Life, Once Again!

After Story 35

Jiseon stood in front of the two people holding the camera. The Maru and Haneul on screen felt different from when she was looking at them with her naked eyes. Maybe they got into their emotions already.

Yoonseok, who was looking at the same screen, spoke, "The camera's ready. You can start whenever."

Maru said that they should do a camera test since she was here, and as a result, they were doing a short shoot.

Like Maru, Haneul had a close look at the script before saying that she was ready. It was incredible how they could start acting on the spot like ready-made food. How much training and studying would it require to respond so confidently like that?

"We'll start once you give us the cue sign, director," Haneul said.

"Okay. Then three, two, one. Cue."

Maru and Jiwon looked very awkward on the screen like two puzzle pieces that didn't fit together when they shot thirty minutes ago with the same camera. Maru's eyes looked good, but Jiwon, his counterpart, looked lacking in comparison.

However, right now, the two people on camera looked like a perfect match. It was a scene without a single line, but Jiseon could already feel that the two were like interlocking cogwheels.

Maru's eyes as he looked at his dead girlfriend were complexity itself. Longing and sadness made up the majority, but the occasional glimpse of satisfaction and joy seemed to express the chaotic feelings the main character was having.

Then there was Haneul. Her eyes were like the abyss, sucking in everything. There wasn't a hint of emotion. They were the eyes of a dead person. Hers were incomparable to Jiwon's awkward eyes.

They were the eyes that the script and the production crew wanted: a wall in the form of a human and a graveyard of emotions. The wave of emotions that Maru poured out collapsed instantly in front of the wall that was Haneul. Maru's eyes, desperately longing for the echo that would never return, became a tad deeper. The sense of longing turned into thick despair.

Jiseon suddenly had the thought that actors back when films didn't have sound, must have acted like this.

Maru's expression became like a dam just before release. The vortex of emotions inside him was just about to find an outlet. Haneul, who was facing him, stayed dead still and looked at Maru like a well-made prop.

Maru's expression became stiff, then distorted, before it expanded and finally lost energy. He looked at Haneul with dry eyes like all moisture within him had dried up. Then he slowly closed his eyes. The piercing tower of emotions was toppled.

Having opened his eyes again, Maru staggered as he stood up like a man who had lost half his soul. He then walked out of the frame.

Just like that, for about ten seconds, Jiseon looked at the screen, which only had Haneul left. What woke her up was an engine revving noise passing by outside the window.

Jiseon tapped Yoonseok with her elbow.

"C-cut. Good. I think it's good. Yes, it's good," Yoonseok repeated several times in a daze.

"I wonder if it came out to your liking, director. It's been a while since I got into the mood when acting."

When Haneul, who looked like a dead person, spoke again, she regained vitality in an instant. So she put on that kind of act with a face filled with so much life? Jiseon felt sweaty in her palms. They could actually write the first lines on these two people's filmographies with their work.

While she participated in this project with a completely different motivation, now, she kept thinking that she would have to do her best in order to produce a good film.

If they managed to flop this work with two actors that seemed to be in a totally different league than their peers, then it would be entirely the fault of the production crew.

"How was it?" Maru asked. The corners of his eyes were trembling, probably as aftermath left by the torrent of emotions.

"It was so good that we can probably use this as it is. No, I'm even wondering if it's possible to shoot a better one than this."

He seemed very excited, which Jiseon could understand. Yoonseok was the person who put the most effort into producing the film. And it was her who joined in because she couldn't let him be.

"Can I see how it turned out?" Haneul asked.

Jiseon quickly played back the video she just took and handed her the camera. Maru and Haneul started checking the video with their shoulders close enough to touch. When Jiseon saw the two people exchange gazes, sometimes smile at each other, and sometimes complain, she was convinced that these two people's relationship couldn't be expressed by 'just friends.' They were either dating or in the stage just before that.

Jiseon's lips twitched. A piece of melodrama unfolded in her head. A boy and a girl pursuing the same dream, emotions that started deepening from friendship, a cliché yet inseparable ending of thick love…. She couldn't help but look at Yoonseok.

She started helping out with production expecting a melodrama with this clueless dimwit, but what awaited her was not a melodrama but a human documentary.

She took a sip of water. Since it came down to this, she decided to create a masterpiece. Dating could come later.

"I think I went overboard."

"This is fine."

"No it isn't. Look here. Don't you think I should be holding back a little?"

The two actors put down the camera and started talking. Jiseon originally planned to say that it was flawless and perfect, but it seemed that it wasn't the case for the people in question.

A conversation so serious that it was difficult to join them was exchanged between the two.

"The conclusion is that both you and I are still clumsy in using our muscles. We need to practice more," Haneul said in dissatisfaction.

Jiseon took back the camera and checked the video again. No matter how she watched it, the acting gave a great sense of immersion. Was there any flaw at all?

She watched the video until the two perfectionists finished their conversation. She talked to Yoonseok about what kind of composition they should use during the real shoot. It wasn't a bad idea to shoot the scene on the bed just like the script said, but looking at the video they took today, where both of them were sitting down, it was actually pretty good.

Yoonseok started writing things down in the corner of the script. He seemed to have gotten inspired as he didn't stop for a long while. She stared at Yoonseok for a while before noticing that a shadow had loomed over her. The actors had finished their talk and had approached her.

