Big Life Chapter 86
“Hello.”
“Writer Oppa, what are you doing?”
“I had something to do, so I’m here at Buchun. Why is it so hard to see you? Are you busy?”
Jaegun went outside to the hallway. Dasul’s calm voice was riding the wireless line.
“I had work. Writer, how is your dad?”
“I told you. He’s better.”
“That’s good. I prayed for him.”
“You did? It must be because of you.”
“Haha.”
Silence came after the laugh.
Jaegun said carefully.
“When are you open? Don’t you want to get my first sign?”
“Of course. That’ why I called. Is today ok?”
“To…day? Yeah.”
Jaegun looked inside and made a quick decision.
It was a strange feeling.
A bad feeling that if it wasn’t for today, he wouldn’t be able to see Dasul anymore.
“Over at Hove karaoke? What time do you want?”
“About 5?”
“Ok, I get it. See you later.”
Jaegun apologized to the writers and left the office.
He turned on the engine and looked at the drawer on the passenger seat. The Storm and Gale that he signed first was still there.
Jaegun started to drive.
Before Jaegun, Dasul was already drinking. It was the place that they had drunk the first time. It was a simple place.
Jaegun’s twitter was on her phone. It was Dasul who felt that Jaegun was completely distant from her as he had gotten a recommendation from a girl group leader.
She sighed heavily.
It was shameful for her to admit that she couldn’t break off the temptation to see Jaegun once more. She had already drunk half a bottle.
Beep!
Her phone vibrated.
Dasul picked up.
“Hm, yeah. No. I already sent my bags yesterday. Yeah. There really wasn’t anything left. Hm yea. Ah, I’ll call later.”
Dasul quickly turned off her phone when she saw Jaegun.
There weren’t many people so Jaegun saw Dasul and came forward.
“You were drinking already?”
“I was bored. Did I tell you to come late?”
“I’m late? It’s 4:50.”
“It’s a joke. Get a drink. I didn’t order because I wanted to eat with you.”
Jaegun ordered something else.
Dasul already drank another cup. There was no time to stop.
“What happened? Something happen?”
“What? I just wanted to drink. You too.”
Dasul smiled and drank another cup. There was no confidence in her to say what she wanted to say.
Her vision blurred from the drinks.
Jaegun’s figure that she wanted to keep in her mind was losing focus.
Finally, Dasul became drunk so quickly.
“Ah, Dasul?”
Jaegun stood up quickly and took a hold of Dasul. Only 30 minutes passed and she was already like this. He should have stopped her.
“Stand up. Not today. I’ll take you.”
Dasul lifted her head up.
Drawing a circle on Jaegun’s cheeks, she smiled.
“Take me? Where?”
“Home? I’ll take you. Let’s go.”
“I don’t have a home?”
Jaegun stopped and looked at her.
Her face was smiling, but it wasn’t a happy one. As a writer who was good at telling these things, he could tell; she was filled with sadness.
“I don’t have a home, Writer oppa.”
Dasul muttered and dropped her head.
Jaegun pulled her towards him and put her head on his chest.
He couldn’t feel any motion.
‘This is bad.’
It was a long distance from where he put his car.
Jaegun sighed and looked outside. He could see a motel on the other side of the road.
‘That might be better. I’ll take her there.’
There was nothing better.
He had no other place to take her.
Jaegun ordered and put Dasul on her back. She was lighter than he thought and it was good that she didn’t have a skirt. But people still looked at them
Jaegun went in the motel.
“Hello.”
“How much is it?”
“If it’s for once, it’s 61 dollars.”
Jaegun got a one time pass. He went towards the elevator to press the button and get on the 2nd floor. But after a while, an employee told him.
“This is the 2nd floor. The 1st is on the parking lot.”
If he had told him earlier.
It was tiring. Jaegun said to himself that he was going to work out and turned around. Dasul’s breath was tickling his ears.
‘Sigh… is this right?’
Jaegun opened the door as he arrived.
As he put his card in, he turned on the light.
It was a small room.
Smaller than Jaegun’s one room.
A bed and a table filled one half of the room. A TV and a refrigerator were there as well.
Jaegun sat on the bed and put Dasul on her back. And then she put a pillow on her head and put a blanket on her.
‘Maybe I should get her a hot drink.’
Dasul was sighing like she was in pain. Jaegun didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t leave her like this.
‘I’ll buy her something to eat after she wakes up.’
‘It’s gonna hurt when she wakes up.’
There were only cold drinks in the refrigerator.
But Jaegun couldn’t leave.
Dasul had lifted herself up and was pulling him closer.
Before Jaegun could turn around, she whispered.
“Don’t go.”
“I’m not. I’m just going to get something to eat….”
“I don’t need anything, so don’t go…”
Dasul clasped her hands together like she wasn’t going to let go.
Jaegun only swallowed.
Dasul’s breath was hot and wet. He could feel that it was her tears. He could tell something happened to her.
“I get it.”
Jaegun was going to stay until she slept. He was going to wait until tomorrow to ask.
“I’m not going so just lie down.”
Jaegun turned around and looked at her.
Her eyes were wet with tears.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t you dare leave. And don’t look at my face. It’s embarrassing.”
Dasul covered her face. And then started to shiver.
Her tears were covering past her hands.
All Jaegun could do was listen to her cry.
Chapter 87
“My apologies. I just received a request and am unable to focus on the manuscript. When I have some time, I will contact you. OK. Have a good day.”
