Ding-dong.
Just then, as if the chicken and pizza had arrived, Im Bada and Ryu Byeol hurriedly got up.
“I’m looking at the script. I’ll go get the chicken and pizza.”
“Okay.”
Anyway, I’ll have to stay up all night today to go over my lines.
“Im Bada.”
“Bada!”
What was that? I tilted my head and blinked at the sound of someone calling me.
“Happy birthday.”
“Happy birthday~!”
Who puts candles on pizza? No, wait,
‘Here they are.’
It was absurd, yet the serious expressions on their faces were quite funny.
“…Hey? Are you laughing?”
“No, no. I’m not laughing.”
And then the pizza cake, which appeared out of nowhere, made me burst into silent laughter.
“Bada, don’t just laugh! Blow out the candles!”
A flustered Yeom Haejin put the pizza on the table and urged me on.
“Quick, quick! The candle wax is going to drip.”
“Okay, okay! Don’t rush me.”
I closed my eyes tightly as I looked at the candles on the pizza.
“Can’t I make a wish later?”
“Byeol, be quiet.”
“Okay.”
Yeom Haejin was always like that, but Ryu Byeol, I couldn’t figure her out. Did she hate me? Or did she like me…?
Anyway.
‘Please let our drama do well.’
I hope it does well no matter what. And please send Director Kim Jin’s drama to hell.
I opened my eyes, spewing curses at Director Kim Jin. Just as the candle wax was about to drip, I blew out the candles with a “whoosh.”
As the candlelight went out and I opened my eyes, Ryu Byeol and Yeom Haejin had relieved expressions on their faces.
“How did you guys know?”
“…About, you know, your birthday?”
“Yeah. I forgot about it.”
How did they know about my birthday, which even I had forgotten?
“How could we not?”
Ryu Byeol answered calmly, as if I were asking something obvious, like saying 1 plus 1 equals 2.
We weren’t on good terms, but rather on bad terms. How could she say that so calmly?
I was about to feel sorry, wondering if I had been remembering her in a distorted way, when she said,
“Oh, what are you thinking? Yeom Haejin told me, that’s how I knew.”
Of course. There’s no way she would have known on her own.
As the atmosphere turned strange again, Yeom Haejin clapped her hands to lighten the mood.
“Now that we’ve celebrated your birthday, shall we look at the script while we eat?”
I had many questions, but I kept my mouth shut.
‘Let’s look at the script.’
My lines and Senior Tae Jinhwa’s lines had changed a lot. And there were gaps in my scenes.
“Haejin, is it okay for this character, Yeonwoo, to change like this?”
“Why? Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s not that, but it’s too…”
I could tell even without seeing many episodes.
“She’s like a sweet potato.”
Just from the lines…
The character of Yeonwoo had completely changed. From a lovable character who liked and followed Kim Sohyun, to a neutral character who couldn’t abandon either her friend or her mother.
‘This is going to be tough.’
It was going to be hard to act.
I closed the script on the table and tapped it with my finger, a habit I had when my head was complicated with a character.
‘Instead of a frustrating character, I have to make the viewers understand this character’s emotions and portray her as a character of both love and hate…’
“Why is she like a sweet potato?”
Yeom Haejin asked innocently, as if she really didn’t understand what I meant.
“Well… she’s wavering between two emotions. She can’t do this or that. I’d understand if she were a more ambitious character.”
“Well, I think Yeonwoo is the most ambitious character in this drama.”
Our impressions were completely different.
“Hmm. I guess it can be interpreted that way? In what way?”
“Look. If she didn’t have her own feelings, she wouldn’t waver. She would just follow whatever her mother told her to do.”
Ryu Byeol agreed.
“Yeah, I see it that way too.”
“See? Byeol sees it that way too.”
The character that felt indecisive and frustrating to me seemed to be seen differently by them.
‘So, depending on how I act, the Yeonwoo that the viewers feel can be very different. This is going to be tricky!’
“Still, it’s easier than me.”
“Easier?”
I raised my gaze from the script and looked at her.
“Why? It’s easy, look.”
Let’s hear her out first. I can always argue later.
“Based on my interpretation of Yeonwoo, she can help Sohyun when she feels like she likes Sohyun, and she can follow her mother’s words when she’s afraid of her mother.”
‘Honey, that’s what we call being thoughtless.’
If I acted that simply, Yeonwoo’s charm would be greatly diminished.
“Can I argue now?”
“I haven’t finished talking yet?”
“Sohyun at least has a goal.”
“Oh, seriously! Listen to me first.”
“…..”
Yeom Haejin was stuffing pizza into her mouth, watching us with an interested expression.
“It’s difficult because she has a goal. It’s hard to correct it if my interpretation is wrong. Even if Yeonwoo’s interpretation is wrong, you can just attribute it to her emotions at the time and fix it.”
“……”
I had nothing to say. To say that even if the interpretation is wrong, you can just attribute it to the emotions at the time.
How difficult it is to create a consistent character who is swayed by various desires.
“Isn’t it just that it looks easy because it’s similar to the characters you’ve played?”
“…..”
That seemed to be the correct answer. She had often played the role of a chaebol heiress or a type of character who was popular with men and acted as she pleased.
“How about substituting someone else?”
“Someone else?”
Ryu Byeol’s eyes blinked at my words.
Just like I told Go Eunhyuk, it was easy to act if I applied reality.
“You think I wouldn’t know that?”
“Oh, I think you wouldn’t.”
“I just forgot. Now that I think about it, it’s a good idea.”
