The Sunbae Who Paves a Flower Path

He could’ve asked Grandma, Grandpa, or Sua about something like that.

...No. He had probably called Gowon because he knew there was little chance they would grant his request.

Gowon glanced through the small window in the practice-room door. The trainer was waiting for him with his arms crossed. Gowon grew impatient.

—Brother, if I get to eat it, I’ll keep the secret, and I’ll really, really listen to Grandma, Grandpa, and our sister....

“...All right. I’ll have it delivered to the house.”

—Really? You mean it? Yeah! Okay!

His younger brother ended the call in an excited voice as soon as he had gotten what he wanted.

“Ha....”

The unexpected call had delayed him.

Still, Gowon couldn’t bring himself to tell his brother not to call over unimportant things.

His younger sister, Sua, had been forced to grow up too early amid deprivation. Even with a raging fever, even when she was short on money for a school trip, she simply endured it alone and never asked for help. Gowon was afraid Suhyeon might become the same way....

After ending the call, Gowon checked his bank balance before opening the delivery app.

“.......”

He had heard somewhere that rich people spent all day counting numbers.

That wasn’t true.

Poor people were the ones who stared endlessly at their balances and did calculations. They always had to check how much they could spend and how much remained.

Most people never imagined Gowon’s circumstances were this difficult. They could probably tell he hadn’t grown up comfortably, but they likely assumed the prize money and his signing bonus from K-Dom had improved his situation.

But the considerable sum had been completely drained after he moved his family out of a place without even proper heating and into a home where the four of them could live decently.

He could simply stay in the accommodations provided by the company, but he couldn’t leave his family in an old house where something was always breaking.

Even if K-Dom, as a major agency, offered relatively generous profit settlements, there was no way Gowon had already recouped all the investment costs the moment his promotions began. His first settlement was still a long way off.

As a result, all he currently had was the small appearance allowance the company provided like pocket money. When he used part of it to order the pizza, the first digit of his balance changed immediately.

Before returning to the practice room, Gowon loosened his aching arms and legs. Then he went inside, repeatedly bowing his head as he apologized.

He remembered being advised not to bow so readily.

But Gowon had grown up watching Grandma and Grandpa bend their backs over and over to raise three grandchildren. This way of living was familiar to him.

His pride was already like a sheet of paper crumpled and flattened hundreds of times. One more crease would hardly show.

***

The sky had been overcast since the previous evening, and with terrible timing, it began sprinkling pale pellets that were neither quite snow nor rain.

“What the hell is this, snow or rain? And why is Wonjong taking so long?”

Once the wait passed five minutes, Gowon’s body, trapped inside his long padded coat, began to shiver. His packed promotional schedule and lack of sleep had made him more sensitive to the cold.

“Gowon, you’re cold, aren’t you? Do you want to wait inside the building?”

The manager overseeing his promotions, Division Five’s Chief Manager Park Jonghyeok, spoke to him with concern.

“No. I’m fine.”

“Fine, my ass. I should’ve told you to wait inside from the start.”

“You’re standing out here too, Chief Manager.”

“I’m excited because it’s been a while since I worked on location, so I’m fine, you punk. Young Ace and Edelweiss are both full of people who barely leave the house.”

As though trying to warm him even a little, Park Jonghyeok briskly rubbed both of Gowon’s shoulders. The gesture was rough but affectionate.

Chief Manager Park, currently the head manager of Division Five, had started as a road manager when Young Ace was first rising and worked his way up to his current position.

Although he now held the highest rank among the managers, he was personally assigned to Gowon, the youngest artist in the division. Just as he had said, the other senior artists were barely active.

Division Five housed thirteen-year veteran group Young Ace, who had built K-Dom’s foundation during the third generation of idol groups, and twelve-year veteran girl group Edelweiss.

Division Five had originally been established by K-Dom for Young Ace. Five years earlier, however, Edelweiss had requested a transfer to the division when renewing their contracts.

After discussion, K-Dom accepted the request. They had been in the industry for a long time, and like Young Ace, Edelweiss had been with the company since its earliest days and were difficult to control. The company decided it would be better to leave them to Kwon Taeyoung.

Thus, Division Five had spent some time as both a gathering place for K-Dom’s senior artists and a living museum, until a vastly younger rookie named Gowon joined them a few months ago.

Gowon himself didn’t know it, but this reflected Division Head Kwon Taeyoung’s ambition. He intended to finally turn Division Five, which had existed mostly in name, into a real functioning division.

Chief Manager Park recalled the atmosphere within the company at the time.

They set Taeyoung up like a figurehead, but then he seriously learned management and started pushing back. Everyone panicked.

And on top of that—

Executive Director Choi is throwing an especially vicious tantrum because he’s terrified someone will take away his share of the pie.

