Godsent Top Star [EN]: Chapter 42

042. Radio Appearance (1)

December 12, 2021

“Who are you talking to?” “…Just a call.” The beauty of civilized society is that people don’t give you strange looks when you talk to yourself. But Min Ye-rin’s perceptiveness was not to be underestimated. “I don’t see your earphones?” “I took them out because the call ended.” “I know that’s not true. Were you practicing your script?” “Pardon?” “Did you already sign with another company? Is your next project already…?” “That’s not it.” “Then…?” “I was talking with Dong-ja.” “Dong-ja?” Min Ye-rin reacted sharply. “Who is Dong-ja? Is it someone Kwon Seong-hyun knows too?” “Of course. Naturally.” Kwon Seong-hyun crossed his legs and smiled. “Oh dear. I suppose Ye-rin didn’t know. He’s very close to Yeon-woo.” It almost sounded like, ‘This is the difference between you and me.’ ‘But isn’t that beside the point right now?’ The conversation had strayed while they were talking about his mother, Kang Yeon-hwa. Min Ye-rin was here, not just Kwon Seong-hyun. He tried to make excuses, but they didn’t work. She didn’t even seem to believe him. ‘…Is this bold, or what?’ Even though it must have looked like he was talking to himself since he didn’t have earphones, Min Ye-rin didn’t treat Yeon-woo like a madman; instead, she seemed fixated on something strange: the fact that she didn’t know something Kwon Seong-hyun knew. She even seemed a little hurt in her pride.

“Who is Dong-ja? Can I be introduced too? If he’s close to Kang Yeon-woo, I definitely want to meet him!” Min Ye-rin, who always seemed cold and aloof on the outside, looked strangely passionate at this moment. “You wouldn’t like him very much,” Yeon-woo said. “You never know.” “……” He really didn’t understand actors. A normal person might have thought, ‘What’s this? A crazy guy is talking to himself, making a fuss,’ and cursed him out, but she was actually asking to be introduced. [Yeon-woo! Me! Introduce me to Min Ye-rin quickly! Min Ye-rin wants to meet me!] There’s no way she’s serious. He didn’t know the reason, but it was obvious she just didn’t want to lose to Kwon Seong-hyun. [She’ll definitely like this appearance! She seems to hate furry animals, so she’ll like a hairless animal!] Back then, Min Ye-rin did say that hamsters were very cute, although that good actress spoke in a staccato, textbook-like manner. Anyway, when will Dong-ja-ryeong realize that reptiles aren’t animals? “You wouldn’t like him.” “Surely not. That’s not true.” There was even a hint of stubbornness in Min Ye-rin’s reply. It was Dong-ja-ryeong who ended that ambiguous confrontation. The guy suddenly popped his head out. [I’m Dong-ja-ryeong! How about it! Look at these sleek, beautiful scales and this adorable face! This is enough to win Ye-rin’s heart! Come on! So you can feel free to adore this body! Hurry up and adore this body!]

Dong-ja-ryeong waved his hands in the air as if he was happy to see her. Yeon-woo pressed down on the lizard’s head, which was spouting nonsense that the other person couldn’t hear, and said, “He’s a lizard I’m raising… He’s a smart guy who understands human speech. I live alone, so I’ve developed a habit of talking to my pets…”

He swallowed a plausible excuse, but strangely, the other person was quiet. “…?” When he glanced over, Min Ye-rin’s eyes were shaking violently. It was shaking so much that it looked like an earthquake of magnitude 9 had occurred. Her face was also pale white, and she looked like she was about to collapse. No matter how he looked at it, it didn’t seem like she was acting like that because the lizard was cute. [Why doesn’t she like me…? Am I not pretty? I deliberately chose a cute gecko lizard!] Dong-ja-ryeong moved his short legs with great effort and approached Min Ye-rin. He didn’t forget to blink his big eyes and look up at her. But the shower of praise that Dong-ja-ryeong was waiting for did not pour out. Instead.

“…Min Ye-rin?”

