Our Family's Little Muggle Makes the Debut Lineup
It had been two days since Cheon Yoo-ah joined Flame.
And so far, nothing had changed.
Just as I'd predicted, a star at Cheon Yoo-ah's level apparently preferred to keep a certain distance from the company itself. That said, she'd already been on hiatus for a year, and her cameo appearance had marked the beginning of her return to acting — so there was always the possibility she'd drop by the office over a script or a role.
If I could just get past this period, I wouldn't have to run into her again for a while.
Which meant, apparently, that I needed to watch my step for the time being.
It would be an absolute disaster if I lingered around like a fool and bumped straight into her in a hallway.
After all, I was the guy who threw away the business card she'd left for me. Now that we were technically part of the same family, if she ever asked me why I did that back then, even I would struggle to come up with an answer.
Honestly, if I'd known things would turn out this way, I would have at least contacted her and politely declined the offer.
Old memories clouding my judgment — that was my mistake, plain and simple.
"How does it look?"
"Oh, excellent. Dressing up really brings out your look. And how about you, sir?"
"It's a little awkward, but I think it works."
Today, I'd finally stepped outside the company walls for the first time in a while.
Because today was the wrap party for Genius Copywriter, Yoon Seoeun.
Having steadily climbed the ratings charts, the drama hit an astonishing 23.2% heading into tonight's finale.
And a hit drama deserved a wrap party to match — this one was shaping up to be quite the lavish affair.
As a key supporting player who'd helped drive those ratings skyward, I was one of the stars of the evening myself.
For me in particular, this party mattered more than it might seem. This was only the third time my actual face had ever been shown on camera.
Like I'd told Jo Yooshin — people didn't remember Baek Si-woo. They only remembered the Old Man Yoon.
Thanks to this drama I'd signed with Flame, but it never hurt to raise my profile while the opportunity was there.
Quite a few reporters would be at the party tonight, after all.
On Team Leader Seo's advice — better to get as many good photos as possible while you can — I'd gone all-out at a famous salon near the office before getting in the car.
And not just any salon. I'd even pulled strings with a director who famously didn't take clients unless they were A-list stars.
The ironic reason a nobody like me got that kind of treatment? Cheon Yoo-ah, of all people.
When she moved her business to that salon, I got swept up as part of the package deal.
"So the Cheon Yoo-ah effect has already kicked in..."
Here was something I hadn't known: apparently, even something as simple as who does your hair divides actors into tiers.
Really — the truly exclusive salons apparently screen their celebrity clients.
People have always pathologically loved sorting each other into ranks, haven't they?
Absurd on its face, sure. But if that's how the world works, denying it won't change anything.
Well, either way.
The director here — infamous for being the pickiest in the business — was every bit as skilled as that aloof pride suggested.
A wrap party is, at heart, a semi-private gathering, and showing up overdone would have been its own kind of joke. But she struck that balance flawlessly.
Thanks to her, I looked far more polished than usual.
At this level of craftsmanship, I figured I'd earned the Heavenly Demon's halo for real.
Becoming an addendum to the Heavenly Demon wasn't exactly an insult to my pride, after all.
Flame, apparently allergic to saving money, had prepared an enormous van for a rookie like me.
How many seats did this thing even have?
It seemed suspiciously oversized, so I asked Team Leader Seo about it. He said that when you factored in costume changes during shoots and resting in the vehicle between takes, bigger was always better.
"I mean, I'm well aware bigger is better, but..."
Well, if the company thinks it's worth it, who am I to argue.
I decided the best approach was to leave the complicated stuff to the company and simply stop thinking about problems like this one.
This wrap party was a grand occasion — the entire cast, plus the whole crew, all under one roof.
With so many people coming, the production had reserved an entire BBQ restaurant. A huge one, at that.
Reporters had already set up camp around the place.
Cameras flashed every time an actor arrived, and the production had even built a dedicated photo zone near the entrance.
It was obvious the press would swarm, so the producers had laid out the space for them in advance.
"Hey, the van's pulling in. Who's this one?"
"...Huh?"
"...Who is that?"
As I stepped out of the van and walked toward the photo zone, the reporters tilted their heads.
Getting out of a van, dressed to the nines — I was clearly one of the drama's cast, but none of them could place my face.
Though that confusion didn't last long.
"Oh! It's Baek Si-woo. Old Man Yoon!"
"Ahh... seeing him like this, I really couldn't tell."
"Shoot him anyway."
One of the reporters finally recognized me, sparing me an awkward situation.
If I'd strutted confidently into the photo zone and not a single person had known who I was, that would have been truly mortifying.
I got chills just imagining it.
It reaffirmed my resolve: never again would I appear in a drama wearing a mianju. Absolutely never.
"Whoa, Si-woo, looking sharp tonight."
"I'm an actor now, you know. Gotta dress up for official occasions."
"Heh heh, that's the spirit. Anyway, good to see you. Come on over this way — Writer Min's over there too."
"Sure. Though... I don't see Jo Yooshin anywhere?"
"Ah, Jo Yooshin. Probably running late. He's the type who always shows up last to things like this."
"Ah, I see. How entertaining."
