“It’s quick if I take a taxi. It’s not dangerous either…”
He was grateful for the concern, but feeling like he was being protected like a small child was really embarrassing too. The situation of becoming someone who loaded him with worries should have been uncomfortable, but the more Dowon’s attention piled up one by one like this, the better he actually felt—wasn’t that a bit shameless?
─ Since the timing doesn’t work out anyway and I have to go straight to the hospital, don’t dislike it so much.
“I didn’t… dislike it.”
─ Then next time I’ll definitely pick you up, so be happy about it then.
“Yes… yes?”
Even after answering inadvertently, his face instantly grew hot. An answer that wasn’t intended at all popped out and his voice seemed a bit strange too. Dowon’s laughter, clearly having noticed what state Muyoung was in now, was heard clearly through the receiver. That also played a part in making Muyoung even more embarrassed.
─ Can I look forward to next time?
“…That’s a bit.”
─ I’ll wait and see.
Even while wrapping up the call and saying goodbye, the smile didn’t fade from Dowon’s voice. A shadow suddenly entered the eyes of Muyoung who’d been lowering his head deeply while giving his final greeting.
“What, I wondered where you went and you were here. How leisurely.”
“Ah, what’s the matter?”
Muyoung, who hurriedly finished the call, put his phone in his pocket and stood up from his seat. The person standing in front of him was Seo Kyungju. The moment he moved aside to widen the distance even a little while standing, he occupied the portable chair where Muyoung had been sitting, looking like something had thoroughly upset him. Without anything particular to say in response, Muyoung just stood and looked at Seo Kyungju without giving any particular reply.
“Is your method originally that style?”
“…Pardon?”
“I’m asking if you act pure and sincere while working but then lobby behind the scenes. Should I explain it more easily for you?”
Seo Kyungju, speaking with excessive conviction about a preposterous story, hadn’t come with any proper business. Muyoung couldn’t help but be flustered.
“…Right now, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Whether you really don’t know or are pretending not to know…”
Seo Kyungju, who’d been tapping the ground with his foot from his seated position, leaned back and looked at Muyoung. His eyes filled with venom were sharper than ever. Why was he coming all the way here to say these incomprehensible things? Muyoung, who’d been dealing with him with an indifferent face, thought it would be a bit better if he at least knew the reason Seo Kyungju was doing this.
Of course, he was guessing based on the story Dowon had told him. He understood that the paparazzo who’d been hiding in the flower bed attempting to film was already being dealt with legally. They said just the act of secretly hiding and filming itself was punishable. Naturally he denied all charges and gave several excuse-like reasons, but Muyoung hadn’t really listened to the details. CEO Choi had said it wasn’t something he needed to worry about himself, so he’d trusted and left it to him.
After that, there were few occasions to encounter Seo Kyungju on site, and even if they did meet, there had never been anger of this level directed at him. Because he’d acted like a complete stranger.
“I don’t know what you mean. You must have a misunderstanding.”
“Really? Then it must also not be true that your name is being stamped as the lead in next year’s drama right away.”
He thought it was absurd talk. His name going up for a drama lead role he wouldn’t even do was an impossible thing.
Even just being considered was something to be grateful for in those works. But there were many actors who got their names up that way. If you asked anyone on this site, no one would put Lee Muyoung in a lead role right away, but if it was an audition offer, they’d think it was possible. There was no way Seo Kyungju, who was Muyoung’s senior, wouldn’t know about this practice.
That wasn’t all.
“If you’re going to talk about things that don’t exist…”
“You also don’t know that all the tabloid rumors that anyone could see were about Lee Muyoung-ssi went down all at once.”
“…Yes, I don’t know any of it.”
The tabloids that he’d thought had gradually disappeared because the talk had died down seemed to Seo Kyungju to have been unnaturally sudden. But Muyoung didn’t properly know about that matter either. He’d only heard from CEO Choi that things were being sorted out. The only thing he’d heard recently was that the paparazzo caught in front of his house was being reported under several charges.
Anyway, these were all the facts Muyoung knew, but he didn’t feel any need to recite them to the person in front of him. Honestly, it was closer to not wanting to even babble excuses like he didn’t know to this person.
“Are you also saying you have absolutely no relationship with Han Dowon?”
“…Sunbae-nim.”
“The drama I was about to sign a contract for getting scrapped too?”
Seo Kyungju, who’d stood up abruptly, came right up close. His mouth curled in derision as he poked Muyoung’s shoulder with his finger while asking. The attempt to grate on his nerves by mixing speculation and facts was obvious.