His cell phone went off again as soon as he hung up the call.
He was about to share some ramen with Jeongjin. Due to constant phone interruptions, Jaegun was not even able to touch his food.
“Hello? Ah, yes…… Lecture? I am really sorry, but delivering a lecture is very difficult at this time. Also, there is a lot to prepare for it.”
While Jaegun was on the phone, Jeongjin had finished his ramen and placed the dirty dishes into the sink.
Jaegun’s ramen has become cold and expanded like that of woo-dong noodles.
“Sorry Jeongjin. I can’t believe I am being flooded with all these phone-calls at once.”
Finally hanging up the phone, Jaegun said with a sigh.
“I really think that I need to change my cell phone number.”
“Has your number been hacked somehow?”
“That’s the question I’ve been wanting to ask myself. Email is even worse.”
After the start of mass advertisement campaign for ‘Summer of a 20 year old’, the incoming call volume has increased greatly.
Most of the calls were manuscript requests for short and full-length novels, while many others were requests for lectures from business enterprises or government organizations.
Certainly, it feels great to have many people recognize your abilities by asking to work on their projects.
However, it is impossible to accept so many requests by only just a single person.
Most of all, Jaegun was fatigued.
He had exhausted all his energy to the writing of ‘Summer of a 20 year old’.
He is still reeling from the pain around the neck and wrist areas along with physical and mental fatigue.
“Try to take on a few good lecturing opportunities, if you can.”
Jeongjin said, returning to his seat.
“They are offering several thousand dollars for a few hours of lecture, why would you turn it down? If I were you, I would do it in a heartbeat. It is my month’s salary for a day’s work.”
“I found it challenging to deliver even an orientation lecture to incoming freshmen. My energy is fully depleted after writing ‘Summer of a 20 year old’. I must take it easy for a while.”
Jaegun picked up some ramen with chopsticks.
Fully expanded, the noodles broke off and fell back into the bowl before even reaching his mouth.
Jeongjin snatched away the bowl and dumped the entire content into the sink.
“They are still good to eat, why waste them?”
“Don’t be a poor ridiculous man. You can always cook a fresh package of ramen noodles. Actually, the problem isn’t the ramen……”
Before finishing his thoughts, Jeongjin clicked his tongue in disbelief while scanning the small one room studio.
“You have made so much money, yet why do you live in this tiny, one room, rat hole? Please move.”
“This place is fine for me.”
“You are one thing, but are you not concerned about how cramped Lika would feel?”
“I don’t have a big chunk of money for that at this time. Money is almost all spent on the single residency in Soowon. I was planning to save up royalties from now on.”
“So, go tour the lecturing circuit.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to write again after a hiatus.”
“Sure. Do as you please. Anyway, I guess you are content being a popular author, who is sharing a bowl of ramen noodles in a tiny studio…..! ”
Today is the book signing day to celebrate the publishing of ‘Summer of a 20 year old’. This was also the reason for Jeongjin’s visit today. Coincidentally, today’s book signing will occur at the main store of Bandy and Lunia, as it was for the signing of ‘Raging Storm’.
“Hey, just get dressed.”
Jeongjin said as he placed a pot of water on to the electric range. Unlike Jeongjin’s formal attire, Jaegun was still in his scruffy sweat pants and shirt.
Jaegun said casually, as he looked on Jeongjin, who was unsealing a fresh package of ramen noodles.
“Thanks.”
“You owe me $100.00 for cooking you a ramen.”
“Besides that, thanks for coming by today.”
“It was my day off and I had nothing else to do. Stop jiving and get dressed.”
“OK”
Jaegun took off his sweats and put on fashionable formal wears that were on the hangers.
They were Jane’s presents. Jaegun wanted to wear jeans and comfortable shirt. But, he couldn’t ignore Jane’s kind gesture.
“That’s not stylish at all.”
Jeongjin threw a light joke, after watching Jaegun sitting on the floor and attacking his ramen noodles in his formal wears.
Taking a short pause from sucking up the ramen noodles off of the pot cover, Jaegun broke out into a chuckling laughter.
“Chaerin, stop reading and get some shut eyes.”
“I am fine. I had over 5 hours of sleep yesterday. I’m off until tomorrow for personal reasons, so I’m okay.”
In a spacious rear seat of a darting van.
Chaerin was in the most relaxed posture of all as she was reading ‘Summer of a 20 year old’.
After preordering the book, she had already read beyond the half way point.
“Wow, this author’s writing is really entertaining……”
Chaerin murmured with admiration.
Even though she has become the leader of a top three girl group in the country, her love for reading has not been diminished. She loved to read and write to begin with. Majoring in Korean Literature was also her own decision.
“I wonder how much writing one has to do to reach this mastery level of writing.”
The manager had never had any interests in books. Although he gave an apathetic look over his shoulders, he said nothing.
“O-ppa, when you get a chance, you should try to read this book. This author’s writing is amazing.”
“I am in the same camp with Dojoon. As soon as I open a book, I get sleepy. It will lead to an accident.”
“Always excuses.”
Feeling some stiffness in her wrists, she put down the book and repositioned herself. Then she searched for Jaegun Ha’s name on her cell phone.
She murmured while reading the profile that she had casually scanned over in prior times.
“Graduate of Myung Kyung University of Arts. I wanted to go there in the past.”
She clicked on the profile, moving over her finger that was well manicured and colored in red.
Up came on Jaegun’s twitter page and filled the screen of her cell phone.
