# Chapter 7
“Then why don’t you try it on, hyung?”
“I’ll wear it after I lose more weight. I still need to lose more for about three weeks.”
My brother, who had been looking at the crop top with eyes full of regret as if he really wanted to wear it, sighed and lightly stroked his stomach.
It was a reason I never imagined.
Judging by his expression, he seemed sincere, which made me waver a bit.
He was taking good care of me despite seeming annoyed, so I wondered if I should just do this for him. While I was thinking that, his executive assistant approached.
“I think it would suit you well. Why don’t you try it on?”
My brother’s assistant seemed to remarkably sense what my brother wanted and was making a desperate effort to fulfill it.
I wasn’t really eager to do it.
But thinking that there were people who wanted to wear it but couldn’t, I headed to the fitting room with hesitant steps.
Looking at it closely in my hand, it seemed like it would cling much tighter than I thought.
I just wanted to show how it looked, but the employee brought pants that would go well with it.
‘What the hell? My hipbones will all be visible.’
Something about the atmosphere felt strange.
Still, thinking that he’d made time for me, I changed clothes and came out, only to see fire in my brother’s eyes.
“Hey. Let’s make this a trend, you and me. This is amazing. Really cool. Wow…!!”
My brother had the brightest face I’d seen since meeting him and even clapped his hands.
“If I lose more weight for three weeks, I can wear it too. Maybe. For now, should I have our kids wear it and start a trend?”
By “our kids,” he must mean the singers at Grand Tamer, right?
I was fascinated by my brother referring to celebrities as “our kids.”
And I realized once again that I had entered this world.
He was truly a man serious about crop tops.
Too embarrassed to stand directly in front, I sneakily looked in the mirror and it did look good.
But I concluded it was the kind of clothing I would never buy because I absolutely couldn’t wear it when going out, and though it seemed like something to wear at home when sleeping, it also looked uncomfortable for that.
Click, click.
When I heard the shutter sound with a flash, I saw my brother taking my picture and coming to show me.
With my collarbones fully exposed and chest tight, it didn’t even look like I was wearing clothes, and over the low-fitting pants, my hipbones were slightly visible.
Wearing such clothes, with my waist twisted at a 45-degree angle at my brother’s call, lips spread wide open while looking at the camera, I looked extremely foolish and strange.
I thought he was showing me to make fun of me, but what came out was unexpected.
“Can I save this?”
“Why would you save that? Delete it right now.”
“Hey, really, can’t I? If I print this out large and stick it on the refrigerator, I think I could diet really well. I won’t show it to anyone else. Don’t you think it would suit me well too if I just lose a little weight from here?”
“…”
“Hey. Can’t you do that much for me as my brother?”
Seeing his genuinely disappointed face, my heart softened.
I wondered if it was really such a big deal, but if my brother wanted it that much, I decided to give in.
“…Fine.”
My brother excitedly saved it and earnestly muttered to himself.
“Right. Just endure for three weeks.”
Though he seemed to do as he pleased, seeing that he properly asked for permission before saving the photo, he seemed like a person who definitely respected boundaries.
“But hyung, you’re not even fat?”
“No. I have a little lower belly fat.”
When I came out of the fitting room after changing clothes, my brother took that outfit and asked them to ring it up separately.
“I’m not going to wear it, so why?”
“Who says it’s for you?”
From then on, he carried it diligently.
After that, we shopped around several stores, and I gradually began to worry if we might exceed the limit on noona’s card.
However, that didn’t happen by the time we left the department store.
“You know how to spend money, huh? You’re also bold about splurging.”
My brother said as if he was impressed, and we left the department store in a similar procedure as when we had entered.
He said he needed to give me a watch and took me to his home, which was so splendid that it made me gasp involuntarily.
Not only was it large, but the view was artistic from any angle.
The walls and stairs were made of white marble, with items that proclaimed themselves to be high-end, and unique photos and paintings hung here and there.
“I didn’t bring you here to look at my house, so don’t just stand there blankly. Follow me.”
For someone who spoke so curtly, he wrapped up quite a lot of things for me.
