11
Step Eleven
:: Accident ::
Jacan raised one eyebrow, then pointed his finger at himself.
Was he being talked about just now?
Didn’t expect to be compared to other contestants like how sometimes parents compare their own children to others’.
Just standing here could already make him disliked.
Wouldn’t this make him even more targeted?
Even though inside he wanted to scream curses, externally he showed nothing but gratitude with a faint smile.
Even though they were told to look up to Jacan as an example, not everyone could emulate him in such a short time.
Those who had more experience could deal with pressure better.
No matter how envious or resentful they were, there was nothing they could do.
After taking a moment to catch their breath, they had to go back to their positions and get ready for the next take.
Despite how tired they were, they had to keep smiling and fighting!
“Okay, wrap it up, you guys.”
“Yay!” The trainees with shooting queues for the day cheered happily.
Finally, they had passed through this battlefield.
“Damn it.
Been too crazily long,” An Junsa muttered, his voice not loud, not soft.
“I’m exhausted, my cheeks ache from smiling too much,” Wang Qi slumped down on the floor.
Today must be the day he smiled the most in his life.
Smiling from ten in the morning until one in the afternoon, plus almost another hour of individual close-up shots.
From shooting to checking the results, it added another hour.
Overall, they received the signal to wrap up filming at four in the evening.
Saying they were exhausted to death was not an exaggeration.
Today must be the most exhausting day of their lives.
They had to leave the apartment while it was still dark to come to this studio, spend hours getting his makeup and hair done, then spend several more hours being manipulated on stage.
There was no energy left to maintain any image.
If they didn’t care that their clothes might get stained, they would probably end up lying on the floor without any embarrassment.
Even Jacan himself almost didn’t make it because the producers and directors wanted perfection in various angles and styles, demanding perfection endlessly.
If it was a music video shoot for ordinary artists, it wouldn’t take this long.
But with nearly a hundred people involved in the shooting and the need for coordination and professionalism like professional idols, it became a tough challenge for both the crew and the contestants.
“But Big Bro Jay, you’re amazing.
No matter how many rounds you dance, you never miss a beat,” Im Kureum looked up with respect at the oldest person in the show.
After getting to know each other in the dressing room, most recently, the head producer’s son managed to become so close with the older guy that he allowed himself to be called by his nickname, despite having known each other for just a day.
The snare skills…
cough, the exceptional social skills of the group’s new member made the chicks, who usually followed Jacan like loyal minions, look at him with envy as if their eyes were burning with fire.
So, the big brother allowed everyone to call him “Jay” as they pleased, hoping that Wang Qi’s pouting cheeks would return to a full smile again.
“It’s because I practice frequently,” he practiced until two am.
every day for a whole week in a row, plus he had to go teach the Class E kids, so how could he not remember the moves?
“I thought I’d practiced a lot already, but when it came time to perform, the stress just built up without me realizing it,” then he made mistakes, prompting the director to order a cut with an irritated expression.
“Managing stress is something you have to learn and apply to yourself,” Jacan patted the little brother on the back.
He couldn’t really give advice on this one.
Everyone had different ways to relax.
Some things might work for someone, but if others tried them, it might just add to their accumulated stress instead.
After a short conversation, the production team attached long stairs to all four sides of the stage.
The trainees lined up to go down one or two at a time, leaving only Class A, who were on the highest platform, to descend as the last group.
“Woob!”
Jacan furrowed his brows when he noticed that the shadow under his feet wobbled slightly, so he raised his head and looked up at the ceiling…
“!!!!”
“Watch out!” The younger boy quickly pulled Im Kureum and Wang Qi towards him, jumping back several steps from where they had been standing.
Thunk!
Crash!!!!!
The spotlight that should have been securely attached to the beam above fell down heavily, hitting the floor right where many trainees from Class A and Class B had been standing.
If it hadn’t been for the timing and their positions, no one would have been seriously injured or killed.
However, the shards of glass that flew in all directions would cause wounds that would require time to heal.
And if unlucky, hitting a critical point might require withdrawing from the program.
No, if the injuries were that severe, the police officers would order a halt to the filming.
The younger boy frowned, his brows knitted, looking at the remains of the spotlight with a pensive gaze.
Was it an accident or deliberate?
But with the angle and trajectory of the fall being uncertain, if they hadn’t noticed the change in the shadow underfoot, both he, Im Kureum, and Wang Qi would have been much more severely injured than anyone else.
“You are not allowed to move from your current position under any circumstances!!” Im Heewoo shouted loudly, afraid that the contestants would panic at the unexpected event and rush down the stairs without caution.
