An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 257

257. #46 – Choice (6)

Manager Kim, who had been watching me in the rearview mirror, quickly turned around when I spoke.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I want to… stop acting.”

“So, you mean you’re going to quit acting altogether…”

Just then.

The red light turned green.

The car behind us, unaware of our situation, honked its horn loudly.

Baaang-

“Ah… the light just changed.”

Manager Kim glanced at the car behind us in the rearview mirror and then stepped on the accelerator.

The car started moving forward again.

Manager Kim smoothed out the frown on his forehead, caused by the honking, and asked me.

“Hee-sung, what do you mean you want to quit acting?”

At his repeated question, I leaned forward from the back seat, closer to the driver’s seat.

“I’m going to retire.”

“What?”

Manager Kim didn’t seem to have considered that quitting acting meant retirement.

His eyes widened in surprise at my words, and he exclaimed.

“Are you really saying you’re retiring right now?”

“Yeah. I want to rest now. I’m going to retire.”

Screech-

The car stopped abruptly on the side of the road.

Manager Kim turned to look at me.

Then, he gave an awkward smile and asked.

“You’re joking with me because it’s been a while since you came to Korea… right?”

At his question, I kept a straight face and answered firmly.

“Does it sound like a joke?”

Manager Kim, understanding my expression, let out a long sigh.

“It doesn’t sound like a joke.”

Soon, the air inside the car turned cold.

He had rushed to America because he was worried about me.

He was happy when I decided to come to Korea.

All because I was his *d担当* [assigned/primary] actor.

But as soon as I arrived, I declared that I would retire, so Manager Kim seemed quite taken aback.

Silence filled the car for a moment.

Manager Kim broke the silence first.

“Hee-sung, you still have so much to do.”

I tilted my head at his unexpected words.

“Is there more left to do?”

“Of course. You still have so many awards to receive. Of course, you didn’t win an Oscar at the recent Academy Awards, but there’s no need to be discouraged at all.”

Manager Kim continued, trying to persuade me.

“You’re already the best in Korea. You were just starting to build up your career in Hollywood. Besides, you were *밀린* [held back/overlooked] for being a Korean actor. This year, you’ll definitely…”

It seemed that he thought the first step of my retirement was ‘awards’.

“Hyung.”

“Yeah, Hee-sung.”

“I’m not saying this because I didn’t receive an award.”

Manager Kim looked even more anxious at my words.

“Then, is it because of recognition?”

He gave me a thumbs up and continued.

“You’re already a top actor in Korea. I don’t know if you know because you’ve been in America for a long time, but your movies and works are a huge hit in Korea. Your *작품 관객 수* [number of moviegoers for your works] records are also amazing.”

I shook my head vigorously at Manager Kim’s continued words.

“A *배우* [actor] setting a record for *관객 수* [number of moviegoers] in the shortest amount of time…”

“Hyung, but if I do that… what changes?”

“…Huh?”

He raised his eyebrows, seemingly flustered by my words.

“Like you said, Hyung. If an actor receives awards and sets records with *관객 수* [number of moviegoers] and box office success. Then what changes?”

Manager Kim nodded his head vigorously and extended his finger.

“Then it changes. First of all, your bank balance will change beyond words.”

He folded his fingers one by one, listing the changes.

“You can buy a house with a lot of money, buy a car, and do whatever you want, Hee-sung. Anything you can do with money. Besides, the *팬덤* [fandom] is a given.”

“I see.”

I nodded my head at his words.

“See, everything I say is right. So, let’s not even talk about retirement…”

But I opened my mouth right away, despite Manager Kim’s persuasion.

“Well, I’d make a lot of money. But money isn’t that important in my life anymore.”

Manager Kim stared blankly at me as I spoke indifferently with a blank face.

“…….”

His drooping lips seemed to indicate that he couldn’t persuade me.

“I’m sorry. You’re my manager, so you rushed to America and took care of me for over ten days, but I’m saying this.”

At my words, he opened his eyes wide and waved his hands.

“Hee-sung, I am your manager, but I didn’t abandon everything and go to America just because of that.”

I raised my eyebrows at his words.

“You’re like my *친동생* [younger brother] now. That’s why I went. I went to America where you are without looking back.”

His attitude of trying to persuade me.

These words that he’s saying to me now, that I’m like his *친동생* [younger brother].

All of them had to be sincere.

Moist eyes.

Even the slightly furrowed wrinkles on his forehead.

Manager Kim was sincerely caring for me.

Of course, I also thought of and treated Manager Kim like a *친형* [older brother], like family, while living as an actor.

But that didn’t mean I was going to take back the words I had said about retiring.

I thought that my relationship with Manager Kim could continue even if it wasn’t as an actor and manager.

At his words, I lowered my gaze and nodded.

“Thank you. Thank you for thinking of me that way. The way I feel about you is no different from how you feel about me.”

And I raised my head and looked into Manager Kim’s eyes and said.

“But apart from that… I want to retire. I’m going to retire, Hyung.”

***

Knock knock.

At Manager Kim’s knock, WG Entertainment CEO Park shouted.

“Yeah, come in.”

Manager Kim opened the door as soon as he heard his voice.

Manager Kim opened the door, took a step inside, and bowed deeply.

“Hello, CEO.”

“Oh, Manager Kim. Come sit down quickly.”

“Yes.”

CEO Park and Head Manager Han, who had spoken with Manager Kim the day before, were sitting on the sofa.

Manager Kim sat next to Head Manager Han and nodded slightly.

“Oh, Manager Kim is here?”

“Yes, Head Manager.”

Starting with their brief greetings, a serious atmosphere filled the CEO’s office.

