Action 10. At Your Fingertips
SSK's marketing team had been buzzing since morning.
"Damn, they didn't beat the senior at rock-paper-scissors or anything."
"What are you talking about? He's from regional headquarters."
"Think about it—aside from that Kyungsung Bakery flop, Joo Young-hoon hasn't had any major failures."
"He's just got a prickly personality, but he's got the skills, right?"
It was all because of the first teaser trailer for Oxygen Alert, released yesterday afternoon.
Honestly, it was ridiculous for production company staff to make such a fuss over a single teaser.
Trailers were just compilations of the best, most exciting bits, after all.
But this time was different.
The Oxygen Alert teaser had claimed the top spot for 24-hour views among all Tvic trailers ever.
In other words, no other Tvic project had garnered as much attention in that timeframe.
Viewer interest metrics were spiking off the charts, too.
It was a brilliantly crafted teaser with killer casting.
"Tae-woong's star power is no joke, huh? He flooded real-time trends."
"Totally deserved. That shot of him emerging from the water? I legit gasped."
"Heard he's got a great personality, too."
"If you're shelling out big guarantee fees for the lead, you gotta go with someone like him."
That was when it happened.
The chattering marketing team fell silent in an instant.
"Good morning."
Do Hyun-woo passed by with a smiling face.
"He's in a good mood."
"Never seen him look intimidated. They say even in Team 3, he stayed cool no matter how much Joo Young-hoon raged."
"Acting, probably? Ex-actor and all."
"But isn't Oxygen Alert got nothing to do with Do Hyun-woo anyway? As long as At Your Fingertips does well, right?"
"You think it'll be that straightforward? Do Hyun-woo's greased-up actors all got stabbed by Joo Young-hoon."
"But he snagged Kim Ra-un instead."
"Tae-woong over Kim Ra-un? That's a huge win."
"By that logic, Jeon So-ra over Lee Min-seon is an even bigger steal."
"Is it?"
The employee who tilted his head stared down the hallway where Do Hyun-woo had vanished.
"Either way, you can't help but care, right?"
I was dying to care.
About the employees' stares checking my expression.
CL Team 4 shared the fourth floor with marketing, and the CEs coming down for team business always detoured to the bathroom.
They had to pass our team's supply closet to get there.
In short, they wanted to see my face.
So...
"Why the frown?"
"I'm practicing a tense expression."
"That?"
"Doesn't look tense?"
"That's the face you make when you accidentally pour cold water into the last coffee mix during overtime."
Has my acting slipped?
Well, I'm not an actor anymore.
Truth be told, I wasn't thinking much.
Of course Oxygen Alert's teaser would kill it.
Ko Hak-su might be a bit of a mess as a person, but he shot scenes well, and Hong Hee-young was a top-tier writer beyond question.
With Tae-woong attached? It'd be weirder if it flopped.
Of course, that was just my opinion.
The company folks seemed eager to see me clash with Oxygen Alert.
And it wasn't just the company.
A few days after the teaser dropped, this garbage article came out.
It featured a photo of me and Director Ko Hak-su glaring at each other—from the The President I Made production press conference, obviously.
Public reaction was predictably sour.
From "Do Hyun-woo's overreaching when he's not even a director" to "he's arrogant" and "Ko Hak-su's such an old fogey."
No idea why it even ran.
Nobody benefited.
Well, the media outlet probably loved the views.
One thing was clear: even reporters saw Oxygen Alert and At Your Fingertips as rivals.
Projects dropping around the same time often got pitted against each other, but this felt like more.
Was there something I didn't know?
I learned the reason from Chae Seo-hee.
"Word is Director Ko Hak-su's been trash-talking you to industry insiders."
"What the hell?"
"So reporters think there's fire and run with it."
"No, I mean, where do you get this intel? This isn't even SSK gossip."
"Secret."
She wasn't moonlighting as a paparazzi, was she?
Anyway, with reporters fanning the flames, the public started viewing At Your Fingertips and Oxygen Alert as competitors.
It wasn't some shady issue like with Criminal Community or Young and Perfect—just healthy, normal competition.
But... had my first project been so steeped in schemes and plots that this pure "which one's more fun?" vibe threw me off?
There were malicious comments aimed at actors or projects, sure, but that was just par for the course—like taxes.
In this atmosphere, time marched on steadily, and for the first time since becoming a CE, I did a proper interview with a reporter.
