“Enough of this!”

I slammed the table and glared at her.

She glared back as if about to eat me.

If it were two years ago, I might cower in fear from that look alone.

But unlike the naive me back then, I shouted while clenching my fists.

“I wrote half of the script! A freaking half! Didn’t you promise to put my name as a co-author?!”

“How many times has this been? It’s one thing if your script was perfect, but with all the editing I need…”

“What are you talking about? You only edited the dialogue. Everything else was perfect.”

“That’s up to me to decide. Not you. Of course, the first draft is yours. But since I need to rewrite this quite a bit, there’s no way you can claim the final script as yours, right?”

“Then don’t even use what I wrote. Aren’t you supposed to be a top writer? Do you have no shame claiming what your assistant wrote as yours?”

“Who said I claimed your writing? I was inspired and improved on it.”

“Sophistry. Do you want me to report you?”

“Go ahead.”

“...What?”

“Haha, look. You might not know since you are young, but this industry is not all fun and play.”

“Cut the crap. What’s your point?”

“Tch. So impatient. This is why high schoolers are… Let’s say you reported me, what of it? If I denied it, then that’s all there is to it.” 

“You’re bluffing.”

“Just try it. Between the words of a mere high schooler and a top writer, especially someone with a clean reputation and deep a connection to the entertainment industry like me, who do you think people will believe?”

A detestable smile.

In the past, I must have been such a blind idiot to think of that smile as a kind one.

As she said, outwardly, she has a clean reputation. She’s even well-liked by strangers because of her generous and friendly attitude. This is why when I heard that she had no writing assistant and was reaching out to me, who had won a writing contest at the time, I thought this was a golden opportunity to fulfill my dream.

But the truth was ugly.

In the first place, it was weird for a top writer to claim that she never had a writing assistant, especially given her insane productivity. 

But what’s the truth?

She recruited several people like me in private and stole our work. That’s the secret behind her productivity. It must also explain why she could consistently publish works in various genres, unlike most writers who specialize in one or two. 

I’m not sure if the other assistants are also like me—someone who desperately needed money to survive and couldn’t find a job simply because no one wanted to hire a minor. But from what I’ve seen so far, she must have taken advantage of them in some way.

“Top-writer…”

Is that what I need to be to bring you down?

If no one would hear me because I’m a nobody, I just have to be someone big enough to trample upon her.

“Fine…”

I resolved.

“You get it?” 

“Yeah.”

“Good. Then stop with this nonsense and get back to work. If you bow down and beg, then I might let this slide and–”

“I quit.”

“... What? – Aack!”

I threw my script stack to her face and walked towards the door.

“How dare you?! Are you going to oppose me?!”

I didn’t say anything.

There’s no need to say anything.

“This kid… are you serious? Have you gone crazy?”

A mocking laugh.

“Yes. Try all you can. You will soon realize what it means to oppose me. If I say the word, there’s no way you will succeed anywhere. No one. Not a single person would ever help you–”

I closed the door and walked down the quiet road.

My name is Duho. Do Duho.

An aspiring writer.

And also the one who will take down that bitch, Gu Gyuri, and become the best writer on earth.

This was the story of an underdog rising to the top, of David vs Goliath, of a young boy who struggled to achieve his dream against all odds.

FebyA

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