Episode 98
Let’s smile. You have to smile to win.
The gazes in the hall were stabbed into me, blatant and unrelenting.
I turned my head slightly to the side. Director Rhy-lac and Jung Yu-jin were looking at me with worried eyes.
I gave them a quick wink and turned back.
“About Gongza...”
I could feel the reporters twirling their pens over their notebooks.
Feels like I’m being hunted. I suppose I do look delicious.
Questions like this were definitely hard.
No matter what I say, they’ll probably tear into me anyway.
But still.
“I grew up hard.”
It’s not for nothing that this is my second life.
I smiled brightly. The sharp edge in the reporter’s eyes actually pleased me a little.
What, you asked and I answered.
Ah, of course, it wasn’t the answer you wanted.
What are you going to do, glare at me?
Honestly, don’t ask a kid something this difficult in the first place. Right?
It was obvious they were trying to drag Sungjin Group into this and use that to tear me down.
Well, I’m the black sheep there anyway. They don’t even recognize me as family to begin with.
To that Hitler grandmother, I’m still a half-breed.
Well, things had improved a little after seeing each other for so long.
But that doesn’t mean I can tell them the whole backstory.
The reporter looked ready to press on, but the moderator was faster.
“Next question. Ah, you there in the green vest on the left?”
The questions started again. Jung Yu-jin reached out once more and gently patted my head. When I turned my head a little, she was smiling faintly.
“You did well.”
Not at all.
Thank you for understanding.
I let out a long breath. Reporters, as usual, never changed.
I hate that those bastards get to steer public opinion.
No wonder trust in the media was so low.
Well, at least I learned something.
No matter what I did, I was going to get torn apart.
Not all of them, probably, but still.
Then what should I do?
I need to think about this.
Now that I’d experienced it for myself, I felt like I understood the bitterness of it a little better.
As I was mulling over all sorts of thoughts, the moderator said, “All right, that concludes the production briefing for The Basement. Then we’ll have the photo session.”
Oh, so it wasn’t over after all. They were doing that too.
The cast lined up. The director edged over to my side and said, “Gongza, you did well.”
I beamed.
“I was flustered.”
“Did you come prepared with answers?”
Not really, but it’d be better to say I did.
“Yes! Mom told me what to say.”
“Whew. You nearly made my heart stop. Still, Gongza.”
The director looked at me and gave me a thumbs-up.
“You came dressed awfully prettily.”
Ah.
“That checked jacket and red ribbon are perfect. I really thought you’d stepped out of some painting just now.”
W-well then.
“T-thank you.”
Jung Yu-jin leaned in slightly and said, “Oh, I thought so too. Is this Teacher Jeongri’s outfit as well?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure.”
“Huh? The stylist didn’t dress you?”
I shook my head.
“No stylist. This outfit was chosen by Mom and the teacher and the CEO...”
My voice wavered at the end. The fear that had passed through me surged back up again.
Before I realized it, I was clutching the director’s sleeve.
“They picked it out from a mountain of clothes.”
If hell exists, it’s there.
I muttered quietly.
“I was scared.”
The getting dressed never ended.
“O-oh dear.”
“Honestly, that was way scarier than the reporters’ questions.”
I let out a heavy sigh. It was all over now, but the trembling still hadn’t stopped.
Just then, a staff member said, “Gongza, please stand at the photo zone.”
Ah, my turn.
I walked over quickly. Camera flashes burst all around me.
I smiled brightly at the lenses, making sure to turn my body slightly, too.
Now the production briefing should be over.
It had been a long time since I’d been out at an official event like this.
“Next, please!”
I felt a little sorry that it was ending already. As I stepped down from the photo zone, I straightened my chest.
Still, this was another success.
A grin tugged at my lips. As expected, work suited me.
* * *
My breath was coming in ragged gasps. I wiped the sweat off with a towel. I really couldn’t win a single one.
Ma Jeok kept lightly tapping the ball and said, “Gongza, you’re seriously terrible.”
I let out a long breath. I didn’t even have a good excuse to offer.
I looked down at my palms.
This body really doesn’t seem to have much athletic instinct.
I’d felt it ever since dance practice.
What if all my talent went to my face?
Still, I’d usually been decent at things. Or maybe not.
I was still panting when I nodded.
“Seems like it.”
“No, even after going easy on you, you still can’t do it.”
The skill gap was so huge that Ma Jeok looked bored. I apologized obediently.
“Sorry.”
“N-no. Don’t apologize! You’re younger than me, aren’t you?”
That was true.
“Besides, it’s not just you. Nobody in the soccer club can stop me either.”
Ma Jeok grinned.
“That’s the weird part. I didn’t used to be like this, but after my dad went to prison, I’ve gotten insanely good at soccer.”
Oh?
“I dodge every tackle now. I can even feel what kind of tackle is coming!”
I blinked.
“You didn’t used to be like that?”
“Yeah. No way.”
“Just soccer?”
“No. Now I can dodge Mom’s hand too. I even dodged a slap yesterday.”
That was because of the coin I’d spent.
Something clicked in my head.
I boosted my evasion ability and my danger-sense ability, right?
I raised them so I wouldn’t get hit, but did that work for soccer too?
I looked at Ma Jeok. The idiot, none the wiser, kept bouncing the ball against his knee.