They might end up falling on each other or stepping on shards of glass that they couldn’t see, causing unnecessary injuries.
“The outer row walks out slowly first.
Once that row is clear, the next row can follow.
The lighting technician should go up and check why the spotlight fell.
And don’t forget to take pictures of the damage.
Director, did you have cameras set up earlier?” After the producer finished giving instructions, he walked up to inspect the incident with the team responsible for documenting it.
“If it’s an accident, so be it.
But if it’s not…
we need to gather evidence thoroughly.”
“Should we notify the police?” Im Heewoo’s assistant held the phone, ready to dial the number of the nearest police station.
“Yes, we must.
And what about the technicians upstairs?
Have they reported anything?” The middle-aged man asked back.
“It seems to be an accident,” the young assistant woman said after she scrolled through to find the contact of the technicians upstairs, inquiring about their initial assessment.
“If that’s the case, let’s just inform the police as well,” he replied.
Whether they would come or not was another matter.
Accidents happened on sets all the time.
The police didn’t pay much attention unless there were serious injuries or fatalities.
“I’ll check on the trainees to see if anyone’s injured.
As for those who are okay, let’s take them for dinner first.
Don’t let them get tangled up in the accident scene,” Im Heewoo raised his hand, rubbing his forehead.
On the first day of the big shoot, an incident occurred.
And it was a significant one.
If the spotlight had fallen during filming…
he didn’t want to think about the extent of the damage.
Thank you, thank you, God!
The injured trainees numbered only twelve, all with minor cuts from the glass fragments.
After washing with saline solution, applying antiseptic cream, and covering with gauze, they were all treated.
“Thank you so much for pulling us out,” Wang Qi and Im Kureum thanked their older brother from the show who had helped them escape the precarious situation.
If it had been someone else standing there, it was unknown if they would have had the presence of mind to help others.
They might not have noticed that the spotlight was about to fall.
Or even if they did, they would probably just stand there, frozen and unable to react.
“It’s okay.
Fortunately, none of us were seriously injured, right?” Jacan inspected the two boys from head to toe.
They were closest to the incident site, so it was likely they had more injuries than the others.
“No.
I got a small cut on my right arm from the glass,” the boy with a man bun showed his forearm, which had a torn sleeve to treat the wound.
Unfortunately, he had taken off his outer shirt when the incident occurred, causing the glass shards to scratch his arm and draw blood.
“As for me, I got cuts on my hand and neck, but they’re just superficial,” Im Kureum showed his injuries.
He had raised his hand to protect his face just in time.
Otherwise, he might have been injured on his cheek or some part of his face.
Still, he had managed to avoid the glass cutting his neck.
“What about you?” Even Kim Jiseong was not spared.
He was close to An Junsa, about ten steps away from where the light fell.
Luckily, he was wearing a complete outfit, with only a torn part of his outer shirt, so he wasn’t injured inside the cloth.
As for An Junsa, he had been pushed away by him, so he had no injuries like himself.
“I…” Jacan winced, about to say that he was fine, but then felt pain in his wrist.
As he extended his arm to pull the two boys towards him, the sleeve of his shirt rolled up, exposing the inside of his wrist, causing it to be struck by some of the glass fragments that were scattered everywhere.
“Brother, you’re injured.
Why haven’t you treated the wound?” Wang Qi stepped in to inspect the injury, urging the older person to head to the nurse’s office.
“It just started hurting,” Jacan argued weakly, not daring to admit that he had been so focused on observing everyone’s expression and behaviors for any signs of abnormality that he hadn’t realized he was injured himself.
Compared to learning combat arts with his dad, this wound was nothing.
“Uh, brother,” the boy let out a sigh, gently pulling his older brother to sit down on a chair in the infirmary.
Then he went out to fetch the medical team to help treat his brother’s wound.
“Sorry about that,” Jacan smiled weakly, letting Wang Qi take care of him.
“Even if it’s just a scratch, wounds must be treated,” the nurse’s stern voice emphasized.
Especially wounds caused by glass fragments had to be treated immediately, as they could contain hazardous substances.
Even the waste had to be properly disposed of as hazardous waste.
“Whoever’s done with their wound treatment can go pick up their meal at the reception room.
We’ll eat here today and then head back to the apartment,” before Jacan could reply to the nurse, one of the team members walked in to announce the abruptly changed schedule.
The director and the producer still wanted to wait for the police officers, but if no one showed up, they would let the kids go back to rest.
“Sorry about that.
