小火星

“I am resigning.”

In the cramped CEO’s office, a rather tall man declared decisively.

“I have organized the tasks I was in charge of so that there will be no problems. I’ll stop here.”

A man revealing his intention to resign with great calmness. Short hair with a strong impression. His name is Kang Woo-jin. Looking at him, the CEO, who looked like a pudgy toad, laughed in disbelief.

“Ha! You’re going to quit? You fool! Do you think the design industry here is as vast as China? It’s so damn narrow here. What will happen if you quit rashly? Do you think changing jobs is easy? Huh?”

The CEO blurted out complaints mixed with annoyance and mockery. However, Kang Woojin, who stood there calmly, didn’t respond.

‘Job change or whatever, it’s none of your business now, you toad bastard.’

Right now, he just wanted to go home as quickly as possible. The company Kang Woo-jin was about to leave was a very common design company with about 20 employees.

It was a company that was among the smallest businesses, and one that had a horrible reputation.

From high school to college and until now, Kang Woo-jin, who has been designing all his life, was in his fourth year in this damn company. He is now 27 years old.

‘Looking back, I have nothing but crappy memories.’

Although it’s a design company, the nature of a small business meant that aside from design work, there were countless other chores. Moreover, overtime was frequent. Overtime pay? They hardly gave any, and weekend work was common.

Annual leave? What is that, oh- a tea to be boiled and eaten?

And so, Kang Woojin had reached his limit. And today. On Monday morning. Woojin exploded as soon as he saw the toad-like CEO.

Hell, I don’t care, let’s yell it out.

Honestly, Kang Woo-jin had his resignation letter prepared two years ago. Everyone probably feels the same. Anyway, the toad-like CEO, who was glaring at Kang Woo-jin, waved his hand dismissively.

“Ha… unbelievable. Yeah, yeah, get lost, get lost. There are plenty of guys who can do as much as you. Don’t come in from tomorrow.”

At this, Kang Woo-jin replied as if he had been waiting.

“Yes, understood. And please send my unpaid overtime pay and severance pay properly.”

“Hey, you.”

“I’ve roughly calculated it. CEO, I don’t want to make a big deal. Well then.”

Once he made up his mind, words flowed easily. Whispering to himself, Kang Woo-jin politely said goodbye to the toad-like CEO and left the office. Soon, cheers and encouragement poured out for Kang Woo-jin. They were the employees. Well done, I’m jealous, and so on. One of the employees close to Kang Woo-jin approached him.

“I’m envious of your escape. But what are you going to do now?”

What am I going to do? Well. To be honest, he was worried. What will he live on in the future? However, Woo-jin, who decided to set aside his worries for today, replied nonchalantly as he moved to his seat.

“Honestly, I don’t think I’m going to do design anymore. I have a working holiday visa, I’m thinking of maybe going there.”

“Working holiday? Where?”

“Australia.”

So, a few dozen minutes later.

Kang Woo-jin stared blankly at the monitor, his chin resting on his hand. A wave of lost motivation washed over him, now that his resignation had been confirmed.

Then.

-Swoosh.

The weary-faced Kang Woojin picked up his phone. The screen showed unread messages and the time.

→February 3, 2020

→10:22 AM.

Has only 30 minutes passed? Time seemed to stand still. At that moment,

-Bang!

Suddenly, the office door swung open and the toad-like boss rushed in with a red face.

“Hey!! Kang Woojin!”

The shout was undoubtedly directed at Kang Woojin.

“Just get out of here now! I can’t stand the sight of you!!”

At the same time, Woo-jin was cheering inside.

‘This is perfect, I should be thankful.’

***

A week later, in Kang Woo-jin’s one-room apartment, around noon.

Kang Woo-jin lived in the Suji area of Yongin city. His studio apartment was, well, the neatly hung clothes on the wall, was surprisingly tidy. He seemed to be someone who keeps things tidy,

In the middle of such a studio,

“…”

A bum is sprawled out, fast asleep. Of course, it’s Kang Woo-jin. His appearance was the exact opposite of his neat apartment – he looked like a total bum. He was still wearing the padding jacket he wore when he went out yesterday, and his hair, which he had carefully styled, was now disheveled.

