“Yeah.”
While answering, Hwi-gyeom was anxious. He had a bad feeling. Sure enough. Seeing Seo-jin asking him for Min-seong’s number, Hwi-gyeom gave a bitter smile.
“He acts well too, doesn’t he?”
“If Hye-ryeong plays the female lead and that person plays the male lead, it would be really perfect. This would be content that can’t fail.”
Na-ri’s friends whispered as they watched Hwi-gyeom and Na-ri, who had instantly immersed themselves in the acting and entered their own world.
They had many worries since it was Hye-ryeong’s first acting challenge. Hye-ryeong had shown particularly outstanding acting skills when shooting music videos before or doing skits in their group’s own content, but there was no guarantee she would do well when doing full-fledged acting. How much they had been on edge worrying their baby would be criticized.
But it seemed Hwi-gyeom could cover for Hye-ryeong even if her acting was a bit lacking. One concern was that Hye-ryeong’s presence might be overshadowed by being buried next to Hwi-gyeom.
To that extent, Hwi-gyeom’s appearance was like the sun rising in a world of fireflies. Even now, Na-ri was enthusiastically delivering her lines, but the two of them were just staring at Hwi-gyeom’s face as if enchanted.
“Thank you so much.”
Hwi-gyeom, who had practiced acting as much as he wanted, expressed his sincere gratitude. Thanks to that, not only did his tension ease considerably, but time had also passed quickly. Now it was time to slowly leave so as not to be late for the audition.
“Um, do you have SNS?”
Na-ri, who felt regretful about just parting with Hwi-gyeom like this, asked for his SNS ID. Hwi-gyeom touched the back of his neck and shook his head.
“Not yet. I’m planning to make a YeonStar account soon though.”
“Oh, then could you give me your number? It’s really not because I have any other intentions.”
Na-ri, who had glanced at Hwi-gyeom’s expression, made another suggestion in succession.
“If it’s difficult to give your number, I’ll give you my YeonStar ID. When you make an account later, please send me a friend request.”
Before Hwi-gyeom could answer, Na-ri took out a memo pad and pen from her bag and scribbled down her YeonStar ID.
“Here.”
At her earnest gaze, Hwi-gyeom took the note. Though it was a short time, Na-ri and her friends all seemed like decent people. Since this body’s personal connections were limited, making connections like this didn’t seem bad.
“Thank you so much today.”
After politely greeting Na-ri and her group once more, Hwi-gyeom left the cafe. At that moment, a black van stopped in front of the building where the audition was being held.
As soon as the car door opened, people who had been waiting inside the cafe rushed out all at once. Pushed by the crowd, Hwi-gyeom was swept to the building entrance in the blink of an eye.
“Kyaaaa! Unnie! Hye-ryeong unnie!”
“Unnie, you’re so cool today!”
“Please look this way, unnie!”
At the scene that was like a small fan meeting, Hwi-gyeom looked at Hye-ryeong with slightly envious eyes.
ThirTease. A girl group entering their 7th year since debut.
A project girl group ambitiously prepared by a major agency, whose members all already had quite large individual fandoms even before debut.
Hye-ryeong was the leader and main dancer among them. Her androgynous appearance and characteristic refreshing smile captivated female fans regardless of age.
Hye-ryeong, who had her cap pulled down low, discovered the fans and took off her hat. The fans fell backward at the simple action of her running her hands through her hair.
That’s really a face used to being loved.
After watching that scene for a moment, Hwi-gyeom entered the building. If he passed this audition, he would be acting together with Hye-ryeong.
Unlike Hye-ryeong who already had tremendous fans, Hwi-gyeom was an unknown actor who didn’t even receive proper support from his agency. Thanks to his outstanding appearance, he could easily gain people’s favor, but he hadn’t achieved anything yet. So he had to grab this opportunity.
When he got off on the 3rd floor where the audition was being held, a man wearing a name tag that said “Staff” around his neck approached.
“Are you here for today’s audition?”
“Yes.”
Following the guidance, Hwi-gyeom attached a name tag with his name on it to his chest and entered the waiting room. There was already a previous customer inside the waiting room.
