The Real Player (1)

Glendale, a middle-class residential neighborhood about a fifteen-minute drive from Hollywood.

There stood a slightly upscale house, complete with a garden and a swimming pool. The home was filled with the distinct aroma of fusion cooking—Korean dishes prepared with American ingredients. In the middle of this, a ten-year-old boy watching television in the living room suddenly shouted toward the kitchen.

"Dad!!"

From the distance came a distracted reply. "Yeah, what?!"

The father, busy cooking, tried to brush off the noise, but his hand holding the frying pan froze at the boy's next words.

"Sion is kissing!!"

"Wh-whaaaaaaat?!"

Shocked by the scandalous news, Charlie Kang, a family man in his early forties, came rushing out of the kitchen still clutching his frying pan. As the representative and CEO of CK Agency, and a man who, despite his proud American citizenship, still held onto his Korean identity, he stared at his two children sitting in front of the modestly sized CRT television before turning his gaze to the screen.

[Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaahhhhh-!!]

The speakers were practically tearing. Wild whistling and deafening cheers erupted from the screen. And there, two young people were kissing.

The male lead of that kiss was undoubtedly the actor he represented, Sion Lee.

"Y-You... you..."

Charlie, who had helped Sion get ready before the ceremony and then headed home to take care of his family, seriously contemplated whether he should drive back to Burbank right now, where the live broadcast was taking place. Even if Sion won the "Best Kiss" award, Charlie had never expected him to pull off such a shocking stunt.

But a youthful voice brought him back to reality.

"Whoa..."

Sitting on the sofa behind him, her eyes sparkling, was his eldest daughter, fifteen-year-old Esther Kang. Unlike her father, she was a typical American teenager in every sense, and she was currently completely spellbound.

"Seriously, that is so cool... Wow..."

As someone who admired the glamorous life of Hollywood stars and naturally adored Sion Lee, she looked as if she had entered a dream world. The sight of two beautiful people reenacting a kiss from a movie was a powerful image. By now, it would be deeply engraved in the minds of countless viewers across America.

Seeing his daughter's reaction, Charlie's perspective shifted slightly.

Wait, is this actually not bad?

Of course, as the head of the agency, he was worried about tomorrow's headlines. But just as Charlie feared, Sion Lee had "once again" caused a massive incident that the media would greedily devour.

The "Best Kiss" category itself was unprecedented in any traditional awards show, so it was bound to generate massive buzz. To perform an actual kiss with his partner Elena on stage in that situation? And to anyone watching, it was clear Sion had "intentionally" leaned in first.

Numerous industry experts watching the broadcast excitedly discussed the kiss.

"And Elena didn't even reject him!"

"Come on, she probably had no choice because of the live atmosphere."

"Damn, that was a truly iconic scene. Thanks to Sion Lee, MTV just scored a moment for the history books. They'll be playing that clip ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at every awards show for years to come. I'm so jealous."

"Haha, right. A scene like that is a goldmine for a network."

The general public was also captivated by the kiss, talking about it with flushed faces.

"That was insane..."

"Do you think I'll ever have a kiss like that?"

"Girl, you can kiss Danny anytime you want!"

"We broke up last week."

"Oh..."

While there was some minor buzz shifting from Sion to Elena, it was undeniably a legendary scene. Various media outlets used the word "iconic" to describe such unforgettable moments and scrambled to capitalize on it.

In fact, to capture that exact moment, MTV had mobilized every camera heading toward the venue to focus on Sion and Elena. In a way, thanks to the spontaneous action of a single actor, Sion Lee, MTV had secured a "scene" worth far more than the entire production cost of the awards show. It was a gift so valuable that they might have to "compensate" him for it someday.

Tom Preston, the president of MTV, immediately contacted the live broadcast truck, laughing heartily as he gave orders.

"Clean up that footage right now! We're going to play it three ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠times a day on our channel forever!"

Thus, propelled by the overwhelming support of the public, Sion Lee and Elena Asimov were elevated to the highest stars shining in the night sky, if only for today. It was no exaggeration to call them the definitive youth stars representing 1990s America. They might remain immortalized in the media that way forever.

...But the two who had achieved this great feat were actually feeling a bit awkward around each other.

As their lips parted, Elena let out a soft, held-in breath. A pink blush bloomed on her pale face. Sion cleared his throat and said shamelessly,

"You're not very good at kissing. Noah was better."

"...Idiot."

Her heart pounding wildly, Elena could only say that and lightly push Sion away.

By the time they returned home after the after-party, it was past midnight.