“……”

“Min Ye-rin? Are you okay?”

The answer came from elsewhere.

“I think she fainted.” Kwon Seong-hyun, who had taken a sip of lukewarm coffee, wrapped up the situation in a soft voice.

***

Have you ever seen someone faint with their eyes open? [I’m… I’m a failure…!]

While Kwon Seong-hyun gracefully finished his coffee, picked up his phone, and called his manager to take Min Ye-rin to the hospital, Yeon-woo listlessly comforted Dong-ja-ryeong, who was in shock and despair. “I told you not to do that.” [How can you hate this cute body?!] “Let’s be accurate. It’s not that she hates it, it’s that she’s so disgusted that she fainted.” [Why!] “Don’t be too discouraged, Dong-ja. There’s no one that everyone likes. Even I have haters.” [What? The Actor has haters? Is there such a son of a bitch who deserves to be torn apart and killed? Who is it? I’ll go and tear him to pieces right now!] “Hey. Your character changed. Calm down.” [Ah… That’s right. Actor, please pretend you didn’t hear that.] Dong-ja-ryeong smiled bashfully. After Min Ye-rin was taken to the hospital, Dong-ja-ryeong sobbed and declared that he would shed his lizard body. Even though the spiritual power contained within it would be considerable, he didn’t hesitate for a moment.

Just then, Kwon Seong-hyun’s manager returned. “Why are reporters so fast these days? When I got to the hospital, some of them were already waiting. Min Ye-rin’s manager and I were sweating bullets.” The sweat-soaked manager sat down heavily in a chair and took out his phone. “Look. The article is already out. ‘Min Ye-rin collapses from overwork, rushed to the emergency room,’ ‘Grueling schedule. Actress Min Ye-rin collapses from overwork’…”

He clearly didn’t do anything wrong, but why did he feel guilty? [Nooo… I didn’t know she’d be so scared…]

“Go stand facing the wall with your hands up. If you try any tricks before I tell you to come down, you’ll be punished even more.” [Heeing…]

Dong-ja-ryeong, no, the still small gecko lizard, trudged over and pressed his face against the cafe wall with his hands up. “Ahem, ahem! Min Ye-rin woke up before I left, and she told me to tell Yeon-woo something.” The manager desperately pretended not to notice the lizard being punished. “What did she say?” “She said that she doesn’t think you brought the lizard to deliberately scare her, so she’ll put this incident on your tab…”

“Tab?” “She asked you to take a day off for her? She said there’s a place she wants to go with you.” Crack!

Suddenly, the sound of a plastic cup being crushed was heard. “Gasp! Seong-hyun! Your hand! Are you okay?! Quickly put that down and give me your hand!” “Ah… I’m okay, hyung [term for older brother or close male friend]. I just put a little force into it.” “What do you mean you’re okay! The cup is completely shattered! Are you hurt?!” The manager quickly wiped away the drink that had spilled onto Kwon Seong-hyun’s hand and checked his condition. “Why are you suddenly doing things you never used to do? Ugh. It’s a good thing it wasn’t a hot drink, or it would have been a disaster. Do you know how many fans your hands have?”

