Hollywood Invitation
A sly smile.
I tilted my head.
He wants to invite Lee Ha-eun to Hollywood?
It wasn’t a surprising proposal.
Daniel, the head manager at AMG, had already suggested to me at our last meeting that he wanted to invite Lee Ha-eun to Hollywood.
But I had turned him down.
There were several reasons for that.
At the time, Black Bride was about to be released, and no matter how much authority the head manager of AMG carried, it was still far too risky to leap into Hollywood on the strength of one offer alone.
After sorting through my thoughts, I asked calmly, “Are you calling back after seeing the results of Black Bride?”
- Haha! That’s right.
Daniel, a Korean American, explained the situation in fluent Korean.
- Honestly, when I saw Black Bride's numbers, I was shocked. There was a little bit of Korean market specific context there, sure, but even so, it broke ten million admissions as an occult thriller.
Daniel continued in a voice full of confidence.
- What impressed me most was Lee Ha-eun’s acting. How should I put it? It was like she’d gone mad. That slightly unhinged edge she had was absolutely exquisite. And Hollywood is a market full of madness.
His words came faster and faster. He sounded almost impatient.
- This film confirmed it for me once again. Lee Ha-eun is an actress made for Hollywood. And I want to be the first manager to invite her there, Team Leader Kwon.
I listened silently before speaking.
“The first manager.”
- Pardon?
“You can drop that part. I’m her first manager.”
At that, Daniel let out a beat-late laugh.
- Ah, that was careless. My apologies, Team Leader Kwon.
Amused, I asked, “Do you remember why I turned you down back then?”
- Of course. You said Hollywood shouldn’t come first. The work should.
“If you’re calling again, then you must have found the work.”
- To be honest, I haven’t secured a project yet, Team Leader Kwon.
My head tilted slightly.
He came back to pitch me without a project?
The Daniel I’d met before had confidence in the backing behind him, but he wasn’t the type to move blindly just because of it.
Does he have something else in mind?
That seemed likely. If so, what was the other proposal?
- A top star should have a manager worthy of her.
At Daniel’s new proposal, my eyebrows twitched hard.
- I’d like to invite top star actress Lee Ha-eun to Hollywood, and I’d like to invite Team Leader Kwon along with her. That is my new proposal, Team Leader Kwon.
***
The day after I ended my call with Daniel,
I stopped by a restaurant in Hannam-dong and let out a quiet laugh as I looked at my smartphone.
- Lee Ha-eun: Which dress looks prettier? (Photo attached)
No, seriously, this woman...
Wasn’t she texting me too often these days?
It had almost been three years since I met Lee Ha-eun, and yet the number of texts we’d exchanged recently felt greater than all those three years combined.
- Me: The white dress looks nice.
- Lee Ha-eun: So that’s your taste?
- Me: Wear it and send me a fit pic.
- Lee Ha-eun: (tongue-out emoji)
I shook my head and slipped the phone into my pocket.
When I entered the reserved restaurant, the chef waiting at the entrance asked politely, “Hello, sir. Do you have a reservation?”
“Yes. It should be under the name Daniel.”
“This way, please.”
Following the chef’s guidance, I went into the private room in the back and saw a blond man waving at me.
“Team Leader Kwon!”
I shook Daniel’s hand and greeted him back.
“Have you been well?”
“Haha, I have. Korea is practically my home country, after all.”
We exchanged a few light pleasantries and sat down.
While we made small talk over the green salad served as an appetizer, Daniel leaned slightly toward me.
“Have you thought about the proposal?”
I set down my fork and knife and answered, “If you mean the proposal for Lee Ha-eun and me to come to AMG...”
“Ah, NONO. I don’t mean for you to come to AMG.”
Daniel shook his index finger back and forth with exaggerated emphasis.
“If Team Leader Kwon and actress Lee Ha-eun accept the proposal, then an official offer will go to Baekhak.”
“So what you’re saying is...”
