Chapter 331: Stay Strong (4)

Has Goh Yoo-Joon ever had such a lengthy one-on-one conversation with Joo-Han before?

As soon as they arrived at the dorm, they sequestered themselves in Joo-Han’s room and stayed there for over two hours. With the scandal brewing, neither Yoon-Chan nor Jin-Sung could settle down to sleep. Instead, they sat quietly in the living room and anxiously waited for the other two to emerge.

"..."

Jin-Sung tried to sneakily turn on his phone, but I caught him in the act.

"No way." I quickly took away Jin-Sung's phone and gestured toward their rooms. "Leave your phones here and try to get some sleep."

I held out my hand, and Yoon-Chan handed over his phone after a moment of hesitation.

"I will give these back tomorrow. Get some sleep. You have a shoot early tomorrow, Yoon-Chan."

"Okay..."

"Hyung, I... never mind. I’m heading to bed," Jin-Sung said.

"Sleep might be elusive, but give it a shot."

Their faces were etched with reluctance, but they nodded and went to their rooms.

After Yoon-Chan and Jin-Sung left, I switched on my phone to scan the latest internet news. The controversial post about Goh Yoo-Joon was still getting bombarded with comments. His father had even posted an update, claiming he’d been contacted by the agency.

The agency reaching out because of the issue at hand was expected, but even this action was twisted by some into wrongdoing. It was used as another reason to criticize Goh Yoo-Joon.

The situation had become so heated that anything the agency or Goh Yoo-Joon did was immediately met with backlash. It seemed that the only viable option was to post a handwritten explanation from Goh Yoo-Joon himself quickly.

The problem was that, even if we released a statement, there was a faction ready to pick it apart. Also, Goh Yoo-Joon didn’t want to share his family issues publicly.

"They conveniently left out his stint in prison, didn’t they?"

It was outrageous. Could this man really be called a parent? Thinking about the current allegations and Goh Yoo-Joon's past, anger and frustration welled up inside me. How far is he willing to go and stir up such drama just to extort money from Goh Yoo-Joon? It was repulsive.

"Hyun-Woo, are you not going to sleep?" Joo-Han asked when he entered the living room with a weary voice.

I put down my phone and stood up. "I can’t sleep. Are you done talking?"

Joo-Han shook his head and gestured toward his room with his thumb. "Do you want to come in for a bit? There’s something I need to discuss with you."

"Yeah, okay."

After I followed Joo-Han into the room, he surprisingly offered Goh Yoo-Joon his comfortable office chair. Joo-Han sat on his bed and I sat down on the floor, observing Goh Yoo-Joon washing his face. His eyes were bloodshot, but not from tears.

"Hyun-Woo, you know about Yoo-Joon’s family situation, right?"

"Yeah, I was around then." I hadn’t been at the scene, but Goh Yoo-Joon had stayed with my family when the incident occurred back then. "But I don’t know what’s going on now. I have no idea why his father would suddenly start posting those messages."

"That’s why I called you here."

Joo-Han signaled to Goh Yoo-Joon, who hesitated before showing me his phone.

- It has been five days. Where’s the money?

- Did you send it??

- Pick up the phone.

- I know you’re on vacation. Why aren’t you picking up?

- Are you avoiding me on purpose?

- If you don’t pick up after a few more calls, I won’t leave it be.

- Watch me ruin you, then.

"Did you agree to send money to your father?" I asked.

Goh Yoo-Joon hesitated and looked around cautiously before speaking. "Actually, I’ve been sending him money since he was released."

"Where do you even have that kind of money?"

"I’ve been splitting my royalties."

This was maddening. It turned out that right after being released from prison, Goh Yoo-Joon’s father started demanding money, claiming he had none. Goh Yoo-Joon had agreed to give him a portion of his royalties for living expenses.

But no matter how much he gave, his father was never satisfied and constantly demanded more without making any effort to find work.

"But I don’t receive that much in royalties, honestly. I’ve even given him all the savings I had, so now there’s nothing left."

Joo-Han couldn't contain his anger and cursed under his breath as Goh Yoo-Joon spoke. "What? Why would you give him everything? That’s hard-earned money. This is so frustrating."

"I was afraid this would happen."

It seemed he had tried to handle it alone to prevent any harm to the group. But now, he had stopped responding to his father's contacts with no money left to give, and this mess had ensued.

"I never expected him to actually post online. I alerted the manager as soon as I received the text, but it was already too late." Goh Yoo-Joon lowered his head in exhaustion. "I am really sorry. I feel so ashamed in front of the members. If this goes wrong, I might—"

Goh Yoo-Joon looked painfully hesitant before continuing. "Leave the group."

"You’re being ridiculous," I cut in. After years of hard work, was he really considering leaving over something that wasn’t his fault?

"Just stay off the internet for now, and let's wait until the morning meeting to see how we can protect you."

Joo-Han's words made Goh Yoo-Joon simply nod. Our phones rang simultaneously. The text was telling us to be at the company by 11 AM the next day.

