Chapter 35: Chaos

Bear Bookstore boasts two flagship stars.

Daniel Villack, hailed as the greatest Canadian writer of the 20th century.

Kwon Yongsu, celebrated as the greatest Canadian writer of the 21st century.

These two, as if splitting eras, transformed global literary styles.

The literary world often sees them as rivals, and rightly so—their styles and paths couldn’t be more different.

Daniel…

His representative works include Time, Bird of Death, How to Drink Blood, and Twelve Indians.

Especially Twelve Indians, which won the Nobel Prize for Literature, proving Daniel was no ordinary writer.

Our views are too different.

I see the world through a realistic lens; Daniel observes it through a third eye.

This difference sparked disagreements.

Over time, an invisible rift grew.

It culminated in a fight at a party.

“Daniel seems to want to reconcile.”

“…Is that so?”

Honestly, I didn’t start that fight—Daniel did.

I was young, too.

Disagreements are natural, but pride got in the way.

At least no fists flew.

If it had come to blows, it wouldn’t have ended so lightly.

Hearing he wanted to reconcile was a relief.

“Well… I’m over it now.”

“That’s good to hear. It’ll make our preparations easier.”

“…”

I’ve changed since then.

I’m still a work in progress, but I’m moving in a new direction.

Meeting him again, I don’t know what’ll happen, but we won’t fight.

“Oh, we’re here.”

Our car, cruising through LA, arrived at the hotel.

“Wow…”

“So big!”

The kids’ eyes widened at the hotel’s grandeur.

For meetings like this, the publisher typically books a high-end hotel.

Even if it wasn’t for Orange TV+, they’d reserve something this nice.

“Rest well. I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning.”

Loony left, and the kids stared blankly at the spacious room.

“Wow…”

“It looks so fancy!”

“Ugh…”

Their reactions varied.

Hye-yeon was speechless with awe, Yuri was snapping photos, but Jiyu, exhausted, could barely keep her eyes open.

“Come on, Jiyu. Let’s wash up and sleep.”

“Nooo… Jiyu’s clean…”

“Just brush your teeth, then sleep.”

“Ugh…”

I grabbed a toothbrush from the suitcase.

The hotel had some, but kids need softer bristles, so we brought our own.

“Uncle… Jiyu wants strawberry…”

“Got it.”

Regular toothpaste was too strong for Jiyu’s taste.

Instead of mint, we brought cola or strawberry-flavored ones.

“Up we go.”

I lifted the drowsy Jiyu.

“I’ll help Jiyu brush. You two unpack.”

“Got it.”

“Leave it to us, Uncle!”

Hye-yeon was still stunned, but Yuri seemed to find it fun.

I took Jiyu to the bathroom.

“Sis, look at this.”

As I headed to the bathroom, Yuri grinned and showed Hye-yeon her phone.

“What’s that?”

“Check the likes on SNS! I posted hotel pics, and they’re blowing up!”

Yuri had uploaded hotel photos to SNS.

She posted some selfies, but mostly hotel shots, amazed by everything.

“Lots of comments too?”

“Right? Right?”

“What do they say?”

“No idea.”

Posted just minutes ago, the post already had dozens of likes and comments.

Most were from Adele Louis fans, not Yuri’s followers.

The problem? Neither Hye-yeon nor Yuri could read English well.

-Adele Louis is here? OMG!

-This hotel’s an hour from my place! I’m coming now!

-Adele Louis in LA? Is he signing with Orange TV+? That rumor was true?

-Fuxk! Fuxk! I’m on my way! Adele Louis is back!

-First time out in years! Damn, I’m meeting Adele Louis!

-I’m sweating from excitement! The greatest writer’s in LA, and I’m supposed to stay home?

-I’m going! To Adele Louis! Join me!

-Fuxk! It’s right nearby! I’m running!

Maybe it was better they couldn’t read English.

If they could, they’d be overwhelmed by the comments.

“They’re probably saying the hotel’s pretty.”

“Maybe? But there’s a lot of cursing.”

Even without knowing English, everyone recognizes American swears.

Words like “excitement” and “Fuxk” stood out.

Good thing they couldn’t read more, or they’d be shocked.

“Alright, Jiyu, time to sleep in bed.”

As they read comments, I came out of the bathroom, holding Jiyu.

Too tired to hold on, she’d fallen asleep on my shoulder.

“What are you all doing?”

“Uncle! Uncle! Look at this!”

Yuri beamed, showing me the SNS post.

My face darkened as I scrolled.

I’m screwed.

I’d forgotten about my fans.

-Ring ring ring!

As I stared at the phone, the hotel front desk called.

It was probably too late to fix this.

Adele Louis is a recluse.

No one knows where he goes or what he does.

His face is known, but Westerners often can’t distinguish Asian features, so unless you bump into him, he’s practically invisible.

So, when word spread that Adele Louis was in LA, his long-suffering fans went wild.

I’m screwed.

The front desk called, saying a crowd was gathering.

Off-season, sorry.

The security guards were probably freaking out.

I never reveal my whereabouts, so I didn’t expect this.

“Um… Uncle? Did I mess up?”

Yuri looked at me anxiously.

I patted her head.

“Don’t worry. It’s no big deal. Just be careful next time.”

“I’m sorry… I’ll be careful.”

“Good.”

It was her first time, so I understood, but repeated incidents could be dangerous.

Fans weren’t the only ones—reporters were likely here too.

This won’t do.

I’d planned to take the kids around, but with this attention, that was impossible.

As I pondered what to do—

-Ring ring ring!

My phone rang.

Already frazzled, I glanced at it annoyed.

Benjamin.

Does he know about this mess?

I answered.

-Author! You’re in the U.S., huh?

“Yeah, just got here. Saw the SNS, huh?”

-Yuri posted it, right? Haha! Bet you’re in a bind now.

“Yeah. The front desk just called, but I’m worried about tomorrow. Those people might camp out.”

-Reminds me of your old fan signings. Same vibe.

For signings, I had to announce my presence.

Held at bookstores, cafes, or schools, fans would camp out the day before.

-Why’re you here, anyway?

“Well…”

What to say?

The meeting with Director Andre and casting was confidential.

“Meeting with Orange TV+.”

-So the rumor’s true? Rat Hole rights and Director Kihyung Kang directing?

“Not confirmed yet.”

-Wow…

Benjamin’s voice trembled with awe.

I chuckled.

“What? Want the lead role?”

-Hell yeah! You casting me? I’m in!

“Confident about going bald?”

-Sure! I’ll shave it off. What’s a bald head?

Rat Hole’s dark underworld setting required everyone, male or female, to be bald.

Only the wealthy could grow hair.

The protagonist had to be shaved.

“Nothing’s set. I don’t control casting. Anyway, why’d you call?”

-Oh, nothing big. I mentioned grabbing a meal last time. Eaten yet?

“Not yet.”

-How about the hotel restaurant?

“With this chaos?”

-Yeah, reporters are keeping you from sightseeing with the kids, right? I’ll fix it.

“How?”

-I’ll ask my girlfriend.

“…What?”

Benjamin has a girlfriend?

Maybe he hid it from paparazzi.

-She wants to meet you. If we show up at the hotel, attention on you will die down.

“That’s… a lot to ask.”

-Don’t worry. We were gonna go public anyway. What do you say?

I glanced at Yuri.

She said she was fine, but her head was still bowed, looking glum.

“Alright, let’s do it. Who’s your girlfriend?”

-Crissy. Know her?

“Crissy?”

The only Crissy I know is the singer.