"Fine."
"Good. The crew members are both stable. Full medical coverage, of course." He bowed his head briefly. "I wanted to check in. I've watched you carry a lot of weight lately."
I waited.
"The production team flagged something in their incident review," he continued. "When security presence becomes intensive, it sometimes creates unintended complications.People second-guessing procedures. Decisions made emotionally rather than systematically."
I swallowed hard. "You think Griffin—"
"I think he's competent. I'm not questioning that." Soo-jin's tone remained gentle and reasonable. "I'm asking whether anyone can remain completely objective when they're this close to a situation. Even the best professional judgment has limits."
He paused, letting the words sink in.
"Since he joined, we've had three significant incidents. Vancouver's lighting failure. Portland's corridor breach, and now this. That might be a coincidence. Or maybe an enhanced security presence creates new vulnerabilities."
I struggled to catch my breath.
"I know you trust him," Soo-jin added quietly. "But consider whether the current structure is sustainable. For everyone involved."
He touched my shoulder briefly. Then he walked away.
I stood alone, hands curled into fists. The crew moved past me, careful and efficient.
The green room was empty when I reached it. I sat on the worn sofa, pulled my knees up, and pressed my thumb against the side of my index finger until the slight pain became something I could focus on.
The door opened. Griffin stepped inside and closed the door behind him.
He crossed the room to meet me, crouched low to eye level, balancing his weight on the balls of his feet.
"Breathe," he told me.
"I am breathing."
"No, you're holding air." His voice remained low. "Inhale. Four counts."
I tried. Made it to three.
"Okay, again. Do it with me."
We did it together. Four counts in. Hold four. Out six. We repeated it three times until my hands stopped shaking and the room stopped tilting.
"Better?" he asked.
"No, but now I'm functional."
"I'll take it."
"Soo-jin's building a case," I said. "He's naming you as the pattern. Three incidents since you joined."
Griffin nodded.
"What if Kang decides—"
"Then we deal with it. Right now, you have final soundcheck in forty minutes." He looked into my eyes. "You can't walk onstage like this."
"Like what?"
"Like you're waiting for something to fall."