Kwon Seong-hyun’s hands, with their straight and long bones, were quite famous. There wasn’t a single unsightly protruding joint, and they were said to be the most ideal shape. His hands, which seemed to be a knuckle longer than others, were strong enough to crush the cup without a scratch. “I just got angry about something.” “Anger? You? You’re angry?” The manager asked back as if he was seeing something amazing. “Yeah. Hyung, just a moment. Dong-ja?” [Actor, did you call me?!] “Kneel too.” [Huh…?] “Kneel and put your hands up.” [Really…?] “Yes.” A firm answer came out. Kwon Seong-hyun ignored Dong-ja-ryeong, who was looking at him as if the sky had fallen, and spoke to Yeon-woo. The manager glanced at the lizard kneeling and raising its hands as if he was seeing something amazing. “Yeon-woo. Have you ever thought about going on the radio?” “Pardon? Radio?” Yeon-woo asked back at the unexpected words. “Yes. You remember I said that I was getting offers for you, right?” “Yes. That’s true, but…” It was still a part he didn’t understand. Why was that guy getting the offers that were coming to him? “I’m turning down most of the small fry, but this one that came in this time is pretty good. That’s why I brought up the agency…” Kwon Seong-hyun, who had been speaking, smiled. “A pesky gnat has gotten caught.” “……” “I was thinking it would be great if Yeon-woo came to my agency and started with this, but I won’t pressure you.” Then he smiled again. “The timing isn’t bad either. The drama team’s reward vacation will be scheduled in a week, so if you do this one before that, it will help increase your recognition. It’s a late-night broadcast, but there are surprisingly many fixed listeners, and it’s not a place that consumes things for the sake of excitement. You’ll be going on as a solo guest, so the attention won’t be diverted either. I think it would be quite good for attracting people who are interested in Yeon-woo after watching the drama.” Kwon Seong-hyun explained why it was good to start with the radio rather than a talk show or entertainment show. “Entertainment shows run the risk of breaking the image that viewers who remember Yeon-woo from the drama have. There’s always the possibility that they’ll be forced into a stimulating flow under the guise of pursuing fun. The same goes for talk shows. It’s better to pursue diversity of image when Yeon-woo’s position becomes a little more solid, but it’s still a bit dangerous.” “Is that so?” “Yes. Now that people have just begun to recognize you, confusing that impression will be counterproductive.” To be honest, he didn’t know what he was talking about, but if the industry’s top expert said so, it must be so. “Radio is broadcast live, so it’s impossible to have malicious editing like other programs, so it’s definitely a good start. The host is known for being a sly guy in his usual personality, but he’s famous for being clean in his hosting itself.” There were recorded broadcasts as well, but Kwon Seong-hyun recommended a live one. “How is it? Do you have any thoughts? You can start work slowly, but…” “I’ll do it,” Yeon-woo replied. There was no need to think twice. “Since we should row when the water comes in [idiom meaning to take advantage of an opportunity].”

***

Recognition. That was exactly what Yeon-woo wanted. Moreover, what Kwon Seong-hyun was saying matched the direction Yeon-woo was thinking. ‘What I need is not a short-term flash, but a long-term run.’ He could easily see why Kwon Seong-hyun recommended the radio, not something else. Besides, if it was Kwon Seong-hyun’s pick, he didn’t need to think about it. Wasn’t it thanks to following Kwon Seong-hyun that he hit the jackpot lottery? Squeak-

Yeon-woo opened the door made of wired glass. Inside was a space full of various machines, and inside that was a booth with a large picture window. The place Yeon-woo had come to was the radio studio where he would be broadcasting live today. “Oh. Kang Yeon-woo? Welcome! You’re here early. You could have come slowly. There’s still some time before the broadcast.” As soon as he entered the studio, a person who appeared to be the writer jumped up and approached him. “I was impressed when I saw you on TV, but you’re really more handsome in person!” “Thank you.” “Your voice is so, so good too! I was impressed during the phone interview too… Our listeners are going to be head over heels today! Oh my. I was being too silly, right? I’m like this whenever I see a handsome person. It’s instinct.” “So that’s why you get quiet whenever you see me?” “Huh? Juha, you’re already here?” “Yeah. Just now. When noona [term for older sister or close female friend] was talking behind my back.” “Why is that talking behind your back? What can I do if I’m being honest?” “Wow, that’s too much.” When he turned around at the voice that suddenly cut in, a tall, large man was standing there in a nonchalant pose. One side of his head was shaved in a two-block cut, but the other side was grown out and swept over, and his permed hair gave him an overall hippie style feel. He wasn’t ugly, and even to Yeon-woo’s eyes, which had been raised by Kwon Seong-hyun, he looked quite affable. The most impressive thing was the several piercings in his ears. ‘This is another kind of beast, isn’t it?’