Chapter 13
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 013
Chapter Title: Gymnasium
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It wasn't long after the script reading wrapped up.
The first shooting day for the drama Brilliant Sky arrived before they knew it.
That dawn, Shin Yi-han snapped his eyes open.
He habitually touched his face and threw open the window. The chilly morning air sharpened his senses.
First day of shooting.
Shin Yi-han grinned as he checked the schedule on his phone.
It's really today.
His body buzzed with anticipation.
He couldn't believe how distant his acting in Murder's Delusion already felt.
Of course, the audition and script reading for Brilliant Sky had been fun too.
But for Shin Yi-han, shooting was something else entirely.
The feeling was completely different.
Unlike the past, when he'd been desperate just to hide his burn-scarred face.
Now, he looked forward to baring it all in front of the camera—a moment he'd prepared for in a long-forgotten past that no one else knew about.
Brilliant Sky.
His eyes landed on the script sitting on his desk. Shin Yi-han smiled quietly.
He got ready in a flash, grabbing the script and slinging his bag over his shoulder.
He had to hurry if he wanted to make it to the set.
The one silver lining?
No agency, no manager—and yet, they had pickup service.
"Hey! Get in!"
Stepping outside, he spotted his sister, who'd pulled up with the car.
Score. Shin Yi-han hopped right in.
"This is way too convenient. Seriously."
Shin Yi-han chucked his bag onto the back seat with a satisfied look and buckled up.
"Then show it on set."
"Obviously. Just don't freak out too much when you see me act, Sis."
He teased her back at the "work hard" nudge. After all, she'd never seen him perform on an actual set before.
I've prepped a ton for this.
"Pfft. Don't worry. We already got all the shocks out of our system at the reading."
His sister, Shin I-rim, chuckled.
Shocks? What more shocks? She figured there was nothing left to surprise her.
They'd nearly passed out from astonishment at the reading already.
How could it get any crazier?
Finding out her little brother was a genius rookie actor? That was shock enough.
Honestly, topping the reading seemed impossible. Unimaginable.
Doing better than that? No way.
Not unless he was nuts.
But exactly two hours later...
Shin I-rim had to completely retract her thoughts from the drive over.
...That nutjob.
She really should've heeded her brother's warning and braced herself.
That kid's gotta be insane.
She was this close to letting a curse slip from sheer shock.
The Brilliant Sky set was ready, and cast members were starting to trickle in.
Ham Yeon-jeong, the lead actress playing the mother, made her entrance too.
"Whoa? Actor! What brings you here so early?!"
Kim Geun-tae PD couldn't help but be startled. She wasn't scheduled for any morning shoots today.
"Obviously."
Ham Yeon-jeong flashed a bright smile.
"Came to check out our rookie actor."
"...!"
She was dead serious—even skipping morning sleep for this.
She'd already seen plenty at the reading. If anything, that's why she was dying to know what the actual set would bring.
Not the reading room with scripts in hand and no need to stand—just the real deal.
And she'd even brought a guest.
"Hello, PD Kim Geun-tae."
"Oh? CEO Choo's here too?"
It was Ham Yeon-jeong's agency head, Choo Gyeo-ul. She'd been hanging back but stepped forward to greet Kim Geun-tae.
"Same reason as our actress."
"Ah! For real?"
Kim Geun-tae lit up and welcomed her warmly.
"Perfect timing then! You have to stick around and see!"
He'd been a little worried about Shin Yi-han lacking an agency, after all.
But Choo Gyeo-ul? No worries there. If anything, she seemed like a perfect fit.
Even if it was a small outfit.
That lineup was terrifying.
It wasn't small at all.
And wasn't Choo Gyeo-ul the one who'd turned every single one of those actors into superstars? She was the real deal.
No wonder they called her the golden eye of management.
"I highly recommend Shin Yi-han!"
Kim Geun-tae thrust out a thumbs-up like it was his own discovery.
"Must be that good, huh?"
"Yes! Totally!"
He answered Choo Gyeo-ul's question like it was reflex.
"He's the real deal. You'll see."
Kim Geun-tae poured his heart into it.
"Right? Even PD Kim Geun-tae vouches for him."
Ham Yeon-jeong chimed in proudly.
"Whoa. Hearing it from both of you? Now I'm hyped."
Choo Gyeo-ul smiled with a knowing look.
She usually only trusted her own eyes, but with two heavyweights raving like this right in front of her, how could she not get excited?
Besides, her own digging into Shin Yi-han had turned up...
She'd even contacted the Murder's Delusion crew.
'You have to see it yourself. Can't put it into words.'
'No joke—the kid's mom bolted out in shock!'
'Great personality too. And he grills meat like a pro!'
Incredibly, it was all praise. Made no sense.
Her expectations couldn't climb any higher.
But truth be told...
Raising them that much might not be wise.
The higher the expectations, the bigger the letdown.
Could a rookie really live up to all that?
Honestly... probably not.
Sure praise without exaggeration? If it was all true, he'd be a freak.
"Huh? By the way..."
As Choo Gyeo-ul pondered, Kim Geun-tae tilted his head.
"Actor Ham, you've lost a ton of weight...?"
Her mask had thrown him off at first. Now his gaze lingered on Ham Yeon-jeong.
She'd looked good before, but now...
With the weight loss, she looked even more like Brilliant Sky's protagonist, Heo So-ra.
Like a mother who'd lost her son. Exactly that vibe.
