{김홍중}
"I'm tired of giving people what they want and doing things that please them. Why aren't I allowed to do what I want?"
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ATEEZ SERIES: PART 1
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c h a p t e r t w e n t y f o u r : a n e w b e g i n n i n g
You watched as Siwon's face morphed from having an expression of happiness to having an expression of anger. A dark look was present in his eye as he leaned back in his chair. "You both have contracts. I hope you didn't forget about that."
Hongjoong stepped forward, glaring at the man. "We didn't, actually. My four year contract and Jina's temporary eight month contract ended yesterday. We're choosing not to resign."
Siwon's eyes widened when he came to the realization of the situation, quickly turning to face Minsung who stood behind him, a stoic expression on his face. "Why didn't you remind me about this?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Minsung replied "I guess it must have slipped my mind. My apologies."
Letting out a nervous laugh, Siwon turned back to face the two of you with an apologetic look on his face. "Jina, Hongjoong. Let's not be too rash with this decision. Did you get an offer from another company? I can double - no triple whatever they offered you!"
The two of you stood your ground, refusing any offer Siwon would throw at you. After bantering back and forth for almost an hour, Siwon finally gave in. "You could make so much money here. So many people would kill to be in the position the two of you are in right now."
"Siwon, we don't care about the money. We want to write music that means something." you replied as Hongjoong backed you up. "Jina and I aren't happy writing for you. I hope you understand that."
Letting your words sink in, Siwon just nodded before gesturing the two you to leave. Quickly thanking him, you and Hongjoong finally left his office to go clean out your studios feeling as if a large weight had been lifted off your shoulders. As you two were waiting for the elevator, you heard Minsung calling out to the two of you.
He stopped right in front of you two, a small smile painted on his lips. "I know the two of you are planning to open your own entertainment."
The two of you were taken by surprise, unaware that the plan you two had spent so many weeks meticulously planning was quickly found out by Siwon's right hand man. Unsure of what to do next, you watched as a deep chuckle erupted from Minsung's chest as he saw your faces.
"Relax, I'm not going to tell Siwon. I wanted to ask you two for a favour." You glanced over at Hongjoong who seemed to agree to it as Minsung continued.
"Let me work for the two of you. I'll do anything you guys want me to."
Confused, you peered over Minsung's shoulder to see Siwon's office door closed before looking back at the male. "Why would you do that? You already have a stable job here."
With a bright smile, Minsung shrugged his shoulders as he stuffed his hands into his pant pockets. "It's like what you guys said back there. I'm not in it for the money. I've been working with Siwon since the beginning and things in this entertainment have changed. I don't want to work for someone who cares more about quantity than quality. So, what do you think?"
The two of you looked at one another after hearing Minsung, a clear understanding of what your decision was. Hongjoong turned back to face Minsung, a small smile on his face. "We'd love to have your help. Let's meet at my house tonight to discuss what our next plans are. Is that good with you."
Minsung eyes lit up as he nodded, thankful for the new opportunity he was given. "Well I should head back to work before Siwon gets even more mad, but thank you guys so much. You won't regret this."
You watched as Minsung head back to Siwon's office as the two of you finally entered the elevator once it arrived, heading down to your studios to gather your things.
Nightfall soon came as you and Hongjoong were already at his house waiting for Minsung. The rest of the boys were out that evening with their own plans, leaving the house empty for the three of you.
The doorbell rang as the sound chimed throughout the house. Hongjoong opened the door to reveal Minsung with a satisfied smile on his face. Curious, you asked him about it as soon as he sat down across from you at the table. With a playful smirk on his face, he shrugged of his large overcoat before telling his story to the two of you.
"I finally resigned, but since I was so busy throughout the day, the only time I managed to find to give Siwon my letter of resignation, he was in an online meeting in his office. You should have seen the look on his face."
The three of you burst out into laughter. Even thinking about the encounter made you laugh even harder. Wiping away the non-existent tears from his eyes, Hongjoong looked over at Minsung. "Did he even have the chance to yell at you?"
Shaking his head, Minsung leaned back in the chair. "I handed in my letter close to the start of his meeting. He should be calling me very soon though." as if he knew what was going to happen, Minsung's phone began to vibrate constantly, the screen filling up with text notifications from Siwon himself.
Turning off his phone, Minsung turned all his attention to the two of you. "So, what are your plans for this new entertainment?" With a smile, you pulled out a folder with countless documents and plans as you showed them to him.
"Hongjoong and I have already found a building for lease that would be perfect. It would eat out a lot of money from our budget, but we think it would be worth it."
Minsung glanced over the documents, looking at each paper intently. He looked up at the two of you, in agreement with your plan. "I think this spot is great. The building itself has its own unique shape that will make it stand out from other entertainments."
The three of you spent the rest of the night discussing and setting goals that you wanted to accomplish. With plans to buy the building the next day, you all decided to leave your meeting at that. As Minsung stood up, you stopped him, pulling out a document that he hadn't seen yet.
Confused, Minsung sat back down as you passed him the document. "One of our last orders of business is to decide who the CEO would be. Even though we are all the founders, Hongjoong and I aren't really qualified to manage this company."
You watched as Minsung's eyes lit up, quickly understanding what you were saying as Hongjoong continued on after you.
"We would like for you to be the CEO. You have a background in business management and after seeing you work for years, I don't think anyone else is more qualified for the job than you. So what do you say?"