“Baekhak may be a major agency respected in Korea, but it isn’t built on the scale to pursue overseas expansion, especially Hollywood, by itself.”
Without realizing it, I nodded.
As Daniel said, no matter how strong Baekhak was, it wasn’t the kind of company that could challenge the Hollywood market alone.
Daniel, the head manager of AMG, explained the situation while pointing out that reality.
“For Korean agencies to enter Hollywood, they ultimately need the power of a local agency. In that case, it’s better to work with the best local agency there is.”
I spoke slowly. “And that best agency is AMG, is that what you’re saying?”
“It feels odd to say this myself, but isn’t AMG the best in Hollywood?”
Well... that was hard to deny.
It was true that AMG was one of the most powerful actor agencies in Hollywood.
By then, Daniel’s full-scale sales pitch had begun.
“In any case, hasn’t actress Lee Ha-eun already achieved everything she can in Korea?”
His eyes burned with enthusiasm.
Even though he held such a high position as head manager of AMG, he was still hungry for success.
“Now she needs to move toward a higher stage. I’m certain she’ll succeed in Hollywood. With her visuals and acting ability, she won’t be outmatched by any Hollywood star. Still, living in a foreign country is an uncertainty separate from an actor’s actual craft.”
After taking a sip of water, I asked, “And you want me to handle that uncertainty?”
“Exactly. Team Leader Kwon, you’d be more than capable of taking care of Lee Ha-eun. Of course...”
Daniel’s mouth curved into a grin.
“That’s not the only reason I want to bring you along.”
I tilted my head. “Is there another reason?”
“You said it to me yourself, Team Leader Kwon. Hollywood is an attractive market, but in the end, an actor has to go for the work.”
After a brief pause, Daniel made me an offer I could hardly believe.
“Then pick it yourself.”
My eyes widened.
Daniel threw down the decisive card in a voice full of confidence.
“For the project Lee Ha-eun takes on as she challenges Hollywood, come to AMG yourself and choose it personally, Team Leader Kwon. That’s the new proposal I’m making to you.”
***
After dinner with Daniel, I headed to a nearby park to help digest the meal.
I kept walking, breathing in the wind that hovered somewhere between spring and summer.
I didn’t want to think about work, but the conversation I’d had with Daniel kept floating back to me naturally.
Go to AMG and personally choose Lee Ha-eun’s project?
Honestly, I was shocked.
I never dreamed he would make such an audacious offer.
A nameless Korean manager getting a chance to review scripts from famous Hollywood directors and choose one?
The proposal was too tempting.
As a manager, how could I pass up a chance like that?
And yet another thought kept refusing to leave me alone.
Is it right to enter Hollywood when the project itself isn’t even finalized?
As a manager in charge of an actress, my standards were clear.
Whenever I chose a project, I had always had to see the script first, before any condition or circumstance.
But the standard I’d held for nearly ten years was wavering in the face of Daniel’s proposal.
The project might not be fixed yet, but maybe I could choose it myself.
I had confidence in my ability to read scripts.
One excuse after another rose up, feeding the conflict inside me.
In frustration, I reached for my lighter, then stopped.
“...If I call now, will she pick up?”
Hmm.
It was late. She probably wouldn’t answer, right?
After hesitating, I decided to call anyway.
- Hello?
...What was this woman?
How did she answer in one second?
I asked in a slightly dumbfounded voice, “Lee Ha-eun, were you waiting for my call?”
- What are you talking about? I was just looking at my phone.
“Really?”
- Why are you asking like that? I was really looking at my phone.
Putting the lighter back in my pocket, I snorted with laughter.
“For something that sounds a little too much like an excuse.”
- If you’re going to tease me, I’m hanging up.
“Ah, sorry. How’s the Phuket trip?”
- Yeah, it’s fun.
“What was fun about it?”
- Want me to tell you?
“Go on.”
Lee Ha-eun started chatting away as if she’d been waiting for the invitation.
Listening to her, I murmured in mild admiration, “Lee Ha-eun, you’re surprisingly making good use of your vacation.”