Immediately, Chaerin’s eyes opened wide.
“?O-ppa, we are in Jamsil now, right?”
“Well, there is some traffic, why?”
“Let’s briefly stop by Bandy & Lunia.”
“Do you need to buy a book? Just order it over the internet.”
“I want to get it right away. It will take some time to receive it over the internet.”
“Understood, let me park the car and I’ll run over to get it.”
“No, I will go by myself.”
“What?”
The manager frowned as he looked back.
Chaerin was already prepared to leave.
As if a mask and sunglasses weren’t enough, she had pulled down her hat to cover her face.
“This should help keep me anonymous, right?”
“Chaerin, even with all that, many fans will still recognize you.”
“I will be very quick. It won’t even take 5 minutes.”
At last, Chaerin has won the argument.
The manager has stopped the car in a parking lot as Chaerin, scanning the surroundings, carefully stepped out. She even put on a long coat over her to cover up a see through blouse and hot pants that she was wearing for a performance.
‘He he he, I feel like I’ve become a spy.’
Her face covered with the mask, Chaerin giggled as she hurriedly walked. And shortly, she entered Bandy & Lunia’s main store.
‘Wow, so many people!’
The book signing was being held in the middle of the book store and it was going great.
Chaerin quickly moved to the end of a very long line.
‘It is very fortunate that the signing hasn’t been in progress for that long…..’
Chaerin counted the heads of everyone that was standing in the line, ahead of her.
Approximately, 50 people.
She felt nauseated. It seemed that it would take at least 30 minutes. She couldn’t be delayed here for that long.
“Hmm?”
Then she found a second line, which was formed to her left.
It was a very short line with about 5 to 6 people.
After thinking for a short while, she cautiously asked the man who was in front of her.
“Pardon me, but what is that line for?”
“Oh, that is the line for the people trying to get their ‘Summer of a 20 year old’ book signed.”
“Ah? Then what is this line for?”
“This line is for those who want to get their books signed by the author going by the pen name Pungcheoneuro. Summer of a 20 year old has the priority, so that line is first, followed by over here.”
“Oh, okay, okay. Thank you.”
Chaerin bobbed her head slightly to say thank you and yelling in delight, she moved over to the shorter line.
The man seemed to recognize some familiarity about her, despite the sunglasses and the mask, as he stood there, tilting his head sideways and staring at the girl’s back.
“Yes O-ppa? No, I think just 3 more minutes. Okay, stop rushing me. Really, I will get back in 3 minutes.”
Chaerin waited nervously after talking to her manager. Fortunately, it didn’t take long for her turn to come.
“Welcome.”
“Please sign my book.”
As she handed her ‘Summer of a 20 year old’ book, she had a sweet smile behind her mask. After taking the book from her, Jaegun looked up at her face and spoke to her with a gentle smile.
“Have you caught a cold?”
“Ah, no. Just too much fine dust?”
“Ha ha, yes. What is your name, please?”
After a moment of silence, in a very quiet voice, Chaerin told her birth name.
“Chaerin Lee.”
Jaegun showed no particular response as he opened the book and signed it.
With nonstop signing, he appeared to be extremely preoccupied.
It didn’t occur to him that it is the Chaerin, the leader of Apple Tea.
‘He looks sharp for an author’
From behind the sunglasses, Chaerin’s eyes were carefully examining Jaegun’s face.
What her boy friend Dojoon said about looking better in person than in pictures seemed to be true.
One feature by feature, as she carefully studied his dark and thin hair, narrow chin and pointed nose, eyes that are dignifying and straight, closely shut lips in order, the signing has soon finished.
“Here, thank you very much for coming.”
“Thank you very much. I always enjoy reading your book.”
“Great, thank you again.”
Chaerin returned to the van, happily carrying the signed book.
The manager set the phone down, short of making another call, as he found Chaerin entering the vehicle.
“It is finally done?”
“Yes O-ppa. All set to go.”
Soon after the engine started, the van moved as if to be sliding down the parking lot.
Chaerin removed her sunglasses and the mask then placed a call to Dojoon.
-What?
“That’s cold, really. What do you mean what as soon as you answer the phone?”
-You know that you are supposed to be at a photo shoot. Where you at?
“I am heading back to the studio. O-ppa, I just had Jaegun Ha to sign my book!”
-Jaegun Ha? Who is that?
“Kidding me? Raging Storm!”
-Oh, oh….. That author? So what?
“So, I called to brag about it. No one recognized me behind a mask. I got him to sign using my birth name.”
-Okay, you must find it refreshing to receive someone else sign your book after always signing for others.
“I am almost done with this Summer of a 20 year old? I will give it to you when we get together later this evening, so be sure to read it too, O-ppa. It’s a total treat.”
-I am not even finished with that Raging Storm or something, yet.
“Read faster. I would love to see you read more books. That way, we’ll have more conversational topics. Also, if you read lots of good books, wouldn’t it help with your acting as well?”
-Okay. Are you done? I need to run.
Dojoon responded bluntly.
Blowing both her cheeks like balloons, Chaerin spoke after aimlessly scanning the outside through the window.
“And like you said, he was good looking… I think he is my type as well.”
-Okay, so. Be sure to ask him out. Bye.
“O-ppa? O-ppa!”
Trying to make him jealous hasn’t worked as the phone went dead.
Upset, Chaerin threw her cell phone towards the back seat point her closed out pointedly.
The manager was giggling as he drove.
“What’s so funny?”
