A man in a black hooded coat and sunglasses stepped out of the airport terminal, flanked by two staff members who looked like a manager and an assistant. He was clearly some kind of celebrity, but with his face so well-covered, it was hard to tell who he was from a distance.
The media and fans perked up instantly.
"Is that Luke? Get ready!"
"Tomorrow's news headline depends on this moment!"
"Hey, don't push! Watch out for a stampede!"
As the man got closer, though, the crowd started to sense something was off.
"That's not Luke, is it?"
"His height doesn't match. Luke's supposed to be way taller."
"Who is this guy? Wasted our excitement for nothing."
The man walked straight up to the group of reporters, smiling. "Thanks for coming out to the airport to cover me. I tried to keep my trip under wraps, but I guess I couldn't escape your eagle eyes."
"I'm honestly a bit flattered by this big turnout."
Hearing him speak fluent Korean, everyone froze. Definitely not Luke. So who was he?
An SBS reporter was the first to speak up. "You're Ahn Chil-hyun, right?"
Ahn Chil-hyun blinked, confused. "Wait, you guys aren't here for me?"
The crowd let out a collective groan.
"Sigh…"
"Ugh!"
"No way!"
"What a letdown!"
"Total disappointment!"
Hearing the chorus of complaints, Ahn Chil-hyun realized he'd made a massive blunder. They weren't here for him at all. He'd assumed all this fanfare was for him, and now he was mortified by his own self-absorption. If a reporter spun this into a headline like "Top Idol Ahn Chil-hyun: The Poster Child for Delusion", he'd be socially dead.
Right now, he wished the ground would swallow him whole. The clown was me all along?
But then curiosity kicked in: If they weren't here for him, who were they waiting for? This crowd was bigger than the one that greeted him back in his H.O.T. days. It had to be someone huge.
He leaned over to the SBS reporter and whispered, "Who are you guys waiting for? Seems like a big deal."
"Luke. You know him, right? He's on this flight. Didn't you see him on the plane?"
"Luke? Jinjjang (for real)?" Ahn Chil-hyun couldn't help but blurt out.
No wonder the flight felt so weird. It all made sense now.
He'd flown economy on Korean Air—couldn't be helped. Despite being a top K-pop star, he'd only earned about a billion or so won since his debut, roughly a few million RMB. The Korean entertainment market was small, and after the agency took its cut, there wasn't much left. When the company cheaped out and booked him economy, he wasn't about to splurge on an upgrade himself.
Normally, even in economy, flight attendants would fawn over him, chatting him up throughout the flight. He was, after all, one of Korea's hottest stars, with a certain charm. But today? The entire cabin crew was glued to a passenger in first class.
Through the curtain, he couldn't see the guy's face, only that it was a man speaking English with the crew. Ahn's English wasn't great—his early debut left little time for school—so he couldn't make out what they were saying.
Now he knew: it was because of Luke. He'd been on the same flight as the international superstar!
No wonder the crew was all over him. No wonder the airport was packed with reporters. No wonder the fans were out in droves, clutching carefully prepared gifts, faces lit up with genuine smiles.
And I thought all this was for me?
Talk about overestimating himself.
But Ahn quickly shook it off. He stepped aside with his team, joining the crowd. After all, he was a Luke fan too! The action scenes in Luke's movies were just too cool—he'd been a genuine admirer for a while. Realizing this, he didn't feel so embarrassed anymore. Losing out to his idol? That's just how it should be.
So, Ahn joined the throng, eagerly waiting for Luke to appear. But as the minutes ticked by, that tall figure was nowhere to be seen…
…
Ten minutes earlier, as the plane came to a stop on the tarmac, a flight attendant crouched beside Luke's seat and whispered, "Mr. Luke, please follow me. Your welcoming party is waiting."
Luke nodded and followed her off the plane, where a fleet of black Maybachs was already lined up on the tarmac. Clearly, this was his escort.
He was in Seoul at the invitation of the Samsung Group. Whether or not they sealed a deal, Samsung, as the host, would make sure everything was impeccable.
There's a saying in Korea: A Korean's life revolves around three things—birth, death, and Samsung. From ships to cars, houses to insurance, even funerals, Samsung's influence is everywhere.
A man in his thirties hurried over to Luke, bowing deeply before speaking in formal English. "Welcome to Korea, Mr. Luke. Please follow me. Director Lee is waiting for you outside the airport."
Luke knew he meant Lee Boo-jin, the eldest daughter of Samsung's chairman, Lee Kun-hee, often called the "Samsung Princess." She was overseeing his entire Seoul visit and would be handling the negotiations.
"Lead the way," Luke said.
"Right this way, sir."
The man opened the rear door of a Maybach, holding his hand above the frame to ensure the tall Luke didn't bump his head. His movements were smooth, like he'd done this a thousand times. Luke got in, and the man quickly circled around to join him.
As the car pulled away, the man said with a smile, "Mr. Luke, you're incredibly popular in Korea. When word got out you were coming, the airport exit got swarmed with reporters and fans. If you'd taken the regular exit, you wouldn't have been able to move an inch."
Luke suddenly spoke up. "You said there are a lot of fans waiting?"
"Yes, plenty of them, bringing gifts to welcome you."
"Turn the car around."
"Excuse me?"