“Cut!”

There were no bad takes and so, Director Choi Yi-Geon did not make any comments during the shooting. He prepared for the next scene without giving any praise or criticism. That alone was good enough for Woo-Jin. Since there was no way that the self-respecting director would allow his movie to be ruined, that meant that Woo-Jin’s acting was satisfactory to him.

“Umm, I think Cha Hyun-Seung’s character has somewhat changed.”  Unexpectedly, Kwon Sung-Min was the one who raised an objection. Even after he was done with his scene, he stayed on set, watching Woo-Jin.

However, when the acting went in a different direction from what he had expected, he frowned. This was because the scene where Cha Hyun-Seung stood under the sunlight turned out to be more sentimental and beautiful than expected.

“I know. And?” Choi Yi-Geon asked.

“I’m sorry?” Kwon Sung-Min replied, confused.

“I clearly said from the get-go that you’re free to act out your interpretation of the character as you please. You don’t think that only applies to the two main leads, do you? Besides, Mr. Woo-Jin has already gotten my permission. Isn’t that enough?” Choi Yi-Geon smiled and added that everyone was guaranteed the same freedom.

Kwon Sung-Min said to Choi Yi-Geon in a serious manner, “Wouldn’t the ambience of the movie itself change as a result? I don’t think that’s in line with what CEO Choi wants.”

“So, what kind of movie does CEO Choi want?”

“One that follows Glooming Day’s script.”

Despite Choi Yi-Geon's advice, the two main leads had followed the script down to a T, acting out their characters accordingly—an arrogant, but ignorant rich boy, and a nosy, yet lovely young lady. They thought it was the best way to please the CEO of G&C, who was the reason they were in this film, as well as the person with all the authority. However, they could not be happy about the fact that a supporting actor had suddenly changed the ambience of the film.

“Yes, but you’re not 100% correct. What CEO Choi likes the most about Glooming Day is the endearing couple, as well as their heartbreaking farewell. And the person she agonized over the most was Cha Hyun-Seung,” the director explained.

The absolute criteria that CEO Choi had set for the film while she prepared it were that the main leads and the supporting actor had to be in their 20s, and that they also had to be charming and attractive. While the storyline was important, she had placed more emphasis on the visuals.

However, to girls who were into romance films, Cha Hyun-Seung was an ambiguous character that was hard to fathom. The existence of a supporting character who had a one-sided crush on the female lead could create heart-palpitating tension and fantasy. Despite that, Cha Hyun-Seung was a man who did not take care of the female lead—he merely looked at her. He was also a character who did not appeal to the emotions of young girls.

Instead, the pain experienced by Cha Hyun-Seung, who had to watch the love between the woman he loved and another man blossom, evoked a sense of sensual voyeurism in others. That was the only stimulating part of the otherwise boring movie, so it could never be taken out.

However, if they were to follow the script, they would face the issue of Cha Hyun-Seung not having any charm or appeal, because he was so depressed and constantly drowning in his inferiority complex. Hence, they had looked for a good-looking actor, thinking that would negate the unpleasant traits of Cha Hyun-Seung.

Of course, the script could be modified the way Chae Woo-Jin had, turning Cha Hyun-Seung into an upright person with a slightly brighter personality and a sad one-sided crush on the female lead.

However, Cha Hyun-Seung had no lines in the film. How many good-looking actors in their 20s could act solely based on facial expressions without any lines? It was more difficult to act out one’s self-restraint while hiding one’s emotions behind a bright smile than to express a depressive unrequited love.

Looking for an actor for this role was not impossible, but the conditions were not good enough for an actor who was decently successful – it would be rude to hire them as a supporting actor instead of the main lead. It would be an unreasonable request even if it came from CEO Choi herself.

More truthfully, though, she wanted to save such an actor for future projects. She wanted to see them as the main lead instead of a supporting character, so she had decided to be patient and cast them in the next project.

In other words, CEO Choi desired the most, a beautiful, yet sad Cha Hyun-Seung, who was certainly not a loser. As Choi Yi-Geon was explaining to Kwon Sung-Min in a simple manner, he pointed at Chae Woo-Jin, who was eavesdropping on the conversation between the two and had frozen on the spot, at a loss for what to do.

“This is the first time, so I can’t make any conclusions, but that version of Cha Hyun-Seung wasn’t bad. You feel the same way too, right?” asked Choi Yi-Geon.

That question took Kwon Sung-Min by surprise, and he subconsciously answered right away, “Yes, it wasn’t bad.”

“That’s right, Mr. Woo-Jin.”

“Thank you,” replied Woo-Jin.

Seeing Woo-Jin bow, expressing his gratitude, Kwon Sung-Min could not help but feel bad. Holding back his desire to say another word, he moved to the next set.

‘Ah, I don’t think this is it.’

In truth, Kwon Sung-Min was not upset because Cha Hyun-Seung’s character was modified. He was upset because of the aura that Woo-Jin was giving off, which was too shiny. As he leaned against the window, holding the paper cup and drinking coffee, Cha Hyun-Seung’s soul sparkled like sunshine, making the viewers’ hearts flutter.

It was the same for Kwon Sung-Min. It was not just him, but also the staff working on the set. Chae Woo-Jin instantly caught their attention. He did not have many years of experience, but Kwon Sung-Min could tell just by the ambience alone that it was a little dangerous and threatening.

