The Making of a Star
Ansan-daek smiled a little as she answered. “I don’t know. When I came in, it was already in Gongza’s cradle.”
Ma Soo-jung frowned. “You’re saying someone from the Seongbok-dong house gave it? There isn’t anyone like that. Did you prepare it, Ansan-daek?”
Ansan-daek shook her head at once. “I couldn’t give something this fancy. Look, Miss.”
Ma Soo-jung took a closer look at the jade ring. The gold setting was thick, no question about it.
“This is a pretty expensive jade ring.”
“Then who on earth gave it?”
“Isn’t there only one person it could be?”
Ma Soo-jung pinched the bridge of her nose. “No way. The landlord?”
“Miss! How can you call Madam that again?”
“No, seriously, why? What is he scheming this time?”
“Gongza’s your son too. Maybe he’s just paying attention to him.”
As if.
Ma Soo-jung immediately shook her head. “Ansan-daek. I know the landlord very well. I’d be relieved if he only tried to kick us out.”
“Ah, then…”
Ansan-daek hesitated, then said carefully, “Maybe because Gongza’s cute?”
Ma Soo-jung slowly lowered her gaze to her son.
That might actually be true.
The baby sleeping with his little colors all around him was especially adorable today.
“Our Gongza was really cute today, wasn’t he?”
“My goodness, what did Gongza do?”
“I honestly couldn’t take my eyes off him. Watch the DVD later, Ansan-daek.”
“Of course. I should. You must’ve had a hard time, too. Even with a manager helping you, taking care of a baby all day isn’t easy.”
Ma Soo-jung shook her head. “You know our Gongza.”
“That’s true. Gongza really is so gentle and easy to handle.”
“And then there’s the fact that, hmm…”
Ma Soo-jung brushed the hair away from her young son’s forehead. The sound of his soft breathing was painfully sweet.
“I was worried about one thing.”
“Oh? What was that?”
“I couldn’t tell whether being exposed to the public would be a good thing or not. If Gongza were just going to live an ordinary life, then of course the answer would be no. Though, honestly, that ship has already sailed the moment he became my son.”
Ansan-daek nodded. “The cameras were already on him. The exposure happened long ago.”
“Yeah. And in the middle of all that, our Gongza lights up the second there’s a camera pointed at him.”
“He does, doesn’t he?”
“I wondered if I should stop him, but I don’t think that’s it. I’ve decided after this doljanchi. Being proactive seems better. If Gongza’s dream is to become an actor, that is.”
Ansan-daek blinked. Watching her, Ma Soo-jung let out a long breath.
They were probably all wondering the same thing.
“You think it’s strange how sure I am, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“I’m just trusting a mother’s instinct. At the doljanchi, I caught onto the signal. If I don’t recognize that, then what am I supposed to trust?”
Gongza stirred in his cradle. The sight of it was so endearing that Ma Soo-jung smiled brightly.
“Miss, you’ve made up your mind.”
“Yeah. Or what, am I supposed to just sit here and wonder forever?”
“No. Your instincts are usually right. And Gongza’s still little, isn’t he? Once he’s old enough to clearly say what he wants, if he says he doesn’t like being exposed, then we can handle it that way.”
Ma Soo-jung nodded. “A child’s face changes as they grow.”
“That’s right. Still, Miss.”
Looking at Gongza carefully, Ansan-daek went on, “He’s so unusually handsome. Even if that face changes, I think he’ll stay pretty.”
“You think so too?”
Ma Soo-jung agreed completely.
“Hmm. I’m in entertainment, so I know a thing or two about faces. But I’ve never seen a baby prettier than Gongza.”
“If you decide to put Gongza out there, I think the phone will start ringing off the hook.”
“Oh, come on.”
Ma Soo-jung suddenly remembered the business cards she’d been handed.
“Or maybe not. Come to think of it, I got a lot of people asking for the DVD from Gongza’s doljanchi today.”
“Really?”
“They even gave me their addresses. There wasn’t just one or two business cards, either.”
Ma Soo-jung tilted her head. “It almost felt like Gongza was better at sales than the boss.”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing. Haha. Anyway, if things have turned out like this, then I should help out.”
Ma Soo-jung stroked Gongza’s head and said, “Gongza, just trust your mom.”
The baby waved his little arms around. It was so cute that Ansan-daek and Ma Soo-jung both covered their mouths and laughed.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Wow, my mom’s bold.
Honestly, when I asked for the mask, I’d thought Mom would have caught my meaning. But I never imagined she’d move this fast.
“Hello, Ms. Ma Soo-jung.”
“Yes, hello. This is our Gongza. Gongza, say hello.”
“Hullo!”
People covered their mouths and laughed.
“Wow, he’s really adorable. He’s exactly like the photos.”
“Isn’t he even cuter than the photos?”
“Oh, definitely. He’s much cuter moving around. Hello, Gongza. I’m the main writer, Lee Ga-jin.”
Oh, the main writer!
What kind of writer?
I beamed and held out my hand.
“Hullo, noona!”
“Oh my! Noona? Me? I’m already in my forties!”
“Noona!”
“My goodness!”
The main writer turned her head and laughed.
“The kid knows how to win over women.”
“Ah-ha! Do I?”
“Let me introduce myself again. I’m Lee Ga-jin, the main writer for the weekend variety show Baby and Me.”
“I’m assistant director Jo Byeong-cheol.”
“I’m sub-writer Seo Yu-ra.”
Oh, a parenting variety show.
A grin crept onto my face. Now I understood why these people had come to our house.
They’re here to interview us for a parenting variety show.
Wow.
This is good.
There was nothing better than variety shows for building recognition.
Well, there is the downside of your image getting consumed.
Was this going to be one of those shows that kept running?
My curiosity was answered quickly enough.