CEO Park sat with his legs crossed and asked Manager Kim.

“Manager Kim, so it’s true that Jin Hee-sung is retiring?”

At his question, Manager Kim placed his hands on his thighs, sat up straight, and answered.

“Yes, that’s right. As soon as I arrived in Korea yesterday, Hee-sung told me that he wanted to retire.”

Head Manager Han, who was sitting next to him, opened his mouth at Manager Kim’s answer.

“That’s why you shouldn’t let kids get too famous too suddenly. They can’t *정신을 못 차리는* [come to their senses] because they’re making a lot of money in an instant.”

He clicked his tongue and said to CEO Park.

“Don’t you know, CEO? These kids spend it all *흥청망청* [lavishly] and then come back when they run out of money.”

CEO Park’s thoughts were a little different from his, so he didn’t agree with his words and stared into space.

Head Manager Han let out a short sigh and continued.

“He must have been tempted by the money in his bank account. Besides, he didn’t want to come back because he was taking a long break in America. I can *딱 봐도 사이즈 나오네* [tell the size at a glance/see the situation clearly].”

At those words, Manager Kim shook his head and said to him.

“I don’t think it’s because of Hee-sung’s money.”

At his words, CEO Park raised his chin and asked.

“Then, Manager Kim, tell me. Why on earth is he suddenly retiring?”

“He seemed *힘에 부친* [overwhelmed/exhausted]. I tried to persuade him with making money, and I also tried to persuade him with *명예욕* [desire for fame], but…”

Before his words could finish, CEO Park extended his palm towards him.

Manager Kim closed his mouth at the gesture.

CEO Park narrowed his eyes and said in a sharp voice as if hitting the nail on the head.

“Is this perhaps… is he saying he’s retiring and then going to another entertainment company after a year or two of rest?”

Manager Kim shook his head vigorously as soon as his words ended.

“No, CEO. Hee-sung wouldn’t do that…”

Head Manager Han flicked his fingers and stopped Manager Kim’s mouth.

“That’s right. How good is it? He’s rejecting the renewal of his contract in this way and trying to *간보는* [gauge the situation/test the waters] to switch to another entertainment company.”

“I don’t think that’s the case. Hee-sung has never contacted another entertainment company before.”

CEO Park leaned back on the sofa and said.

“It’s not like Manager Kim knows everything about Jin Hee-sung’s every move. He must have been contacted by other entertainment companies a few times.”

Head Manager Han let out a long sigh and glanced at Manager Kim.

“This, this… our entertainment company has raised his value a lot. Is he trying to use *꼼수를* [trick/scheme] to go to another company in this way?”

The words he spat out were directed at Jin Hee-sung, not Manager Kim.

Manager Kim frowned as he looked at Head Manager Han, who was slandering Jin Hee-sung in that way.

He looked at CEO Park, not Head Manager Han, and said.

“CEO, Hee-sung isn’t trying to use *수* [strategy] to go to another entertainment company, nor is he simply retiring because he’s reached the *정점* [peak] in the industry.”

Looking at Manager Kim, who was sincerely expressing himself, CEO Park raised his eyebrows nonchalantly.

“Then?”

“Hee-sung looked very tired since he went to America. I reported Hee-sung’s condition to the company every time.”

But CEO Park waved his index finger and leaned his upper body forward towards Manager Kim.

Then, he opened his eyes wide and muttered in a low voice.

“Jin Hee-sung, I can’t give up like this. He can’t go to another entertainment company. Manager Kim, investigate Hee-sung’s background more.”

***

It’s already been a few days since Hee-sung came to Korea.

After declaring retirement to Manager Kim.

The days to live in Jin Hee-sung’s body.

I only worried about what kind of work I should do and how I should live in the future.

Just because I’m not an actor doesn’t mean I can just stay at home and suffer until I die.

“Okay, let’s organize things one by one.”

No matter what new direction I go in, I wanted to organize it neatly beforehand.

Whether it’s entertainment life, relationships with people, or anything.

The first thing I did while sitting in a chair was to take out the *해지한* [canceled/terminated] cell phone I used in Korea.

The cell phone that I had organized and left in Korea to end my 10,000 years of life.

Because it was a cell phone with all the photos and records stored.

That’s why I took it out again.

With the thought of organizing, my hand naturally clicked on the cell phone’s address book.

I looked at the saved numbers one by one.

The people I met while living as Jin Hee-sung.

“Where should I start organizing from…”

The contact information of my parents saved at the top.

The contact information of the actors saved in *가나다* [Korean alphabetical] order below.

I bit my lower lip while looking at those names.

“At the threshold of death, and in my life, all of this is meaningless.”

I moved my finger and started deleting the contact information one by one.

In that way, dozens of relationships were being erased from my life in an instant.

The contact information was going down quickly.

I paused my finger as soon as I finished organizing for a while and moved on to the next contact information.

‘Song Yu-na’.

The name that made me hesitate.

The reason why I *윤회* [reincarnated] this hellish 10,000 years was actually because I wanted to see Song Yu-na one more time.

I made this choice only for that one reason, only for her.

And I came to Korea to meet her, but.

For some reason, I didn’t have the courage to meet Song Yu-na.

My finger hovered over the screen containing Song Yu-na’s contact information, but.

I couldn’t bring myself to erase her number.

But I didn’t have the confidence to press the call button either.

Bee-beep.

At that time, the cell phone on the table vibrated.

I was startled and checked the caller ID.

[Caller: Senior Choi Seo-bin]

I was flustered by the sudden call from Choi Seo-bin.

I held the phone in my hand and hesitated without answering.

“Should I answer it, or should I not…”