An Angel in the Back Seat
Well, that was true.
They’d only done it because they knew I couldn’t do anything about it.
"And if they were really furious about actual accounting fraud, they wouldn’t have come here on purpose just to spew abuse at little Gongza. He’s just a child who doesn’t know anything."
Mr. Deok-su let out a long, troubled breath.
"It’s because Gongza is smaller and weaker in Sungjin Group."
In other words, they thought he was easy to push around.
"I’m worried. I hate the idea of Gongza being exposed to an environment like this and getting hurt."
No, really, it was fine.
"Teacher, you worry too much."
Well, no matter how many times I said it was okay, he probably wouldn’t believe me.
I’d better reassure him.
I broke into a bright smile, and Mr. Deok-su’s arms tightened around me even more.
"Besides, I’d hate hiding even more."
No, that wasn’t the point at all.
"If you just wait long enough, those people will figure out what the real problem is, won’t they?"
"But the problem is right now. You never know what those kinds of people might do."
"What Gongza fears most is not being able to film. Things like this are nothing."
The staff member who had rushed off to deal with the rude passerby returned, and I caught him saying that the matter had been handled by the assistant director.
Sorry for the trouble.
That was probably his way of being considerate toward little me, too.
"Gongza is strong. There are so many people protecting you, so something like that is nothing at all."
It wasn’t a lie.
"What matters more than a rude person yelling at me is that so many people are on my side. So Gongza is fine."
I took Mr. Deok-su’s hand and shook it a little, as if to tell him not to worry.
Then I heard them call out that filming was ready.
Huh. Looks like it worked.
Mr. Deok-su didn’t look worried anymore. I turned around and flashed a grin.
I ran out. The assistant director scratched the back of his neck and said, "Hey, Gongza. You okay?"
"Yep!"
"There are really a lot of strange people in the world, huh?"
I nodded.
"Gongza doesn’t care."
"You’re so brave. If anyone like that shows up again, the staff will kick them all out! Cheer up, okay?"
"Yep!"
"All right, let’s go!"
The camera lights shifted. Once everyone took their places, that familiar voice rang out.
Now it was time to focus on acting again.
"Stand by, cue!"
I walked forward slowly. The child was a little unsteady, unable to keep his eyes in one place, even planting his foot wrong once or twice.
Then an extra brushed past and bumped into him. The child staggered, then barely managed to stay upright again.
That much is fear.
I lifted my head.
The child stayed like that for a while.
But from here on, it’s curiosity.
I clenched my hand and straightened my shoulders, which had been curled inward. Then I slowly lifted my head.
I opened my eyes as I drew in a breath.
This is the part I have to do well.
I glanced around, looking mildly startled.
He thought it would be scary, but then he realizes it isn’t quite as frightening as he imagined.
I took one step forward, then started running faster and faster.
Wind and people swept past me.
Right now, the son is definitely thrilled.
So I ran with a smile on my face. At last, I heard the voice I’d been waiting for.
"Cut! Okay!"
Huh. One take and we were done.
"We’ll do one more long take, Gongza."
Director Rhy-lac gave me a thumbs-up.
"You’re the best."
I giggled. The director looked up at the sky once, then let out a long breath.
"It really feels like I’m dreaming."
He’s getting excited again.
Well, adults do tend to exaggerate when a child does well.
That was all temporary, anyway.
"Gongza. Why did you laugh?"
"I must have been happy. I’d never run down a street like this before."
"Right. And this is probably the first time the son hasn’t been scared, either. Of course you’d laugh."
Director Rhy-lac grinned.
"See? I told you he was a genius."
The assistant director, who had been the one to coach me through the scene, said, "I agree."
"Congratulations! So you’ve finally admitted Gongza is a genius!"
"The director’s right. I gave him acting direction in a really strange way, but he understood it perfectly."
So he knew he’d been lacking.
Still, compared with some of the things I’ve heard, this is pretty decent...
I shook my head.
"No! Give me better directions!"
Really, it was top-tier.
The assistant director looked at me and wiped his face with the back of his hand.
"Director! You saw that, right? Even now, he’s looking out for me!"
"Ah, a genius with great character too."
"I can’t wait to see what kind of future he’ll have!"
"What kind of actor will Gongza grow up to be?"
Director Rhy-lac laughed and patted my head.
"Anything’s fine. You’re mine!"
Hard pass.
"Gongza, grow up well. Grow up and appear in one of my works!"
I beamed at him and said, "Um, Director!"
"Yes. Gongza. You like that, right?"
There was one thing we needed to clear up first, though.
"I’ll think about it after you get a health checkup first."
You didn’t forget already, did you?
"Geh! A health checkup..."
"Show me proof of your love!"
I turned away coldly. Director Rhy-lac hung his head, but that was none of my concern.
The car moved smoothly forward. At midday on a weekday, the highway was wide open.
Just like our Gongza’s acting.
In the back seat, the child sat lost in thought, as if he were performing that same kind of role.
It’s rare to get an okay on the first take...
And yet that tiny genius had pulled it off as if it were nothing.
Though not every take goes that way, of course.
Mr. Deok-su didn’t know much about acting. He watched the occasional drama, but even now he still preferred books to videos.
But things are different now.
By some twist of fate, his employer was Ma Soo-jung, an actress every single person in South Korea knew. And the child he was caring for was child actor Ma Gongza.
