After sending off the young journalist, Junmin lay down on the sofa. According to his medical check-up, he didn’t have any big problems, but the doctor did tell him that he should increase his sleep time. Sleep is not said to be the cure for everything for no reason - the doctor emphasized the importance of sleep once again. He thought about having a midday nap according to the specialist advice, but he didn’t feel sleepy even after counting 100 sheep. He had spent 20 years without naps, so his body refused to sleep during the day. He just closed his eyes until the heat inside his eyes died down. That made him feel much better.

“Head manager Lee. See if you can pull next Wednesday’s dinner schedule ahead by an hour.”

With a slightly clearer head, he immediately took care of what was on his mind before sitting at his desk. There was a business card on the sofa that the young journalist was sitting on. He had not put it away after receiving it. Junmin touched the nameplate on his desk. He picked talents that had the potential to become big and nurtured them in order to earn money. This building was founded on that money. The last question that the young journalist asked him was asked to him several times before. Did you know that such and such actor or actress would become so big? - those journalists asked as though they were asking if he knew the winning lottery number. Whenever he was asked that question, he gave the same answer. Surprisingly, I can see the lottery numbers - the journalists ended the interviews on an iffy note after hearing that response. He remembered their expressions as they turned around. They seemed to think that he had a special education method for actors or a specific criteria for picking them. They were wrong. Even if he said that there was nothing like that and that he could just ‘see’ it, the journalists would misinterpret his words by themselves, yet Junmin respected them for it. After all, the important thing for journalists was not the ‘undeniable truth’, but a ‘realistic-sounding truth’.

He finished everything he had to do before dinner. When he realized that there was no longer any work for him to do, he was suddenly overwhelmed with sadness. How would he live on without work? He heard that male hormones would decrease with age, making men sensitive as they get older, and thought that perhaps he was reaching that stage as well. Junmin looked at the photo album he put next to his nameplate. They were photos he took with the puppies he raised at home. He opened the album and took out one of the photos. Behind the photo was another photo that had been discolored. The Junmin in that photo was young. The woman smiling next to him was also young. This was a photo he had to hide behind a dog photo and look at secretly. This photo was simultaneously a memory for Junmin and at the same time a hot iron. Whenever he felt that his mind and body were about to collapse, he looked at this photo. The smile of the woman in the photo became a hot iron that burned his soul, and whenever that happened, Junmin reminded himself of his guilty conscience and the tragedy once more. He could not allow himself to rest until he could achieve what Haejoo had to see. The sole survivor had to feel the warmth of the dead in a way like this.

Knock knock - Junmin slowly put the photos away when he heard a knock on his door. He closed the album before telling the person outside to come in.

“Prez.”

Ganghwan came in while calling him such. In his hands were canned beers. From the way water droplets had formed on it, it seemed that it had been quite some time since they were taken out of the fridge.

“Why don’t you have a drink?”

“The sun’s still up.”

“Senior, I mean, hyung-nim. Beer is supposed to be drunk during the day, you know? It’s not like you have anything to do, right?”

“How would you know if I don’t have any work or not?”

“How long do you think I’ve known you for? The day of your interview is the day you don’t have work. Your work patterns are already inputted in my mind.”

“Looks like you and I have known each other for too long. You know me better than I do.”

He wasn’t feeling sleepy and he didn’t have anything to do. He rather welcomed Ganghwan, who appeared at a time like this. Honestly speaking, he welcomed the beer even more. Junmin sat down on the sofa. Ganghwan sat down diagonally opposite him.

“What did the doctor say when you went to the hospital?”

“That’s the reason you barged in?”

“Don’t change the subject. What happened? Did they say that you were still healthy? Perhaps they told you that you had cancer?”

“Do you want me to have cancer?”

“Looks like you’re completely fine from the energy in your words. So there’s no problem, right?”

“I’m supposed to drink less, smoke less, and get more sleep.”

“That’s what all doctors say though. When they say that, it means that there are no big problems. That’s good, I was worried.”

“Thanks for being worried about me.”

“You should live a long, healthy life. Only then will you see me rise into stardom.”

“Why don’t you stop saying those words and actually start climbing? How was Russia?”

“The theater troupes there are really something. The translator I brought with me was almost exhausted to death. Oh, I visited the ballet side as well, and man, I never knew people could fly. I’m not lying. They can fly like they have wings on their back or something.”

“If tourism is all you did, I’m going to deduct your travel expenses from your contract, okay?”

“It wasn’t tourism. It was studying. How’s the company these days?”

“It’s doing well.”

“It’s doing well without me? I can’t believe it.”

“When you were out of contact for months because of your homeless life, and when we lost contact because you wanted to try experiencing a boat life, the company was still doing well. It won’t help you even if you try to express your love for your company at this point.”

“I won’t be able to feel the desperation if I have a secret escape route. Only if I cut off everything will I feel like I’m doing it.”

“I know that your personality is like that. It’s not like you did it just once or twice. But really, you should look into preparing for work now. I got talks about a double casting for you in a musical.”

“Man, they must have fallen for my singing.”

“They know what they’re dealing with. But your double is pretty popular so it will hurt your pride if your ticket sales are less than your double. Are you okay with that?”

“I don’t have a pride to get hurt.”