“Sorry, by the way, are you meeting up with Dojoon today?”
“All of a sudden, I don’t want to see him, so I don’t know.”
“If you are, let me know in advance. Don’t set up unplanned dates just because you happened to find some time. I get in real trouble with the CEO.”
“I got it. I got it.”
Chaerin picked up the phone that she had thrown to the back.
It was clear to her that she had something else that she needed to attend to.
She opened up the page that Jaegun had signed and took a selfie along with it using her cell phone.
This is for the ‘evidential selfie’.
“Jaegun, the signing event is going very smoothly compared to the past ones.”
“I think that’s because they have prepared it very thoroughly.”
Jeongjin and Jaegun were talking during the breaks.
Today’s signing event was shaping out to be very similar to the past ones. Over 70% of the readers were looking to get their books signed by Pungcheoneuro.
“You have to be fully ready for the 2nd half.”
Jeongjin said after seeing the long line that had formed.
Jaegun gave a narrow smile and massaged both his hands interchangeably under the table. He was signing as fluently as possible without giving applying too much pressure in his hand, but was feeling the strain already.
“Uh? What is this?”
Jeongjin’s countenance changed suddenly upon looking at his cell phone.
Chapter 89: Keep Barking At It (5)
“Sigh…”
Ha Jae-Gun could only let out a sigh after listening to Yang Hyun-Kyung’s story.
Ha Jae-Gun, Kang Min-Ho, Jang Eun-Young, and Yang Hyun-Kyung himself were gathered around the dining table in the office at Bucheon.
There was a pizza that was meant to be their dinner laid out nicely on the table, but no one had touched it yet.
“So you’re saying that you didn’t write or release any chapters because of those stocks?”
“Yes… I was too worried that the prices would plummet… I tried not to think about it, but…” Yang Hyun-Kyung muttered with his head lowered. He couldn’t look at anyone directly.
Yang Hyun-Kyung had invested all the money he had received from his advanced royalties into it, but the value of his portfolio dropped to -45%. The company’s stock price had plummeted to the abyss, and news of its delisting was already spreading like wildfire.
Moreover, there was another serious issue. As the average price he bought in was high, Yang Hyun-Kyung decided to average down to lower his average price.
However, Yang Hyun-Kyung was too ashamed to admit that he had borrowed a million won from his poor parents to average down, so he didn’t mention any of that.
“You punk, the advanced royalties weren’t that huge…! Are you out of your mind? You should have just focused on your writing; why did you dabble in stocks!” Kang Min-Ho raised his voice slightly higher.
However, he didn’t scream out of consideration for Ha Jae-Gun. Kang Min-Ho was also afraid of how Ha Jae-Gun would react to this piece of news.
Yang Hyun-Kyung tried to create an excuse. “My friend said that the stock price will increase exponentially when he introduced it to me… And my novel hasn’t really been doing well recently…”
Ha Jae-Gun scoffed silently. Yang Hyun-Kyung’s debut novel was earning three times more than Ha Jae-Gun’s own debut novel many years ago, but he actually dared to cry over his performance.
“My spending has also increased recently. I know that this sounds like an excuse to you, but I’m also sad about all this—”
“I understand.” Ha Jae-Gun interrupted and nodded. He had no intention of listening to any more complaints from someone who wasn’t doing anything in the office.
“I’m really sorry, Writer Ha.”
“No, don’t apologize to me. You should instead apologize to your readers and President Kwon instead,” Ha Jae-Gun said coldly.
The words coming out from Ha Jae-Gun were icy cold.
Ha Jae-Gun smiled while looking at Yang Hyun-Kyung. “Your choice to dabble in stocks doesn’t matter because it’s your own choice. However, it’s a huge problem if you allow it to affect your work. Let me remind you, you’re not practicing here, you’re currently contracted with Laugh Books.”
“Yes…”
Ha Jae-Gun pointed at the ground and said, “This is an office for the writers who are contracted to Laugh Books to use. I’ve never allowed you to run your own finance business here.”
Yang Hyun-Kyung’s face turned pale.
Even Kang Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young did not dare to jump into the conversation upon seeing Ha Jae-Gun’s grim look.
It was their first time seeing that side of Ha Jae-Gun.
“Please give me three chapters worth of manuscript by nine tomorrow morning.”
“Pardon…?”
“If you can’t do it, I’m afraid I’ll need you to move out of this office immediately.”
“…?!” Yang Hyun-Kyung’s eyes grew wide in astonishment.
Kang Min-Ho could only close his eyes upon hearing Ha Jae-Gun’s words.
He somehow knew that things would turn out like this.
“I’ve spoken with President Kwon before I came over. I heard that it’s been two weeks since you’ve stopped releasing chapters, right? Show me your sincerity. Since I’m already here, I’ll be working throughout the night here.”
Ha Jae-Gun finished his piece and took off his coat.
Yang Hyun-Kyung trembled like a man who had been thrown out into the cold night. He was now fearful of Ha Jae-Gun, whom he had always thought to be kind and friendly.
His pounding heart showed no signs of slowing down.
‘I’m getting chased out…?!’
Now that Yang Hyun-Kyung was about to get chased out of the office, his grave mistake seemed to have become much clearer to him. Where on earth could he go when he was penniless?
“Write something out, punk.”
“Yeah, Hyun-Kyung. Take advantage of this opportunity.”
Kang Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young encouraged him, knowing that they were out of earshot.
