“Here, have a drink.”
Dongwook tilted the soju bottle.
Park Taeho, who had put his soju glass at the tip, got the bottle from him before pouring him a glass in return.
“Never knew there would come a day where I would drink with a celebrity like this. Looks like I should try buying a lottery on the way home. If I win 1st prize, I’ll give you 10 million.”
Taeho laughed before replying,
“But don’t you have a lot of places like this as a journalist?”
“That’s for the journalists who have actually made a name for themselves. A shabby journalist like me would get rejected at the manager level. Here, let’s toast.”
The soju glasses clashed and produced a crisp sound. This barbecue restaurant in Seongsu-dong was apparently one that Taeho was a regular at. Thanks to that, the owner gave them a private room in the back. Dongwook couldn’t begin to imagine how many people would gather if Park Taeho started grilling meat in the main hall. All the people in the neighborhood would at least gather.
For a while, they talked about the lives they led as they drank. Taeho was the first one to talk about his younger days, and Dongwook also talked about his high school days, when he was a goody-two-shoes, and they laughed about it.
When they emptied a bottle, Taeho switched the topic.
“Did Junmin hyung-nim call me here?”
Dongwook, who was chewing a piece of meat with ssam-jang pasted over it, stopped after hearing those words. The scent of garlic inside his mouth felt like it was being amplified. Dongwook slowly chewed and swallowed the food in his mouth. While eating, he thought about three ways to counter that argument.
“I don’t understand what you mean….”
“You don’t need to be so wary. I’m not here to talk about who did wrong nor morals and things like that. I’m just purely curious.”
“Sounds like you are acquainted with president Lee Junmin. Am I right?”
“We’re like brothers. We’ve seen each other for a long time too. Also, I’ll soon be a member of the same household as you, journalist.”
“Does that mean that you’re signing an exclusive contract with JA?”
“Yes. I believe that hyung-nim will probably tell you about it soon.”
Taeho picked up the soju bottle. Dongwook smiled without letting down his guard as he accepted another glass.
“I was quite surprised when I first met you. There was a journalist belonging to JA among the judges. At the same time, one thought came to mind. Ah, that hyung-nim might have used his powers here too.”
“You’re overthinking. Prizes for snot-nosed brats are not that important.”
“Really? When he found out that I was invited as a judge, he immediately told me this: a high school student who shot the same work as you has applied for the film festival. Have a look and if it’s on par with the others, I want you to push him forward.”
Dongwook rubbed his nose. They were the exact same words that Junmin told him, word for word. When he first heard that he was going to be a judge for the festival, he thought that he was going to be told to push Maru’s piece unconditionally, but the reality was slightly different. He was told that, if he thought that it was worth the prize and wasn’t that different from the other pieces, he was to support the piece that Maru was in.
“Can I make a call?”
“No, you don’t have to do that.”
Dongwook was soon able to realize what Taeho meant by those words. Someone outside said that a guest had arrived before the door opened and Junmin and the drama writer came in. Dongwook had a look at Junmin with a flabbergasted expression before looking at the drama writer following behind him. She also looked rather surprised. It was clear that she came here without anything being explained to her.
“Looks like you two were up to something interesting.”
Junmin took off his top hat before sitting down next to Taeho. The drama writer looked around before sitting next to Dongwook.
“Uhm, president? Forgive me for being stupid, but I don’t really understand what’s going on right now.”
He already had a hypothesis that would explain everything in his mind, but he wanted to get a clear answer from the person himself.
“It is indeed what you’re thinking about right now, Dongwook.”
Dongwook laughed.
“Then the drama writer too?”
“She listened to a favor of mine that’s not so much of a favor.”
The drama writer interjected immediately,
“I never got any favors. I just heard that perhaps I should focus on a piece that handles controversial topics these days.”
Dongwook faintly smiled before speaking in a small voice,
“I wonder why someone like that is here, then, eh?”
The drama writer didn’t say anything. Her face had turned red as though she had downed half a bottle of soju already.
“Why are you being so nasty when we’re here to make friends? Taeho, you seem like you’ve lost weight these days?”
“I should get ready for my next piece. A certain agency president told me that a contract was a no-go if I lost value.”
“What a cruel man that is. I wonder who can say such a thing to the actor that many look up to within the country.”
“You tell me. Maybe it’s because he lives with ugly dogs and without getting married despite being in his fifties that he’s really narrow-minded.”
Dongwook, who was listening to the conversation, couldn’t help but flinch when he heard that. The man living with dogs in his fifties that Taeho talked about was none other than Junmin. He had kinda expected things to happen when he saw the two greet each other, but he didn’t know that the two were this close.
“Why does your mouth get even more merciless as the years pass?”
“This is all because of your influence, hyung-nim. You should’ve shown your little brother good things so that he could have learned those things from you.”
“Fine, this is all because I’m not good enough. Oh, you don’t need any introduction, right? This is Park Taeho and Kim Dongwook. And this is writer Lee Sinae. Thank you all for the film assessment. You must be hungry, so let’s get to eating first. Though, the two that were here before us seem like they had a meal already.”
Dongwook shrugged and put down the soju bottle on the table. Had he known that the president was coming, he wouldn’t have eaten anything without him.
“It might be a little uncomfortable for you, writer Lee,” Junmin said softly.
Sinae, who looked like a resident who had missed paying rent, immediately changed her face to a lofty expression before speaking,
“Not at all. These things are quite common in life, aren’t they?”
“As expected of writer Lee. You’re just the kind of person I thought you were.”
