Kang Woojin had returned to Korea.
The black van carrying him entered Samseong-dong. It was around ten at night. The LA schedule had been so brutal that several staff members, including Han Yejung, had fallen asleep in the van. In the passenger seat, Choi Seonggeon pressed a hand to his temple as if fighting exhaustion, while the sturdy driver, Jang Suhwan, let out a huge yawn.
There was only one person still awake.
"······"
With his cap pulled low, Kang Woojin was the only one staring blankly out the window. On the outside, he looked as calm as ever, but in truth, he was wide awake. He glanced around at his team. Just a few days ago, they had all looked perfectly fine, but now they resembled zombies.
'It's rough, but I've got the void space, so I'm fine. Is Han Yejung even still alive?'
While Woojin was inwardly muttering about how useful that vast space really was, the van rolled into the parking garage of his officetel. Only then did the stylists wake up and start greeting him.
"Ugh... I'm so tired... Ah! Oppa, you worked hard!"
"Get lots of rest!!"
"See you tomorrow!"
After giving them a solemn farewell, Woojin stepped out of the van. Choi Seonggeon followed after him, stretching and yawning.
"Ah! Somehow, we made it back alive, Woojin. Come out around two tomorrow."
"Yes, sir."
"I might not make it tomorrow because of company business. I already told the others, so call me if anything comes up."
Woojin slung his backpack over one shoulder and nodded calmly. Choi Seonggeon narrowed his eyes and stepped closer, suddenly grabbing Woojin's arm and squeezing it as if testing it. Standing still, Woojin asked quietly,
"What are you doing?"
With his ponytail hanging behind him, Choi Seonggeon flashed a crooked grin.
"Just checking. You seem way too perfect, so I started wondering if you might actually be a robot."
"I'm human too."
"What's your secret? How do you keep your stamina so ridiculously solid?"
I rest in the void space.
Since he obviously could not say that, Woojin gave a convenient excuse instead.
"It's probably genetic."
"If we're talking genetics, then once you get married, you need at least three kids. No, four. Honestly, even five might not be enough."
"What are you even talking about?"
"Those genes need to be passed on. The government should be promoting this."
For a moment, a strange thought crossed Woojin's mind.
'Would the void space get passed down to my kids too?'
Just then, Choi Seonggeon checked the time and changed the subject.
"Since we're talking about marriage, let me say this, Woojin. I don't care if you date, but you absolutely have to tell me in advance, got it?"
"Ah."
"You're way too famous right now. If an article breaks out of nowhere, it'll be a disaster. Understood?"
"···Understood."
"Is there already someone? Like, anyone with potential?"
A romantic interest.
It had been so long since Woojin had heard those words that he paused for a second. Seeing that reaction, Choi Seonggeon smiled even more brightly and patted him on the shoulder.
"I don't care if she's from Korea, Japan, or Hollywood. Just tell me ahead of time."
"Japan-Hollywood?"
"Exactly. There's no language barrier for you at all, right? You've gotten close with top Japanese actresses and even someone like Miley Cara. Same goes for Korea, of course."
Come to think of it, beautiful people now filled the space around Kang Woojin. The kind of people he had only imagined before becoming an actor were now being mentioned as possible partners in real life. Even Cara was a world star.
Woojin nearly laughed out loud.
Soon enough, Choi Seonggeon wrapped things up.
"Anyway, get some rest."
After finishing his sentence, he gave a light wave and headed back to the waiting van. Woojin watched him for a moment before turning and stepping into the elevator.
'Dating? With those famous actresses? That's insane.'
Maybe because of that conversation, he felt faintly unsettled. At that moment, the elevator stopped on the first floor, and several other residents from the same officetel got in with him. There was a family with a child, and a married couple too. Among the residents here, Kang Woojin was already quite famous.
There was not a single person who did not know who he was.
"······Hello."
"Did your schedule just end?"
"Mom! It's Kang Woojin! It really is Kang Woojin, right?!"
"Hey! Shh!"
It was a brief round of fan service. Woojin greeted the residents and signed a few autographs. Of course, he did it willingly, and it did not take long.
When Kang Woojin finally got home, he let out a long sigh.
"Whew, how long has it been since I was home?"
At last, he threw off the mask he had been wearing for the past several days. He quickly stripped off his cap and clothes, changed into comfortable homewear, and let out a huge yawn. Then he dropped onto the sofa.
"This is life! Home really is the best!"
Finally free of his public persona, Woojin lay back and scratched his stomach. While doing that, he checked his phone. He went through the piled-up messages one by one. First came texts from his parents and his younger sister, Kang Hyuna. Family messages came first, then his own messages and DMs. There were messages in the Our Table group chat too, along with individual messages from Hwarin, Hong Hyeyeon, and Ryu Jungmin.
All of them were top stars.
