Chapter 7
Eun Jihoon. Age 17.
It was indeed the same Eun Jihoon Doyun had been searching for.
With a clean, youthful face that had just shed its boyish charm, he stood at 182 centimeters tall. His decent looks, kind demeanor, and clear eyes made him appear perfect for an actor.
‘With a face like that, the fact he didn’t make it big means he was incredibly unlucky.’
Whom you meet can change your life entirely—this was true for everyone. However, in the entertainment industry, connections and luck mattered even more.
Unfortunately, while Eun Jihoon aspired to be an actor, he debuted as a singer, wasting years of his life.
This led to struggles in shedding his idol image, causing him emotional distress.
Eun Jihoon often ended up playing insignificant roles—like the female lead’s school friend or a close male companion—with no weight or impact.
‘But I actually liked that.’
When you break what everyone perceives as obvious, it creates intrigue and freshness.
Doyun gambled on transforming Eun Jihoon’s image.
When the seemingly good-natured Eun Jihoon was revealed to be a serial killer, viewers were ecstatic over the twist.
Eun Jihoon became a household name, with a flood of interview requests from reporters.
“Can I call you hyung?”
To Eun Jihoon, Doyun was a savior. But Doyun had gained more from that drama.
Eun Jihoon’s mesmerizing portrayal of an antagonist turned the drama Doyun produced into a massive hit.
‘Thanks to that, I even rose to the position of department head…’
However, unlike Go Eunji, the writer with whom he stayed in touch even after the drama ended, Doyun distanced himself from Eun Jihoon.
Because the villainous image was so intense, Eun Jihoon needed to undergo another transformation. That required time and effort, and at the moment, Doyun didn’t see him as necessary.
He never imagined Eun Jihoon would take his own life.
‘Let’s meet him first.’
Holding Eun Jihoon’s profile, Doyun stepped out of his room. Hearing the movement, Dongsoo called out from the kitchen.
“Is it the right guy?”
“Yeah, seems like it.”
Doyun replied as he walked into the kitchen.
“That’s great. You were eager to find him. You know, usually, managers bring profiles to film companies. But he carried a newspaper under his arm along with the profile. He was drenched in sweat, probably from delivering newspapers.”
“Really?”
Doyun hadn’t known what Eun Jihoon’s life was like before becoming an idol trainee.
“He seemed desperate, but there’s no suitable role for him in our film company.”
“……”
“His name stuck out. I was wondering why it felt familiar, and bam! I remembered you were looking for someone named Eun Jihoon. So I saved his profile. Man, this soup smells amazing.”
Dongsoo, who claimed cooking as his hobby, had woken up early despite drinking until the third round the previous night and made dried pollack soup.
The savory aroma attracted a white cat, which jumped onto the table.
“Whoa! What the—”
Startled, Doyun almost jumped back.
He hadn’t noticed the cat sitting atop the refrigerator, and his heart was racing. Seeing this, Dongsoo chuckled.
“Say hi. This is Whitey.”
“Oh. So that one must be Blacky?”
A black cat crept out stealthily.
“Yeah, exactly. Let’s eat. By the way, why are you looking for this Eun Jihoon?”
“…Curious?”
Doyun wanted to know what Eun Jihoon had been doing 20 years ago before vanishing so abruptly.
“And I plan to raise him well.”
“What are you even saying? You’re a guy who just quit his job.”
“Right. Anyway, what’s the name of that one? The spotted one?”
“That’s its name—Spots.”
“Your naming sense is on another level. How many cats do you even have?”
“Didn’t I tell you? Just four for now.”
For now? Was the number of cats about to increase?
“Looks like I’ve ended up living in a cat house.”
Suddenly, his nose felt itchy.
***
The address Eun Jihoon had written on his profile: 127 Mia-ri Mountain.
The narrow alley reeked of urine, with run-down slate houses packed tightly together to the point of suffocation.
Children crying, neighbors shouting at each other, and the sound of sewing machines whirring filled the air.
‘As expected, this is what it was.’
Doyun recalled the time he first recommended Eun Jihoon for a villain role.
The director had dismissed the idea, saying the kid looked like a prince who had never experienced hardship and couldn’t possibly pull off a dark role.
But Doyun had sensed the shadow behind Eun Jihoon’s smile—a mix of resentment, anger, and unspeakable pain.
Everyone in showbiz struggles, but to have endured and remained intact meant he had a strong mentality—or so Doyun had thought.
‘I was wrong. Eun Jihoon had been through all kinds of unjust and painful experiences since childhood.’
Eun Jihoon had lived pretending to be fine, acting as if he hadn’t been hurt. Then, playing the villain had touched on those buried scars.
The wounds he had barely managed to suppress resurfaced, turning into a murky swamp that ultimately swallowed him whole.
When Doyun reached the area near the address listed in the profile, he heard a commotion that sounded like a fight about to break out.
“Hey! I told you to bring girls over to your place. So why are you here alone? Are you making a fool out of me?”
A group of delinquent high schoolers was yelling at a neat-looking boy they had surrounded.
“If Jihoon’s going to play with us instead, I’m fine with that.”
“Oh, is that how it is? Actually, you’re prettier than most girls. Fine, let’s have a real date. What should we start with today? Huh, Jihoon?”
Between the sleazy bullies, Eun Jihoon clenched his teeth in frustration.
“Eun Jihoon?”
At Doyun’s call, Eun Jihoon flinched and looked up.
That expression—it was familiar.
It was the same look from the drama when his character was caught committing murder by the woman he loved.
