By Zephyria ■
“Good, you’re doing great. I wish you looked a little closer. Shall we try some skinship? That’s it, like that! Ah, nice. Expressions, expressions… More refreshing! I am fruit! I am a lemon, and I am an orange!”
A profile photoshoot for an idol group about to debut.
With a large white screen as the backdrop, five boys strike poses, and the photographer, camera in hand, hovers around them, pressing the shutter incessantly.
Stylists, agency executives, photographer’s staff… More than ten people are gathered around the screen watching the shoot, making the not-so-spacious studio crowded.
Among them, only two, the agency’s CEO Im Sang-jin and team leader-level manager Yong-jae, were talking with serious expressions by the wall, a little distance away.
“Didn’t you train them on poses and expressions? They take pictures of each other all day long normally, so why are they like this when given the chance?”
CEO Im said with dissatisfaction.
“This is their first formal shoot in a studio. It’s natural for them to be nervous. Still, compared to the beginning of ‘TiTan’s’ debut, they are at a professional level, aren’t they?”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
Although CEO Im’s expression softened slightly at the manager’s words, his eyes still held a hint of anxiety.
This was the first boy group ENA Entertainment was introducing, after ‘TiTan,’ who had finally started to do well after a long period of obscurity, had disbanded futilely. As such, CEO Im was going through sensitive days.
“Look at Sang-yeon and Jun-woo. Even though they don’t get along, they stick together in front of the camera. They do that without being told. Anyone would think they’re dating.”
“Anyone who wants to enter this industry needs that much grit. Those who can’t smile like angels even when facing someone they want to beat to death won’t last long anyway.”
CEO Im, who spoke decisively, uncrossed his arms, which he had been holding tightly, and picked up the coffee placed on a material box. Holding a cup that looked too small for his large frame, he took a sip of coffee through the straw and said with relief, his eyes fixed on the shooting site.
“With that level of professionalism, they won’t end up like the ‘TiTan’ kids, at least. I don’t have to worry about that.”
The shoot paused briefly. While the photographer changed cameras, the styling team was busy tidying up the members’ appearances.
CEO Im placed his coffee back on the material box and crossed his arms again. Then, as if about to discuss a heavy secret, he leaned closer to the manager.
“Yong-jae, about Hye-an…”
He hesitated, as if the words were hard to say, and then, with a deep sigh, he finally spoke.
“It’s… really… I don’t know how long we can keep him like this.”
“How long?”
“That guy has no family… He’s been lying there unconscious for four months, and frankly, unless a miracle happens, he doesn’t seem like he’ll wake up.”
“But he’s still breathing… What can we do?”
“Right… That’s true too.”
CEO Im let out a sigh of resignation, licked his lips awkwardly, then picked up his cup again and put the straw in his mouth. Despite his rough appearance and imposing physique, which could be intimidating to a first-time observer, he was not a harsh person. However, he was not a saint who could continue to support a celebrity in a coma, whose awakening was uncertain.
“How much money is left in Hye-an’s name?”
“There isn’t much left now. His bank balance is almost depleted… The only significant asset is the deposit for his officetel.”
“Let’s sell that place. We need to redirect the monthly rent, which costs several million won, towards hospital bills. There’s no other way now.”
“Still… if hyung wakes up, he’ll make a fuss.”
As if Hyean might get up and chase him at any moment, Yong-jae hunched his thick, broad shoulders and stole glances at CEO Lim.
“You have to keep paying the hospital bills for him to wait until that bastard wakes up or not. I’ll wait only until Yoon Hye-an’s money runs out. I might feel bad, but… I’m not a philanthropist. I can’t keep paying hospital bills for someone who might never wake up and put it on my debt. The officetel, put it on the market today or tomorrow.”
“Yes…”
If Yoon Hye-an, who has no family, is confirmed as an unclaimed patient, the hospital’s ethics committee will decide whether to continue the patient’s treatment. In simple terms, Yoon Hye-an’s life will depend on the hospital’s decision.
Because of this, CEO Lim had registered himself as the guardian and had been paying the hospital bills from Yoon Hye-an’s account. However, he had no intention of supporting him by paying out of his own pocket. To CEO Lim, it felt like pouring water into a bottomless pit. Frankly, it was money that couldn’t be recovered unless Yoon Hye-an woke up and worked to pay it back.
Yong-jae, who had taken out his phone to check the market price of the officetel, turned back to CEO Lim as if he remembered something.
“I did look into it a bit… It seems the number of people who wake up from a coma isn’t as small as one might think.”
“You were the one who suffered the most because of that temper. Do you still wish for him to wake up?”
“It was difficult… but it’s still a human life. People have to live first.”
“Because you’re so soft, that Hyean bastard was even worse to you.”
“Still, if Hyung wakes up, I don’t want to be his manager again.”
“I wanted to get you out of it too, you punk. But what can we do? You’re the only manager at the company who can handle that guy. The others quit within a month under him, so we need a solution.”
After a brief moment of regrouping, the shoot was about to resume. The photographer changed the cheerful mood and selected a powerful rock-genre song as background music. Perhaps feeling more relaxed than before, the members’ poses became more natural, and the studio atmosphere grew livelier.
CEO Lim watched the smoothly progressing shoot as if supervising, while Yong-jae looked at his phone beside him.
“President.”
“What.”
“Wow… what is this… President.”
Even as Yong-jae urgently tapped him and called out, CEO Lim didn’t look up, merely chewing on the end of his straw and replying perfunctorily.
“Ah, what is it. Speak.”
“Lee Seo-kyung died in Thailand.”
“What?”
Only then did CEO Lim’s gaze turn to Yong-jae. He snatched the phone from Yong-jae’s hand.
“What nonsense is that?”
“They say he was shot and died a few hours ago?”
The breaking news CEO Lim confirmed himself was exactly as Yong-jae had said.
Lee Seo-kyung, the third-generation chaebol heir and former executive director of Nox Hotel, who had caused a nationwide sensation by being indicted on numerous charges including violations of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, prostitution, and embezzlement, had been murdered.
Having received a guilty verdict in the first trial, he had been ordered to cooperate with investigations in Thailand and Malaysia regarding bribery before preparing for the appeal. It was a highly unusual case, and foreign media had eagerly reported on it.
The article stated that Lee Seo-kyung, upon arriving in Thailand, was shot and died before even setting foot in the prosecutor’s office.
“Lee Seo-kyung is the grandson of the founder of Hanseo Group. Even such an important person can die.”
Yong-jae muttered in a dazed voice, as if shocked, but CEO Lim quickly lost interest. He licked his lips, handed the phone back to Yong-jae, and reached for his coffee, putting the straw back in his mouth.
“Is there an order to who goes first? Money and power don’t make you immortal. Though some people live as if they are phoenixes.”
Leaning against a stack of material boxes, CEO Lim added indifferently.
“He was probably shot by someone worse than him, or someone as bad as him.”