Chapter 54
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Street Scouting
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Who?
A strange man suddenly spoke to us.
Dad grabbed my hand tightly, eyeing him warily.
Oh, no, sir. Im not that kind of person.
The man waved his hands as if to say he wasnt some weirdo, then pulled a business card from his pocket and handed it to Dad.
YU Entertainment?
Yes. You might not have heard of us, but Im a casting manager at YU Entertainment. I couldnt help noticing your child from way over therehes so pretty and handsome. I was wondering if youd ever thought about having him audition with us.
Oh, no thanks. My kids ahem. No interest.
Dad waved him off firmly and tried to hand the card back.
Hed almost said we were already active but held back.
There were people gathering around, and someone from this YU Entertainment might just keep bothering us.
I just stood there blankly, watching the two of them talk.
Id seen a scene like this in a TV drama once
Where someone gets asked out of the blue on the street if theyve ever thought about being a celebrity.
It felt like that was happening to me right now.
Siu, lets go.
Ung.
Dad grabbed my hand to pull me away, like there was no need to hear more.
Wait a second, Dad.
We havent gotten our drinks yet?!
I glanced back at the vending machine with longing eyes and hesitated.
But seeing that, the mans eyes lit up.
Oh man, looks like your kids a bit interested in being a celebrity. I wont take longjust hear me out.
Looks like hed gotten the wrong idea.
Our YU Entertainment isnt some small fry, you know? Weve put out idols like Sprinton and Telin Yu, and have you heard of Lee Younggil? That actors with us too.
The man blocked our path completely and started firing off words like a machine gun.
It was overwhelming.
Dad stood there for a moment, staring at him in disbelief, while I tilted my head, wondering what this entertainment thing he kept mentioning was.
Kiddo, dont you want to meet celebrity brothers and sisters? You know TV, right? TV? I can get you on there.
I couldnt exactly say Id already met them.
I was curious what would happen if I called Moon Heesung right here, though.
Pushing that curiosity aside, I asked what I was really wondering.
How does an entertainment company make that happen?
Oh, looks like our kids interested. See? Your child seems pretty keen. At YU Entertainment, we provide systematic training to turn kids into stars from a young age. Weve got our own curriculum and know-how. You just follow it, and after debut, we handle everythingschedules, script selection, record label picks, you name it.
Hmm, so basically, they connect actors and singers with jobs.
Listening to him made someone come to mind naturally.
The theater owner of Emergency Iron 777, Kim Sangcheol.
If thats what entertainment companies do, then I was already signed with one.
Having sorted that out, I called out to the man who was still rambling on endlessly.
Hey, mister.
Mister! Ahem, kiddo. Im still a single guy who hasnt even gotten married
Im already with an entertainment company. Agency and entertainment companysame thing, right?
Huh?
The man muttered in confusion, then asked Dad if it was true.
Dad looked down at me for a moment and confirmed it, politely saying our kid already had an agency, so itd be best to drop it.
The man hesitated a bit, then held out his business card to Dad again.
Dont say thattake this and think it over. Were a solid name in the industry. If you change your mind, give me a call.
I shook my head firmly at his words, like he wasnt giving up easy.
Just in case?
Dont get your hopes up.
Wh-what?
Lets go, Daddy.
Yeah.
I grabbed Dads hand and turned away.
Because of that guy, we couldnt even get our drinks now.
Stomping my feet in frustration as I headed toward Mom, I spotted a familiar face.
Ung?
Why was that person here?
Siu.
There stood Kim Sangcheol, holding his daughters hand, frozen in place.
With an incredibly moved expression.
I never imagined running into you here at a place like this, Theater Owner.
Haha, I was shocked too when I suddenly saw Siu.
Dad and I returned to the table where Mom was waiting, joined by Kim Sangcheol and his daughter.
The five of us sat around, chatting away.
Is that your daughter? Shes so pretty.
Mom smiled at the shy little girl hiding behind Kim Sangcheol.
Haha, right? Im relieved she doesnt take after me. I got married late, so shes still pretty young.
Exactly.
How did she not inherit anything from that toad-like Kim Sangcheol, who looked downright scary if he just stood still!
His daughter had delicate, fair features and was absolutely adorable.
It was unbelievable how little she resembled him.
I ended up staring at her too intently, fascinated.
Shouldnt this be reported somewhere?
How could that face produce a daughter like this?
She looks about Sius age, doesnt she?
Yeah, Yuna. Say hi to them. Shes a year older than Siu.
Hello.
She didnt take after him in personality either.
Unlike the smooth-talking Kim Sangcheol, who chatted easily with strangers, she was extremely shy.
