Kim Mingwa's career was a sinking ship, and today it finally hit the iceberg. She stared blankly at the flashing headlines on her phone, her breath catching in her throat.
Scandal Erupts Between D-list Actress And Kwon-0 CEO!
The words blurred as panic set in, her mind racing through the possible consequences.
This was it—the end of everything she had fought so hard for. Years of clawing her way up from oblivion, only to be thrust into the spotlight for all the wrong reason.
And all because of HIM.
With trembling hands, she scrolled through the article, each sentence a nail in the coffin of her career. The CEO of Kwon-0, the most powerful entertainment company in the industry, had a reputation for being untouchable—a playboy with a trail of broken hearts and shattered dreams. Now, her name was attached to his, and there was no undoing it.
Mingwa's phone buzzed incessantly with calls and messages, but she couldn't bring herself to answer.
What could she possibly say? That it was all a misunderstanding?
That she barely knew the man?
No one would believe her, not when the media had already spun its web of lies so tightly around her.
The knock on her door was sharp and insistent. Mingwa flinched, half-tempted to ignore it, but the knocking only grew louder. With a resigned sigh, she pushed herself off the couch and opened the door to find her manager, Jihoon, standing there, his expression a mix of frustration and concern.
"What the hell happened?" he demanded, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation. "I leave you alone for one day, and this is what I come back to?"
"I don't know," Mingwa replied, her voice hollow. "I don't even know how it started."
Jihoon ran a hand through his hair, his usually calm demeanor cracking under the pressure. "The CEO of Kwon-0 for crying out loud Mingwa. Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you're in?"
She sank onto the couch, burying her face in her hands. "I know, okay? But it's not like I planned this. It's all that BASTARD's! fault."
"Well, you're in it now, whether you planned it or not," Jihoon snapped, his tone softening when he saw how defeated she looked. "Look, we need to figure out a way to handle this. The press is going to hound you, and the last thing you need is to make another misstep."
"Handle it?" Mingwa looked up, eyes wide with disbelief. "How am I supposed to handle this? I don't even know what they're saying about me."
Jihoon pulled out his phone and began scrolling through the news, his frown deepening with each article. "They're painting you as the seductress who's out to tame the untamable CEO. A classic Cinderella story, but with a much seedier twist."
"Great!," Mingwa muttered, sinking further into the couch cushions. "Just what I fucking needed."
Jihoon hesitated before speaking again. "There might be a way to turn this around, but you're not going to like it."
Mingwa glanced up at him, feeling wary. "What do you mean?"
He sighed, sitting down beside her. "If you can't fight the rumors, maybe… you should play along."
Her eyes widened in shock. "You want me to fake date him? Or worst actually date him!"
Jihoon shrugged, though his expression was serious. "It's not the worst idea. If the public sees you two together, the scandal might blow over, and you could even gain some popularity from it."
Mingwa stared at him, her mind reeling at the thought. The idea was insane, yet in this world of cutthroat competition and fleeting fame, it almost made sense. Almost.
"I don't know if I can do that," she whispered.
She almost had high blood pressure after spending seconds with that bastard, she might die if she spent a day with him.
Come to heaven, my child. She could already see the light.
Jihoon placed a hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to decide right now, but think about it. This could be your chance to salvage everything."
Mingwa nodded slowly, though her heart pounded with helplessness.
What choice did she have? Her career was already in shambles, and this might be the only lifeline she could grab onto.
As Jihoon left, Mingwa sat alone in the dim light of her apartment, her heart racing. The idea of fake dating the Kwon-O CEO felt surreal, like a bitter pill to swallow.
She had spent years fighting for respect in an industry where her worth was often questioned, and now she was being asked to compromise everything for a chance at redemption and who knew if he would even agree to the idea of them fake dating.
Whether the scandal blow over or not, it wasn't going to affect his position. He would still remain the CEO and she would just be the woman who tried to seduce him.
She glanced at her phone, the notifications relentless. The media frenzy was overwhelming. The only thing worse than the headlines was the gnawing realization that she needed to act quickly to salvage her career.
"Shit! Just my fucking luck.."
The doorbell rang again, jolting her from her thoughts. Mingwa hesitated before answering, her heart sinking as she saw her friend and co-star, Soojin, standing there with a concerned look on her face.
"Mingwa, I heard the news. Are you alright?" Soojin asked, another person yet again stepping in without waiting for an invitation.
"Not really," Mingwa replied, her voice tinged with exhaustion. "It's been a mess."
Soojin quickly surveyed the apartment, Mingwa's disheveled appearance, the scattered newspapers, and her phone buzzing relentlessly. She sat down on the couch beside Mingwa, her worry evident.
"I saw the headlines," Soojin said gently. "It's all over the place. What happened?"
Mingwa took a deep breath, trying to steady her voice. "I don't even know how it started, but now they're saying I'm involved in a scandal with the CEO of Kwon-O."
Soojin's eyes widened. "The CEO? That's serious. But you didn't—"