Worse yet, there was a strong smell of alcohol every time Kang Woo-jin exhaled. It was due to the heavy drinking he had with his friends last night in celebration of his resignation.

About an hour passed in this state.

“······Ah- shit.”

The bum who had woken up from his sleep, or rather, Kang Woojin, mumbled and groaned while lying down.

“Ugh··· my head’s splitting.”

Holding his head with both hands, Woojin looked around. Huh? Home? How did I get home?

“I remember······going for a second round.”

Everything after that was a blank. His memory was erased. He tried hard to recall the shattered remnants of yesterday, but to no avail. Was it because it had been a while since he had drunk so heavily? Kang Woojin exhaled a long sigh mixed with the smell of alcohol. He gave up trying to remember.

“Huh- I don’t know, I must have somehow made it home.”

Woojin immediately opened a food delivery app. From the moment he opened his eyes, he was craving Mul-Naengmyeon (cold noodle soup). Hangover cure, was the first thing on his mind.

At that moment.

-ring, ring.

The phone with the delivery app opened vibrated with a long vibration. It was a call. The caller was one of Kang Woojin’s closest friends, also a member of last night’s drinking party. His friend’s name was Kim Daeyoung. Subsequently, Kang Woojin, still lying on his side, held the phone to his ear.

“Hey-”

At Woojin’s dying voice, Kim Daeyoung laughed over the phone.

“Listen to your voice? You sound like you’re about to drop dead? Kekeke, but you managed to get home alive, didn’t you?”

“Hey, how much did we drink yesterday? I feel like my insides are paralyzed right now.”

“You don’t remember??”

“Yeah. I have no memory of last night.”

Hearing the answer, Kim Daeyoung immediately cursed.

“You idiot. You disappeared all of a sudden while we were drinking yesterday. For about 30 minutes. We were seriously thinking about reporting you missing. What were you doing then?”

“Seriously? How would I remember? But why are you calling?”

“Ah- shit. Then you probably don’t remember our conversation from yesterday either? You promised to go with me for an interview.”

Interview? Kang Woojin slowly scratched his chin. He had no memory of it.

“Suddenly, what interview? You’re working well at your company, aren’t you? Are you trying to change jobs? Are you crazy? That’s a medium-sized company, right?”

“No, wow – this guy really. It’s not a company interview, it’s the ‘Super Actor’ preliminaries!”

The ‘Super Actor’ that Kim Dae-young mentioned was a variety show that had recently gone into production. The broadcasting station was SBC. As the title suggests, it was an audition variety show aimed at discovering hidden stars, and they had been heavily promoting it for a month.

Regardless, Kang Woojin, who tilted his head, asked his phone.

“‘Super Actor’? Are you trying to get on that? Are you planning to switch careers to acting?”

Kim Daeyoung, over the phone, spat out another curse.

“No! You idiot! Ah, it’s so frustrating. I told you yesterday…sigh- So I thought, why not just submit some documents and a video for fun? And I passed the first round.”

“Oh- Really?”

Kang Woojin’s friend, Kim Daeyoung, had acting as a hobby. On weekdays, he worked at a company and on weekends, he attended a theater club. Of course, Kang Woojin knew about this as well.

“I guess they’re accepting just about anyone. Judging by the fact that you got in.”

“Shut up. Anyway, tomorrow morning is the first round of evaluations and interviews. Even though it’s not an official shoot, I’m nervous, so I asked you to come with me.”

“So, I said ‘okay’ to that yesterday?”

Ah, such a crazy thing. Here, Kang Woojin quickly changed his tune.

“I was drunk, my friend. I wasn’t myself yesterday. Why would I go there? What would I do there? Aren’t you going to work tomorrow?”

“That’s for me to handle. You just need to stay by my side and give me some moral support. They said I could bring family or friends. You just have to wait outside while I’m being interviewed.”

“·····I’m not feeling it today.”

