"So, I'm going for families 2, 4, 11 and 13," Lee says.
"13?" Chaeri says surprised. She shudders at the memory of the baby drooling over her.
"I think 13 is okay. She's the daughter in law of a rich family. She is a career woman and she still takes care of her babies," Lee explains.
"I also think it would be a fresh perspective," Writer Han adds.
"I don't think we should go with 2. The husband said it's the first pregnancy and he doesn't want her to do anything stressful. I think he's scared she might lose the baby after trying hard for it," Minsoo says.
"Let's go with 3," Chaeri suggests.
"Producer Kang?" Writer Han calls hysterically. "Are you sure we want a house full of sweaty boxing guys in here? We still didn't get an exact number of all of them," she says.
They fall silent each scanning through their notes.
"I think family 1 has a good reason for joining the show," Heechang says.
Chaeri doesn't look interested. "Why is that?"
"Mr Yu said his mother lost her hearing due to an explosion that killed his father."
Chaeri flips her notes to the first page to read through.
Heechang continues. "His sisters drifted away from their mother and he thinks it's because of her disability. He hopes that bringing them together will improve their relationship even if they have to act in front of the cameras at first."
"It would be nice if the family gets back together," Han says.
"Producer Kang, how is that?" Minsoo asks.
"Fine," she says curtly. "And what is the deal with family 11?" She asks.
"They are a struggling family. I think they could use the money," Lee says.
"This isn't about if they need the money. We aren't some charity organisation. The goal is the rating. The audience needs to like them," Chaeri says.
"I'll take responsibility for them," Lee says.
"How do you want to do that? By miraculously increasing the ratings?" She scoffs.
"Fine! We'll do it your way. It's not like we have any other choice," she says eventually.
They all break into smiles.
"Producer Kang, let's work hard on this!"
*
The afternoon is a little sunny and yet rain drops pour from the sky.
A stranger in a black raincoat and boots walks carefully to a house. The stranger presses the bell and waits. The door opens revealing a man in his mid thirties.
"Are you by chance Mr Oh Dongkuk?"
"Yes, that's me," the man replies.
The stranger retrieves an envelope from a bag and stretches it to him. The envelope starts to soak so he collects it quickly.
"I'm from DNA TV. You have been invited to join our family reality show. Please do consider our invitation."
*
The D-day is finally here. All the families will be converging at the location for the shoot. The crew has done a lot of planning and supervision of decorations and settings.
"We are expecting them any moment from now," Lee says using a megaphone. "Zoom the camera in on the gate as the cars drive in," he instructs the cameramen.
The first family to come is family 11, the Ma family. They consist of a man, his wife, a son and a daughter, and the wife's father. Their car isn't very fashionable. They come out and head to the sitting area. The children are high school students. The couple looks like they are in their mid forties.
"We welcome Mr Ma and his family."
They bow in almost every direction before sitting down.
The next family that comes is family 14, the Ha family. It's only the wife that comes with her twins.
"Mrs Ha, your husband isn't here today?" Lee asks.
"He's on his way. He had an emergency to attend to this morning," she replies.
A few minutes later, family 1 arrives, the Yu family. They are screaming affluence. The ladies radiate so much life and Minju isn't so bad himself. He helps his mother out of the car and walks her to her seat. There isn't any noticeable friction among them. For now.
*
The crew has been waiting for almost an hour with no sign of the last family, family 4.
"Which family is family 4 again?" Chaeri asks when Han calls her attention to it.
"The one I said they might be suffering from domestic abuse," Han says quietly.
Chaeri pauses for a moment before speaking. "They will come."
As if on cue, a car drives in. Everyone stops to look as they wait for the passengers to come out.
A pretty young girl comes out first and when Writer Han sees her, she almost faints in shock.
Lee hurriedly approaches Chaeri and Han. "This is not the Ko family," he says.
"It isn't?" Chaeri asks. Lee nods.
"Well, looks like the we found a replacement for the Ko family. What are you waiting for? Go and get some details from them."
Lee scurries off.
"Did you do this intentionally?" Han asks.
"Did I?" Chaeri asks dauntingly.
"We didn't even visit them. How on earth did they know about the opening event today?"
"They were the family that cancelled," Minsoo says as she joins them. "I'm so sorry about this. I also wasn't expecting them here."
Chaeri is a little glad that they are here. The thought of calling her brother to join the show had crossed her mind. Thank God she won't be doing that now!
"Let's start with an introduction," Lee's cheerful voice soon distracts her.
The cameras are rolling.
"Hello! My name is Ma Ilhak. It's nice to meet all of you. This is my wife, Ahn Soora; my kids, Seungha and Areum; and my father-in-law, Ahn Baekjun."
They take turns in saying hello.
"Hello! My name is Oh Dongkuk. This is my daughter, Yeri. And this is Bae Joanne."
Yeri gets up on her feet. "Hello!" She gives a bow. "My name is Oh Yeri. I am eight years old and I really like ice-cream."
They all give her a round of applause.
"I like playing with my toys with grandpa and grandma too. But grandpa and grandma aren't here and I'm going to miss playing with them. Would you please play with me?" She continues.
They all stare at her in awe.
"Of course, Yeri-ah. Everyone will play with you."
