By Zephyria 
“Why do you even have a lighter?”
When his headache subsided a little, Hae-jun asked. Lee A-gon answered obediently.
“I always carry it around so I can give it to hyung whenever the power goes out.”
“……Don’t carry it around anymore.”
Seeing the lighter reminded him of what happened today. Hae-jun stood up with a tired expression. Lee A-gon stood up too.
“Hyung, then do you have any other complaints about me….”
“No. Not at all.”
“Yes? But.”
“If I say no, then there aren’t any. You just have to act well from now on. That’s my ideal type and the style of man I like.”
Lee A-gon’s eyes widened.
“Okay, I took my eyes off you for a moment. It’s all because you haven’t been acting lately. I like it when you act. Your acting is cool. So tell me now. How did the second audition go?”
“I, I passed.”
Lee A-gon answered, stuttering slightly. Both of his cheeks were flushed.
“When is the script reading?”
“Tomorrow.” Lee A-gon answered, still flushed. Hae-jun nodded. Good.
“Hyung, if I act, will I really….”
Lee A-gon grabbed Hae-jun just as he was about to leave the cafe.
“Really… am I really cool?”
“Yeah, totally. Sometimes you even look handsome.”
“Hand…some….”
Lee A-gon repeated the words blankly. He thinks I look handsome… He thinks I look handsome… Hyung thinks I’m handsome….
“Aren’t you leaving?”
“Yes, I’m going.”
Hae-jun opened the door and went out first. Lee A-gon followed behind him.
∞ ∞ ∞
Seo Ji-hoon was sitting in meeting room number 4 of the Young Filmmakers Support Center when Hae-jun opened the door. Hae-jun paused for a moment, but soon awkwardly raised his hand to greet him.
“Hi?”
“Hi.”
Seo Ji-hoon also stood up awkwardly, then sat back down. He stood up again when he saw Lee A-gon coming in behind him, but unlike Hae-jun, Lee A-gon ignored Seo Ji-hoon.
“You should greet him.”
Hae-jun nudged him slightly, and only then did Lee A-gon listlessly raise and lower his hand once. He still seemed bothered by the fact that Hae-jun and Seo Ji-hoon had talked alone together.
“Oh, you’re here? Am I a little late? I’m sorry.”
Just then, a man came into the meeting room. He was short and scrawny, and had dark circles under his eyes.
“It’s still ten minutes early. Our actors are diligent. Hello? Hello?”
The woman who came in behind him bowed her head once to Lee A-gon and Seo Ji-hoon, then looked at Hae-jun.
“But who are you….”
“Ah, I’m Park Hae-jun, Lee A-gon’s manager.”
“Manager?”
The woman tilted her head. It seemed like she couldn’t understand why an unknown rookie actor appearing in an independent film would have a manager.
Yes, I am a physically fit adult male, but Lee A-gon absolutely cannot leave hyung alone, and hyung is such a handsome and cool man that other men’s eyes might pop out if they see him alone, so he made such a fuss about needing to be by his side that I ended up coming here—it was easier to just say he was the manager instead of giving that explanation. Hae-jun just smiled.
Today was the script reading for the independent feature film Painkiller. Seo Ji-hoon was cast in the role of ‘Jeong-on,’ one of the two main characters, and Lee A-gon was cast in the role of ‘Myeong-eum.’
As the five people just stared awkwardly at each other, the man with dark circles under his eyes stepped forward.
“My name is Im Myeong-su. I’m the director of this film. This is Choi Hae-young, the writer, assistant director, planning PD, and production PD.”
Director Im gestured to the woman, spreading his hand to the side.
“Hello. I’m Choi Hae-young, the writer, assistant director, planning PD, and production PD. I look forward to working with you.”
Clap, clap, clap. Seo Ji-hoon clapped, then lowered his hand sheepishly when he realized he was the only one clapping.
“Is anyone else coming?”
Hae-jun looked around the room and asked. I’m the manager, so I’m not really involved, so that means there are four people gathered here, two are actors and two are directors. Surely they’re not making a movie with just those two people.
“Ah, the rest of the crew are still scouting locations, so they’re there.”
Hae-jun was a little surprised by Writer Choi’s answer. Filming starts tomorrow, but pre-production (the preparation stage before filming) isn’t finished yet? Is that really true?
“Our manager looks very flustered. Is this your first time on an independent film set?”
Director Im asked with a smile. It’s not my first time, but it’s Lee A-gon’s first time. Hae-jun nodded.
“I saw in your profile that you haven’t done any independent films before. It’s very different from commercial films, right?”
“Yes, well….”
