“I wish you happiness.”
The line came from the TV.
“Isn’t he just way too cool?”
Lee Jihyun murmured.
She had watched the drama so many times that it was difficult to even count, yet every time she watched it, she discovered a new charm in the character Ji Yeonwoo.
“So live happily.”
The drama ended.
Looking at the darkened screen, she unconsciously let out a sigh.
“Doesn’t Seongtae oppa do autograph events or anything?”
Muttering as if complaining to herself, she picked up her smartphone.
Lee Jihyun logged into OnStar and looked around to see if there was any new information.
‘He doesn’t even use OnStar these days.’
As she checked to see whether Han Seongtae had posted anything, her lips pushed out into a pout.
His most recent post was from a month ago.
She knew he was busy, but it would still be nice if he posted an update once a week. No, even once every two weeks would be enough.
Letting out a breath, she moved her finger and scrolled down.
By the time she had gone through about half of Han Seongtae’s posts,
Ding.
A notification sounded, telling her that someone she followed had uploaded a new post.
Lee Jihyun reflexively tapped the notification.
“Ah.”
It was not something Han Seongtae had posted.
It was a post from an actress who had tagged him.
“…Huh?”
As she looked at the photo in the post, her eyes gradually widened.
It was a picture of Park Yeeun smiling inside a pleasant-looking café while holding a keychain.
“This….”
Lee Jihyun enlarged the picture and carefully examined the small doll attached to the keychain.
The Sapsali doll had a distinctive pattern drawn over its fur. It was a character Lee Jihyun knew.
Anyone who was a fan of Han Seongtae would have no choice but to know what character it was.
| Fan Comments |
| Neckslice: My eyes aren’t playing tricks on me, right? No matter how I look at the thing on that keychain, that’s Ji Yeonwoo from Baeknyeoncho. |
| GymLog: Yeah. That’s Ji Yeonwoo. There’s no way it isn’t Ji Yeonwoo. I’ve rewatched Baeknyeoncho so many times. Ji Yeonwoo is the only Sapsali with a pattern like that on its body! |
| LightningCalendar: It’s definitely the Sapsali version of Ji Yeonwoo. But as far as I know, there’s nowhere that sells merchandise like that. What’s going on? |
Just as she had recognized the Sapsali, the other fans caught on as well.
If the quality of the keychain doll had been poor, they might not have recognized it.
But even to fans who obsessively dug into Baeknyeoncho, the quality of the keychain was excellent.
| Fan Comments |
| Boom: Han Seongtae is tagged in the post. Didn’t Han Seongtae give her that merch himself? |
| Mouse-ryeong: Han Seongtae gave it to her himself? Wait, then is that merchandise the company is making? Am I allowed to get my hopes up? |
| DamDam: That’s not what matters right now! Why is our Seongtae with Park Yeeun? It’s not like there are other people there either. There’s no reason for the two of them to meet alone! Don’t tell me it’s that? It isn’t, right? Tell me it isn’t! If you say it is, I’ll kill everyone! |
There was a comment having a fit over a strange part of the situation.
Thinking that the idea of Han Seongtae and Park Yeeun having that kind of relationship was ridiculous, Lee Jihyun shifted her attention to the other comments.
| Fan Comments |
|---|
| DungGideok: Weren’t those two already close? They filmed Baeknyeoncho together, and I heard they give each other gifts pretty often too. Is this really something to react this strongly to? |
| Mask: Just ignore it. Ignoring them makes life easier. It’s not like there are only one or two people like that. |
| MikeTukTuk: Wasn’t all of this already revealed at the Baeknyeoncho production presentation? They said they’re fans of each other and close friends. That should be the end of it. What’s wrong with the two of them being together? |
Watching the comment window scroll so quickly it almost made her eyes hurt, she moved her hand.
| Fan Comments |
| Han’sInvasion: So how do we get that merch? |
A single comment went up.
And for the briefest moment, the entire comment section stopped.
“Did you plan this?”
Min Najung looked at Han Seongtae with a surprised expression.