“Hey! You’re unemployed anyway! After it’s over, we’ll have pork belly and soju! As much as you want!”

“Hmm-”

Kang Woojin hesitated slightly. At this point, Kim Daeyoung added.

“Hong Hye-yeon will be one of the judges tomorrow!!”

-Freeze.

Kang Woojin, who had momentarily paused, his eyes lit up.

“···What? Who?”

“Hong! Hye! Yeon! You might be able to see Hong Hye-yeon.”

“For real?”

“Really true. I stake my life on it.”

Hong Hye-yeon. She was a top actress who was doing well at the time. A universally acknowledged actress in every man’s imagination. That Hong Hye-yeon as a judge? Soon, Kim Daeyoung explained over the phone.

“Each episode of ‘Super Actor’ has different judges, and one of them is, who was it? Anyway, it’s because of some famous drama PD (Production director/ Program Director). Hong Hye-yeon is working on a project with that PD. It’s just a one-time thing, so yeah.”

“How do you know that?”

“Just search for it, you moron. It’s there in the articles. Anyway, there’s also our friendship, right? Huh? Come with me.”

At this point, Kang Woojin, who had just got up, answered with a determined look on his face.

“You should have mentioned friendship earlier.. So, my friend. What time tomorrow?”

It was a crazy change in attitude.

***

The next morning, Wednesday, February 12th.

The time was around 10 o’clock. The place was the Art Center of SBC building in Mokdong. Kang Woojin and Kim Daeyoung, both clad in padded jackets, entered the five-story building with a detached building vibe. For reference, Kim Dae-young looked impressive. He was similar in height, over 180 cm, to Woojin, but had a more solid upper body.

Anyway.

“Wow- There are so many people.”

Kang Woojin was amazed. And for good reason. The Art Center lobby was already packed with people. There were dozens of guidance staff members at the entrance, and participants were pouring in. At least 200 people, wasn’t it? However, this was only the tip of the iceberg.

Kim Dae-young explained the reason.

“I guess about 30% have arrived? I heard that the first audition of ‘Super Actor’ is divided into different time slots.”

“So, you’re saying that at least 600 people are coming today?”

“Of course. You should watch TV sometimes.”

“I don’t care, it has nothing to do with me.”

Anyway, after completing the information confirmation procedure with the guide staff, Kang Woojin and Kim Daeyoung walked down a corridor full of participants, following the placards and hand gestures of the staff. Then, they entered a room with a sign ‘Waiting Room 1′ on the door.

-Creak.

Inside, plastic chairs were densely arranged in a wide space, and more than half of them were already occupied. It was then that Kang Woojin pointed to an empty chair with his index finger.

“Hey, let’s sit there.”

“Okay.”

As soon as they took their seats, Kim Daeyoung, while touching the number attached to his chest, took a deep breath.

“Whew- Whoo- Damn, I’m so nervous.”

Regardless of whether that was the case or not, Kang Woo-jin, who seemed indifferent to others’ affairs, unzipped his padded jacket and crossed his legs.

“Hey, you’ve been doing theater as a hobby for quite a while, haven’t you? More than 3 years, wasn’t it?”

“Right.”

“But you’re nervous? Doesn’t your club do stuff like free performances?”

“Shut up! Is this on the same level as that?”

“What’s the difference? It’s all acting. I don’t know a damn thing about it, but you should at least try to feel like it’s the same level. You might become a top actor through this variety show.”

Soon, Kim Daeyoung let his imagination run wild.

“Damn… I just thought about it and it gives me goosebumps.”

While grinning, Kim Daeyoung suddenly looked around at the dozens of participants and clutched his stomach.

“Ah- Hey, I need to take a dump. And it feels a bit soggy.”

“You’re crazy. When is this interview or audition starting?”

“I don’t know, I heard that when the staff calls, we go in.”

“Then ask and get back quickly. Don’t shit yourself while acting.”

However, as if such a scene was unacceptable, Kim Daeyoung jumped up and rushed to a female staff member standing at the entrance of the waiting room. After a brief conversation, he ran out into the corridor.

