Top Management

TM Chapter 178

TL: emptycube / ED: Isleidir

-Oppa, are you outside right now?

Lee Songha asked. Her voice was warm and soft like a just steamed potato.

It was gentle and slightly out of breath.

-I’m on the fourth floor after my workout, but you’re not here.

“Oh, I’m at Son…!”

Both my shoulders were gripped tightly. I was pushed against the wall. The moment my back slammed against the wall, I groaned out of reflex.

-Oppa?

She sounded surprised. At the same time, Son Chaeyoung, who held my shoulders, came up close. She seemed to be on the tips of her toes as her crafty lips came up to my chin. I could see her teeth between her opened lips. I could hear her exhale.

“Hey.”

Son Chaeyoung talked into my phone with a cunning smile.

Lee Songha’s breath halted like a bird shot by an arrow before fluttering.

What the hell was she-! I grabbed Son Chaeyoung’s shoulders and pushed her away.

“What-what are you doing?”

“I wonder if your quadruplets did something like that?”

Son Chaeyoung stumbled before quickly regaining her balance and replying. Lee Songha must have heard as her breaths became even more ragged. Damn it. Son Chaeyoung’s eyes curved into crescent moons.

She was a notoriously crazy bitch.

Audacious, acting however she pleases and bringing out the bad in people. Uncontrollable.

I wiped my ear and cheek, which her breath touched, with the back of my hand and turned my attention to my phone.

It was quiet. To the point where I thought she might have fainted.

“Songha.”

-Yes.

She replied immediately. She was calmer than I thought.

“I’m currently at Ms. Son Chaeyoung’s house. I’m working.”

-Ah… That. To persuade her?

“Yeah, that. I’m not going to talk with her for long, so I’ll call you back once we’re done.”

-Yes.

I said as gently as possible. Her being so calm worried me more.

I hung up and turned around to find Son Chaeyoung sitting on her sofa. Her crossed legs looked like snakes. Her pleased smirk was gone from her face as though something bothered her. Expressionless, she stared at me.

I turned my gaze first.

“I think we’re done talking. I’ll be on my way now.”

“Do whatever you want. I’m not going to stop you.”

I heard her snort then her phone ring behind me. Son Chaeyoung answered her phone.

“What? Did you find it? Not frozen ripe persimmons, fresh ones!”

Her voice seemed beyond irritated, sounding like an ax hacking into a tree.

I frowned, imagining how it would feel if I was the caller. As expected, it was useless. I didn’t want to talk to or get involved with Son Chaeyoung.

I should give up.

Determined, I walked towards her door when my vision turned dark.

“… She was great at acting, having started as a child actress.”

God damn it!

This was my first time hating hearing Director Park’s voice. It was also the first time I didn’t perk my ears at what was being said in a future vision. If I wasn’t stuck like a puppet, I would be screaming right now.

Why was this happening?

Why did it have to be Son Chaeyoung of all people? It could have been Neptune, Nam Joyoon, Song Inho, or Pretty Girls.

Why? Why Son Chaeyoung?

Words surged up my throat but all I could do was watch and listen. Director Park was looking at me. I could now recite the words that were about to come out of her mouth.

“I wonder what she’s doing now.”

“I know, right?”

Huh?

“I wonder where she is. I would like to see her again.”

My future self continued the conversation.

The topic of the conversation was terrible, but it felt like I had finally found the exit to a repeating nightmare.

Reporter Song asked with shining eyes,

“You must have been her fan.”

“She was good at acting. There was a movie where she appeared as a college student. I saw that three times in the theatres. I remember seeing it in the morning and immediately buying the ticket for the next screening and going back in.”

That was my memory.

A distant memory, back when I didn’t know what Son Chaeyoung did to Lee Songha.

Reporter Song continued to ask,

“Ms. Lee Songha became an actress after you left W&U, so the timing wasn’t good. However, I heard that Ms. Son Chaeyoung was a top star when you were still there. The manager of an actress you were interested in. I bet that position was enticing.”

“It was. Chief Jo Byunghwan was her manager at the time. I was so jealous of him.”

Jealous my ass. However, I remembered this as well.

When I first saw Chief Jo, I thought that he must have saved a country in his past life. That was before Son Chaeyoung told me to screw off when I tried to help her pick her next project.

My future self smiled bitterly.

“Though I wanted to, there was no opportunity to get close to her. Ms. Son Chaeyoung was a top star, and I had nothing to show for myself while I was at W&U. I never had the chance to properly talk with her.”

“Ah… You must really regret it.”

“Yes, I asked around once I established after leaving W&U, but I couldn’t find her. I eventually gave up.”

In this fixed future, did Son Chaeyoung already retire by the time my future self established himself? However, I couldn’t estimate when that was with this. I set this crumb of information to the side.

My future self spoke,

“She was an actress I really wanted to work with. It’s a shame. Truly.”

It was nonsense. I got goosebumps on my entire body. It made me recall the future where Son Chaeyoung called me her manager. It was a vision I wanted to rip from my memory.

Director Park, who had been listening to our conversation, asked,

“CEO Jung, do you not know anything about it? The reason why Son Chaeyoung retired.”

He flinched.

I definitely felt the corner of my lips flinch.

Did my future self know something about it?