But she kept peeking at me, so she must have good taste.
I see, shes Sius big sister then!
Hi. Im Sius daddy.
.
Kim Sangcheols daughter, Kim Yuna, barely managed a nod even to our parents friendly words.
But Kim Sangcheol didnt seem to have time to worry about his daughter right now.
Ever since that YU Entertainment guy left and wed joined them, his eyes had been consistently misty.
I thought it was a bit much to get so emotional over this, but I could understand it somewhat.
Having been in a troupe in my past life, I knew how these theater folks worked.
When actors made it big, theyd move to bigger, better troupes.
That happened all the time back then, and now with even more troupes around and everything more specialized, it had to be worse.
But if anything, I owed them gratitude.
Putting a mere five-year-old like me on stage couldnt have been an easy call for Kim Sangcheol, no matter what Kang Yonghwi said.
In the end, he was the one who trusted me and put me up there.
I saw leaving for somewhere else before he cut me loose as betrayal.
A few hundred years wouldnt change basic human decency.
I picked up some leftover fruit and slid it over to Kim Sangcheol.
My precious Shine Muscat grapes that Id been savoring lately.
Gasp!
Siu!
Mom and Dad called out in surprise at the sight.
But Kim Sangcheol deserved it.
These are yummy. Have some.
Sniff, thanks, Siu.
I gave him a few grapes, and now he looked ready to burst into tears.
Its Sius favorite fruit these days.
He always rations them out so carefully, and gets so sad if we take any.
At our parents follow-up, Kim Sangcheols eyes finally turned red.
A late spring breeze rustled above our heads.
A rowdy indoor pocha.
Auntie! Two more bottles of makgeolli here!
One more oden stew over here!
Low ceilings, tables packed close together.
Still, the cheap, tasty snacks in variety and generous portions made it a favorite haunt for the broke theater folks around Daehangno.
Harsh laughter erupted everywhere, everyone chattering away freely.
At a corner table sat Kang Yonghwi and Kim Sangcheol, facing each other over drinks.
So, you know how moved I was? Huh?
Sius always seemed mature beyond his years.
Kim Sangcheol had dragged Kang Yonghwi out, saying he had something to say.
He recounted running into Han Siu at Happy Land.
Surprising enough theyd bumped into each other in that huge park, but the story that followed was even more shocking.
He was only six.
Any other kid would just be thinking about running around and having fun, the age where you cant help but call them annoying for tormenting adultsand yet he said something like that to strangers.
The kids already got loyalty at such a young age. Loyalty.
Must be born with it?
Hes one weird kid, I tell you.
Kim Sangcheol shook his head, unable to wrap his mind around it, and Kang Yonghwi grinned before asking,
I brought him to the right place, didnt I?
Ugh, you and Siu bothyoure no ordinary guys.
Kim Sangcheol couldnt bring himself to say it was a good call, so he downed his soju instead.
It had turned out great in the end, a hundredno, a thousand times overbut thinking about how much stress Kang Yonghwi had put him through back then made him hate admitting it.
Anyway, Ive been thinking hard about it.
Whats with all the thinking? Take a break, hyung.
You punk. Hey, Sius thinking of us like thatdont I owe him something in return?
Thats true.
Kang Yonghwi nodded for him to go on.
I saw it with my own eyes. Entertainment companies are already sniffing around Siu even when hes just standing there. Hes no ordinary kid.
Thats right.
That face would only stand out more as he grew.
Getting street-cast without knowing Han Sius talent meant itd only get worseer, betterfrom here.
Once his acting skills come to light and he gets famous, even better agencies will come knocking.
Yeah. No ones quite like Siu.
But that day, it hit me hard. Sius special. He might not go even if they offer great terms, out of loyalty to us.
Having been in the industry a long time, Kim Sangcheol knew better than anyone how crucial an agency was.
They couldnt let Han Siu miss out on opportunities because of them.
So, what then?
Take his momshes clearly a good person. But shed never bring up moving him to a better agency first. Were a troupe, not an agency. Weve got him now, but we cant keep handling a kid without any proper system forever.
Youve really given this a lot of thought.
At Kang Yonghwis impressed tone, Kim Sangcheol glared.
You punk?
I mean, good job.
Anyway, we cant just sit on our hands thinking hes a kid. Im gonna find him a proper, solid agency.
True, kids grow so fast. Feels like he was five just yesterday. Not like us.
Exactly We gotta find a good fit before he gets any bigger.
Kim Sangcheol spoke in a bittersweet tone, like sending a child off to independence.
Kang Yonghwi quietly refilled his glass.