novelraw Chapter 109 : I Will Fix It for You
Chapter 109 : I Will Fix It for You
Chapter 109 - I Will Fix It for You
“Ugh, I’m tired...”
Kanade mumbled as she rolled around on the hotel bed.
Today’s schedule mainly consisted of preliminary meetings with local officials, and since Kanade only had to sit there, she nearly died fighting off drowsiness.
“Can’t they do the meetings without me...?”
The actual filming would begin tomorrow.
They would visit Saitama City, north of Tokyo, to cover the local idol culture.
While sightseeing, buying delicious food, and exploring the local area.
“I’ll leave the serious comments to the Manager-nim... and I'll just tag along...”
Kanade thought she could proceed with a mindset similar to a typical travel variety show.
If she left the comments about the Japanese idol industry to Baek Hyeon-woo, he would take care of it.
While thinking of ways to freeload somehow, Kanade rolled around on the bed.
“Ah, I didn't do my daily quests...”
Remembering that she had to log in to the game she usually played, Kanade reached for her phone, which she had thrown on the bed.
However, there was a message from Laura on her phone.
[Laura: Just in case, watch Hyeon-woo oppa closely so he doesn't get distracted by other places.]
Checking the content of the message, Kanade tilted her head.
What on earth does she mean by watching him closely?
“I'll think about it later.”
Bothersome things can be postponed until later.
With that mindset, Kanade intended to play her game first.
However, a new notification popped up on her phone immediately.
This time, it was a message sent by Seo Na-eun.
[Seo Na-eun: Kanade, just in case, please watch over Manager-nim well.]
What is this?
Kanade didn't quite understand.
“Why are both of them saying similar things...?”
Rather, as the manager, Baek Hyeon-woo is in the position to watch over Kanade.
Isn't this the other way around?
While Kanade was feeling puzzled, a message arrived from Baek Hyeon-woo, who was staying in the next room.
[Baek Hyeon-woo: Kanade, Yuri-ssi wants to meet right now. Do you want to come along? Turns out our accommodations are close.]
It was slightly surprising.
She thought it was just a courtesy, but to think Yuri actually contacted him to meet.
[Kanade: I'm good, so you go alone, Manager-nim.]
[Baek Hyeon-woo: Don't be lazy.]
[Kanade: It's more burdensome than just being bothersome.]
Why on earth should she have a private meeting with a senior in the entertainment industry?
Even coming all the way to Japan, not Korea.
Baek Hyeon-woo needs to build connections with various people since he is a manager, but she doesn't.
Thinking that, Kanade crawled under the blanket.
[Baek Hyeon-woo: Got it. Then I'll go alone.]
[Kanade: Yep.]
A moment later, she heard Baek Hyeon-woo leaving from the next room.
She was worried he might drag her along by force, but it seemed she could relax.
“Ah, the unnies told me to watch over Manager-nim.”
Kanade briefly pondered while recalling what Laura and Seo Na-eun had requested, but... eventually, she erased it from her mind and started playing a mobile game under the covers.
……
‘Am I crazy? Calling a man out at such a late hour?’
A cafe bar with a nice atmosphere located in a secluded spot.
Yuri held her head in her hands while seated in the chair.
She had hurriedly set up the appointment, seized by the thought that she needed a change of mood, but thinking about it now, it seemed she had done something too bold.
‘What if he thinks I’m a loose girl?’
To contact a man she met for the first time today in the middle of the night and suggest, ‘Shall we meet?’
It was highly likely he took her for a girl who was completely loose.
‘No, he’ll bring Kanade along too. So there won’t be any problem. Surely that will be the case...’
While she was thinking that, Baek Hyeon-woo entered the shop.
Baek Hyeon-woo immediately spotted Yuri, who was sitting in the corner, and approached her.
“I’m sorry. I wanted to arrive a bit earlier, but I’m late because I’m not familiar with the public transportation.”
“Ah, i-it’s okay.”
Yuri answered, stuttering.
“B-By the way, you did well to recognize me? Even though I’m wearing a wig and even a mask.”
Right now, Yuri was in disguise.
Considering She’s On’s fame, she had to disguise herself even in Japan.
“Because there are crutches next to you.”
“Ah...”
Come to think of it, she had propped the crutches up next to the seat.
“By the way... are you alone?”
“Yes, I came out alone.”
Right now, there was neither a manager nor a bodyguard by Yuri's side.
It was because she had secretly slipped out of the hotel without saying a word.
She couldn't have a change of mood while dragging people like that around with her.
“But did you come alone too, Team Leader Baek?”
“Kanade couldn’t come today.”
“Huh? Why...”
“Well... because she needed some rest.”
“…….”
Then what?
Did it really turn into a situation where they were meeting just the two of them?
Yuri felt her heart rate increasing.
Like this, it really felt like a late-night date with just the two of them.
