By Zephyria It wasn’t his full-fledged acting tone, but it wasn’t just reciting lines either. Was it because it was a relaxed performance with no forced effort? Or was it the unexpected situation of me being the only one monopolizing actor Yoon Joo-ho’s performance? Yoon Joo-ho’s acting was calm, but Song Hyun-soo’s heart pounded violently.
Leaning against the door, which was open by about half a span, Song Hyun-soo mumbled the next line.
“By pretending to understand everything, you’re always the good person, aren’t you?”
“Lee Sol, you’re going too far.”
“The wicked woman who betrayed your pure heart, even becoming a murderer because of me. That’s me, isn’t it?”
“……”
Yoon Joo-ho’s next line, which should have followed, was not heard. Song Hyun-soo peeked through the gap in the door. Yoon Joo-ho, with his arm resting on the back of his chair, twisted his upper body and was looking this way.
“What is it?”
“Ah… that…”
It was a very quiet sound, almost inaudible. My senior has unnecessarily sharp hearing.
He wanted to quietly close the door and disappear. That cold face, with wavy hair tucked behind his ears, didn’t look like a senior who would kindly treat a junior who was practically unknown. But he couldn’t really run away either. Song Hyun-soo walked up to Yoon Joo-ho and bowed deeply from the waist.
“Senior, hello!”
Yoon Joo-ho’s gaze, which had been following Song Hyun-soo’s movements, turned upwards. Even looking up from below, it was a distinctly condescending and arrogant gaze, as if looking down from above. His neat face made him appear even colder. His sharp jawline, thin lips, and the tip of his nose that seemed to pierce the person in front of him did not give a friendly impression.
“I’m Song Hyun-soo, playing the role of Lee San. It’s nice to meet you for the second time.”
“Second time?”
“I work at a bar. You visited there before.”
“……”
There was no change in Yoon Joo-ho’s expression. Even a neighborhood dog recognizing me and wagging its tail would show more enthusiasm than this. Does he not remember? It was only two weeks ago. His hearing is sharp, but his memory isn’t?
“It’s called ‘Jessica’ in Daehangno.”
“……”
“You came with your acquaintance, hyung.”
Only then did Yoon Joo-ho slowly scrutinize Song Hyun-soo’s face again. Then he nodded.
“Ah… that impression.”
“Yes, that’s me.”
Did he really have to remember me only for that impression? It was bittersweet, but I was grateful he remembered at all.
Song Hyun-soo gained a little confidence. With a professional smile, he brought up Jung Ji-in’s name again, their only common topic.
“I heard a lot about you from Ji-in hyung, so I’m very honored to be working with you.”
“What did you hear?”
“…Huh?”
“You said you heard a lot about me from Jung Ji-in. I’m curious what you heard.”
Well… it was just a polite remark.
Things like ‘Let’s grab a meal sometime,’ ‘You’ve lost weight since I last saw you,’ or ‘You have a good image, so I’ll definitely contact you for other projects.’ You shouldn’t take those words at face value.
However, it seemed Yoon Joo-ho intended to take them at face value. He even crossed his arms and leaned back against the chair, as if to say, ‘Go on, tell me.’ Reluctantly, Song Hyun-soo scratched his cheek with his index finger and tried to recall.
“Just… that unlike your appearance, you also enjoy drinking at casual pubs or samgyeopsal restaurants…”
“Unlike my appearance?”
Yoon Joo-ho’s eyebrow twitched.
“Haha, I meant that you look very luxurious!”
“And?”
“And… also…”
“Is that all? You said you heard a lot?”
“That you’re more serious about acting than people think. He said things like that too…”
It was an exaggeration to say he had heard ‘a lot’ about Yoon Joo-ho from Jung Ji-in. Jung Ji-in wasn’t the type to gossip about others, whether good or bad.
“Are you close? With Jung Ji-in.”
“We were in the same company. We lived in the same dorm for a few years.”
“Were you also affiliated with UB?”
“Yes.”
Yoon Joo-ho was silent for a moment. He seemed to be thinking, looking down, then slowly raised his eyelids and looked up at Song Hyun-soo again. His long eyelashes seemed to make a rustling sound effect.
“Didn’t that company go out of business?”
“Ah, yes, well… I’m working without a company now.”
Song Hyun-soo, who had been thinking about how long Yoon Joo-ho’s eyelashes were, mumbled a reply while rubbing the back of his neck. The topic of his old company wasn’t a pleasant one. Song Hyun-soo put on his professional smile and changed the subject.
