Right? They’re quite wonderful. So kind.”
“……”
“They’re easy to handle, too. You praise what deserves praise, and scold what deserves scolding.”
Cheong-ryeo just kept stroking the dogs while talking about them.
Reflexively, a piece of information flashed through my mind.
—That hyung donates half of his earnings to abandoned dog shelters and stuff.
Was that actually true?
No, it didn’t matter.
“You seem to like dogs, sunbae-nim.”
I planned to just play along and kill time until filming resumed.
However, he tilted his head to the side.
Among people, that usually signifies… confusion.
“Do I like them? I’m not sure. It’s easier not to raise them anyway.”
Up until then, I thought he just meant dogs were a lot of work and therefore a hassle.
“In the past, I used to raise a dog every time I started over, but after a while… rumors started spreading that I was a habitual abandoner.”
“...!”
“I would have suspected me too. When I checked, the breed of the dog I mentioned changed every time I talked about it. Hmm, once that was disproven, people started talking about schizophrenia… Hahaha, it was a total disaster back then!”
Cheong-ryeo laughed out loud. A chill ran down my spine.
“…Was it not the same dog?”
“Pardon? Haha, it’s a bit much to raise the exact same dog every single time.”
“……”
Cheong-ryeo stopped laughing.
“I tried it, but it wasn’t great. If things got tangled and I couldn’t bring the dog back, I’d just end up feeling unnecessarily uncomfortable and worried.”
I was speechless.
The problem was that I understood exactly why this bastard had lost his mind.
I responded as calmly as possible.
“…Since you won’t have to start over anymore, I think you could try raising a new one.”
It was a way of telling him to give up on the idea of resetting.
“You’re very confident. Is this… your last mission? Did the math work out that way based on what I told you?”
“……”
No response was the best response.
However, this guy interpreted my silence as an affirmation.
“Congratulations. But do you really believe that?”
“...!”
“Haha, I’m joking. Based on my experience, it’s probably right. I don’t lie about things like this.”
The mental image of smashing a Grand Prize trophy into that face of his provided some comfort.
“…Hmm, then is it really…… the end?”
The expression vanished from his face in an instant, and he pulled his hand away from the puppy’s belly.
‘…Wait.’
Surely he’s not going to pull some crap like, ‘Try it one more time before it’s all over,’ or ‘There’s no chance once it ends, the timing is now.’
I decided to lay some groundwork immediately.
“As long as the VTIC sunbae-nims maintain the status quo, there won’t be any groups that can compete with you. Isn’t the current state the best?”
“Well… it’s fine.”
Cheong-ryeo was indifferent.
Then, he picked up a puppy by the scruff of its neck.
“It’s not that I’m perfectly satisfied but… well… I suppose so. I’ll have to get used to it.”
“...!”
It was a roundabout declaration of surrender.
‘Thank God.’
I felt like my lifespan had just been shortened. I wondered if cold sweat was trickling down my forehead.
But Cheong-ryeo wasn’t finished.
“However, junior, I don’t think it’s a good idea to let your guard down too much.”
Please, I don’t want to hear any more of your nonsense.
I found myself stroking a dog without even realizing it. The mindless, fluffy creature was surprisingly comforting.
Fortunately, Cheong-ryeo’s next words weren’t nonsense.
It was the voice of cold reason.
“In this industry, ‘popularity’ is a limited resource. In other words, if another team earns resources well, it means your resources are leaking out. It’s always been that way. Especially if you limit it to the domestic market.”
“……”
Was he making a comparison between VTIC and TeSTAR?
But a name I hadn’t expected came out instead.
“The group under Traveler that debuted this year seems to be doing quite well. Keep an eye on them.”
Traveler—that was Gold 1’s agency.
In other words, he was advising me to keep a check on Gold 1’s group, who were decent rookies.
‘…Is that really necessary?’
They weren’t even in a weight class worth checking yet, and doing so poorly could end up giving them an unnecessary narrative.
Besides, they were guys who debuted after the period Cheong-ryeo knew anyway. It meant he hadn’t actually seen their future.
But since there was no need to provoke the guy, I just nodded.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Don’t just say it. Hmm… I’ve listened to their songs, and they’re quite good. But the composer isn’t an in-house employee.”
Cheong-ryeo smiled.
“It’s good to just buy off the composer.”
