The Shoot (2)
I sat through another round of makeup and watched the film crew and hotel staff file into the room, bustling about their work. They hauled out the bed, rigged up the lights, and in no time at all had turned the place into a rather stylish makeshift set.
Maybe it helped that the existing interior wasn't half bad to begin with.
"Seonghun, have you ever followed web variety shows or YouTube content?"
"No?"
Honestly, I didn't know the first thing about that stuff.
"Since we can't really do a variety broadcast or a live stream today like we discussed, I think we'll have to film, edit, and just upload the video."
"So the concept is a web variety show, unnie?"
"Yeah! We won't have any special topic. We'll start with self-introductions and answering the kinds of questions people are curious about."
"Then isn't everyone just curious about our honey?"
"Huh? No? People will be plenty curious about Sujin and Yujin too, since they applied first."
"Really?"
"Of course. Even I have so many questions about Sujin and Yujin."
"Oh? Like what? What they get up to in bed with him?"
"What are you even saying~ Come on. Just tell me already. Was it good?"
And just like that, the two of them launched into their own private conversation. Spicy. Very spicy.
They say women have no filter when it comes to dirty talk among themselves, and apparently that was true. My face was burning. I couldn't listen to this.
Time to run.
Then my eyes met Park Yujin's.
Unlike how she'd looked that morning, she was in a hoodie and other comfortable clothes, but it was a pretty, put-together look that showed off a twenty-year-old's sense of style. Quite the contrast with Jeong Sujin in her dress.
Did she wear this because she heard it was an indoor shoot?
"What are you doing?"
"Running away."
"Why?"
"Just... I'm not used to that kind of talk. It's uncomfortable to listen to."
"But you do that?"
"Do what?"
"You told them to stop — and then you just do whatever you want."
Hmm....
"That's a different thing."
"What even is that... Unbelievable."
Then she sat down beside me.
"Is your body feeling any better?"
"It still hurts. That's why I'm sitting like this."
"Yeah?"
"Yes."
"You're not getting makeup done?"
"I already got it done separately. Can't you tell?"
"Ah. I see."
I didn't have anything else to say, so we went out into the hallway together and simply stood there, watching the city as the sunset began to settle over it.
I wish this would just be over already.
"Seonghun, you can come in now."
Ha.... I don't want to do this.
"Alright. I'll go in first, then."
"Go ahead."
She kept using formal speech, probably because of the age gap. It was quietly uncomfortable.
"You're here? We'll start with an interview-style talk. Our writers prepared the questions, so please answer as honestly as you can."
"Understood."
Might as well get it over with. One week. Just one week. Endure it for a week. After that, whatever happens, happens.
With about ten people in the room all watching me, filming began. There was a subtle pressure to it — the eyes on me, the camera lenses, the lights — but the questions at the start were all things already on the public record, and as I answered them I started to settle in.
Name, birthday, height, weight, where I'd lived, what high school I'd graduated from. That kind of thing.
Couldn't you just look this up?
"Honestly, I think this is what viewers will be most curious about regarding you, Seonghun."
"We can't really skip talking about the National Debate — that was the occasion that put you in the public eye."
Ha... This was exactly why I didn't want to do this.
"How did you end up going up there representing the men?"
Awkward. What should I even say? Be honest? No. Wear the mask and lie. I'm the underdog, after all. Mix in a little truth, though.
"I ended up going up there somehow. I tend to speak my mind pretty actively, so I got recommended, and that's how I went up."
"I see. Still, being able to say those things is impressive. How were you able to say all that?"
"I appreciate the compliment, but if some other man had gone up there, he would've said something similar to what I did."
Those guys who always had sex on the brain — even they would be serious when it counted, right? They would... There were guys like Hyeongcheol mixed in, after all.
"It was a shared, common thought, so I was able to go up as a representative and talk about it."
"I see. Next question — you said this was an unavoidable choice given the circumstances."
"Yes."
"Could we hear your personal thoughts on day one of participating in Bright Future, the government's new population policy?"
"Uh... It's a lot of pressure."
"Pressure?"