Yang Hyun-Kyung returned to his desk and opened a Word document. He let out a sigh before putting his fingers on the keyboard. He had totally forgotten the details of his story after resting for two weeks.
He had no idea what to do, and no idea would come to his mind.
Tadadadak! Tadadak! Tadak!
The keyboard noises from the others bothered Yang Hyun-Kyung.
Everyone else was working hard on their own novels.
However, Yang Hyun-Kyung kept on typing and deleting words.
‘I should have given it my all when I still had inspiration… Now, I’m not inspired anymore!’
***
Morning eventually arrived, and it was finally 9 a.m. Ha Jae-Gun finally stood up from his desk after silently working non-stop all night. He had been waiting for 9 a.m.
Yang Hyun-Kyung was in his seat with his head drooping.
“How much have you written?”
“Um… Around 3,000 characters…”
“I told you to write three chapters worth, but you’ve only written 3,000 characters? That’s only half of a chapter.”
Kang Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young had stayed up the entire night out of worry for Yang Hyun-Kyung, but they could only stare at their own screens while thinking to themselves.
‘Writer Ha wouldn’t be so heartless and chase him out immediately, right?’
Yang Hyun-Kyung stood up, looking desperate. He approached Ha Jae-Gun timidly and said hesitantly, “If you give me another day, I’ll definitely produce three chapters worth of—”
“The door is that way.”
“…What?”
Ha Jae-Gun took a sip of his coffee and calmly pointed at the door.
“Thank you for your work so far. I won’t be seeing you off,” Ha Jae-Gun said and returned to his desk, ignoring Yang Hyun-Kyung.
He was already typing on his keyboard to write his own fantasy piece.
He didn’t care about Yang Hyun-Kyung at all.
Kang Min-Ho approached him cautiously and asked, “Um, Writer Ha, it’s still cold out there, and Yang Hyun-Kyung can’t afford to go home—”
“Sorry, but I’m currently working. I don’t want to talk about something that has already been decided,” Ha Jae-Gun coldly interrupted.
Truthfully speaking, Ha Jae-Gun would have been lenient if Yang Hyun-Kyung had completed a full chapter. However, how come he only managed to write three thousand characters after working overnight?
Ha Jae-Gun could only conclude that Yang Hyun-Kyung was no longer focused on his novel.
“Thank you for your time,” said Ha Jae-Gun.
Yang Hyun-Kyung was ready to leave because he didn’t really have that much luggage with him. Kang Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young could only send him off, and Ha Jae-Gun didn’t even glance in his direction until the end.
***
You reap what you sow—it was a meaningful saying to the writers in the office.
Kang Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young gradually became financially independent after working hard and not losing their focus.
Now, they could afford to go out and watch movies whenever they were stuck, and they had even started thinking about purchasing their own computers.
“Look, Min-Ho hyung. There’s another article about Writer Ha! He’s got a bestseller!”
“Really? Wow, it’s on Bandi and Lunia’s bestseller! Which means that his sales are still going to increase!”
By far, this was Ha Jae-Gun’s greatest achievement.
Oh Myung-Suk also kept his promise. It had just been six days since he made the verbal guarantee that Summer in My 20s would enter Bandi & Lunia’s bestseller list, but it was already ranked ninth.
Oh Myung-Suk actively utilized the power that OongSung Publication Group had by implementing an aggressive and diverse marketing campaign.
However, Oh Myung-Suk wasn’t satisfied just yet.
Oh Myung-Suk couldn’t be satisfied at all because he knew that Writer Ha Jae-Gun still hadn’t reached his limits.
[Monsterous rookie Ha Jae-Gun is actually not a rookie?!]
[Unusual praise coming from readers of Summer in My 20s. Spring rain has arrived in the domestic drought-stricken mystery genre market…]
[Summer in My 20s ranked 9th on Bandi &Lunia’s Bestseller Corner. Something unprecedented for a rookie writer…]
News about Ha Jae-Gun spread like wildfire through various media channels like news portals, social media, and even radio broadcasts. The first edition of the physical copy quickly sold out, and the following batches also sold out in a flash.
The netizens, who couldn’t grab a physical copy for themselves, started complaining.
Fortunately, a new batch of Summer in My 20s was quickly pushed out…
The sales performance graph climbed sharply, and there was even a joke spreading on the Internet that the book’s sales were growing significantly faster than the rate of printing.
***
It was the last cold spell in early spring.
As always, Ha Jae-Gun was holed up in his studio, working away on another novel.
It was tough for him to rest without writing.
The longing to write something was a bit too difficult for him to endure.
“Meow.”
Rika jumped down from the windowsill and came to Ha Jae-Gun.
She tapped on the back of his moving hand with her front paw.
When Ha Jae-Gun did not respond, she licked his cheek.
“Don’t do that. What’s wrong now?”
“Meow, meow…”
“You want to go out? You’re a cat, but why do you love the outdoors so much?” Ha Jae-Gun asked. He stopped working to gently stroke Rika.
He then recalled that it had been a while since he visited him.
He was the sole reason why he didn’t want to leave this neighborhood.
“All right, it’s been a while since we visited him. Let’s pack some stuff and head out.”
Ha Jae-Gun took the weed cutter and other tools with him before putting on his shoes in the foyer. He stepped out of his studio, and a call came from Oh Myung-Suk.
“Hello, Editor-in-chief.”
— Hello, Mr. Ha. Have you had lunch?
“I’m going to eat after running an errand.”
— Hahaha, I see.