- What, did you think I was the indoor type?
“Usually people at your level are indoor types.”
- That gets old after a while. Staying in my room every day made me crave the outside.
Then, in a languid voice, Lee Ha-eun asked me,
- Now you talk.
“About what?”
- You called because you had something to say to me.
Damn.
As expected, it wasn’t easy to fool Lee Ha-eun.
I let out a long sigh and answered, “I do have something to say.”
- Is it a confession?
“...What kind of nonsense is that?”
- Never mind, then. So what do you want to say?
After a moment of thought, I made up my mind and asked, “Lee Ha-eun, what do you think about Hollywood?”
At my question, Lee Ha-eun’s voice cut off.
Then, after a while, she asked me in a slightly irritated tone,
- Did Baek Rep send you?
I tilted my head. “No? Why are you bringing up Representative Baek?”
- Are you sure?
“I’m serious.”
- ...Then why are you suddenly bringing up Hollywood?
I slowly rubbed my chin.
I’d felt it for a while now, but something seemed to be going on between Representative Baek Ji-won and Lee Ha-eun.
After a moment of thought, I resumed the conversation.
“You know AMG, right?”
Lee Ha-eun asked in a slightly surprised voice,
- I do. The Hollywood agency, right?
“Right. They made an offer.”
With that, I calmly explained what had happened earlier.
Listening carefully to my story, Lee Ha-eun murmured slowly,
- That’s a little sudden.
“It is. It’s sudden.”
That was why I wanted to ask.
How did the person involved feel about this offer?
“What do you think, Lee Ha-eun?”
She had far more experience than I did in situations like this, so she’d probably see it from a better angle.
“Do you want to team up with Daniel and head to Hollywood?”
At my question, rustle.
I heard the sound of blankets being crumpled.
It sounded like she’d been lying down and had just gotten up.
- Should I answer as actress Lee Ha-eun, or human Lee Ha-eun?
Actress Lee Ha-eun and human Lee Ha-eun?
What was that supposed to mean?
- Actress Lee Ha-eun is tempted by Hollywood.
At her words, my eyes widened slightly.
“Then as human Lee Ha-eun?”
- Human Lee Ha-eun doesn’t really want it.
Lee Ha-eun gave a light, offhand murmur.
- I don’t like the idea of going to America and leaving you behind.
A jolt.
A nameless current crashed straight through my heart.
Heat rushed into my face, and I ran a hand over it as I muttered, “Lee Ha-eun, you know that’s cheating, right?”
- Why are you embarrassed?
“Forget it. More importantly, what about this?”
I relayed the exact proposal Daniel had made to me.
After thinking over it carefully, she answered soon after.
- Then you’d go too?
“Probably, if you decide to take it?”
- Tough question.
“Yeah, that’s why I’m thinking about it.”
I leaned against a nearby railing with my phone in hand.
The Seoul nightscape, dyed in darkness, stretched out before me.
The stars that were usually hard to see glittered overhead, and I confessed my feelings to Lee Ha-eun beneath that sky.
“If I refuse, I’ll regret it. If I accept, something about it still feels vague. That’s exactly the situation I’m in.”
Lee Ha-eun whispered to me,
- Can’t make up your mind?
“It should be you making the decision, not me.”
- Really? I think I already have my answer.
My eyes widened slightly.
She already had her answer?
My heart started to beat a little faster, and Lee Ha-eun gave me a clear answer.
- If it’s vague, turn it down.
Turn it down if it’s vague?
I stroked my chin and muttered, “But it’s a good opportunity.”
- Opportunities like that come around again later anyway.
“?”
- You think only AMG wants me? I’ve gotten offers like that once from just about every decent place out there.
My eyes widened.
Then Lee Ha-eun spoke with complete confidence.
- I’m Lee Ha-eun. I’m the one who makes the choice, and the control is in my hands. So why would I need to rush?
At her answer, my mouth slowly opened.
...No reason to rush?