I held my breath for his reply, but the words that came out were vague.

“I don’t know. What I know isn’t 100% certain either. It’s no different from a rumor.”

“Then, the rumor you know, is it among the reasons I mentioned before?”

“Hmm, is this off the record?”

“Of course, as a reporter, this is only to sate my curiosity.”

Director Park licked her black lips. Soon, my future self nodded.

It was? Amongst the ones Director Park mentioned? Marriage with a Chinese conglomerate, became pregnant, receiving mental treatment, or in plays overseas? One of these might not be just a rumor but could be close to the true reason?

Director Park said with a meaningful expression,

“Now that I think about it, I heard Son Chaeyoung wasn’t easy to work with. Apparently, she was particularly hard to control, even amongst celebrities. There are rumors that her personality played a role in her early retirement.”

“Although I didn’t experience it personally, I heard that she wasn’t easy to deal with.”

Easy to deal with? Why couldn’t you just say that she was the crazy bitch of the area?

My future self slackly propped his chin up. His finger tapped his jaw.

“I thought this for a long time. Perhaps she might have not left the entertainment world if I was her manager. Maybe her life would have changed a little as well.”

He said with regret.

My future self continued with a gentle but clear voice,

“People can always change depending on their environment.”

Hmm, I don’t know about that.

There was a time when I did think this…

Before the traitor, Choi Gunyoung, stuck a nail in my heart.

The moment I snorted inwardly, my future self calmly added,

“Like I did.”

I quickly strengthened my knees. If I didn’t, I might have fallen over in an unsightly fashion. My limbs ached like they were cramping. The Son Chaeyoung I know, Choi Gunyoung, and my future self. They mixed into a sludge in my mind.

Damn it.

I turned around again. Then I walked over to the sofa.

“Wh-what are you doing? I thought you were leaving?”

“Give me a second.”

I didn’t care if Son Chaeyoung was taken aback or not, I sat in the empty spot and slowly organized my thoughts.

First, the future vision.

This was already the third time it repeated the conversation about Son Chaeyoung.

Thinking back at the conversation, one thing was clear. My future self had some regret towards Son Chaeyoung. Whether that was as a CEO to a great actress or if it had something to do with her retirement, I didn’t know.

Was that why I was repeatedly seeing the future about Son Chaeyoung?

Because I, the present self, was ignoring the thing my future self regretted? Because he wanted me to change Son Chaeyoung’s future no matter what? If I kept ignoring this, would I repeatedly see this vision?

I raised my head while rubbing my temples.

Son Chaeyoung looked at me with an unpleasant gaze. When our eyes met, I unknowingly groaned. Son Chaeyouhng’s expression became even weirder.

“What? Why are you acting like this all of a sudden? Do you want me to call 119^{1}?”

“What 119? Just give me a second.”

I said in loud voice before getting lost in my thoughts again.

While working with Choi Gunyoung, he nailed a thought in my heart. When he joyfully explained his plan to screw me over, that thought dug even deeper.

No matter how one’s environment changed. No matter how the present changed.

Those who were going to betray me would inevitably betray me.

People didn’t change.

I thought the same thing when seeing Son Chaeyoung. Since she entered this industry as a child actress, she must have lived a far from normal life, so her environment made her like that? Perhaps. However, it wasn’t like all child actors turned out like her.

So I thought Son Chaeyoung was someone like that from the beginning.

That was why I didn’t want to involve myself with her more.

However, if that’s true, then what about me?

What about me, who said that Choi Gunyoung and the Team 2 Leader were my team members in the future and thought that threatening people was easier than persuading them? I told myself to stay alert so that I didn’t become a bad person after seeing that future.

If people couldn’t change, then neither could I.

On the other hand, if I could change, then other people, even Son Chaeyoung, could chang…

“Hey.”

Son Chaeyoung suddenly spoke.

“Are you acting like this because I said that to Lee Songha? Because I shouted? Moaned? Causing a stir over a word. I told you that I did it because I was curious if your nephews and nieces did something like that.”

I let out a stuffy sigh. I wiped away my mess of a mind and replied,

“My nephews and nieces don’t do that. They’re old enough to know that they’ll be scolded.”

“Then why don’t you scold me?”

Son Chaeyoung snorted and crossed her legs. She even crossed her arms this time.

As though daring me to try.

Looking at her, I took my phone out again.

“What you said that rainy day in my car.”

“What about it? You didn’t even listen when I went out of my way to tell you!”

“Why did you tell me not to tell CEO Baek Hansung?”

Son Chaeyoung stopped. She frowned.

I showed her my phone and looked through my contacts.

“I know CEO Baek’s phone number.”

“You!”

Her sofa scratched the floor. Son Chaeyoung shot up from her seat. Face red, she was clearly fuming. Even if I try to soften my heart, she makes me shake my head whenever she acts like that. How could she seem even more irredeemable the more I met her…

“That’s, I!”

“You?”

“Ah, this is pissing me off!”

Son Chaeyoung huffed as she kicked the floor.

What a temper.

“Didn’t you hear me? I won’t do another project! I don’t want to do another project in this company! Don’t you know that the Team 2 Leader suffered in a fight between me and the CEO? I finally got him out…!”

Got him out?

^{1} Emergency telephone number in Korea.