"Whew."

As Sion got out of the car, the limousine window rolled down, and Elena poked her head out.

"Good night."

She was slightly tipsy. She had sipped champagne glass by glass at the after-party, and this was the result.

Sion chuckled, showing off the trophy in his hand, and teased her.

"Good night to you too. Don't go jumping off the second floor today just because I'm not there."

"Haha, that was actually really fun. No, it was crazy."

"Don't you like crazy things?"

"...Maybe."

Elena lightly adjusted her hair, looked at Sion's completely dark house, and twitched her lips as if she wanted to say something. A cool breeze blew between them. The quiet driver waited silently, like the passing wind, for the two young stars to finish their conversation.

"Um, you today. You were really impressive."

"When am I not?"

"I'm sure we'll be able to see it 'from anywhere'."

With those words, the window rolled back up.

"...?"

The limousine drove off. Sion stood there for a moment, not quite understanding the meaning of her words, before slowly walking into his house.

"Whew."

Only then did he remove the invisible mask he had been wearing over his face—no, his soul. Sion stumbled into the living room, took off his jacket, and draped it over the sofa. He stared quietly at the Best Actor trophy in his hand, then slowly set it down in front of the family photo on the side table next to the sofa.

"Ah."

Only then did he realize the meaning of Elena's words. From anywhere. Meaning... even from heaven, they would be able to see it.

No way.

He had barely drunk any alcohol, yet his face felt hot. Completely unmasked, Sion was feeling a bit emotional.

Well, on a day like today, it's only natural.

After sitting on the sofa and staring down at the photo for a while, Sion finally smiled shyly at his parents in the picture and spoke.

"I won ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an award."

Talking to himself in an empty house. He figured they could hear him 'from anywhere'.

After the MTV Movie Awards, the four lead actors of The College Player all felt the same thing.

He's in a different league.

A born superstar. That had to be why he had reached such a high status at such a young age. Sion Lee's kiss had taken America by storm, as proven by the articles that poured out the very next day.

Of course, it wasn't entirely positive. Some civic groups protested that the kiss between the two was "too provocative" for growing teenagers. But even that was just throwing fuel onto the fire. Instead, the controversy went viral, prompting even more articles from different angles, and people watched the kiss scene over and over again.

As the days passed, the intense focus gradually waned, but the public's attention naturally shifted to The College Player, the TV sitcom Sion Lee was starring in. Sensing this tide, the production company and the network aligned their promotions for Season 3, and amidst immense anticipation, filming for Season 3, Episode 1 began.

Live studio filming began a week before the broadcast. Around 300 audience members filled the seats, and the four lead actors stepped onto the set to begin shooting. A sitcom shoot—a unique hybrid of theater and television—was a long-standing tradition in American broadcasting, offering the advantage of broadcasting genuine audience reactions.

The audience reaction to the first shoot was excellent.

"Max, listen! You're dating the nerd Bell? Where are you guys going to date? The Libr-allpark?"

"It's not like that yet. We just kissed. Anyone does that much."

"Really? Should we try it?"

"Y-You crazy bastard?!"

As the two friends playfully wrestled and pretended to kiss, Bell entered the room. With a completely frozen expression, Bell flusteredly turned around and bolted, drawing a burst of laughter from the audience.

A confused Max and Bell. Kyle and Nancy, still on bad terms. The sitcom show progressed with this two-track plot. For scenes requiring location shoots, the staff stepped in to explain the situation so the audience could easily immerse themselves in the story, and thanks to the passionate, quick-witted performances of the four actors, it wrapped up in a grand success.

Once all the shooting was over, Susan Hopkins, who played Bell, said:

"Not bad, right? Actually, it's amazing~."

"Of course you'd say that, since you got the role of introducing the real main character at the very end."

"What's that supposed to mean, Frederic~? Are you still mad? Just let it go already~."

"...Did something happen to you? Back at the club, you looked like you wanted to tear Sion Lee to shreds, but now your reaction is completely different. You've basically become the president of his fan club."

"W-What are you talking about? No, I haven't!"

"Anyway... it's a good thing, isn't it?"

This came from Chelsea Cartwright, the last remaining conscience of the team.

"Since we teased Sion's appearance at the end, the ratings will probably stay high... and with the MTV Awards effect still going strong, we can really look forward to this week's ratings."

"Chelsea, what are you expecting?"

"Well... didn't we hit around 7 to 8% when Season 2 started?"

"Our peak was 12.2%~."

