Chapter 13: Coffee, Tour, Handover

“Let’s go.”

Eun-gyeol placed his half-finished coffee onto the tray without a second thought.

Han-geon, having nearly emptied his own cup, set it on the tray as well and placed everything on the pickup counter.

Once they stepped out of the café, Eun-gyeol gave a fresh, easy smile—as if the subtle irritation from moments ago had never existed.

“Want me to show you the rest of the company?”

“Yeah.

I’d appreciate that.”

Until the team manager contacted them, Eun-gyeol suggested they take a light walk around the building, and Han-geon followed him back into the elevator.

This time, Eun-gyeol pressed the button for the 11th floor instead of the 12th where they had come from.

“This is the main conference room.

Over here is the training room.”

“Mm-hmm.”

“At the far end there’s the break room and the restrooms.

And this side is…”

Eun-gyeol pointed toward the left hallway, then turned around.

Leading Han-geon all the way to the opposite end of the corridor, he stopped in front of a door and gave a light gesture with his eyes.

“This is my room.”

When he opened the door, a neatly arranged space came into view.

It wasn’t large, but it was tidy and cozy.

A desk, a sofa, and a tea table made the room feel less like an office and more like a private rest area.

The natural light pouring in through a wide window was pleasant.

Stepping inside, Han-geon let out a small exclamation.

“Nice view.

But… do all actors get their own rooms?”

“Not really.”

Eun-gyeol walked over to the window and lowered the blinds slightly as he spoke in his usual soft tone.

“Anyway, when I’m on set, I don’t come to the company for a while.

So I only use this room occasionally—like now, when I’m in between projects.”

“I see.”

“Make yourself comfortable.

Sit there.”

Following his suggestion, Han-geon settled onto the empty sofa and found himself impressed all over again.

Even though an actor would spend far more time outside than at the office, the company had prepared a private rest space just for Eun-gyeol.

Top stars really were different.

At that moment, a vibration sounded.

Eun-gyeol pulled his phone from his pocket and answered.

“Yes.

My room.

Okay.”

Ending the call with little enthusiasm, he tossed his phone onto the table without care.

“The team manager’s coming.

To hand things over to you.”

“Oh—okay.”

Han-geon suddenly squeezed his fist without realizing it and straightened his posture.

The moment he sat up, the door swung open.

The manager entered, arms full of documents.

Han-geon jumped to his feet and hurried over, receiving the stack of materials from him in one smooth motion.

“What’s this, bursting in the second you call? Trying to give people a heart attack? Did you make the call right outside the door?”

Eun-gyeol frowned and made a snide remark.

The manager, who had been smiling in satisfaction at Han-geon’s polite greeting, turned to Eun-gyeol with a disapproving expression.

“There you go again.

I figured you’d be here, so I called while walking over.

Just to confirm.”

“…Is that how you talk to your manager?”

Han-geon quietly whispered a soft scolding, and Eun-gyeol merely twitched an eyebrow in response, offering no retort.

But the manager looked utterly shocked by the sight, his mouth dropping open.

“Oh my, well I’ll be.

That razor-sharp mouth—no, razor-sharp tongue—can actually stay shut?

Looks like you finally met your match.”

“Hurry up and hand things over.

I’m going out for lunch with Han-geon.”

Eun-gyeol grumbled irritably, and the manager clicked his tongue, muttering, “Tsk, tsk… unbelievable…”
But soon he turned his attention back to Han-geon, spreading out the documents with a friendly smile.

“Alright, Mr. Han-geon.

This is Eun-gyeol’s schedule sheet.

It comes out once a week, every Monday.

If he’s in Seoul, come to the company to pick it up and check in.

If he’s too busy or out of town, I’ll email it to you.

If you have questions, just report and call.”

“Yes, understood.”

“As you’d expect, schedule management is the most important thing.

So take special care with this.

It’s best to memorize it if you can.

There’s no bigger disaster than being late for filming.”

“Yes, I’ll make sure to memorize it.”

Hearing Han-geon’s steady and sincere reply, the manager’s smile deepened.

“These are the aesthetic clinic and salon we use regularly.

And here are the PT contacts.

Until filming begins, no matter how busy things get, he needs at least two sessions of PT and two aesthetic treatments a week.

We’ll handle scheduling those, so you only need to make sure they happen.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“And this… is my number and the CEO’s.

This one’s the stylist’s.

Once filming starts, the three of you—you, the stylist, and Eun-gyeol—will be moving as one team.

You’ll probably meet on set in a few days.”

Han-geon diligently organized the documents and entered the phone numbers written on the business cards into his phone.

He also wrote key points into the small notebook he had prepared.