Muyoung, who’d been trying to endure to the end, gradually couldn’t keep listening to Seo Kyungju’s words. Even though he clearly knew Muyoung was patiently holding back as colleagues working together, Seo Kyungju’s attitude of continuously provoking and stirring things up wasn’t at all someone trying to hear Muyoung’s explanation.
“…What does that have to do with me that you’re doing this now?”
“Lee Muyoung, Han Dowon who you’re attached to was involved in all of it, so you’re still saying you don’t know anything? Are you insisting I believe that now?”
He understood that Seo Kyungju could misunderstand about overlapping project offers and Dowon suddenly sending him a coffee truck. He could think it was because things weren’t going well or because it was a role he coveted. It was a talkative industry after all.
Even when unintended, there were times he’d gotten similar misunderstandings when things got tangled wrongly in competitions, and thanks to that he could tolerate the degree of light malice. The fact that it wasn’t true would naturally become known after some time passed, and looking back most times it became something that was nothing at all. However, that was when someone didn’t slander an innocent person.
“Yes, I don’t know. Even if there is a connection, isn’t it rude for you to treat me like this right now?”
“What? Are you done talking?”
“No, I’m not done.”
Muyoung’s fingertips grew cold as he exhaled deeply. It was an instinctive rejection that arose from rarely having had major arguments with anyone. If it had been the old Muyoung, he would have roughly finished things with about three phrases: “You seem to have misunderstood. I don’t know. I’m sorry.” But this matter couldn’t be left like that. No, he just didn’t want to leave it.
“I won’t say anything about you jumping to conclusions about things that aren’t even true on your own. But you should do that by yourself. If you won’t even believe me when I say it’s not true, then why did you even ask in the first place? What am I supposed to say to someone who only wants to believe the answer they want?”
“If not, how else would someone like you suddenly get on all those projects? You had no backing or anything, so you must have gotten something after catching Han Dowon at least. Isn’t that natural?”
“…You’re truly pitiful.”
He didn’t know that the story Dowon had told him would really be the reason Seo Kyungju was being so unreasonable like this, that it was only that much. Even though he was currently treating Muyoung terribly, he was a senior who’d worked in the industry for a long time and someone he had to keep running into while working, so he’d thought it was a problem that could be resolved in any way.
That had been the case until today’s incident.
If, as Dowon guessed, it was really Seo Kyungju who’d attached the paparazzo to him and spread the tabloid rumors, from Muyoung’s position it wasn’t something that would be fine right away with just a few words. Of course, Seo Kyungju didn’t know that Muyoung knew the facts, but even so, he wondered if this was really something to act so thick-facedly about.
“I don’t have any reason to act like that nor do I have the talent. As you said, I have no backing and my agency is small too. I don’t know what false rumors you heard from where. Or perhaps, Sunbae-nim, do you work that way?”
“Don’t you spout nonsense. You think I’m like you? I don’t know what methods you used, but that’s also only temporary.”
“Haa… No role has been decided at all, and today’s filming is the last schedule of my work. I haven’t heard anything from our CEO about after that. Really, why are you doing this?”
“…Do you think I’ll believe those words?”
Seo Kyungju seemed to hesitate slightly at Muyoung’s unexpectedly firm attitude, but quickly composed his expression. But Muyoung couldn’t stop the sigh that burst out. The misunderstanding that wouldn’t clear up at all could be considered solely Seo Kyungju’s delusion at this point. Did he think if he appropriately threatened and browbeat him, he’d get scared on his own and even kneel in apology?
Muyoung grew increasingly tired of the only wasteful argument. He wanted to quietly send him away before Section Manager Kim returned soon. They couldn’t just keep standing facing each other like this indefinitely.
“You’ll know if you wait and see from now on. I haven’t even auditioned for anything yet.”
“What… you, what exactly is your relationship with Han Dowon? Then what did I see?”
“…See?”
“…”
When Muyoung shook his head and spoke, Seo Kyungju questioned back. And at that question, Muyoung, who became even more puzzled, looked at Seo Kyungju. Seo Kyungju, who’d just been biting his lips not knowing what he was thinking, looked around the surroundings briefly before quickly spitting out at Muyoung.
“You two were together. At the hotel.”
“Why… should I have to tell you that, Sunbae-nim?”
At Seo Kyungju’s words whispered in a small voice, this time it was Muyoung who frowned.