The logic behind the two women's positive outlook was simple. No matter what, the arrival of a "giant" like Sion Lee had brought The College Player more attention than ever before. So, let's use that attention as a springboard to climb higher together.

However, their pleasant expectations turned into immense pressure the next day when the live ratings came out.

"..."

"..."

"Is this real life?"

21.3%.

One out of every five American ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠households had tuned their TVs to NBC at that hour just to see Sion Lee.

This is a disaster. A total disaster.

Just before shooting Episode 2 of Season 3, Frederic Pederson felt his heart pounding harder than it ever had in his entire life.

21.3%. That rating put them in the top 5 of all American broadcasts at the moment. And it was glaringly obvious to everyone what—or who—had caused that number. It was incredibly rare for a single individual to boost ratings so sharply. As soon as the results came out, the production team had immediately gone into an emergency meeting to sign an extension with Sion Lee, trying to give him more screen time and prominence.

Am I going to get completely pushed out at this rate?

Having never endured this kind of pressure before, Frederic seriously contemplated whether he should have a drink before the cameras rolled. That was how absurd the ratings were, and it was proof of how much anticipation was riding on this season.

Meanwhile, Sion, who had just arrived at the set...

"Oh, really? Your hair is so beautiful, I thought you were a hair model."

"Hahaha, what are you talking about! My hair is like straw!"

"Maybe straw shampoo needs a model too?"

"What?!"

He was flirting with the stylists. He had them completely wrapped around his finger with compliments and playful teasing. Even when Sion made slightly edgy jokes, the women would smile, pretend to be angry, and then burst into giggles when he winked and said, "Just kidding, just kidding."

Giggle, giggle.

Grind, grind.

One was the sound of the women laughing. The other was the sound of Frederic grinding his teeth.

As Frederic was swallowing his annoyance, he felt a presence and turned around. Sion, who had finished his makeup, was standing close by.

Specially made glasses made his eyes almost invisible, and his hair, which he had grown as long as possible before filming, looked incredibly messy after styling. He wore a stretched-out knit sweater with a giant Spider-Man logo on it. At a glance, he looked like a lanky, beanpole nerd. But from between those lips came a confident voice that completely contradicted his appearance.

"Shall we go, Kyle?"

"Don't talk to me like we're friends...!"

"Work hard. Unless you want to get buried like a dog today."

With a smirk, Sion made his declaration, and the actors moved to the set.

Just like last week, about 300 people gathered in the audience. When Sion stood before them and lightly waved, the audience, who didn't recognize him at first, let out delayed screams. The staff was momentarily flustered but quickly managed the situation. Sion thanked the audience for coming and told them to enjoy the show.

This was an introduction usually done by one of the main cast members. As a furious Frederic's mouth twitched as if he were about to explode, Susan, who kept her eyes glued to Sion, tapped Frederic on the back and said,

"Isn't it fine just for today? He's the main character today anyway."

Literally, today's set was entirely Sion's stage.

The shoot began.

"Guys! Let me introduce you! This is my friend, Ryan!"

Ryan made his appearance, under the premise that Bell had picked him up directly from the airport. Footsteps slowly echoed from behind the door. Frederic, still unable to fully immerse himself in his character, thought:

Should I pretend to mess up and step on him? Wouldn't that make things better?

But that thought vanished the moment the man stepped through the door. Because it was simply "absurd."

"Huh?"

"Wait..."

The watching audience had the exact same reaction.

Is this even possible? What was everything he did before?

His shoulders were hunched forward, and his neck was craned out like a turtle. His gaze was awkward, unable to make proper eye contact with anyone. He stood with his arms pressed against his torso like a meerkat, looking around anxiously. It was a character built with the exaggerated comedic flair unique to sitcoms.

During the table read with the other actors, Sion had focused on reproducing the script's basic performance. But during the technical rehearsal, he had consulted with the veteran director to meticulously adjust his range of motion to suit the multi-cam live shoot.

For Frederic, who had lazily glossed over everything after his initial encounter with Sion out of spite, the shock at this moment was bound to be even greater. Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated. The moment he neglected to understand his opponent, a massive backlash hit him.

Sion's acting was already mind-blowing, but now it was so absurdly funny that everyone's eyes were glued to him. And because he looked absolutely nothing like "Sion Lee," the shock was doubled.

On this stage, this wasn't "Sion playing a nerd." It was just "Ryan."

The moment Frederic saw Sion's first entrance instantly dominate the set, his spirit was crushed, and even the last shred of his resistance was shattered to pieces. At this rate, he would end up completely devoured, even in sitcom acting—his final stronghold.