TT was in a very good mood lately. He had no choice but to be. The drama *Fight School*, which he had recently worked on as an OST producer, was achieving great results. At this rate, it might even break the 20% mark in viewership ratings. Consequently, the OST of *Fight School* was also receiving a lot of love, making TT happy.
But the reason he was happy wasn’t simply because his song was doing well. The music chart ranking of “Rebel Anthem,” which he had ambitiously prepared, was unusual every day. It took first place on the music charts after only the second episode of the drama and had maintained that position until now.
It wasn’t just the music chart ranking that was good. As “Rebel Anthem” held the top spot for a long time, the interest that had been focused only on Tae-ha and the drama naturally flowed toward TT as well. At first, the entertainment agencies of famous singers who hadn’t paid any attention to TT no matter what he did started contacting him. Now, even the four major planning companies wanted him. Although they only wanted to see if they could get a song from him, TT couldn’t help but feel good. He was being recognized again through his own music.
The surprising thing was that he had predicted this to some extent since the moment he decided to give “Rebel Anthem” to Do Tae-ha. And this was another reason why TT felt happy. Not only was he recognized as a composer, but he was also recognized as a producer.
Looking back, meeting Tae-ha was a stroke of incredible luck for TT. It was to the point where TT now accepted this luck as destiny. Tae-ha’s potential as a singer was that immense. It wasn’t just about Tae-ha singing well enough to rival the main vocal of a decent idol group; Tae-ha had a special ability that didn’t just grab the listeners’ ears but devoured them. TT discovered this the day he first met Tae-ha, which was why he decided to give him “Rebel Anthem.”
Furthermore, Tae-ha had incredible star quality. Not only were his abilities as an actor, writer, and singer outstanding, but he also possessed top-tier public recognition. TT felt the same way. Even if Tae-ha didn’t pursue singing, he was a person who would become the most brilliant star among many stars. Just being an actor or a writer was enough to achieve that, and he was already doing both.
This was why TT had clung to Tae-ha and talked about releasing a solo album. TT wanted to prove his own skills even if he had to hitch a ride on the coattails of a great star like Tae-ha. However, no matter how much he pleaded, Tae-ha didn’t seem to have any intention of releasing a solo album. TT, who had no way to persuade Tae-ha, was in a situation where he could only be frustrated.
But then…
“An opportunity arose.”
Tae-ha started working in a workplace band named Free Kill. Even the members of Free Kill, whom he checked with his own eyes, weren’t bad. First of all, the vocals were handled by Tae-ha, so there was nothing more to say. In addition, there was one more vocalist, Kim Gun-yul, whose singing ability was as excellent as Tae-ha’s.
With just two vocalists, the band’s potential for success was infinite. Free Kill was such a band, and the members’ instrumental skills were also beyond expectations. Above all, the decisive factor was that Tae-ha wanted to release an album under the name of Free Kill. To TT, there was no fact more important than this.
TT provided unsparing support for Free Kill to take shape as a band because he caught a glimpse of this potential. To find usable instruments and a practice room for Free Kill, he even reached out to an acquaintance he had lost contact with four years ago. All this was carried out based on the single thought that Tae-ha might release an album under the name of Free Kill, so his devotion could be described as great.
Did TT’s sincere desire reach him? Finally, a decisive opportunity arrived. The scale of the fan meeting Tae-ha chose for Frill’s first stage grew uncontrollably. It was clearly not a stage where they could just show one practice song and call it a day. So, TT didn’t miss this opportunity and brought it up.
“Since things have turned out like this, why don’t we just release a mini-album? I actually wrote a good song after being inspired by seeing Frill’s practice.”
It was a message that all the Frill members were steadily approaching their dreams, even if it might look a little slow to others. It was a song titled “We Are Getting Closer,” carrying that meaning. Fortunately, the members really liked this medium-tempo song. A strength of “We Are Getting Closer” was that its tempo wasn’t fast, making it easy to play and harmonize. Thus, Frill’s practice aimed at the fan meeting began in earnest.
Meanwhile, the film *Ghost Ship*, starring Kang Sojeong and Lee Seok-hyun, was finally released. With the release of *Ghost Ship*, Tae-ha once again received a lot of attention. One reason was that the short acting Tae-ha showed in *Ghost Ship* was more impactful than expected, and the other was that *Ghost Ship* succeeded in drawing 3.17 million viewers in just one week of its release.
This meant that, barring other variables, *Ghost Ship* was highly likely to break ten million viewers. Once again, a work Tae-ha appeared in had achieved unbelievable success. As a result, jokes and serious comments started circulating in the industry that any work would succeed as long as Tae-ha was included. Since the broadcasting world originally had a strong tendency to rely on superstitions, such rumors spread in an instant.
