Chapter 25: New contract

‘I got lucky.’

Joonbum thought about the discussion in the video comments, where people mostly believed that the video was fake. People who believed it to be true quickly disappeared because the other side aggressively claimed that the video was fake.

‘Some people are really sharp,” he thought as some of the responses were close to the truth.

“Mr. Joonbum Jang?”

Joonbum jumped up from the seat as a voice came from above his laptop computer.

“Oh, hello! I am Joonbum Jang.”

“I am Seonchul Lee. We talked earlier.”

“Sure, of course.”

A middle-aged man introduced himself and sat down in front of Joonbum. Joonbum sat down while he closed his laptop.

“Did you watch the video?”

“We sure did.”

Seonchul smiled softly. He was man in his forties or fifties with a favorable expression that made Joonbum feel comfortable with his calm smile.

‘So it’s him…’

Seonchul was the marketing director of a company that manufactured Choco Pie. Joonbum’s viewers had accused him of using the Choco Pie as a form of advertisement.

“Before we start, we want to thank you for using our product.”

“Of course.”

Seonchul reached into his suitcase and took out packet of documents.

“This is our contract. I know we talked about it already over the phone, but you can read it here.”

Joonbum checked the papers and started reading what was handed over to him. The terms were simple. The company wanted to use part of Joonbum’s video that was uploaded today and use it for their own commercial. The amount they were willing to pay for using the video clip for six months was twenty million won. In addition, the company was willing to provide all the Choco Pies as needed. There was an additional five million won paid to Joonbum as a means of sponsorship.

The conditions were too good.

Chapter 13.

As for the condition of the sponsorship, they wanted Joonbum to give out Choco Pies as gifts when he got another chance and occasionally eat it himself. It was much easier than all the other contracts he had already signed.

‘This is too easy. I guess this is why everyone wants to be popular broadcast jockeys or BJs?’

Joonbum thought as he remembered how had he worked so hard to earn money with no success and now the number of opportunities ready for him to grab had increased exponentially as his viewers increased.

He became distracted with his thoughts and shook them away so that he could concentrate on the contract. The final section contained information about breaching the contract.

“I’ve read through everything.”

“So, are you ready to sign the contract?” Seonchul asked in response to Joonbum’s words.

“But how did you prepare all of this so quickly?”

The video was just uploaded just this morning, and Joonbum was here with the prepared contract. He was amazed at how fast the company reacted to his video. Seonchul seemed shaken by the sudden question, but he soon straightened himself and answered.

“Well, we have people who are subscribers so it was only natural.”

“I see.”

Joonbum no longer asked and nodded. It seemed unnecessary to dig deeper as it did not matter how they reacted that fast anyway.

Seonchul looked at Joonbum briefly and pointed to the contract.

“Here, here… Sign here…”

In short while, the contract was signed and it was finished. Seonchul took a copy of contract and stood up.

“The contract fee will be made out later today to your bank. We will contact you again once we make our commercial part of the video.”

“Sure, thank you.”

Seonchul nodded and left the café with a soft smile.

“It’s still an awkward feeling.”

Joonbum’s heart was still pounding. He felt his anxiousness double since the last time he did this as the person he talked to was much older.

‘When will I get used to this?’

Joonbum opened his laptop and there were already loads of new responses that brought joy to him. It had only been seven hours and the view count was already at eighty thousand. After looking at the responses for a while, Joonbum then checked his emails.

-We changed our contract offer. Please check it and contact us.-

-This is Jeil Sports. We can sponsor any guns…-

-Hello, contacting you from Sharpshooter Kim Gunshop…-

-This is Clear Water Company. We can provide…-

“It’s diversified. I guess the next offer will be for sugar, salt, and pepper.”

He mumbled as he checked the email and smiled. It was like his dream come true. He never thought he would become this popular with his videos. Other than all the contract offers, there were more emails about applying for a job position to be an editor or manager, many of whom knew Joonbum from before. Also all those contacts from media-related companies and BJs still continued. He was sought out by everyone.

‘I guess this is the life of a celebrity.’

He grinned as he took a sip of iced coffee. He was so happy that couldn’t stop smiling. Even his face, which he always thought to be ugly, seemed to be a bit cute. He was over-confident of himself.