“Did you happen to have business with Kanade?”
“N-No, it’s not that...”
“I apologize. I should have told you in advance.”
“I-It’s okay.”
Stuttering, Yuri took a deep breath.
The more she became conscious of it like this, the weirder the atmosphere would get. Thinking she shouldn't be self-conscious unnecessarily and should bring up the original business first, she opened her mouth.
“As I mentioned earlier... I’m sorry that our Manager Kim caused you inconvenience on the plane.”
“I already heard an apology from him personally, so it’s fine.”
“Sometimes fans do excessive things, so he probably did it thinking he had to prevent it in advance. Please understand.”
When a group becomes as popular as She's On, all sorts of things really happen.
Yuri, too, had experienced direct harm because of sasaeng fans.
Therefore, it was unavoidable for the security staff to be sensitive.
“Since you are popular like Yuri-ssi, I suppose you would experience such things often.”
“Yes, but still, he shouldn't have acted violently... Manager Kim was definitely in the wrong on the plane.”
“Did you perhaps have incidents where others tried to film you secretly in the past?”
“Well...”
Just like that, Yuri talked about this and that which had happened until now with Baek Hyeon-woo.
Perhaps because Baek Hyeon-woo chimed in well, the stories flowed out easily.
“So even things like that happen. We should be careful too.”
Drinking the beverage he ordered, Baek Hyeon-woo spoke with a serious expression.
“Actually, it hasn't been long since I started working as a manager, so I lack knowledge in these areas. Thank you for teaching me various things.”
“Pardon?”
“It's only been about half a year since I started life as a manager.”
Half a year?
Yuri was startled.
“Since you are called Team Leader, I thought you were someone with quite a bit of experience...”
“I became a Team Leader early by chance. Because we are a small company.”
“Ah...”
Being a Team Leader-level manager is not a job just anyone can do.
One has to handle all sorts of coordination with broadcasting stations and the like, and manage the entry-level road managers as well.
Thinking with common sense, acting as a Team Leader in just half a year would be impossible.
Could this person perhaps be an incredibly competent manager?
‘Come to think of it, he's really comfortable to talk to...’
Unlike the managers usually around Yuri, she could tell Baek Hyeon-woo even her fairly deep inner thoughts.
Is he skilled at dealing with people?
“Ah, come to think of it...”
She suddenly remembered and brought it up.
“I saw the video where you gave first aid to Choux-pop's Joo Ga-hee last time.”
“You saw that...”
“That was a real situation, right? The way you calmly handled such an emergency situation was really cool.”
Baek Hyeon-woo took a sip of his drink with a reluctant expression.
“I just did what I had to do.”
“No. You were really cool. To the point where I became envious of Joo Ga-hee.”
“You were envious?”
“Ah, well...”
Ah, this is a slip of the tongue.
One shouldn't say they are envious of a person who collapsed from a hyperventilation attack.
“W-Well, Joo Ga-hee had someone who ran over immediately to help her.”
She tried to explain, but unexpected words popped out of her mouth.
“Because when I got hurt last time, there was no one who helped me like that...”
“Yuri-ssi.”
“So I couldn't help but be envious. Everyone just made a fuss next to me, but no one saved me.”
Why am I being like this?
I know I shouldn't be like this in front of others, but I couldn't control my emotions.
“I know that too. Since the ligament had snapped, someone running over to help wouldn't have made anything better. Still, still...”
Still, Yuri envied Joo Ga-hee.
She envied Joo Ga-hee, who got better after receiving Baek Hyeon-woo's help when she was in agony as if she were dying.
She envied Joo Ga-hee, who wore a relieved expression while hearing the words, “It’s okay now,” from Baek Hyeon-woo.
“If someone like you, Team Leader Baek, had helped me when I got hurt...”
“Yuri-ssi.”
To Yuri, who was on the verge of tears from surging emotions, Baek Hyeon-woo spoke in a calm voice.
“Actually, I was there at that time as well.”
“Pardon?”
What could he mean?
As Yuri looked at him, Baek Hyeon-woo explained with a serious expression.
“That day, I was watching your rehearsal stage as well, Yuri-ssi. It was the day I first started working as a manager at Haram Entertainment.”
“Y-You were watching back then?”
“Yes, and... I sensed that there was a problem with your ankle while you were on stage, Yuri-ssi.”
“……!”
In front of Yuri, who gasped, Baek Hyeon-woo continued speaking.
“It was an unavoidable situation. The rehearsal was already in progress, and I, being nothing more than a mere part-time manager, couldn't drag you off the stage, Yuri-ssi.”
“Team Leader Baek, what are you...”
“Still, it kept weighing on my mind.”
Saying that, Baek Hyeon-woo directed his gaze toward Yuri's ankle.
“As you know, Yuri-ssi, administering first aid when an ankle ligament has snapped doesn't change much. Even if I had jumped onto the stage and run to you back then, there wouldn't have been a clear solution.”