And then—
[Mr. Woojin!! Did you make it back to Korea?? I'm filming right now, but without Kiyoshi here, it's so boring...]
"Ah, it's Mifuyu."
In Kang Woojin's social media DMs were messages from several top Japanese actors, including Uramatsu Mifuyu, who was famous for her full lips. After spending several dozen minutes replying to them, Woojin suddenly paused.
"My phone's kind of absurdly expensive now, isn't it?"
Only then did he realize how valuable his phone had become. In the past, it had barely been used for anything except keeping in touch with childhood friends. Now, famous actors from Korea and overseas messaged him every day.
And sometimes—
"Hmm, wow. I should just leave these unread."
Kang Woojin occasionally ignored messages from celebrities altogether. His life had really become unbelievable.
Right at that moment—
-♬♪
A chime rang through the apartment. It was not his phone.
Someone had come to his place.
Without hesitation, Kang Woojin got up and headed for the front door. He already knew who it was.
Click.
When he opened the door, three men were standing there, each carrying heavy bags of their own.
"Yo, Kang-star."
"Long time no see. Seriously, it's been forever."
"Were you sleeping??"
They were his childhood friends.
Later on, Kang Woojin ended up drinking with them for the first time in ages. It was not some sudden gathering. They had made the promise months ago. His friends brought the alcohol, and Woojin used a delivery app to order food.
"Whoa, look at the color on this jokbal. The quality is insane."
"Hey, damn it, Lee Kyungseong, you idiot, don't eat with your hands! You're not Australopithecus."
There was the large-framed Kim Daeyoung, the now even chubbier Lee Kyungseong, the stylish Na Hyunggu, and Kang Woojin. The four of them, gathered together again after so long, quickly covered the living room table with snacks and drinks. Even though it had been a while, nothing really felt different. It was like they had seen each other yesterday.
"Hey, Woojin, look at this damn gut on Lee Kyungseong. Hell, you could use that thing as a slide."
"Shut up, Hyunggu, you slimy bastard."
"No, seriously, you need to lose weight. Didn't they find something in your stomach during that endoscopy?"
It started with a simple exchange of updates.
Or rather, to be more accurate, it started with the usual rough banter.
Of course, Kang Woojin also dropped his usual mask for a bit and showed his real self.
"Someone throw snow on Kyungseong's stomach."
"Woojin, you crazy bastard, what the hell are you saying right now?"
"With that kind of slope, you could probably snowboard down it."
Watching the whole thing with amusement, Kim Daeyoung raised his soju glass.
"You idiots. Let's do a toast first."
Naturally, everyone emptied their glasses in one shot. But the empty glasses were refilled almost immediately, and the clinking of glasses rang out again. Side dishes kept arriving too. Before long, the table was overflowing with jokbal and fried chicken.
"Hey, Kang-star, did you see the group chat? This bastard Na Hyunggu got a girlfriend and turned into a complete romantic."
"A romantic? Aren't you exaggerating a little?"
Kang Woojin grinned at Na Hyunggu, who was sitting there with a sour look on his face.
"You bought flowers and gave them to your girlfriend, right? That makes you a real lover boy."
"······No, I just thought I'd try it once. It wasn't even that expensive. Ah! Right, Mr. Woojin, can I tell my girlfriend we're friends? She's your fan, and it's getting really hard being the only one who knows this."
"Really? Hmm, Hyunggu, pour your hyung a drink properly and get some snacks ready too."
"Wow, look at this guy. Just because of that, you think I'm going to serve you like a slave?"
Looking mildly annoyed, Na Hyunggu suddenly pointed at the jokbal with both hands.
"Hyung-nim, today's jokbal is really delicious. Would you like me to grill it for you too?"
"Carry on."
"So... do you think I could get an autograph today too?"
Kang Woojin drank freely for the first time in a long while. Drinking like this had been practically forbidden because of his image, so maybe that was why the alcohol hit him quickly. Or maybe it was just the atmosphere.
Either way, without the slightest hesitation, Woojin kept talking with his childhood friends without pause.
"By the way, Daeyoung, you're not joining Woojin's team?"
"I don't know. My company won't let me go. How am I supposed to make that happen by myself? Woojin, say something for me, will you? Guys, did I ever tell you this? Woojin has ridiculous influence at our company."
"Ohhh, Kang-star!"
"Daeyoung, I heard you got promoted to schedule manager for Hong Hyeyeon's team. Then stay there."
"Wow, Woojin, that's harsh."
The topics changed quickly, but as always, they moved in a familiar pattern—from work stories to military stories.
"Heh, Woojin. You wore a military uniform in The Missing Island, right? I saw it on YouTube."
"Ah, right. It kind of felt like I'd gone back to the army."
"Just thinking about going back there makes me want to throw up."
"But between Hayura and Hong Hyeyeon, who's prettier?"