It was unfortunate that a kid like Gowon was getting caught in the middle of it.

It might have been easier if Gowon threw tantrums like someone his age. Instead, he had a habit of enduring everything silently.

Thinking of the senior group whose personalities had been vicious—no, colorful—only made Gowon feel even more precious to him.

After repeatedly glancing toward the parking lot, Chief Manager Park finally picked up his phone. Gowon still made no complaint about the cold, merely watching his breath spread through the falling white sleet.

“Hey, Wonjong. Why aren’t you here yet—what? Then what are we supposed to do?”

“......?”

Chief Manager Park raked his free hand through his short hair, then looked at Gowon and barely managed to lower his voice.

“All right. Yeah. Get here as quickly as you can. Call me immediately if anything else happens. Damn it, this is driving me crazy.”

After a sigh, he spoke to Gowon with a troubled expression.

“Gowon, the cold killed the car battery, and your outfit is locked inside. Even with roadside assistance, it’ll take at least twenty minutes, so take a taxi and go to the salon first. Minju is nearby, so she’ll head straight there. I’ll borrow another car and follow you right away.”

“Ah... okay.”

Although it was the first time he had encountered such an unexpected problem, Gowon merely nodded with his usual composure. Relieved, Chief Manager Park tried to call a taxi through an app. But even that was immediately blocked.

“Why the hell does it want me to verify the payment method again? Where’s my card? My card....”

As he shoved his hands into both inner pockets, the color gradually drained from Chief Manager Park’s face. His frantic hands fumbled through the rest of his pockets.

“Did I leave it at the office? Uh....”

“...Chief Manager, I saw a coat in the van....”

“Ah!”

Chief Manager Park’s face twisted in horror. Since they had a schedule from early dawn, he had left it there the previous night so he could wear it again today. All he had on him now was his phone.

Looking even more anxious, Chief Manager Park stared at his artist.

Their unicorn, whose maturity far beyond his twenty years always brought proud smiles to Division Five....

“Gowon, sorry, but I’ll hail the taxi and give the driver the address. Pay with your card when you arrive, and make sure you keep the receipt. Got it?”

“...Ah, well....”

Gowon quietly inhaled without letting the other man notice.

Going to the salon alone was fine. Something that simple could hardly be difficult.

The problem was... the taxi fare.

He didn’t have a credit card, only a single debit card. The money K-Dom had deposited for living expenses had already gone toward debt payments and allowances for his siblings. The small balance he had barely managed to preserve was now gone after buying his brother pizza.

Gowon recalled the number in his bank account, which he had checked so often that he knew it by heart. It wasn’t enough for a taxi ride to the salon in Gangnam.

“Is it because you’re worried about riding alone? Should I just go with you?”

“No, Chief Manager. That’s not it....”

Even with Chief Manager Park’s gaze fixed on him, Gowon couldn’t make himself speak.

I don’t have enough money for the taxi.

Chief Manager Park was a good person.

But poverty had been wearing Gowon down since childhood. That was why it was so difficult to expose it in front of anyone. He was afraid that even this kind manager might treat him differently if he learned the truth.

Once again, Gowon layered pointless pride over [N O V E L I G H T] his face.

“I’ll just wait for the car to be repaired. We came out early, so waiting twenty minutes should be fine, shouldn’t it? There aren’t many cars on the road at this hour either.”

“Gowon, but the time....”

“Jonghyeok, what are you doing?”

Chief Manager Park’s troubled gaze shifted toward the newly arrived person with relief. But the moment Gowon saw the man approaching with a wave, he flinched.

“Oh, the junior’s here too. So you’re the one assigned to him now.”

“Yeah, you punk. He’s the only person in Division Five actually promoting as a singer.”

“Take that complaint to Director Kwon.”

Baek Hanje and Chief Manager Park greeted each other casually. When Baek Hanje reached them, Gowon bent deeply at the waist.

“Hello, Senior.”

“Huh? Gowon, you don’t have to greet me so formally inside the company. Outside is one thing.”

“No way. I intend to receive a proper greeting wherever we meet.”

“...Good grief. Taeyoung never taught him anything like that, so how did he grow up this way?”

“Looks like you’re heading to a music show. With weather like this, you’d better get moving.”

“Oh, right. Gowon, are you seriously going to wait?”

“...Yes. The repair technician must be almost here by now.”

“Twenty minutes was the earliest estimate....”

“I’m fine. Really....”

Talking about this with Chief Manager Park was already uncomfortable, but Gowon hated the idea of Baek Hanje finding out even more.

He turned his head away as though fleeing. Still, he could feel Baek Hanje staring directly at him.

There were only six years between them, yet the air of experience around the senior made him feel like someone far above Gowon.

For some reason, Gowon felt as though everything inside him was being laid bare. He bit down hard on the flesh inside his cheek.

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