Han Seongtae, who had never imagined Park Yeeun’s post would lead to this kind of result, smiled and shook his head.
‘She said she wanted to take a picture, so all I did was tell her she could.’
She posted it, and with only a little exaggeration, the whole country went into an uproar.
The planning team, which was not quick to act unless something looked profitable, had even strongly proposed that they should start producing and selling the merchandise.
It was completely unexpected, so Han Seongtae himself had been flustered when he first heard the news.
“A lot more people have started looking into the merchandise themselves. The team leaders on the singer side are grateful to you too, Seongtae.”
“Why would they be……?”
“People who went looking for the merchandise saw other merchandise that looked good and started buying that too. Sales have gone up a lot because of it.”
“That’s why I’m bringing this up,” she added.
“Do you have any interest in selling merchandise?”
“Merchandise?”
“Yes. With the response you’re getting right now, it would almost be stranger not to sell it.”
“I’m still not sure. I hadn’t really thought that far ahead.”
Han Seongtae had only thought that he should repay his fans. He had never once thought about selling merchandise.
Even now, he was not sure.
He had heard that the response was good, but actually selling it was a different matter.
“I’m absolutely not trying to pressure you. If you don’t want to do it, then we have no intention of doing it either. I didn’t mean to put any pressure on you, but it looks like I did without realizing it. I’m sorry.”
Min Najung apologized and changed the subject.
“I don’t think you have to worry about the autograph event. If anything, the problem might be that there won’t be enough spots.”
“That’s something to be grateful for.”
Han Seongtae had been worried that he might not be able to fill all the spots at the autograph event.
The enthusiastic response from people put that concern to rest.
“It might be good to do a few more simple promotions too. We can discuss that with the promotions team.”
“…….”
“You heard that all the preparations for the autograph event are finished too, right?”
“Yes. Dusik hyung told me.”
“It’s a week from now, and before that, we’ll have the Rampage fan meeting first. Did you hear the date?”
“Yes. Two days from now.”
Han Seongtae nodded immediately.
Whenever something was decided at the company, Jung Dusik informed Han Seongtae right away.
The same was true of the meeting with Min Najung.
When it came to matters related to him, there was almost nothing he did not know about.
“You had a fan meeting before, but as far as I know, this is your first autograph event. How do you feel?”
At Min Najung’s question, Han Seongtae slowly smiled.
[‘The One Who Made Laughter from Tragedy’ says that you are smiling too much like a child.]
[‘The One Who Defined an Era’ looks surprised, saying that you were capable of making that kind of expression too.]
[‘The One With a Thousand Faces’ says you seem far too excited and that it would be better to calm down.]
The gods explained how he was feeling.
Tap, tap.
A staff member tapped the microphone.
“Testing the microphone.”
The staff member’s voice filled the set.
The sound team adjusted the microphone levels.
Han Seongtae glanced around the set before turning his head.
“Seongtae, you know today’s scene is important, right?”
“Yeah.”
“The emotional progression when you go up onstage is the most important part. You know, being excited while also worried.”
Kim Minseok spoke while pointing at the stage directions in the script.
Perhaps because this scene could be considered one of the highlights of Youth My Way, Kim Minseok was talking even more than usual.
“Ah, it’s already gotten this late. You have to do well. You know I’m only trusting you, right?”
“Trust me. They say good fortune comes when you believe.”
Han Seongtae smiled and got up from his seat.
Kim Minseok followed behind him as he started walking.
Kim Minseok went to his seat, while Han Seongtae stepped onto the set.
He could see the minor-role actors.
“Hello.”
“We look forward to working with you!”
The actors bowed the moment they saw him.
Telling them they did not need to greet him quite that formally, Han Seongtae went to his position.
The actor playing Shin Jaehyun was there.
“Hello.”
“Yes, hello. I look forward to working with you.”
They exchanged greetings only briefly.
“We’re going in. Ready!”
Kim Minseok raised the megaphone as he spoke.
“Let’s do well.”
“Yes!”
The actor nodded at Han Seongtae’s words.
Then the director’s voice calling, “Action,” rang throughout the set.
