Chapter 68

68. Contract

"Siwoo, you need to be quiet and stay still~"

"Okay! Shh~"

Siwoo put his finger to his lips and nodded at his father.

Siwoo was currently in a hospital.

Sitting on his father's lap, Siwoo, along with his parents, stared at the black screen with tense eyes.

The middle-aged female doctor said,

"It's been 10 weeks, so the baby has grown a lot. Let's check it out."

"Yes."

Hyun-ju replied with a trembling heart.

Due to the numerous love calls Siwoo received after the release of 'In the Name of God' and the subsequent busy days, she had realized her pregnancy late.

The ultrasound examination began.

A moment later, Siwoo saw something small and white on the screen and opened his mouth in surprise.

'Wow...'

Inside the black womb, a small, white baby was wriggling.

"Usually, the risk of miscarriage decreases significantly once the fetus grows over 3 cm around 10 weeks. Is the baby's name not decided yet?"

Do-jin asked.

"Yes. We just found out."

At that moment, Siwoo, who had been watching the small, jelly-like baby wriggling non-stop on the screen, blurted out without thinking,

"Wriggly~?"

The cute voice of his son made Hyun-ju, who was lying down, burst into laughter.

"Are you going to name your brother Wriggly?"

"Yes. Because he keeps wriggling~"

Wriggly was kicking and moving his hands around, playing actively inside the womb.

Siwoo was amazed.

The doctor said,

"Our Wriggly is over 3 cm tall. So, you can rest assured for now. All the measurements are good..."

The doctor showed them several specific measurements and gave detailed explanations, which reassured the couple that both the mother and the baby were healthy. Finally, she let them hear the baby's heartbeat.

-Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

Siwoo's mouth wouldn't close.

The heartbeat of his little brother, who was only 3 cm tall, was echoing loudly.

While listening to the heartbeat of his brother, who was still the size of a sesame seed, Siwoo felt the mystery of life. Suddenly, a sniffle was heard from somewhere.

It was Hyun-ju and Do-jin.

"Daddy~ Mommy~ Don't cry~"

Siwoo patted the bodies of his father and mother, who were wiping away their tears with their small hands.

* * *

A week later.

Hyun-ju met Seung-hyun's mother after a long time.

"Congratulations~ Siwoo's mom! Here's a gift!"

"Thank you. You didn't have to bring so much..."

Seung-hyun's mother had brought a few beautiful and luxurious baby clothes, baby handkerchiefs, and a set of baby mittens and booties as gifts.

Hyun-ju gratefully accepted the gifts.

"Let's go! Let's start! And our King Yama, please get in too!"

"Yes~"

Siwoo answered energetically and sat in the back seat with his mother.

Seung-hyun's mother slowly started the car.

With a child and a pregnant woman in the car, she intended to drive as safely as possible.

Siwoo fastened his seatbelt and asked Seung-hyun's mother,

"Auntie~ What is Seung-hyun doing?"

"Seung-hyun? He's going to a photo shoot today. He's going to wear new clothes and have his picture taken. Why? Do you want to see him?"

"Yes~!"

"Got it. I'll tell Seung-hyun for you."

Due to the huge success of 'In the Name of God,' the schedules of the cast members had become incredibly tight.

The car drove for a while and arrived at the underground parking lot of GAT Entertainment.

Seung-hyun's mother, Hyun-ju, and Siwoo got out of the car and went to the first floor.

"Siwoo, do you really like this company?"

Hyun-ju asked Siwoo in the elevator.

"Yes. Uncle Young-min is fun~ and I like being in the same company as Seung-hyun!"

"Okay, I understand. I was planning to take you around until you're at least 10 years old."

Seung-hyun's mother said,

"It would be fine for other child actors, but Siwoo has become too popular. It's not just popularity; it's also the industry's evaluation. I could take Seung-hyun around by myself until he was in the fifth grade of elementary school because he wasn't as well-known as he is now. Siwoo needs professional management at this point."

While it would be fortunate if only good people surrounded Siwoo due to his popularity, there would certainly be many flies as well.

Seung-hyun's mother had experienced such moments and found a reliable agency when the time came to ensure Seung-hyun received professional care.

It seemed that the time when Siwoo needed the company's support had come much earlier than for other child actors.

Siwoo, who got off on the first floor, headed to the chairman's office with a GAT Entertainment employee.

It was the same room where he had enjoyed the cheese pork cutlet before.

When they entered, Young-min was waiting.

"Wow~ our baby! How have you been?"

As Young-min came closer, he bent down and extended his hand, and Siwoo did a high-five.

"You're getting more and more beautiful. Oh, that's not the important part. Yaaah~ How do you act so well? I tried acting once and made a few lead movies..."

From the middle, Young-min was talking to Hyun-ju.

"I lost 150 billion. Seriously... I'm not joking. And I knelt down to the shareholders. Hahaha! That's a joke. I didn't kneel."

Silence-

It seemed to be a bit of a difficult point to understand.

Young-min quickly changed the topic.

"Okay! Actor Yoon Siwoo! Please sit here! Ladies, please sit too! And our employee, please bring the contract!"

While Siwoo, Hyun-ju, and Seung-hyun's mother were sitting, they had a short conversation about recent events while waiting for the employee to bring the contract.

"Are you still very busy these days?"

When Hyun-ju asked, Young-min leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs arrogantly, and said,

"They keep looking for me in the U.S. Oh, me, hahaha. Starting at forty, I'm living a life as a world star, and my body is dying. But I'm very happy because I'm fulfilling my dreams! After all, what's important to humans is dreams and love! You can't take money with you when you die! This... Ah, this is the kind of memory you take with you to the afterlife. So, now, let's have Siwoo put on the King Yama costume..."