However, the reaction from SNS and various communities was even more intense. People started thinking of Tae-ha as a totem for the success of a work. In fact, like a kind of meme, it became popular to save a good photo of Tae-ha on one’s phone and send it as an emoticon whenever they wished for good luck or success.
For that reason, Tae-ha’s recognition, which was already piercing the sky due to the popularity of *Fight School*, literally broke through the stratosphere. Because of this, TT, who was closely and interestedly watching these reactions, couldn’t help but have expectations.
‘Is our mini-album going to be a hit too?’
Tae-ha’s recent reception was great enough to make such a hasty judgment. Of course, even so, one would only know after opening the lid. Public reaction was something humans couldn’t easily predict. Amidst this atmosphere, *Fight School* finally came to an end.
***
The final scorecard for *Fight School* was a 20.6% viewership rating. Unfortunately, it failed to overcome the wall of ITBC’s all-time third-highest viewership rating, which he had secretly hoped for. It wasn’t easy to exceed the 23.8% mark.
However, reaching the 20% mark in his first solo-lead role was a sufficiently encouraging event. This was especially true because it far surpassed the 18.4% rating of *People Who Were Scattered*, which was originally the fourth-highest rating in ITBC history.
This was a huge success not only for Tae-ha but also for the writers of *Fight School*, Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong. The proof was the immense number of production companies contacting the two to sign contracts for their next work.
Not only production companies but also broadcasting stations were in an uproar. In particular, tvM, which had to miss out on *Fight School* due to scheduling issues, was deeply regretting it. This was especially so because the viewership rating of the work that competed in the same time slot stopped at only 2.8%. The conclusion was that they should have secured Tae-ha’s work, which carried the energy of success, even if they had to push for it.
In fact, tvM conveyed words of apology to Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong. Along with this, they left a request for the writers to definitely work with tvM on their next project. Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong were receiving such massive love calls.
However, the two knew. They knew this success wasn’t something they achieved just because they did well. This was also the reason they proceeded with a contract for their next project with Salamander Studio once again, despite numerous production companies contacting them. They acknowledged that Salamander Studio’s contribution to this success was not small. It was a natural result since it was CEO Choi who initially grouped the two as co-writers.
Thus, the two proceeded with separate contracts for their next projects with Salamander Studio. While it was true that their synergy was good, they couldn’t continue co-writing forever. Regardless, the two knew very well that this success was not theirs alone.
And the person these two pointed to as the main character of *Fight School*’s greatest success was none other than Tae-ha. It had to be that way. If it weren’t for Tae-ha, the work might have started with doubt and distrust and eventually met a disastrous end.
Furthermore, Tae-ha not only had a unique presence as a solo-lead actor but also consistently visited the set and encouraged all the actors, improving the quality of the work. Therefore, the two couldn’t help but evaluate Tae-ha’s contribution as the highest.
Of course, that didn’t mean they thought they hadn’t accomplished anything. However, they believed such results wouldn’t have been possible without Tae-ha.
Perhaps because of this, interest at the wrap party gathered mostly toward Tae-ha. The recent success of *Ghost Ship*, which drew a lot of attention to Tae-ha, also seemed to have a significant influence on creating this atmosphere.
For Tae-ha, it was a burdensome matter. While it was true he made a great contribution to the success of this work, Tae-ha believed the protagonists of the wrap party should be the writers, Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong. After pondering for a moment, Tae-ha made a decision. He decided to intentionally stay by Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong’s side until the wrap party ended.
Thanks to that, the atmosphere around Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong remained bustling until the wrap party was over. It was an atmosphere where even a third party could tell where the protagonists were.
And finally, at 4:35 AM.
Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong approached Tae-ha as he was about to go home after the wrap party. Then, the two of them bowed their heads deeply toward Tae-ha.
“Mr. Tae-ha, thank you.”
“Pardon? For what?”
“The wrap party. You intentionally stayed with us the whole time so we could shine.”
“Ah. You caught me?”
“We couldn’t help but know. We’ve come to know you quite well by now.”
“Haha. I’m embarrassed.”
“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. This situation allowed us to see what a wonderful person you are, right to the end. Anyway, we’ll be able to see you often in the future, right?”
Lee Hyun-seung asked, and Park Hee-jeong also looked at Tae-ha with a hopeful gaze. Tae-ha watched the two of them and responded with a bright smile.
“Of course. I want that as well.”
What Tae-ha gained from appearing in *Fight School*… among those things, the greatest was the connection with Lee Hyun-seung and Park Hee-jeong, which should have been cut short by death. He had reconnected that bond.
***
One week after the *Fight School* wrap party.
Finally, Tae-ha’s very first fan meeting began.
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