"Oh, really? I put some work into my look so I wouldn't lose to our rookie."
Ham Yeon-jeong beamed at the PD's comment.
"You look exactly like Heo So-ra now. Seriously."
"Good. All that effort paid off."
Ever since the reading, she'd felt outshone. She had to pull out all the stops.
She refused to lose.
The lead had to outshine her son, after all.
Choo Gyeo-ul shrugged at Ham Yeon-jeong's words.
"See? That's why I had to come."
No matter how good the rookie was, how could she sit this out as CEO when her own actress was this fired up?
"So, where's Shin Yi-han?"
Choo Gyeo-ul scanned the area.
"Over there. Shooting's about to start."
Kim Geun-tae pointed proudly to the center of the set, like he'd made the guy himself.
A student in a school uniform stood there.
Seemingly checking his marks, surveying the space.
"...?"
Choo Gyeo-ul blinked in confusion.
Huh? What?
She hadn't even considered the guy in the uniform was the actor.
Not that tall, handsome face.
Not that height.
Not those shining eyes. Weirdly enough.
Uh...
I mean.
It was ridiculous, but true. She hadn't clocked it until now.
He just looked that much like a real student.
He fit the role so perfectly.
In the end, that's all she could think.
Why's Lee Ha-neul already standing there...?
Shin Yi-han had changed into the uniform early, prepping for the shoot.
If I have to run from here to there... maybe starting out a bit winded would work best.
He walked the marks to check his path.
Glancing around, his eyes met the camera.
He grinned without thinking.
Face-to-face again with that massive black lens.
The other world it would capture.
Feels good.
Standing here in front of it.
Even if it was just as an unknown rookie for now.
Shin Yi-han simply savored the moment.
Especially since, before his return to the past, he'd thought this place forever off-limits to him.
And from now on...
He'd live and breathe solely as Lee Ha-neul under the brilliant sky.
Shin Yi-han took a deep breath in and out.
That was prep enough.
"Everyone, get ready! We're rolling!"
The staff murmurs and onlookers' stares faded away.
Brilliant Sky's first shoot.
High school gymnasium scene.
"Action!"
Director Pyo Nam-un's call hit right as it began.
This was the flashback triggered when protagonist Heo So-ra finally finds her deceased son's diary.
With every line she read...
She'd be pulled right into it.
Inside the vast gymnasium.
Watching with her own eyes as her son suffered horrific bullying.
The camera soon caught someone.
The son, rushing desperately to the gym storeroom like he'd been threatened.
His face, covered in red marks, was deathly pale.
His clenched fists trembled.
Fear choked him up to his jawline.
Then Lee Ha-neul's footsteps halted.
Inside the storeroom waited five students, as if they'd been waiting just for him.
"You're late."
One leaning against the vaulting horse spoke up.
He grinned ear-to-ear, like his buddy in front of him was hilariously pathetic.
Meanwhile, Lee Ha-neul's face filled with growing terror.
An electric kettle sat plugged in at the corner.
Hot steam bubbled out furiously.
The son could do nothing before it.
"B-Beom-gyu."
He knew escape was impossible.
"I... I messed up."
This was punishment from the start.
"I won't do it again. Okay?"
The penalty for snitching—no one would listen.
But the student grinning at Lee Ha-neul reached for the boiling coffee pot.
"Please. Please...!"
The son cried out in a scream-like plea.
"Huh? What'd I even do?"
That plea was slowly crushed by the one student.
"We held hands and made up today. Right in front of the homeroom teacher."
No. It had been forced.
His first time reaching out to an adult for help.
He never would've if he'd known it'd end with "make up."
"So I just wanna play a little water game with my friend."
Click. The coffee pot inched toward the son.
"Don't wanna?"
Splash! Without warning, the scalding water poured over his head.
Aaaah!
A shrill scream burst out.
"We made up, didn't we?"
It didn't end there.
Drip, drip.
The rest poured straight onto Lee Ha-neul's arms and back.
The water trickled slowly.
Targeting one spot relentlessly.
Scalding the skin hotter and hotter.
Gasp! Heuk! He couldn't dodge. Lee Ha-neul shook all over, enduring the hot water. Like it wasn't his first or second time—familiar yet horrific.
"Ha-neul. Shh. Breathing too loud."
Even as he thrashed, nothing changed.
Urk... Mmgh... He swallowed the scream rising in his throat.
And ironically, for Shin Yi-han, this pain was all too familiar.
The easiest memory to pull up.
He knew exactly the heat, the agony Lee Ha-neul felt right now.
Maybe that's why.
"...Cut."
The second the director called cut...
The set erupted in murmurs.
Even Park Mu-gang, playing the bully leader Beom-gyu from his school days, was shaken.
The student who'd just been whistling happily while pouring boiling water suddenly dropped the pot.
Clang!
His hands began to tremble.
"...?"
Shin Yi-han tilted his head.
He'd noticed Park Mu-gang's quick immersion at the reading, but even after cut, the guy seemed stuck in character.
His breathing was ragged. He backed away like he hadn't snapped out of it.
Muttering to himself.
"C-Cold... water."
He jerked his head up and yelled.
"Cold waaater!"
"Huh?"
What the—? Shin Yi-han was baffled, but it was too late.
Somehow procured, a cold liquid splashed over him.
Splash!
Blech. Wait, no. Why?
Iced Americano. Reeking of coffee, Shin Yi-han could only stare in bewilderment.
But the water they'd used in the first place...
Wasn't it already cold?