I’ve just started feeling the pain myself,” Jacan resumed the conversation.
“You guys can go get your meal.
I’ll follow after the wound is treated.”
“But I want to go with you, brother,” Wang Qi protested.
“Then can I ask you to grab some kimchi fried rice for me?
I don’t know if there will be any left by the time I get back,” Jacan tried another approach to avoid making the others wait for his wound to be treated.
“Okay,” Wang Qi and Im Kureum agreed, yielding to the older person.
They walked back to the reception room where the team had brought boxed meals for dinner.
“Today looked quite intense.
We got quite a few injuries,” Jacan remarked as there were no minors present.
He then put on a friendly socializing mask and said, “Working this hard, don’t forget to ask for plenty of O.T.
pay.”
What was the friendly socializing mask like?
It was the gentle demeanor and expression of the young man that made listeners feel relaxed and not suspicious of the subtle questioning.
“That’s true.
It’s hard to believe such a thing could happen,” even though accident statistics on the film set were relatively high, who would have thought they would witness a scene like this one day.
“It’s fortunate that nobody got seriously injured to the point of needing to be taken to the hospital,” she remarked.
Today, she had to deal with the unstable emotions of the children, almost to the point of madness.
Yet, she patiently answered every question with a smile, embodying the professionalism expected of her.
She accumulated stress without even realizing it.
When she met Jacan, who empathized with her, she inadvertently slipped into discussing matters that only she and her team should know.
“I thought these kinds of things only happened in dramas.
Facing it in reality is somewhat terrifying.”
“Right?
I’ve only seen it for the first time myself.
Even in the nursing unit, we mostly treat falls and twisted ankles.
We’ve never had to deal with glass injuries from falling lights.” She didn’t want to think about what would happen if it had hit someone on the head.
The program would have to be immediately suspended because someone would have died.
“If this were a detective investigation movie, events like this shouldn’t just be ordinary accidents; they would be carefully orchestrated traps to mislead people,” Jacan raised his hand to stroke his chin, his face revealing a pensive expression akin to a cartoon detective in one animation.
He elicited laughter from the nurse, almost causing her to fall off the chair.
“Yeah, that’s right.
Haha, you’re really funny,”
“How’s that for a hypothesis?” he continued teasingly.
“Sorry about that.
It’s definitely a real accident.
We don’t need to worry.
We can continue the competition with peace of mind,” the team reassured, much like how they spoke to the trainees earlier.
However, their tone carried more gentleness, as their playful banter had helped alleviate some of the stress accumulated over time.
Jacan stealthily observed those reactions, absorbing every detail, even the movement of their pupils and the tension in their necks and shoulders when discussing the spotlight accident.
The other party’s demeanor showed no suspicion or concealment whatsoever.
Could it be a real accident after all?
…
…
To dispel doubts, while everyone was resting and asleep, Jacan relied on his memory of the camera angles and their blind spots to stealthily enter the room of the head producer.
Since the other side was still preoccupied with the accident scene, they hadn’t returned with the trainees and some of the crew.
Dressed as a sanitation worker with a black medical mask, Jacan quietly placed a cleaning bucket in front of the room before using the master key to enter the room of the head producer.
There was no sign of suspicion or wrongdoing, not even a glance in another direction.
Click
His blue eyes swept across the room, not too big or small.
Once he saw what he needed, he slipped inside the room immediately.
Beep
‘If the PD hasn’t left the computer in this room, I’ll have to check another one.’
The computer emitted a single beep sound, indicating that it was functioning normally and ready to use, which he considered lucky.
Mum had once told him that when she was still a trainee and had to go on her first mission, she never wanted to go on a mission herself again because she felt embarrassed by her actions at that time.
At that time, Mum had to hack into the computer to retrieve the deleted data, but she had to sit down and repair the computer first because the graphics card wasn’t plugged in properly.
When she got home, she just realized why she didn’t take out the hard disk instead of opening the case to fix the graphics card for them.
Jacan shook his head, chasing away pointless thoughts.
His slender fingers danced rapidly on the keyboard.
The sound of tapping was neither loud nor soft but echoed faintly within the dark room.
“Alright, let’s see.” The young man began by checking the CCTV cameras inside the studio to see if anyone had tampered with the spotlight before the shooting.
Besides the electrician, there was no unfamiliar face.
If that was the case, then he had to check further…
“An accident occurred on the set of the Star Fight shoot!
Were there many injuries?” Dong Hyunin, who had just landed from the plane, hadn’t even had a chance to catch his breath when he received the alarming report.