Oh Myung-Suk laughed, even though there wasn’t anything funny. However, Ha Jae-Gun had long gotten used to his personality and guessed that Oh Myung-Suk had some good news for him.
— Mr. Ha, I have some good news for you.
“I see that my foresight has improved.”
— Pardon? Your foresight?
“I thought you sounded quite happy today, so I guessed that something good must have happened.”
— Hahaha, yes, that’s right. It’s really great news. Please don’t be surprised, Mr. Ha. Summer in My 20s has sold over 200,000 copies in a month.
“What?! 200,000 copies?” Ha Jae-Gun stopped in the middle of descending the stairs. Ha Jae-Gun knew that printing of the novel had been ongoing, but he had only expected to sell up to 100,000 copies at most.
He finally realized that he still hadn’t fully grasped OongSung Publication Group’s power.
— That’s right. If we hit 200,000 copies in the first month, we can easily expect it to hit a million copies. It’s all thanks to your excellent writing. I wanted to congratulate you and thank you as well.
“No… It’s… This is…”
Ha Jae-Gun’s heart fluttered excitedly, and his face blossomed brightly, similar to the weather of a beautiful spring day. He was at a loss for words.
“It’s all thanks to the full support you showed me, Editor-in-chief. I should thank you instead.”
— There will be a lot more surprises coming in the future. I’m afraid of bringing your hopes up, so I won’t share too much with you. But just a hint, it’s about the sales of copyright for an adaptation.
“Ah… I see.” Ha Jae-Gun smiled.
He immediately understood Oh Myung-Suk’s words.
Up until now, Ha Jae-Gun only had Records of the Modern Master, which was adapted into a webtoon.
He couldn’t help but wonder about which media form would Summer in My 20s get adapted into—would it get adapted into a TV series or a movie that he would get to enjoy with his family?
— I’ll contact you again soon. Please enjoy your lunch, Mr. Ha.
“Yes, Editor-in-chief. Please enjoy your meal as well.”
Ha Jae-Gun hung up after their short conversation.
Ha Jae-Gun soon arrived at Seo Gun-Woo’s grave.
Ha Jae-Gun started trimming down the overgrown vegetation around the grave.
“Spring is here, Elder. It’s getting warmer, isn’t it?” Ha Jae-Gun put Rika down next to him.
The warmth of sunlight struck their heads.
Chapter 90: Keep Barking At It (6)
‘Hmm…’
Park Do-Joon was sitting in a corner of a cafe in Cheondamdong, where he had agreed to meet a movie director. His eyes were fixated on a book in front of him, and he had been reading that book for over an hour he had spent waiting in the cafe.
‘Argh, this bastard was really the culprit? Is he a fucking human or a beast?! I could never have imagined that crazy…!’
Park Do-Joon flipped the page of the novel while clicking his tongue amidst the series of plot twists that came up during his reading.
Having put himself a distance from books for his entire life, he was now fully immersed in novels, so much so that he was getting all worked up at the antagonist in the story.
The title of the novel was Summer in My 20s.
He received this novel from Chae-Rin after finishing Storm and Gale. Park Do-Joon’s bandaid-wrapped finger, which had gotten hurt during filming, was already flipping over to the last page of the book.
‘What, is it already the end?’
Park Do-Joon was devastated and was at a loss. He couldn’t calm his mind and heart from the emptiness he was feeling after reading the novel with the coffee sitting before him.
His empty eyes stared at the flower pot in the corner of the cafe.
‘He wrote it really well…!’
Park Do-Joon suddenly recalled the time he met Ha Jae-Gun at the broadcasting station. However, he hated to acknowledge the fact that he had ended up reading a book until its last page when he hated reading so much before he met Chae-Rin.
He was an egoist, but even he thought that Ha Jae-Gun was quite a phenomenal person.
Bzzt!
It was a call from Chae-Rin.
Park Do-Joon collected himself and picked up the call.
“Yeah.”
— Why did you take so long? Have you met the director already?
“Not yet.”
— You’re at Cafe Mano, right? There’s nothing for you to do there. You should be bored, so how are you killing time?
“Nothing much, I just finished reading the book you gave me,” Park Do-Joon replied as his finger ran along the surface of the book cover.
Chae-Rin’s voice immediately got louder.
— Summer in My 20s? Did you really finish reading it all? It’s really, really interesting, right?
“Well, it’s… just so-so. Good enough for me to kill some time.”
— You’re funny. You obviously enjoyed it a lot. You just want to act all cool and aloof about it. Oppa, when did you find out that the man was the culprit? I didn’t even know until the end.
“I have been guessing it was him right from the start when he appeared.”
— Really?
“Well, the plot twists were quite simple, so it was easy to guess.” Park Do-Joon just had to brag before his own girlfriend when he actually learned about the culprit’s identity when it was revealed.
Just then, the entrance to the cafe opened, and a pot-bellied man in his forties strode into the cafe. The pot-bellied man was the movie director he had been waiting for.
Park Do-Joon uncrossed his legs and straightened himself before speaking into the phone, “Let’s talk later. The director is here.”
— All right, I hope it goes well.
Park Do-Joon hung up the phone and stood awkwardly from his seat.
The director gestured for Park Do-Joon to take his seat and pulled out his chair.
“Sorry, Do-Joon. My meeting with the production team took too long,” the director started.
“It’s alright, I was actually doing some reading while waiting.”
“Reading?” the director asked with a chuckle. He was doubtful.