He said he would give me a watch, but when we left, he also packed side dishes neatly in a container and handed them to me.
“You probably never tasted these before, so try them in advance. There’s nothing more unsightly than pouncing on food because you’ve never seen it before at a formal gathering. The only way not to roll your eyes as if you’re trying something for the first time is to eat it beforehand.”
He spoke so harshly that if you put him next to Han Sijin, even Han Sijin would be praised for speaking politely.
So his words seemed to imply that he was giving me these things only so that I could get familiar with them in advance to avoid making mistakes at such gatherings.
He asked who did the housework, and when I said my mom did, he was surprised.
“I think Father already gave orders to look for people to send to your house. You’ll receive a call soon.”
It was welcome news, as the house had been getting increasingly difficult to manage as it grew larger.
“Thank you, hyung. If I had known you were such a good person, I wouldn’t have postponed meeting you.”
“…”
My brother had an expression of disbelief.
Like seeing a puppy make itself too comfortable after entering a tiger’s den.
When I got home, Mom was surprised, asking what all this was.
It was even more shocking because the items we bought at the department store had arrived before me and were filling the living room.
“We should buy clothes for Mom too.”
When I belatedly thought of this and mentioned it, Mom shook her head and smiled.
“I’m fine. Mom already has a few good outfits. I was thinking I should buy clothes for you to wear at formal occasions, but now I’m relieved. Try on some clothes, Seomin. Let Mom see too.”
I had a fashion show in front of Mom, and each time, Mom had a bright face and enjoyed it.
Sometimes I felt like I was dreaming, and all of this seemed too unrealistic.
But the real dream hadn’t even begun yet.
* * *
Grand Tamer.
Seyoung acquired a small agency and aggressively expanded it from then on, but the operating profit wasn’t as large as expected.
In the early days, when filling positions at Grand Tamer, they sent people who had caused problems at headquarters as a form of demotion, so people lacked enthusiasm.
It started changing after my brother took charge, but notable performance changes hadn’t appeared yet.
My brother had titles in several Seyoung Group affiliates besides Grand Tamer, but he often showed enthusiasm about wanting to properly grow Grand Tamer.
However, Uncle had been holding him back, saying the risk was too great.
That was the current situation of Grand Tamer.
He probably thought that if my brother tried to fix this troublemaker and failed, the failure of Grand Tamer might look like my brother’s responsibility.
Grand Tamer had an acting team and a singing team, and among them, the acting team was dominant.
They’ve been continuously trying to develop the singing team, but there have been no results so far.
The biggest problem would have been not being able to predict in advance who would become a star.
Not everyone with skills becomes a top star, and the qualities that make a star are too complex.
It was common for people to be carefully nurtured and debuted, only to quickly disappear from the charts.
I heard these explanations when I expressed my desire to work at Grand Tamer.
Both Uncle and noona advised that starting somewhere other than Grand Tamer would be easier.
In places where a certain position has already been established, one can gain recognition just by maintaining that position, but at Grand Tamer, they worried that I might have to share the responsibility for the company’s poor business performance.
However, to me, Grand Tamer wasn’t simply one of many Seyoung Group affiliates but one of the agencies I wanted to work at, so I had no intention of changing my mind.
Knowing my determination was firm, Uncle allowed me to enter there.
It was in the form of a special appointment.
“Why don’t you want to reveal who you are?”
When I first said I would prefer not to reveal my identity, my brother asked as if he didn’t understand.
“If people know who I am, they’ll inevitably be conscious of it. It’s already hard for them to serve a young CEO like you, imagine how they’d feel if I came too.”
“What’s wrong with me?”
He said with round eyes.
As if he really didn’t know anything.
“Anyway, unless it has to be revealed, just pretend you don’t know.”
His expression showed he really didn’t understand, but he didn’t object.
“But you’re not planning to start from the bottom, are you?”
“If it’s okay, I want to start from where others begin. I don’t have the capacity to do other jobs, and I really know nothing about this field, so for now, I want to experience it from the beginning.”
“You’re being such a pain. How annoying.”
But now, I felt like I knew I didn’t need to be hurt by what he said.