Joo-Han silently threw his phone next to his pillow and asked Goh Yoo-Joon, "Are you really okay?"

Goh Yoo-Joon lifted his head, his smile twitching as if forced, and nodded. "I am really okay."

Joo-Han's expression hardened, but he didn’t press further and sent us both out of the room. "Try not to think too much and just get some rest."

"Okay."

The door clicked shut. As Goh Yoo-Joon headed back to his room, he looked unusually down. This prompted me to call out to him instinctively. "Hey."

He stopped, turned to look at me, and gave a faint smile. "I’m okay, really."

"Your smile has been awkward all evening. If you have to force it, maybe it's better not to smile at all."

It was a situation that shouldn’t be brushed off so lightly, and I knew all too well that he was struggling to keep his composure. Rather than forcing a smile, it was probably better for him just to let it all out.

Goh Yoo-Joon then hid his smile, and nodded with a very tired look. "I will see you in the morning." He didn’t voice how tough and painful this whole deal really was for him.

***

In YMM Entertainment’s meeting room, the same group as yesterday—minus Director Kim, Yoon-Chan, and Jin-Sung—gathered to discuss the situation regarding Goh Yoo-Joon's father. Signs of frustration and fatigue filled the room intermittently.

Fortunately, it wasn’t a sigh directed at Goh Yoo-Joon as Su-Hwan had clarified his situation during a long meeting early that morning and with no presence of Supervisor Kim.

"Given the situation has escalated and the company has posted a notice, it seems we really need a handwritten statement from Yoo-Joon to boost credibility."

"Alright, I will write it. How should I go about it?"

"Just start writing. We can review and let you know which parts might need revising."

"I hope you can be as honest as possible about what you are comfortable sharing."

Goh Yoo-Joon looked somewhat disheartened and nodded. "Okay, understood."

"Let the leader and sub-leader help, and Joo-Han, make sure no one posts anything on the members' social media for now."

Beyond Goh Yoo-Joon's handwritten statement, there was little for us to interfere with directly. The staff occasionally asked if Goh Yoo-Joon’s father was still in contact or how the members were holding up, but the staff mostly discussed among themselves the best ways to handle the situation.

When an agreement on how the company and members should respond was nearly reached, Su-Hwan spoke up. "The company has decided to protect Yoo-Joon moving forward unconditionally."

It was as expected. To tarnish Goh Yoo-Joon and Chronos’ image over a controversy for which he was not at fault would ignore the immense potential they both held. That was why YMM’s media response was quicker than ever, partly thanks to Su-Hwan managing the response team.

"We are considering a lawsuit. What do you think, Yoo-Joon?"

"Ah, I’m sorry, but could I have some time to think about it?"

"Let’s not rush into a lawsuit for now. We have the texts Goh Yoo-Joon's father sent, so we can include them as evidence with the statement and see how the public reacts."

"Yoo-Joon, do you have any recordings of the phone calls?"

"I don’t, but he keeps calling. Should I answer and record next time?"

"There’s no need to force yourself."

Goh Yoo-Joon's father wasn’t a meticulous or particularly clever man. His readiness to exploit Goh Yoo-Joon's fame for a public outcry, without considering the consequences, was evident.

Goh Yoo-Joon had never shown defiance against his father's words. Having been conditioned since childhood by a domineering father who frequently said "You shouldn’t do that," he had never disobeyed an order even if he disagreed. That was probably why his father saw him as an easy target.

Therefore, his son must have seemed like an easy mark to him. He pulled these stunts because he was confident that Goh Yoo-Joon would never retaliate, no matter what. He thought of himself as tough and formidable and assumed that everyone else did too.

Believing the public was on his side, he probably expected Goh Yoo-Joon to empty his bank accounts, even going into debt, just to hand over living expenses.

"Please jot down what's happening and send it to the response team. We can help draft it if needed."

"Yes, I’ll try."

After the meeting wrapped up, Su-Hwan and the other staff members left. They were clearly worn out, and Joo-Han gave Goh Yoo-Joon’s shoulder a reassuring pat before heading off to meet with Producer Do.

Despite it being just the two of us, Goh Yoo-Joon remained silent. In the midst of this, his father’s ill-timed messages kept coming.

"Do you want to write it together?"

"No, I’d rather do it alone. I need to sort out my thoughts and take my time writing. I might get back to the dorm late."

"Alright," I responded, settling back into my chair.

Goh Yoo-Joon gave me a look that seemed to question why I hadn’t left yet. "Do you know there’s a time and place for crying? It’s not like you can cry whenever you want."

"What?"

I stayed quiet and just sat next to him. Had there ever been a time that felt this quiet and heavy between just the two of us?

Sometimes, the mere presence of someone could be comforting. Goh Yoo-Joon, who loved being around people, unlike me, probably felt that too.

We sat in silence, and I lost track of how much time had passed.

"What if it all goes wrong?"

Goh Yoo-Joon’s normally playful tone was gone, and it was replaced by frustration. His fists shook with anxiety.