Chapter Text
Seulgi sat back in her chair, hands finding their way through her hair. Eyes closed tightly shut, she sighed deeply and thought hard. And for quite long. Joohyun cocked her brow, forever impatient with Seulgi’s pensiveness.
“...It’s scary.”
Such simple words. Joohyun let out an almost mocking laugh. “That’s what you said when we were debating whether we could even run a company in the first place. That’s also what you said when we hired our first staff member. Or when we moved headquarters. I feel that’s your answer for my every question.”
Seulgi opened her eyes, taking in the woman next to her. So sharply dressed, her face so well enhanced with makeup, eyes ever intense and searching, reflecting the city lights as they passed outside the car window. One could easily tell Joohyun was older - the maturity of her look, the way she carried herself, her confidence. Joohyun would have hated to hear such a thing, but it was true. Seulgi felt like even more of a hopeless child next to her.
“It’s true. I’m always scared.”
Joohyun adjusted the watch on her wrist. “...I am to. But all the steps we’ve taken so far have done us well, haven’t they?”
“I would say so,” Seulgi muttered. She didn’t regret any of the decisions they had made, no matter how scary they were. “That’s the problem, though. Everything we’ve accomplished so far has been through hard work. But this…. This is truly just up to chance.”
Seulgi trusted Joohyun. Seulgi trusted her more than anyone else in life - Seulgi had wondered if she could see the future, as she always knew what to do and what to say. So of course she trusted her in this endeavor. Joohyun always knew what was best for their company was not in contention - it was the thought of giving their hard work away to someone they didn’t even know. Someone who could tear it all down in one idiotic move and leave Seulgi and Joohyun and every staff or model who worked for them without a job. Seulgi was responsible for a lot, and was responsible for handing that responsibility to someone responsible.
Her hands found their way back to her temples - it hurt just thinking about it.
Joohyun immediately slapped her hands away, remarking that she was going to mess up her perfectly done ponytail. Smoothing out the disruption, Joohyun let out her own sigh.
“There is luck in it, but we’ve done all we can. This person is the head of one of the largest broadcasting companies in all of Korea - surely selling our company to them couldn’t be a mistake. They’ve been around for a while, so they know what they’re doing. Even if they’re changing management.”
Seulgi glanced to her. Joohyun also seemed to be a mind reader. “Changing management?”
Joohyun nodded, her earrings jostling. “The current CEO is retiring. Apparently he’s handing the company off to his granddaughter.”
Seulgi’s brows shot up. “There’s going to be an even bigger company than ours run by a woman?”
“Not only that, but she’s younger than even us.”
“Really? How young?”
“22.”
Seulgi’s eyes widened. “22? She’ll be managing a business fresh out of college?”
Joohyun shrugged. “Seems so. I heard he was waiting until she graduated just so he could hand it over. She’s been in the grooming for it.”
Seulgi leaned back in her seat, watching the light wash over the car’s ceiling. “Wow. All I got for my graduation was a pat on the back.”
Joohyun laughed, a delightful sound not heard often.
Seulgi may have owned her company for 7 years and gone to an uncountable number of business negotiations, but they had never been this… fancy. Stepping out of their car with the help of their chauffeur, Seulgi immediately looked up to see the endless miles of building that stretched before her. She remembered feeling the same way when she first saw the high rise building that now had her company name sprawled across it - remembering such a day made the intense feeling of reality wash over her. This was happening. This was real. She had made it this far.
The gentle hand on her back grounded her and the pair made their way up the concrete steps, bowing to the doorman as they made their way into the hotel. Seulgi was used to glaring gold used everywhere, the expensive chandeliers that draped from the ceiling for unnecessary lengths, and especially the people all dressed in suits with their best “business faces” on. But for some reason her heart was pounding like never before. She was so nervous - what ifs and trepidations ran through her head, and try as she might to reason herself out of them, her own imagination was far too powerful. She let Joohyun drag her from the door to the lobby desk, and then to the elevator. Looking into the mirrors that surrounded them, she was pleased with herself that she didn’t look as nervous as she felt. Nothing worse than seeming inexperienced or like she didn’t know what she was doing - she had enough trouble being taken seriously as it was. But, she thought, that was also when she was alone. Whenever Joohyun was with her, she felt more sure of herself and was taken more seriously. She smiled to herself for some reason.