Mr. Deok-su turned the wheel. The child’s hair swayed slightly, but he still didn’t move a muscle.
Any other child might have found that odd. But this child was Ma Gongza.
He must be thinking about acting.
It wasn’t unusual for the boy to sink that deeply into his thoughts.
Gongza really is different.
Mr. Deok-su nodded. Now he even knew why.
Maybe it’s because he’s an angel.
Honestly, when Ma Soo-jung had first said the boy seemed like an angel, he’d assumed she was joking. But the more time he spent with Gongza, the more Mr. Deok-su felt that maybe the child really was something like that.
Our Gongza really is unlike anyone else.
There were plenty of good children in the world. But no matter how good a child was, he was still a child.
But Gongza isn’t like that.
Even goodness had its limits.
At first, he’d wondered why this child was the way he was. But no matter how many educational psychology books he searched through, he could never find a case like Gongza’s.
I was startled by that at first, but...
Mr. Deok-su smiled faintly. Not anymore.
Well, if he’s an angel, then it makes sense.
Mr. Deok-su sincerely believed the boy was an angel.
He had plenty of reasons for thinking so.
A child who moved people.
From the moment they met until now, Gongza had always moved someone’s heart.
Even hugging the child who’d tormented him...
Honestly, the position of a chaebol family’s adopted son was enough to make someone look down on others. From what he heard from the staff at the mansion, there were plenty of terrible cases.
But Gongza isn’t like that.
Whenever Gongza came up, everyone had a hard time hiding their smiles. When he heard that Gongza had even gone to the hospital to comfort a housekeeper who had worked there for years, Mr. Deok-su had been so moved he’d had tears in his eyes for a full week.
How could a kid like that not be an angel?
He let out a long breath. Maybe because he was so moved, he felt like he might cry again.
Mr. Deok-su took a deep breath and steadied himself.
The once-clear road had begun to clog up. Of course, the child still hadn’t moved an inch, remaining deep in thought.
Mr. Deok-su glanced at the cars ahead. It looked like there’d been an accident.
Gongza gets into accidents pretty easily, too.
A sigh escaped him before he could stop it. Honestly, he couldn’t understand it.
There are actually people who’d curse our sweet, cute, kind Gongza...
The normal state of affairs should have been for Gongza to have no enemies at all, and yet there were still quite a few people who disliked him for no reason.
They’re probably just projecting their own inferiority onto our good Gongza.
What a petty reason.
Mr. Deok-su let out another breath. Whenever he thought about what Gongza had gone through, he got so angry he felt like he might cry again.
Gongza is such an angelic child.
Why on earth would anyone hate him?
Come to think of it, he had heard something like that before.
It had been from someone who worked in the mansion. After hearing them say Gongza was sweet and pretty, the person had given a creepy smile and said, "Doesn’t it bother you? Maybe the kid’s only acting mature because he wants to be loved. What kind of kid is like that? Isn’t it creepy? Or maybe he remembers his past life!"
Everyone who knew Gongza had said it was nonsense, but that person had stubbornly insisted they were right.
Mr. Deok-su let out a long breath.
Acting like that, huh...
He thought of Gongza on set.
Everyone calls him a genius.
Even to a layman like him, Gongza’s acting was outstanding. Mr. Deok-su sighed.
Maybe it could be that way.
But so what?
Even if he were only pretending to be good, would that make it bad?
Whatever it was, it didn’t matter.
The road opened up again. The cars that had been stuck started moving as if nothing had happened.
Just then, the child who had been lost in thought spoke.
"Teacher."
"Yes. What is it?"
"Gongza wants to make the welfare foundation soon."
Mr. Deok-su was startled.
Ma Soo-jung said she was going to make it.
But hearing it from Gongza made him suddenly feel like crying.
Gongza is sincere about helping other people.
If a child like this wasn’t an angel, then who was?
Tears blurred his vision. Mr. Deok-su rubbed at the corners of his eyes and kept driving.
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Time is moving so slowly."
"There are a lot of procedures involved in starting a company."
Gongza let out a sigh.
"I know, right? Hm? Teacher, why are you crying?"
"Because Gongza seems like an angel."
"Gongza isn’t an angel."
The angel denied his own existence. Mr. Deok-su sniffled and shook his head.
"Gongza is an angel."
"Hmm, is there anything other than angel?"
"A gift from heaven, a treasure to humanity, and the sort of cuteness history should record."
"Teacher. If possible, make it something strong, brave, and cool."
For a second, Mr. Deok-su nearly laughed out loud. Looking at him like this, he really was just a child, after all.
Gongza seemed embarrassed by the idea of being called a true angel and rubbed his arms, as if he’d gotten goosebumps.
Mr. Deok-su sniffled again and said, "Whatever Gongza is, it doesn’t matter."
The child in the rearview mirror blinked. The bewildered expression on his face was adorable, and Mr. Deok-su laughed inwardly.
I mean it.
Whether his goodness was an act, whether he’d been possessed by a ghost, whether he remembered a past life—if it was Gongza, then anything was fine.
"I’ll always help Gongza."
To be able to care for such an angel. Truly, it was the greatest luck.
"Um, Teacher."
"Yes?"
"You know it’s not okay to go to prison because you helped me too much, right?"
Mr. Deok-su couldn’t hold it in any longer and burst out laughing.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Hey, why are you laughing!"
The car kept moving forward. Laughing, Mr. Deok-su thought, As expected, Gongza really is an angel.