A man who was sitting with his legs crossed tapping on his phone screen felt someone’s presence and lifted his head. The man’s eyes widened when they met Hwi-gyeom’s. Hwi-gyeom was also a bit surprised. It was a familiar face.
I think I’ve seen him a few times on NeoTube.
Was this person also an idol? Hwi-gyeom greeted him first.
“Hello.”
But no answer came back. The man scrutinized Hwi-gyeom from head to toe as if on guard, then turned his gaze sharply back to his phone.
Since being ignored like this was also fresh, Hwi-gyeom smiled faintly and sat down in a spot a little away from the man, opening his script collection. He didn’t read the lines but quietly closed his eyes. He went through the lines, including the stage directions, that he had memorized in his head one by one and just waited for his name to be called.
“Jeong Hwi-gyeom-nim.”
“Yes.”
Hwi-gyeom, who took a small deep breath, put the script collection in his bag. He gathered his belongings and headed to the audition room. The staff member standing at the entrance showed a surprised expression upon seeing Hwi-gyeom. Then he quickly managed his expression.
“Ahem. You can go in. Please leave your belongings here.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
As the door opened and he entered, Hwi-gyeom felt the air change. He felt tremendous presence from the people sitting side by side at the long table.
Among them was a familiar face. ThirTease’s Hye-ryeong was sitting at the edge, staring intently at Hwi-gyeom’s face as he entered the audition room.
But Hwi-gyeom almost fainted because of the man sitting next to her rather than Hye-ryeong. The man whose eyes met Hwi-gyeom’s smiled brightly and mouthed a greeting.
Hello.
Do Yi-hyun. The very person who had recommended Hwi-gyeom for this drama was occupying a seat right there.
Why the hell is that bastard here…
To hide his displeased mood, Hwi-gyeom immediately lowered his eyes. Surely Do Yi-hyun wasn’t appearing in this drama. Did he invest in this drama? Is that why he gave me the chance to audition?
His head became complicated in an instant. Hwi-gyeom, who had walked to the spot marked with tape on the floor, swallowed his dry saliva and bowed his head.
“H-hello. My name is Jeong Hwi-gyeom. I’m auditioning for the role of Cha Da-on.”
The end of his voice trembled finely. This wasn’t acting but real. He was nervous because this was his first audition in this body, but with Do Yi-hyun there too, his heart was beating so fast it felt like it would jump out of his chest.
“That friend said he knows Do Yi-hyun-nim?”
“Yes. Not just acquaintances, we’re very close. He’s a hyung I like.”
When the middle-aged man sitting in the center spoke to Yi-hyun, Yi-hyun answered with a smile so wide his eyes folded. Director Kwak Du-hyeon, who was directing ‘Seoul Lonely Night,’ frowned. The director’s sharp gaze swept over Hwi-gyeom.
“His appearance really stands out. Might the female lead be overshadowed?”
“I can’t bring myself to say no, can I?”
Hye-ryeong lightly deflected the director’s words that could be heard as sensitive. Even though comments about appearance were being made in front of her, Hye-ryeong with her cool personality didn’t mind. Though young in age, the time she had spent rolling in the jungle-like entertainment industry was comparable to any veteran actor.
“Let’s see the acting first. Where’s the script? Surely you didn’t memorize it all. Surely, Jeong Hwi-gyeom-nim, you didn’t come here to play like it’s a tea party, right?”
The director said with a frown. He despised those who relied only on their looks and took acting work lightly. Moreover, Yi-hyun had barged into the audition room without prior notice.
So he was currently in a slightly displeased state. Since several films he had made by taking out loans had failed at the box office in succession, he was shooting a drama he wouldn’t normally have even glanced at, and his pride was quite hurt.
But with Hwi-gyeom, who came to audition on Yi-hyun’s recommendation, standing there blankly, his anger was slowly beginning to boil.
Hwi-gyeom’s outstanding appearance also played a part. If he looks like that, he must have lived his whole life easily obtaining everything.
At the hostile gaze of the director, whose mind was tightly packed with prejudiced thoughts, Hwi-gyeom felt cold sweat rising in his palms. But he was confident. The script collection was already embedded in his head down to every particle.
“No. I memorized the script, so I didn’t bring it.”
“You memorized all the lines?”
“Yes.”