There had been offers before, but no real reason to do one until now.
I couldn't refuse Moon Reporter's manly summons.
Entertainment section, I'd skip, but e-sports? Good for the drama.
That mindset made the interview surprisingly fun.
"Any last words for e-sports fans?"
"I lost my romance recently while playing TOOL."
"Romance?"
"People tried to kill me just for sucking at the game."
"Haha, yeah, that happens. Common in this scene."
"No, it shouldn't. So please reward my lost romance with views."
"Usually creators promise to deliver with the work?"
"Our work already repays e-sports fans. Just watch."
"Hahaha!"
Moon Reporter grinned ear-to-ear, saying it'd make for a fun article.
But leaving the outlet, I ran into an unexpected face.
Or maybe not so unexpected.
He probably got way more interview requests than me.
"Oh? Doing interviews now?"
It was Director Ko Hak-su.
"Old friend of a reporter."
"Wasn't he some C-list actor not even scraping B-grade? Got a buddy in the press, huh?"
Why was he so desperate to get under my skin?
"Should I thank you? If you hadn't taken Kim Ra-un, what then? Didn't even know an SS-grade would fall into our laps."
SS-grade? What manga is this?
Despite his childish antics, I had been shocked to hear Joo Young-hoon snagged Tae-woong as Kim Ra-un's replacement.
Didn't expect Tae-woong to jump straight into a new project, let alone with him.
Rumor was his agency demanded a fortune in guarantee, but Tvic approved after deliberation.
At Your Fingertips probably helped.
As I mulled that, Ko Hak-su sneered on.
"Manager Jang and I go way back, so I figured I'd use Kim Ra-un... but honestly, he didn't click. That type doesn't bounce back once popularity fades."
"Use him?"
"How's it feel to ruin him with your own hands and bury him six feet under?"
"Bury him?"
"What else? Still holding out hope? Oh, avoiding the teaser stats on purpose?"
Both teasers kill it, and he'll drown in his own kimchi soup.
"Director Ko."
"What?"
"'Ruined' isn't for times like this. Actors act, directors direct, directors build the set. If it flops, it's a shame—not ruin."
"Smooth talker."
"'Ruined' is for the guy who says 'too bad on the proxy drive fee, you drive'."
Before I finished, Ko Hak-su's vibe shifted.
From mocking eyes to murderous rage.
But I read the fear beneath.
"And Ra-un acts great. Way better than you think."
"What? 'You'?"
Ding—the elevator doors opened.
"After you? Feels like a penalty riding together."
"You little... "
"Me first?"
He boarded, heaving ragged breaths, glaring daggers until the doors shut.
That night at 8 PM.
The first teaser for At Your Fingertips dropped.
The star of the first teaser was Kim Ra-un.
Nothing groundbreaking about the content itself.
Park Sung-hwa, the star within the court.
But he knew neither how to receive nor give.
In the end, as a husband, director, and man, he faced failure...
Sung-hwa Empire coach. What do you think?
He joins hands with team owner Kang Young and enters a new world.
But Park Sung-hwa, who looks down on e-sports, can't adapt and clashes with the players...
Me too, Coach.
What?
I hate losing that much. Enough to cowardly run away.
Deep down, desire blooms.
I want these kids—no, us—to win.
Honestly, Park Sung-hwa's arc in the teaser was predictable.
The classic failed coach trope in any sports story.
But centering the first teaser on him had a purpose.
First, I didn't want e-sports to feel too alien.
In volleyball, the cliché hurt, but here it buffered the unfamiliarity.
The real reason was second.
Kim Ra-un's acting was insane.
Kim Ra-un used to be the type who couldn't sleep or eat before a drama aired from sheer nerves.
But At Your Fingertips was different.
Sleep came easy, condition perfect.
Didn't know why at first...
Then he saw the teaser.
Even reshooting take one, he couldn't top it.
First time with zero regrets— no what-ifs haunting him.
So Kim Ra-un looped the teaser endlessly.
Once, twice, three times...
Somewhere past ten, courage hit.
Courage to check reactions.
One comment wouldn't fade.
Comments from the Criminal Community and Young and Perfect scandals.
He'd tried rationalizing them away, but they stuck.
Might've snapped at hyung because of it.
But now, he could let them go.
From that day, Kim Ra-un lay awake.
Not from anxiety.
Excitement.