“If you look at the schedule, you’ll see that Eun-gyeol is starting a new project.

You know that since you’re friends, right? Until now he’s been resting, only doing ads and photo shoots.”

“Yes, I know.”

“There’s the first script reading in three days.

Filming starts three weeks after that.

It’s an out-of-town shoot, so he’ll be staying there on site.

Keep that in mind.

Please take good care of his condition.”

“Yes.

I’ll do my best.”

Even as he answered crisply, Han-geon felt relief inside.

Once filming started, just as the manager said, Eun-gyeol would truly be busy.

He probably wouldn’t have many chances to drop by Han-geon’s place anymore.

Realizing that made Han-geon feel, even if only for a moment, that taking the manager job had been a good decision—though the thought immediately brought a pang that trailed close behind.

“As for the bodyguard duties, well, you’re a veteran, so I don’t need to go over that, right? It’s really convenient for us that you’re handling both manager and bodyguard.”

“I’m not exactly a veteran, but… thank you.”

“Good, good.

Please take good care of him.

Really.

And please stay with us for a long time.”

“Haha… I’ll do my best.”

The manager smiled happily over and over, then suddenly went “Ah!” and pulled a key from his pocket.

“Oh right, this is the company car key.

You drive decently, right?

Gentle on the wheel?”

“Yes, I’m not bad.”

“He drives well.”

Eun-gyeol, who had been quietly listening from the side, suddenly cut in.

The manager looked at Han-geon as if he’d just discovered a bar of gold, smiling in deep satisfaction.

“Yeah, yeah.

Then that’s perfect.

I think that’s everything.”

“Can we go now?”

Looking bored, Eun-gyeol casually slipped his hand into the inner side of Han-geon’s jacket near his ribs and then pulled it back out as a prank.

He just couldn’t sit still.

Han-geon pulled away his childish friend’s hand and whispered a warning—”stay still for a second, will you?”

“Last thing.

Hold on.

There’s one final handover note between us managers.”

“What is it?”

“Well…”

The manager’s lips moved slightly before he took a quick look at Eun-gyeol.

At the same time, Eun-gyeol’s brows knit sharply.

“What are you trying to say in front of him?”

“It’s nothing big.

Why don’t you go to the restroom for a moment so I can finish the handover with Han-geon?”

“No.”

“God, that stubborn kid… Han-geon, then let’s talk separately later.”

“Ah, yes… I understand.”

It was a slightly puzzling end.

What exactly had he wanted to say that required Eun-gyeol to be out of earshot? But while Han-geon mulled over the question alone, the manager stood up with an excited expression—relieved, beyond relieved, like someone who had finally yanked out a troublesome tooth.

“Then once again, I’m counting on you, Han-geon.

Ah!

And we need to have a company dinner too.

A welcome dinner!

Let’s see… what about the day after tomorrow?

It might be better to have it before the script reading.”

“Ah… yes.

That works for me.”

“Great, then let’s set it for the day after tomorrow.

I’ll let you know the time later.

Enjoy lunch with Eun-gyeol!”

“Yes!

See you tomorrow.”

Han-geon bowed deeply toward the manager’s retreating figure as he waved and left the room.

Now the handover was truly complete.

He felt relieved, of course, but unlike earlier—when excitement and disbelief had filled him—there was now a heavy sense of responsibility settling in.

Still, he felt good.

He could do this well.

As the manager had advised, he should go home and memorize this week’s schedule.

It might also be smart to drive around the aesthetic clinic and the PT center on his own beforehand, while Eun-gyeol wasn’t with him.

Since the official schedule started three days later, he planned to familiarize himself thoroughly with everything before then.

Watching Han-geon scan the newly handed-over materials with such focused eyes, Eun-gyeol let out a brief laugh.

He came over lightly and slung an arm over Han-geon’s shoulder in a friendly gesture.

“Please take good care of me from now on, Manager.”

“…Yeah.

Same to you.”

The familiar scent made the tips of Han-geon’s ears heat up helplessly.

He wasn’t exactly short himself, but seeing how naturally Eun-gyeol draped an arm over his shoulder made him realize again how tall he’d gotten.

Had he grown even more? He remembered being overtaken back in high school at least.

With a smiling gaze, Eun-gyeol scrunched his nose playfully.

“I’m hungry.

Let’s go get lunch.”

“Yeah.

Lunch is on me, to celebrate my new job.”

Trying hard to hide the pounding in his chest, Han-geon answered in a deliberately blunt tone, but all he got in return was a snort of disbelief and, “Since when do actors get treated to meals by their managers?”

Still, with his arm naturally draped over Han-geon’s shoulders as they walked out of the room, a pleased smile lingered on Eun-gyeol’s face.