Actually, Derin could do something that might sound a little extreme, like kicking Kaiden out of the agency, considering he was the largest shareholder and obviously held the highest authority when it came to the artists represented by the agency. But of course, he wasn't going to do anything like that. Kaiden was just an innocent kid who happened to be a little rude. The boy wasn't his match, even though he was unbelievably irritating.
It would be ridiculous to let his childish ego get the better of him. Derin let out another slightly harsh breath.
“What do you want?” Derin finally asked, making everyone turn to him with furrowed brows before looking at Kaiden.
“I want Lana! Mom likes Lana, Uncle. Mom's okay with me dating her, or even marrying her. Mom doesn't care that Lana's six years older than me, either, Uncle.”
Derin closed his eyes and steadied his breathing before looking at the irritating boy again, trying his absolute best to remain patient and calm even though he truly couldn't stand him.
“Other than that ridiculous reason—and stop calling me Uncle!”
Kaiden stubbornly shook his head.
“I'll give you anything.” Derin was just as stubborn.
Kaiden fell silent, staring at him with shining eyes. “Anything?” he asked, and Derin nodded.
“The latest iPhone,” he said, before quickly shaking his head. “Never mind! I can buy one myself.” Derin was about to lose his mind.
“Why, Uncle? I can date Lana in secret later, and no one will know we're together. Don't worry! Lana's reputation won't be ruined. If anyone talks trash about her, I'll defend La—”
“I'll give you an apartment and you stay away from Elana!” Everyone fell silent, stunned, after Derin's final statement cut off all of Kaiden's rambling.
Just look at the little brat, blinking in confusion and shock. And look at Haga, rubbing his temples in utter disbelief.
This was completely insane. Haga couldn't understand any of it. How had Derin, who was known for being calm, cold, and untouchable, ended up so flustered that he was willing to throw away his dignity just to deal with a noisy, irritating kid who was just as in love with the girl he liked? Haga had never imagined a day like this would happen in his life.
After the headache of dealing with that brat named Kaiden, they returned to their original purpose: discussing Elana's sponsorship contract and listening to everything that needed to be considered. When Yoga ordered Tama—Elana's manager—to call the girl in, Derin refused, saying that he wanted to settle everything without involving Elana first.
Like a teenager who had just hit puberty, Derin wasn't ready to meet Elana face-to-face. He wasn't ready to actually get acquainted with her. It didn't matter if Elana didn't know him yet; it didn't matter if she had no idea who he was. He wanted to prepare himself first and let everything flow naturally. Even so, everyone was baffled, since a work contract had never been handled this way before.
“None of our contracts place an unreasonable burden on the second party or the agency, and none of them cause any losses. The only possible issue might be the dating clause. We included it after seeing the negative comments Elana received,” Haga explained as he handed over the folder he had just received from Derin's legal counsel.
It contained important, confidential documents: pages of the work contract that Elana and the agency would have to read and comply with. Derin silently watched as everyone busily read through each point and clause in the contract, studying it carefully before frowning.
“Sorry, but in this clause, does it really say that Elana can't accept any other contracts?” Yoga asked, pointing to the line in question. Haga nodded in response.
“Sponsored contracts. Other than us, Elana can't accept an offer from anyone else. Endorsements on social media, brand ambassadorships, and conventional commercials are exempt. Elana is still free to take those kinds of contracts with other brands, considering that she's a model. But not sponsorships.”
Everyone nodded in understanding. In truth, Derin didn't need a business contract, especially not one like a brand ambassador contract that required Elana to constantly represent a product. That was merely his excuse. His only goal was to get closer to the girl in a way that looked natural and didn't feel forced.
After a long discussion and all the explanations regarding the work contract according to proper procedure, they talked about everything from Elana's usual activities to the girl's daily schedule. Derin let out a sigh before remembering the most crucial thing Haga had once told him.
“Elana doesn't have a personal car?” Derin asked. Her manager shook his head.
“Elana and I always use the company's van when we're going to a shoot. We need a big vehicle to carry things like makeup and clothes. But usually, the brand provides transportation to pick Elana up. As for a personal car... Elana usually borrows one from the company. It breaks down pretty often because it's old.”
Derin sighed. He clearly remembered Haga telling him that Elana was often late to shoots because the car she was driving broke down in the middle of the road, sometimes even suffering catastrophic engine failure. No wonder he often saw posts from various news accounts on his social media feed saying that Elana relied more often on ride-hailing services, which forced her to make an effort to disguise herself with glasses, a jacket, and a hat.
“I'll send two cars for Elana after she signs the contract,” Derin said calmly.
Once they finished discussing matters related to shares and the work contract, everyone rose from the meeting table and left the room while casually chatting about the agency and several of the artists under their management. They showed one another portraits of the artists and talked about their achievements. Of course, Derin's attention was focused on only one photo: a portrait framed in a 10R frame hanging on the wall alongside the portraits of the other artists.
Elana's.
Everyone was walking toward the lobby to leave the agency, but they had to stop when Derin suddenly fell silent. Every head turned toward him as he stared at someone who had just stepped out of the elevator, looking busy wiping her nose with a tissue while muttering under her breath. It was the girl they'd been discussing all this time. She stopped, turned around with a confused expression, and looked at everyone, pausing for a moment on Haga before looking at Derin.
A stiff smile greeted her. The girl gave a slight bow in greeting before continuing on her way after returning her boss's greeting.
“Where are you going, El?” Yoga asked as the girl walked away.