“This is my first proper role, so I’m sure I’ll have many shortcomings. Please take good care of me. I look forward to your guidance, senior.”
“……”
He must have seemed like a friendly and diligent junior. But despite Song Hyun-soo’s usually effective cheerful smile, Yoon Joo-ho just looked up at him with an inscrutable gaze. Song Hyun-soo unconsciously touched his own face with both hands.
“Why, why are you looking at me like that?”
“No. Not really.”
After staring intently with a meaningful expression, Yoon Joo-ho denied it and withdrew.
“This is my first film project too.”
He picked up the script and resumed his posture, seemingly intending to end the conversation with Song Hyun-soo.
“Forget guidance, I’ll be too busy looking after myself. So don’t expect too much.”
Ah, yes, I suppose so. I expected that you wouldn’t be the type to treat juniors kindly anyway. It didn’t hurt much, as I had already prepared myself for it.
It wasn’t the time for this. If Yoon Joo-ho’s nose was three feet long, his own would be ten feet. He had to look at the script one line more. Although he had already memorized other people’s lines by heart, acting wasn’t just about memorization.
Let’s see, my seat…
On the long tables joined together facing each other, simple nameplates with character names were lined up. Song Hyun-soo’s seat was diagonally opposite Yoon Joo-ho, to the right of the female lead.
Lee San (Song Hyun-soo)
Seeing his nameplate, a laugh escaped him. He immediately pulled out his phone. Click. With the sound effect of a camera, Yoon Joo-ho merely looked up in his direction, and Song Hyun-soo bowed his head in apology. He’s quite particular for someone not in a library.
In the chilly, empty conference room, Yoon Joo-ho and Song Hyun-soo were engrossed in their scripts. Or rather, Yoon Joo-ho seemed fully focused on his script, but Song Hyun-soo couldn’t say the same. It was the tension of being alone with Yoon Joo-ho, a senior actor and a huge star.
Even though it was just a script reading, Yoon Joo-ho was perfectly put together, as if he were there for an interview shoot. He wasn’t wearing makeup, but his attire was stylish, and his hairstyle felt like the touch of a Cheongdam-dong expert.
But why is he here so early? He’s the lead and a top star; there’s no need to be early. No one would say anything even if he were late. Did he have a schedule nearby? No. He hasn’t seemed to be taking on many projects lately.
Yoon Joo-ho didn’t take his eyes off the script. He wasn’t acting out loud like before, but his thin lips kept twitching as he mouthed his lines. He also drank the water in front of him frequently. Oh, is he protecting his throat?
Song Hyun-soo, who had been peeking at Yoon Joo-ho over his script, suddenly recalled Jung-ho’s fuss. He had said Yoon Joo-ho only drank bottled water costing over 400,000 won per bottle. However, the water bottle Yoon Joo-ho was twisting with his pretty fingers was clearly ordinary bottled water. It wasn’t even an imported brand commonly found at convenience stores.
Figures. None of those guys who stir up drama on YouTube are legit.
Song Hyun-soo felt inexplicably better and chuckled, then his eyes met Yoon Joo-ho’s. He felt a jolt, like being caught giggling with a classmate during self-study and getting caught by the teacher. Song Hyun-soo, wiping the smile from his face, cleared his throat and buried his nose in his script.
“Why are the actors here so early?”
The conference room door, which Song Hyun-soo had cautiously opened, was suddenly flung open. A woman of medium height and build, with a lively bob haircut, appeared. He didn’t know who she was, but Song Hyun-soo awkwardly stood up and bowed. There was no harm in greeting her first.
Seemingly familiar with Yoon Joo-ho, the woman acknowledged him with a nod and then quickly approached Song Hyun-soo. Her gait was full of energy.
“You’re the actor playing Lee San, right? I’m Kim Yoo-kyung, the chief producer.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, PD-nim. I’m Song Hyun-soo.”
Song Hyun-soo clasped the hand she offered with both of his. She shook his clasped hand up and down vigorously while intently examining Song Hyun-soo’s face.
“I felt it from your profile picture, but you have great eyes.”
“Really? Thank you.”
“Your gaze is pure yet challenging, exactly like San.”
“It’s reassuring to hear you say that, PD-nim.”
“You’re the actor who broke through a 2,000 to 1 competition rate. Have confidence.”
“T-two thousand to one??”