‘…the concert last night has very positive reviews. A lot of articles praised Min Ho for his incredible improvement in singing,’ President Jang told everyone on the table. ‘I think he deserves a round of applause for that, right?’

The members of the team clapped their hands excitedly, beaming from ear to ear. Min Ho, on the other hand, smiled weakly and didn’t budge. He was leaning back on his chair with his legs crossed, eyes darting from the wall clock directly above where President Jang sat to his phone on the table. He’d been sitting there for close to thirty minutes, listening to President Jang evaluate his concert last night. He was still very exhausted, and even if he was thankful that it was a success, he just wanted to lie down and sleep.

Plus, the longer he sleeps, the more time can pass until he sees Shin Hye again.

At this point, the people around the table started laughing, and Min Ho didn’t know why. He looked to his manager beside him who was laughing the hardest out of all of them.

‘Let’s just lessen the fast songs next time so Min Ho can stick to singing,’ the ahjussi said before turning to Min Ho and tapping his arm. ‘Dancing just isn’t for you.’

Min Ho gave another wry smile and picked up his phone. No new messages. He let out a deep and drawn-out sigh, loud enough for everyone to hear. All eyes immediately shot to Min Ho. President Jang furrowed his brows and cleared his throat. ‘Is everything alright?’ He asked.

‘Huh? Ah, yeah. I’m just really tired,’ he replied. He looked around and noticed that the staff were starting to arrange their folders and pick up their things from the table. ‘Oh, is the meeting done? That’s good because I’d really like to catch up on some sleep.’

‘The evaluation meeting is done, but we still need to talk about some things. It’s not going to take long,’ President Jang told him. ‘The rest, you can go. Good job everyone.’

Min Ho watched as the people left the room one by one, jealous that he couldn’t do the same. A yawn escaped from his mouth – his eyes were about to give up on him.

As if on cue, his manager leaned over. ‘I’ll get you a cup of coffee.’

‘Thanks,’ he said. A few moments later, Min Ho was alone with President Jang in the room, sitting at opposite ends of the table. It reminded him of one of the scenes in his movie script where he had to meet with the leader of a notorious gang. Except instead of a scary, tattooed killer, he was in front of a slightly pudgy but equally scary ahjussi. He pursed his lips as he waited for him to say something.

‘I heard you have a few concerns you wanted to bring up with me?’ President Jang broke the silence.

Min Ho tilted his head at the bluntness of their president. His manager must have talked to him beforehand. Which is good, because had a lot of concerns.

‘I don’t like last-minute additions to my schedule without my knowledge,’ Min ho said sternly. He didn't like the fact that he wasn't in control of his own time; but the least he could ask for him to know and approve activities.

‘I’m sorry about that. That was my fault, it won’t happen again,' President Jang said. 'I’ll make sure that you know all of your appointments at least three days prior to the date.’

Min Ho nodded his head. Alright. Good enough. ‘Also, I think... I’m overworked.’

President Jang didn’t respond right away and squinted his eyes. ‘What do you mean?’

‘I mean I’m always working. I’m always on a plane. I know that we’re striking while the iron is hot – I get that – but is it possible to cut at least one-third of my commitments right now? I barely have time to do anything anymore. I haven’t had any real rest since filming The Heirs. Before jumping into filming for Gangnam Blues, I’d really like to have some time for myself.’

President Jang leaned his elbows on the table and started to massage his temples. ‘Min Ho, this is a really critical time for you,’ he said. ‘We can’t let your popularity die down this early in the year. Not when Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Woo Bin are hot on your trail. I heard Kim Soo Hyun’s agency is looking into expanding into China. He’s already reviewing film offers even if his drama hasn’t finished filming yet. And Woo Bin’s casting in that Kim Hong Sun movie is being finalized as we speak.’

‘I’m going to film a movie, too. That’s hardly flying below the radar,’ Min Ho snapped back.

‘You know how this industry works. It’s all about trends with these young kids nowadays. If you so much as disappear for even a while, somebody can easily take your place.’ Min Ho can tell that the man was getting worked up. The veins on his neck were starting to pop out. But Min Ho needed to stand his ground.

‘Sajangnim, didn’t we already discuss this? I don’t care about being the trend or what. I’m an actor. I want my work to speak for itself. And frankly, I don’t care about how many CFs I shoot. I want to focus on acting. Can you please do that for me? I think I’m about to go crazy flying in and out of the country like this,’ Min Ho pleaded.

President Jang stood up from his seat and started pacing. ‘You did one drama last year. Just one. And we lucked out because it was a huge hit. That’s great, really great. But do you know how many dramas Lee Jong Suk made last year? Two. Both hits. Do you know how many movies he filmed? Three. THREE,’ he emphasized.

