Chapter 67: Bobby!
A/N: Been a while since we had a Bobby POV!
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Bobby hums merrily to himself as he makes his way down the hall towards his apartment, a broad smile on his face. He's just come back from a solo trip to the bathhouse after all, the first he'd been able to slip away for in weeks at this point!
Better still, he hadn't been interrupted a single time while he was at the bathhouse, and more than that, when he'd finished up there and checked his messages, there wasn't anything that was a massive priority or that needed immediate handling!
At long last, things were starting to die down a little bit. Oh sure, he still had events to arrange for both HUNTR/X and Jinu to continue promoting their recent releases, but all of that was just normal stuff. Finally, he was able to actually breathe.
And the best part was, things on the more personal side of things were going really well too! Bobby had never thought in a million years that Rumi would give him her blessing to date Celine, but not only had she done precisely that, Mira and Zoey had too! Even Jinu had been okay with it!
Celine was also doing better in general as well. Apparently, the Honmoon itself summoned the spirits of the other two Sunlight Sisters when she last visited Mi-yeong's gravestone, and what they said to her had gone a long way to lightening the immense weight on Celine's soul. Plus, supposedly they also approved of him. That was a nice feeling.
Even better, the Rainbow Honmoon and Gwi-Ma's demise meant that as far as Bobby knew, there hadn't been a single demon attack in months and likely wouldn't be any going forward either! While it still stressed him out a fair bit thinking of all those years the girls had been fighting demons with him none the wiser, knowing they wouldn't have to do so anymore was a huge relief!
Yep, everything was going his way at this point. As Bobby outside the apartment, his humming continues even while he's unlocking the door and stepping inside. He makes it all the way to the apartment's living room before he stops in fact, even as he abruptly finds himself face to face with all of the most important people in his life.
Celine sits in an armchair while Rumi, Mira, and Zoey all sit on the couch holding hands. And Jinu… well, Jinu was leaning against the wall to Bobby's right, only to move in behind him as Bobby stutters to a halt.
"Uh… guys? What's going on here? What are you all doing in my apartment?"
Jinu's hands land on Bobby's shoulders and he's reminded that the other man is very much not human, even as he uses his demon strength to walk Bobby forward to the armchair opposite of Celine's.
"Have a seat, Bobby."
He doesn't seem to have much of a choice. Bobby furrows his brow as he sits down, Jinu continuing to look over him. He tries to meet all of their eyes to see if any of them are going to tell him anything… only for Zoey to suddenly burst into tears.
What the hell?!
Bobby immediately tries to rise to his feet and see what's wrong, but Jinu's hands on his shoulders hold him in place. Mira wraps an arm around Zoey's shoulders and glares at him, while Rumi and Celine exchange meaningful looks for a moment before Rumi finally just nods.
Celine lets out a sigh and turns her gaze back to Bobby, staring at him intensely.
"… This is an intervention, Robert."
Wait, what?! Bobby's jaw drops open, even as Zoey sniffles into Mira's shoulder. An intervention?! Did they think he was on drugs or something?!
"Guys, I don't know what you think you know, but I swear I'm not doing any drugs or drinking excessive amounts of alcohol! This isn't necessary!"
Rumi sighs.
"Not that kind of intervention, Bobby. This intervention… is about your unwillingness to accept fair wages for your exceptional work."
Bobby's eyes bulge out of his head. This was about his damn pay?! Hadn't they dealt with this months ago?!
"I already accepted the raise to 5% though! Why are we talking about this again?!"
Zoey wails all over again, which… Bobby hates to call the young woman overdramatic, but she's definitely being overdramatic about things. Mira, meanwhile, scowls.
"Maybe because 5% is still way below industry standard and we had to fight you tooth and nail to even accept that much?"
Bobby gapes. Why was Mira of all people acting like he was killing her by not demanding higher pay?! But before he can say anything else, Jinu pipes up from behind him, tone artificially cheerful.
"There's also the fact that you still haven't accepted a single won of the money you're owed for all the work you've done as my manager."
Bobby winces at that, only to freeze at the look Celine is giving him.
"So it's true then. Robert, you do understand that that is illegal on top of morally repugnant, yes? You could get Sunlight Entertainment and Jinu himself in significant legal trouble, not to mention reputational trouble, if anyone outside of this room were to find out that we haven't been paying you for your work."
Bobby's mouth opens and closes wordlessly for a few moments. Because yes, he did in fact know that on an intellectual level. It just…
"W-Well it's fine so long as no one outside of this room finds out, r-right?"
Rumi suddenly leaps to her feet.
"No! It's not fine! You deserve to be paid industry standard, Bobby! You deserve to be paid better than industry standard!"
Cringing, Bobby shrugs as best he can under Jinu's ironclad grip.
"I mean… technically I am? Even at 3%, I was the best paid manager in the business, you guys. Your success is my success; it always has been. I don't need more; I'm doing just fine."
"Well we're not! And you're going to sit there and hear us out!"
Bobby blinks owlishly as Rumi sits back down. Then, he watches in disbelief as Zoey shakily pulls a piece of folded up paper out and unfolds it. As Mira continues to hold her, rubbing her shoulders soothingly, the youngest hunter reads in a shaky, hesitant voice.
"B-Bobby. I'm w-writing this to let you know h-how your unwillingness to accept f-fair pay has affected me."
She can't be serious. Zoey has to be fucking with him here.
"W-Whenever you refuse to accept a r-raise, it makes me feel bad. L-Like I'm not good enough or s-something…"
"What?! Zoey-!"
"Hush Robert. Let her speak."
Zoey hiccups loudly before continuing on.
"I know we d-do good work. E-Everyone loves our m-music. But when I think about how l-little you're paid, it feels like we're f-failing somehow. I feel like a f-failure."
