<Episode 89>
I woke up early in the morning.
It was the day of Florence’s manager interview, so there was a lot to prepare.
“Up early?”
My mother, noticing movement, came out into the living room and asked.
“Yes. Why did you come out? You haven’t even adjusted to the time difference yet.”
“I wanted to see my son off to work.”
Her voice was filled with affection.
“Breakfast?”
“I was just going to eat bread.”
“Wait a moment. I’ll make you a sandwich. Someone who has important work to do should eat properly.”
My mother busily headed to the kitchen.
‘Is this what a mother is normally like?’
She was so different from the mother I knew that it left a strange discomfort in my mouth.
I used to go back and forth to cram schools, studying without even having time to eat dinner.
When I was hungry, I would settle it by eating kimbap from a snack shop inside a shaking car.
“While I make the sandwich, you go get ready for work.”
“Thank you.”
I returned to my room, finished getting ready, and when I came back out, a sandwich and coffee were set on the table.
“Hurry and eat before you go.”
“Yes. I’ll eat, so please go back to sleep.”
“I’ll at least see you off.”
I stuffed the sandwich into my mouth.
For some reason, it felt like my throat was tightening.
‘This is strange.’
“What’s wrong? Are you sick?”
“No. I think I’m just tired since it’s morning.”
Maybe it wasn’t that I missed family… but that I missed human warmth.
“Thank you for the sandwich.”
“Seeing you eat so well makes me happy too, John.”
“Yes.”
“I’ll make something even more delicious for dinner.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
***
As soon as I arrived at the company, I reviewed once again the resumes of those who had applied for the Florence manager position.
Based on memories from previous timelines, I had filtered out those who might cause problems, but I still couldn’t decide who to pick.
‘Still, the number of applicants has definitely increased.’
Because of that, even filtering them in the first round wasn’t easy.
I couldn’t understand why more and more people kept trying to join this company.
‘What’s so great about a company like this?’
It wasn’t big, nor did it offer amazing benefits. I couldn’t understand why people were applying just based on what they saw on the broadcast.
‘Well, it’s good from the company’s perspective.’
Knock knock.
“Sir, I’ve arrived.”
It was Kim Jawook.
“Come in.”
“Yes.”
Kim Jawook sat down with a tense expression.
“You know we’re selecting Florence’s manager today, right?”
“Yes.”
“It’s basically like choosing your successor, so observe the applicants during the interview.”
“Understood.”
Kim Jawook straightened his posture like a soldier receiving orders.
“Relax a bit. If you stay like that, you’ll get tired quickly.”
“Ah… yes.”
Even though he tried to relax, his posture remained stiff.
‘Let’s just leave him be.’
“As stated in the job posting, whoever we hire will immediately start handling Spade Joker’s schedule from today. Just like when you first learned from Team Leader Han, teach your junior well.”
“Don’t worry. I even brought the notebook I used when I first started.”
Kim Jawook proudly pulled out a notebook. It looked much more worn than when I first saw it.
‘Looks like he kept reading it over and over until he got used to the job.’
I felt a sense of pride at having chosen the right person.
“Oh, is Leejoo reading the drama script well?”
“Yes. He hasn’t let go of it for even a moment. He seems worried about whether he can do well, but the other members are encouraging him, so I think he’ll contact you soon, saying he’ll do it.”
I nodded in response.
Before I knew it, it was exactly 10 o’clock.
Time to begin the interviews.
“Let’s start.”
“Yes.”
Kim Jawook opened the door and called in the first applicant.
A woman with a plain appearance entered.
She wore a red checkered shirt and jeans, her hair tied up high in a ponytail.
‘A face I’ve never seen before.’
I checked the resume again.
She was indeed someone I had never seen across any timeline.
“Please introduce yourself.”
“Hello. My name is Yoo Jungyeon. I’m 26 years old, and I started working as a manager at 23.”
A management major with experience… not bad.
“This might be a rude question, but why did you quit being a manager? Based on your experience, you seem to have worked for quite a long time.”
