Overlap

After checking the message, I called Park PD at once.

"Park PD. This is Manager Kwon."

"Same as always. Just busy with the rookie girl group I’ve been assigned because they’re doing a showcase."

A laugh escaped me.

Park PD. That old fox.

He was performing ignorance with such skill it was practically art.

I rubbed my chin, thought about it for a moment, then decided to play along. I had the upper hand anyway.

"To.Any."

"The company pushed them hard."

Park PD's tone rose slightly.

"They’re expecting a lot from them. Ah, but Park PD?"

I deliberately drew out the end of the sentence.

"That thing we couldn’t finish talking about last time..."

I could hear Park PD swallowing.

"How about we pick it up again this time? I happen to be going to SBC in two days to film a music show."

After a beat, Park PD answered.

A pleasant meal appointment was set.

***

Two mornings later.

I got out of bed before the alarm even had a chance to ring.

I had only slept five hours, but my mind wasn’t just clear. It was so sharp it almost hurt to look at the world.

The state of heightened alert I’d been in for the past few days was still going strong today.

"Am I going to collapse later because of this?"

The aftereffects of that alertness were starting to scare me.

At the same time, I was also glad I was still in that state on a day like this.

Even veteran managers got rattled on music-show stage days.

I pulled out my smartphone and made a call.

"Yeji, are you at the salon now?"

"I’m on my way too."

I got in the car and headed straight to the salon in Cheongdam-dong.

Lee Ye-ji, who came out to meet me, handed me coffee.

"Where are the girls?"

"They finished makeup and are waiting in the car."

"Good. Let’s get moving."

I picked up the girls, who were fast asleep, and headed straight to SBC Broadcasting Station.

Nova, awakened by the rattling noise inside the car, mumbled, ".... Oh, it’s Manager."

"You were sleeping so hard you didn’t even know I got here?"

"I vaguely felt it, but I thought it was a dream."

As Nova stretched, Ga-eul and Seol Chae-i woke up too.

Rei was still wrestling with her sleepiness, turning her body over and over.

In the meantime, SBC Broadcasting Station began to come into view in the distance.

Seol Chae-i, who had been yawning with her mouth open, blinked in surprise and muttered, "Huh? There are fans."

Just as she said, dozens of fans were already lined up in front of the station from the early morning.

"Wow... it’s only seven and there are already this many?"

"Aren’t they cold?"

"Who are they waiting for?"

"O-our fans aren’t here, are they?"

Lee Ye-ji, sitting nearby, chimed in.

"Once you start doing music shows, you’ll get fans too."

"Really, unnie?"

"Yeah! Usually people become fans after seeing a group on music shows, and then they end up taking fan photos."

The corner of my mouth lifted slightly.

Ye-ji, not bad.

She was handling the girls’ nerves so naturally.

I parked the car and turned to them.

"Don’t forget to grab the important bags before you get out."

The To.Any members gathered their things and climbed out.

Rei only then woke up fully and fumbled around for her snacks.

I turned and headed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠straight for the waiting room.

"Whoa... it’s Seven Star..."

"L-look, Ellyn-nim is there too!"

"Would it be shameless to ask for an autograph?"

"Of course it would! Who do we think we are, asking for autographs!"

Maybe because it was a live music-show day, celebrities and managers kept popping out of the hallway leading to the waiting rooms like wild Pokemon.

I mentally built a list of who had arrived, and which senior I should greet first, judging by sight.

By the time I’d walked while thinking about work, I’d reached our private waiting room.

I yanked the door open and set down the bags I was carrying in both hands.

Ga-eul poked her head out.

"...Huh? Manager, we get our own waiting room?"

"Yeah."

"What? Don’t rookies usually share one?"

That was true.

Rookies usually didn’t get private waiting rooms; they shared with other newcomers.

But I’d already softened up Choi Ho-cheol PD about it in advance because I didn’t want that setup.

Which is why we also got a later performance slot.

It would have been a good moment to brag a little.

I decided to let it pass. It was ridiculous to show off to the kids over something like this anyway.

I answered as calmly as I could.

"I’ve got connections with Choi PD on the SBC music show, so we got a private room."

"R-really?"

"Would I lie about that?"

"Wow..."

Ga-eul’s eyes sparkled, perhaps because her real name was Ga-eul too, and her stage name matched it.

Feeling suddenly burdened, I hurriedly changed the subject.

"Put your bags down, then go around and greet the senior singers. Ye-ji, grab the CD albums."

It was an old music-show tradition for junior singers to go greet their seniors in the waiting rooms.

I had no idea why such a tiresome custom had taken root, but a tradition was a tradition. There was no harm in following it.

I took the girls to one of the most senior singers among today’s lineup, solo vocalist Park Chae-hee’s waiting room, and we stopped by to say hello.

"Hello, sunbaenim!"

"We’re To.Any, who just debuted this time!"

Park Chae-hee, whom idol standards would already call a veteran, burst out laughing.

"You all look so fresh. How old are you?"

"I’m twenty-two, sunbaenim...!"

"Oh? You’re twelve years younger than me? Goodness...!"

