* * *

“Oh. How did you know that?”

‘Actually, the direction was a complete mess.’

The only good thing was the script.

‘Honestly, some people even said the writer might have done it on purpose because the ending was so weird.’

Couldn’t that be true?

“Hey! Damn it! Ma Soo-jung! Just you wait!”

“Yeah, just wait. But you? I’m Ma Soo-jung.”

Wow.

‘There’s some truth in that statement.’

Mom was an actress. But before that, she was the third daughter of the Sungjin Group.

‘Sounds like she’s saying she’ll cut off the sponsor.’

The director stood up, his face turning red. I turned and waved at the people leaving.

‘Let’s never see each other again.’

What a way to ruin a good day.

Mom sighed as she sat on the sofa. I climbed up next to her on the sofa.

Mom hugged me tightly.

“Kongja, you know, right? That’s not why I brought you here.”

How could I not know?

“I know!”

“Such a bad day. That guy, I bet he believed it. But Kongja, I’ve never actually cut off a sponsor.”

I giggled.

‘That’s just like Mom.’

Rather than beating someone up and paying for the damages.

‘I know better than anyone that she’s not that kind of person.’

Mom whispered while stroking my hair.

“I might do it for you, though.”

Oh.

“If anyone messes with my Kongja, I’ll separate their bones from their flesh.”

Uh, Mother?

“Kongja, there are legal things in the world, but there are also illegal things. I’ve never used them, though.”

Is that so?

Mom hugged me tightly.

“I won’t let anyone bully my child.”

Wow.

‘I should never let her know if someone bullies me.’

That’s for the best.

‘Can’t let Mom go to jail.’

Mom kept grumbling.

“Ah, I’m so mad. At times like this, going to the gym is perfect. Kongja, you know? Another team is coming?”

I blinked.

“Another one?”

“Yeah. Two teams today. But this person is late. Ah, Kongja, I’m thinking of renovating the upper floor.”

Huh? What renovation?

“I’m going to make a few more rooms. First, I need a place to work out. And I want to make a place for you. What do you want?”

Wow, Mother.

‘The scale is no joke.’

Making a whole room?

‘Wait, if that’s the case!’

I shouted immediately.

“A practice room!”

“Huh?”

I raised my hands.

“A big mirror like this is needed!”

It’d be nice to have some props too!

Mom blinked.

“Why didn’t I think of that? Right, Kongja, a practice room. That’s a good idea!”

Mom patted my head.

“Thinking about it, actors do need a practice room.”

Of course.

A mirror is an actor’s friend.

“Right, Kongja. Let’s install a camera too.”

Wow! Monitoring practice!

I grabbed Mom’s clothes tightly.

“Good!”

“Right? Is that all?”

I shook my head.

“We need one more room!”

“Huh? There are a lot of guest rooms already?”

“Not that! A real room!”

Mom blinked. I shouted immediately.

“A room for Noona!”

Mother, I haven’t forgotten.

‘Her name was Marie’

The daughter who held Mom’s funeral picture, standing with that sorrowful expression in the newspaper article.

‘I said Noona, but she’s not my Noona yet, right?’

To her, I’m still probably just an impurity.

‘But if she’s Mom’s daughter, she’s my Noona.’

I didn’t know what happened between Mom and Noona.

But it was strange that there wasn’t a room for Noona in Mom’s house.

Mom blinked. Then she smiled bitterly.

“You’re right. There wasn’t a room for Marie.”

Mom patted my back.

“Marie probably won’t come to this house. But there should be a room. Why didn’t I think of that?”

Mom whispered softly.

“I’m not a very good mom, am I?”

Why would you think that?

I shook my head immediately.

“No!”

Mom smiled a little.

“Because of my angel, I’m learning a lot.”

Mom stroked my face. Her touch was soft but a little sad.

Just then, someone entered.

“Excuse me.”

This time, it was someone I hadn’t seen before. But Mom stood up right away.

“Oh, PD! I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Hello, Ms. Ma Soo-jung. I’m PD Son Youngjae. I do some directing at the broadcasting station.”

What? Son Youngjae?

I blinked.

‘What a stroke of luck!’