As he saw the money piling up in his bank account, his anxiety about the future and peer pressure disappeared. He also felt people watching him as he walked on the road as if people had started recognizing him from his videos. Maybe he was being delusional, but that didn’t stop him from imagining.

‘Even now.’

There were people inside the café whispering to each other as they glanced at Joonbum. Joonbum was excited as even the whispering felt like they were talking about him.

Joonbum cleared his throat without realizing it and smiled again. His daydreaming did not stop and he was still smiling when he was approached by someone unexpectedly.

“Wow! Jang Joonbum! Long time no see.”

‘Wh-why are they here?’

Joonbum frowned at the sight of the two women. He felt the world being so small at such an unwanted coincidence.

‘I shouldn’t have chosen Seoul as the meeting place…’

He regretted his choice but it was too late. He turned to them.

One woman was wearing a light blue dress beautifully decorated with water drop embroidery. Her ample bosom grabbed attention as the dress revealed it. The woman, Youngah Lee, seemed to be grabbing more attention than before with her fancy clothing.

‘That must be fake. That can’t be a real bosom,’ Joonbum thought as he tried not to watch Youngah’s butt. His eyes turned to another woman.

‘Not you too?’

“Hey, do you remember me? Joonbum?”

The woman, Seohee Ahn, asked if he remembered her, flashing him a beautiful smile. She was wearing a white button down shirt with very short jeans that revealed her slim thighs. Joonbum’s eyes turned to the short jeans and the inner part of the thighs, wishing they’d open up a little more.

Seohee brightened as she felt Joonbum’s attention and caressed her hair. A sweet scent filled the area and Joonbum flared at the smell without him realizing it.

“You changed a lot! Did you lose weight too? I’ve been watching your videos. You have like four million views on the highest ones? I never expected that kind of content to become popular again. You did a good job, Joonbum.”

“That’s right! You’ve been great these days. Hey, why don’t we take sit and rest? I’m tired from all the shopping. Is it okay Joonbum?”

“Uh, erm. B-but-”

“Yeah, it’s getting hotter. Let’s take a break here. What should we drink?”

Youngah Lee replied at Seohee’s request and sat down. Her big bosom moved, drawing attention. Youngah Lee knew her way around men. She knew what to do with her expression or postures if she wanted a man’s attention and she was doing the same to Joonbum. Of course, she did this to any man she met.

Seohee followed Youngah to sit next to her. She wasn’t as glamorous as Youngah, but she was also very charming with bright red lips and white teeth. Her lips were provocative enough that Joonbum felt as if he was being flirted at just by looking at her lips. In addition, her unique smile was so charming and different from the seductive Youngah.

‘Crap! This isn’t my fault!’

These two women were those who used Joonbum as their own goods in the past. He never wanted to deal with them again so he ignored all their messages and calls. However, unlike how he ignored them before, his heart was pounding with excitement. It was only natural as the women were so beautiful and charming.

They were once the most popular BJs. There were hundreds of new BJs starting their careers each year and these two were at the top of the pyramid for quite some time with their beauty combined with their seductive way of speaking. Their popularity waned as time passed, but they still remained to stay somewhat popular.

Joonbum wanted to ignore them, but he couldn’t do it against these beautiful women as they were smiling at him.

“Can I have an orange juice?”

“I want mango juice.”

“H-hey look…”

Joonbum was confused. He came to his senses as he shook the sight and smell of their presence and started speaking. Yet he was stopped as Youngah interrupted him.

“I was so surprised that you’ve been so popular lately. How did you think of reviving that old content?”

‘So you think I couldn’t manage to do that?’ Joonbum thought in response. He felt the sense of belittlement in her words. Seohee felt the sudden change of atmosphere and moved her face closer to Joonbum’s, intervening.

“Hey, but shouldn’t you be sorry? You ignored all my messages! You could’ve at least replied with ‘No’ and I would’ve understood, you know? I was so sad.”

A sweet scent filled Joonbum’s nose as he watched her red lips moving eagerly. His face blushed.

‘It’s sad sight, those girls. But I shouldn’t mock them.’

Joonbum knew from experience what people might do if they had grudges. He thought that women with grudges were more dangerous. There was only one way to weave out of this situation.

“I’ll be going to the restroom for a sec…”