episode_0126

It was a weekday morning not long after attending a movie preview.

“Mom, um… there’s a academy I want to attend.”

During breakfast, Davin cautiously spoke up.

An academy…

Our kids don’t attend separate academies. I always feel a mix of pride and guilt when I see them bringing home average grades without attending the usual cram schools or language academies. They always refuse to go to academies as if it would cause a riot if I forced them. Maybe it’s because of our financial situation… Honestly, sending a couple of kids to academies wouldn’t break the bank. It might be a bit tight, but it’s doable.

From the start, Dayoung…

“It’s okay. I’m already earning as much as the average office worker, so if I want to attend, I can just pay for it myself.”

She drew the line when it came to expenses from the household.

“I don’t… I concentrate better when I study alone. I stopped going to academies because the teaching style didn’t suit me.”

When I asked Dayoung, she said she’s the type who performs better when studying alone. It seems like she developed a bias against academies because of her previous experience.

But now, Davin brought up the topic of attending an academy. What could be going on?

“What academy do you want to attend? Is there something you want to learn?”

I asked with the certainty that it wouldn’t be a typical academic subject.

“It’s a bit unusual. It’s called the Broadcasting Writer Academy. Have you heard of it?”

“Huh? Why there? Ah, have you finally made up your mind?”

Dayoung looked puzzled for a moment, then gave Davin a warm smile. It seems like they have their own story that I’m not aware of.

So, I asked Dayoung what the story was about.

It turns out that Davin, who had been contemplating his future career, had been expanding his thoughts from what he likes. The first thing that came to mind was doing something related to movies.

Davin, who currently runs a movie club and has a special interest in movies enough to discuss reviews with friends and family, thinking about pursuing a career in the film industry wasn’t that strange. It was more of a natural train of thought.

“Hmm, I haven’t heard of it before. I think I’ve vaguely heard of a similar place. So, is Davin dreaming of becoming a film screenwriter?”

Well, I do have a friend who is an actual film screenwriter, Lee Young-woo, so maybe I could ask him for some career advice for Davin.

“I want to be a director, although I’m also a screenwriter.”

A director… Someone’s face quickly flashed through my mind. Even a business card roughly tucked away in a bag corner.

“Oh, that’s great. You already have something you want to do. So, have you been looking into how to become a director on your own?”

Davin nodded quietly at my question.

“Yeah, I have.”

“Really?”

Davin brightened up at my positive response.

“Since you know a screenwriter, I’ll ask them and if it’s a good place, I’ll enroll right away. How about that?”

“Oh, the person you meet every Saturday…”

I could tell she wanted to ask me about it as well. I realized I should make time to meet with them soon.

Later, during my break at work, I called Lee Young-woo to ask about the academy.

Hmm, not bad. It’s like building a foundation, and it’s good to start building connections. Well, everyone must be aspiring actors, but the people you become close with at that time will last a long time even after entering the industry. Oh… Dabin will be coming soon, right? Anyway, let’s reserve a spot with Adnim. I feel like I have a lot of advice to give.

After ending the short call and receiving a positive response from author Lee Young-woo, she mentally confirmed sending Dabin to the academy and checked the website.

The website provided intuitive information about the academy’s location, alumni, and educational curriculum.

“Hmm… well done.”

Seeing such systematic management on the website gave her confidence that the internal system would be well-organized.

With that positive mindset, she continued to browse.

“What, what?”

I couldn’t help but look. The forbidden thing.

“The 3-month tuition fee is 1.6 million won? And it has to be paid in full?

The information that the tuition fee was for 3 months, to be paid all at once, was clearly stated. It wasn’t hard to understand, considering that the curriculum itself was for 3 months. No wonder. If it had been a more common academy fee of around 300,000 won per month, Dabin wouldn’t have hesitated to mention it so much.

This… is going to cost a lot of money. Where am I going to get the money? Do I need to get a part-time job? Should I have just accepted Director Kim Sion’s offer? Arrogant thoughts like that filled my mind.

**

During the morning working hours, as usual, I was focused on my work, tasting the flavor of Mara Rose Pasta by changing the seasoning little by little.

-Bang!

The door to the development room opened with a loud noise.

Naturally, everyone in the development room turned their attention to the door. And there was a person entering right away.

“Uh, Jung Gwa! No, Director Jung! Is Director Jung Doyeon here?”

With a bulky figure and a stern impression, it was the silhouette that had now become a trademark.

Manager Yook Jung-hyuk. You again?

I didn’t even bother to look at him anymore and just turned my head back to focus on my work. Kim Tae-hyun, who was watching from the side, raised his hand to indicate my presence, but Assistant Manager Kwon Sung-yeol quickly grabbed his hand and stepped forward.

“Manager Yook. I’m sorry, but Director Jung is currently busy with important work and can’t be disturbed…”

“Oh, I came here for work too. Do you think I came here during work hours just to see Director Jung’s face?!”

He scolded with a serious expression, but everyone in the development room looked at him coldly. It was understandable, as they had all seen how he treated me in restaurants or cafes when we ran into each other, so there was not even a hint of weight in his words.

He seemed to notice the atmosphere and cleared his throat a few times, trying to break the tense mood.

Some might think he’s a boss who doesn’t care about the atmosphere.

But everyone is completely mistaken. In simple terms, Manager Yook is quick-witted. Very much so. After all, in sales, you have to be quick-witted, and you naturally become more so as you go along. Of course. Dealing with people is part of the job. And if you’re the highest-ranking officer in the department below the director, you could say that if you don’t have a quick wit, you’re as good as dead.

So, every time he acts as if he doesn’t care, it’s not that he doesn’t have a sense of atmosphere, but rather that he has thick skin. In other words, you could say that he maintains his character because unless it’s really serious for him, he’s not going to take it seriously.

Well… honestly, he’s good at his job and has the ability. What’s with that perverted old man character… On the other hand, it’s better to have someone who is so dedicated to their desires rather than someone who is insincere.

Anyway, it was the first time I had ever rushed into the development room like that, so I was a little confused. And his face looked quite urgent, so that didn’t help either.

In the end, I tried to stay calm like a seasoned sergeant, but it seemed impossible, so I let out a deep sigh and stood up.

“Yes, Captain Yook. What’s the matter?”

As I volunteered to step into his view, he approached me briskly and stopped in front of me, raising both hands up to his chest.

Seeing his gesture, I immediately covered my chest with both hands and turned my body, while Kim Tae-hyun, who was next to me, blocked the view and started glaring at Captain Yook.

“If you come any closer, I’ll really sue you for sexual harassment.”

As I spoke in a cold tone, Captain Yook seemed quite flustered, hesitating with his raised hands for a moment before quietly lowering them and then suddenly getting angry.

“You guys! How do you usually see me!”

Well… a perverted bald guy who’s incredibly good at tightrope walking… that’s too much of an insult, so I decided to just let it go.

“It was a joke. Yes.”

A voice that seemed completely serious to anyone. It was as dry as the late autumn wind.

“Ah, anyway. Jung, you ignorant fool! What have you done?”

“Me?”

“Stop pretending you don’t know. You were very cunning. Anyway, that’s not important. Let’s go to the conference room with me.”

“Huh?”

The conference room, in simple terms, refers to the largest meeting room in our company. In other words…

“Why do I have to go to the executive meeting?!”

It’s mainly used for executive meetings.

What’s going on? Did I make a big mistake that I don’t know about? Just became a team leader two weeks ago.

At a moment when I needed money, could this be the crisis of being laid off that I was fearing?