It was an audition site for a music program held by one of the two broadcasting stations known as the twin giants of South Korea.
The place was filled with people who had gathered there in hopes of succeeding, and Park Sejun walked among them.
“Sejun, don’t be nervous. It won’t be that different from before. Want a cheongsimhwan?”
Shin Jaehyun’s voice trembled as he spoke beside him.
Park Sejun let out a small laugh.
“I think you’re the one who needs the cheongsimhwan, hyung.”
“…Is it obvious?”
“Very.”
Anyone looking at Shin Jaehyun as he released a deep sigh would have been able to tell that he was nervous.
“I’m the one going up onstage. Why are you shaking?”
“Right? Why am I like this? I feel like my heart’s going to explode.”
Shin Jaehyun was crunching away at the cheongsimhwan when someone called out.
“Is number 42 here?”
One of the staff members called Park Sejun’s number.
He reflexively stepped forward.
“I’m here!”
“Yes, number 42… That’s right. Come inside.”
He followed the staff member inside.
There were three judges and several cameras.
Shin Jaehyun took up a position among the cameramen.
‘…Huh?’
Standing onstage with the microphone in his hand, Park Sejun froze when he saw the person sitting in the middle of the three judges.
Tap, tap.
The judge in the middle tapped his microphone.
One corner of his mouth lifted.
“We’ve met before, haven’t we?”
Park Sejun’s heart dropped.
The hand holding the microphone began to tremble.
Why was that person here?
Shin Jaehyun had not said a word about this.
Park Sejun reflexively turned toward where Shin Jaehyun was standing.
Shin Jaehyun made an excuse with his expression.
‘I didn’t know either.’
“Contestant number 42? Is something wrong?”
Another judge spoke.
Park Sejun turned and looked at the judges.
“It must have been so long since he stood on a stage like this that he’s nervous. The Sejun I knew wasn’t like this.”
“Huh? Seonghan, do you know that contestant?”
“Of course. How could I not? He competed on Black Singer with me.”
“Black Singer? Isn’t that the program Yoo Seonghan won?”
“Yes. He was my rival back then. I never expected to run into him here like this.”
Seeing Yoo Seonghan smiling with such a good-natured expression, Park Sejun clenched his fist tightly.
He knew that expression was entirely put on.
How could he not?
Yoo Seonghan was the person who had prevented him from being able to sing.
“PD, can we take a short break? It’s been a long time, and I’d like to talk with him.”
At Yoo Seonghan’s words, the PD immediately gave the okay sign.
The staff busily moved around to inspect the equipment.
While Park Sejun watched them, Yoo Seonghan stepped down from the judges’ area and approached him.
“I didn’t think I’d run into you here. You really are persistent.”
“….”
“Why are you making such a fuss about singing again now? What, did you run out of money? Or do you actually think you can succeed as a singer?”
Yoo Seonghan whispered quietly enough that the other people could not hear him.
Listening to him, Park Sejun clenched and unclenched his fist twice.
Strangely, he was not angry.
“Give it a rest. Nobody’s going to acknowledge you just because you do this.”
“Hyung, are you scared?”
“…What?”
“Why are you talking so much? Now that I’m coming back into this business, you must be pretty scared.”
Perhaps it was because Yoo Seonghan looked like a child afraid that someone might take away what belonged to him.
“Hyung, doing this to me makes you look pathetic.”
Park Sejun said it with a faint laugh.
Yoo Seonghan’s face twisted at the sight of his smile.
“Cuuut!”
Kim Minseok’s booming voice rang out.
And with that, filming came to an end.
— Jung Dusik: Seongtae, I’m on basement level 1. Come down.
The day of the fan meeting arrived.
And that day,
[A Hollywood star produced by Korea.]
[The actors of Rampage unanimously say that Han’s acting was better than any other actor’s…]
[Han Seongtae, who showed us the life of ‘Yu.’]
The world erupted into a frenzy.
- 청심환 (cheongsimhwan) is a traditional Korean herbal remedy commonly associated with calming the nerves
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