Park Chae-hee was known for her good character.

Because she greeted them first with a bright smile from the senior side, I could feel the To.Any girls’ tension melting away.

After a brief hello with Park Chae-hee’s manager, I moved on immediately.

"Hello, sunbaenim! We’re the rookie group To.Any!"

We had just debuted, so there was no shortage of people we needed to greet.

There were only people we had to bow to.

I made the rounds through the waiting rooms in a blur, completing the rookie rite of passage.

When I finally caught my breath and checked the time, it was already noon.

Time to go see Park PD.

We’d wrapped up most of what needed doing, so I could leave the rest to Lee Ye-ji.

But then...

"?"

There was a shadow on Lee Ye-ji’s face that hadn’t been there a moment ago.

She’d been bright-eyed over seeing celebrities, so what had happened all of a sudden?

After a moment’s thought, I asked, "Ye-ji, is something wrong?"

"...Huh? Uh... no. Nothing’s wrong."

Right. Nothing, my ass.

Something was obviously going on.

I lowered my head and looked at her closely.

Under my persistent stare, Ye-ji let out a heavy sigh and muttered, "Was it that obvious that I looked upset, Manager?"

"Yeah. Very."

"...I just got a little restless all of a sudden."

"About what?"

"Well... you’re greeting managers, and To.Any is greeting singers, and I just feel like I’m floating in the middle for no reason?"

I wasn’t especially good at empathy.

But it felt like this was one of those times when I needed to use it.

So it’s that kind of feeling.

The feeling of a new employee on their first day at work.

Wanting to do something, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠anything, but feeling like you shouldn’t rush in carelessly.

After roughly understanding what she meant, I spoke.

"You’re doing fine."

"..."

"In any case, these are the things you’d have to handle if I wasn’t here. And from my perspective, Ye-ji, you’re..."

I trailed off and shrugged.

"Doing a lot better than I expected."

Lee Ye-ji slowly lifted her head.

"...I make a lot of mistakes, Manager."

"Didn’t I say it already? Adapting is more important than being good from the start."

"..."

"You’re doing better than you think, Ye-ji. With how you’re helping the girls’ mental state, and how quickly you’re learning."

Suddenly, the light in Lee Ye-ji’s eyes came back.

"...Manager. Aren’t you being too kind when you say that?"

"Stop saying useless things and go meet the stylists."

"What about you, Manager?"

"I have someone I need to meet. I’ll join you later."

Lee Ye-ji went back to normal.

She was grinning like a fool again, and without meaning to, I let out a snort of laughter.

"Take good care of the girls, Ye-ji."

"Don’t worry, Manager!"

I nodded and headed straight to meet Park PD in the SBC entertainment department.

When I walked into the gamjatang place we’d agreed on, I heard a familiar voice.

"Manager Kwon! Over here!"

Park PD of the SBC entertainment department, that old fox.

He was welcoming me with a smile on his face.

***

As I stirred the gamjatang, I thought back to the trend and reception of Star Observation! that I’d looked up the night before.

It was on the decline, wasn’t it?

This was an age flooded with observation-style variety shows.

However good you tried to make Star Observation! look, it wasn’t a show format that was leading the trend.

And variety shows that couldn’t offer freshness were always on their way down.

That’s probably why Park PD is so desperate.

In the end, guest-centered variety shows lived and died by how well the guests performed.

From Park PD’s perspective, he probably wanted a fresh image and a guest he could book.

And then he ended up with To.Any.

To.Any, the rookie girl group that had already made a chart-topping debut.

Whether viewers knew their names or not, if you put them on air, they’d at least bring a fresh visual.

Of course, if he only wanted freshness, he could have booked some other rookie group instead of To.Any.

But the fact that he’d gone out of his way to send me a greeting text in the first place meant...

He wanted something other than To.Any.

And that something was obviously Lee Ha-eun.

The top star actress who was currently riding the highest wave of her career.

Park PD’s real target was probably Lee Ha-eun.

That meant the initiative in this meeting was mine.

To Park PD, I was an attractive card. But to me, Park PD was just one option among dozens I could choose from.

As long as I had the upper hand, there was no reason to get impatient.

I waited calmly for Park PD to speak first.

After watching my expression for a while, Park PD finally opened his mouth.

"...Manager Kwon, aren’t you riding a little too high these days?"

I answered with a smile.

"Things have been going well lately."

"Not just well, from what I can tell. Lee Ha-eun made Queen of Joseon a massive hit, and the girl group you’re handling now is on the rise too."

"I got lucky."

"...So, I asked around a bit."

"Asked about what?"

"About actress Lee Ha-eun! She’s riding high right now, so shouldn’t she do a variety show appearance at least once?"

Park PD flashed that sly fox smile and tossed out his hand.

"If actress Lee Ha-eun came on Star Observation!, the whole thing would really come alive."

"Hmm... it would definitely be fresh."

"Exactly! Our Star Observation! is a manager-and-celebrity joint observation variety show, right? Different concepts, different sides of the characters, and all of that. Isn’t that great?"

Park PD slipped the suggestion in almost casually.