In an instant, he pictured the gentle and delicate face of one of the contestants without realizing it.
Could that kid be injured?
“More than ten people were injured, but none of them were seriously hurt.
Preliminarily, it’s suspected that the accident occurred due to improperly securing the fixture to the overhead beam, causing the spotlight to fall,” the middle-aged assistant reported.
He felt fortunate that the incident happened after the shooting was completed.
If it had fallen earlier, he didn’t even want to think about the potential loss.
“And what about the police?”
“Since it’s confirmed to be an accident after inspection, the police just called to inquire.
There was no dispatch of officers for investigation since no one was seriously injured or filed a complaint,” he explained.
It was understandable that the police would consider it just an accident during shooting.
Without any serious injuries or complaints, they wouldn’t bother sending officers.
“Please contact Im Heewoo and have him meet me,” Dong Hyunin furrowed his brows.
While he understood the police’s procedures, he couldn’t let things slide so easily.
“Understood, sir.
When should I schedule the meeting?” the golden-handed assistant picked up his tablet to update his boss’s schedule.
“Today will do.” There was no time to waste.
“Also, help clear my schedule for the next two days.”
“Got it, sir.
Where will you be heading?”
“To the Star Fight program,” he replied.
He needed to express sincere remorse as the backstage presence of the show.
No matter what caused the incident, he had to apologize first.
…
Wang Qi with the group of injured friends was summoned to gather in the infirmary room.
Initially, he thought they were called to have their wounds cleaned, which was true.
But after that, he was summoned to the adjacent reception room where Producer Im Heewoo and President Dong Hyunin were seated…
President Dong Hyunin!!!
Holy!
The SKM Ent.
President!!
“Please, have a seat,” the most senior Im Heewoo, and the show’s owner, gestured towards the solo sofa opposite.
When he saw the other party reluctantly take a seat, he promptly broached the topic at hand.
“I’m Im Heewoo, the PD of this show.
You must already know.
And this gentleman is President Dong Hyunin, the president of SKM Ent.” Even without an introduction, he should already know.
“With regards to the recent incident, we sincerely apologize for causing injuries, both physical and mental.
The SKM Ent.
board has decided to offer medical expenses and compensation to all those affected.” Dong Hyunin slightly lowered his head, showing genuine remorse, letting the victims know that the company didn’t take the situation lightly and wouldn’t let them suffer without remedy.
Before turning his head to allow Im Heewoo to present the prepared envelopes.
“Oh, um, I-I wasn’t really injured much,” Just a slight scratch from the glass.
It’s starting to scab over now.
“But if we had been working properly, you wouldn’t have been hurt,” Dong Hyunin slid the envelope containing the medical expense and compensation check forward again.
“Please take it.
Let us compensate for the mistake that happened.”
Wang Qi felt awkward, looking left and right nervously, afraid it might be some sort of prank for a variety show.
But as he made eye contact with the SKM Ent.
president, the notion that it was merely a playful test disappeared in an instant.
“Then…
um, I’ll take it, sir,” Wang Qi reluctantly agreed.
In truth, Wang Qi didn’t really care much about the injury he sustained.
Being young and not severely hurt, he was also afraid that if it escalated, the show might be ordered to shut down by the police, causing them to miss out on valuable publicity.
“As a relaxation measure, the president will take all 99 of you, to an amusement park for some encouragement and morale boosting.
Then you can come back and resume the competition,” Im Heewoo explained the suddenly inserted schedule.
They had no choice but to make this adjustment as they failed to discuss compensation for the damages on the day of the incident, which led to the president, who had just been informed due to being abroad on business, calling a board meeting to urgently find a way to prevent subsequent damage from criticism.
Or if the news were to leak out, at the very least, they had already shown sincerity by apologizing and compensating with a certain amount of money since the incident occurred, rather than waiting for the news to break before showing responsibility.
Wang Qi walked out of the certification room shortly after.
His gaze didn’t focus on anything in particular, just feeling like he was dreaming.
The path back to the dorms wasn’t far from the certification room.
Trainees who came to treat wounds like him were gathered, talking quietly.
And among them was Im Kureum, who was drawing the group’s attention.
“Hey, how much did everyone get?
Let’s have a look,” the leader of Class B tore open his own gift envelope first.
Then he took out the check inside and counted the zeros one by one.
“Unit, ten, hundred, thousand…
million, ten million!
Wow, I got ten million won, boys!
Who got more than me?” The head PD’s son bragged, puffing out his chest proudly.
“I got twelve million won.”
“Ten million won.”
