Chapter 96: Finally
Muyoung and Song-a stood in front of the camera.
The gaze of dozens of staff members felt as burdensome as a lens. Did she notice his nervousness? Song-a smiled lightly.
“Do what you’ve been doing. Just like you’ve been doing.”
“Oh. Is it that obvious?”
“I can smell strawberries all the way from here.”
Muyoung also laughed at her joke.
At that moment, Director Lee Yujin, the assistant director, and several staff members approached the two and began to check their movements.
“You two, look at this angle here.”
A university hallway. Since it was the weekend, it would feel quiet except for a few club rooms. Director Lee Yujin and the assistant director pointed to the spot with their hands and explained.
“In the hallway, they playfully chase each other to catch one another, and then Doha grabs Miran. And they have to keep laughing even after that.”
“How long?”
“About…… 10 seconds?”
The two people, who were laughing while looking at each other, gradually fell silent, and Doha leaned in close to kiss her.
Then Miran playfully closed her mouth tightly.
“This part will only show the two people’s lower faces. We’ll shine a light from behind, so try not to use your left hand as much as possible. It’ll cast a shadow.”
“Oh. Okay, yes. I understand.”
The set had an opaque glass window that looked out onto a regular studio rather than the outside. The lighting team would be working hard to shine lights with their equipment.
“And when you deliver your line and pinch your nose, only Miran’s face will be close-up, so pay attention to your expression.”
“Isn’t there going to be a cut here anyway?”
“Yeah. Let me tell you again.”
Doha playfully pinched Miran’s nose, which she had tightly closed. Miran rolled her round eyes and tried to hold back her laughter.
In the end, it was the moment when she couldn’t hold her breath any longer and exhaled with a “Puffa-”, and he dove into her lips.
“How much should I twist when I lean on the window frame?”
“About this much?”
In response to Muyoung’s question, Director Lee Yujin grabbed Song-a’s waist and leaned in slightly. That’s how the three of them—no, four, including the assistant director—carefully checked the movements.
“How is it? You understand, right?”
“Yes. But if I grab your face, your makeup might come off, Song-a. Are you okay with that?”
“Just grab it lightly.”
“Okay.”
After discussing even the smallest details, it was time for the actual shoot. The staff members were all busy moving around.
When it was time to get ready, Song-a felt awkward this time. Since it was her first time acting, it was also her first time doing a kissing scene.
“Haha. Now I’m nervous.”
But Muyoung just laughed. After rehearsing the movements once, he had a sense of what Director Lee Yujin wanted and how it should look on screen.
“Okay. Let’s go! Stand by!”
“Ready-! Action!”
The two stood slightly apart, and when the action signal was given, they began acting. Miran couldn’t hold back her laughter and raised her hand.
“Oh, I’m sorry! Senior, I’m really sorry!”
“You’re only sorry in words?”
“But what could I do? I had no choice.”
“Why can’t I reach you then-”
“Eeeek! Puffaha!”
Miran, who was running around, and Doha, who was chasing her to catch her. When he playfully tickled her sides, the two got tangled up and laughed so hard that the hallway seemed to shake.
“Hahaha…… Oh. Really…….”
The two laughed so happily that tears almost came out. Doha tightened his grip on her waist as he hugged her and laughed. Their faces drew closer. Doha’s white skin and brown eyes, glowing brightly in the sunlight, were beautiful.
“Hup!”
But Miran playfully closed her mouth tightly. Doha tapped her lips and whispered to her. His languid voice was strange.
“Ah- open up.”
“I don’t wanna-”
Go ahead and try, Miran mumbled, blinking her eyes conspicuously. Doha stared intently at her face. Soon, he slowly covered her nose.
“You need to breathe, though?”
“…….”
Miran’s face gradually turned red. It wasn’t just that she was out of breath; this situation was incredibly embarrassing. Doha’s intense gaze didn’t fade, and eventually, Miran surrendered.
“Puffat-!”
