“Sir, this is the best response we’ve had since the company was established,” Moby said, bursting into the office with a wide smile as he monitored the numbers of ‘Stars in My Ordinary Sky.’
Leni and Sarang, who had just gone back from another singing gig, were also excited.
“The people in the event we were performing with were also watching Zeno’s drama on their phones,” Sarang proudly said. “One of them even cried and had to get their makeup redone.”
Bobby stood from his seat and placed his fist over his heart while gazing at the distance. “It seems justice prevailed for this drama.”
“Quality won over popularity!” he exclaimed.
Leni nodded in agreement. “Zeno is such a great actor. I think he’s better than some of the A-listers in the industry.”
Sarang also stood from the couch with a determined expression. “At this point, things are—”
“NO!” the others exclaimed in unison.
Sarang turned to them with wide eyes. “What?” she asked. “Did I do something wrong?”
“Whatever you’re thinking about, don’t say it,” Leni warned with narrowed eyes.
“Why not? I was just going to say that this might be our chance to—”
Moby ran over to her, knocking over a plastic vase, then covered her mouth.
Sarang was even more startled.
“Miss Sarang,” he started off. “You joined us at the latest, so I understand. But in Dreamy, we never get ahead of ourselves. We never say that this might be the time we can finally—”
“You almost said it!” Bobby exclaimed, cutting him off.
Moby let out an exaggerated breath, his legs shaking when he realized what he had just done.
Meanwhile, Sarang was still confused. “Why is it relevant? It’s just words. Isn’t it great to acknowledge that our company is actually doing—”
“SARANG!” Leni exclaimed so loud that even those from the massage (not-massage) parlor heard her.
Sarang was rendered silent. Meanwhile, Leni let out a deep breath to compose herself.
“You don’t want to say those words. Trust me,” she softly said, holding onto her hands. “I had to learn it the hard way.”
“Jace was cast in a project two years ago, and I said that it was a sign our company is going to suc—”
Leni caught herself before she could finish her sentence.
“Anyway,” she continued. “It’s a jinx. The moment I said those words, the director died the next day, and the contract had a hidden clause that made Jace the co-signer for his apartment lease. Until this moment, Jace is still paying for it!”
Bobby and Moby nodded in agreement.
“Moby said something similar, too. Then, a few days later, his wife left him. They didn’t even get to have their honeymoon before they divorced! Imagine the amount of money Moby had to spend,” Bobby added.
Sarang wondered what that had to do with the company, but she still nodded. If they appeared this serious, then it must be true.
“Alright, I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I was just happy for Zeno’s project.”
“Don’t be sorry,” Bobby smiled. “We all are. We are making sure that everything goes smoothly and that nothing could ruin his career.”
“Zeno has a clean background, so I’m not worried.”
Leni and Sarang nodded.
“It seems that he’s different from us, too,” Sarang smiled. “I really am looking forward to seeing him grow.”
Just then, Jace burst through the door with a pineapple tanghulu, some of the sugar already clinging to his chin. His phone was in his hand, and there were traces of tears down his cheeks.
He had just finished watching the latest episode of ‘Stars in My Ordinary Sky,’ and he had to admit his rival did a great job.
As expected from Zeno. He was truly worthy of being called his rival.
“This is insane,” he said, plopping on the couch as he internalized what he had just watched.
“The high schoolers in the tanghulu shop were talking about Zeno’s drama,” he boasted
The others smiled proudly.
“At this rate, it’s going to surpass ‘Stars Among Us.’ Just as long as none of the cast members, especially Zeno, gets into a scandal, then we’re all good.”
“Finally,” he sighed. “More opportunities for us. More success for the company. We can finally pay rent, and things are looking up for us!”
Their smiles quickly vanished after Jace announced all the forbidden words. They watched him with agape mouths, in disbelief at what they just heard.
Moby fell to the ground out of nauseousness, causing Jace to look up.
“What?” Jace asked, raising one eyebrow.
However, after asking, he quickly realized what he had just done. He gasped so loudly that all the air had been sucked out of his lungs.
It seemed like everything had turned to slow motion as simultaneous calls rang from Bobby’s work phone and personal phone.
The others turned to the table, where his phones lay. Just then, the real-time web page about celebrities that Moby had curated on their second-hand smart TV lit up and showed some brand new information.
Displayed in bold letters, along with a handsome picture of Zeno, were the words—”Rising Actor Zeno Han’s ‘Out of the Ordinary’ Actions Exposed—Drug Scandal, Exploitation, and On-Set Misconduct.”
They covered their mouths in shock, and Sarang felt that they weren’t joking about the jinx.
However, how could it come this quickly?
Jace fell to his knees and began pleading under his breath. “I didn’t mean it. Seriously, I didn’t mean it!”
Bobby went and answered the phone, only to be bombarded by various media outlets about their company’s response on the matter.
Bobby, still processing the situation, panicked and answered,'”I don’t know!”
Then, he turned off the call, feeling breathless even though he hadn’t done anything tedious.
Just then, the real-time news refreshed again, and somehow, it was even worse than before.
Moby woke up at that moment, looking straight at the television. When he read the newest headline, he fell to the ground once more.
“Exclusive: Zeno Han’s Agency Breaks Silence—”We Don’t Know” Amid Explosive Scandal Allegations”