The Child Everyone Wanted to Feed
“Hmm, could this be because of Gongza?”
She’d raised Gongza, and the child had changed. For the better, too.
CEO Seo scratched his head and shook it off.
“Ah, no way.”
He said that, but he couldn’t wipe the smile from his face. He’d watched her since she was a rookie. Honestly, he truly wanted her to be happy.
“Looks like Gongza really is an angel to you, Soo-jung.”
Come to think of it, there probably wasn’t another kid this fun to raise.
CEO Seo rubbed at his rough throat and snorted with a laugh. No matter how you looked at it, it was a relief that she seemed happy.
The number of people I wanted to feed well just kept growing. So what was I supposed to do?
I need to make good money.
I narrowed my eyes and started with squats. Strength training at my age was kind of ridiculous, but it was the best option I had.
Better to get ahead of it now.
Even with the coins boosting my stamina, this body was absurdly fragile.
Does “health” not include muscle strength?
I folded my arms and tilted my head. Just a little bit of squatting, and my thighs were already trembling.
Well, I don’t get sick easily.
I thought back on myself over the years. It was true that I rarely had trouble getting up, and I almost never caught colds.
But I’m still all weak and wobbly.
Ah, wait. I’d heard that before!
I clapped my hands.
“A body that lives like a sheet of paper and still lasts until eighty!”
Back in my Lee Hanjo days, I’d heard that line on a health program. It was the kind of body that wasn’t exactly sick, but was as flimsy as paper — the evolved form of being a little run-down all the time.
No!
I shook my head hard. There was no way I could live like that.
I’m going to become a perfect actor!
Being slim was fine, but being flimsy was not.
I can’t keep living like this.
I looked down quietly at my own body. I’d suddenly made myself taller, but I was still tiny beyond belief.
I’ve still got time.
I put strength into my trembling thighs.
I’ll polish myself until I shine.
That was when I clenched my fist and made up my mind. Deok-su opened the practice room door, fruit in hand.
“Ah!”
I quickly stopped squatting and flashed him a bright smile. But Deok-su’s eyes were sharp.
“What do you think you’re doing!”
I shrank my shoulders. Hey now, Deok-su. At this rate, anyone watching would think I’d caused some kind of disaster.
“I, I wasn’t looking at the script!”
I scrambled to explain, but Deok-su didn’t care. A big, intimidating man — no, really, his face alone was enough to make people flinch — he stood there holding a knife.
“Didn’t I tell you to rest!”
I gave an awkward laugh. Why was it that the paring knife in Deok-su’s hand seemed to be shining so brilliantly today?
“I, I was resting!”
“I just saw you doing squats.”
“I, I was trying it for the first time! I learned it on set last time!”
“Exercise is good. But not right now. Gongza needs to rest.”
Oh no.
I lowered my head. Honestly, I wanted to insist I was fine, but my record wasn’t exactly helping me.
This is on me.
I covered my face with both hands. It was still crystal clear in my mind.
It was yesterday.
Even now, just thinking about it made me emotional.
I met a mountain of scripts — and I mean that only slightly metaphorically.
Honestly, I thought I was dreaming.
As I stared at the scripts like an idiot, Mom had said, “Gongza, all of these came in for you.”
The moment she said that, my legs gave out. I couldn’t believe it.
After getting pelted with plastic bottles because of some shady accounting, people actually sent me this many casting offers?
Wow.
My hands shook so hard I grabbed the hem of Deok-su’s pants.
A groan slipped out of me on its own.
R-really? Th-this many?
Mom smiled brightly at me. Then she bent down so we could meet eye to eye.
“Because Gongza acted so well in the play.”
The play!
In that instant, I was so overwhelmed that tears came to my eyes.
So good deeds really do pay off.
I’d worked hard, sure, but I never expected this kind of reward!
I was just hoping to earn a few no-bullying passes!
No, but really, this was too much of a reversal. How on earth had public opinion flipped so completely that all these scripts were arriving now?
It’s not like a swarm of malicious commenters suddenly decided to praise me at once!
Those people would keep cursing me no matter what I did!
I reached out and wrapped myself in Mom’s arms. Then I mumbled softly, “W-why is this happening? There’s no way that many people would all change their minds at once.”
Did they all take some kind of medicine or something? I need to know, Mother.
Mom didn’t answer. When I drew back a little, wondering why, she was rubbing at the corners of her eyes.
“Mama?”
“Gongza. My angel of a son. You pretended nothing was wrong, but you were hurt after all.”
For a moment, I had no idea what exactly had hurt me.
“Our Gongza was scared, wasn’t he?”
“Gongza isn’t scared.”
“Gongza. It’s okay now. People have found out that you founded a charity and acted in a play. Public opinion turned around all at once.”
That much, I had expected.
“So that’s why so many scripts came in?”
Mom stroked my cheek and said, “That too, but I think people also recognized your talent. The play was only that one time, but the rumors are spreading now. Everyone’s saying our Gongza is a genius.”
Oh no.
I overdid it a little.
I had worked hard so this could happen, but it wasn’t exactly the sort of thing a kid my age was supposed to do.
