Come Back

The season was early summer.

Early summer, unripe, sour, and bluish-bruised.

That night, Choi Hong-seo was heading to Pyeongchang-dong. He was there to attend a party held at director Kang Woo-hyun’s house. It was a party aimed at attracting investment for the film “Cream Mansion.”

At the time, Choi Hong-seo’s casting was almost certain. However, since he was a director who did not care about box office performance, it was difficult to secure investment funds. It was a party that President Myung, who was anxious that the film’s production would fall through, hosted and incited Director Kang.

At that time, President Myung was desperate to get Choi Hong-seo to play the lead role in director Kang Woo-hyun’s film.

It was a great opportunity to break away from the ambiguous position of an idol-turned-actor and establish myself as a solid actor… In other words, it was a great opportunity to raise my value.

Choi Hong-seo, in the backseat, was silently looking out the window. Dressed in a tuxedo suit and having his hair and makeup done at a salon, his appearance was perfect, like in an advertisement or a pictorial, but his expression looked exhausted.

After checking the caller ID on the ringing phone in his hand, his face became even darker.

[Why aren’t you here yet?]

The voice of the famous CEO on the other end of the phone was already tense.

“They’re all here. They’ll be there in five minutes.”

[I’m on the second floor right now with the VIPs and the director. Since not everyone can come up here, if you say you’re here to see the director and give him your name, he’ll send you up.]

“yes.”

President Myung arrived first and was trying to please the VIPs. He must have made an excuse to go to the bathroom and slipped out for a moment, and I could hear the sound of someone lighting a lighter and sucking on the filter of a cigarette. After the sound of the smoke, President Myung took his weight and warned them.

[Whether the movie starts or fails is up to you, so do it without making any mistakes. Today, I think… there will be a VIP reception for the first time in a while.]

Hospitality… In the darkness, the corners of Choi Hong-seo’s mouth twitched bitterly.

Well, hospitality is hospitality. It’s just that the word ‘surname’ is missing from the beginning.

[Hongseo, I don’t want to keep holding onto you like this anymore. I don’t like being a pimp like this. You should hurry up and become independent, okay?]

It’s funny, but Choi Hong-seo wasn’t just diligently engaged in entertainment activities. He was already quite a professional at entertaining. He was insensitive to dealing with people he didn’t like, whether they were middle-aged men or women with unattractive looks or daughters-in-law from wealthy families who were curious about idols on TV. Becoming insensitive was the only way to protect himself.

“Wouldn’t it be shit for me too? I’ll come and go. Can I meet my friend and go up together? I’ll hang up.”

[This has been trending recently and it’s really crazy…]

He ended the call, leaving the famous CEO who was about to bark. Choi Hong-seo looked out the window at the dark scenery while holding onto his cell phone.

There was nothing I didn’t do to promote ‘Layered’. I didn’t care about the program, whether it was variety or drama, as long as there was a place that called me. I worked hard without sparing myself. I didn’t turn down anything that was asked of me. As a result, more and more places came to see me.

After years of hardship, Choi Hong-seo and ‘Layered’ have finally seen the light of day. I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

I thought there was no other way than becoming a top star.

He said that if he leaves UB, he will become a big shot that even the famous CEO cannot touch.

‘Become a Hallyu star like Park Kyung-han and move to a big entertainment agency. Am I the kind of person who would stop you from leaving my embrace just because you’re doing well?’

That was something that even the famous CEO would always say.

In fact, since my income from entertainment activities increased more than my income from hosting, the number of people I was told to go to decreased. That alone seemed like it would be enough to live on, and it seemed like there was hope that this hell could end. Stupidly.

The entrance to Director Kang Woo-hyun’s house was crowded with guests who had arrived for the party. Some people who were greeting each other in front of the wide-open front doors on both sides recognized Choi Hong-seo and asked to take a picture. While taking pictures with each of them, I saw actress Jung Ji-in, who was also affiliated with UB, arrive.

Dressed in a party outfit, Jeong Ji-in did not look like an actor who had been called in. She looked like one of the wealthy young guests invited here to attract investment.

While everyone else, including the members of ‘Layered’ and Hyun-soo, another aspiring actor, shared a shabby multi-family home, Jung Ji-in always seemed different. It wasn’t necessarily because all of her belongings were expensive luxury items. She had the gentle side of a prince who had been well-educated and raised.