Oh Zoey… Bobby can't even tell if the poor girl is messing with him anymore. She sounds so damn genuine…
"T-That's why I need you to accept a p-pay raise, and also l-let Jinu p-pay you for being his manager."
With that, Zoey folds up the paper and proceeds to bury her face in Mira's chest as her shoulders shake. Wrapping both arms around her maknae, Mira gives Bobby a death glare over the top of Zoey's head.
Bobby is frozen in place, stuck under that angry gaze, right up until someone clears their throat and he's finally able to pull away… only to blanch when he sees Rumi and Celine both have their own folded up pieces of paper in their hands now.
"Okay, okay! Wait! Just… stop for a second! Let's talk about this. I might be willing to accept a… small raise."
Rumi and Celine exchange another meaningful look with one another before Rumi seems to take over this time.
"You'll accept fifteen percent as manager of HUNTR/X…"
Bobby chokes on his own spit.
"… and ten percent as Jinu's manager, subject to increases based on metrics and merit-based goals."
"W-What?! No, that's all way too much! Why don't we just say ten percent for HUNTR/X and five percent for Jinu and call it a day!"
But Celine steps in, shaking her head sternly.
"This isn't a negotiation, Robert. Your insecurities and hangups have gone on long enough. You WILL accept the pay that you deserve. Especially given that your workload is only going to intensify in the coming months and years."
Huh? Bobby pauses, confused for a second.
"Uh… intensify? What do you mean by that?"
None of the others look as confused as he feels, or at all surprised as Celine smiles and folds her hands in her lap.
"I've officially chosen my successor as CEO of Sunlight Entertainment and intend to begin training them to take over my position within the next five to ten years, possibly sooner."
Bobby's eyes widen in disbelief… but also excitement. It was something he and Celine had talked about a few times over the course of their burgeoning relationship, after all. The truth was, Celine had never wanted to be a CEO. She'd never intended to go from being an Idol to a full-fledged businesswoman.
Her role as the owner of Sunlight Entertainment had been one born of pure necessity and while she'd nevertheless excelled and done an amazing job in the position, she'd never been fully happy with it.
It was Bobby who had suggested Celine start looking for a replacement so she could semi-retire early. She'd still be on the Board of course, but she deserved the chance to spend the rest of her life doing what she wanted to do… after spending the past quarter of a century doing what she was obligated to do.
"That's fantastic news, Celine! Of course I don't mind taking on a bit more work so you can train whoever you've found! Who is it, exactly?"
There's a brief pause that turns into a long bout of silence as Celine just looks at him. Rumi also just looks at him. Even Zoey lifts her head to look at him and so does Mira.
"Uhhh…"
Bobby tilts his head up and… sure enough, Jinu is looking down at him from above with a wicked grin. Finally, Bobby looks back to Celine, the horrible truth dawning on him even as Celine confirms it.
"It's you, Robert. You're going to be the next CEO of Sunlight Entertainment."
Again, Bobby is struck speechless. His mouth opens and closes but once more, no sound actually comes out, at least initially. Finally though, he finds his voice.
"T-That's… I can't possibly… I don't even know what to say."
Finally softening her gaze, Celine graces him with an encouraging smile.
"I'd like it if you said yes, of course. But it is still your choice, I will admit. Only you can decide if it's something you would want."
Rumi pipes up then.
"You're the best man for the job, Bobby. You've got the experience, but more than that, you have the heart. Being CEO of Sunlight Entertainment isn't like being CEO of any other company, or even any other label. It needs to be someone who understands how idols work. It needs to be someone who sees us as real people and not just products."
Mira goes next, her death glare disappearing as well as she lets out a huff.
"You're the best damn manager any of us could have ever asked for. And yeah, sure, I have to give Celine SOME credit for headhunting you. But even if she found you, you're the one who lived up to expectations and then surpassed them day after day, year after year. We wouldn't be six-time Idol Awards winners without you, Bobby."
Oh Mira…
Zoey bobs her head up and down, a smile on her tear-streaked face.
"You've g-given us everything, Bobby! And maybe it's too much to ask for you to give us m-more… but we all want Sunlight Entertainment to keep going long after we've retired. We want to bring in new talent and help support and train new groups of musicians, but we can't do that without someone who can really do it all at the helm! Someone like you!"
Bobby stares out at all four women for a long moment before glancing upwards, to Jinu. He just grins and shrugs simply.
"You're the man for the job, Bobby."
Well… damn. Finally looking back to Celine… again, Bobby swallows thickly.
"N-Not right away though, right? Five to ten years?"
Celine smiles and nods.
"That's right. We'll work on it together, maybe even Co-CEO for a year or two to make sure you're comfortable before I fully hand over the reins. And yes, I'm fully aware that you'll want to retire too eventually. The earlier we get you in as CEO, the more time we'll have to work together on finding your successor as well. I'm not about to abandon you, Robert. Not for anything."
That… that puts a lot of his fears to rest. Letting out an explosive breath, Bobby finally nods.
"A-Alright… sounds good."
"YAY!"
In an explosion of movement, Zoey launches herself off of the couch and is suddenly hugging Bobby as she babbles excitedly in his ear.
"I'm so glad you're finally going to be paid a proper wage and also I can't wait to see you as a big bad CEO, Bobby!"
Hang on a second, where had teary eyed Zoey gone? Where had the sobbing, wailing maknae of mere minutes ago disappeared to? Bobby was starting to think he might have been had here…
And yet, as Rumi and Mira join Zoey in glomping Bobby and hugging him tightly while Jinu and Celine watch on with fond smiles… Bobby finds he can't mind too much, in the end.
After all, he really did love his girls. He loved every part of his found family.
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A/N: Did I have any of you confused in the first part of this chapter? Fufufu~
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