A genius?!
I’m not!
I’m doomed now.
If I so much as acted a little badly from here on out, I’d get shredded for it.
Sarcasm will probably come as an added bonus.
I took a deep breath. The water was already spilled. There was no putting it back.
Let’s think positively. Better too much work than none at all. And now there are a lot of mouths I need to help feed!
Deok-su, and my lifesaver! And the children at the orphanage Sister Theresa looks after!
I’m going to give them good food and good clothes!
I set my mind straight and looked back down at the scripts. Then I smiled for real.
“Gongza will work hard!”
I ran over and picked up one of the scripts. Then I started reading it with all my might.
That was the problem.
A sigh escaped me before I could stop it. I looked at Deok-su, who was still holding the paring knife, then quietly reached out and picked up a fork.
“I’m sorry.”
Deok-su said nothing. Thanks to that, the only sound in the practice room was the quiet bite of me eating an apple.
“Gongza pushes himself too hard.”
“I didn’t know.”
“It was a serious matter. Gongza was reading scripts day and night, then collapsed while eating.”
Ah, no, Deok-su! Anyone hearing that would think I’d actually collapsed!
“I-it was just that I fell asleep!”
“That counts as collapsing too. And what you were eating was hot soup.”
Soup is supposed to be hot, Deok-su.
No, in the first place, adults always blow on it and let it cool a little when they say it’s for kids!
Anyone listening would think it was boiling broth.
“I still get chills thinking about it. If there’d been a hot plate in there too, it would have been a disaster.”
That was just a normal breakfast. How are you supposed to eat grilled meat on a hot plate first thing in the morning?
“I was incredibly shocked.”
“S-sorry!”
“It was my fault. I should have made sure Gongza was awake.”
Oh, honestly. At this rate, anyone would think something truly terrible had happened!
I kept chewing my apology and let out a sigh. Honestly, it wasn’t that big a deal.
I just kept staring at scripts in a daze and fell asleep while eating breakfast!
When I’d lowered my head, Deok-su had even grabbed me, hadn’t he? I didn’t remember it, but still.
Anyone would think I’d fainted or something!
I’d simply fallen asleep while eating. And in fact, I’d woken up just fine four hours later.
What happened after that was the ban on reading scripts, though…
Another sigh slipped out. Honestly, the punishment had been too much.
What kind of reason is that for banning script reading?
Come on, kids can get carried away like that too!
“The bloodshot look in Gongza’s eyes is gone now.”
“I got plenty of rest after that.”
“That’s a relief. Honestly, I’d even like to ban vocal exercises.”
Hey now, Deok-su, really?
“Gongza is an actor. For an actor, vocal training is like breathing!”
I couldn’t miss even a single day.
“I didn’t ban it. Honestly…”
Deok-su fixed me with a sharp look.
“I thought you’d just sneak off and do it anyway if I did.”
W-well, that’s true.
I’d probably sneak off to the bathroom and do it there.
I bowed my head deeply. With a mournful heart, I offered my defense.
“The scripts looked like candy.”
“I see.”
“When they arrived, I thought it was Christmas.”
Honestly, from today on, I kind of wanted to make that day my own personal Christmas.
Deok-su went quiet all of a sudden. I apologized with all my heart and soul.
“I’m sorry. But I couldn’t sleep. When I came to my senses, it was morning.”
Deok-su’s hand trembled. I munched on the apple and tilted my head a little. In the end, the mountain of a man pressed a hand to his forehead.
“I-I see.”
“Yup.”
“You must never do that again.”
“Yup. I won’t.”
“Hah.”
Deok-su kept trembling. What, had he developed a sudden case of the shakes? Why was he acting like this all of a sudden?
“Sir, are you hurt?”
“Gongza.”
“Yes!”
“You’re really adorable.”
I blinked.
What, now? You’re just realizing this?
I know that already.
“Sometimes I want to scoop Gongza up and cuddle him.”
What was that supposed to mean? Cuddle me how?
“And I worry, because you’re so cute. Gongza, stay away from dangerous people no matter what.”
Huh?
“You’ve got a good instinct. If your gut says someone isn’t right, run. There are bad people everywhere. Whoever they are. Even directors, even staff.”
Oh. I thought he was just giving me a safety lecture, but this was child protection education.
Come to think of it, it is advice I need to hear.
I nodded.
“Yes!”
“I mean it. Gongza is unusually cute, so I worry.”
Ah, well, that’s fair.
But still, Deok-su.
If we’re talking about dangerous people, you might not be completely excluded either.
Not that I don’t know perfectly well you aren’t, of course.
Deok-su gave me another stern warning.
“I brought you here because you said resting in the practice room was best, but then what do I find? You exercising.”
It was only a few squats!
“If you keep this up, I’m going to lock the practice room door.”
“That’s too much!”
“Gongza is working himself to the bone. Gongza. You remember what I said earlier, right? You absolutely have to run away!”
I nodded.
“Now then, it’s time to test that.”
Huh? What does that mean now?
“If some strange person comes by, you run. And you ask the people around you for help.”
What? Is he saying a strange person might actually show up?