Chapter 139: The Value of a Challenge
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 139: The Value of a Challenge
My name is Han Taemin.
I’m twenty-four.
I’d already finished my military service, and while I was still a student, I figured I was too old to be treated like a kid.
It was time to find a way to support myself instead of relying on others for answers.
But I was seriously worried about whether this path I’d found myself on was the right one.
If my work so far had felt like a three-month contract, like a trial internship, then what lay ahead was no longer child's play.
The value of a challenge.
If I were to extend my contract, it had to be for more than just the desire to help with Doah’s concert. There had to be something more to it.
The way I thought, the way I lived—everything would have to change.
It wouldn't be like before, where I'd just tag along and ask, "So, what do I do?" I’d have to approach everything with a greater sense of professionalism.
Just thinking about it was exhausting.
Or maybe "exhausting" wasn't the right word. It felt less like me.
Dealing with strangers was hard, and I found that trying to sync up with other actors was even harder.
If I looked at it purely from an aptitude standpoint, the obvious answer was to quit.
But what I was afraid of was…
“Haa…”
…the thought of going back to being someone who only ever received things from Doah.
Doah might not admit it, but she was a person who shone.
And I didn't think that just because I personally liked Luka; she was, in a purely objective sense, radiant.
Her popularity grew by the day.
The scale of her advertisements and collaborations with famous people kept getting bigger.
Her music video was racking up tens of millions of views.
And me, just one fan among the Pink Army, felt like there was nothing I could do for her.
That’s why I was so happy that I could do something for her for this solo concert.
For the person I loved and supported.
I remembered how Doah had jumped for joy after listening to the sample the composer had sent.
My girlfriend, who had hugged me, telling me to look forward to the concert because it was going to be amazing.
If I had refused that offer back then, I never would have felt that kind of happiness.
Ah… but then again, if I get dragged around for filming every day and can't see Doah's face or watch Luka's streams, what's the point?
“Fuuuuck! I have no idea!”
Having reached the limit of what I could figure out on my own, I impulsively yelled out the window.
Phew… that’s a little better…
But I still have to give them an answer about whether I’m doing this project or not.
The way they explained it made it sound like some limited-time home shopping network deal, but I had to admit the offer was incredible.
If I decided to continue down this path, when would I ever get a chance to be in a lineup like that again?
After racking my brain, I took out my phone and called the manager.
[Hello?]
[Ah, yes. Taemin-ssi.]
[Um, about that drama you mentioned the other day.]
[Yes, yes.]
I could hear the tension in the manager’s voice as he replied.
[For now, could you tell them I’ll participate?]
[Oh! Excellent choice! I’ll get in touch with the team leader and the production company right away!]
He was about to hang up, but I managed to stop him.
[Ah, Manager-nim! Um… that… what was it… that…]
[Go ahead.]
[Do we… do we also have to renew the contract right away?]
[Of course! The production period will far exceed one month, so you’ll have to!]
I knew it.
[Would it be okay to renew it closer to when the current one expires?]
The manager was silent for a moment.
[Um… may I ask why?]
[Of course, I’m thinking about it positively, but I’m just… not quite ready to make a decision yet…]
I couldn’t just lay out all my worries to him.
[In that case, I’ll discuss it with the team leader. But honestly, if you’re doing the project, it’s more likely that they won’t allow it.]
[I see…]
[We’d have to speak with the production company separately as well in that case.]
The manager seemed uncomfortable with my uncooperative stance on the contract and was clearly trying to pressure me.
[Anyway, I’ll be in touch.]
[Yes, thank you.]
After hanging up, I felt restless and pulled the script I’d gotten from my acting coach out of my bag.
“Get Oh Hyunseong on the phone. Right now!”
“What? He’s not answering? Then you should be running over there to drag him here!”
“Haa… haa… These sons of bitches!”
“Hmm.”
Sounds like some seriously bad acting.
As someone who’d rarely gotten angry, I found it incredibly difficult to shout and express rage like this.
Anger is best expressed through chat, anyway.
And curses are always best when you just use the first consonants.
I opened my phone and went to YouTube, only to let out a dry laugh at my recommended videos.
