Overlap

No one had expected the rookie girl group To.Any.

Their cheerful rebellion sent the entire music industry into an uproar.

The unknown rookie girl group had managed to line itself up all the way up the charts.

Maybe that was why.

Everything surrounding To.Any began changing at a rapid pace.

The comments were overwhelmingly positive.

But what stood out most was that the video’s views and the number of comments kept steadily climbing.

In other words, the rookie girl group To.Any had started spreading by word of mouth among idol fans.

The day the music chart results were announced.

I opened the refrigerator and gulped down cold water.

As the hangover from drinking with Director Choi Jeong-eun the day before, to celebrate To.Any entering the chart, finally began to settle, I muttered to myself.

"I’m really glad I don’t have to go in to work today."

Starting tomorrow, To.Any would officially begin outside promotional activities now that they were a rookie girl group in earnest.

For the next month, I’d probably be working myself into the ground.

So I’d taken the day off, and thanks to that, I could feel the luxury of a quiet morning for the first time in a while.

After staring blankly out the window for a bit, I took out my smartphone.

There were messages stacked up like a mountain.

Why are there so many congratulatory messages?

People from the management department I knew, led by the public relations team manager.

Connections I’d built while handling outside schedules.

Acquaintances who’d heard that To.Any had climbed the charts without missing a beat.

Every last one of them had sent congratulations.

My chest tingled a little, but I forced myself to act like I didn’t notice and muttered,

"I should call Seok-du hyung first."

After a few rings, Seok-du hyung picked up.

["Kwon Chaaaaaan!"]

Honestly, this man.

Had he boiled and eaten a steam locomotive first thing in the morning?

"I can hear you fine, so lower your voice a bit, Team Leader ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Five."

["Oh-ho! Why aren’t you coming in to work today!"]

"To.Any’s schedule starts tomorrow. I should get some rest too."

Seok-du hyung laughed roughly.

["Wow...! Is that really our Chan? Why are you suddenly so diligent these days? Huh?"]

"I was always diligent."

["What do you mean diligent, you punk! You were practically dying like a sick chicken! Anyway..."]

Seok-du hyung’s voice suddenly turned serious.

["I saw To.Any’s music performance. Congratulations, kid."]

I got a little gooseflesh.

Still... hearing the sincerity in Seok-du hyung’s voice made it hard to dislike.

That must be why men from Gyeongsang Province can’t date properly.

"If you’re going to get sentimental, I’m hanging up."

["Hey, hey! Don’t hang up. I’ve got more to say."]

"What is it?"

["You don’t need to report To.Any’s schedule to me anymore. Just handle it yourself."]

"?"

A question mark practically floated over my face.

Handle To.Any’s schedule on my own?

["That came out of yesterday’s team leaders’ meeting, chaired by the head director."]

"!"

["The head director saw To.Any’s numbers and said that from now on, Chan, you should take full charge of their schedule."]

My heart started pounding all at once.

Feeling the calm of my day off vanish, I asked in a rush,

"You’re telling me Director Park really said that?"

["Yeah, you punk. It’s the first time we’ve had a case like this, so everybody was surprised. To.Any... what, you think they’re some tiny project? Handing them over to you full-time means they recognize your ability!"]

Dopamine started pouring through me.

For a day off, this was way too strong a stimulus.

But Seok-du hyung’s story wasn’t over yet.

["And To.Any... it looks like Baekhak is going to push them properly."]

"!"

["From today on, the promotions are going to be no joke. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠They’re still rookies, so variety show appearances need a little more time before we can really rush them, but you don’t have to worry about the smaller schedules that’ll get their faces out there."]

In the end, a hot sigh burst out of me.

Damn ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it.

I’d planned to ignore work today and just rest. Why was this happening to me?

Before I could even sort out my own feelings, Seok-du hyung, who had stoked the fire as high as it could go, shouted in a hurry.

["I’ve got to go out on a field visit, so I’m hanging up! Rest up, and starting tomorrow, run To.Any’s schedule, Chan!"]

The call ended.

But the excitement Seok-du hyung had whipped up in me was still going strong.

Brushing my shaggy hair to the side, I muttered,

"It feels like some kind of cosmic energy is gathering around me..."

Once luck started breaking open, it kept making more luck.

And once something happened, it kept creating more situations.

It felt like I was sitting in a car racing at 200 kilometers per hour without a seatbelt, but I had no idea where the finish line was.

Still, one thing was clear.

"I can’t afford to let this momentum go."

Right.

Let’s run and see how far it goes.

The next day.

My alarm, set for 6:00 a.m., rang out.

Maybe because I’d gotten a long-overdue good night’s sleep, my condition felt excellent even though I’d woken up before dawn.

I called Ye-ji right away.

"Hello, you’ve reached me."

"It’s me, Ye-ji. Have the girls left the dorm?"

["Ah, Chief Manager... there was some commotion because Chae-i couldn’t wake up, but they all got in the van at least."]

"Got it. I’ll see you at the salon. I’m heading out now too."

I hung up and smoked a cigarette.

Once the nicotine hit, my head cleared so much it almost hurt.

Was this what they called an awakened state?

That was exactly how I felt.

"Not bad."

I had no fatigue thanks to the sleep I’d gotten, and my condition was at its absolute peak.

I didn’t want to lose that momentum, so I hurried out of the one-room apartment district.

Twenty minutes later, after speeding along wide-open roads, I arrived at the salon in Cheongdam-dong.

After parking in a nearby lot, I went straight upstairs.

"...Chief Manager?"

Ga-eul, drowsy and nodding off as though she were still half-asleep, greeted me.

I waved back and checked on the other girls’ conditions too.

Nova was asleep with her hair in the hands of the hairstylist, and Seol Chae-i didn’t even twitch, as if she’d passed out.