Did I accidentally turn him into a soccer genius?
I asked carefully, “Jeok, do you like soccer?”
“Of course.”
“Hmm. Do you want to be a soccer player someday?”
Ma Jeok didn’t answer right away.
I waited patiently.
After a while, the boy who’d only been bouncing the ball finally opened his mouth.
“I want to.”
His voice was heavy with gloom.
“Who’s against it?”
“Everyone. They say no. They say I’ll have to do company work.”
Ah, what, are they handing the company down to him?
“Mom said I should inherit Sungjin Group, but honestly, I don’t even want to, and I don’t think I could do it anyway.”
What was that supposed to mean?
“For starters, there’s Shin-hyung. I can’t beat Shin-hyung.”
So there was already someone else designated as the successor.
“Company work sounds awful. I like soccer.”
Well, his dream was clear enough.
Still, soccer is popular, and if you’re good at it, it’s a spectacular career.
I looked him over.
Yeah, he definitely wasn’t cut out for management.
He’d be happier doing what he loves.
I grabbed his arm.
“Can’t you just play soccer?”
Ma Jeok let out a heavy sigh.
“Mom’s dead against it. Even now she hates that I’m playing. I guess she lets me because I’m good at it and she likes having something to brag about.”
That was quite the appraisal.
“And if I want to play soccer, I have to go overseas. That’s how I can really succeed.”
True enough. Overseas had better infrastructure than here. It was a soccer powerhouse.
“I could probably get support and go if I become good enough. But Gongza, think about it. Who’s going to support me?”
Fair point.
If someone tried to sponsor a Sungjin Group kid, people would talk immediately.
I wouldn’t do it either. Everyone in Korea knew that family was loaded.
But nobody in their house is going to support him.
Ma Jeok sighed.
“I think about it every night, but it won’t happen. Probably.”
“Hmm. Besides your mom, is there anyone else who could support you?”
“Nope. I hinted around to people on my mother’s side, and they just laughed at me. Dad said the same thing too. He asked how long I was going to keep playing ball.”
Why were they mocking a kid for dreaming?
“But I really like this ball game. I want to keep doing it.”
I nodded.
The direction was set.
I asked him one more time. “If you do become a soccer player, will you train hard?”
“Of course! I’d do it with my life on the line.”
“All right, got it.”
I patted his shoulder and smiled.
I decided I’d take responsibility for this kid.
Then I’d better take responsibility.
Still, supporting a soccer prospect...
That wasn’t something money alone could do.
A great athlete always has a devoted family behind him.
He’d need support and encouragement too.
Definitely not easy.
But I’d decided I was responsible for him.
I exhaled slowly. The decision was made; now all that was left was to act on it.
Ma Jeok seemed to dislike the serious mood, so he changed the subject.
“By the way, you said the movie’s coming out?”
“Yeah. I think the preview screening is soon.”
“I heard you’re the lead. The whole school’s been going crazy over it.”
Huh, so it really was making waves.
“Yeah. My first lead role.”
“Whoa, can I come see you?”
I shook my head firmly.
“You’re too young to watch it.”
“Huh? Seriously? Then you can’t watch it either?”
“Yeah.”
“You filmed it and you can’t even watch it? How does that make sense?”
It was a little strange, but that was normal in the world of child actors.
I do want to check it out, though.
How did they edit it? What had changed from the Basement I knew?
Well, still. Nothing I can do about it.
The Basement was a good story, but it wasn’t exactly the kind of film a child should watch.
Ma Jeok kept glancing around before speaking carefully. “Hey.”
“Yeah? What is it?”
“Can I get your autograph?”
Huh?
I blinked. Ma Jeok avoided my gaze.
“I mean... since I told people we’re close, everyone’s been nagging me to get autographs from you.”
Ah.
I smiled brightly.
“If it’s for my friend, I can do it all day long.”
“Really? Thanks!”
“But, Jeok...”
I put a hand on his shoulder. Since he’d shot up so much, it was easy to reach.
“There’s one problem.”
“Huh? What?”
“I don’t have an autograph.”
Ma Jeok’s eyes went wide.
It’s true. I never made one.
He immediately blurted out, “Why not! You’re famous!”
“Hmm, because I’ve never had a reason to sign anything?”
I wasn’t signing cards or opening bank accounts.
That’s the kind of thing a guardian handles.
It’d be weirder for a preschooler to already have a signature.
“Y-you! Make one right now!”
Come to think of it, it was about time I made one.
I nodded.
“Okay. I’ll make one today.”
“You’re seriously weird sometimes.”
If it was only sometimes, that was a relief.
I laughed and patted his shoulder. Maybe because I’d decided to take responsibility for him, he felt a lot like a younger brother.
* * *
CEO Seo spun around in his office chair and said, “Ha! This is killing me.”
“Did you have day drinking, sir?”
“You know I only day drink at home with the lady of the house. But right now? I’m a little tipsy with joy.”
The CEO was still spinning.
Ma Soo-jung crossed her arms and said, “Aren’t you getting dizzy?”
“Yahoo! I am dizzy.”
“Then stop it already!”
“Nope. Don’t ruin my happiness. I’m so happy I could die.”
Ma Soo-jung snorted softly. She understood the feeling perfectly well.
“You said the casting offers are flooding back in?”