The doors of the elevator opened and they were ushered down a hall to enter a massive, massive room bustling with energy. It was that perfect balance of noise and silence that Seulgi had grown accustomed to relate with the upper class- a dull roar of business deals, treachery, and haughtiness thats dark sound was accented by the ping of forks against plates. Quite different from the entrance of the hotel, filled with almost the absence of any sound at all and populated by only the staff. Who knew only 12 stories above was such a clamor. The pair followed the woman at the entrance and Seulgi was so focused on not hitting any of the round table’s chairs or passing waiters that as she sat in the chair that was thoughtfully pulled out for her, she let out a sigh. They were seated at the very edge of the room, flush against the wall-length windows that allowed a breathtaking view of Seoul and its expansive, bright-colored lights. Not quite higher than many of the high rise buildings, but high enough to provide a beautiful view of the city, even the Han river. Seulgi was the one seated right against it, and though she had never been one to consider herself afraid of heights, she made a grand effort not to look too far down. She instead looked at the menu before her, placed her phone face down on the table, smoothed out her dress, moved her chair foreword, and looked up to greet the person in front of her. Any words immediately died upon her lips.
“A pleasure to meet you, Miss Kang.”
Words spilling from perfectly red, perfectly shaped lips. Black, shoulder-length hair pushed behind an expensively adorned ear after a deep bow. Perfectly manicured nails upon perfectly long fingers. She was locked in place, locked in time by a smouldering dark gaze that was enhanced by perfectly applied makeup. Was it smouldering on purpose? Or was Seulgi just intimidated by this woman and her extremely…. Pretty face? Seulgi didn’t know. In fact, she hadn’t even asked herself such questions because the minute she looked at the woman, all her thoughts stopped.
“I am Park Sooyoung, current CEO of BBN Broadcasting Corporations. This is Miss Son Seungwan, Chairman of our relations department and corporate vice president.”
The woman across from her bowed to them both, and as they bowed in return, she muttered her greetings. Seulgi was too nervous and deep in thought to notice her lingering gaze upon Joohyun.
“I am Kang Seulgi, as you know already,” she said, praying her voice wasn’t shaky. Joohyun had always reassured her she looked calm and collected at all times, but Seulgi could hardly believe her with how much her heart pounded in these moments. Perhaps her makeup was doing more hiding than enhancing. “CEO and founder of RF Management. Bae Joohyun is my corporate vice president. It is a pleasure to be doing business with you today.”
As Joohyun and herself bowed again, a waiter requested their orders. Miss Park -she reminded herself that being older, she needn’t use such formalities- glanced to Seulgi, and Seulgi hesitated unintentionally before shaking her head, refusing anything. She didn’t like to eat during these types of discussions, and it seemed Sooyoung felt the same. As the man left, Sooyoung placed her hands on the table where her menu used to be, glancing up through thick lashes as she spoke.
“I would like to get to business immediately. Before we start, do you have any questions for me?”
Seulgi was quiet for a few moments. She had a habit of thinking quite evidently before she said something. Joohyun was always annoyed with such a quirk when it happened in their daily conversations - “what do you have to think so hard about nail colors for? I only gave you two options!” - but both found it handy when it came to business. Seulgi always knew it was better than speaking too soon and too quickly.
“Why do you want to buy my company? It’s not and never has been for sale.”
Seulgi had been just as shocked as Joohyun when the call came. Seulgi knew how this all worked and knew a “for sale” marker meant nothing to a bigger business with lots of money. What confused her is why BBN Broadcasting, one of the biggest broadcasting companies in all of Korea, would take interest in an on-the-rise modelling company. If they wanted to cash in on their growing popularity, they would have just bought their stocks. So why buy the whole company?
Sooyoung’s fingers laced together in thought, and Seulgi found herself watching them. So many expensive looking rings.
“My grandfather was incredibly smart. He founded this company in the 60s and by his guidance, it flourished into one of the most successful broadcasting companies in Korea, and perhaps the most successful from Seoul. He did this all through hard work and diligence, and I imagine some luck was involved as well. I am sure you, as an entrepreneur yourself, can understand. But for all that I can praise my grandfather, he did have one fatal flaw.”
Seulgi blinked. She could listen to this woman talk for hours- her voice was so unique, unlike anything she had heard before. High-pitched in an elegant way, the way she pronounced words so different from anything Seulgi had heard before. It was the kind of voice that she could recognize in a crowd, recognize from one word.
“My grandfather was very, very…. Traditional. Stuck in his ways. Stubborn. All of that. It probably helped him in many ways, in creating this business, but it meant he hardly ever listened to anyone else’s opinion. My grandfather had no interest in truly expanding, only growing. After training to be an Idol for two years, I decided that my dream wasn’t to be an idol- it was to help people become idols. To live their dreams. My father had no interest in owning the company, so my grandfather waited until I was finished with school to pass it down to me.”
