Big Life

“You received the lyrics, right?” asked Han Yu-Na's manager.

Han Yu-Na was also reading the lyrics off her phone, and she answered with a smile, “Yes, I’m reading it now, trying to get the feel of it.”

“Do you think it’s good?”

“I love it.”

“You’re not saying that just because Mr. Jae-Gun wrote it?” Her manager joked, but it made Han Yu-Na blush bright red.

“I really like it a lot.”

“Alright, alright. Look at you turning all serious.”

“Oppa, you've read it too, right? The emotions of the city dwellers are well expressed; the words aren't that difficult, and there are no parts where pronunciation would become ambiguous when sung. It’ll become an earworm.”

“Yeah, I’m actually quite impressed as well.” Her manager turned the steering wheel as the traffic lights turned and said, “He's a famous writer; he doesn’t have much experience in lyric writing. Plus, this is a song for idols to sing, so I was quite worried. But it seems like my worries were completely unfounded.”

“Now, the last thing we have to worry about is the song title.”

“That’s right. He did such a great job with the song lyrics, but he’s lacking so much confidence in coming up with a good song title...”

They soon arrived at the recording studio. Han Yu-Na and her manager alighted, but they stopped midway to their destination as an unexpected visitor appeared in their path.

“...Hello, Yu-Na unni.” Chae Bo-Ra greeted, but she couldn't make eye contact with Han Yu-Na. The cold winter made her sound like a dying person, and she was shivering out in the cold.

“Why are you here?” Han Yu-Na’s manager asked, looking serious. He had taken care of Chae Bo-Ra before he was reassigned to look after HyperSoda. He had experienced all the stress one could experience in one's entire life, and it was all thanks to Chae Bo-Ra.

Chae Bo-Ra was the reason he had white hair in his nose as well.

“You don’t look like you’ve got any business at this studio. Why don’t you turn back if you’re here to see Yu-Na? We’re very busy today.”

“Just for a bit...”

“We can’t spare you even a bit of time.”

“Yu-Na unni, just ten minutes, please? Not even five minutes?” Chae Bo-Ra looked directly at Han Yu-Na instead of her manager, pleading. She looked like she was begging Han Yu-Na with her intertwined fingers.

Han Yu-Na sighed and nodded. They had already met out here, so it was best to listen to her and close the chapter once and for all.

“Ten minutes is enough, right?”

“Thank you, unni.” Chae Bo-Ra’s face brightened instantly.

Speechless, Han Yu-Na’s manager turned to her and said, “Yu-Na, let’s just go in.”

“Just give me ten minutes, oppa. I’ll have a quick talk with her and head in afterward.”

“Thank you.” Her manager headed in without much choice, but he did not forget to glare at Chae Bo-Ra when he walked past her.

“You’ve grown a lot.” Chae Bo-Ra muttered with disdain as soon as her manager was out of earshot. “You couldn’t even look me in the eye before.”

“What do you want to say?” Han Yu-Na asked irritably. As expected, Han Yu-Na hadn’t changed one bit. She found herself pathetic, as she had gotten soft upon seeing Chae Bo-Ra’s haggard appearance.

“Get to the point quickly. I really can’t talk for over ten minutes.”

“Unni...” Chae Bo-Ra smacked her lips as she approached Han Yu-Na. “I know that I’ve been mean to you before, but that’s because I’m very sensitive. So that’s why I unintentionally—”

“Bo-Ra.” Han Yu-Na cut her off with a deep frown. “I told you that I’m running out of time. Stop with the past and get straight to the point.”

“A-alright… Okay, I’ll… I’ll get to the point.” Chae Bo-Ra dropped her head. Twiddling her fingers for a few moments, she knelt on the ground and said, “Please lend me some money, unni…”

Chae Bo-Ra shut her eyes tightly. She threw away her pride and everything else to say it. She had never imagined just one month ago that the day would come when she would have to plead with Han Yu-Na like this.

“I need quite a lot of money, and I don’t have it. You're the last person I turned to for money. Just treat it as if you’re saving someone’s life; please help me.”

“…How much do you need?” Han Yu-Na asked immediately. Chae Bo-Ra had helped her, so Han Yu-Na thought that she should help her with that gratitude in mind.

“You helped me back then, so I'm going to help you. How much do you need?”

“Just three pieces...”

“Three pieces? Thirty million won?”

“No… three hundred million.” Chae Bo-Ra looked up with an awkward smile.

Han Yu-Na was shocked. “Oh my gosh, Bo-Ra. What makes you think I would have that much money?”

“But you’re so popular.”