Min Ho flinched at the mention of Lee Jong Suk’s name. He hasn’t forgotten about Jong Suk’s trip to Shin Hye’s apartment and has since, topped Min Ho’s blacklist. But because Shin Hye was away on a vacation, he hasn’t really put much thought into him. Until now. It wasn’t enough that Lee Jong Suk was in his girlfriend’s orbit; now, President Jang was using him to prove a point. Min Ho was starting to think he will never like the guy. Ugh. Why does blondie have to be so hardworking?

‘I heard he almost surpassed Suzy’s number of CF’s last year,’ President Jang continued. ‘He even beat Song Joong Ki. Most of the CFs we had to reject because of your schedule are his now.’

Min Ho was getting more annoyed by the second. He may not be aware of it, but President Jang was pushing the right buttons bringing Lee Jong Suk into their conversation like this.

‘Fine, fine! Algae sumnida,’ Min Ho replied, putting his hands up in the air. ‘Make sure I have more CFs than Lee Jong Suk. And while we’re at it, let’s make four movies. And shoot three dramas. Make it happen, sajangnim, okay?’ Min Ho stood up and headed out of the room. He stopped when he met his manager by the door, but only long enough to grab the coffee that the ahjussi was holding. ‘Hyung, let’s go,’ he said.

‘Ya, what happened?’ His manager caught up with him after he made a quick goodbye to President Jang. ‘Did he agree to your terms?’

‘Nope,’ Min Ho replied curtly. ‘My plan backfired. Looks like I’m going to be even busier this year,’ he shook his head and took a sip of his coffee. ‘Is blondie even human? How can anybody work that much?’ He scoffed. ‘Cham na. He even has time to make trips to other people’s apartments.’

‘Huh? What are you mumbling about?’

Min Ho stopped walking abruptly and faced his manager. ‘Hyung, when is the premiere of Boiling Youth again?’

‘Tomorrow night. Why?’

‘I’m going, right? Did you RSVP already?’

‘Yeah. And I had to re-schedule a photo shoot just so you could attend. President Jang asked why you’re so adamant on attending when you don’t normally like those types of events.’

Min Ho smiled. ‘When he asks again, tell him that since he likes Lee Jong Suk so much, I’ll try to be close to him so his dedication can rub off on me,’ he said sarcastically before walking to the direction of the van.

‘Oppa, our plane just landed. Odiya?’ Shin Hye asked groggily. After her six hour flight from Kuala Lumpur, all she wanted to do was take a long, hot bath, lie down and sleep uninterrupted. She had just said goodbye to her friends after picking up her luggage. They thought it best they separate at the airport, in case reporters were there. Shin Hye looked around by the entrance, but there were none in sight.

‘Oh, Shin Hye, didn’t you read my message? I can’t pick you up now, but I sent Jae Won,’ her manager replied. ‘He should be waiting outside. Just go straight to the van.’

‘Ah, kure? Alright. Did he bring the white one?’

‘Eo. Are there a lot of reporters there?’

‘Nope. None. They don’t know I’m arriving today, which is great because what I’m wearing isn’t even worthy of being called airport fashion.’

‘Arasso. Go home and rest. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

When Shin Hye hung up, she headed straight for the exit. No one really noticed she was even there; she thanked the heavens for her luck. These days, media outlets keep writing articles about her – even those that aren’t newsworthy at all. She didn’t want photos to be snapped of her looking shabby, then published along with some crazy article about something so random. I should probably come and go like this more often, she thought.

She spotted her van right away and made her way there hurriedly. She waited for Jae Won to come down and help her with her bags, but after a few seconds of just standing there, he was still inside.

‘Ah, meoya?’ Shin Hye mumbled and walked to the back of the van. ‘Aigoo this kid.’ She opened the door and struggled to put her luggage inside. ‘Ya Jae Won-ah, didn’t you know it’s rude to make a woman do these things? This is why you’re still single,’ she chuckled before closing the door. As soon as she was inside the van, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. She had so much energy in Malaysia, but she was starting to feel all the effects of the water sports and the sightseeing she did there. It felt like her body weighed a ton.

‘Jae Won-ah, let’s head home,’ she said.

A few minutes into the drive, Shin Hye realized that the car had stopped. She opened her eyes slightly and looked out the window. They pulled over in a random street near the highway. ‘Why did we stop?’ The exhaustion was evident in her voice. She closed her eyes again, her lids too heavy.

‘Oi, Park Shin Hye!’ Someone bellowed. ‘I can’t believe this. How can you not know it’s me?’

Shin Hye’s body was jolted awake at the sound of a familiar, deep voice. Her eyes fluttered open and the first thing she saw was Min Ho’s annoyed expression as he scowled at her from the driver