It felt like I’d just been hit hard in the back of the head.
...Right.
Come to think of it, there was no reason to hurry, just as Lee Ha-eun said.
Hollywood was an appealing market, but Lee Ha-eun was already building the best career in Korea.
In that situation, there was no reason to throw herself at an uncertain gamble.
Besides, now that I look at it, Daniel’s proposal isn’t automatically attractive either.
Even if he gave me the chance to choose the project, no one knew what that chance would really mean.
The scripts and roles Lee Ha-eun might be offered could be worse than I expected, or the offer itself might not come at all.
In that situation, do we really need to take the risk?
No. We didn’t.
It was their side that was impatient. Their side that was desperate.
In the end, if I waited, Daniel would come back with a better offer.
As I let out a long breath, the haze of Hollywood vanished cleanly.
Instead, the face of a woman I hadn’t seen in quite a while rose into my mind.
I laughed softly and called her name.
“Lee Ha-eun.”
- Why?
“I miss you.”
- ?
“When does your vacation end? Let’s at least have a meal together once.”
There was a brief silence over the phone.
I waited for her answer at an easy pace.
A moment later, Lee Ha-eun asked in a much higher pitch than before,
- You aren’t sick or something, are you?
A real laugh burst out of me.
“Why? I’m just saying I want to have dinner with the actress I manage.”
- Why are you suddenly being so slick?
“Who do you think is responsible for that?”
- That’s not because of me, is it?
“Well. Think about it carefully.”
At my answer, Lee Ha-eun let out a snort of laughter.
- You keep acting like a slippery little snake, so I guess you’re in a good mood?
“Yeah. Because of someone.”
- I’m in a good mood too.
“Why?”
- Phuket’s nice.
I asked slowly, “You sound like you really like it.”
- Yeah, so let’s come together next time.
My eyes trembled slightly.
“N-next time, together?”
- Yeah. There are lots of good restaurants, and there’s plenty to see too.
“...”
- I went to the safari park today, and I took photos with a tiger there. I also checked out that bungee jumping platform you mentioned. It was fun.
At her words, my expression turned strange.
“Lee Ha-eun.”
- Why?
“You know Phuket is famous as a honeymoon destination, right?”
- Yeah, I know.
At her words, my throat bobbed once.
Does this woman know what she’s saying right now?
She was telling me to go with her to a place famous as a honeymoon spot?
My heart started thudding.
Completely unaware of that, Lee Ha-eun kept pressing me through the phone.
- Are you going or not? Answer quickly.
I steadied my breathing and answered, “Fine. Let’s go. Phuket, together, next time.”
- Okay, then next time we’ll have to go to that hotel we couldn’t visit this time.
Damn, this woman.
She knew everything and was teasing me on purpose!
“Are you going to keep making fun of me?”
- When did I tease you?
“Don’t act like you don’t know. I saw right through it.”
At my grumbling, Lee Ha-eun burst out laughing.
At first I complained in disbelief, but in the end even I laughed along with her.
“When are you coming back?”
- Two weeks.
“That’s still a while.”
- It’ll go by fast. Wait for me.
Lee Ha-eun whispered to me in a sweet voice.
- I’ll bring back a ton of gifts, so look forward to it, Manager.
Smiling to myself, I thought, gifts...
To be honest, I didn’t really need any gifts.
Because to me, Lee Ha-eun herself was the gift.
I debated whether to say it, then decided not to for now.
Just like she said, there was no need to rush.
Little by little, very slowly.
Then the opportunity would come.
When that time arrived, I planned to give back everything, including the things I couldn’t say now.
“All right. I’ll look forward to it.”
Yes.
Let’s wait a little longer.
Then, sooner or later, the right time would come.
Without fail.
***
As soon as I got to headquarters, I called Daniel right away.
“Sorry, Daniel. I think I have to turn down the offer again this time.”
The head manager of AMG sounded a little taken aback.
- Hmm... may I ask why?
