Moreover, the described parts being strangely in touch with facts also caught. Though he hadn’t told the two yet, even if time-limited, he was currently meeting someone, and he was also an entertainment company CEO.
Rather, he thought it would be better to keep distance from Dowon for a while and wait for the casting announcement of the mentioned drama to be made while doing his schedule until things quieted down. When that time came, they’d know the tabloid wasn’t true, so wouldn’t the controversy disappear?
“Right, I think so too. The problem is reporters or cameras might stick from now on.”
“…Cameras?”
“Originally when tabloids break like this, everyone rushes to salvage anything. Even if not real reporters, cameras can be shoved at you plenty.”
“Then how…”
Muyoung had never had uncomfortable incidents even using public transportation until now. But because of just a few tabloid lines, restrictions arose on each action and he had to worry. He felt the reality of having his body in an unusual field only now. Rather, if he’d been a famous actor, would there have been no such nonsensical controversy?
“Since an article hasn’t broken yet, just stay quiet and be careful for the time being. If you even moved houses, they’d receive it even more sensitively instead.”
“I’ll pay more attention for a while.”
“That’s natural. Section Manager Kim, check all schedules that can be adjusted. No, let’s do it together.”
CEO Choi, who had been opening the tablet to check and adjust the schedule while giving instructions to Section Manager Kim, turned his gaze to Muyoung sitting still.
“For a while, don’t go out of the house, and if you do, definitely tell me or Section Manager Kim.”
“…I will.”
“That aside, did you go to the hospital?”
At CEO Choi’s words asking in a worried voice, Section Manager Kim also looked at Muyoung along with him. In the midst of the chaos, Muyoung nodded his head small and answered the two who worried about him.
“Ah… yes, I went. You don’t need to worry.”
“Huh? You went alone? I told you to call me.”
“Right. You should have gone with Section Manager Kim.”
Though they could have finished organizing the schedule first then taken care of him, Muyoung somehow felt awkward at the unconditional consideration. He was being tense and careful himself. However, being treated even more carefully by CEO Choi who didn’t know the circumstances made him feel even more embarrassed instead.
“While I was at the hospital, I thought of it so I stopped by the orphanage too.”
“…The hospital didn’t say anything?”
“No. They just said it could be like that if tired. I’ve been fine since then.”
“But why do you seem to keep getting thinner? Even the makeup team said so last time. That your size seems to have changed.”
“That’s not…”
Gazes not quite believing examined Muyoung’s body this way and that. Muyoung also knew to some extent why CEO Choi was like that. No matter how sensitive he was to heat, since he himself hadn’t had bad stamina, this year in particular couldn’t help but look more difficult. Though he tried to pretend nothing was wrong by rubbing his face with his hands, there was no answer except the method of enduring while hiding the changes happening to his body as much as possible until he could hide them.
“But reading this again, isn’t it a bit strange?”
“Of course it’s all strange.”
Section Manager Kim suddenly brought up a topic while gathering the tabloid Muyoung had been looking at until just before to shred it.
“No… I understand finding fault that Muyoung rose to lead role candidacy and driving it as sponsorship favor, but wasn’t this drama casting completely prohibited from leaking? It’s not a matter that can come out this easily. The role audition schedule was also like that, so they said they’d inform only if you definitely had intention.”
“…That’s right. Right. The assistant director who called then also said to be careful until before the audition.”
“But suddenly like this saying only Muyoung is the lead? It’s strange. If they were going to curse at an actor with a sponsor, they didn’t need to reveal the drama or director.”
Whether drama or movie, until release or broadcasting was confirmed or promotion was set, there was a strong tendency to avoid exposure beyond necessity. Moreover, in the case of the drama mentioned in this tabloid, it was a work that controlled mentions even more because controversy was already high just with the writer and director. Come to think of it, Muyoung had first learned about that work in the office too.
“Wait a moment…”
Taking the paper again, Muyoung read slowly. Section Manager Kim’s words were right. Even though it was a tabloid, it was only ambiguous. They say people believe well when mixed with facts, but the mentioned facts were ambiguous and the speculated points were forced. Moreover, the appearance of holding onto a drama and director more famous than himself and going on about it was even clumsy.
“Besides, suddenly major corporation affiliated company entertainment CEO…? Who is this?”
“Maybe they just made it up randomly and stuck on the most plausible person.”
“Hey, then it couldn’t even be a tabloid. In the entertainment industry, who’s a plausible person who’s an Alpha and entertainment company CEO?”
