The Manager Hides His Regression. 28. Kim Si-a Spreads Her Wings (7) Ignition
Over the past week, Kang Chief's Day YouTube channel had seen explosive growth.
A massive two hundred and sixty thousand subscribers.
Of course, we were now in an era where mega-network YouTubers boasting millions of subscribers kept popping up everywhere.
By some standards, it might even look like nothing special.
"But even she didn't... she's still barely over two hundred thousand."
The account had been inactive for a while, yet even the nation's highest-rated solo female singer, Lee Ji-yu, couldn't crack two hundred and twenty thousand subscribers.
She only ever dropped cover songs on the company channel.
No real content at all.
That's why Kim Si-a's sudden YouTube arrival had hit the public like a fresh, unexpected shock.
One day, the TV actress everyone had only seen on screens...
A woman so stunning that people whispered "damn, she's gorgeous"...
Suddenly appeared on YouTube, casually hanging out with a manager, even going to watch movies and eat dinner together.
"Why...?"
At the time, most people still had a high opinion of YouTube, and the entertainment industry had barely filtered into the mainstream.
The general public found her presence strange.
So what did the curious do?
Of course, they searched.
That's right.
Back then, the "search" tab still existed.
[1. Kim Si-a] [2. Kim Si-a Body] [3. Kim Si-a Clothes] [4. Kim Si-a Bag]
...
[10. Kim Si-a Manager]
For an entire week, Kim Si-a's name dominated the search charts, claiming the top spots.
People who clicked through from those searches quickly found their way back to YouTube.
"The cycle is kicking in..."
It was the ultimate viral cycle starting.
Even at that early stage, whenever "search" spiked, reporters would chase it like a big scoop.
After all, there had even been a whole dedicated news desk just for monitoring search trends...
And when the journalists went wild with articles, the next stop was always the entertainment programming departments.
With burning eyes, they desperately tried to recruit her.
Whether by calling the company or using connections to get in front of me like the chief manager sitting right here...
They would line up no matter what.
"I'm sorry, Director."
The PD's face twisted in disbelief as he sat across from me.
"Chief... are you serious right now? Everyone else has to beg and grovel just to get a face on the show... but you? You're telling me no?"
On JBC's weekend variety show, where close celebrities escape to a mountain village for a simple meal together, that's exactly where he wanted to cast Si-a.
The reason I turned him down so harshly was simple.
"I don't need to send someone as introverted as her to a show where chemistry is everything..."
Because the real reason Si-a was flying high on YouTube was that I was always there to support her in complete comfort.
There was no reason for her to step out into the spotlight and create a completely different image just because she was shy.
Besides, asking her to hang out with Lee Sa-rang and pretend to be close...
That was impossible.
"She's not a complete wreck or anything! We don't need to force her to do personal sketches!"
If she went, Lee Sa-rang would be standing right behind her as the designated straight man.
The guy was basically whispering to the PD, "Look how easy it is to turn Si-a into a fool~"
"Send our actress there?"
"Aigoo~ Why are you two acting like that~"
"Ah~ There's an audition for a drama soon... it would be better to focus there."
"You have no sense of timing? If you go on variety shows and show your pretty face, it would help your drama career!"
His cheeks puffed out like a pufferfish as his voice rose in volume.
Watching him this furious...
It was clear he'd either taken something or been given something.
That was the only reason I refused to put Si-a on that show.
"Even so, I'm sorry."
"Look, you brat! You keep saying 'watch this' and 'see this'! Hey, Chief Kang! The CEO keeps saying 'yeah yeah' and you just... you don't know the difference between shit and doenjang?"
"I'm sorry."
The angrier he got, the more suspicious I became.
There was absolutely no reason for him to go this far for Si-a.
Well, maybe because he was from the same agency...
But I wasn't an idiot.
The likelihood that this guy was that beautiful... zero.
I knew it better than anyone.
"The scent is there..."
Just as his voice started echoing through the entire JS Entertainment building.
Someone knocked on the door of the singer's lounge where we were sitting.
I changed my suspicions into certainty.
"Minhyuk, is the CEO busy?"
"Huh? Hyung! What brings you here...?"
"Ah~ I was just passing by and thought I'd drop in for a beer after work... By the way, PD-nim, fancy running into you here too."
"Oh... I'm doing great, PD Park. But I heard you went somewhere nice with Kim PD the other day... that stings a little."
"Huh?"
"People don't discriminate or anything... Why only with Kim PD? No matter how much that guy brags, his stomach must be hurting."
His sharp eyes had already caught the raised voices outside and the frozen expression on the PD's face.