“How could you say that when you’re a celebrity yourself? Have I taken any commercials? Have I gone to any events? My activities are just starting to pick up, so how would I be able to earn that money?”

“Can’t you ask the company to give you an advance?”

Han Yu-Na couldn’t even let out a scoff at this point. Chae Bo-Ra was truly skillful at being shameless.

“Yeah, I can’t do that,” Han Yu-Na replied firmly. “I’m sorry, Bo-Ra. I think I can help you with a tenth of that amount you requested, but I can’t do any more than that.”

“Unni, I’m really cornered.” Chae Bo-Ra seemed to be on the verge of tears. “You saw the news, right? I have to pay the settlement fee with Yoon Mi-Ji, and everyone has been poking at me, too. I was chased out of the apartment, and do you know where I’m living at right now? At the villa. I don't even live like a human anymore.”

“What’s wrong with staying at a villa?”

“You should come see it for yourself! It’s just a 20-pyeong place with one or two rooms, it couldn’t even fit all of my things! I have to squeeze between the boxes to move around, and I cry every night while sleeping.

"Unni, I’m having a hard time, really…!” Chae Bo-Ra buried her face in her hands, sniffling loudly. Her sadness did not gain Han Yu-Na’s empathy, as HyperSoda’s current dorm wasn't even 20-pyeong in size.

“Anyway, I really don’t have that huge amount of money.”

“Unni, please...”

“It’s no use even if you beg me. I can’t borrow money that I don’t have, can I? Leave me a message if you need thirty million won; you don’t have to call me,” Han Yu-Na said and turned around.

Chae Bo-Ra chased after her in a hurry with a tear-stained face. “Unni, please don’t do this. Han Yu-Na unni. Where are you going? Please stay with me a little longer, please?”

“I have nothing more to say to you. I’m already doing the best I can for you.” Han Yu-Na pushed the doors to the studio hard.

Chae Bo-Ra followed her past the doors and pleaded with Han Yu-Na, but Han Yu-Na ignored her. Han Yu-Na even pressed the elevator button calmly. Just before the elevator doors opened, Chae Bo-Ra yelled bitterly, “If you keep doing this to me, I’m really going to reveal it!”

Han Yu-Na flinched momentarily, but that was all. She then smirked and nodded; she was no longer afraid of Chae Bo-Ra’s threats.

“I was waiting for your despicable character to appear. Do whatever you want.” She wasn’t ashamed of the memories of her relationship with Seong-Je during their trainee days. She could just stand out confidently and face it head-on. This was something that Han Yu-Na had learned from Ha Jae-Gun.

“U-unni…!” Chae Bo-Ra was taken aback by Han Yu-Na's calm reaction and exclaimed. “U-unni! I made a mistake! I was so emotional that I blurted out something I didn’t mean! Please believe me! That wasn’t my intention!”

“I see. Sure, I believe you.” Han Yu-Na smiled and stepped into the elevator.

Chae Bo-Ra kept on going with her soulless excuses while following behind Han Yu-Na, but Han Yu-Na ignored all of it blatantly. The elevator doors soon closed on Chae Bo-Ra, and Han Yu-Na finally felt liberated.

“Oh? Chae-Rin unni.” The elevator arrived on the third floor, and its doors opened to Lee Chae-Rin standing outside.

“Why are you out here?”

“I was worried since you were taking quite a while. Where is Bo-Ra?”

“I just finished speaking to her.”

“I see… Alright, let’s go back.” Lee Chae-Rin held Han Yu-Na’s hand.

Han Yu-Na asked, “You’re not going to ask what I talked with her about?”

“I have to respect your privacy. If it were something you wanted to share, I wouldn’t have to ask you; you’d share it on your own accord.”

Hyun Sung-Beom was in the office as they stepped into the office. He was organizing the questions for the interview on his laptop. He paused and stood up to greet Han Yu-Na. “Come in, Ms. Yu-Na. Has Ms. Bo-Ra left?”

“Reporter Hyun is asking the same question.”

“I’m stuck here after hearing that Chae Bo-Ra came here. I was worried about seeing her on the streets. I’m not sure what will happen to me.”

“But Reporter Hyun, are you really fine? Did nothing happen to you at the office?” Lee Chae-Rin asked with a face full of worry.

Hyun Sung-Beom was prepared to get fired following the exposé of Chae Bo-Ra’s sponsor incident. It had been a while since then, but he was still working as usual.

“I’m fine. My post in the office is still there, and I’m still getting paid my usual salary, so stop worrying about me.” Hyun Sung-Beom rubbed his prickly chin and mumbled, “Seems like…the rumor turned fact was the turning point.”