Ryu Byeol shrugged her shoulders at me. If the day ever comes when I have to play an annoying character…
‘I’ll think of her. Definitely.’
But the corners of her lips turned up as if she was smiling. Did she have a good idea? Or…
“Do you have someone in mind?”
“I have a lot of friends. I have someone in mind.”
“You have a lot of friends?”
“I told you before! I have a lot of friends!”
“Yeah. You must have a lot of friends…”
“That sounds like a very soulless tone.”
“Me? No, I’m always like this.”
Just as we were slowly scratching at each other with our words, Yeom Haejin patted her stomach and cut off the conversation in a sentimental voice.
“This is like our club days.”
“How so?”
“You two were always fighting in the club room. You were always fighting, and I was always stopping you.”
The university theater club. Back then, we all gathered together to analyze the script and watch each other’s rehearsals, all to put on a good play.
‘That’s right, we did.’
It was a distant time for me. A time of youth. A memory I had forgotten because I was enduring a difficult time.
“Suddenly thinking about the old days.”
Yeom Haejin pointed out my mumbling.
“Hey, how long has it been since we graduated? You’re talking like someone who graduated decades ago.”
Oh, right.
“I guess it’s because our situations are so different now than they were then.”
“By the way.”
Yeom Haejin turned her head and stared at Ryu Byeol.
“Why didn’t you graduate?”
“…Me?”
“You didn’t come to our graduation ceremony either.”
“I was filming a drama.”
“I know, but you didn’t even send a text. Do you know how sad I was? Especially!”
She pointed at me with a chicken leg.
“She was sad.”
“…..”
“Why didn’t you come?”
I didn’t say anything and avoided the situation. There was nowhere to run in the small two-room apartment except the kitchen. I wish there was a veranda.
‘She was sad.’
She was right. Because she had run away. Even though we were supposed to do theater together.
Pour, pour-
I poured water into a cup. The clear sound crushed the silence and cleared my head a little.
That was only for a moment, as Ryu Byeol’s voice, which made my head complicated again, was heard.
“…I’m sorry if you were sad. I had my own things going on.”
I turned around and stared at Ryu Byeol, who was apologizing to me. She really avoided my gaze like a child who had realized something she didn’t know.
“There was a reason why I couldn’t contact you. I’m sorry if you were sad.”
“…..”
“Oh, if you’re going to apologize, say something! You’re making me feel awkward.”
I really don’t know about her. Is she sincere or just putting on a show?
“…Okay, thanks for the apology.”
“Hey, your tone is really annoying?”
“Yeah, if it sounded like that, it’s your ears’ problem.”
“You’re the same now as you were then.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
As the situation seemed to be easing a little, Yeom Haejin spread her arms as if she had been waiting for it and embraced us.
“Let’s work hard~! We have to stay up all night. The drama reading is in 4 days.”
Ah… I had forgotten the most important schedule. Senior Tae Jinhwa will be there, and there will be many senior actors.
“We have to work hard.”
Ryu Byeol said the same thing as me.
“What, you two?”
…What is it? I lowered my head to look at the script when an alert popped up on my phone saying I had a message.
‘Who is it? [My Mom: Happy birthday, daughter~^^]
[My Dad: Daughter, come home after the drama filming schedule is over**]
It was my parents.
‘…I should finish “Young Young” and go see my parents.’
In the past, I was so focused on chasing my dreams that I didn’t look around me, and I lost contact with my friends, parents, and others.
Even on my birthday like today.
‘There was no contact.’
Just because my actions changed, my life started to change little by little.
‘If it had been like this before the regression…’
I wouldn’t have been so lonely back then.
★★★
4 days later. The script reading filming site for YoungYoung. Everyone was smiling and greeting each other with pleasant smiles.
But there was a slight tension in the air.
‘The first historical drama on a general programming channel.’
That title must be a big deal.
“Hello. I’m Im Bada.”
Before I sat down in the chair with the name tag, I made eye contact with Seong Saebyeok, who had arrived earlier than me.
“Hello! Saebyeok!”
“Senior!”
“It’s good to see you. I’m glad to see you.”
“…M-Me too. I’m glad to see you, Senior.”
We had met a few days ago, but it felt like it had been a long time. She was shy and cute.
‘Like a squirrel…’
After exchanging a few words, I sat down in my assigned seat. Soon after, Ryu Byeol, who came in with a lively greeting, sat down in her chair and immediately.
Thud.
Slammed her head on the table.
“…You look good? I’m dying.”
That was understandable. I had memorized the lines thanks to the time travel buff and ran away from Yeom Haejin’s house.
“You should have run away.”
“How could I run away?”
Ryu Byeol said that she couldn’t go outside for 4 days and analyzed the character with Yeom Haejin for detailed analysis.
“Ryu Byeol, get up. Have some coffee.”
“Thanks……”
“The seniors will be here soon.”
The dark circles under Ryu Byeol’s eyes and her haggard look were noticeable on her face as she raised her head to receive the coffee I handed her.
“Caffeine is the best after all…”
Only then did her eyes sparkle.
Gradually, the costume team, hair team, director’s assistant staff, etc. all arrived, but Senior Tae Jinhwa and Im Hoon had not yet arrived.
‘…Why isn’t Im Hoon coming? A junior being late.’
It was then. Exclamations of surprise burst from the staff’s mouths.
The main character is always late.
There, Senior Tae Jinhwa appeared, wearing a ponytail and an all-black outfit.
“…Wow.”
Am I allowed to see this for free?