Chapter 50. Camping and Friends (1)

"Get in, little brother."

"Whoa, you bought it? That's awesome."

Ryu So-hyun climbed in without hesitation, as if it had always been her car.

"Kids, I'm going first! Let's continue the chat on text. Driver Ryu, close the door."

"What? Driver Ryu? Haha."

Yeon-woo closed the door with a smile at So-hyun's innocent expression.

"Be careful and get home safely, So-hyun."

"Sure, big brother."

"Wow."

Yeon-woo opened the driver's door, got into the car, and the red sports car started with a roar.

Meanwhile, the three delinquents, shocked by the scene, stood with their mouths agape, muttering, "Is this for real?"

Yeon-woo's car moved smoothly towards home.

"Whoa, big brother, you know how to drive?"

"Yeah, I've practiced."

For about 20 years?

***

After spending two days with his family at home, Yeon-woo drove back to Seoul.

Just as he was about to enter the office building after parking, his smartphone rang.

Beep—

"Hmm? Senior Ma Seok-do?"

Yeon-woo answered the phone, seeing the name on his smartphone.

"Yes, Seok-do hyung."

- Oh, Yeon-woo, are you resting well?

"Haha, yes. I went to my parents' house and just got back to Seoul."

- Oh, really? By the way, do you like camping?

Yeon-woo tilted his head, surprised by the unexpected topic.

"Camping?"

Would digging trenches and holding out in the mangrove forest for a week to monitor the illegal arms trade of a Myanmar ethnic minority independence army count as camping?

After pondering this odd question, Yeon-woo replied.

"Hmm, I've done something similar a few times."

- I have a hobby of going camping the day before outdoor shoots. I called to see if you'd like to join me if you're bored. It's not a requirement, though.

Seok-do, who had become closer to Yeon-woo during the filming of this movie, sounded hopeful despite saying it wasn't a requirement.

"Sure, let's go and have a drink, hyung."

- Really? Hahaha, great. Then I'll bring the full set. Where's your address?

"Send me your address, and I'll come to your place. We can park there and move in your car, okay?"

Yeon-woo got back into his car to head to the address he received after hanging up the phone.

He called Min-soo before leaving.

"Ah, Min-soo hyung, I'm going with Senior Ma today..."

- Yes, actor. I'll pick you up at the address tomorrow.

After hanging up, Yeon-woo drove to Seok-do's house.

Seok-do greeted him warmly at the front door.

Yeon-woo parked his car and got into Seok-do's car.

The back seat and trunk were piled high with camping gear.

"Wow, is all this camping gear?"

"I always carry it. I go camping whenever I get a chance."

Seok-do seemed very excited about going camping with Yeon-woo.

"Hyung, you drive this car too? Jin-wook hyung has the same one."

"Jin-wook? Yeah, many celebrities seem to like this car."

Seok-do shifted gears with a smile, and the car headed towards a camping site in Incheon.

"Yeon-woo, have you ever done a live broadcast on SNS?"

Seok-do asked Yeon-woo while driving towards Incheon.

"Live broadcast? No, I haven't! I've only had my SNS account for a short time."

"Really? I sometimes do it when I go camping to interact with my fans. What do you think?"

Yeon-woo, who felt he hadn't been uploading much to SNS or interacting with fans due to his busy filming schedule, replied.

"Hmm, I like it. Interacting with fans is really important."

They are the people who support and love your acting unconditionally.

"Then I haven't done it before, so I'll naturally appear when you start it."

"Sure, it'll be fun. We'll grill ribs for dinner, so we can do it then."

After hearing Seok-do, Yeon-woo accessed the fan cafe on his smartphone and wrote his first post.

"Hmm, is this good enough?"

The post read that he was going camping with Senior Ma Seok-do and would interact with fans through a live SNS broadcast in the evening.

The fan cafe went wild with the first post from the '[Admin] Ryu Yeon-woo' account, especially since it was a live SNS broadcast announcement.

"Phew, we're here."

"Is this it, hyung?"

Yeon-woo and Ma Seok-do opened the car doors and got out at the parking lot.

"Okay, now we need to move our stuff to the deck, but we need a luggage cart..."

"Ah, there it is."

Yeon-woo ran to the side of the parking lot and brought back two large camping trailers, one in each hand.

"Wow, that's heavy?"

Seok-do, who was organizing the trunk, ran over to help Yeon-woo.

"I'm fine, Seok-do hyung."

Despite Seok-do's protests, they carried the trailers together.

"What do we need to take out? We won't use everything, right?"

Yeon-woo, puzzled by the abundance of camping gear, asked.

"Hmm, we could use everything if we wanted to. Let's start with the essentials and get more if needed."

Seok-do opened the trunk, took out the essentials, and passed them to Yeon-woo, who moved them to the camping trailers.

"Is this enough?"

Bang—

Seok-do closed the trunk.

Yeon-woo smiled and said, "Who is it? You didn't dent the door, did you?"