"Really?" She asks excitedly. "Thank you very much!" She says and sits down.
Another round of applause goes on.
"Mr Oh, Miss Bae, you have a really cute daughter," Lee says.
Writer Han's eyes flicker to the Oh family.
"Oh, you are mistaken. She's not my daughter. Yeri lost her mother at childbirth. I'm engaged to Dongkuk and I've grown to like Yeri as my own daughter."
Everyone is again surprised.
Dongkuk grips his knee tightly but doesn't say anything.
"Ahh! So that's how it is," Lee says. "Moving to the next family, let's hear from the mother of the twins, Mrs Ha."
"Hello! My name is Noh Ara. My husband is Ha Hyungmin. And these are my babies, Jiah and Jenny," she says.
"Two cute daughters," Lee comments.
"Yes. They can be a handful sometimes," she says. Then she places her hand near her lips like she's about to whisper. "Just like their father," she adds. Her statement sends everyone laughing.
The cameras zoom in on the babies' faces.
"Finally, our last family, the Yu family."
"Hello! My name is Yu Seojin. It's nice to meet you," her voice comes out beautifully.
There are many 'ahhs' and 'woahs' among the crowd.
"Miss Yu, you have a very beautiful voice," Lee observes.
"Thank you," she blushes slightly.
"I think you should try to debut as a kpop artist," Lee suggests with a lot of people agreeing with him.
"I wouldn't know," Seojin replies. "The last time I checked, no group accepts people above thirty years of age," she said.
"You are thirty?" Lee remarks in disbelief.
Seojin is embarrassed. "I'm twenty nine," she says meekly.
"You should tell them," her sister cuts in.
Seojin looks at her with her eyes wide open.
"Elder sister," she starts to protest but the other ignores her.
"Hello! My name is Yu Minah. The truth is my sister used to sing for an international group, starlight."
There are gasps here and there.
"She had her debut in 2017."
Minju looks around thoughtfully. He doesn't know if he should stop Minah from speaking because he can sense that Seojin isn't comfortable.
His eyes fall on Chaeri who is staring intently at his sisters. Her eyes flicker to his for a second but she looks away.
"Hello! My name is Yu Minju," he says when he finally has the chance to introduce himself. "This is my mother, Mrs Joo Hyeonsoo."
Everyone looks at his mother expectantly.
"She has some challenges with hearing." He is obliged to let them know. Minah feels he overstepped so she hit him with her elbow.
Seojin subconsciously starts biting her nails anxiously.
"Can she communicate in sign language?" Ahn Soora asks.
"She learnt a little," Minju answers. Ahn Soora walks over to them and takes a seat beside Hyeonsoo.
"Hello!" She signs and then tells Hyeonsoo her name. Hyeonsoo signs back and they are able to communicate. Soon both women are in smiles.
Chaeri has a frown on her face. She walks to assistant producer Lee and snatches the megaphone from him.
"Don't the children know how to communicate with their mother in sign language?" She asks.
Minju's eyes meet hers and he can see the taunts dancing in her orbs. His sisters are even more embarrassed than he is.
"It was all so sudden, there wasn't much time to learn," Seojin says.
"And we are hardly at home so we chat with her more often. If we want to talk to her we just send messages," Minah adds.
*
"Producer Kang?" Minsoo calls. Chaeri grunts a reply. Both of them are alone in the editing room.
"The Yu family wants to delete the scene that you asked that question," she continues.
Chaeri scoffs. "As if!" She rises from her seat and goes to Minsoo. She is a bit shorter than her but that doesn't make her less intimidating.
"Do I have to remind you that there's no way that is going to be possible? They gave their consent that only the production crew has the right to editing."
*
It's the second day at the villa. There's no active filming going on until a black sedan arrives at the scene.
It catches a lot of attention and it isn't until Noh Ara rushes over to the car saying, ''honey!" that they are able to know who has just arrived.
Lee instantly coordinates the cameramen.
"Finally, the person we've all been waiting for. It's Mr Ha Hyungmin."
Cameras zoom in on him as he alights the car. He embraces his wife and then gives bows in random directions.
Ara leads him to their side of the villa. "Jenny and Jiah want to see you." He gives an uptight smile and follows her.
*
The entire crew is in the viewing room. Here they have access to all the cameras.
"Seriously, these people are driving me crazy," Heechang says. "They are acting so normal. At this rate, we won't get any views."
Kang Chaeri is lost in her own thoughts.
"Mrs Joo Hyeonsoo and Ahn Soora seem to be getting along well."
Everyone including Chaeri looks at the screen.
"Bae Joanne and little Yeri are getting along too," Minsoo says.
"She looks like she's faking it though. Mr Oh looks like a very rich man," Lee says.
"Writer Han, what's the schedule for tomorrow like?" Chaeri asks.
Writer Han is a little distracted so Minsoo nudges her.
"Yes. There'll be an event that the families can interact with one another. I was going for a dance tutorial," she replied.
"Okay! Not a bad idea," Chaeri says.
"They can even have a dance contest afterwards," Minsoo suggests.
Chaeri nods her head and smiles. "Have you contacted any studio?" She asks.
"I sent a message to Able and they said they'll send one of their dancers over tomorrow."