“Rumor turned fact? What do you mean by that?”

***

“Yes, sir. You’ve arrived at Daelim Shopping Centre? Yes, please purchase it as per what I’ve said before. No, I’m not putting it at home but in the office lounge. I’ve told them already, so you can just take it as it is. Yes, please.”

Nam Gyu-Ho hung up the call and let out another sigh. He was now in the taxi back home after spending the night at Ha Jae-Gun’s house. He had just instructed his subordinate to purchase two commercial game machines.

Nam Gyu-Ho’s teeth chattered as the strong desire to win surged in his heart. Ha Jae-Gun had ruthlessly tramped on him while they played games in his basement lounge. They played over ten rounds, but Nam Gyu-Ho didn't even win once.

The shy expression Ha Jae-Gun had while saying that was still vivid in Nam Gyu-Ho’s mind. Nam Gyu-Ho nodded as if Ha Jae-Gun was with him.

“Please drop me here. You can keep the change.”

“Thank you and goodbye.” The driver could not take his eyes off the magnificent house before them. Nam Gyu-Ho pressed the doorbell and the door soon opened. He crossed the garden and saw Department Head Bae when he stepped into the house.

“You’re here, Director.”

“Hello. Why are you here…?”

Nam Gyu-Ho kept his mouth shut and took off his coat. He then walked into the living room.

“He’s in the study, right?”

“Yes, he has been waiting for your arrival.”

“Okay, I’ll be going in.” Nam Gyu-Ho rapped on the door to the study. He opened the door gently as soon as he heard his father’s dry voice. “I’m here, Father.”

“I heard you were absent from work?”

“Yes, I had something on…”

“I had too much to drink because of the many thoughts in my mind,” Nam Gyu-Ho replied briefly, loosening his necktie. He didn’t need to bring up that he had met Ha Jae-Gun.

“I heard from Department Head Bae that you’ve been waiting for me. Is there something you want to say to me?”

“Gyu-Ho.” Nam Gyu-Baek slowly stood up from his chair, then headed to the window and looked out into the garden. “Your mother found it tough to deal with you up until you went to middle school.”

“…”

“She gave birth to you, yes, but she was born into an ordinary family. She had to marry into this family, and she had to endure the hardships that had come with it.”

Nam Gyu-Ho could already guess why his father was bringing this up. He wanted to ask if he could withstand such things in life in the future. And it didn’t take long for Nam Gyu-Ho to answer. “I will not do that.”

“Really...”

“Father, I really love—” Nam Gyu-Ho could not finish his sentence, as he could see Nam Gyu-Baek turning around with a bitter smile while shaking his head.

“Go and have a rest.”

Nam Gyu-Ho immediately understood his father. His father needed more time to think.

“Please rest early as well, Father.” Nam Gyu-Ho was thankful to his father for giving them the opportunity to talk, but his heart also throbbed with pain. He turned around to hide his watery eyes.

***

The female reporter standing by the camera was doing a live broadcast of the event venue. As she had said, the line of readers who came to get Ha Jae-Gun’s autograph was so long that it seemed endless.

The camera began moving forward, following the reporter closely. The camera shook with the hurried footsteps, and soon, several men in suits were captured on screen.

“Sir, over here. it’s frustrating because of the huge crowd, right?”

“No, how can I feel that way when I’m here to look around and observe the daily life of our residents? I can’t have those thoughts or even say them,” the head of the district office said in an unusually loud voice. He had intended for the people around him to hear it. However, no one even bothered to look in his way.

The head of the district office held his thoughts inside, unlike how he was maintaining his dignity on the outside. He had arrived at the venue after hearing that Ha Jae-Gun was holding an autograph event in the local district.

“Shall we go over and say hi then?” The man looked back at his entourage. There was no way they did not understand his signal as all of them nodded profusely.

Ha Jae-Gun looked at him, but his hands did not stop.

“Hello, I am Yang Beom-Shik. I heard that you’ve opened an autograph event in our district and thought of dropping by to say hi.”

“I see, thank you.” Ha Jae-Gun’s reply sounded soulless. He wasn’t feeling thankful at all.

Just then…

“Please join the line, sir.”

“…Pardon?” Yang Beom-Shik’s face stiffened instantly.

Ha Jae-Gun pointed at the long line of readers with a calm expression.

“If you’d like an autograph, please stand in line.”

The reporters around them pressed their camera shutters rapidly; even the reporter following Yang Beom-Shik had taken a few photos as well, and they captured Yang Beom-Shik’s embarrassed face.