November 2017

Yeouido, Seoul, South Korea

The head of SM Entertainment stared at his smiling dinner host, not quite sure of what he had just heard. The young man was, no doubt, already a successful businessman who had the right pedigree (Harvard undergraduate and then an MBA from the London School of Economics and Oxford University) to take over the massive Samsung empire one day.

“Alpha Omega Entertainment Holdings,” Soo-Man said the name aloud again, as if saying it would help him understand what was going on. “Why…why is Samsung interested in the entertainment business?”

“My apologies, 이수만 회장. I was not clear enough in my presentation,” Lee Shinhae replied as he allowed himself a small chuckle. “This is not Samsung or Shinsigae. Those are my parents’ and uncles’ businesses. This is my own business. Surely you can understand my desire to build something on my own? To that I am not just a third-generation spoiled chaebol heir?”

Lee Soo-Man didn’t answer, but instead stared past his companion at the glittering lights of Seoul and the Namsan Tower in the distance. From this private dining room at the Conrad, Soo-Man can see all of the northern bank of Seoul before him. He was old enough to remember a time when most of the glitz and glamour that now occupied the southern bank of the Han River were nothing more than marshland and rural rice paddies. He had been hungry back then, just and Shinhae was hungry now.

“Hmmm…and who are your partners in this? I don’t…I don’t recognize Alpha Omega Entertainment Holdings,” Soo-Man finally asked.

“We are a newly established entity, based in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Seoul.” Shinhae answered. “Naturally you will meet the other partners if we proceed with the acquisition. I think you’ll be very pleased to know them. I can assure you that they are very well-established names whom you will recognize immediately. We are a solid group and our finances are firm. With a venture this size, we will be asking HSBC and the Shinhan Group to handle the transaction.”

Soo-Man raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Having 2 of the biggest banking entities in Asia handling the deal was prudent if nothing else. And the US$1,500,000,000 price in the proposal was 5 times more than the 2016 valuation of SM Entertainment. Yes, the kid before him had certainly done his homework.

“Okay, come to my office at 9 AM tomorrow morning,” Soo-Man finally said. “Let’s talk.”

Shanghai, China

“Siwon, what a nice surprise!” Hangeng stated as he pulled the young man into his flat. “Aren’t you supposed to be rehearsing for the Super Show 7?”

“Hyung!” Siwon returned Hangeng’s hug with the same warmth and love. “Yes, we have a mini-break. I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Hangeng noticed Siwon’s bodyguard standing discretely just outside the door, at a respectable distance. The conversation at the Namsan meeting barely 3 weeks ago still rang loudly in his mind. Donghae’s heart…the real reason why Sungmin and Kangin weren’t going ahead with the comeback…Siwon’s dangerous plan to catch the crazy stalker once and for all…. At first, it was all too much for them, for any of them, to understand. But slowly, gradually, they all accepted what was happening. For the first time in almost a decade, Hangeng felt like he had his brothers back again. They were finally whole again…15 strong. And every single one of them was more worried about Donghae than about their own safety. Just as Siwon did six months earlier, they vowed to do whatever was necessary to help Donghae beat this disease.

“And so you just hopped your private jet for a quick trip to Shanghai?” Hangeng loved to tease Siwon and laughed as his younger friend turned red. They had always teased Siwon about his upbringing and family wealth, but it was all in good fun.

“Actually, I came to run some ideas by you for Super Show 7,” Siwon answered casually as Hangeng hung up his friend’s winter coat and grabbed two Sapporo Black bottles from the refrigerator. It was Siwon’s favorite brand of beer…and Hangeng always kept some around since he never knew when Siwon would drop by…just as he did now.

“Oh? You want my advice?” Hangeng asked. “On what? The dance routines?”

“What do you think of Super Show 7 having all of us,” Siwon asked before taking a swig of beer. “Super Show 7 with 15 Super Junior members?”

Hangeng didn’t reply at first, thinking that Siwon was joking. But he realized that Siwon was completely serious in asking the question. “How…and just how is that possible?”

“Because SM Entertainment just signed a proffer sheet this morning to be acquired by Alpha Omega Entertainment Holdings,” Siwon said in the same tone as if was giving Hangeng the time of day. “And as the largest single shareholder of Alpha Omega at 55%, I have made each Super Junior member an equal partner/owner of those shares.”

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Texas Heart Institute, Houston, TX, USA

Donghae tried not show his nerves, especially when he saw how nervous Jiwon was, but he failed miserably. They were sitting in the office of one of the top cardiologists in the world, waiting to hear the results of the tests that he had just gone through in the past two days. True to his word, Donghae’s future father-in-law had scoured the earth for possible treatments to his heart condition. They had first met Dr. Thompson a month ago when he flew to Seoul to give them a private consultation, which led to this secret trip to Houston. As far as the Korean media knew, he was still back in Seoul getting ready for Super Show 7 instead of having flown on the elder Choi’s private jet to Houston and undergoing a series of extensive tests to figure out if he was a good candidate for this experimental treatment.

“Well, Mr. Lee, Ms. Choi,” Dr. Thompson began.

“Please, I’m Donghae, and this is my fiancée Jiwon.” The pop superstar replied.

“Okay, well, Donghae, as I was saying. Your test results came back very positive. I think you’ll be the ideal candidate for this treatment.” Dr. Thompson smiled as he saw the relief and hope wash over his young guests. “But you will need to have the procedure done here and stay here in Houston for at least 6 months so that we can monitor your progress. After that, if everything goes well, then you only have to come here once a year for adjustments.”

Donghae stared at the cardiologist for a moment before giggling. “Excuse me, I need to send a text.”

And half a world away, Siwon’s iPhone chimed, interrupting his conversation with Hangeng. He glanced down at his phone and started laughing as he showed Hangeng the text from Donghae.

“IRONMAN.”