Just as he was about to answer, Writer Choi’s phone rang. Writer Choi checked her phone, then pulled out her chair with a screech.
“Yes, unni. Yes, yes. Yes? But how can you say that now, unni. Yes. Yes, yes. Yes, yes, yes. Yes.”
Writer Choi answered like a yes-bot and hurriedly left the meeting room. Writer Choi’s voice echoed in the hallway. Unni, we’re starting filming in two days. Where am I supposed to find an actor if you suddenly say you can’t do it? Yes? You think you’re going to be in the project you auditioned for last time? You have a feeling? Unni, I’m really sorry to say this, but you’ve failed over a hundred auditions after saying that. No, unni, don’t hang up on me….
Writer Choi’s voice faded away. Director Im flipped through his clipboard, checking something diligently, then sent a text message on his phone and said,
“Please wait a little while until Writer Choi comes back. We’re doing the script reading today and starting filming tomorrow. We have to hold a gosa before filming, but these days they say pig heads are scary, so they don’t do that anymore. So we’ve decided to replace the pig head with another part and just put up some rice cakes and fruit. But the assistant director keeps saying we should put up pork belly. I think pork neck or sirloin are better parts to grill than pork belly, what do the actors think?”
Is this a joke?
Hae-jun thought to himself. Is this director making a joke like that?
“I like pork jowl.”
Seo Ji-hoon said then. Director Im, who had been tapping on the virtual keyboard with his thumb, raised his head.
“Another new opinion has come out. What do these actors and the manager think?”
Lee A-gon had no thoughts at all. He had been struggling to hold Hae-jun’s hand under the table for a while now. Hae-jun shook off his hand and asked,
“This isn’t about deciding on the menu for the dinner party, it’s about the gosa, right?”
“Yes, but we’ll share the meat that’s left over after the gosa.”
“Then I like pork jowl too.”
Hae-jun made his opinion clear. “Good, good.” Director Im kept typing and laughing, not sure what was so good.
“I have a friend who had a disaster happen while filming a movie without holding a gosa. The staff member who was controlling the road was in a traffic accident, the actor was hit by a lighting fixture, and the worst thing was that the youngest member dropped the camera they had rented. They almost had to cancel filming because they had to pay for it.”
Director Im shuddered as if he was scared just imagining it.
“After seeing that, I always hold a gosa, no matter how difficult the circumstances are. Is there anyone here who can’t bow for religious reasons?”
“No.”
“No.”
Hae-jun and Seo Ji-hoon answered at the same time. Director Im was very satisfied.
“Jin-hee unni said she won’t do it.”
Just then, Writer Choi came back with a tired expression. She plopped down in her chair and complained.
“Jin-hee unni’s filming date is in four days, where am I supposed to find an actor now?”
“That noona seemed a little unstable.”
Director Im took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“When I said the two main actors were in their early to mid-twenties, she got really angry, saying how could she film with them. Even if I said she still looked like she was in her mid-twenties, she said seeing it with your eyes and seeing it on screen aren’t the same, and she couldn’t do it. Then she said if we respected her, we wouldn’t have cast such young actors as her co-stars. I mean, is there any director in the world who matches the age of the supporting actors to the age of the main actors? Aish, this is hot!”
Writer Choi angrily gulped down her mug as if she was angry, then put it down with a frown. Then she took Director Im’s iced Americano next to her and drank it in one shot.
“Um.”
Director Im leaned subtly towards the actors.
“Do you happen to know any actresses? Someone who doesn’t care about money, is good at acting, and is full of passion to come without asking any questions if we just let her act. Someone who doesn’t care about looks or age, but has to be good at acting.”
Director Im was openly asking if they knew any actresses who would work for passion pay.
“……”
Hae-jun felt like he was fading away.
A filming location that hasn’t even been scouted. A supporting actor who bailed right before filming. The first question the director asked wasn’t about the interpretation of the work or the characters, but about whether to use pork belly or sirloin instead of a pig’s head, and whether they knew a cheap actress to fill in.
Is this movie really okay? Hae-jun wondered.
How should I describe the script reading? It was a mess. I’ve participated in several script readings so far, but this was the first time I’d been to one that was such a mess.
First of all, Writer Choi kept answering the phone throughout the script reading. “What? The location rental fee is 300,000 won? We were supposed to do it for 200,000 won. Tell them no. Lie down and hold out.” “What? We have to reserve the date for the premiere in advance? How can we specify the date for the premiere when we haven’t even filmed the movie yet?” She tore at her hair and ran outside, then came back cursing.
The actors were just as confused. Lee A-gon and Seo Ji-hoon were playing roles where they fell in love, but neither of them could immerse themselves in their roles.