“...!”
“It’s easy and convenient. If the songs are bad, it’s over.”
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”
“Strict, aren’t we? Fine. But don’t forget it.”
‘Why has this guy become so talkative?’
It was as if he was undergoing animal therapy with that pile of puppies, the way the words were flowing out of him.
“We’re almost ready for the next scene~! Three-minute standby!”
Fortunately, the announcement that filming was about to resume echoed through the area. People were scurrying about busily.
‘This is the end of it.’
The next cut would be the last one I had to film with this guy. I suppressed a sigh.
And just before filming restarted, I heard a small voice.
His tone was slightly hesitant.
“…Did the problem you mentioned get resolved well?”
“……”
I opened my mouth slowly.
“More or less.”
“I see. Well… if you change your mind or have any worries, contact me.”
“…Understood.”
Well, it was less chilling than before.
“Woof! Yap!”
Filming ended smoothly. Cheong-ryeo left first due to his schedule.
I returned to the dorm carrying several sets of tracksuits identical to the one I’d worn, which was now covered in dog hair.
Perhaps everyone was out for extra choreography practice, as only one person who had finished early was in the dorm.
It was Cha Yu-jin.
“You’re back!”
“Is that a gift??”
“Yeah. Take one.”
“Wow!”
Watching Cha Yu-jin rejoice over a tracksuit, I was struck by a strange sense of déjà vu.
‘…Isn’t he more like a dog than those puppies were?’
I was the one who had actively pushed for it, but the world of nicknames was a mysterious place.
A few days later, we had completely mastered the title track’s choreography.
“Whew, choreography video complete!”
“Ah, nice~!”
Since we finished filming the choreography video a bit early, we had some time left over. Everyone, without exception, sprawled out on the wooden floor to enjoy a rest.
“Cha Yu-jin, are you wearing that again?”
“It’s comfortable!”
“Ah, is it… okay if the lo-logo shows in the choreography video…?”
“Ah, I asked, and they said it was fine. Don’t worry.”
“Damn, look at hyung-nim’s speed~”
Cha Yu-jin had been wearing the tracksuit I’d received as a gift from the commercial shoot day in and day out.
‘At this rate, he’s the one who’ll end up filming the ad next.’
I let out a short laugh and turned on my smartphone.
Pre-orders for the album had begun, and the cover design had been released, so I planned to monitor the reactions.
“Mu-Moondae. Do you want a face mask?”
“Sure. Thanks.”
The air conditioning was running, but we were all hot from moving around so much as a group. I used the ice pack Seon A-hyun handed me as a neck pillow while scrolling through the screen.
‘Not bad.’
The album covers, which were divided into a black-and-white ink wash painting concept and a traditional color painting concept, were both receiving favorable reviews.
—The traditional concept was real, I love it so much T_T
—Victory for those of us who waited for the hanboks.
—I’m going crazy waiting for the photo cards.
At first, the company had suggested the insane idea of having eight versions of the album—seven individual versions for the seven solo tracks plus a group version—and I’d had a hard time talking them out of it.
‘I’m glad they listened when I suggested including stickers for decorating the album or making them random out of eight types instead.’
If the eight versions had been approved, the General Manager would have just stamped his approval without asking any questions.
‘Come to think of it, I heard the General Manager is leaving soon.’
Since I’d had many opportunities to talk to company staff lately, from the new album to variety show production, I’d heard a lot of rumors, including one that the General Manager was on his way out.
‘I should get things moving quickly while the Approval Bot is still here.’
Since the future is uncertain, you have to take what you can while you can.
Checking my plan to resolve the status effect, I absentmindedly changed the search terms for monitoring.
“Do, do you want some water?”
“Uh… thanks.”
Seon A-hyun gave me something else. I accepted the water with a slightly awkward feeling.
I was grateful, but… it reminded me of a ‘bread shuttle,’ and I felt bad.
‘Should I do some monitoring for him?’
Without much thought, I tried to search for Seon A-hyun’s name on social media.
As I did, a trending search term auto-completed.
[Seon A-hyun Dating]
“……?”
“Moondae-Moondae, what are you do—?!”
Keun Se-jin, who was leaning in, froze when he saw the screen.
And I was also quite taken aback.
‘Seon A-hyun?’
It was a dating rumor… that I hadn’t seen coming at all.