"If we can book actress Lee Ha-eun... we can also give the group you manage, To.Any, a little extra push along the way. That’s good for everyone, isn’t it?"

He kept talking smoothly.

The tongue of a snake brushed at my ear.

If I slipped even a little, it wouldn’t have been strange to get wrapped up in it and dragged under.

But I was plenty seasoned in this sort of thing too.

I pushed straight through Park PD’s snake-like persuasion.

"I’m sorry, but getting actress Lee Ha-eun is going to be difficult."

Park PD’s eyes widened in surprise.

"W-wait... why? Is her schedule backed up?"

"That’s part of it. And in the first place, actress Lee Ha-eun chooses her own schedule directly, so there isn’t much room for me to intervene."

"...You can’t be persuaded, Manager Kwon?"

"I don’t think so. But..."

I cut myself off, then changed the subject.

"I think ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠To.Any’s appearance is worth considering, though."

Park PD’s brows twitched.

"You’d consider having them on?"

"Yes. Baekhak looks like it’s going to take their digital results and push them properly from here on out."

"!"

"The head of department is personally moving to secure schedules, and the representative too, well..."

I let the sentence trail off and watched Park PD’s face.

He blinked, looking genuinely startled.

I lifted the corner of my mouth and continued the conversation.

"Anyway, the company has high expectations for To.Any. A show like Star Observation! would be worth doing even if the company objected."

Interest and curiosity overflowed from Park PD’s eyes.

"Baekhak is that interested in To.Any?"

"Of course. You saw their debut promotions, right, Park PD?"

"I did. They poured a lot into it."

"It’s a project the company carefully put together, and now the results are there too. It would be weird if they didn’t back them hard. I think they’ll keep pushing them from here on out."

Park PD’s mouth closed into a straight line.

I could practically hear his brain working.

So I decided to drive the point home.

"If To.Any appears on Star Observation!, the promotional articles will explode."

"!"

"On top of that, you’ll get all sorts of smaller promo campaigns, and the viral marketing will be no joke."

I smiled faintly and crossed my arms.

Park PD, seated across from me, was having a full-on earthquake in his pupils.

I can hear his calculator rattling from here.

He was probably having a headache.

The To.Any card, something he hadn’t considered seriously at all, was starting to look unexpectedly attractive.

A girl group being pushed hard by Baekhak, the king of the entertainment world.

The implications were ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠huge.

It meant viral marketing would be pouring in, and right now Star Observation! needed that viral marketing.

In that sense, To.Any was an appealing card for Park PD.

If he got To.Any on the show, Baekhak would do the viral push for Star Observation! on his behalf.

Then Park PD glanced at me and muttered, "We do have a slot opening up in a month..."

"!"

"If they’re free then, should we seriously talk about booking To.Any? Manager Kwon?"

My lips curled up slowly.

"I’d be glad to, Park PD."

The old fox of the variety world had finally bitten the bait.

***

After that, the conversation moved smoothly.

For both Park PD and me.

We each knew exactly what we wanted, and this was a deal that could serve both our goals.

The meal ended in a friendly atmosphere.

"Heh... let’s meet again next time, Manager Kwon."

"I’ll contact you first this time."

After a light handshake with Park PD, I returned to the station.

Before I knew it, a tune was slipping out of me.

"This is going way too smoothly."

Was the universe really helping me out?

I’d expected the Park PD business to be difficult, but it had gone through too easily.

If today’s music-show stage ends without any accidents, that’d be perfect.

The tune came out again.

Then Lee Ye-ji appeared from the opposite hallway.

"Oh, Manager!"

"Where’d you go?"

"Ah, I just went out to buy some food for the girls."

All of a sudden, Lee Ye-ji started looking around nervously.

I tilted my head at the strange behavior, and then she leaned in and whispered in a low voice.

"But Manager... I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop or anything, but..."

But?

"On my way back, I heard the PDs talking, and apparently the outdoor special stage To Explore was supposed to do today got canceled."

"!"

"They said the car in front got into a collision and ended up stuck in the middle of the road... Once I heard that, I got chills. If something like that had happened to us today... whew!"

Thud.

A shooting star crashed straight into my head.

To Explore canceled their live schedule?

To Explore was one of the hottest groups in the current top three boy groups.

That was why the SBC music-show team had specially prepared an outdoor special stage for them.

And now I was hearing that special stage had been canceled before it could happen.

At that moment, a forgotten memory overlapped with the present.

...Huh?

The pleasant memory of SBC’s Choi Ho-cheol PD starting to call me Kwon Star.

That event and this situation were far too similar.

My heart began hammering rough and fast.

My mind started spinning just as hard.

In one instant, I finished the calculation and my mouth twitched upward.

"...Ye-ji."

"Yes?"

"You really are a lucky charm. Nice work."

Lee Ye-ji blinked at me with a bewildered expression.

But I didn’t have time to explain.

I turned on my heel and hurried toward the music-show guest stage area.

So even when an accident happens, it can be a good accident like this?

Could I possibly resist this?

I ran at full speed to grab the outdoor special stage opportunity that had dropped right in front of me.

---