Seulgi almost smiled to herself. A wanna-be idol turned CEO at the age of only 22. It was hard to believe, the way this woman spoke with such prowess and simply the way she carried herself so confidently, that she was so young, but Seulgi couldn’t be too surprised - they were in the same situation. What wasn’t surprising was that this woman could have been an idol; she had the looks, even more so than other idols Seulgi had seen.
When Seulgi began to grow more popular as a model, she had also thought of perhaps auditioning to an entertainment company, as she loved to dance and loved to sing. But the more she modeled, the more she realized she had a greater passion for helping others to rise to fame than obtaining that fame herself, and decided instead to buy the company than spend her years in the entertainment industry hamster wheel. Not to say she became nothing more than a CEO - even now she was getting booked for shoots, only with the title “CEO and Founder of RF Management” under her belt alongside “Model”. She wasn’t adverse to the idea of releasing an album or dancing, either, if the opportunity would ever present itself.
“And now that I am in full custody of his company and all of its operations, I will continue what he left and make it even better. Which finally brings us to why I wish to buy your company. With your assistance, BBN Broadcasting Company will become more than what you see. It will also become what you hear. It will become BBN Entertainment. An idol production company. Alongside other things, of course.”
Seulgi’s eyes widened involuntarily. The words settled in the noisy air with heavy importance, and Park Sooyoung seemed to know the impact, if her self-confident smirk betrayed anything.
Seulgi thought. Thought longer than she normally did. The most prominent thought in her mind was that Park Sooyoung was not just confident, not just well-spoken- she was damn smart. Seulgi knew -everyone knew- the largest companies in Korea were entertainment companies… Next to those that produced technology, of course, but Seulgi didn’t have quite the mind for that sort of business. Seulgi had only ever thought of continuously expanding her company as far and as high as it would go, and she knew that doing so would probably entail entering the entertainment industry. But she had been in no rush to get there. There were so many companies, and so many of them so big, she figured she would enjoy her success in the modeling world before even wanting to branch out and brave the scary, scary world of such intense competition. Before Sooyoung could even start selling her ideas, Seulgi already knew all of the good that such a deal could bring - as an already well established broadcasting company, exposure would be no problem. Seulgi had heard BBN’s stocks already rivaled that of JYP or YG, and the consumption of a company and the rebranding of the combined industry would mean more media exposure and especially more revenue. Of course, BBN was known for an extremely talented line of actors and actresses, so it seemed training wasn’t an issue and the quality of training was satisfactory, which would hopefully translate to the training of their idols. Such an idea was attractive, but the idea of why wasn’t all that Seulgi needed.
“If you were to buy my company, would you collapse the modeling program in favor of idol production? Would my staff be replaced with your own, or would they hold the same positions?”
As soon as the words escaped Seulgi and Sooyoung knew she was considering her offer, the self-confident smile shifted into an almost cat like grin, narrowing her eyes as she shifted her posture. It seemed her idea wasn’t the only attractive thing about her.
“No. If RF Management were to be bought, we would integrate your company within our own, which means a majority of your staff will remain, though I will of course institute a manager of my own staff above them to oversee production. I do intend to not only continue your model program as is, including the acceptance and training of new models, but expand your company’s -or I suppose the entirety of the company’s- outreach, perhaps casting locations across more of Korea, along with more job opportunities from the Broadcasting department.”
Seulgi was pleased. This company was her darling, and the thought of it being changed into something different enough to be an entirely new company, especially with the removal of her loyal and talented staff, was terrible enough for her to turn down such an opportunity. She had expected such an offer to be made, since the opposite would simply be bad business. But she had not taken her business this far, to this level of fame, for nothing.
“Such a promise is nice, but I cannot be sure of the safety of my employees and the preservation of my company’s reputation by your word alone. I would also like to state that I am very, very passionate about this company I have created, and relinquishing control will not be easy. Not only will I need a satisfactory price, which I have confidence you know quite well already, but I intend to still have a role in the dealings of my company’s department. I would gladly do so under a member of your staff, but I want to still play a part in my company’s continuation.”
