Chapter 143: From 1% to Nationwide Obsession

“What? Who’s that in the background?”

On my way back from lunch, I happened to catch a glimpse of a coworker’s phone wallpaper and asked about it.

“Oh~ This is Jung Jaehyun.”

“Jung Jaehyun?”

Unlike her, who tilted her head in confusion at the unfamiliar name, the junior standing beside her immediately grinned from ear to ear, looking thrilled.

“Sunbae, do you watch dramas too?”

“Yeah!”

“Kyaaah~ Isn’t it just so freaking fun?”

The two of them grabbed each other’s hands and bounced around, stomping their feet in excitement.

“Totally! Lately, I’ve been counting down the days just for this—waiting for Mondays!”

A white-collar worker waiting for Mondays? Even the woman who’d been tilting her head perked up at that.

“What’s it about?”

“It’s Love Some! It’s a drama, and it’s seriously so good!”

It was a drama I’d never heard of before.

“I got totally hooked on Jung Jaehyun the second I saw it.”

“Me too! Me too! I’m completely obsessed. Like, how can a person even look like that?”

“For real. I was watching it with my boyfriend and got such a shock. Suddenly, there was this squid right next to me.”

“Puhaha! Sunbae, you’re too much~”

“I’m not kidding! For real!”

The two of them were so busy chattering about this actor named Jung Jaehyun that they could barely catch their breath.

“Sunbae, you have to watch it! It’s pure gold—total binge material.”

“That good? I haven’t been keeping up with dramas lately…… But you don’t usually watch them either, right?”

It was surprising to see someone who always complained about not having time for stuff like dramas get so sucked in.

“This one’s different. I stumbled on a binge-watch compilation on NewTube and got totally reeled in—I binged the whole thing in one day.”

“What’s the plot like?”

“It’s based on a webtoon, a time-slip story? But the drama version is way more fun than the original.”

Webtoon adaptations usually felt too cheesy for my tastes, but her push was so enthusiastic that it sparked my curiosity.

“Huh. Guess I should check it out.”

“There’s a binge-watch playlist on NewTube—start with that. You won’t be able to stop once you do.”

“This drama started with just 1% ratings, but now it’s up to 8%!”

“Is that high?”

She’d only ever watched dramas sporadically, so she had no real sense of what counted as good numbers.

“Of course! These days, tons of dramas barely hit 1 or 2%, so 8% for a Monday-Tuesday slot? That’s a massive hit!”

“Oh~ I see.”

“Sigh, I just want to hype up our Jaehyun so bad…… But I’ll hold back.”

The junior buried her phone against her chest as she said it.

“You don’t even need to hype it—once you watch, you’ll fall hard. Isn’t Jaehyun just the cutest?”

“Right? Cute, handsome, cool, lives life on his own terms. Ugh, seriously—where can I find a younger guy like that?”

“What would you do if you did?”

“Lock him up at home. The world’s too dangerous these days.”

“Hahaha!”

Their genuine enthusiasm as they bantered back and forth convinced her she had to see it. 

So, the moment she clocked out that day, she fired up NewTube and searched for ‘Love Some’.

“Whoa, there’s so much stuff.”

It wasn’t just binge compilations—there were shorts, behind-the-scenes clips, press conference videos, and all sorts of drama-related content scrolling endlessly.

‘I’ll just skim a bit and bail if it’s lame……’

She hesitated a little at the thought of committing to a full drama, feeling like it might make her seem out of the loop if she didn’t. 

After mulling it over, she clicked on the binge-watch video for episodes 1 and 2 with the highest views. And that night, she didn’t sleep a wink.

“Ha…… Is Kang Ha freaking insane or what?”

Before watching, Jung Jaehyun had just been “Celebrity #1” to her. Now, he started sparkling like a star.

***

“Hyung, my eyes aren’t messing with me, right?”

There’s a line that suddenly famous celebrities often say.

‘I went to bed normal and woke up a star.’

Never in my wildest dreams did I think it’d become my story.

“Jaehyun-ah!”

“Ah, stop shoving, seriously~”

“Make way!”

Once the drama premiered, I was jetting off to overseas fan meetings every weekend. At first, it was just, ‘Wow, bigger crowd than usual today?’ 

Then it turned into, ‘Huh? Wait, what?’ And now, the second I stepped out of the car, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

“Uh……”

Hayoon, who’d just gotten out of the car with me, went speechless at the sight of the swarm of reporters and fans gathered like a thundercloud.

“Jaehyun-ah~”

“Look over here!”

“Here!”

If they hadn’t been calling my name, I’d have assumed some famous idol was heading out.

“Hyung…… Think we can make it through?”

“Hold on—let me get ready, and you fix your clothes quick. Grip your bag tight so it doesn’t snag.”

There was a grim resolve in Hayoon’s voice. 

We straightened our outfits and stepped into the airport, only to find even more people inside.

“Don’t push!”

“Jaehyun-ah~ Look this way!”

“This is a gift!”

“Damn it, move aside already.”

Reporters, fans, and curious onlookers all mashed together in total chaos.

“Sorry. Sorry.”

All I could do was bow my head and keep apologizing.

“Who’s that? Why’s he causing such a scene?”

“What a public nuisance at the airport.”

“Is he an idol?”

And then came the voices criticizing the spectacle. I totally got it. 

Dragging this many people into a public space and causing trouble for everyone.

I had no idea it’d blow up like this……

Just a little while ago, it hadn’t been anything like this. So why now?

“Haa…….”

“Hyuuung…….”

By the time Hayoon and I finally squeezed into the departure lounge, we were utterly drained.

“I think I’m done for the day. I just wanna go home……”

……Me too.

We collapsed into chairs, barely catching our breath, while up front, fans who’d made it past security were snapping photos of me.

