CH 39

“Huu—-”

“Why are you sighing like that? Mr. Inseop. Are you worried?”

Manager Cha, who had bought water at a convenience store and climbed into the driver’s seat, looked back at Inseop and asked.

“It’s not like that.”

“Ah, your face is full of worry.”

“I have no worries.”

Saying that, Inseop gently rubbed his face with his palm. He replied that it was nothing, but now he was swimming in a pool of worries for a while now.

On that day, Lee Wooyeon said that he would sign a long-term contract, and Inseop’s heart froze like a stone. He was expecting it to be a polite remark to comfort him because he felt sorry, but when CEO Kim handed him a piece of paper at the office the next day, Inseop had to accept that it was serious.

When he first joined the company, the contract was for one year. The contract period was almost like a temporary job. Inseop didn’t care, knowing that it wouldn’t last for a year. However, the paper that CEO Kim handed out to him had the incredible number of three years stamped on it.

This was the first time that Lee Wooyeon had decided to sign a formal contract with his manager. CEO Kim also looked like he could not believe it when he handed him the contract. The conditions were also good. It was a dream contract that would cover the four major insurances, generous bonuses, and even vacation expenses.

However, Inseop was unable to sign the contract there. The three-month deadline, which he had thought of, was not far away. If Lee Wooyeon’s weakness was not found during that time, he was going to send a photo about his frequent relationships with women to a newspaper or quietly leave Korea.

But it was a 3 year contract.

Choi Inseop quietly returned the contract to CEO Kim saying he would think about it. Manager Cha, who was watching from the side, told him to really think about it, but then CEO Kim noticed.

At that time, Lee Wooyeon sat at a corner by the desk and smiled. Inseop saved his life twice, so he had to take responsibility, no, it was three times.

Regrets that he should not have saved his life came rushing in like a tide. Of course, he knew he would go back and do the same thing over and over again, but just for now.

“Ha…”

When Inseop sighed again, Manager Cha looked at him, opened the cap of the bottled water he had bought at the convenience store, and gave it to Inseop.

“Are your hands okay? When are you going to the hospital again?”

“He said see him in a week. There are no major problems, so all I need to do is put the cast on like this.”

“I’m so glad.”

Saying that, manager Cha handed the water to Lee Wooyeon, who was sitting behind him. Lee Wooyeon took the water with both hands and said thank you in a polite voice.

He didn’t want to be Lee Wooyeon’s manager even if he died, and he won’t do it ever again, but how could he make a boy with both hands hurt work. He didn’t like Choi Inseop and hated other new managers… First of all, he decided he would do it for now, so manager Cha decided to act as the road manager for Lee Wooyeon. Choi Inseop was doing the same thing as before, except driving and using his body, but adjusting the schedule and taking care of Lee Wooyeon in detail.

After promising that he would only be a substitute driver, Manager Cha took the steering wheel. In fact, he had been working comfortably for several days, now that he didn’t have to worry about anything other than driving. Of course, he also planned to rip off a special bonus from CEO Kim.

The manager, who felt happy at the thought of the bonus, hummed and turned on the radio. Lee Wooyeon, who was reading the script from behind, raised his head with a slight frown. Choi Inseop quickly turned off the radio and shook his head.

When reading the script, Lee Wooyeon hated turning on the radio or people talking to him. The reason was that it would interfere with his concentration. Why would manager Cha, who is not aware of the situation, not even notice and turn on the radio again?

As the pounding dance music played, the manager hummed and started driving the car. Lee Wooyeon glanced at the back of the head of the manager from behind, but didn’t say anything.

“I… Can I play the CD I brought?”

Inseop asked cautiously.

“Yea. Do what you want.”

Inseop opened the glove box on the dashboard, took out a CD, and played music. It was a selection of songs that Lee Wooyeon liked and listened to. As quiet music played in the van, manager Cha muttered.