Rei was rubbing her sleepy eyes while eating snacks.

I walked over to Ga-eul, who at least looked relatively intact.

"Did you rest well?"

"...Yes. But I got up early, so I’m sleepy."

Ga-eul answered and gave a small, bright smile.

I gave the same kind of grin and asked,

"Where’s Ye-ji?"

"She went to get coffee."

Ye-ji was finally starting to get used to things.

That gave me time to breathe, so I turned on my smartphone.

When I opened the entertainment news tab, photos of To.Any’s members were plastered across the main page.

So they really are pushing them hard.

Seeing this, it made sense why Baekhak was called a giant in the entertainment industry.

Once they decided to push someone, traces of To.Any were suddenly everywhere in show business.

At that moment, my already awakened mind was filled with even more drive.

My energy was overflowing so much that my body started itching with restlessness when Ye-ji appeared, arms full of canned coffee.

"Coffee... please drink i-it!"

The To.Any members, who had been half-dead and half-asleep, finally stirred awake.

"Coffee... coffee... coffee."

"I heard coffee on an empty stomach in the morning isn’t good..."

"Can I have cake toooo?"

Once the caffeine hit, the dying girls came back to life.

Not wasting the opening, the salon staff finished their hair and makeup.

Their eyes were still heavy with sleep, but the girls looked so perfect they could have gone straight on stage.

"All right, let’s get moving."

The first schedule was an interview with Young Magazine.

It was a kind of rite of passage for rookie idols, a popular high-teen magazine that had recently been rising among teenagers.

After that it’s the additional album pictorial shoot, a short-form video with a NutTube creator...

On paper, none of the individual schedules looked like much, but for rookies, it could absolutely be called a flood of work.

Baekhak’s clearly pulling strings and sending work our way.

With a slight lift at the corner of my mouth, I took the wheel from Ye-ji.

"Ye-ji, I’ll drive."

"Oh? I can do it, Chief Manager."

"It’s fine. Close your eyes for a bit. It’s your first day, so you’re probably not adjusted yet."

After looking at me uncertainly for a moment, Ye-ji finally sat down quietly in the passenger seat.

The schedule marathon that began like that only ended in the late afternoon, when the sun was already starting to sink.

The remaining tasks were song practice and choreography practice.

That seemed like something Ye-ji could handle, so I handed her the car keys.

"Please take care of the rest of the schedule."

Ye-ji accepted the keys and gazed at my face for a moment.

I tilted my head.

"Did I get something on my face?"

"Ah... no, not that."

She trailed off, then stole a quick look at me before saying,

"Chief Manager, did something good happen today?"

"Out of the blue?"

"Well, you’ve been full of fighting spirit all day."

Huh?

I’d been full of fighting spirit?

"The girls and I were exhausted from waking up at dawn, but Chief Manager... aren’t you way too energetic?"

My eyes widened a little.

Come to think of it... that was a little strange.

I was out in the field for the first time in a while, but instead of being tired, why did I feel so good?

Maybe because I’m in an awakened state?

That seemed likely.

But I had no way to explain that to Ye-ji.

I shrugged and said,

"I’m just in a good mood."

Ye-ji tilted her head in confusion, but didn’t press me further.

After leaving To.Any in Ye-ji’s care, I headed straight to Baekhak headquarters.

I needed to organize tomorrow’s music show schedule.

The drive was dull enough that a bit of late fatigue crept in, but it couldn’t shake my sharpened mind.

Before I knew it, work thoughts surfaced naturally.

Once the music show stage goes in two days, we’ll need variety shows soon after.

As NutTube opened up a new content market, the first thing to be pushed out was variety shows.

Traditional terrestrial entertainment couldn’t keep up with NutTube’s raw, unfiltered fun.

Even so, variety shows still had their place.

Guest appearances.

For rookies trying to get their faces known, there was still no program better than variety.

The head director said I should manage To.Any’s schedule directly, so... I can choose the shows they go on however I want, right?

Let’s see.

If I got To.Any on variety shows, which members should I push?

"Nova’s got good banter, and Rei has that quirky charm, so those two as a duo look pretty good."

But for their first variety appearance, I wanted to keep it as a full-group appearance if possible.

It was much better to get all of them known evenly than to have just one member stand out.

Then what kind of show should they go on?

To.Any had debuted by charting all the way up the rankings, but they were still rookies in the end.

The number of shows rookies could appear on was limited, and even if they did go on, at best they’d be there as reaction panelists.

That’d still be something, but I want their first variety appearance to hit hard.

Was there any good show out there?

Just as the trouble was about to stretch on, a forgotten thread suddenly came back to me.

SBC’s Park PD...!

Park PD, known in the variety world as a sly old serpent, was directing SBC’s Thursday flagship program, Star Observation!

And Star Observation! was an observational variety show where the MCs talked while watching the 24-hour lives of managers and celebrities.

If To.Any appeared there, it would both show off the rookie girl group’s charm and guarantee them solid screen time.

Without meaning to, I muttered,

"The bait I threw out first... is way too good."

This had become a casual visit to the variety department after meeting Senior PD Choi at SBC, and now it looked like I’d be coming back with a prize.

The problem was whether Park PD from Star Observation! had taken the bait.

Should I apply a little more pressure?

I was thinking that when my smartphone rang.

After checking the message, I burst out laughing.

"...Seriously. This is insane."

What the hell was going on?

My condition was at its best, and luck was following me too.

Everything lined up so neatly it was almost frightening.

But maybe because I was in an awakened state, I didn’t feel afraid at all.

Instead, I was excited.

"If the world’s pushing me to run, then I might as well run."

I immediately called Park PD.

"Yes. Park PD, this is Chief Manager Kwon."

Now then, let’s see if I can reel in something big.