“It was planned as a one-off, but I strongly recommended Ms. Ma Soo-jung’s son.”
“If it’s our Gongza, he’s definitely got enough buzz.”
“Yes, of course, that was part of the consideration. As we explained over the phone, we’re aiming for a calm, healing kind of program.”
Mom smiled faintly. “I know. That’s why I agreed.”
“Telling a baby to follow a script and act it out exactly as written—that’s just cruel.”
“But then wouldn’t that risk leaving us short on footage?”
The main writer answered calmly. “That’s why we’re paying close attention to casting.”
Aha.
So they don’t want to force this.
That was surprisingly rare these days.
People already know, more or less, that parenting variety shows have scripts.
For some reason, the assistant director and the main writer in front of me suddenly looked different to me.
The main writer said brightly, “So to be honest, this could just flop.”
Yikes.
Mom let out a small laugh. “Yes, I understand. Personally, I hope there are more kind variety shows in the world.”
“Yes. I understand that feeling.”
Right, of course.
My mom got torn apart on entertainment information programs all the time.
There were plenty of shows that lived by gossiping endlessly about celebrities’ private lives. The brand called Ma Soo-jung was perfect for chewing up, spitting out, and talking about all over again.
I don’t know all the details, but the adoption probably caused a huge scandal too.
Mom was strong. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t be hurt.
And this strong woman smiled and asked, “You found out about our Gongza through his doljanchi DVD?”
“Yes. We’d been looking for a somewhat unusual child. That’s how your son reached us.”
“Oh my. How far did that thing travel?”
“It was a very unusual doljanchi.”
The main writer stared at me intently.
“Gongza seems like an unusual child in every possible way. How do you feel about our program?”
Mom patted my head.
“Please take good care of us. But I’ll be monitoring everything closely, so please don’t edit it in any weird ways.”
The main writer let out a sigh of relief. “Of course! Thank you so much. To be honest, I was worried you might refuse, Ms. Ma Soo-jung. Frankly, without Gongza, a lot of things would be hanging by a thread.”
“I’m not unaware of the situation. Still, the words ‘kind variety show’ moved me.”
“I know this wasn’t an easy decision. A lot of people dislike having their private lives exposed to the media, especially things like their home…”
Huh?
They’re showing the house too?
Come to think of it, that made sense.
Wow. Our house is going to be on TV.
I looked around. Come to think of it, where were they putting the cameras?
There’s no way they’re using only unmanned cameras.
Ah, filming. My heart thudded.
Good, very good.
Finally, viewers would be able to see how adorable I was!
I turned toward Mom. Then I flashed her a bright smile.
Thank you, Mom.
I’ll make the most of this opportunity you’ve given me. I’ll do my best to make the whole nation know my name.
But one thing still puzzled me.
Why start with a variety show?
I didn’t know much, but couldn’t I just do it through acting instead?
Running her fingers through her curly hair, Mom said, “The hardest thing for me in my acting career was being told I lacked relatability.”
Huh.
Mom?
I sort of got it.
She really is so exceptional that it’s hard for the public to relate to her.
She had everything—looks, wealth, and the kind of presence other people spent their whole lives chasing.
Mom smiled faintly. “That’s why I still seem a little too inhuman, don’t I? I don’t want that weakness to be passed on to Gongza.”
Huh.
Oh, I get it.
I clenched my fist.
I don’t know much, but if I go on a variety show, more people will start thinking of me as someone close to them.
And if that happened, there would be more people they could relate to.
If I get known too early, I’ll need to change my image, but the relatability part will definitely be covered.
Wow, Mom.
I respect you.
She really was thinking long-term.
“Ah, and you’re going to run an article about this anyway, right?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Then please say that all of Gongza’s appearance fee will be donated.”
Huh.
I blinked at Mom.
“Oh? You’re going to do that?”
“Yes. I’m planning to donate it. That should quiet down some of the nonsense about us using the child to make money.”
Do people still say things like that?
“It’s decreased a lot these days, but still, I’d like to do it. Besides, we’re not exactly short on money.”
“Yes, understood. Should I name the donation recipient as well?”
“Yes. The orphanage where Gongza used to live.”
The main writer nodded with visible admiration.
“I see.”
“It’s the place that let us meet our Gongza.”
“Understood.”
The main writer stood and bowed.
“Then we’ll see you on filming day.”
“Yes. Please send us the schedule.”
“Will do. Gongza, see you later!”
I lifted my hand high and said, “Goodbye!”
“Aww, how cute.”
Mom and I stood up to see them out. After the filming team left, Ansan-daek said, “Miss, that must’ve been tiring.”
“It was an interview. Why would that be tiring?”
“Still, you had to go out right away.”
“Ah, that’s true. I have been a bit busy lately.”
I stared at Mom.
“Hmm, Gongza. Do you have something to say?”
“Mama! Good. So, so good!”
I respect you very much, Mom.
She’s really thinking about so many different things.
Suddenly, something hot surged up inside me.
Come to think of it, when I was trying to make it as an actor, there was no one helping me.
I’d been called a premium supporting actor, but honestly, my agency wasn’t a good one. To be blunt, the managers were all useless, and even those kept getting replaced.
Having someone to help you is a huge thing.
Someone was doing all this for me.
I sucked in a breath. But maybe because I was a baby, the tears came first.
“Oh my, Gongza, why are you crying?”
Big, fat tears began dropping one after another.
Honestly, I was surprised at myself.
No, why are you crying? Don’t cry!
Mom, who didn’t understand what was going on, took my hand. Warmth spread through me.
The tears wouldn’t stop.
Damn it. I’ll be a good son.
Thank you for clearing the path for me so diligently.
“Mama, I rella like you!”
Mom blinked, then quietly pulled me into her arms.