"Yes. Of course, being able to meet such wonderful people and form deep relationships is nice, but I'm still not sure this is something I can take responsibility for, so it's a bit of a burden."
The truth was, it pissed me off. Honestly, I was pissed at myself for taking that list without thinking, pissed that there were people openly trying to use me. Anyway, I was pissed at all of it and just wanted to rest.
"I see. Next question — what kind of person would you like to see apply?"
I was grateful they asked about something I'd actually been thinking about, but it was a question I hadn't even answered for myself. I had nothing.
"I'd... like people who are emotionally and financially stable, and above all, people with a strong will to apply. Having and raising a child in a world like this is no joke."
That part was sincere. The rest, I wasn't sure.
"Personally, what kind of people would you like to see apply to you, Seonghun?"
"Uh... that sounds similar to an ideal-type question. Is that right?"
Was it not?
"No. We'll ask that later when we get to Type 1 and Type 2, so just answer honestly."
I hadn't seen this coming...
"I see... I don't really have any particular criteria. Like I said before, I just hope a lot of good people apply."
So I gave a generic, principle-based answer.
"Aww, that's a boring answer."
I could feel it. If I answered this wrong, I could fall straight into hell. Another internet coliseum would open with me as the topic, and I'd be the punching bag. Even if a little bad press didn't really matter, this was different.
"Sorry. But I genuinely don't have any criteria."
We all laughed it off and moved on, but...
"Then, aside from what's generally called Type 1 in Bright Future, do you have any personal conditions for becoming a Type 2?"
The moment they asked about how someone could become my wife, every pair of eyes looking at me turned serious. Especially Jeong Sujin and Park Yujin.
This felt similar to when guys like Hyeongcheol talked about their ideal type over drinks. Had I climbed to that position now, too?
"That's the question, huh? I still don't really know. Honestly, I've never even thought about marriage."
When I gave the same generic answer as before, the disappointment was written all over their faces.
Christ, this was exhausting. And if I actually told them the truth, could they even handle it?
After that, I had to sit in front of the camera for a good while longer, answering a flood of questions like the kind of content that overflowed on YouTube.
After this morning, my body really hurt and I was exhausted, but I deliberately dragged my aching self to the shoot. I needed to know more about the man I'd slept with this morning.
Park Seonghun.
This man was different from how he appeared in videos. No — quite a bit different. Granted, how many people actually showed their true selves while filming something like that? But he seemed even more different than most.
I'd taken him for a vacant, foggy sort of man, but this morning he'd been sharp as a blade, and after we'd slept together he'd been surprisingly gentle. My first time had been with a senior from my department — he'd been rough, done his thing, and disappeared. Setting aside that there'd been more than two of us, even during the act Seonghun had been gentle, and afterward he'd taken care of things. Clothes, the blanket, that sort of thing.
And when we went outside together to look at the view, he'd been quietly reserved. Then during filming, he seemed vacant and foggy all over again.
I really couldn't figure out what kind of person he was.
We'd have to be together for a week anyway, and to achieve the goal of getting pregnant — and to receive more help — I needed to get closer to him. But I didn't know which face was the real one, so my guard was up. I was watching, trying to gather more information and observe, but the more I watched, the more confused I got.
A guy with nothing going on behind those eyes had already cut two people with surgical precision? There was definitely something hidden...
I was thinking this when a woman in a black dress casually drifted over, catching my eye.
What was her name again? I thought I'd heard it from the writer unnie...
"Doesn't he seem a little off to you too?"
"Pardon?"
"No?"
"What do you mean?"
"Our honey. It seems like he has some kind of criteria, but he won't tell us. Ah! I haven't introduced myself. I'm Jeong Sujin. Twenty-seven."
So she was older than him. And she called him honey? Ugh...
"I don't really know. Oh, I'm Park Yujin. I'm twenty."
"Yeah? You're a total baby. Well, take care of me then."
"Yes. Likewise."
I hadn't planned on getting along from the start. No matter how you dressed it up, we were competitors. And women of that style were exhausting to get close to.
"Well, I'm up next, so I'll go film."
"Yes. Good luck, unnie."
Right now, I wanted to know more about that man than I wanted to deal with this kind of relationship.