Chapter 4

Life Reversal (3)

***

The very next day after visiting Chairman Baek Jeong-han, Dojun went to the production company and was once again struck with shock.

"Ah, Mr. Kang Dojun. You're already here. I was just about to contact you and let you know that you don't need to come today."

"Really? Why...?"

"I'm sorry, but it looks like this contract won't be possible."

"What do you mean...? Just yesterday, you clearly said we would sign the contract today."

"That's right... Anyway, I'm sorry. Please go back. That's all."

The contract manager, Mr. Lee, looked awkward and avoided eye contact. Dojun felt as if he had been hit hard on the head. He couldn't understand at all. A sudden cancellation of his role?

"Sir, just saying that... Manager Lee!"

Dojun stubbornly held onto Mr. Lee, who was trying to leave.

"Please go back. That's it."

"Manager Lee! Please tell me the reason. Why are you suddenly not using me...?"

"Mr. Kang Dojun. This... I don't know either. I don't know. It's an order from the upper management. It could be that Director Park changed his mind. I'm also suddenly having to do another audition, so I'm tired. Please go. Okay?"

Mr. Lee's response was tinged with irritation.

Dojun couldn't understand. The events of the past few days felt like a dream. Where did it all go wrong? Mr. Lee quickly left the office, leaving Dojun standing there in a daze.

The cancellation of Dojun's casting for Director Park Chan-jong's film was just the beginning.

After that, Dojun couldn't get any auditions anywhere. Even the places where he used to do minor roles as a part-time job stopped calling him.

The theater group that often called Dojun for small roles also stopped contacting him.

Even when Dojun tried to reach out first, everyone avoided his calls. The only response he got was a cold and harsh message telling him not to contact them again.

His mother's death still made him sad from time to time, but in the face of immediate life problems, the sadness and the existence of his father became increasingly vague.

'Why is this happening... What's going on?'

For half a year, Dojun couldn't get any acting-related jobs. He was now a regular delivery man, working to make a living.

Even with the limitations of his appearance, he had never been in a situation where he couldn't do anything. Dojun felt that something was off, but there was no other way.

His life had been one of perseverance, with nothing external to rely on.

Dojun tried harder, sending out more profiles and making more calls. But still, nothing came back. He was getting more and more exhausted.

"Whatever you did, stop contacting us. I'm afraid I'll get blacklisted too. Got it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your name is completely on the blacklist. Even if there weren't such a thing, there weren't many production companies that would use you. If you're used, companies will stop providing production support, so the rumor goes."

It was from a university senior he barely managed to meet that Dojun learned this shocking fact.

'I'm... blacklisted?'

It was rare for an unknown actor who had never been properly cast to be on a blacklist.

Ignoring the senior's words, Dojun submitted his profile to a new agency the next day. He received a call from an unknown number and found out where he had been blacklisted.

***

Past midnight, after finishing his delivery job and returning home, Dojun received a phone call. The room was still dark, and he hadn't even turned on the lights. Dojun took off his shoes and answered the call.

- Is this Mr. Kang Dojun?

"Yes, that's me. Who is this...?"

- Listen carefully to what I'm about to say. You should know when to stay quiet. Make yourself disappear. Don't try to come out into the world. If you ever try to show your face again... I can't guarantee what will happen after that.

"What the... Who are you? Hey?!"

- Your father said not to come back. He said he will let you live a normal life as a last act of leniency.

The call ended after the one-sided announcement. It was Chairman Baek Jeong-han. The man who had blocked even the little sunlight that had managed to reach Dojun. The man who was his father.

The 'upper management's order' that Mr. Lee mentioned when Dojun visited Director Park Chan-jong suddenly came back to him. Everything that had happened so far made sense.

His mother had said it was okay to find his father now. When Dojun was born, Baek Jeong-han was a senior executive at SG Group, like the current Baek Jeong-a.

His father was the chairman, and the succession of the chairman's position was a hot topic. So, the existence of an illegitimate child like Dojun would not have been welcome.

But now, Baek Jeong-han was the all-powerful, absolute ruler of not just SG Group, but the entire Korean industry.

The presence of an illegitimate child wouldn't shake his position, and Dojun was already a grown adult, not a child who needed to be raised. Of course, there could still be issues with succession and inheritance, but his mother thought that, as a father, he would at least do the minimum.

Dojun thought the same. How naive and foolish.

Being revealed as the chairman's hidden son and enjoying power was a more unrealistic dream than winning the lottery. It was fortunate that he hadn't gotten into trouble.

"Ha... "

Dojun felt his whole body shaking with anger. His hand holding the phone trembled violently. Alone in the dark, empty house, he finally collapsed to his knees, overwhelmed by his anger.

"What did I do to deserve this...?"

He was born into a family with no father and no money. His face was so ugly that he couldn't even get a girlfriend. His academic performance was mediocre.

The only comfort he had was his mother, who loved him, and the only possibility was his talent for acting.

But now, his mother was gone, and the opportunity to showcase his talent had completely disappeared.

'Journalists... Maybe I can tell the truth to a journalist and get revenge... No.'

Clutching his fists, Dojun thought. But he soon shook his head.

He had been foolish once, but he shouldn't be foolish again. What could he do against the chairman of SG Group, and what would he gain? Would it even be revenge for the chairman?

"Mother... "

Dojun knelt and closed his eyes, thinking of his mother. Whether his eyes were open or closed, it was pitch black.

As a child, Dojun would wait for his mother to come home from work, comforting his loneliness with TV. The actors in dramas and movies became his friends and family. That was the dream of acting he had nurtured.

Dojun realized he could do nothing. For the first time in his life, he was completely and utterly defeated.

Dojun ultimately became incredibly weak.

On the last night of December 31st, as he turned 29, Dojun went to the Modern Art Awards ceremony. It was a ceremony he had always wanted to attend as an actor. But now, he would never be able to attend it in his lifetime.

Dojun's life was over here. It had no more meaning.

Raindrops began to fall from the sky. His father, the man, had arrived at the ceremony.

With his mother's letter and his own suicide note in his pocket, Dojun stepped out onto the rooftop without any hesitation.

"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii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