Looking at his friend, Kang Woojin muttered.

“What a waste.”

He sank deeper into the plastic chair. After about 10 minutes? Kang Woojin, frowning, checked the time on his cell phone. Kim Daeyoung’s return was taking too long.

“Why isn’t that crazy guy coming back?”

It was at this moment.

“Kim Daeyoung, Kim Junsu, Kim Taejung!”

At the front of the waiting room, a male staff member called out to the participants filling the plastic chairs.

“Kim Daeyoung, Kim Junsu, Kim Taejung!!”

Was this in order of name? His friend Kim Daeyoung’s name was called first. Thanks to that, Kang Woojin was slightly flustered when the other participants started to move forward.

Soon.

“Excuse me.”

Kang Woojin raised his hand and called the staff.

“Sorry, my friend Kim Daeyoung is currently in the bathroom… Sorry. I’ll go and get him right now.”

“Ah, he’s in the bathroom? Hmm, just a moment. You’re his friend, right?”

“Yes.”

The male staff member spoke something into the intercom around his neck. What was interesting was that he chuckled at some reply. A mischievous grin characteristic of variety show staff. It looked like they were up to something.

Then, the male staff member spoke to Kang Woojin.

“Then would you like to go in first instead of your friend?”

“Excuse me?”

Are you crazy? Kang Woojin frowned.

“Me?”

“Yes. Your friend is the first one and if things stay this way, Kim Daeyoung will be automatically disqualified. If he’ll be back soon, you can go in and hold a seat. When Kim Dae-young comes, we’ll guide him.”

So, he means it’s better to have someone rather than an empty seat? Well, Kang Woo-jin didn’t quite understand, but he sighed slightly thinking about his friend.

“Where should I go?”

A short while later.

Kang Woojin had arrived at the end of the corridor. There were two other participants seated on a makeshift chair by the door, and Kang Woojin was guided into the room.

Soon.

‘Wow-’

Woojin was impressed when he saw the inside of the room. It was somewhat decorated, unlike the previous waiting room. A straight desk in front had the logo of ‘Super Actor’. There were two large cameras on the left of the desk, and small cameras were installed on the ceiling and elsewhere.

There were about ten staff members.

Among them, a woman in her late thirties, with a short haircut, approached Kang Woojin. With a mischievous smile on her face.

“You’re Kim Daeyoung’s friend, right?”

Soon, Kang Woojin, who was looking around the room, nodded his head a bit.

“Yes. I’ll call my friend right away.”

“Okay. Take this, and please sit on the chair over there.”

The woman handed Kang Woojin a thin stack of papers and pointed to a chair placed conspicuously in front of the straight desk.

“That’s your script? Today’s task is improvisational acting, so you’ll read the script briefly and then show us your acting right away. You can read it while waiting for your friend if you’re bored.”

“Ah- Yes.”

“And the judges will be here soon.”

At this, Kang Woojin confidently asked.

“Excuse me, is Hong Hyeyeon among the judges?”

The woman’s smile became even wider.

“Yes, she is. But you cannot ask for autographs or take pictures.”

Awesome, Kang Woojin felt a burst of anticipation. He managed to hide his excitement with a subtle smile, and sat down in the only chair.

And then.

-Swoosh.

While dialing Kim Daeyoung, he glanced at the script on his lap. It was an unconscious action. This insignificant piece of paper meant nothing to Woojin.

However.

“Why isn’t this guy picking up… Huh?”

While looking down at the script, Kang Woojin hesitated.

“… What is this?”

Kang Woojin, looking precisely at the space next to the script. Why? Because something strange was visible. How should I describe it? It’s square, about the size of an A4 sheet of paper, with a pattern that looks like a whirl of black and gray. It was obviously strange.

Because of that.

“…”

As if bewitched, Kang Woojin slowly moved his index finger. He wanted to poke this strange thing. Then, Kang Woojin cautiously, pressed his index finger into the center of the swirling square.

The problem occurred next.

“Eek!

He was sucked into something.