Miran exhaled and opened her mouth. Doha didn’t miss the opportunity and kissed her. The sunlight poured down even more brightly. The sparkling light through the opaque glass window.
‘Okay. Fade in here.’
Director Lee Yujin muttered to herself as she watched the screen. In her mind, she pictured the screen gradually brightening as the focus shifted from the two people to the window.
‘Wow, wow. This is amazing.’
‘It’s good. The two of them look so good together.’
All the staff members gulped, as if they were stealing a secret from the two lovers. Then came Director Lee Yujin’s voice.
“Okay! Cut! I love it so much! You did great!”
At that sound, the two turned their heads. The two of them, with slightly flushed faces, smiled shyly. Muyoung wiped his lips and looked for Gyeongmin.
“……Hyung?”
In the distance, the manager stood with his mouth wide open, as stiff as a rock. When Muyoung waved his hand, he ran over with water and candy.
“What’s wrong?”
“Hey, you, oh, well, it’s better to be a moso. You did great, though. I mean, wow.”
Muyoung burst out laughing at his incoherent, admiring words. Song-a, who was fixing her lipstick, was the same.
“Even an old man like me feels his heart melt when he sees this. This is going to be a hit. When the viewers see this, they’ll just grab their pillows, shake them, and scream.”
“That would be really great. Haha.”
“Okay. Let me fix your makeup and then I’ll get Song-a’s face right away.”
“Yes. All I have to do is hold you, right?”
“Yeah. Muyoung. But you were so good!”
Director Lee Yujin kept patting him on the back and praising him. Since it was the first kiss for both of them, she thought it would be very awkward…….
‘Song-a’s slight clumsiness fits well with Miran, which is good. How did Muyoung do that?’
She smiled happily to herself and prepared for the next shoot. She chose well. He’s the perfect Doha, really!
“Muyoung. That position you were in earlier.”
“Yes. Here I go.”
And so the filming continued.
Muyoung wrapped his arms around Song-a’s waist and twisted his body slightly. The camera came over his shoulder and captured Song-a’s face.
It was a process to get a close-up of Miran’s expression from Doha’s point of view.
“Okay! Good! Next!”
“The atmosphere on set is good today, isn’t it?”
“When has it ever been bad? In my opinion, if this airs, we’ll be number one this time. We’ll get the highest viewership rating.”
All the staff members felt it instinctively.
People would really, really like it. The reaction would be unprecedented.
As Gyeongmin said, even an uncle staff member, someone who had filmed countless scenes like this, had his heart melted…… How much more so for the emotionally rich youth?
“Okay! Let’s go!”
Director Lee Yujin must have known that subconsciously, too, as her voice calling out “Okay” was higher than usual.
Then, on the night Muyoung and Song-a’s kiss scene aired, Muyoung dragged his groggy body to a Korean restaurant. He had a meeting scheduled with advertisers ahead of an advertising contract.
“Do I go up here?”
Muyoung asked, pulling his mask and hat down tightly.
“Yeah. Go and eat whatever you want.”
“I was so tired that I lost my appetite…… but I’ll eat it since it’s free. Hehe.”
Since a contract offer had come in, it was a meeting to discuss whether the actor’s image fit well with the advertisement through an actual meeting, as well as to explain the storyboard and negotiate the details of the schedule and conditions with the actor.
“Welcome. Do you have a reservation?”
“Yes. Ko Gyeongmin.”
“This way, please.”
It was his first time at a high-end Korean restaurant. A place where a man-made stream trickled and the nature-friendly interior caught his eye. When Muyoung opened the door, the people involved were already seated.
“Hello.”
“Oh. Hello.”
“Come on in. You must be tired after finishing work.”
“No, I’m sorry for keeping you so late because of me.”
They were employees from ROS’s marketing planning team. Since Muyoung was so busy with drama filming, they ended up meeting at such a late hour. They shook hands and sat down.
“First of all, thank you for considering the advertisement positively. Here’s the detailed storyboard file. I was going to give it to you after the meal, but it’s too late.”
