CTFI 02

Chapter 2

After finishing all the urgent work, I went to bed early the night before.
I slept well and woke up, even had breakfast.
Warm sunlight, refreshing morning—surely, an ordinary day.
Ah, except for one thing…

A few hours before arriving at Clef Entertainment,
Jin Dohyeon drove into the underground parking lot.
Cars of all colors and brands greeted him—his cherished “rides” all lined up.

“Which one should I take today?”

Humming a familiar melody, his long fingers brushed past each car.

“PD Jin Dohyeon?”

His fingers paused.

‘A reporter so early in the morning? How long has it been since I moved?’

His eyebrows twitched.

“Right? Oh, I’ve been looking for you for a while.”
“…Who are you?”

Jin Dohyeon sent a calm but sharp gaze.

“Hello? Representative Yoon sent me.”
“…?”
“Oh, you didn’t hear? I’m your manager from today. Nice to meet you.”

The man bowed politely.

‘They even gave me a manager? Well, I guess that’s expected.’

Jin Dohyeon smiled and got into the black van.

‘They spent some money, huh?’

VIP seats, a mini-fridge, even an air purifier—it definitely showed they spent well.

“Then, let’s go.”
“Yes, thank you.”

The manager in the driver’s seat had a warm, friendly aura from the first impression.
He looked like a teddy bear—could even pass for Yoon Taejin’s brother.

Jin Dohyeon crossed his long legs naturally.
At that moment, a bundle of papers on the passenger seat caught his eye.

“This is a new program Lumis will be joining.”
“…?”

He tilted his head and picked up the papers.

<Our Family’s Youngest>

‘What kind of title is this? A sitcom?’

At the same time, the manager added an explanation.

“You know ‘JinTube’? It’s a YouTube channel mainly covering variety shows.”
“Oh, yes.”
“This is a program produced by them.”

Hmm… carrot or stick?
They said “go on variety,” and now it’s real variety.

“Do you remember the childcare diary?”

Jin Dohyeon lifted his head and met the manager’s gaze in the rearview mirror.

“You mean the one done by the seniors from O.N.E?”

<O.N.E’s Childcare Diary>

A reality program where the idol group O.N.E takes care of babies themselves.
Their clumsy parenting, the authenticity emerging from their mistakes, and the laughter, emotion, and family love captured the hearts of the nation—an iconic variety show that made O.N.E even more beloved.
They were already a top-tier group, but after the show, they became the “national group,” adored by everyone.

“Yes, who knows? Maybe Lumis could become a national group like the O.N.E seniors.”
“Hah.”

Jin Dohyeon gave a hollow laugh.
That was only possible because they were O.N.E seniors.
Would it really be different just because Mangdol, Lumis, is doing it?

“I’ve glanced at it—it seems fun. Though it’s a pilot program, which is a bit disappointing.”

‘Pilot?’

His eyebrows twitched.

‘Not carrot, stick it is.’

A pilot program—it’s just a test.
If views are low or responses are poor, it’s gone.
Of course, for Mangdol, any program is fine for exposure…
But ‘I could practice singing or dancing instead during that time.’

He slowly brushed his lips with his long fingers, slammed the papers down, and tossed them to the side.

“Not looking further?”

The manager asked via the rearview mirror.

“Yes, I think that’s enough.”
“Still, it might help to at least take a look…”

Jin Dohyeon narrowed his eyes in confusion.
But the manager only smiled mysteriously.

At that moment, he felt as if his whole body was floating—comfort like drifting on water.

‘Wow… this guy drives smoothly.’

And soon, sleep overcame him.

Click-click!

“So cute!”
“Why is he so good at this?”
“Born talented, definitely!”

A bunch of young(?) kids were taking photos of Jin Dohyeon with their phone cameras, screaming “Kyaa!”

“….”

Even more absurd, his body—accustomed to photos—was responding involuntarily.
Chin on hand, tilting head, even winking naturally posing.

Across the table, Yoon Taejin, arms crossed, watched silently, finally speaking.

“…You brought a kid you don’t even know?”
“Yes! Isn’t he adorable?”
“Is he joining our actors too?”
“Where is he appearing?”
“Oh dear…”

Yoon Taejin sighed and rubbed his temples.
Only two people in the meeting room were serious; the rest were already losing it.
Shouting “Hand!” or “Cheese~,” taking photos, even handing snacks the kid wouldn’t eat.

