I Hope Love Is... [On Hold]

Interlude: Mia

 Interlude: Mia

It makes me sick
to have my heart hurt so much
when I'm thinking of you
guilt wears me down...
-translated from “Missed”
from Future Colors' first album Future Colors

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Some time earlier...

“Hyung, you know my thoughts on this matter already.” Jae folded his arms across his chest and scowled at his former manager. “I don't like the idea of Oh Dongmin still hanging around the company.”

President Kang sighed. 

“Jae-ya, you already know why I can't just fire him altogether,” he answered. “He's not just my school sunbae, but also my sunbae when I was just starting out as a road manager in BD Ent. He helped me a lot. I owe him for that. And he still knows a lot of people in the business, contacts we need.”

“He doesn't know about the internal management stuff though, does he?” Shingu asked from where he was leaning against the wall by the door of Jae's study. 

“No. Despite what he claims, he never needed to know. There's no problem in that area.”

“Good,” Jae said, drumming his fingers on his desk. “He's enough of a problem as it is. Sorry, hyung.”

“I suppose as long as he stays away from the talents now, it might be all right,” Mia spoke up. “That's what you mean, right, Ahjusshi?” 

“As long as he stays away from them,” Jae stated. “He might have gotten away with what he's doing, if he was still in BD Ent., but not here.”

“Gotten away with it?” Shingu snorted. “He'd have been running the whole show and everyone else would have been clamoring to get in on the action and trampling on all their talents just to get there. That's BD Ent. you're talking about.”

“And that's why we're not there anymore.” Jae waved a hand. “Where are you putting Oh Dongmin, hyung?”

“I thought we could use him in the publicity department because of his connections,” President Kang said. “That way the publicity director gets to ride herd on him.” He gave Jae a sly look.

“Huh. Jaera noona won't hesitate to smack him down if he gets out of line.” Jae chuckled. Royal's publicity director was one of his older sisters, who owned her own PR company.

Mia had no trouble at all imagining the look on Oh Dongmin's face when it sank in that his boss was a young woman. And one who wouldn't stand for any nonsense, either. 

“He'll be the one running around making coffee,” she commented. “It will be good for him.”

“Entirely right,” Jae agreed. “Of course I would be much happier if he were out of the company altogether, but... I guess this will do for now. Now who gets to tell everyone the good news?”

* * *

It might have been good news for Future Colors, but definitely not for Manager Oh, who declined to have dinner with them, although perhaps “decline” would be inadequate to describe how he did it. Mia hadn't the heart to send him off to a hotel at that hour of the evening, especially as he wasn't in his own country, and besides, he would be leaving the next day anyway. So she generously sent Myungseok up to his room with a tray. The maknae grumbled that it was a waste of good meat, and upon his return reported that his former manager had slammed the door in his face after taking the food.