Since it was the first day, the shooting did not go on for too long. It ended quickly in the afternoon. Usually, everyone working on the set would have a get-together to bond as a group, but the lofty Choi Yi-Geon hated that aspect of Korean culture. As a person who preferred individualism, he had an aversion to socializing in groups. Hence, as soon as the shooting was over, he left. Since he was the director, the rest of the staff had nothing to say.

It was the same for the main leads and Woo-Jin, who were the main characters of the film. The main leads were afraid of a potential scandal happening, so as soon as they were done with filming, they went to look for their own managers and disappeared separately. They wanted to err on the side of caution, but there was a reason behind it — Kwon Sung-Min had ended up getting involved in a scandal with the female lead of every movie or drama he was in. Ultimately, those incidents were dismissed as something that had happened by chance, but it was true that he had been close to the actresses.

Hence, Song Jae-Hee’s agency had given her strict instructions beforehand, and Kwon Sung-Min was trying to be careful this time as well. With the two main leads being that unfriendly to one another, the people who had gathered for the shoot naturally parted ways too. In any case, considering their tight schedule in the near future, it would be nice to be able to take a break whenever they could, so everyone was happy about it.

The set was located on the outskirts of Seoul, so it took Woo-Jin slightly under two hours to get home as he had to make multiple transfers. When he got off at the bus stop, it was already a little after 9 p.m., so he walked faster.

However, he could see the familiar rear view of a person on the usual path he was walking on a short distance away. It was Woo-Jin’s mother, carrying a bag full of groceries in one hand. With his long legs, Woo-Jin ran immediately and grabbed the bag from his mother’s hand, carrying it for her.

“Ahh! Who… Oh, Woo-Jin! Don’t sneak up on me without making any sound!!” Park Eun-Soo was surprised, and screamed when a strong man grabbed her bag of groceries; but after realizing that he was her son, she was relieved, but deliberately acted mad regardless.

“Sorry. I was walking from behind, but I saw you, so I ran towards you without thinking much about it. Did I surprise you?” asked Woo-Jin.

“I was very startled. My heart is still pounding,” replied Park Eun-Soo.

“But nobody is trying to see what’s going on here, even after hearing a woman scream,” added Woo-Jin.

The bus stop was a ten-minute walk away from his house. The alley in the residential area was not dark, as there were lights everywhere, but it was very quiet. It was not a crime-ridden district, but whether it was due to a lack of vigilance, or the indifference of the people living there, the alley was quiet in the middle of the night. Woo-Jin was worried about his mother, who was headed home late in the evening.

“A little scream won’t do anything. Even for us, when we’re at home, we don’t pay any attention to the sounds outside. We can barely hear them,” Park Eun-Soo said.

“Well, I guess we’re in no position to complain about it,” responded Woo-Jin.

Even Woo-Jin’s family, who lived on the second floor of their leased house, often did not know what was going outside. A few days ago, the police had arrived because of a fight between the couple who lived next to them. They had only found out about it after it happened.

“I’m still worried, though. You’ve been going home late these days; are you going to be alright?” Woo-Jin asked his mother.

“We’ve lived in this neighborhood for ten years; what’s there to be worried about? On the other hand, you just started filming today. Is it okay for you to come home at this time?”

Park Eun-Soo had assumed that it would be hard for Woo-Jin to go home once filming began, because he had had to spend the night on set previously. Since she had thought she would not be able to see him for a while, she was happy to see him.

“Since it’s the first day, we were just trying to get a feel of things, so we ended early today. The schedule will be tight from tomorrow onwards, so they told us to be prepared. Fortunately, the staff decided to rent an entire motel near the set for us. People who find it hard to commute to and fro can stay there, so I’m planning to pack some clothes and supplies and check in tomorrow.”

For the main leads, it did not matter as their managers drove them around every day; but for Woo-Jin, he had no choice but to take a cab to the set at dawn. They had ended early today, so it was fine, but he did not have any contingency plans for days when filming ended at dawn. Additionally, in cases where there were hours of free time between shoots, the timing for him to make his way there or leave would be very uncertain.

He had thought about renting a room near the set for a month, but the solution had turned out to be right there. He heard that the staff had rented a motel for them to stay in. Even though he was a little embarrassed, he had decided to ask if he could stay there; to his surprise, they readily agreed to his request. Besides, Woo-Jin played an important supporting character, so he was able to get a single room all to himself.

“So, I won’t be able to see you at all throughout the shoot?” Park Eun-Soo asked.

“I’m not sure. It’s my first time taking part in a shoot lasting this long...” Woo-Jin replied hesitantly.

With years of experience as a trainee, Woo-Jin was well-aware of the K-pop industry, but he did not know anything about the movie industry. It started with an audition that he had chanced upon unintentionally, which had allowed him to make it thus far. Thus, he was as clueless as his mother. 

“Do you really have to be an actor? You would do well regardless of what you do.” Park Eun-Soo was not against her son’s decision, but she was not exactly supportive of it. Having grown up in a strict family, she did not understand why her academically-inclined son had to be a celebrity.

“Mom, it’s something I want to do.”

“Seriously! You only call me mom in moments like this!”

Woo-Jin had matured at a very young age due to his parents’ divorce. He had been calling his mom ‘mother’ since middle school. However, he would cleverly call her ‘mom’ in situations where he was at a disadvantage, or when he needed something to go his way. This was because he was well aware of the fact that his mom’s heart would soften if he called her by a title he had not used since he was a child.