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“Can I address the daughter directly?” I ask.
Woogi’s eyes widen behind his glasses, but he nods. “Yes, of course.”
“Student,” I say, since I don’t know her name. “I understand that you want to be close to your favorite idols because they make you happy, but there are ways to support them without following them around. Ways like Rina-ssi suggested,” I add, and Rina smilesat me appreciatively. “But—and this is only my opinion—the best way to show love to others is to show love to yourself.” It’s something Jenny had said to me, back when we were students at SAA.You need to be strong for yourself first... before you can be strong and give happiness to others.“I think your favorite idols would be happiest knowing that it was through watching them go after their dreams that you went after your own.”
Woori nods with approval. “That was lovely, Sori-ssi.”
I feel a little silly giving advice to someone who isn’t that much younger than me, but also I’m not going to tell them to do their schoolwork. That would feel disingenuous.
After that, there’s a short music break, during which an assistant brings us each a glass of water.
“Am I doing all right?” I turn to Rina who asked the question. “I’ve never been on a radio program before,” she says, fidgeting with her bangs.
I consider her question, or at least the reason why she might have asked it. It would be easy to say yes and leave it at that, and yet...
“It’s natural to be nervous,” I say gently, “but you don’t have to rush to answer the questions. You can take your time and answer them with confidence.”
She blinks at me a few times, then a wobbly smile spreads across her face. “Yes, I’ll do that. Thank you!”
As my eyes leave her, I notice Secretary Park watching me through the window. I raise a brow, but she shakes her head—it’s nothing.
An hour isn’t very long, and soon we’re moving on to the last segment of the show.
“Today we’ll be playing...” Woori pauses for dramatic effect. “Drumroll, please.”
Woogi patters his fingers against his mic. “The Call the Most Famous Person in your Phone Game!”
“No!” Rina and Byeol squeal in mock-protest. I sigh inwardly. I’m not surprised the hosts—or the producer, for that matter—chose this game. It’s a way for the show to feature more celebrities than those invited and therefore gain more listeners. For the guests, it’s a chance to show off their celebrity friends. The more famous the friend, the more clout they’ll have, and if they have a close relationship, that’s even more impressive.
“We’ll have Rina-ssi go first,” Woogi says. “Rina-ssi, who’s the most famous person in your phone?”
“Maybe, Nini-san?” she says, referring to one of the Japanese members of a rookie idol group.
Nini answers on the second ring. “Rina-chan!” she shouts, earning laughter from the hosts.
Lee Byeol then calls the costar from her drama, who also happens to be an idol. Their conversation is polite and brief—clearly, they’re not close. But as he’s currently a trending actor, the number of online listeners increases, with the live chat—visible on a wall-mounted monitor—picking up with comments. I watch as Woori and Woogi exchange glances with their producer.
“Now it’s your turn, Sori-ssi,” Woogi says.
“As you know,” I begin, speaking slowly for dramatic effect,“I’m from Joah Entertainment...” I might not aspire to be an actress, but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate drama.
“The home of XOXO!” Woori exclaims. “Do you happen to have Bae Jaewoo’s number?”
Woori’s playing right into my hands.
“I do,” I say, then clarify so as not to spread any false rumors. “He’s a reliable seonbae to everyone in the company.”
At this information, everyone in the studio sighs, and I smile, pleased with my choice. I’d known from the start that I would call Jaewoo. Not just because he’s popular, but because he’ll know all the right things to say. He’s my safest option.
“Should I call him?” I tease. I hand over my phone with Jaewoo’s contact pulled up. His number is plugged in, and it starts to ring.
It rings.
And rings and rings. Then cuts off with, “This person is unable to accept the call...”
There’s a short beat of silence in which Rina offers me a pitying glance. I’m the only guest whose celebrity friend didn’t pick up their call.
“Oh, well, itislater in the day,” Woori says, consolingly, “and didn’t they just return from Paris?”