Most CEOs, when their businesses are sold, will simply move on to the next big idea. That is what the owner of Seulgi’s agency did once she had bought the company - he now ran a chain of sushi restaurants in the same area the agency had been. Seulgi did not consider herself an entrepreneur, an inventor, or a particularly creative person. She considered herself the founder of her company and believed she did raise it from the ground up, as she not only rebranded it but also grew their employment from 10 models to 100. Not to mention all the staff they now employed. But she did not know how she would start a business up from nothing, from an idea. She was not a creator - she simply had passion, and was a hard worker. That is how she figured she got here. Because of that, she had never thought of anything other than owning this business until the day she retired, whether by then it was worth a billion dollars or ten dollars. Her backup plan, in case she was foreclosed or went bankrupt, was to go back to modeling, under a new, different agency - she figured it wouldn’t be hard, being as well established as she already was. Thankfully, that hadn’t happened yet, but now she was faced with a different dilemma - the thought of giving up her business to someone else. She wasn’t bent on holding the title of CEO - she was more passionate about making sure models were still trained to succeed, still given work, and still able to live their dreams. Even if that meant working for someone else. She enjoyed the notoriety of being CEO, of having no one to answer to and complete artistic direction of her own company, but she would rather be far below than have no say at all.
With such a statement, Sooyoung hummed and leaned forward, hands now before her face as she thought over such an offer. Her eyes sparkled with thought, trained on Seulgi as if looking at her would help her decide, and Seulgi found herself swallowing, shifting in her seat. Seulgi had always had trouble holding eye contact with even Joohyun, whose gaze always seemed to smother her, but this - this gaze was something entirely different. It made her feel entirely different.
“And with that, I intend for Joohyun to also be secured a position within the- our, I suppose - company.”
Sooyoung was quiet for only a few moments longer, before she seemed to relax her position, lowering her hands to the table. She glanced at the woman beside her, who met her gaze but simply arched a brow. She wore a very slight smirk, as if she had known Seulgi would ask such a question.
“I see. With this information, then, I would like to add onto my offer” she spoke slowly at first, as if she was fitting all the pieces together in her head. “Currently, Miss Seungwan holds the position of corporate VP, in which she performs the duties of both a Chief Analytics and Chief Accounting officer. She is completely in charge of our marketing department, and oversees production of our financial department. I intend for her to keep these positions, of course, but I am open to negotiation. What is it, exactly, that you want?”
Something about that question made Seulgi shift; she wondered if the nervousness that came from the importance of her answer was what caused her face to heat.
“I would like to oversee model, actor, and idol production, from casting to training, including the formation process, since I am sure we will dabble in groups. Considering my models are the most well known and well utilized in all smaller companies, it should be evident I have good control over casting. Consider, also, that a model-turned-actor from my company received within her first year working as an actor an award for best rising actress, but also for best supporting actress, and has already been casted as the lead for two movies this year, not even before her two years in work. Training, especially with my staff, will not be an issue.” She glanced to Joohyun.
“I would want the position Chief Audit executive or Chief Accounting Officer. Even if that means I would still be under supervision of Son Seungwan.”
Sooyoung nodded, eyes cast downward in thought. Her nails tapped against the table.
“All of Korea knows of Kim Yerim’s prowess.”
The voice was not from Sooyoung, but from the woman next to her. “While this is not in doubt of your capabilities, Kim Yerim’s success could only be from her talents alone, and as such her success does not truly reflect the prowess of your company as a whole.”
For the first time, Seulgi felt her eyes narrow. “I would argue it does. Kim Yerim is the first actress from my company and is indeed extremely talented, but I assure you she not only went through hours of training under my staff to perfect her craft, but her talents were only discovered by my casting agent. You should know there is a lot of acting that goes into modeling, and as such I have had an acting coach employed since the beginning of my company. Commercial and model acting is much different from what we would consider typical acting, do not get me wrong, but I have begun to employ many other working actresses as well. Park Jung Yeon was recently casted as the main in a drama that has been gaining in popularity recently, and two others have been casted in future projects. Even if I provided no acting training for my models, my casting abilities should be evident enough.”
Sooyoung was quiet still.
“As for the formation and production of idols, you realize that most of that is done through and for marketing tactics, which means you will still have to answer to the marketing team. A high position job is not possible unless you would like to be instituted in the marketing department.”
Seulgi thought for a moment. “Although I would say I have quite the skill for marketing, as my models and actresses have all done incredibly well, I am not interested in marketing so much as I am in the general production and preservation of the idols and models and actresses. If I will have to answer to the marketing department in order to sell my creations, so to speak, than I will do so.”
Sooyoung sucked in a breath. “I see.”
She glanced to Seungwan, who seemed to have nothing more to say, then at the diamond watch around her delicate wrist. When she looked up, her gaze met Seulgi’s and the playful glint returned to her eyes.