"President, I've brought the contract."

"Okay. Ladies, I usually don't handle contracts myself; there's a team for that. But in the case of children, I always sit down with the parents and explain everything. Since you're entrusting your child to us, it's important for the president to do this to build at least a minimum level of trust, right?"

After that, Young-min and the GAT Entertainment employee showed the contract and gave various explanations. Seung-hyun's mother, who had more experience, asked questions on behalf of Hyun-ju, who was new to such contracts, and carefully checked for any clauses that might be disadvantageous to Siwoo.

"Our company focuses on the future rather than the present, and on the world rather than just domestically. We don't squeeze our artists for immediate profits. Talent shines when the person with the talent is happy."

Young-min pointed to himself.

"I don't do things I don't want to do either. Of course, as an adult and as a president, I fulfill my responsibilities and duties, but I'm trying to live a life doing only what I want within those boundaries. Therefore..."

Young-min's eyes turned to Siwoo.

"I will never force Siwoo to do anything he doesn't want to do."

As Siwoo smiled at Young-min, Young-min also smiled.

"I will always prioritize Siwoo's wishes. For example, Siwoo, do you like baseball?"

"Baseball?"

Caught off guard by Young-min's sudden question, Siwoo nodded with a smile.

* * *

Early May, Siwoo had a birthday party at home with his friends.

"Happy birthday~! Happy birthday~!"

The candles on the white cream cake were lit, and as his friends sang the birthday song, Siwoo clapped his hands to the beat.

Although he didn't place much importance on birthdays, Siwoo felt warm in his heart seeing his friends who had come to celebrate for him.

Just as President Shin Young-min had said, one should go to the afterlife with memories rather than money, what remained for Siwoo, who had lived many lives, were the memories of being with various people, not wealth and fame.

"Siwoo! Happy birthday!"

Jina shouted.

"Siwoo! Don't cry!"

Kyung-ho shouted.

"Siwoo~! Letter!"

Ji-ho handed Siwoo a green letter.

It was written in slightly misspelled, wobbly letters.

After reading the letter, Siwoo smiled brightly and replied,

"Yes! Thank you! Let's be good friends from now on~"

"Got it!"

Siwoo made another happy memory among his good friends that day.

After the birthday party, Children's Day soon arrived.

Siwoo, whose birthday and Children's Day were close together, always received gifts from his parents in quick succession.

"Siwoo! Are you happy today?"

"Yes!"

"Do you like receiving gifts or going to the baseball field more?"

"Baseball field!"

Something every entertainer wants to do at least once.

The first schedule GAT Entertainment arranged for Siwoo was to throw the first pitch at a baseball game on Children's Day, dressed as King Yama.

Since the movie 'In the Name of God' was nearing 15 million viewers but the number of daily viewers and theaters was rapidly decreasing, this schedule was arranged to promote the movie and to introduce the name Yoon Siwoo to the public.

The GAT Entertainment staff believed that this one first pitch could plaster the name Yoon Siwoo all over the entertainment sections of portal sites.

Until now, Yoon Siwoo was often referred to by his roles, such as 'King Yama from In the Name of God' or 'Deok-gu from The King's Path.'

Siwoo's family took a car driven by a company employee to the baseball field.

"President said he will take more time to decide on Siwoo's manager. He seems to be looking for someone who can take good care of a child, different from a regular manager."

Young-min, who seemed free-spirited but was subtly meticulous.

Upon arriving at the baseball field, Siwoo's family followed the company employee into the stadium.

Entering through a different passage used by players rather than the general audience, Siwoo looked around curiously.

"Siwoo, have you practiced throwing the ball a lot?"

The company employee asked.

"Yes!"

"Good. Let's see how well you do later. You'll practice a bit more with the baseball player uncle here, and then we'll go to the mound to throw the ball."

"Yes~"

'Kids don't throw from the mound. They throw from the front~'

Siwoo, who had studied various things online, entered the practice area with a cheerful smile.

Watching Siwoo hop around happily on the artificial turf, Do-jin and Hyun-ju, who had come along, smiled warmly.

"Ooh! King Yama!"

At that moment, a tall man, nearly 190 cm, appeared in front of Siwoo.

He had a build reminiscent of the polar bears Woong-bi and Woong-sik from Joo World Zoo.

"Hello~"

Siwoo greeted politely with a belly bow.

"Hi. I'm Kim Jin-soo, the pitcher for the Seoul Superstars."

Another baseball player added,

"He's a native ace. Native ace."

"How does a kid know what a native ace is? Get lost. You're in the way."

Pushing the joking player away, Jin-soo turned back to Siwoo.

"I'll teach you how to throw the ball. Want to try a simple throw first?"

"Yes!"

A moment later, the native ace Jin-soo appeared in the Seoul Superstars dugout.

Jin-soo's expression was strange.

A backup third baseman approached and asked,

"What's wrong? What were you doing?"

"What was I doing? I was teaching a kid who came to throw the first pitch on Children's Day."

"Ah, the one from In the Name of God? King Yama? My wife really likes him. Should I take a picture with him later? But your expression..."

"No, bro."

"What?"

"How far can a six-year-old throw?"

"Um, the baseball prodigy who just joined and is playing in Gwangju threw at 60 km/h when he was six. Why do you ask?"

As the teammate asked Jin-soo, a six-year-old boy dressed as King Yama appeared in the stadium, waving his hand.

Without any explanation, Jin-soo briefly said to his teammate,

"Bro, watch him throw once."