That man gave her the creeps.
His eyes… They were cunning and deadly at the same time.
She asked Mi-Suk who he was. "I think a producer. Independent or something. I've seen him a couple of times. I don't like him…"
Mi-Suk wasn't the only one. As soon as he walked in, Chloe and Ye-Jun became pale and stiff.
Only one person remained unchanged. Sang-Jun had the same subzero temperature on his face as always.
There was some sort of gift. Something stunned Ye-Jun -not in a good way.
And he calls himself an actor, doesn't he?
His eyes looked ready to pop out when he opened the box. And then they went blank. And sad.
No, that man wasn't a producer. He was something else.
After everything she had found out so far, Noelle wasn't looking for anything else. Especially the revelation of his contracts; it was the closest thing to a heart attack she had ever experienced.
Her discovery created a whirlwind of emotions.
On one hand, she felt sorry for him. It was proven in the worst way possible that he was living a staged life. It must have been hard.
On the other hand, she allowed herself to forgive him for his paranoia. If she was hiding something like that, she wouldn't want strangers to be sniffing around.
All that brought her to the bottom line; she wanted to help him somehow. Not that he deserved it. But she couldn't deny that he was kind of desperate. And childish. And good-looking. All these made her scared that she was spiraling out of control and she couldn't protect herself.
As she watched him sitting emotionless in that chair next to that man, she felt an urge to comfort him.
She hated that feeling. The rational part of her brain -the one which accused her all these years for being a fan- screamed it was wrong. That's why she was trying to avoid him. But she wouldn't avoid him forever.
Chloe had just ended her presentation and now they were about to exit her office. As they walked outside, the man stopped to greet Sang-Jun.
She couldn't help but take a more scrutinizing look. He wasn't particularly tall, but he was surprisingly well built for his age. A scar on his eyebrow gave him a distinctive charm.
Maybe it was her persistent stare, but the man took notice of her and concluded that she wasn't from around here. When he started speaking French, she was absolutely stunned. When she informed him that she was from France, they continued to speak French.
"Oh my goodness! What a coincidence! I actually spent about five years in Marseille; where I got this," he said pointing at the scar she noticed earlier. "My friends there called me 'Le Coréen', and they gave me an anchor tattoo, which I can't show you now."
Noelle froze. What was he talking about?
"Oh, Marseille! Yes, a lovely city. There is high criminality though."
She felt she was getting in too deep. That mind and that tongue of hers! She wished she could control them better.
"Paradise doesn't exist. By any chance, have you ever heard of a Mr. Piquet? He was quite a legendary figure in the Marseille Milieu back in the day."
Yeah, that is getting dangerous…
"I am afraid, no."
He then took out a card and handed it over to her, switching to Korean: "You can call me anytime you like. I'd love to catch up with news from Europe."
She accepted the card, but there was no chance in the world she would ever call him.
Just a step behind him, Ye-Jun was obviously gritting his teeth. His nostrils flared and he started blinking.
He was watching her, not the man. As if measuring something.
Noelle fought back the need to ask him what the matter was.
Silently watched them leaving. Then she turned to Mi-Suk. "Interesting guy…"
"What did he…" Mi-Suk started saying.
"I expect you -both of you- to be smarter than what you look like right now."
Sang-Jun's voice, cold as ever, hid a hint of distress. His words said that he was talking to both of them, his eyes were fixed on Noelle.
"Come on! Don't insult us!" Mi-Suk protested.
Sang-Jun returned his gaze to his screen. He never spoke another word.
Soon Ye-Jun and Chloe returned.
Ye-Jun was apparently in a bad state.
The first thing he did was to approach Noelle's desk.
"The card," he commanded.
It was one of those moments when she couldn't avoid him.
A moment when she didn't know how to react
So, she pretended she hadn't understood. She looked at him frowning.
"The card. The one he just gave you," he said.
Something in his voice, something in his eyes, made her understand the urgency. She just raised the card with her fingers.
Ye-Jun snatched it.
Noelle never imagined that a single business card could be torn into so many small pieces.
Ye-Jun's expression was calm and empty. But his hands as he was shredding the cards were trembling.
The others looked away.
Only Noelle watched him. No surprise, no fear, no discomfort stirred within her. She decided to share this moment, and asked nothing in return. He shouldn't be fighting alone.
In the end, Ye-Jun threw the pieces in a bin. He removed the plastic bag, violently knotted it and walked out of the room dragging the bag behind him.
Sang-Jun, without a word, followed him.
Noelle was certain he was the only one who could be at his side at that moment.
Some pieces of the puzzle were being put into place. She was getting a blurred but ugly picture. No details yet. She didn't want to know really.
She would just play dumb. Even to herself. Especially to herself.
______________________________________
After about an hour, Ye-Jun and Sang-Jun returned. There was still a lingering dread in the air that wouldn't lift. However, it was time for a casual meeting that Chloe had asked for that morning.
She walked out of her office and addressed them. "It is a lovely opportunity to have you all here! We have reached an important milestone. Broken Wings is officially over. In two days Ye-Jun is shooting his final scenes."
Only Mi-Suk clapped and smiled. Nobody else, including Noelle, reacted. That quickly dampened Mi-Suk's excitement.
"A piece of advice. Take the time these next few days to relax. This August will be exhausting. Ye-Jun will record a new single, we have the awards and the negotiations for the French film. Let's start preparing."
Chloe was back to business-as-usual mode. Like nothing happened.
It was probably familiar territory to her. But Noelle felt a gap.
Chloe had said Ye-Jun was like her first-born. Wouldn't a mother soothe her child? Shouldn't she at least give a pat on his back?
Noelle felt a strange connection. It was perhaps in her head. But it seemed Ye-Jun was receiving the same tough love her own mother was giving her.
And it hurt a lot in moments like this.
She could tell that Ye-Jun was still upset.
Although, as a perfect professional he was watching and nodding.
When Chloe completed the briefing, everyone went back to their chores. Ye-Jun announced to the others that he was leaving.
"Bye everyone," he said walking out of the door.
She didn't bother to stop herself. She followed him down the hall.
He must have heard her footsteps. He turned with a guarded expression.
The moment he got her attention, the words died in her throat.
"Hey, I just wanted to say…" she began but everything would sound weird.
He crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head. He wouldn't make it easy for her.
"That guy…" Noelle said.
"What about that guy?"
"Who was he?"
"Why should I tell you? And why do you care?" Ye-Jun's voice was sharp.
She looked away and said nothing. He was right.
When she was about to leave, he started talking again.
"Do you see now why I am so suspicious? You are always interfering, always popping out of nowhere, always asking questions." He took a step closer to her, looming over her. "I don't know what he said to you. You were speaking your language like old friends. Did he offer something?"
"Don't be ridiculous!"
"Am I? Or did you already know him?"
Does he honestly believe what he is saying?
Any impulse to offer him some comfort, disappeared.
"I am not going to answer. I have something that's called dignity!"
He scoffed. "Keep your dignity and forget you ever met him. Or did you fall in love again, like with Kim on the set?"
I knew he didn't deserve it.
He crossed too many lines.
Noelle gave him the finger, the most international gesture that could express her state of mind.
She didn't care that there were cameras in the corridors. Let them fire her already. She was done with this madhouse anyway.
She walked back to the office, fuming. Her heart was beating like crazy. He would be her end.