Then again, it would be stranger if our Elementary-Schooler Jo didn't pull some kind of dramatic entrance at an event like this.
The protagonist always arrives last — something like that?
But it wasn't just Jo Yooshin. The other two leads hadn't shown up yet either.
The difference, of course, was that those two were mega-popular idols who could cite their schedules as an excuse. Jo Yooshin wasn't at that level yet.
"Oh, there's Rion. And Seoeun right behind him."
The two idols slid in at the last possible second like they were scraping past a deadline — which officially crowned Jo Yooshin as the true protagonist of this wrap party.
Some people never change. Truly.
"So, you joined Flame?"
"Yes, it seems like a good place. The treatment's great."
"Well, that explains why Cheon Yoo-ah went there too."
I owed PD Yoo quite a debt, so I'd reached out to him before signing with Flame — to thank him for helping me find such a good company.
He'd tilted his head at first, wondering if a brand-new agency was really such a great idea. Then the news broke about Cheon Yoo-ah joining, and his whole tune changed.
Apparently, once Cheon Yoo-ah joins, it's not a rookie company anymore?
"Oh, Actor Baek, you joined Flame? And I hear Cheon Yoo-ah's there too?"
"Yes, Senior Cheon Yoo-ah is with the company."
"Woo~ now that's a good catch. Both you and Flame, I mean."
"Right? Flame signing me was a stroke of genius."
"God, that shamelessness of yours really hasn't changed."
"They say people die if they change too suddenly."
Writer Min, who was only now learning I'd joined Flame, congratulated me on landing such a great position.
Frankly, the news was a bit late in coming.
She'd been holed up writing the finale, so this hadn't exactly been the moment to bother her.
That said, watching even Writer Min lead with Cheon Yoo-ah before anything else — the woman really was something.
Here, there, everywhere — our Heavenly Demon's presence alone was, without exaggeration, absolutely overwhelming.
"Oh, the man of the hour arrives..."
While we grilled meat and traded small talk, the star of the evening was making his entrance.
"But why's his face like that? And... is he glaring at me?"
Jo Yooshin walked in wearing a scowl like the world had personally offended him, and the moment he spotted me, his expression contorted further.
He'd never liked me much to begin with, but that reaction was a surprise.
He hadn't been anywhere near that hostile at the final shoot.
"Khek hek. Our Jo Yooshin really is the same as ever. People just don't change, do they?"
"I guess not. But I have no idea why he's suddenly having a meltdown. He wasn't like this during filming."
"Ahh, well... anyone in this industry who knows, knows the story..."
"Go on."
As I tilted my head, wondering what exactly the guy had eaten to sour his mood, PD Yoo — feeling magnanimous off the back of the ratings bonanza — cheerfully explained the situation.
Apparently, Jo Yooshin had been quietly angling after Cheon Yoo-ah for ages, and he took it poorly that she and I were now eating from the same pot, so to speak.
Was this what they called twisted affection?
We were just at the same company. I couldn't fathom what was so earth-shattering about that.
"If that's how he feels, he should've just brought Cheon Yoo-ah to SD himself."
"Ahh, SD made a massive push for her. Practically every agency in the business was gunning for Cheon Yoo-ah."
"Ah, so that rumor did make the rounds — about Cheon Yoo-ah looking for a company."
Part of it was the year-long hiatus, part of it was that she'd been searching for an agency of her own. Word had gotten around, so offers poured in from everywhere. The result, well...
"She came to Flame."
If SD had pushed a little harder and landed her, my own heart would have been much more at ease, honestly.
SD had thoroughly disappointed me today.
I'd never been fond of them, but today it stung worse than usual.
"Anyway, putting all that aside..."
"Hmm?"
"Jo Yooshin, chasing after Cheon Yoo-ah? That's not even a case of the tofu seller eyeing the butcher's knife."
Look, I had zero intention of concerning myself with the modern Heavenly Demon's romantic affairs.
But even judged objectively, the gap between Jo Yooshin and the Heavenly Demon was simply too vast.
Jo Yooshin, honestly — if you're going to covet something, at least covet something within reach.
"Pfft. Our Jo Yooshin would cry if he heard you say that, you know."
Whether my tofu-seller jab cracked him up or he was simply drunk on ratings glory, PD Yoo's laughter was flowing freely tonight.
"Ho ho. Cheon Yoo-ah is a bit of a waste on him, it's true. No — honestly, a lot of a waste?"
Writer Min, beside him, was no better.
Then again, these two had pocketed fat bonuses and were already planning a vacation abroad, so I couldn't exactly blame them for being giddy.
A vacation abroad. Now that's something to envy.
As I stood there dumbfounded by the astonishing revelation that Jo Yooshin had been pursuing Cheon Yoo-ah in earnest —
an equally astonishing piece of news was waiting on my phone.
What... exactly is this?
"Huh? What's wrong, Si-woo?"
"Oh, nothing. Just... keep seeing strange things."
Wondering if I'd eaten something bad, I downed a glass of beer in one go and checked my phone again.
But my eyes weren't deceiving me.
Our family's little muggle had really, truly made the debut lineup.
"Honestly, what is this world coming to..."
It felt like the meager alcohol in my system had been blasted clean out of me.