Sinae faintly smiled when she heard the slight praise. Seeing that, Dongwook inwardly clicked his tongue. Junmin had completely understood this woman named Lee Sinae. He made her unable to leave by touching on her pride. Scolding her after getting her excited. What was amazing about Junmin was probably that tongue of his, rather than his business practices.
Some drinks made rounds. The atmosphere became heated, and people talked about all sorts of things ever since Lee Sinae put down her guard. Dongwook pulled his glass backwards when he felt like he was getting slightly drunk. While he loved getting drunk in a pleasant atmosphere, he despised being consumed by alcohol.
“Just what is an opportunity, do you think?”
There was only one person here that Junmin would use polite speech to. Sinae, who wiped her mouth with some napkins, spoke,
“An opportunity is what it says, an opportunity. Luck? Fortune? Well, those can be other names for it.”
“I think so too. Then what are the characteristics of those that grab opportunities?”
“Either they are lucky, fortunate, or maybe prepared. Opportunity avoids stupid people because it has eyes.”
“You’re right. Opportunity is discerning and does not show itself to people who look like they wouldn’t be able to make any use of it. But you know? Since opportunity has a factor of luck involved, there definitely are cases where it goes to people who are completely clueless and get consumed without any meaning.”
Sinae slapped the table and agreed.
“Right. I was like that. There are two works rotting in my cabinet because of the trash working at public TV stations who don’t know their value. What good is winning money in competitions? It simply won’t get used. But I can’t give them to somewhere else either. It drives me crazy. Those pieces of trash don’t know the opportunity when they see it. They just don’t realize that my golden writing is an opportunity for them.”
“Right. That’s why opportunity must go to the right people, to the capable people, and to the people who are ready to grab it.”
“You’re right.”
“In that sense, how was it? Was the piece titled ‘Classroom’ worthy of the grand prize?”
Sinae smiled mockingly.
“It was a rather bland one, but well, it was decent among the applicants. Of course, it is true that I gave it a better look since you told me that you’d look out for me.”
Dongwook looked at Junmin as he heard her speak. Junmin was shaking his head.
“Writer Lee Sinae, what do you mean by that?”
“Eh?”
“That sounds like I asked you to do a personal favor. Did I make you commit fraud?”
Junmin looked at Sinae with a smile. Sinae’s slightly loose eyes suddenly turned nervous with a slight spasm. Dongwook understood the reason why the president suddenly talked about such things.
“I just told you that you should give the prize to a fitting work, did I not?”
“Ah, yes. You did. You definitely said that.”
Dongwook saw Sinae’s eyes looking down. She put down her pride in an instant, like a dog putting down its tail, and showed submission.
Dongwook quietly poured himself a drink before drinking it. Exposed to sudden authority, she should have thought about her own state, compared her position to his, and going further, thought about what would happen in the future. As she was someone who made a living on writing, she should be smart enough to understand what Junmin wanted to say as well as the atmosphere that was tightening in towards her.
“Anyone has the potential. There can be an infinite number of stars. It’s just a difference of who supports who. Of course, not everything goes the way people expect, but some people can at least pave the road for others.”
Junmin grabbed the bottle of soju with both of his hands before offering Sinae some. Sinae grabbed her glass with both of her hands as well.
“You should drink less in the future. Let this be your last one for today.”
“Yes, I think I should.”
“I will talk to you later about the things I said before.”
Sinae nodded before drinking.
* * *
Junmin and Sinae left. It hadn’t even been an hour since they came here. Dongwook looked at the glasses that Junmin and Sinae left behind.
“Today, I realized that not anyone can take the title of ‘bigshot’ in an industry.”
“He might look like that, but he’s very cautious, so he doesn’t do risky things. Well, this was quite unexpected though. Perhaps he might have decided to give him proper support,” Taeho said.
“Well, it’s not that surprising. He’s someone the president brought with that absurd contract after all.”
“Oh, you mean that 300 million thing?”
“Yes. No matter how much money he has, 300 million is definitely not a sum he can chuck around like that. Yet, he did. He also signed on a napkin. When I first heard that, I thought it was a joke, but it turned out to be true.”
“Hyung-nim told me that he’s worth guiding since he’s someone who’ll do well by himself. I think he’s planning to support him properly once he graduates.”
“Looks like he’s planning on a two-top formation with him and Yoo Sooil.”
“Maybe. I can never understand what he’s thinking though.”
“Whether it’s you or me, we both have a tremendous person as a superior, huh.”
“If you get to know him, there’s a pure side to him too. Especially when it comes to love.”
“Love?”
“Yes, first love. He hasn’t gotten married at his age because he couldn’t forget about his first love. How does that even make sense? Of course, this is a secret from him. He gets mad when others tell him that.”
That president? Getting mad? Dongwook laughed out loud.
“Anyway, journalist Kim. Let’s get along as people from the same agency in the future.”
“Yes, actor Park.”
Dongwook emptied his glass before speaking,
“But hey, do you think I passed the loyalty test?”
Hearing that, Taeho just smiled. Dongwook did not ask him for answers. That smile was enough. Dongwook first came across the president because he was discovered while digging into JA. Back then, Junmin said that he was just checking his skill. This time, he was probably checking on his tongue. He probably didn’t need a tongue that said what should not be said.
“Geez, it’s really hard to gain his trust.”
“He’s someone who even suspects himself. Don’t worry about it too much.”
“Yeah. It’s fine as long as I get my salary on time.”
He toasted with Taeho as he thought about a junior who was pursuing an event for over a year now. Dongwook tilted the glass against his mouth while thinking that the ink must be expensive for a pen that writes down the truth.