He’s not like a wild and reckless prince, but a real prince who is kind and respectful to everyone. He might be a young master who was extremely wealthy but had no choice but to take on debt when his parents’ business failed. When Jeong Ji-in first came to UB, Hyun-soo and Choi Hong-seo had a conversation about this.

“Brother, you were waiting?”

“How long has it been since you last saw Choi Hong-seo? Are we really living in the same house?” Jeong Ji-in greeted Choi Hong-seo with a smile.

“That’s right. Last time I tried to see your face at the Knox Hotel, I couldn’t see you for a while.”

“Ah… back then, I ran into an old friend by chance… and we sat in a corner and chatted about old times…”

It was an unusually long-winded excuse for Jeong Ji-in, but Choi Hong-seo had no time to worry about such things. He nodded roughly and grabbed Jeong Ji-in’s arm.

“Let’s go in. The boss is on the second floor with the director.”

Director Kang’s house was a large mansion of considerable size even within Pyeongchang-dong.

Choi Hong-seo also knew about his wealth to some extent. Director Kang was always invited to events held by luxury brands for VIP customers, and he was also a big shot in the domestic art market. Although he was not a director who hit the jackpot with his movies, he was a director with great honor, so it was expected that his personal assets would be considerable, but his wealth was still suspiciously large.

As I entered the living room, which must have been at least 30 meters long, I was filled with admiration.

“Wow… is this a house?”

Beyond the wide open folding door, a spacious garden and the refreshing night view of Seoul beyond it were spread out before your eyes.

There was a DJ booth and bar set up at the edge of the garden, and a large, portable swimming pool was set up in the middle. Young men and women in swimsuits were dancing, laughing and chatting in the pool. Tall and slender like models, they were not invited guests to the party, but hired to liven up the atmosphere. They were pretty spectacles, eye candy for the wealthy VIPs.

It was the kind of party a famous CEO would have thought up. He was a man who knew, like a ghost, what people with a ton of money to rot away liked.

Despite the fact that their youth and bodies were being measured out like pieces of meat and thrown at greedy eyes, they looked happy in the pool.

At least for this moment, they are enjoying themselves, so is it better than my old self?

Choi Hong-seo, who was chuckling with such thoughts, spoke in a low voice so that only Jeong Ji-in could hear.

“Director Kang, it may be true that he is the illegitimate child of a conglomerate leader.”

“There was such a rumor?”

“There’s a story that he got rejected by his father because he kept asking for money for movies that weren’t making any profit. It’s just a rumor going around in the industry, so don’t believe everything… For a movie director, he’s quite well-connected. He has a lot of chaebol friends.”

While auditioning alone and having several meetings, I learned a few things about director Kang Woo-hyun.

That he is quite an art enthusiast.

It means to be a fervent believer in shamanistic beliefs such as fortune telling or gut.

And he is a wealthy man who maintains close relationships with some of the upper classes.

But when I came to his house in person, I saw that he had even greater wealth than I had expected. He was definitely not an ordinary, humble film director.

As the famous CEO had told me, the stairs leading to the second floor were controlled by security guards. After verifying my identity and going up the hallway to the second floor, the pitiful scene unfolding in the garden became even more apparent.

“You guys are really good at making eye contact. That’s right, that’s why people come to places like this to see and enjoy things like that. If you do it right, you can give some pocket money to the girl you like and have fun.”

A strong light of contempt appeared in Choi Hong-seo’s sarcastic eyes. He couldn’t help but see himself in those who filled the swimming pool.

These days, there are many men and women who want to work in the entertainment industry and come here on their own. There is no need to force them into debt or threaten them. However, this still happens to a very small number of people. It is not a place where you can just let go and say goodbye to a product that is about to make a lot of money.

My life was turned upside down by chance, but I still believed there was hope. A top star, a lot of money, popularity, influence… I could be free from this mess.

That is why this role was so desperately needed for Choi Hong-seo.

“But why were we called here today? Do you know anything?”

As they were about to walk to the inner reception room where President Myung, Director Kang, and the VIPs were waiting, Jeong Ji-in asked Hong-seo.

“I think our company will invest a little in the director’s next work.” “UB?”

“I don’t know if it’s something the company does or if the CEO is listed as one of the individual investors… Anyway, the CEO’s enthusiasm is amazing.”

“But why do you insist on investing in UB?”

“The boss… wants to cast me as the lead role.”