“Why, J Ent.’s Han Dowon is exactly that kind of person. Entertainment company CEO and chaebol, plus anyone can see he looks like an Alpha. Like he’d reign from above and live as he pleases.”
“…Our CEO Choi-nim, you’re revealing your inferiority complex too transparently.”
Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and clean it up. Whether it’s Han Dowon or Park Dowon, even the initials aren’t revealed, so what would we know. CEO Choi thought Section Manager Kim was joking around as usual and gathered up even the paper in Muyoung’s hands to send it all to be shredded.
But Muyoung who was listening wasn’t like that. Come to think of it, he shouldn’t have just focused on the fact that he himself appeared in the tabloid. Dowon could also suffer damage. Thinking about it, Dowon might rather have even greater ripple effects.
“…What if this really becomes an article?”
“For it to become an article, something like this needs evidence, but there’s no evidence. It’ll be buried soon, don’t worry.”
Perhaps thinking he was scared experiencing it for the first time, CEO Choi patted Muyoung’s shoulder and shook his head. However, Muyoung’s thoughts were different. The strange points Section Manager Kim mentioned were even more visible to him.
Pretending to be a story of Muyoung suddenly rising from supporting to lead role, it was a device to make the provocative word sponsorship more visible. Moreover, since he himself wasn’t a very well-known actor, it even kindly added detailed explanations so he’d be identified. It was like a guide saying if you just looked into it a bit, you’d quickly know who the actor and sponsor were.
“Um… I have something to tell you.”
The thought that it would be okay without saying might have been too complacent. He’d thought of it ordinarily because the two had no management regarding Muyoung’s human relationships. Whether friends or dating, he didn’t report all relationships in detail. But once it reached the conclusion that if a tabloid was circulating, anyone could suffer damage if he himself didn’t respond properly, he couldn’t just keep his mouth shut and stay still.
“Hm?”
“I, I do know CEO Han.”
“…What?”
Silence flowed in the office for quite a while. The faces of Section Manager Kim and CEO Choi, who had been staring intently at Muyoung’s face, noticeably hardened. Section Manager Kim began reading the tabloid he was holding once more, and CEO Choi rubbed his face with his palm several times before barely opening his mouth.
“…Muyoung-ah, you mean J Ent. CEO Han, right?”
“…”
It couldn’t not be. CEO Choi, who had been examining Muyoung’s face, let out a deep sigh. He wanted to strike his own mouth that had joked about Han Dowon’s name. He’d naturally thought there was no point of contact with Muyoung so just let it pass, but if it became like this, the story changed.
The reason CEO Han immediately came to mind as soon as the tabloid broke was because he was the most recognized major corporation offspring in the industry. Even setting aside that corporate offspring were one Alpha out of every other one, if spread about in the tabloid like this, Han Dowon was the figure who would come to mind first.
Even called entertainment business, compared to those household members, his face wasn’t known publicly, so Muyoung might not know, but among people making a living in this industry, they couldn’t not know Han Dowon. Companies wanting to succeed, celebrities without distinction, everyone had to know not only Han Dowon’s face but brief information.
Throughout working together, he was a guy who didn’t cause a single accident, gentle and honest, so he didn’t know he was harboring such a secret. The opponent who came up in controversy together on a field where things split according to situation even with ordinary love was too bad.
“CEO Han? J Ent.’s Han Dowon? Muyoung, have you met Han Dowon?”
“Since when, no, why didn’t you say anything…?”
Section Manager Kim finally put down the paper he’d been holding on the table at the fact he couldn’t even imagine, and CEO Choi seemed to be trying hard not to show his fluster, but his expression wasn’t very good. Not knowing where and how to start telling them, Muyoung hesitated for a moment. Meeting Dowon was correct, but if asked if it was sponsorship, it wasn’t.
It wasn’t a relationship where compensation was exchanged as mentioned in the tabloid. However, if asked if it was just an acquaintance relationship, that wasn’t it either. There was clearly a contract, and now meeting while subtracting those times, they also had relations like the nuance mentioned in the tabloid. But he couldn’t lay all that bare before these two. There were no words to express it except that they just met.
It was that kind of relationship from the start. Even now continuing the meetings, Muyoung wasn’t forgetting it was a relationship with the end foretold.
“That’s right. And the person in the tabloid seems like CEO Han.”
“Muyoung-ah, well… I don’t want to say anything up to you being acquaintances. But the entertainment company CEO mentioned here is really that CEO Han, right?”
“…Yes.”
“Just what business would you have knowing and associating with this person? You never said anything like that even once?”