'If it wasn't that, Hyung Ji-ho wouldn't say anything like this.'
Ah, right now Kim PD was the main PD of the show the guy was trying to push Si-a onto.
Thanks to Park Ji-ho PD, who had come to see me at the perfect moment, I was one hundred percent sure.
Where else would Kim PD and that guy be going together for a nice spot?
Not a cafe.
Definitely not some ordinary bar where they'd flirt with girls.
High-class whiskey would be poured.
"Anyway... Chief Kang, please think it over once more. PD Park... I'll create a slot for you later."
As I stared at Park PD with burning eyes, the PD cleared his throat awkwardly, as if he himself felt embarrassed.
Our PD left.
'That guy really speaks like he looks...'
I watched the PD's retreating back with a smirk, then turned to Ji-ho hyung.
He was smiling at me, clearly amused by how the PD had looked.
"As expected, our hyung is always on time~"
Park Ji-ho and I had been drinking and chatting like crazy for the several days after Si-a and I had... well, that thing.
We were close enough that calling it "connection" felt right.
Even if I didn't call, he still showed up whenever I needed him.
"Why? Did that guy come to nag you about his PD?"
"Ugh... don't even ask. He was so insistent... I almost died of stress."
"Anyway, we young guys stick together, we young guys..."
"You're right... We really did stick together."
It had happened because, in my past life, I had been one of those guys.
A little chill still ran down my spine, but now there was no reason to drag up that old story.
'Just seeing Si-a every night is already more than I can handle...'
These days I felt like I was living the married-life bliss with my wife.
Even though I'd promised myself I'd only do it when I wanted to...
She just kept doing it every single day.
Well, I wasn't complaining about that either.
"By the way, what did you want to talk about?"
"Ah~ It's nothing. Just that I really watched your YouTube channel... I watched Kim Si-a again."
"Haha, right? That sister is so shy, but once you get to know her, she's super lovable."
"Wow... This guy is such a pushover? Si-a is like your wife? Why do you like her so much?"
I twitched again, but quickly wiped the dumb expression off my face.
"I guess I am a bit like that... Because our Si-a treats all the managers so well."
"Still, you should be careful. The two of you have a picture that just radiates creativity... the kind that makes you want to create."
"Aigoo... of course not. What would Si-a be missing...?"
Why did that sister make me like her so much?
Was I that good at... that?
"Still, I should have a drink. I have more to say."
"Of course... The weather's been so nice lately that I wanted a beer anyway."
The soft spring breeze was still blowing, so a cold beer at an outdoor table sounded perfect right now.
Ji-ho hyung and I moved to the pub we always went to and started drinking.
'Wow... what a life. This really is life...'
The carefree beer after work with good people.
Why had I lived such a bitter life before without ever feeling this joy?
For a moment, I even felt sorry for my past self.
The me who hadn't been able to enjoy even a second of this.
"By the way, is the YouTube thing your idea?"
"Yeah, pretty much. My little brother does the editing... I made the decision."
When I answered, Ji-ho hyung's eyes turned a little cloudy, as if thinking 'what kind of weird guy is this'.
"Interesting. A newcomer like you already making such calls...
No, having the authority to make those calls already is even stranger...
Did you take any CEO's business lessons or something?"
Even though the industry was full of young talents, I had zero cases like mine.
"Haha. No way. The CEO just liked me, that's all."
"That CEO is really a weird one."
As the cool spring breeze blew in, I watched the dark night street while Ji-ho hyung slowly got tipsy.
"Hyung... Didn't you say you had something to say earlier?"
Yeah.
The reason we were drinking beer here right now...
I hadn't told this hyung yet.
"Ah, right! Let me check my head... The alcohol really is the problem..."
As if snapping out of it, he lightly slapped his own cheeks a few times, then slowly opened his mouth.
"That lovely lady..."
"Yes?"
I suddenly snapped to attention.
Was the drama falling apart?
Or had the actress who originally got the role of Kim Yumi in the past now been cast in that part?
I tensed.
But what came out of his mouth had nothing to do with the worst-case scenario I had imagined.
"Our wife... wants to see Kim Si-a once."
"Eh...?"
"Ha, really... When I watched that YouTube thing, Si-a is perfect for Kim Yumi's role or something like that.
She said she'd like to do a private audition... but the schedule is tight for the day after tomorrow."
"A private audition?"
Discovering Si-a's different side hadn't been limited to the public.
Even Kim Hye-kyeong, the queen of romantic comedies and wife of Park Ji-ho PD, had been charmed by Kim Si-a.
The strict Kim Hye-kyeong writer... had been taken in.