They had known each other since Park Do-Joon’s debut, and he knew very well that the latter never liked books.
“Is this it?”
The director picked up the copy of Summer in My 20s on the table.
He only looked at the front and back cover instead of opening the book.
Park Do-Joon said, “The writer did very well despite the difficulty of the mystery genre.”
“Hmm, is that so?”
The movie director didn’t seem very interested in the book. The man had been hearing words like—the story was great; it would be a great hit if it were adapted into a movie—all his life.
“I haven’t been able to read any books for a while. Twenty hours isn’t even enough for me to review scenarios.”
“Hahaha.”
“All the scenarios coming in from the publishers and production companies had already filled an entire large bedroom. Did you just start reading as a hobby? Hire a truck and pick up all the scripts from my house, then.”
“I’ll do that next time.”
The movie director ordered a drink for himself.
After some small talk, the movie director finally got down to business.
“I’ve heard that you didn’t want to film dramas?”
“Yes.”
They were referring to Park Do-Joon’s next casting. The drama was titled Her Sweet Room. It was based on the original novel with the same title, written by Writer Oh Myung-Hoon. The script so far could only cover three episodes.
“Why don’t you want to do it?”
Park Do-Joon sighed and explained, “To be honest, it wasn’t interesting at all. The personality of the male lead doesn’t sit with me, and it doesn’t really appeal to me as well.”
“Did I mention that it was written personally by Writer Oh Myung-Hoon?”
“The scenario?”
“We offered to adapt it by hiring another writer, but he was so stubborn about it and insisted on writing it himself. However, novel and scenario writing is totally different.”
The director touched his own belly and continued. “The results are obvious. None of the top three broadcasting stations are putting the drama on their schedules, and everyone is anxious. He refuses to broadcast on Mondays to Thursdays at 10 p.m., and there’s no appropriate actor if it becomes a morning drama. Who can they cast?”
A smile was seen beneath the director’s bearded face. He gestured at Park Do-Joon with his chin. “If you do it, you’ll be able to surpass Golden Time, and the sponsors will definitely open their wallets up to us easily. The great Park Do-Joon was cast as the lead of the drama; how can a sloppy scenario stop them from investing?”
Park Do-Joon retrieved his wry smile, and his eyes turned serious.
Two women, who were seated a couple of tables away from them, put away their phones at once when they realized that they had been caught filming him.
Park Do-Joon looked at them and said firmly, “Please don’t take photos of me in secret.”
“Sorry…” the ladies bowed down apologetically.
If it were the old Park Do-Joon, he would have stopped there.
However, he actually started receiving criticism about how his personality had gone on a nosedive once he started dating Chae-Rin.
“Come over here and take photos with me.”
“R-really?” The faces of the ladies brightened, and they quickly approached their table.
With a gentle smile, Park Do-Joon took a picture together with the ladies and sent them back to their table.
“Your personality has gotten much gentler, is it because of your naggy lover?” The director remarked.
“It’s not because of that. I have to be careful of my reputation.”
“Anyway, where did we stop? Oh, right. What are you planning to do for your next project? Are you going to keep resting? I heard that there’s not a single movie script that you like.”
Park Do-Joon fidgeted with his cup for a while. He thought before replying, “They’re all action or romance movies, but nothing interests me. They all sound boring and cliched… I want to try a new genre.”
“A new genre? For example?”
“Something like this.” Park Do-Joon pushed the copy of Summer in My 20s toward the director.
“As I’ve mentioned before, this author writes really well, and the characters are quite distinct. If we amend the composition slightly, it shouldn’t be too tough to adapt it into a scenario.”
“You seem to like this novel a lot, huh?”
“I understand that you’re busy, but please read it. Its words are capable of bringing a story to life.”
“All right, I get it. Hey, I’m hungry. Let’s go find some food.”
“You’re changing the topic again.”
They stood up and headed for the door. Meanwhile, the customers in the cafe whipped out their phones to try sneaking a few more photos of the pair leaving the cafe.
***
“Oh, no wonder he looks familiar…”
The director returned home after his meeting with Park Do-Joon. He clicked his tongue as he stared at the copy of Summer in My 20s that lay on his table. The book cover was covered with hideous marks. Those were a result of the director making ramyun in the middle of the night and using the book as a pot stand.
The director would receive dozens of books on a weekly basis, so it wasn’t strange that he was starting to become practical with using the,
“Ow… I feel sore. Am I down with something?”
The director picked up the book and lay on his bed. He made three yawns during the time he read through ten pages of the book, and he turned his body twice when he reached page 50.
When he reached page 100…
“What? Who is the culprit?”
The director had already sat up on his bed and was leaning against the wall.
He had already forgotten about his fatigue and was fully immersed in the book, flipping the pages in a hurry. The tip of his fingers seemed to be trembling ever so slightly whenever he flipped a page.
“Hmm…!” He soon reached the end of the book, and he exclaimed in amazement and acknowledgment. He finally understood why Park Do-Joon had highly recommended this novel.
“Ah, this is published by OongSung.”
After making a decision, he didn’t hesitate anymore.
The director checked the time and saw that it was just before 7 p.m., so he picked up his phone.
When his call was answered, the director started, “I’d like to speak to the brand manager of Mysterium.”
***
“Wow, really? Director Woo Jae-Hoon?!”
“That’s what the editor-in-chief said.”
Park Jung-Jin had come over to Ha Jae-Gun’s place to hang out. The news he had just heard made his jaws drop, and his face became filled with admiration and astonishment.