“T-Team Leader Baek...”
“However.”
Baek Hyeon-woo made eye contact with Yuri and spoke.
“Back then, there was nothing I could do, but now is different.”
“Pardon...?”
“Yuri-ssi, when you try to walk, you can't put strength into your foot properly, right? Apart from the ankle pain.”
“……!”
Hearing Baek Hyeon-woo's words, Yuri widened her eyes.
“When you try to walk with your right foot, the top of your foot doesn't lift properly, so it drags on the floor. That's why you feel like you're going to keep tripping and are using crutches.”
“H-How did you...”
“I know just by looking.”
Just what kind of person is he?
Yuri swallowed hard, feeling perplexed.
She had never seen a manager like this before.
“Yuri-ssi, although it's late at night, I hope you can spare a moment. I would like to move to a quiet place.”
“T-Team Leader Baek, what...”
In front of the flustered Yuri, Baek Hyeon-woo spoke in a serious voice.
“That ankle, I will fix it for you.”
“……!”
Those were words Yuri had never expected. Words she had never even hoped for.
However, the moment she heard those words, tears poured from Yuri's eyes.
Joo Ga-hee, who had worn a relieved expression while listening to Baek Hyeon-woo’s voice, must have felt like this too.
……
Hotel room.
Kanade was rolling around on the bed, playing a mobile game.
“Is the probability rigged? Why isn't it dropping...?”
While Kanade was tilting her head as she played the game.
Suddenly, the sound of knocking was heard.
“Kanade, it’s me.”
It was Baek Hyeon-woo’s voice.
“Can I come in for a bit? I bought something to eat, too.”
“……!”
At the mention that he bought something to eat, Kanade immediately rose from the bed.
It was a situation where a man was asking to come into a room where a woman was alone late at night, but Kanade opened the door without the slightest suspicion.
“What did you buy... Huh?”
Baek Hyeon-woo was holding a convenience store plastic bag in one hand.
But behind him... was She's On's Yuri.
“M-Manager-nim, why did you bring that person to the hotel...?”
Yuri’s face was wet with tears.
And she was holding onto the hem of Baek Hyeon-woo’s clothes with a flushed face.
At the unusual atmosphere, Kanade covered her mouth with one hand.
“Manager-nim, did you cause some sort of trouble...?”
This is bad.
The unnies earnestly requested her to watch him closely so he wouldn't get distracted by other places.
It seemed he had caused some major accident in that short time.
“So this is how Newstarz is ruined... Sob sob.”
“Stop talking nonsense.”
Pushing past Kanade, who was shedding tears alone, Baek Hyeon-woo brought Yuri into the room.
“Yuri-ssi, please sit on the bed first and extend your right leg.”
“Ah, I’m wearing stockings...”
“Then I would appreciate it if you took off the stockings as well.”
Watching the two converse like that, Kanade blushed.
“What are you doing coming to someone else's room? You should do things like that in your room, Manager-nim...”
“What are you talking about?”
Baek Hyeon-woo glared at Kanade.
“I’m trying to treat Yuri-ssi’s right leg.”
“Pardon?”
“I told you during the day. That it concerned me.”
“……!”
Hearing the explanation, Kanade widened her eyes.
“B-But why did you bring her to my room?”
“If I take her to my room, it could become a problem. That’s why I brought her to your room.”
“…….”
As Kanade stood there lost for words, Yuri, who had taken off her stockings in the bathroom, sat on the edge of the bed again.
“Team Leader Baek, will this do?”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
It must have been less than a day since they met, yet Yuri was doing exactly as Baek Hyeon-woo told her.
Watching that sight, Kanade felt bewildered.
Yuri is a top star who is far more popular than Kanade.
It was fascinating that such a person had followed Baek Hyeon-woo all the way to the hotel and was doing exactly as he said.
“Manager-nim, do you use some kind of hypnosis or something?”
“Stop talking nonsense and just eat some snacks on the side.”
“Yup.”
Kanade took snacks out of the convenience store bag Baek Hyeon-woo had brought and started eating.
Once Kanade became quiet, Baek Hyeon-woo spoke to Yuri again.
“Yuri-ssi, as you've likely heard at the hospital, most of your ankle ligament has probably healed. Although it might not be completely recovered, it shouldn't be to the extent where walking itself is difficult like it is now.”
Listening to Baek Hyeon-woo's explanation, Yuri swallowed hard.
“That means there is a problem somewhere other than the ankle ligament. We just need to treat that spot.”
“Team Leader Baek, is treatment... really possible?”
“Yes, it is possible.”
Reaching out toward Yuri's bare leg, Baek Hyeon-woo nodded.
“Please leave it to me.”
Yuri, the top star who hadn't been able to stand on stage for half a year.
Baek Hyeon-woo's treatment for her began.