"Did the two of you come up with this composition," Haneul asked as she looked at the script.

"No, most of it was made by Yoonseok, I mean, the director. The others and I only gave a few opinions."

That seemed to be her only question as Haneul stepped back with a nod. When Jiseon looked at her from up close, Haneul's skin was out of this world. She even wanted to ask her how she managed her skin.

"Then when are we shooting? I'll have to know so that I can match it."

When Haneul said so, Maru interrupted, "What are you doing to be so busy?"

"A few things. I'll tell you about it once there are results, so wait obediently."

Haneul was like a mother consoling a child, and Maru just laughed in jest. Truly, it seemed that the relationship between these two people wasn't ordinary.

Yoonseok took out his phone. He seemed to be checking what dates he could shoot on.

"We removed almost all the night scenes, so we plan to shoot before noon most of the time. Also, the place we plan to shoot is crowded on weekends, so I'm planning to go on a weekday. As long as the two conditions are met, I plan to match the two of your schedules as much as possible, actors."

"Then I'll readjust my schedule and tell you about it later. Also, you seemed to have dropped the formalities with Maru, so can I do that as well? That seems like a better option considering what will happen at the shoot."

"Sure. Then I'll call you Haneul-noona. Or would you like senior instead?"

"I'm fine either way, so call me with the one you prefer."

Yoonseok put on an idiotic smile. Jiseon felt her toes tensing up. She purposely snatched the script in front of Yoonseok away roughly.

"Can I call you Unni too?"

Haneul glanced at Yoonseok before smiling. She seemed to have understood everything.

"I should get going for now. I barely made time for this."

As they didn't have anything else to do, everyone left the lecture room together. While going to the main entrance, Jiseon quietly spoke to Haneul,

"Uhm, unni."

"Yeah?"

"You aren't just friends with Maru-oppa, are you?"

"Why do you ask? You thought you had to make sure because of Yoonseok?"

The words hit the bullseye. Jiseon looked at the two men walking ahead of them.

"It's quite obvious, isn't it?"

"If I could feel it on my first day of meeting you, then probably?"

"But then, why doesn't he get it?"

"I'm not sure." Haneul only smiled.

* * *

Maru glanced at the two women following them before speaking to Yoonseok, "It looks like Jiseon is interested in you, am I wrong?"

"That's… er…."

Yoonseok just smiled bitterly in response. He didn't speak a word while they passed the main square and the library and only did so when they were near the entrance.

"I think she's a good friend for now. A grateful friend who helps me in production."

Maru did not ask anything else. This wasn't something he should meddle into. The two of them would sort their relationship out in due time. Considering their personality, Jiseon would be the one to talk about it first, while Yoonseok would be the one to decide.

"It won't become a problem, so don't worry."

"I didn't say anything. I'm just saying you should do your best in both film production and youth business."

"How about you then?"

"Me? I'm not just good, I'm on the level of maturity."

"You sound like a total player."

"I can remember the eyes of numerous ladies who made eye contact with me."

"Now that I think about it, you're a little crazy."

As they had been living together for three days and talked to each other to death, they were at the point where they weren't awkward when joking around with each other.

Maru liked being in a brother-like relationship more than one where they put distance. Oftentimes, it produced better results.

"Haneul-noona must be so popular in her university. She must be the top in her department in terms of looks."

"Not just her department. If things work out, she'll be playing on a national level," Maru responded with a smile.

He wasn't exactly lying. There were only a handful of lifetimes where she wasn't popular as an actress.

"Anyway, you saved me big this time. We got good actors now, so all that's left is to display good directions. I'll do my best so that the two of you aren't disappointed."

"Alright. Do your best. Even better if you produce the best results."

They arrived at the bus stop in front of the campus. Yoonseok and Jiseon left first, saying that they had something to buy.

Haneul, who waved her hands at the two people, came over to him. "I was a little surprised at first about why you would want to participate in a work involving a bunch of college kids. Moreover, they aren't even in the relevant department."

"You can see why now that you had a look at the script, right?"

"Yeah. I was reminded of a few people. The closest person in style would be… director Baek Seok. He looks a little unripe, but in terms of innovation, he seems even better."

"I feel the same. Before I read the script, they were a team with insufficient preparations, so I was planning not to do it, but I changed my mind after I read it. This is worth investing in. It’s a one-shot story, so it might get buried without getting recognized, but the shooting time will be just as short, so there’s no pressure. It’s chump change, but I can also earn some money as an actor too.”

“Still, my hubby’s being generous, huh? You would’ve only thought about the practicality and cut it off.”

“I couldn’t help it back then. But now, I don’t need to hurry. I already have the most important person in front of me after all. It’s thanks to you that I have some leisure in my heart.” Maru grabbed her hand.

She asked if they should go on a walk.

“Didn’t you have something to do?”

“I do, but it’s less important than taking a walk with my man. Well, if you don’t want to, I’ll be leaving.”

“Who said they don’t want to walk with you? Bring that guy here. I’ll beat some sense into him.”

“You totally sounded like an old man just now.”

“I’m an old man of course. Do you take me for some young man?”

“Live young, old man.”

“Fine, ma’am.”

She grabbed his hand and walked forward. Maru followed her like he was being dragged.

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