“When I’m driving, I don’t feel like driving when I hear a song like this. Mr. Inseop has a very special taste. Why does a man listen to this song?”

Choi Inseop smiled awkwardly and looked at Lee Wooyeon, who was sitting in the back seat. Lee Wooyeon didn’t pay attention to them and only read the script, thinking that he should ignore Cha. When Inseop and him were alone in the van, it was a completely different atmosphere. It seemed that CEO Kim’s statement that the compatibility between Manager Cha and Lee Wooyeon was secretly inconsistent was true.

“By the way, how did the shooting of the horse riding scene go? Are you filming again? Is it time to shoot again?”

“They will edit it appropriately and export it. Since I did fall down. I think the reality would be even better.”

Lee Wooyeon handed over the script and answered indifferently. After that, he received a call from the director saying that the horse that he rode on broke his leg and had to be euthanized in the end, and Lee Wooyeon had a hard time swallowing the words “Good for him” when he heard it. Instead he responded appropriately, saying, ‘That’s too bad,’ and the director apologized, saying that the situation seemed a little strange from the beginning.

At that time, for a moment, Lee Wooyeon covered the microphone of the cell phone with his hand and asked CEO Kim if he could sue the people who managed it. If that happened, it would make him look bad, so CEO Kim told him to just move on. Even after hanging up on the phone, Lee Wooyeon thought it would be good to sue, which made CEO Kim’s insides burn.

Today’s dinner was a meeting prepared by the director for Lee Wooyeon. It was meant to apologize to Lee Wooyeon, who was injured, and to get together and promote the drama that was airing soon. A person who knew that he should be sorry would give him a break for even an hour, but the director didn’t seem to care, Lee Wooyeon muttered as he hung up the phone.

CEO Kim shivered in cold sweat as he felt that the frequency of Lee Wooyeon’s dirty personality was increasing. Looking at Lee Wooyeon these days, it felt like climbing an active volcano where magma was boiling, and he confessed to the manager in tears at a drinking party.

“That means… Would it be okay?”

Choi Inseop, who was not aware of this situation, asked cautiously. When the reins were cut and Lee Wooyeon stumbled sideways and fell, it was Inseop who lost his balance and almost rolled on the floor.

Manager Cha said, ‘Uh, you didn’t know?’and he answered Inseop’s question with a question.

“What?”

“It’s dead.”

Lee Wooyeon, who was behind him, said in a very light tone, so Inseop was confused for a moment whether he had chosen the wrong word and used it.

“… He’s dead?”

“Yea, that’s right, he broke his leg. Horses with broken legs are usually euthanized.”

“I beg your pardon? What is that! You can fix it. Can’t you just use a cast?”

Inseop exclaimed.

It was hard to believe that the horse with the name of Jennie, who he patted on the shoulder to give strength, died in vain. He didn’t even want to believe it.

“A horse’s life is over if they hurt their leg. Because they can’t lie down like a human. They say that a secondary infection occurs while lying down, and then it becomes even more painful.”

“But why euthanized?”

He was almost crying. Inseop exclaimed, turning his body completely to the side, the veins in his neck was pulsating.

“Why is that? What did he do wrong, he just fell. He made a mistake. People make mistakes too…”

“That’s fine.”

Lee Wooyeon cut off Inseop’s words.

“I don’t know if it’s better or not. If you take care of him, he might be able to live!”

Inseop was so erratic that he said he would take care of him if he was right in front of him. Lee Wooyeon reached out from behind and tapped Inseop’s cheek. Inseop was startled by the cold touch of his fingertips and turned pale.

“It is better to accept the inevitable problems.”

“…”

“It is unavoidable. It’s not something we can choose or influence.”

There was no emotion in Lee Wooyeon’s calm tone. It wasn’t his usual way of smiling and provoking people, nor was it an outward tone of being polite and friendly.

Manager Cha looked at Lee Wooyeon from the rearview mirror, thinking, “What is it?” When their eyes met in the mirror, Lee Wooyeon frowned playfully.