"Na Hyunggu, you still haven't come to your senses. Should I tell your girlfriend?"
"Bullshit! Hey, Kyungseong! Aren't you curious too? Huh?"
From lively talk about the military to talk about women, the conversation went everywhere. Then Woojin's friends started losing their minds over the messages and DMs on his phone.
"Whoa, holy crap!! You were chatting with Hwarin?! Woojin, I'm so jealous!"
"Huh? Even Hong Hyeyeon?!"
"Hey, hey! Woojin! Is that group chat named after the program full of celebrities only?!"
"This is seriously insane. Getting DMs from Japanese actresses is already unbelievable, but seeing Korea's top actors filling your chat list feels like looking into another world."
"It reminds me of that time. We went to see a movie, and then suddenly Woojin showed up on screen. I was so shocked."
"Right? I almost passed out too."
Lee Kyungseong and Na Hyunggu drifted between talking about women and reminiscing about old memories. Meanwhile, Kim Daeyoung, who was refilling soju glasses, spoke to Kang Woojin, who was laughing along with them.
"But honestly, even when you're sitting right in front of me like this, sometimes I still can't believe it."
"Really? It doesn't even feel like my life to me either."
"Even with all this insane popularity, you don't look like the type who'd ever come down with star syndrome."
"Star syndrome?"
"Yeah. Like those rookie actors who think one successful drama means they're going to be the next big star. That kind of disease."
"Ah."
"You've gone way beyond being just a rising star. Other countries are going crazy for you too, but you haven't changed at all. That's just who you are. You've always had a strong mentality and a firm sense of self."
Star syndrome.
As Woojin clinked his soju glass against Kim Daeyoung's, his expression turned serious for a moment. A star. The world was going wild for Kang Woojin. Looking at his popularity now, no one would object to calling him a top star.
But Woojin himself had never seriously thought of it that way.
'Star syndrome? What are you talking about?'
It was not because he was humble, nor because he was timid. If anything, Woojin was enjoying everything about his current situation. The feverish attention from people, something he had never experienced before, his steadily improving acting, the special environment that kept changing around him—he liked all of it.
But the word star had never truly carved itself into his heart.
Maybe it was because every single day, he was at war with his own persona. Every moment was filled with nonstop tension and fierce internal battle. On top of that, Kang Woojin's true nature kept showing through.
"What does it matter whether I'm a star or not? As long as I do what I'm supposed to do well, that's enough."
Of course, the fact that he was doing well was true, but he had no desire to flaunt it. It had been the same from the very first moment he gained the void space. He looked cold on the outside, but only ever exploded when someone provoked him.
Who cared?
A faint smile appeared on Kang Woojin's lips. Because of his usually intense image, it was not an expression people got to see often, yet it did not look awkward on him at all.
"Hey, Daeyoung. Shut up and pour me another drink."
His life had become absurd, but Kang Woojin himself had remained the same.
"It really does taste great when I haven't had it in a while."
And that would probably continue.
The next day, on the 5th, at a hotel in Seoul.
It was the hall of a luxury hotel. Normally, events were held there, but today it was packed with well over a hundred reporters. Some of them were taking photos toward the front of the hall, while others were busy typing articles into the laptops in front of them.
"Wow, there are so many people. Is this a production presentation or a press conference?"
"What's the difference? It's the production presentation for Director Kwon Gitaek's The Missing Island."
"Still, isn't this scale unusual?"
"Director Kwon Gitaek alone already pulls enormous attention, and on top of that, you've got a cast full of top actors. Kang Woojin is coming too, right? Everyone looks completely ready because expectations are sky-high. Reporter Kim, you came prepared too, didn't you?"
"Of course. There's so much interest in this that it's not easy to see Kang Woojin at an official event. My god, is he really coming today?"
"I asked one of the staff members, and they said he's one hundred percent attending."
As dozens of reporters buzzed among themselves, the staff at the front of the hall were finishing the setup. A long table had been placed on the stage, with handheld microphones and bottles of water arranged on top of it. Behind it hung a huge poster.
Naturally, it was one of the official posters for the film's production presentation.
Soldiers standing in front of a massive cave.
No, they were actors.
Among them, Kang Woojin stood out the most, wearing an awkward smile.
Printed before them was the title in rough white lettering.
— The Missing Island
This was one of the major events held two or three months before a film's release.
And right at that moment—
──────────
The main doors of the hall opened, and Director Kwon Gitaek, his hair completely white, appeared. The hundreds of reporters who spotted him immediately began hammering their shutters. In an instant, the stage was flooded with flashes.
Following Director Kwon Gitaek, the lead actors of The Missing Island entered as well.
In other words, an entire lineup of top actors had arrived.
And then—
"Oh! Kang Woojin's here!!"
Kang Woojin was the first among them.