Meetings

That morning, Soo-Yeon was called into her agency office for an impromptu meeting. Approaching the monolithic office tower was always intimidating for her, as she rarely left its glass fortress with positivity anymore. Still, it was part of her job to attend when summoned, so there she was in the lobby, nervously fidgeting with her still-hot coffee. Minutes later she was escorted to the eighteenth floor where her bosses were already meeting in a conference room. Entering the room that she had been invited to somehow still managed to feel like entering a place she wasn’t wanted.

There was barely a recognition of her as she quietly made her way through the doorway and found a seat, uncomfortably on the opposite side of the cold table from the rest of them. Morning sunlight was already hot and stifling as it beamed through the window onto the back of her neck.

“Mun Soo-Yeon. We have an international event we need you to attend,” said the agency liaison without any fluff or formality.

The statement surprised her. She had been sure the meeting was going to be about their stagnant audience numbers that had not grown even slightly since their most recent single or attempts at social media virality.

“Oh, okay. I am happy to do my part. Thank you for considering me,” she said with a slight bow.

“We didn’t consider you, girl. You were specifically requested by the consulate. Your hometown Daegu is becoming sister cities with a city in the United States. As there isn’t much interesting in or from Daegu, you were selected as a representative delegate,” the man said nonchalantly.

This only surprised Soo-Yeon further. Compared to major metropolises like Seoul and Busan, Daegu was rarely brought up beyond those who lived there. It had been years since she’d been home, though she was always grateful for the city she had once called home. Still, it was amusing to her that Daegu’s celebrity list was so thin that a struggling K-Pop artist was being considered as a reputable envoy. Still, this seemingly meant she was being invited to the United States, which she had never visited even though she’d always wanted.

“I… I understand. What is expected of me?” Soo-Yeon asked.

The liaison pointed to an unfamiliar woman with thick glasses to his left.

“This is the consulate’s operations manager. She will coordinate the details. This is on the consulate’s dime, not ours, so we will not be involved,” he said as he put two sugar cubes into his coffee.

“My team will provide you an itinerary, appropriate media training and protocols. The event is next weekend, so we will be leaving in eleven days,” said the bespectacled woman.

“Thank you,” said Soo-Yeon as the woman stood to take her leave.

“We will be in touch soon,” said the woman.

“What city is the sister city?” asked Soo-Yeon.

The woman fixed her glasses.

“A city called Tacoma, just outside of Seattle…”

With that, she departed, leaving Soo-Yeon with her producers and agency team. No one spoke or dismissed Soo-Yeon as they began to discuss performance metrics among themselves. After a pause of hesitation, Soo-Yeon dared to speak up.

“Ummm, sir… I was wondering if you had gotten a chance to listen to any of the demos I wrote?” she asked, to which several of them sighed and exhaled.

“I know the quality was rough. I only had my laptop system and personal microphone, but I think with an actual-“

“GODDAMNIT DO YOU EVER STOP?! Foolish girl! How many times do we have to tell you that you are what we tell you to be?!” shouted the producer as he slammed his palm onto the table.

It was an unsurprising answer, but the violence of his voice and the sound of his slamming palm caused Soo-Yeon to flinch in fear and retreat. Tears of embarrassment and shocked disappointment began to sting the sides of her eyes and she decided it was best to leave without a word. Before she could fully exit, another producer stopped her.

“Did you return that practice mic?” he asked in an annoyed tone.

Thoughts of the now worthless microphone sliding in and out of her pussy as she moaned for the real thing flashed in Soo-Yeon’s mind. Inserting it inside her had of course ruined the device. Before returning it, she had thoroughly sterilized and cleaned it, then had feigned ignorance.

“I did. It was broken and didn’t work…” she said softly as she left the room.

By the time Soo-Yeon was in the elevator, her face was warm and the tears were flowing. Thankfully, she had worn a cap that shielded her face from any prying eyes. A crowd of fans had gathered outside of the building by now, but they were not there for her. As she exited the building, she looked at the ground while dozens of screaming fans jumped at the sight of a very handsome male idol exiting a black SUV. Their screams and chants drowned out the whimper that escaped Soo-Yeon’s mouth against her will as she walked past the idol and his crowd of worshippers without being recognized or cared about.

On the other side of the world, in D.C., Aiden was meeting with the Korean consulate, who was also a Daegu native, for dinner. The two men shook hands with a friendly familiarity. The consulate was a kind, elderly man who walked with a cane and only wore light to medium grey suits.

“Good to see you again, Consulate Park,” Aiden said in Hangugeo as he shook the older man’s hand.

“You as well, Representative Morneau,” said the Consulate.

The two of them sat into the booth, both groaning slightly as their knees strained. Aiden poured Consulate Oark a glass of soju before pouring some for himself. The old man smiled and exhaled.

“I received your message. I am happy the sister city proclamation ceremony preparations are almost complete,” he said as he toasted the soju.

Glasses clinked and the two of them drank.

“We’re honored to host your delegation. I know the mayor and city council are quite excited. Have you solidified your delegation?” Aiden asked, still speaking in Korean.

Consulate Park nodded as he looked over his menu.

“Yes! Along with my delegation and city representatives, we’ve selected a few of Daegu’s favored children. One of them is a K-Pop idol. Have you heard of BrightStar? Or Mun Soo-Yeon?” asked Consulate Park.

Aiden laughed to himself and shook his head.

“I’m far too uncool to know K-Pop groups anymore. But I will make sure to introduce myself,” Aiden said as he took another sip of soju.