This person will become the drama director at HGS later on, right?

‘Although that’s more than ten years in the future.’

Mom shook hands with the PD. Son Youngjae looked at me and spoke.

“Oh my. This kid is something.”

I bowed and smiled.

“Hello! I’m Kongja!”

Nice to meet you in this life, future drama director.

‘I owed you one in the previous life.’

Son Youngjae squatted down to meet my eyes.

“Oh my.”

The PD smiled widely.

“I was unsure, but now I’m certain. Right?”

The assistant director who came along nodded.

“Yes. It has to be this kid.”

“Right?”

“The image matches perfectly.”

“The scenes just flow.”

I smiled broadly. I quickly understood what they were talking about.

‘I know. The anticipated work of the first half, Fate!’

The pre-production period extended a bit into the second half, but this work gained tremendous popularity.

‘Especially in the Middle East.’

Son Youngjae’s historical dramas were known for their themes of good triumphing over evil and love. The cinematography was especially good.

‘And there’s only one child role in Fate!’

The heroine’s son, ‘Yiyoon’.

‘You could say he’s the bridge that connects the heroine and the hero.’

‘Fate’ is a fusion historical drama, depicting the sad love story between a general, the hero, and a woman disguised as a man, the heroine.

‘The action is impressive, but the story is sad too.’

In ‘Fate’, the two protagonists constantly miss each other.

‘You could say everything is conspiring to keep them apart.’

But there is one presence that connects the two.

‘That would be Yiyoon.’

Their child continuously brings the two who are always missing each other together. And eventually, thanks to Yiyoon, they meet again and their fate continues.

“He plays an important role.”

Me?

I blinked as I looked at PD Son Youngjae.

‘You’ve made a good decision.’

How did you know I was perfect for this?

The producer told me what I had been waiting to hear.

“You’re just perfect for the role of Yiyoon.”

Wow.

It felt like taking a refreshing sip of beer. I smiled bashfully.

“Oh my. How cute.”

“Your face makes me want to start shooting right away. And you’re bigger than I thought.”

“Kongja, I heard from the movie director that you act well.”

Oh my.

“If it’s the movie director, could it be Director Lee Jin-hwan?”

I didn’t know they were close.

“He boasted about you for two hours. Still, I want to confirm for myself.”

Ah, something like an audition.

“Ask me anything.”

I’ll do anything.

PD Son Youngjae said,

“It should be easy since Kongja’s mother is here too. Kongja, can you run over to your mom and say, ‘Mom! The flowers are pretty!’?”

It was a very simple scene. I ran over immediately.

“I think I can survive now that I’m not falling over anymore.”

I ran to my mom from a distance. I took a moment to catch my breath and tightened my stomach.

“Mommy! The flowers are pretty!”

Mom’s eyes widened in surprise. In that moment, I realized.

‘Come to think of it, is this the first time I’ve used proper vocalization?’

Though I had been practicing consistently in front of Deok-soo.

Just as I was glancing at my mom, I heard applause.

Clap, clap, clap-

PD Son Youngjae clapped and laughed.

“Wow, well done. Really, a genius. The movie guy was right. Wow, Miss Soo-jung.”

The producer turned to my mom and said,

“You have an amazing son.”

Mom laughed awkwardly.

“Well, Kongja is quite exceptional, but this is the first time I’ve seen it too.”

The moment had come.

I clenched my fist tightly.

‘It is strange to suddenly use proper vocalization.’

This time, they’ll definitely find it suspicious.

‘What should I do?’

I waited anxiously for my mom’s words. But what I heard was quite unexpected.

“He said ‘mommy’!”

Huh?

“He’s always said ‘mom’ before.”

Why is that?

Mom picked me up.

“Kongja, try saying ‘mommy’.”

That much, I could do right away.

“Mommy!”

“Oh my, my angel!”

Mom hugged me tightly and kissed my cheek. I laughed out loud in joy.

“Our Kongja really seems like a genius.”

“Yes. Your son is remarkable.”

“What good fortune I have to have such a treasure.”

No, Mother.

“I am the lucky one.”

To be so happy with something so trivial.

“I will do even better.”

I’ll be filial!

* * *