Yeon-woo was joking, referencing an early scene from the Master Plan.

"Ah, the trunk, the trunk."

Hahaha.

Both burst into laughter at Seok-do's playful response.

Yeon-woo, who had taken on the role of Pierre Choi, had become more cheerful and playful.

***

The man sitting at the head of the table spoke in a metallic voice.

"These days, the business world isn't doing well at all."

The man sitting in front of him bowed his head.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't say 'I'm sorry' all the time; I don't like it."

The man bowed his head silently in response.

"Try to bring in some new faces. There's nothing better for washing out old, senile people."

"Yes, I understand."

The man, who had been giving a report, stood up, opened the door, and made a call to a list of names in his notebook.

Meanwhile, at the Plus Ten Entertainment headquarters in Gangnam.

In the representative's office.

"Yes, I understand. Yes, I'll look into it."

The man, with a frown, answered the phone, repeatedly saying, "I understand."

Despite his frown, his tone was extremely humble and polite.

Click—

"Damn, hah. I shouldn't have gotten involved in this. Shit."

The man, Plus Ten Entertainment's representative, Byun Hak-gyu, threw his smartphone onto the sofa roughly after hanging up.

Beep—

- Representative, Jung Soo-yeon is here.

"Let her in."

Creak—

The door opened, and Jung Soo-yeon entered the office.

"Representative, hello."

"Come, sit down."

He gestured for her to sit while picking up the smartphone he had carelessly thrown on the sofa.

Soo-yeon's face hardened as she listened to Byun's explanation.

"Are you telling me to entertain them?"

"No, where did you learn to speak like that? I've been explaining. It's just a good opportunity to socialize. They're all people who can help your acting career."

Soo-yeon, with a cold, rigid expression, stood up from the sofa.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear this. Representative, I'm sorry."

"Before I finish speaking, do you think you can succeed without this? You're ignoring me, so I'll ignore you too?!"

Byun, who had been angry since the phone call, lashed out at Soo-yeon.

Soo-yeon glared at Byun, tears welling up in her eyes.

"I didn't think it would come to this. Two years ago, I only half-listened to Joo-young unni, who was a high school student, when she was complaining about being harassed."

"What?"

Byun's eyes widened when he heard the name of the actress he had tried to connect with a high-ranking official.

"Even though I've been with the company since I was young and called you 'uncle' since I was a child..."

Soo-yeon, tears streaming down her face, glared fiercely at Byun.

"I didn't expect you to do this as soon as I turned 18."

Soo-yeon immediately turned and walked towards the office door.

She stumbled slightly, as if her strength had left her.

"You little brat. After I raised you, you treat me like this?! You have two years left on your contract. Your career will be on hold during that time. Do you think it's hard to have a drink?"

Soo-yeon, hearing Byun's desperate shouts from behind, bit her lip tightly.

"It won't end with just a drink. If that's the kind of dirty career, I won't be an actor."

Bang—

Soo-yeon slammed the door and bowed to the startled secretary.

"I'm sorry for the commotion."

"It's okay."

A tear fell from Soo-yeon's bowed head.

She left the entertainment company building without a second thought.

"Hah..."

Soo-yeon sighed.

She walked aimlessly, afraid that if she stood still, she would burst into tears.

Kim Joo-young, a fellow actress and aspiring actor, who had been a confidante and a reliable friend, had warned her about this.

Soo-yeon had thought that if she could establish herself as an actor while still a minor, she would be safe.

When she felt she would fail the 'Summer Wardrobe' audition, her face had been so dark for that reason.

She had shown good performances as a child actor in several movies, but she had no major works, only a web drama known among students.

While not all of the entertainment industry is like this, Soo-yeon felt she had made a wrong start.

Her parents would undoubtedly be heartbroken, but she couldn't confide in them. Having started working at a young age, she had no close friends to confide in.

"Is this why Joo-young unni warned me?"

When she was younger, she had her parents to protect her from bullies.

But as she started her career, the world around her grew too big for her parents to protect her, and she became accustomed to curling up and protecting herself.

While she sometimes felt proud of her growth, on days like today, she felt incredibly lonely and sad, unable to share her troubles with anyone.

Sitting at the subway station, she endlessly scrolled through her smartphone contacts.

It was ironic that she had so many 'friends' on her smartphone but no one to call.

After a long time, Soo-yeon's pale, slender fingers stopped scrolling.

She seemed to gather her courage, clenched her teeth, and pressed the call button.

***

Ryu Yeon-woo and Ma Seok-do, having moved all the camping gear and set up some chairs, were resting and enjoying the breeze.

The gentle wind made them drowsy, and Seok-do was already dozing off.

Beep—

Yeon-woo's smartphone rang.

"Hmm?"

Jung Soo-yeon, a friend he only occasionally texted, was calling.

He had never spoken to her on the phone since they exchanged numbers.

"What's up?"

Curious, he answered the call.