Right below a clip with Luka’s avatar was a thumbnail with my face on it.
[The Epitome of the Nerdy Guy! Rookie Actor Han Taemin!]
Stop with the clickbait, you bastards.
How can you call me an actor when I’ve had less than twenty minutes of screen time?
I’d seen it countless times.
I played the interview clip, already knowing its contents by heart.
[Any last words?]
[Fighting, CLOSER…?]
“Fighting, CLOSER.”
I repeated my own words out loud.
“So that’s what I decided to do.”
“No way.”
Doah, clutching my phone, kept repeating the same word over and over.
“…Oppa.”
“Yeah?”
“Aren’t you going to become, like, world-famous at this rate?”
“All of a sudden?”
Doah, who had been sipping her latte, slammed her hand on the table.
“What? Don’t you know Kim Seongho? The actor, Kim Seongho?”
“Of course I know him. I’m not an idiot.”
“Then how can you be so calm about it!” Doah protested, as if she couldn’t comprehend it at all. “He’s super popular these days! This is huge, I’m telling you!”
“…Is it?”
“Ah! See! I knew you didn’t get it.”
Doah began to explain just how incredible the cast for my new project was.
“Basically, Oppa, this is like a small-time VTuber with 100 subscribers showing up as a guest on a CLOSER collab stream. It’s that different.”
Wow. Putting it like that really drove the point home.
It was a moment that made me truly appreciate the power of a good analogy.
“But do you think you can do it, Oppa? You said learning to act has been tough lately.”
“Well… I’ll have to do well. What other choice do I have?”
“What about school?”
“I’ll probably take a leave of absence.”
The drama’s filming schedule was bound to overlap with my classes.
“Hmm… I see… I was actually thinking about taking a leave of absence, too.”
“Why you?”
“I tried juggling both last semester, and it was impossible.”
It was true. Around finals, Doah had been shuffling to and from school in a half-dead state.
“And it’s a pain for everyone else when I’m too busy during group projects.”
Doah gave me an apologetic smile, likely remembering the advertisement project we’d done together.
“Thanks for your help back then.”
“Don’t mention it now.”
I did it because I wanted to.
“But I can’t help you next semester, so maybe it’s not a bad idea for us to take a leave together.”
“Ooh~ Then we can hang out a lot more.”
Doah beamed, looking incredibly happy.
“We can go on another trip, too!”
“Hey, you have to stream. What do you mean, ‘go somewhere’?”
“Hey, I can take a day off, you know? If I talk to them nicely? What, you don’t want to go on a trip with me?”
Pouting, she gently kicked my shoe with her foot.
“Of course not. You know how much I like you.”
Besides, if we go on a trip, then… umm…
A special event would be almost guaranteed.
“Then let’s both take a leave and go to Japan! I want to go to Japan!”
“Japan? So suddenly?”
I chuckled at the abrupt change in scale.
“Hey, if we take a plane, it’s no different from a domestic trip to somewhere a little far.”
“You think so?”
“Of course! It’s only a two or three-hour flight, right?”
“Alright, let’s see when the time comes. If we can go, we’ll go.”
“Yay~”
Doah giggled, delighted by the mere thought of it.
“Ah, I think it’ll be so much fun. We have to do an otaku pilgrimage tour.”
“Sounds great.”
Sharing the same hobbies was a huge blessing.
I hope days like these can continue forever.
Just doing nothing, having fun with Doah like this for as long as possible.
There was a reason everyone dreamed of being a rich bum.
“Oh, right! I have something to show you, too.”
“What is it?”
“They set the date for my solo concert!”
“Oh? It’s confirmed?”
“Yep! March 5th!”
I immediately opened my calendar and jotted it down.
“March… 5th…”
Haa… Please, I hope I don’t have filming that day…
“And this is the original song I recorded.”
Doah’s finger paused just before hitting the play button.
“Ah, but this… it’s not the finished version yet, so… you have to keep that in mind, okay?”
Stop making excuses, Kim Doah!
Feeling my head spin with anticipation, I nodded my head up and down vigorously to show I understood.