‘ … I hate him too.’

The manager shuddered as if he saw something he shouldn’t see and turned the steering wheel.

“Then have a drink until late today. Will I be waiting nearby?”

Noticing that Inseop was exhausted from talking about horses, manager Cha asked in a bright voice on purpose.

“Manager, go home. I will drive.”

Inseop didn’t feel like drinking.

“Hey. That’s too much. Inseop, have a nice drink today too. Seeing that the director deliberately asked Inseop to come, he’ll buy you drinks. Ah, I want to have free drinks too.”

When he thought of free alcohol, manager Cha unknowingly smacked his lips.

“Go instead of me. I will wait in the car.”

When Inseop said that seriously, Manager Cha shook his head, saying it was fine. Of course, it would be false to say that Inseop’s proposal was not appealing, but he wasn’t fussy enough to tell whether he was allowed to join or not.

The reason why one manager, Choi Inseop, was invited to this place today was because he broke his finger in an accident that day. Probably, it was clear that only a few big people among the actors and staff were invited to today’s meeting.

“It’s fine. After all, there would be only noble actors. Besides, the director called you, of course you…”

While talking, Manager Cha heard the ringing of his cell phone and nodded to Inseop.

“Look at my cell phone. The only person to call at this time is CEO Kim.”

“… Who is the ‘devil’s daughter’?”

“What?”

Manager Cha almost stopped the car in the middle of the road. He swallowed his saliva and gestured to Inseop.

“Put it away, put the phone away. Ex-wife.”

“What?”

“Turn off the phone.”

Inseop remembered hearing that Mr. Cha’s divorced ex-wife was CEO Kim’s ex-wife. Hasn’t it been cleared up yet?

When Inseop grabbed the cell phone and looked around not knowing what to do, Lee Wooyeon reached out and snatched the phone.

“I’ll put it behind. Uh, sorry. I picked it up.”

Anyone could tell that it was intentional, disguised as a mistake. From the cell phone, a woman’s voice saying, “Hello, hello,” echoed inside the car. Manager Cha accepted the phone, crying.

“Hello. Uh…  uh… I’m working. What? No, why would I? Why would I go there and do that? What? What?”

The voice on the phone became increasingly harsh. Manager Cha shouted a few more times, “Why would I go there?”, but to no avail. After finishing the call, all the worries of the world fell on his forehead.

“…What’s going on?”

When Choi Inseop asked carefully, manager Cha muttered with a depressed face.

“… You, don’t get a divorce later, no, don’t get married at all. Just live alone Because that’s better.”

Manager Cha apologized for saying that and continued.

“I have a place I need to go to today, so when I go, call a chauffeur. Lee Wooyeon, just bear it for today.”

When manager Cha looked at Lee Wooyeon, who was sitting behind him, he sent an OK sign with his hand. Manager Cha parked in the parking lot of a bar in Nonhyeon-dong, where he had an appointment today, and handed the car key to Inseop.

“If you don’t want to call a Chauffeur, take a taxi. Understand?”

“Yes. Thanks for taking me.”

Inseop greeted manager Cha. Lee Wooyeon also made a small bow from behind. Manager Cha could clearly see the sneer that flashed across his eyes.

Son of a bitch.

When Choi Inseop disappeared into the building first, manager Cha quietly grabbed Lee Wooyeon’s shoulder.

“Why?”

“What?”

“The phone call.”

Lee Wooyeon said, “Ah,” and smiled. If one didn’t know what he was like inside, he was really handsome, and he had a beautiful face that made people admire him.

“I mean, I hate that dance music.”

“What?”

“Goodbye.”

Lee Wooyeon greeted him, who was confused, and entered the building entrance. Manager Cha, who was left alone, stood still, unable to speak, and then sighed. As he walked out to the main road to catch a taxi, he decided that he should advise Inseop to think twice before signing the contract.