“No, it’s okay. Let’s do it while we eat. Otherwise, you’ll end up going home after the day is over.”
Huh? Muyoung, who was checking the storyboard, tilted his head in confusion. He thought the advertisement was for the currently popular <You are a Star, I am a Star>, but it turned out to be a role that came in after watching
“The role of Louis was very impressive. All our team members went to the movie theater to watch it two or three times.”
“Wow. Really? Thank you.”
“We haven’t been around for long, but-”
The employees were quite polite and enthusiastic.
It’s not easy to do that for someone as young as Muyoung, who isn’t even a top star but a rookie actor.
“Especially, given the nature of the product, we have a lot of child customers. The company donates 1% of its net profit in gratitude, and the newly released ‘Chocolate Ball’ is also tied to an event sponsorship.”
“Wow. You’re doing good things. I didn’t know that.”
There were only one or two famous products he could think of. Muyoung wasn’t a big fan of snacks, either.
“What is a chocolate ball?”
“It’s a chocolate that turns into chocolate milk when you pour milk over it. It has a thick chocolate liquid inside, so it’s sweet and delicious. It’s modeled after a famous Italian chocolate.”
In Italy, instead of chocolate liquid, coffee is used. It’s delicious on its own, but when mixed with hot water or milk, there’s no better snack.
“……Would it help if I participated, too?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“You said you donate 1% of your net profit. If I make it sell a lot, it’ll help that much, right?”
Muyoung asked with a slight smile. How his image and actual personality are the same! The employee also smiled at the question from the young man, who resembled white milk.
“Of course.”
“Okay. Then um. Let’s eat first.”
They enjoyed a late-night meal in a cheerful atmosphere. Then, the water ran out. Muyoung pressed the bell, but no employees came.
“Huh? What’s going on? Are they busy?”
“Should I go check?”
“No. I’ll go. You eat, Hyung.”
Muyoung picked up the water bottle and wandered around outside. It was quite late, so it was quiet. The employees were huddled together at the counter, their heads close together. Muyoung approached them, tilting his head in confusion.
“Squeal! They’re doing it! Finally!”
“Hey, keep it down!”
“Whoa! Whoa! I’m going crazy. This is so good!”
“Eeeeeek! They did it! Awesome.”
What is it? Why are they making such a fuss?
Muyoung peeked his head out from behind them. What was coming out of the phone was the kiss scene from <You are a Star, I am a Star>.
“Eeeeeek.”
“I said, keep it down!”
“Excuse me-”
“Huh? Aaaaaah!”
The employee, startled as she turned around, screamed and stumbled.
Muyoung awkwardly smiled and held up the water bottle.
“Can I get some more water, please?”
“Uh, uh, yes, sorry.”
The person they had just seen on the drama was right in front of them. How startled they must have been. Muyoung, with his tired, bare face, was just as embarrassed.
“That drama is fun, isn’t it?”
“Huh? Yes, yes! I’m really enjoying it. I’m a huge fan of Muyoung.”
“We go crazy watching this every time it’s on at this hour. It’s the best.”
Muyoung thanked the chattering employees.
He returned to the room with the full water bottle. Gyeongmin looked at Muyoung, who was smiling slyly, in confusion.
“What’s up?”
“The people outside were watching our drama.”
“Oh, right. It’s almost over, isn’t it? By the way, have you decided on your next project?”
The next project was also an important scoring point for model selection. It’s preferable for future activities to be guaranteed. Muyoung continued his meeting with the employees.
Ring.
And after the drama ended, Director Lee Yujin’s message appeared in the group chat.
Muyoung couldn’t check it because he was busy eating and chatting.
[You killed it.]
[Director? Where did you learn to say that…….]
[Why are you saying that? Could it be? No way!]
Everyone was curious and sent question marks. Then, she sent an emoji flying into space along with her reply.
[We’ve surpassed 30%!!!! We’ve surpassed it!!! We’re number one!]