Ganghwan clenched the beer can and emptied it in one go. He said stuff like this a lot before he started acting: that it was okay, that he could just ignore it. If this oblivious-looking, smiling Ganghwan was the real him, Junmin would not have picked him and led him this far. Ganghwan was a docile wolf, the kind that escapes from group life and lives with humans. To kind people, he would lie on his back and try to act cute, but the moment he smells blood, he would change. To him, the stage was a place filled with blood. Once he started working and digging into his play, he would show an obsession on the level of madness. That didn’t mean that he showed it on the outside. Other actors working with him would only think that he’s doing his job.

Junmin thought back to the time he got to know Ganghwan. Only a murky gray floated around the ears of a young actor who was staring at the stage while mopping the floor. An actor without talent - Junmin branded him as such immediately. His magical senses had never been wrong. He watched the play in order to find a decent talent. He watched until the curtain call ended, but there was no one to his liking. He thought that it was no good, but just as he was about to return after saying goodbye to the members, he saw Ganghwan, who was cleaning the stage. The grey color around his ears had changed into a bright color. He had never seen someone with a bright color like that after Haejoo and Geunsoo. The moment he tried approaching that actor in order to have a closer look, that light disappeared. The other members of the troupe said that he just joined them and had nothing to show, but Junmin shook his head and put him on stage. Under stage lights, Ganghwan shone brighter than when he was in the corner. When he started acting his entire person changed. Junmin decided to bring him in without hesitation.

“What are you thinking about?”

Ganghwan was wiping off the beer around his mouth with his thumb. Junmin closed the drawers of memories and spoke,

“I was just thinking about when we first met.”

“Why that all of a sudden?”

“You were such a bad guy, so I was thinking that you grew up rather decently.”

“I had my way with being bad. But now that I look back, why did you decide to choose me? I didn’t show you anything special.”

“I told you. I have good eyes.”

“You know? You look like a gambler from time to time. You keep trying things out without measuring.”

“Gamblers bet on the things they want to believe, while a risk-taker bets on the things they trust in. I had something I trusted, and you fit that criteria. Well, the results speak for themselves. You became a good actor.”

“Why do you sound so cheesy all of a sudden? Are you sure there was nothing wrong with your medical check-up? I think something happened to your emotional side of things.”

“Maybe something is malfunctioning because of old age just like you said. Why don’t you take the mantle of the president at this opportunity?”

“I can say this with confidence. This company will go bankrupt in less than a month.”

“Sounds reassuring.”

“You should leave the business side to that girl. I mean Kim Suyeon.”

“Have you two become closer now?”

“It took years to drop the honorifics so like hell we’ve gotten closer. Even now, the first thing I think when I see her is that I have to be careful. Then again, she seems pretty docile these days.”

“Because Geunsoo never falls for her antics. She’ll probably stay obedient until he does.”

“Man, Geunsoo is quite something too. If Suyeon came to me to sleep together, I’d unbuckle my belt in one minute.”

“Not five seconds?”

“Is that how it is?”

“I know you’d run away if that actually happened.”

“Just saying. If Suyeon does come at me, I will run. She’s not a woman anyone could handle.”

“She has her circumstances.”

“Is there someone who doesn’t have that?”

Ganghwan jerked back his head before flicking the beer can by his mouth. When a few drops fell, he grinned in satisfaction.

“Where’s that musical going to be held?”

“Seoul Art Center.”

“Wow, the rental fee should be quite expensive there.”

“The actors are just as expensive too.”

“Can I really join them and ruin the reputation of their main actor? I’ll do it if I set my mind to it, you know? If they thought that they got a double cast who’s a lower tier than they thought and I actually end up getting more ticket sales than them, what would their actor become?”

“That’s why I’m sending you. If you’ve spent company money for your studying, you should pay it back.”

“This is why I try not to borrow money from you.”

“Since you did, you have to earn me several times as much.”

“Okay then. I’ll cause a ruckus. Oh, is that guy doing a single drama these days too?”

“That guy?”

“The guy you gave a 300 million won cheque to.”

“He’s only doing New Semester. He’s quite earnest. Unlike a certain guy who has only been spending money for all sorts of peculiar reasons, he’s at least earning profit. He’s different from a certain precocious kid.”

“It’s all thanks to my teachings, don’t you think? Even though I might look like this, he’s my first disciple.”

“But sir Yoon says he’s his first disciple?”

“Sir Yoon Moonjoong did? No way. I nurtured him first.”

“Go to him for that later. No, you should go visit him quickly and say hello. You’ve never been there since New Years, have you?”

“That’s right.”

“What did I expect from a guy who sent the congratulatory gift money by bank transfer for Miso’s wedding, huh.”

“Ah, right, Miso’s back, isn’t she?”

“She is.”

“I guess she’s an ahjumma now.”

“Try saying that to her face.”

“I’m still too young to smell incense from behind a portrait so, I’ll refuse.”

Ganghwan checked the time on his phone.

“Let me just ask in case, but do you know Han Maru’s schedule?”

“His shoots are on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, but recently his role has been decreasing in importance so most of his shoots are on Saturdays alone. It’s mostly during the night as well.”

“You know all that?”

“I should at least know how my money bags are moving. There are only 11 of them. But why Maru?”

“A youngster like him shouldn’t play around all day. I’m going to have him do some work while he has time.”

“Work?”

“Yes. I’ll have to talk to the director to see if I can make this happen or not, but the producer who is debuting with a short drama is someone I know. They said they needed a decent young boy, so I’ll try to see what I can do.”

“You got work for me, huh. How rare.”

“You did spend money on me after all. I know how to write accounting books too, you know? Let me get going now. Also, you should get some sleep. Your eyes are red. See you later.”

Junmin waved his hand at Ganghwan, who was leaving with the two empty cans.