At his question, I replied in a relaxed voice, “I don’t think this is something we need to decide in such a hurry.”
- Not something we need to decide in a hurry?
“Yes. Let me put it more clearly. Lee Ha-eun and I...”
I paused for a moment, then said to Daniel in a voice full of conviction, “We want to seize a sure opportunity. A sure opportunity that can only lead to success in Hollywood.”
Through the phone, I heard Daniel exhale softly, as if deep in thought.
I waited for him.
Eventually, Daniel spoke slowly.
- A Chinese saying comes to mind.
“Which saying?”
- Three visits to the thatched cottage. Wasn’t it said that Liu Bei visited Zhuge Liang’s home three times in order to win him over?
I laughed quietly.
“Then I’m Zhuge Liang, and you’re Liu Bei?”
- Haha, is that too cringeworthy a comparison?
“Sorry about that, Daniel.”
- No. I understand your position perfectly, Team Leader Kwon. Going to Hollywood is the kind of decision that has to be made carefully. Still...
Daniel said to me in a slightly excited voice,
- The more you and Lee Ha-eun keep turning me down, the more determined I get.
Determined?
It was good news for me, though I felt a little sorry to Daniel.
The reason soon came out of his mouth.
- Next time I’ll come back with a more concrete proposal.
At his words, the corner of my mouth lifted in satisfaction.
- The sure opportunity you talked about, the one that can only lead to success in Hollywood. I’ll find it myself and bring it to you.
“I’m looking forward to it, Daniel.”
- Heh... next time, I think you’ll really be surprised. And this is a gift.
A gift?
He was giving me a gift after I turned down the proposal. What was that supposed to mean?
- Netflix is currently working on a massive project.
“Netflix?”
- Yes. From what I hear, the pure production budget alone is over one hundred billion won.
My eyes widened.
One hundred billion?
...Was he serious?
Even if it was the OTT giant from the United States, they were planning a project worth one hundred billion won?
Daniel gave me a quiet hint.
- There’s talk that Netflix may cast Korean actors for the lead roles in that huge project.
My shoulders jolted.
Then Daniel said goodbye in a voice lightly threaded with laughter.
- A small bribe for our next meeting. I’ll contact you again, Team Leader Kwon.
With that, the call ended.
I stared at the black screen of my phone for a moment and blinked blankly.
“Netflix... one hundred billion?”
And Korean actors?
What was all this supposed to mean?
I still couldn’t quite sort out the situation.
But one thing seemed clear.
...If such a project is really in motion.
Wouldn’t this be an opportunity I couldn’t afford to miss?
No. It was an opportunity I had to seize.
“I need to find out more about this.”
Muttering under my breath, I hurried forward.
Just then, the elevator stopped as soon as I pressed the button.
I naturally stepped forward to get in, then paused.
“..................”
Lee Jae-min, the “temporary” team leader already inside the elevator, said awkwardly, “Uh... Team Leader Kwon?”
My own expression turned stiff too.
“...Temporary Team Leader Lee Jae-min?”
“Drop the temporary!”
With a shrug, I stepped into the elevator.
Lee Jae-min, the “temporary” team leader, looked at me with an uncomfortable expression, but what was I supposed to do?
We’d run into each other like this. It would have been stranger not to get in and just ignore him.
The elevator doors closed, and an unfamiliar silence settled between Team Leader Lee and me.
“..........”
The elevator, which usually moved up and down in a flash, now seemed to be crawling along at a snail’s pace.
I was staring at the display, waiting for the floor with the management office, when Team Leader Lee broke the silence and called out to me.
“Team Leader Kwon.”
I turned my head in surprise.
What was this?
He was the one starting a conversation first?
Lee Jae-min, the “temporary” team leader, looked at me quietly and asked,
“Have you heard the news?”
“What news?”
A sly smile spread across Team Leader Lee’s mouth.
“Your The Wise Life of a Namhae Intern Doctor and my Backstreet Police were both assigned to the same time slot, weren’t they?”