‘Am I a dog?’

“This kid, sit still!”

…Didn’t disappoint expectations.
Jin Dohyeon sighed, shaking his head.

“What’s your name?”

Yoon Taejin asked.
Ha… how many times must I say it?
I’m Jin Dohyeon!

“Phew… how many times! I’m Jin Do-hyung! Jin Do-hyung!”

He tapped his chest with his tiny hands out of frustration.
Suddenly, the room filled with screaming.

“Kyaa!”
“Really, too cute!”
“My heart hurts!”
“Jjing-doyeooong!”

‘No, this isn’t real! This… this is a dream!’

Trying to pinch his cheek to deny reality,
“No! Don’t hurt the pretty face!”

Two or three people pounced to stop him, hugging him.

‘Company perks are nice—security even!’

Yoon Taejin held his head, looking frustrated.

“The kid’s face… that’s not the point…”

‘Exactly.’

Trapped in the employees’ arms, Jin Dohyeon nodded.

“Have your parents seen you? You didn’t get lost because of them, right?”
“No! I was waiting for the elevator!”
“Is that so?”

Yoon Taejin leaned forward, making eye contact.

“Who came to see you? Do your parents work here?”

Damn, Taejin! You came here looking for me!
Jin Dohyeon shouted, full of rage like a gamer risking his life, dressed in green tracksuit.
But…

“Pig! Taejin hyung!”

The words came out wrong.
The staff burst into laughter.

“Pfft!”
“He said pig!”
“Boss, lose some weight! Kids have sharp eyes.”

The time they shared.
Big and small events only they remembered.
Nights raising a toast, dreaming of creating a company for artists together.

Jin Dohyeon desperately tried to prove he was really ‘Jin Dohyeon.’
Finally, Yoon Taejin seemed to believe him, a little.

“So… you’re really… Dohyeon?”
“Yes! How many times do I have to say it?”
“Uh… you? So…”
“Ah, really! Ta-da!”

Jin Dohyeon waved his short limbs, shouting.

Still frustrating, but he learned a few important(?) things during a private moment with Yoon Taejin.
First: speaking quickly garbles his pronunciation—maybe because his tongue got shorter with the smaller body.
Second: the manager who drove him in the morning—Yoon Taejin denied sending anyone like that.

‘Then who drove me this morning?’

Third: in this small body, swearing transforms into strange words.

“Ao!”

Jin Dohyeon nearly lost it at the absurdity.
But Yoon Taejin, suspicious, still stared at him.

“Hmm…”

An adult suddenly turned into a child?
‘Does that even make sense?’

Yet the child knew things only Jin Dohyeon would know.
Another thing:

“Damn it!”

Jin Dohyeon rubbed his back against desks and chairs like elders at a spring.
Even perfect Jin Dohyeon had a flaw: stress made his back itchy.
During idol days, this earned him the nickname “Dirty but Handsome” because he scratched his back so often.

“Ah! I’m going crazy!”

He started wandering the office and noticed a back-scratcher in the corner.

“Hyung, can I use this?”
“Uh? Ah, uh…”

A kid claiming to be a friend, sitting in the boss’s chair, scratching his back with a back-scratcher.
Only they knew the story.

‘Contextually, it’s Dohyeon…’

Makes sense mentally, but hard to accept reality.

Knock-knock-

“Boss, the writer is here.”

A staff peeked into the room.

“Writer?”
“JinTube writer.”
“Ah!”

Yoon Taejin rushed to open the door.
Standing there was the cute writer responsible for JinTube <Our Family’s Youngest>.

“Oh! Writer! Why no contact?”
“B-Boss! I’m really sorry!”

The writer grabbed Yoon Taejin’s hand immediately.

“U-uh, if you do that…”

Yoon Taejin blushed.

‘Wow.’

Jin Dohyeon clicked his tongue.

“The kid scheduled to appear suddenly got scared, crying and causing chaos… But don’t worry! You know these days parents secretly like their kids being on shows. The parents are still positive…”

So the situation was:
The kid refused to appear, threatening the program.
Thanks to this, Lumis was at risk of being removed before the show even started.

‘Tch, Mangdol really has no luck.’

Jin Dohyeon shook his head.
The writer pushed up her glasses, eyes sparkling.

“Who is this kid?”