| Episode 156. Job Analysis of Another Department (2)
The drama “In My Office” was a typical romance set at an asset management company.
It was a love story between a new team leader who had worked on Wall Street in the U.S. before joining a Korean company for some reason, and an assistant manager with an uncanny gift for finding funds that would turn a profit, moving back and forth between bearish and bullish candles… or so it was supposed to be.
‘Does this make any sense?’
This was bad. I was running into obstacles from the script-study stage, before I even went to the audition.
‘They keep mixing up securities firms and asset management companies. Is that okay?’
‘Can people who invest money really not look at financial soundness?’
Even though my college grades had been disastrous, weird parts stood out even from a quick skim.
In this day and age, when experts even upload drama review videos, how were they planning to deal with the fallout?
But there was an even bigger problem.
‘How do you fall in love with a team leader?’
I couldn’t understand the leads’ emotional arcs at all.
Sure, office romances existed. But was that supposed to be easy?
He spoke obnoxiously, had poor social skills, and lived drunk on his own greatness—a triple combo. I simply could not understand how the female lead had fallen for the male lead.
The one fortunate thing was that the character I’d be playing was Ordinary Office Worker 1, who neither fell in love with someone at the company nor possessed a genius ability. At least I wouldn’t have to run out of the audition room shouting, “I can’t act like this!”
The audition assignment was largely split into two parts: script acting and character analysis.
Since there weren’t many lines, I memorized the script quickly. I decided to use the remaining time for character analysis.
‘Name: Do Yeonghwan. Age: 28. Easygoing, but a scene-stealer-like character who suddenly pops up out of nowhere, says only what he needs to say, and disappears…’
I worked my pen hard and imagined what kind of person Do Yeonghwan might be.
A quiet employee a little younger than me, still holding the rank of staff member.
* * *
“I heard Iwol said he’d audition?”
Right after the meeting ended, Min Jugyeong used the remaining reserved time in the conference room to ask the CEO.
“That’s what he said. He accepted right there on the spot.”
“Even so, isn’t that pushing himself too hard?”
“The audition isn’t immediate.”
Then Yoon Hyeonju added,
“And for the time being, I think we’ll have to stop him from doing anything that uses too much stamina. Everyone on the management team probably knows, but Iwol doesn’t put on the brakes.”
“That’s true…”
“We need to give him something to do so the kid won’t say he’s going to work. Iwol hasn’t been coming to the practice room lately, right?”
“Yes, I heard he’s only going to acting academy.”
“Good. Let’s use this chance to give him a break from dancing and company work. And tell Chanyeong to manage the kids’ sleep hours overall.”
The management team staff recorded Yoon Hyeonju’s instructions.
Watching them, Yoon Hyeonju thought of Jeong Seongbin, who had recently requested a meeting with the CEO.
After the major incident, UA had been forced to undergo many changes. It hadn’t been a smooth process, but delaying things was a luxury.
At times like this, Spark generally stepped back quietly and did their part.
They’re kids who don’t require much handling. Even Yoon Hyeonju herself had said that out of habit.
For Jeong Seongbin, the most polite one even within Spark, to request a meeting was no ordinary matter.
Though he had done a solo stage, Jeong Seongbin was the type to value the stability of those around him more than opportunities given to himself.
Without waiting, Yoon Hyeonju told them to send Jeong Seongbin up right away.
And not long after, she found herself sitting across from one of her company’s artists, whose atmosphere had subtly changed, drinking tea.
After they exchanged a few greetings, silence settled over the office.
He was probably here about improving their treatment.
Usually, Kim Iwol was the one who took the lead, but since he had ended up like that, Jeong Seongbin must have come instead.
Yoon Hyeonju had been planning to sit down with all of Spark over this matter at least once.
So she had an answer prepared to some extent…
“CEO.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“How can someone raise their self-esteem?”
Jeong Seongbin brought up a topic far outside Yoon Hyeonju’s expectations.
“Self-esteem?”
Yoon Hyeonju repeated the word. She had told the staff several times to instill confidence in them during training or evaluations, but she had never thought deeply about self-esteem.
Had it been a mistake to make him the leader when he had older members above him?
Or was he feeling responsible for the matter with Yu Hansu?
When a flustered Yoon Hyeonju asked what was going on, Jeong Seongbin pressed his lips together once, then with difficulty broached the subject.
Then another unexpected name popped out.
“It’s Iwol hyung. From our perspective, he’s an amazing and dependable member, but it seems like hyung doesn’t think of himself that way at all.”
“Iwol?”
The Kim Iwol that Yoon Hyeonju had seen was someone who always had confidence in the work he did.
Whenever he spoke, there was certainty in his voice, and he was mature enough not to be easily shaken by external factors.
But when she thought of the atrocities of Yu Hansu that Kim Iwol had apparently collected, it wasn’t as if she couldn’t understand what Jeong Seongbin was saying.
How many people could remain fine after suffering verbal abuse and violence for months on end? Especially when he didn’t even have a proper family he could confide in about such matters.
“Hyung takes really good care of us. Not only in terms of activities, but emotionally too—I always get the sense that he’s watching over us.”
Jeong Seongbin spoke calmly.
“So we want to help hyung just as much… but we don’t really know how. I guess to hyung, we still aren’t people he can lean on.”
“He’s the kind of kid who never says he’s having a hard time. It won’t be because he doesn’t trust you.”