If she had endured, she could’ve risen to team leader or manager level… so there had to be a reason she quit.
“Um… you might think I’m weak for saying this… but I really couldn’t endure it anymore.”
It was an extremely honest answer.
‘Hmm… this is a tough call.’
“I understand. Which idol did you manage previously?”
“Well… actually…”
Yoo Jungyeon lowered her voice and seemed reluctant to speak.
“The idol I officially managed was Jeston, but the reason I quit wasn’t because of them.”
As expected, there was a story behind her resignation.
‘Jeston…’
It wasn’t a name I had heard in any timeline.
Meaning they weren’t famous, either in a good or bad way.
She continued with a sorrowful expression.
“…I had too many artists to manage. Besides Jeston, I also had to handle a rookie actor and another male idol group.”
Artists’ schedules are flexible, so managers often have one main artist and also take care of others as sub-assignments.
‘Isn’t that normal?’
Which meant there had to be something more to her reason.
‘I can roughly guess.’
“One of the male idol members I was assigned to as a sub… said things that are difficult to even repeat.”
Just as expected.
There were occasionally idols who weren’t even famous or particularly talented, yet acted arrogantly and abused their power.
There had been some like that among the idols I created.
Those who filled their pride by lashing out at managers.
The boy group I created early on, abandoning Spade Joker as a disposable piece.
Back then, they were exactly like that.
Always going to clubs, verbally abusing managers, and even begging fans for gifts.
Because of that, a manager couldn’t even last a month and came to me pleading…
Either change their assigned artist or let them quit.
‘Compared to that, Spade Joker is honestly too kind.’
Even when they rose much higher than now, the Spade Joker members didn’t change.
They loved their fans and were grateful for their achievements.
‘After realizing that, I could no longer abandon them.’
“I think I understand. Let’s move on to the next question.”
“Yes.”
After asking a few formal questions, the first interview ended.
***
“Hello. I’m Lim Chaeyeon.”
The next applicant entered and was greeted.
‘She looks familiar somehow.’
There was a strangely familiar feeling.
“Please give a brief introduction.”
“Yes. Until recently, I was the manager for a group called ‘Look At My Eyes.’”
The moment I heard the group name, I immediately remembered who she was.
“Look At My Eyes” was an unpopular male idol group that once caused a stir online, because it was revealed that they had been assaulted by their former manager.
‘I didn’t know the manager’s name, so I couldn’t filter her out just from the resume.’
“Then why didn’t you include that in your resume?”
“I was only assigned recently, and I didn’t achieve any significant results, so I didn’t think it was necessary to include.”
That made no sense.
If she truly hadn’t included it for that reason, she wouldn’t have brought it up in the interview either.
‘Her previous company must have blacklisted her.’
She was an automatic rejection, but I still asked formal questions.
I couldn’t make it obvious.
“What do you think is the most important quality of a manager?”
“I believe it’s caring for the artist.”
She answered confidently.
Shameless to the core.
‘Says the one who assaulted her own artist.’
“A manager supports the artist so they can stand on stage, so they must care for and respect them. I’ve always worked with the belief that actions come from the heart.”
“I see. Thank you.”
***
After that, I met two more applicants.
“Sir.”
“Yeah?”
“Are you going to pick the second applicant?”
Kim Jawook asked.
Normally, I would’ve chosen the second applicant.
She had experience and seemed confident.
Unlike Yoo Jungyeon, she appeared capable of stepping in firmly when needed to protect the artists.
‘If I didn’t know the truth, that is.’
“No. I’m going with the first one.”
The latter applicants weren’t bad either, but the one I felt most drawn to was Yoo Jungyeon.
‘She seems like she’ll genuinely care for Florence.’
“…Pardon?”
He looked curious about my decision but didn’t ask further.
“The second one talks well, but seems all show with no substance.”
I gave a short explanation for his sake.
“Go tell Yoo Jungyeon she’s been selected, and inform her she’ll start working today. Also, tell her she’ll formally greet Florence soon.”
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