“Seungwan’s responsibilities will be shifted to focus mainly upon marketing, and you will be employed as Director of Talent, which will entail that you oversee the casting, training, and production of models, actresses, and idols, as well as the employment of staff for the purpose of training, casting, production, etc, and make executive decisions on such things as formation and release of groups, soloists, models, and actors. You will answer only to me, but my approval of your decisions and the enactment of my own decisions will be heavily influenced by Seungwan. Bae Joohyun will take over Seungwan’s role as Chief Accounting Officer and oversee all things financial, but she will answer to Seungwan. Are these conditions favorable?”
Seulgi couldn’t stop the small smile that spread itself across her face. She figured this was quite the favourable outcome. Despite her lowered position in the hierarchy, working for such a big company would probably mean her pay was about to go up, and that was all that mattered to her now that she knew she would still have control of what she wanted to control and her employees would have safety in their positions.
“They are.”
“Then is there anything more you would like to discuss as of now?”
Seulgi thought. “I have nothing more to say.” She glanced to Joohyun, who turned to her. In these situations, Joohyun would very clearly have something to say by her facial expression. But finding it blank, Seulgi turned back to Sooyoung.
Sooyoung glanced to Joohyun as well, before she smiled. “Wonderful. We still have much more to discuss, but I believe as of now, we are in business. Is that correct?”
Seulgi nodded. “We are indeed.”
The four of them all understood that their time was done, so they stood from their seats and began making their way out of the room.
Stepping back into the elevator, Sooyoung moved closer to Seulgi, pulling out her wallet and handing her a business card.
“Seungwan will be reaching out to do business about prices and the confirmation of people’s employment statuses,” she stated as the elevator began to descend.
Standing next to each other now, Seulgi realized how tall the other woman was, even though Seulgi was wearing some of her highest heels. She didn’t tower over her, but something about those few inches and Sooyoung’s overall confident, assured personality made Seulgi feel smaller next to her. She not only inherited her family’s business, but inherited the aura that made her family’s business so successful - the kind that made someone want to follow. Seulgi took the card with a slight bow, careful not to let their fingers touch.
“Hopefully, the next time we meet, you will be employed under the product of our combined business.”
Seulgi agreed, and the two shared a smile. The other woman truly was breathtaking. She looked so mature, but not in the way Joohyun did - she looked her age but had some sort of aura or look that made you in awe that she was that age. Perhaps it was simply the knowledge Seulgi had, that she was such a young woman running such a successful business- and one that wouldn’t be successful just because of her grandfather, if the smoothness of tonight’s negotiations was any indication.
Seulgi only realized she was staring when the ding of the elevator sounded and she was forced back to reality, four pairs of heels filling the silence of the main lobby.
“I almost forgot.”
As the doors to outside opened and they descended the concrete stairs up to the building, Seulgi turned back to Sooyoung.
“I was thinking... Since we will essentially be combining your management company into my broadcasting corporation to make a new entertainment industry, perhaps… we should create a new name? Unless you want it to be BBN Entertainment.”
Seulgi thought - a new name would be nice. BBN wasn’t such an attractive entertainment company name, but neither was RF.
“Your company stands for Red Flavor Management, right?”
Seulgi nodded. She and Joohyun had chosen it to be eye catching, memorable; to reflect the general concept of the models they hoped to produce, which is was new, fresh, and different. But for an entertainment industry, perhaps they needed a more formal title. Mature, perhaps.
“My grandfather named the company Velvet Feeling. I always found it kind of awkward, though I guess it makes sense when he explained it as “the smooth feeling that comes from watching our entertaining, not boring programs” or something.”
Sooyoung shifted, a smile spreading across her face.
“I was thinking we could combine our names to form our new company. I was thinking… Red Velvet?”
Seulgi thought. Red Velvet. It sounded good. Mature, but flavorful. Memorable but not too unique. She smiled to.
Seungwan mentioned their ride was here, and Sooyoung turned to see. She quickly turned back, and her hand pressed against Seulgi’s arm, giving it an almost reassuring, quick squeeze. She smiled that cat-like grin, with that playful glint in her eye, and Seulgi felt her heart stop for some reason.
“It was a pleasure doing business with you, Kang Seulgi,” she muttered softly, winking before turning to follow Seungwan to their black vehicle. As she left, Seulgi let out a breath and shivered. She tried to convince herself it was from the cold rather than the warm feeling that spread in her stomach when the woman had touched her, when she had stared at her with such an intense gaze.
Joohyun smiled behind her.
“I like that. Red Velvet.”