“Fifteen million won.”
“Eight million won.
It seems like it varies depending on the injury you got,” he said, with just a scraped wound on his hand that bled a bit.
It wasn’t a major injury like others’.
“…,” Wang Qi listened and immediately went into a daze, bowing his head to look at the white envelope in his hand.
He stared at it as if he could see the numbers inside.
Even with just a scraped wound, they got that much…
what if it were a serious injury!!
“Ouch!” The young man with a man bun raised his hand to cover his forehead when suddenly he was attacked without warning.
“What are you spacing out for?” It was Im Kureum who flicked a piece of paper at the younger boy’s forehead.
“Hehe, just lost in thought for a bit,” he casually replied, hoping for a shortcut to wealth!
“Have you decided what you want to play in the amusement park?” The head producer’s son initiated the conversation and pulled the young boy into the group of injured people.
“I want to play with the roller coaster,” the young boy’s eyes sparkled with excitement when he mentioned the amusement ride, while the other party grimaced in disagreement.
“Aren’t you scared?”
“Well, it’s because it’s scary, that’s why it’s fun.”
“…” Why didn’t he feel any fun in this?
“So, where are we going?” being half-dragged and half-pulled along for a while, Wang Qi just realized that he wasn’t really close with this Im Kureum guy.
“Sigh, you need to be more careful, you know?” you’d been dragged around for so long and you’re just now asking?
“Let’s go to the cafeteria.
Dad…uh… the PD is treating us to some famous bakery cakes as a treat for the trainee kids.
If we don’t hurry now, someone else might snatch all the delicious ones.”
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier, bro?” Wang Qi didn’t let the older brother drag him anymore, instead, sped off on his own.
“Wait up!”
…
“We’re down to the last person now,” Dong Hyunin leaned back against the sofa.
From the moment he got off the plane yesterday until today, he barely had a moment to catch his breath.
“Sorry, I underestimated things,” Im Heewoo bowed his head in admission.
Despite having years of experience in the industry, he had never experienced such a shocking event before.
In the past, it was always minor incidents like twisted ankles, cuts, or petty arguments on set that they could easily brush off.
“Has the police finished collecting evidence?” The young president rubbed his nose bridge.
“They said they’ll go in today.
It’ll probably take another two to three days before they can determine if it’s an accident or if someone intentionally caused it,” speaking of the police, the older ones seemed to regress to childhood, afraid of being caught by adults for misbehaving.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think it through.
I made it difficult for Hyunin again.”
“The police who were called on the day of the incident refused to come because they saw it as a minor matter.
Therefore, Dong Hyunin contacted someone he knew in the police department to send officers to investigate.
He was concerned that the incident might appear to be an accident caused intentionally.
Since some people were injured, they accepted the case and promised to investigate the scene today.
“All the trainees placed their hopes and dreams on our program.
If problems arise, big or small, we must take responsibility first.
If they take it to court or sue us, we will be the ones who suffer.
Paying 100 million won today is nothing, but if there’s a lawsuit, it won’t just be a small loss anymore.”
“I’ll remember it, I’ve troubled you to handle things.
I’m really sorry,” the head PD, whom everyone in the program feared, slouched, making himself look even older.
“Let the last person come in.
After this, we’ll go wait to meet the police officers at the scene right away.”
The young president raised his head, straightened his posture, creating an image of professionalism and sincerity, just as he treated all the previous injured trainees, including his younger relative, Im Kureum.
He didn’t expect this kid would be caught in the accident as well.
Ah, no.
He didn’t expect this kid would participate in the competition.
So when he said he didn’t have time to prepare mentally, it was because he was busy preparing for his father’s own program!?
In the past, even though he was close and often talked with this younger brother, he never knew that his brother wanted to be an idol.
He thought he just liked dancing with his group of friends in class.
Moreover, he performed so well that he even landed a position in the top group in the program’s theme song.
Even so, there was not a single moment when Dong Hyunin thought Im Heewoo was using his connections to sneak his son into the program.
He knew his uncle well and also knew the reputation of the judges who were invited to participate in the selection.
Previously, his uncle had sent a list of trainees who had passed the audition for him to consider.
But due to urgent overseas travel, he had set it aside…
But knowing about it was one thing; it was Kureum’s right to seek his own opportunities.
He suspected he would have to warn the PR team to prepare for the onslaught of media attention on his brother’s son.
“May I come in, please?” Jacan pushed the door open with his uninjured hand.
Seeing President Dong and Head PD sitting in the room, he could guess why he had been invited into this room.