Ha Jae-Gun looked up the director’s name on the internet.
“Gyungpo Bridge, Yukgwang-gu, D-War… I’ve seen all of those. Oh, so they were all directed by him.”
“He’s a director that usually produces blockbusters. Some have awesome reviews, and there are some with really bad reviews. However, Gyungpo Bridge wasn’t bad,” said Park Jung-Jin. The light in his eyes shone brightly as he continued. “This director is hailed as the Uwe Boll of Korea.”
“Uwe Boll?”
“He’s a German director, and he’s famous for turning original games into movies. I heard that the German government had a bill that subsidized half the production cost to their local filmmakers for their overseas productions, but the government had to retract the bill because of him.”
“But not all of Director Woo Jae-Hoon’s movies are trash. Most reviews were harsh, but he has had several successful titles.”
“Of course, there’s another reason behind why people call him Korea’s Uwe Boll. Uwe Boll was famous for sending out a sparring request to a critic who had cussed him out and eventually knocked the guy out. Woo Jae-Hoon did that last year, too. He bumped into a critic at a bar and got into a fight. It was even on the news for quite some time.”
“Really?” Ha Jae-Gun burst into laughter.
Park Jung-Jin didn’t digress. He continued earnestly with a straight face. “You have to be careful about selling your copyright, Jae-Gun. It’s great that it’ll be adapted into a movie, but I’m feeling kind of iffy about it. Plus, your novel is in the mystery genre.”
Ha Jae-Gun nodded and said, “I’ll have to meet with the editor-in-chief to discuss the matter with him.”
With that, Ha Jae-Gun stood up and changed into a shirt.
“I think I’ll have to leave soon. Sorry that I can’t stay for too long,” he said.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m only dropping by as well. I’ve got another appointment in the evening, anyway.”
“With whom?”
Instead of answering, Park Jung-Jin only raised a thumbs up at him.
Ha Jae-Gun grabbed his thumb and laughed. “You should take it slow. Hyo-Jin is interested in you as well, and that is why she’s been meeting you so often.”
“We’ll see for a while more.”
Ha Jae-Gun drove Park Jung-Jin and dropped him off at his house.
Then, he headed to a cafe near Guro station.
Upon entering the cafe, Ha Jae-Gun found the entire group present. Oh Myung-Suk, Director Woo Jae-Hoon, and a few other employees from the production company were there.
Ha Jae-Gun checked the time on his watch, which showed that he was still five minutes earlier than the agreed meeting time before heading over to the table.
Everyone stood up to greet him.
“Hello, I’m Ha Jae-Gun. You guys are here early.”
“I’m Woo Jae-Hoon. It’s nice to meet you.”
After exchanging some greetings and handshakes, Ha Jae-Gun took his seat next to Oh Myung-Suk. Ha Jae-Gun frowned slightly instantly. He noticed that Woo Jae-Hoon had come in slippers.
“Your writing is incredible. I’ve enjoyed your novel a lot,” Woo Jae-Hoon began.
“Thank you,” Ha Jae-Gun’s reply was short.
He didn’t seem to like Jae-Hoon’s somewhat frivolous tone.
Woo Jae-Hoon soothed the side of his neck awkwardly and continued arrogantly. “I understand that both of you must be busy as well, so I’ll cut to the chase. I like this novel a lot, and I would like to buy the license to adapt it.”
Oh Myung-Suk smiled and was the first to give a reply. “Thank you for reviewing it so positively. This is exactly the reason why Mysterium has been aggressive with its launch and promotions.”
“Haha, yes. It is definitely worth the effort.”
After their short exchange, Oh Myung-Suk and Woo Jae-Hoon both looked at Ha Jae-Gun. However, Ha Jae-Gun remained silent, seemingly lost in his own thoughts.
“Well, shall we go ahead with drafting the contract? We will need to decide on the fees for the copyright license…” Woo Jae-Hoon trailed off because Ha Jae-Gun had looked up.
Ha Jae-Gun glanced with a serious gaze at Oh Myung-Suk before turning to look at Woo Jae-Hoon and saying, “I have a question.”
“Please speak.”
“I’m planning to leave everything about the contract for Mysterium to handle, but what I’m curious about is the scenario.”
“The scenario?”
“Can I write the scenario myself?”
This was the exact reason why Ha Jae-Gun had been concerned over all this time. Being able to write the scenario personally was a much more important issue to him than the copyright fees.
On top of that, Ha Jae-Gun had watched all of the movies directed by Jae-Hoon. There were quite a few of them that performed badly due to bad scenario writing, and he wanted to prevent his own novel’s movie adaptation from ending up that way.
“I’m sorry, but I think that will be tough.” Woo Jae-Hoon shook his head and gave a firm rejection. “We will leave the scenario for someone else who’ll do a great job at it.”
“Someone else who’ll do a great job at it?”
“I’m not saying that you can’t write well. It’s just that writing scenarios is quite different from writing novels. Have you actually written scenarios before?”
“I’ve written some back in university.”
“The ones you wrote for school aren’t good enough.” Woo Jae-Hoon looked away and snorted.
His reaction made Ha Jae-Gun upset. Had Woo Jae-Hoon’s personality always been like this? His words and actions had been all but nice.
Woo Jae-Hoon turned to look at Ha Jae-Gun and smirked, seemingly in an effort to provoke the latter.
“So, what’s your decision?” he asked.
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