'Chauffeur Dong, take me to the studio.'
There was no sign of the girl at the studio. I wondered if she got to change those clothes. Oh well. It wasn't my problem anymore. Manager Ahn was passing by, talking on the phone. He stopped at the sight of me.
'I thought you were supposed to go directly to the dinner,' he said astonished.
'Uhh... I wanted to pick up Soo-Yon hyung,' I lied.
'Ah, Soo-Yon? He is sleeping in the waiting room. I was about to wake him up in a while. Good. Now that you're here, bring him with you.'
'Yes, Manager Ahn,' I said, bowing down. Sigh. Might as well get hyung. Mia might just turn up at the dinner.
'Hyung!' I shook Soo-Yon hyung's sleeping figure.
'Cheng is that you?' he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes.
'Duh.'
'I thought you wouldn't be back till tomorrow,' he yawned, turning over to sleep again.
I threw a pillow at him. Hyung was a deep sleeper. He could sleep for thirty hours straight.
'Hyung! Don't fall asleep again!' I hit him with a pillow.
'Five more minutes,' he said sleepily.
'Your five minutes turn to five hours!' I complained. 'Wake up! There are gonna be tons of beautiful ladies at the staff dinner. I don't wanna miss it!'
That wasn't a lie. Staff dinners were great places to pick up women. But I doubt the women from the staff would fall for my charms anymore.
Hyung let out a string of curses.
'The nice and kind leader of TNT is cursing!' I joked. He threw the pillow at me. I moved aside to dodge it.
'Get ready,' I laughed.
By the time we reached the restaurant, everyone was there already. They were waiting for us. We always tried to keep good relations with the staff. Unless my occasional break ups with the female staff are counted, I got along with most of them. But everyone loved Soo-Yon hyung. He was our leader and strength. TNT would not have survived without him. I would not have survived without him. Manager Ahn dedicated a toast to us and Soo-Yon hyung stood up to thank everyone.
We heard the door open. It was Mia. She was late. She changed her clothes, I noted. She was now wearing a black jacket, tightly zipped in the front.