Lotta new faces here.

Most of them were total strangers.

“I didn’t realize the drama would hit this hard.”

“Neither did I, to this extent……”

I’d been tracking the rising ratings and buzz steadily, so I knew things were going well. But this?

“Jung Jaehyun!”

As I sat there dazed, a familiar voice called from the side. I turned to see Jibin.

“Oh! Hyung!”

“Hey~ You big star now?”

Jibin sauntered over with a teasing grin.

“Star? Nah……”

“I saw the whole thing earlier—don’t play coy! I thought some idol was debuting internationally or something.”

“It’s not that bad.”

“Man, it pains me to say it…… But yeah, I admit it.”

“Admit what~?”

“That you’re a star now.”

I’d only snagged a bit of flash-in-the-pan popularity from one hit drama. Still a long way from real stardom.

“I’m not there yet.”

“Everyone around me’s losing their minds over you!”

“Probably ’cause of Kang Ha, not me.”

It was a character even a guy like me could fall for, so that reaction made sense.

“Jeez, with all this chaos, and you’re this chill? Total buzzkill. Buzzkill.”

“You came all the way here just to mess with me, huh?”

“Hehe, how’d you guess? Hey, with a breakout like this, you gotta treat—something good!”

“I’m broke right now.”

I’d blown through my account balance treating the Collision staff to this and that during filming.

“Whoa~ Coming at me with the cheapskate vibes? Never pegged you for……”

“For real! You know damn well drama ratings going up doesn’t mean extra cash for me.”

Just like you don’t get hit with payback if a drama flops—no bonuses for a smash hit either.

“There was an article this morning, though?”

“What article?”

“Jung Jaehyun Ascends to Ad World’s Blue Chip Status?”

“Me? Really?”

Kingdom Entertainment.

“Hahaha, oh~ Yeah, we’ll review it and get back to you. Yes, yes~”

“Please send it via email, and I’ll confirm and reach out. Thank you~”

Every single staff member was glued to their phones, repeating the same lines on loop.

“Minhee-ya, sports brand emailed—review it and pass it my way.”

“CEO…… No way……”

At Hyungkyu’s words, Minhee shook her head gravely.

“Huh? Why not?”

“My inbox is about to explode. Hahaha……”

Her soulless laugh, like she’d checked out entirely, left Hyungkyu speechless.

“A-alright. I’ll handle it.”

He’d predicted the drama would do well, and he’d been spot-on. But he hadn’t expected the reaction to Jaehyun to explode like this.

‘If he can just solidify his lead role spot, that’ll be great’—didn’t think it’d go full supernova.’

Of course, he hadn’t gone in with zero hopes. Seeing the ratings climb steadily had him thinking, ‘Oh~ This is solid.’ Then the love line between the male and female leads ignited in the drama, and Jaehyun’s buzz detonated right alongside it.

[Jung Jaehyun Tops Hot Topic List with ‘Love Some’]

[Drama Actor Brand Reputation #1: Jung Jaehyun. #2 Jung Haewon—Love Some Sweep!]

[Let’s Be Real—It’s a Hit! ‘Love Some’ Leads Time Slot Ratings, Tops Buzz]

[Top Actor Men Want to Cherry-Blossom View With: Jung Jaehyun]

[Jung Jaehyun Crowned Nation’s First Love via ‘Love Some’. Fans Everywhere Nursing Kang Ha Heartache]

No need for the agency to push promo articles—the headlines poured in on their own, and curiosity about Jaehyun’s every move skyrocketed.

“CEO, Jaehyun’s airport article just dropped—sounds like it was insane there today.”

“I was already looking into security, but that many people?”

He hadn’t checked the scene himself amid the pile-up of work.

“Articles are blowing up—airport turned into a warzone.”

“This is a fan’s straight-shot cam; you should see it.”

The near-real-time airport footage showed utter pandemonium, with Jaehyun and Hayoon smack in the middle.

“Fans are ripping into the actor care, too—like, how do you send just one manager? Total mess.”

“Haa…… Send out an apology article first, then call a security firm right now. Have them ready for his return.”

Right now, keeping the noise down mattered more than anything.

“Got it. Oh! And a call came in from the ‘The Forest Painted by Clouds’ side.”

“From them? Why?”

“They want to do a joint interview for movie promo?”

“Jaehyun’s role is under wraps. We agreed to keep it secret till release, right?”

It was supposed to be a surprise cameo—sudden interview request felt off.

“The interview’s for after the film’s out, later release. With Jaehyun blowing up, they don’t wanna miss the wave.”

“……”

No reason for us to turn it down. “Okay, greenlight it.”

With director Park Seongho and writer Lee Yeonhee? Bound to be a hit. Could give Jaehyun another boost.

“I’ll head out for an external meeting then—call if anything comes up.”

“Yes~”

“Take care!”

Hyungkyu left the office in a rush and arrived at a major production company.

“CEO! You’re so busy these days—thank you for making time.”

“Hahaha, no trouble at all.”

“I’ll show you in. This way…….”

In this industry, where popularity was power, the drastically warmer attitude from last time didn’t irk him—it felt downright satisfying.

‘Kid’s really made it this far.’

Guided by the staff, he strode into the conference room with his head high. And there sat the director of ‘Sending You to Him’.

“CEO, this is our director.”

“Nice to meet you. Kim Hyungkyu.”

“And this is the CEO from Jung Jaehyun’s agency.”

“Pleasure.”

Hyungkyu shook hands lightly with the director and took seats across the table.

“I heard Jaehyun responded positively to our script.”

“Oh~ Hahaha, word travels fast, huh?”

They’d only heard he took the script with an audition in mind, yet the production company reached out first.

“I won’t beat around the bush.”