There was no way Kim Iwol would lean on members younger than himself. Kim Iwol didn’t even tell company people much older than him that he was struggling.
“So I thought about something.”
Step by step, Jeong Seongbin laid out alternatives that showed how deeply he had considered the matter.
“I’m sure the company will work hard on it, but I hope hyung’s involvement in office work will decrease from now on.”
“Couldn’t we look for work that hyung can take an interest in, or work where he can show his abilities?”
“Hyung always says that once you’re out in society, there’s nothing to be praised for… but still, when hyung produces good results, I’d like there to be appropriate recognition. He seemed to really listen when experts praised him.”
There was no hesitation in Jeong Seongbin’s words. On the other hand, his two fists resting on his knees were trembling faintly.
It wasn’t a rational proposal like the ones Kim Iwol made. For a profit-driven organization like a company, it was something there was no easy reason or need to accept.
Even so, Jeong Seongbin was doing his best to speak. Cautiously, yet as clearly as possible.
“Is this the whole team’s opinion?”
When Yoon Hyeonju asked, Jeong Seongbin nodded vigorously.
“All right. Since this is the first opinion our leader has brought me, I’ll see to it that it can be reflected as soon as possible.”
“…Thank you!”
Jeong Seongbin’s eyes shone.
It was a gaze she had thought he had briefly lost during his long trainee period.
“How admirable.”
Yoon Hyeonju murmured as she looked at the office door Jeong Seongbin had left through.
Her heart swelled, just like when she had watched Jeong Seongbin’s “I. Am. The Head” stage.
After that meeting, Yoon Hyeonju began watching Kim Iwol more closely.
As for acting work, the company could have refused it on an organizational level. Even so, if Kim Iwol wanted it, she tried bringing in various jobs so he could at least experience them.
And Kim Iwol examined those carefully as well. It tugged at her heart to see him accept and inspect whatever work he was given, despite not being greedy.
“Because the kid is good at his job, everyone, myself included, only thought of giving him work.”
Reflecting and reflecting again, Yoon Hyeonju swallowed a sigh.
When Kim Iwol decided on the spot that he would audition, Yoon Hyeonju called in the Spark personnel of the department whose name had not yet been decided and gave them a stern warning.
“We don’t need any of that carrot-and-stick nonsense. Go with carrots no matter what. Got it?”
“We’ll turn the company building into a carrot field.”
How could their idol, who had nothing but things to be praised for, have low self-esteem?
Even if Kim Iwol ended up tasting failure at the audition, at least UA’s executives and staff would support Kim Iwol’s new challenge.
Yoon Hyeonju resolved as much. Then she looked at the still-incomplete organizational chart and diligently worked her pen.
* * *
The audition was held at a shared office with conference rooms.
“Iwol, don’t be nervous, and do well! You can do this! Got it?”
The manager’s encouragement was so passionate it felt burdensome.
Was this audition actually a really important job? If I fail here, does UA go under or something?
Just in case, it was a good thing I had come in a semi-formal suit. At this rate, even if I failed, they’d take into account that I had at least shown sincerity. Though in the first place, I’d worn the outfit that made me look the most like an office worker.
After dressing like a company employee for the first time in a while, everything was fine except for the fact that the suffocating feeling made me feel like I had to go to work immediately.
Thanks to only reading the script during breaks, I had even memorized everyone else’s lines by now. No matter how I thought about it, I had worked really hard. I was fully qualified to say I had lost but fought well.
As I entered the office while thinking useless thoughts, someone who seemed to be the writer gave me guidance on various minor details.
I was wetting my throat with the water I had brought when my turn soon came.
I knocked, and after permission to enter came, I opened the door and stepped inside to see three interviewers.
“Hello, I’m Iwol from Spark!”
“Yes, nice to meet you.”
The person sitting in the middle returned the greeting.
‘Sit only after they tell you to, keep your expression gentle and smiling…’
The interview manners I had memorized for my first interview came back to me. Even though they had become second nature now, I remembered every single word vividly.
And until not long ago, I had been sitting in that interviewer’s seat. Now, that felt like something from the distant past.
But my interview knowledge became completely useless three minutes after the interview began.
“If you were born in XX, how old does that make you?”
“I’m twenty-one!”
“Twenty-one? That’s really young. Wouldn’t it be hard to pull off an office worker?”
“Still, he’s tall, so he has the right vibe. Iwol, how tall are you?”
“I’m 183 centimeters.”
“183 centimeters? Without lifts?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
In a company interview, every one of these questions would be grounds for a report.
In this day and age, when blind interviews were on the rise, they were asking about age and height. I’d thought people being ground down was the same whether in the entertainment world or a company, but now I could feel the difference firsthand.
“His visuals are perfect, but he’s too young.”
“Come on, honestly, just looking at his visuals, he’s male lead level.”
“That’s only because there aren’t any handsome guys among actors in their twenties these days.”
The writer, director, and producer opened a heated discussion about the disappearance of handsome actors in their twenties, all while I was right there.
Even if I don’t have any ties to the acting world, isn’t this a bit too much like leaving a kite with its string cut loose?
Still, I kept smiling brightly until their conversation ended, and then everyone looked back at me as if realizing their mistake.
“You were told about the audition process, right? Script acting and character analysis.”
“Yes, I was told.”
“Then shall we hear the character analysis first? You can freely explain what kind of person you think the character Do Yeonghwan is.”
Here it came.
For some reason, it was time to show off the presentation skills that had improved even more after I became an idol.