After that shoot, Doyun had showered him with praise.
[“See? I knew you could do it! Great job, Jihoon. Just keep it up, okay?”]
But Eun Jihoon hadn’t been happy hearing those words.
‘Damn it.’
In that scene, Eun Jihoon must have felt like the victim begging for their life was a reflection of himself.
Was that expression revealing everything?
Looking at the screen with the same expression now—an expression filled with shame and suppressed anger.
But in the drama, Eun Jihoon’s role was a serial killer, so it came across as the chilling look of someone caught at a crime scene.
Not knowing this, Doyun had told him to keep making that expression. It tore his heart apart as if it were being shredded.
“Jihoon!”
Doyun’s voice echoed through the alley. The bullies harassing Eun Jihoon all turned their heads at once.
One of them yanked Eun Jihoon’s ear and asked, “Who’s that? Do you know him?”
Of course, Eun Jihoon didn’t know Doyun, so he couldn’t answer. Doyun answered instead.
“Who am I? I’m his brother.”
“Can I call you hyung?”
In his past life, Eun Jihoon had asked Doyun this.
Sure, call me that if you want, was something he hadn’t allowed easily.
In a business relationship, there’s no such thing as hyung or dongsaeng (younger sibling). Call me PD-nim, he had insisted.
**((Korean word hyung is a term of respect used by males to address older brothers or male friends.))
But now, he didn’t want to do that.
“I’m Eun Jihoon’s brother, you punks!”
Eun Jihoon’s eyes trembled.
It was shocking enough that a stranger was stepping in to save him, but now he was claiming to be his brother?
The bullies harassing Eun Jihoon sneered and spat on the ground.
“Who’s making up stories now? Jihoon doesn’t have a brother. He lives with some old lady who collects junk.”
“Are you from the district office or something? Jihoon’s just a welfare recipient.”
“Hey, don’t interrupt us while we’re hanging out with him. Go away, you government rat.”
One of them put his arm around Eun Jihoon’s shoulder and tapped his cheek.
“Jihoon, tell him to leave. We’re having fun here, right?”
“Let go.”
Eun Jihoon tried to shake off the hand on his shoulder.
“This little punk, what did you say?”
The bully shoved Eun Jihoon and raised his fist.
‘Damn it, not his face—he’s going to be an actor!’
Anger surged, and sparks flashed before Doyun’s eyes.
“Can’t stand being told no, can you?”
Doyun grabbed the bully’s wrist, twisted it, and pinned it behind his back.
“Ahh!”
“If I add pressure, your shoulder’s going to dislocate. Once it comes out, it’ll keep popping out.”
“Aaargh! Guys, get this bastard!”
The boy with the twisted arm glared at his two accomplices. One of them pulled out a jackknife.
“Now you’ve crossed the line.”
The bully holding the knife trembled visibly. It was clear he’d never actually used it before.
Scoffing, Doyun let out a laugh as if watching a clown’s act.
“If you don’t know how to use that, you’ll end up getting hurt. Want to test it? Go ahead!”
Doyun shoved the first bully toward the one with the knife, causing them both to tumble to the ground.
When the last bully charged at him, Doyun calmly ducked and delivered a punch to his stomach.
“You never listen unless you’re hit, do you?”
With a strong blow that left the boy gasping for air, Doyun shoved him away and turned his bloodshot eyes to Eun Jihoon.
‘If you’ve been tormented by punks like this every day, you should’ve at least toughened up.’
You became successful and still chose to end it all? You should’ve endured, taken on other roles, transformed your image.
No—damn it—you shouldn’t have died, no matter what.
After everything you went through, it’s such a waste, you idiot!
You must’ve suffered so much.
You should’ve been driving a nice car, wearing designer clothes, and basking in the glory of being a celebrity.
Directors and producers should’ve been begging you to shoot dramas.
‘Why did you have to die?!’
Seething with rage, Doyun picked up a wooden club.
“P-please don’t.”
Eun Jihoon grabbed the end of the club, pleading.
“Don’t do this. Those guys will just end up in the hospital and extort settlement money.”
Even in this situation, this kind-hearted boy was trying to stop Doyun, worried things might escalate.
“Are you hurt?”
“No.”
“Then let’s go.”
“What?”
“You want to stay here?”
This wasn’t the first or second time he had been bullied. The bullies’ words about “what to do today” implied “what they did yesterday.”
And tomorrow would be no different. Worse, after getting beaten by Doyun, they’d probably come back even nastier.
Understanding this, Eun Jihoon lowered his head and followed.
After descending the steep hill for a while, Doyun suddenly stopped and turned around.
“You have a mom.”
“Huh? No, I don’t.”
“What do you mean you don’t? Who doesn’t have a mom in this world?”
The woman who had blamed Doyun for Eun Jihoon’s death, accusing him of driving her son to suicide—she had claimed to be his mother.
But what Eun Jihoon said next left Doyun stunned.
“…She ran away…”
“Damn it!”
Even hearing that short phrase made Doyun curse aloud.
She must’ve come back to leech off him once Eun Jihoon became famous.
And then she had the audacity to accuse Doyun of killing her son.
“By the way, who… are you?”
Having been saved by a stranger who was now furious on his behalf, Eun Jihoon looked both puzzled and overwhelmed.
“I’m a drama producer. You’ve been taking your profile to film companies, right? I saw it and came looking for you.”
At last, Eun Jihoon’s face brightened.
Salvation!
Hope that he could escape this bleak situation lit up Eun Jihoon’s eyes.
—
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