Chapter 70
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 070
Chapter Title: Handshake (2)
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A typical home in America.
One night while the parents were away, the living room was filled with all the neighborhood friends.
Ding.
With the sound of the camcorder starting up, the footage began to play.
Murmurs from the friends gathered on the long sofa drifted in from outside the frame.
And the camcorder was focused on just one person—the transfer student, the protagonist of this film.
"Uh..."
Ha ha. The transfer student let out a hollow laugh, trying to play it cool and hide his tension.
"No way this is that thing, right?"
He glanced at the long finger sitting right there on the table.
Its black nails sharpened to a razor edge, weird patterns etched all over the gross, dark-red skin.
Obviously a fake prop...
But it was a bizarre antique that soured your mood just looking at it.
The transfer student openly showed his unease.
Ew. He gingerly pinched the red finger between his thumb and forefinger, like it was something filthy, and asked,
"So, what do I even do with this?"
The subtle dampness and squishiness of the skin turned his stomach, but he didn't want to let it show.
With that teenage bravado unique to his age, and eyes betraying just a hint of fear.
He waited for the response.
And outside the camera, the staff watched the actor.
'Uh...'
They'd been chuckling and rustling as per the script, but unwittingly, surprised looks crossed their faces.
Especially after all the griping about how a Korean actor could possibly play an American.
'What?'
'Not a bad start?'
They were honestly startled by the instant shift in the actor's eyes.
The guy who'd looked unmistakably Korean moments ago now seemed like a genuine Korean-American.
Mysteriously, every little gesture, even his laugh—it all felt so natural.
Like he'd become a completely different person.
'Feels like the real deal.'
'Pretty solid...?'
And the more the camera rolled...
Their jaws could only drop wider.
'No, more than solid.'
Everything unfolding before them was so far beyond their expectations.
'Way more than that. This...'
It was downright shocking.
Just a single candle flickered in front of the transfer student.
The living room was pitch dark otherwise.
- Exactly one minute. No more than that.
- You might lose your mind.
One of the friends off-screen briefly explained the rules.
"I don't buy into that crap."
The transfer student shrugged.
Possession game? Separate from the gross feeling of the red finger in his left hand, he straight-up didn't believe it.
"Then just say it once."
Laughter leaked out from those around him at his reaction.
"Say you see it. That's it. Easy, right?"
"...Okay. Yeah, easy."
The transfer student nodded with a skeptical look.
No way he could chicken out and look scared in front of everyone.
Especially not trembling and making a fool of himself.
In the end, he opened his mouth.
"I can see you."
He figured nothing would happen.
But right then...
"...?!"
Something icy cold gripped his left hand holding the red finger.
A chill like touching a corpse.
Instinctively, he realized it wasn't alive.
He looked up and saw he was holding hands with... someone.
"Shh!"
A woman, half her face smashed in, blood dripping steadily.
The transfer student freaked out for real.
He barely swallowed the scream trying to burst out.
But he couldn't stop thrashing to shake off that hand, gasping for breath.
Yet the hand wouldn't let go just because he wanted it to.
The more he struggled, the deeper those nails dug into his skin.
Pfft! Everyone watched the transfer student like it was hilarious.
Clearly, the kid had seen something.
But to everyone else, nothing was there. Just the transfer student flailing around pathetically.
Even amid that insane terror...
"How is it? Fun, right?!"
Puhaha! They were too busy cracking up behind the camera.
"Whoa! Transfer student's killing it right now!"
"Carrie! Way more intense than when you did it?!"
Like they'd all tried it once before.
"Come on, say it! I allow you!"
They shouted excitedly at him like it was no big deal.
At the noise, the transfer student finally snapped to. He realized his friends were watching him, even if just for a moment amid the horrific dead woman.
He was still panting, utterly confused.
Do it! Do it!
With everyone chanting for him to hurry, he had only one choice.
He had to do it to end this.
"...I allow you!"
The transfer student squeezed his eyes shut and yelled.
Gasp! He sucked in a breath as his body jerked backward.
The camcorder zoomed in on his face.
And when the transfer student finally opened his eyes again...
He was a completely different person.
He lifted his arms like they were fascinating, touched his face.
A smile too twisted to be human.
"Ooh!"
"It worked!"
The friends cheered in delight.
The dead thing he'd seen had entered his body.
Bang!
The door slammed shut violently.
Rattle rattle— The camera shook wildly, emitting static.
A phenomenon from the possession.
Then, when the transfer student's hand pointed at one of the boys...
Screech!
"Agh?!"
Thud! His chair shoved backward and toppled.
"Crazy!"
The fallen boy scrambled up, yelling in shock.
"Insane! It straight-up pushed me!"
First time such raw physical force had kicked in.
"This strong?!"
"What's with the transfer student? This is nuts!"
Puhaha! Epic! Everyone burst out laughing.
Not a soul was scared. It was just a game to them.
A creepy, fascinating, super fun prank.
The kitchen door creaking open, drawers spilling out—sounds like that kept coming from off-camera.
Whoa! This is wild for real?! They exclaimed in excitement.
"Kahaha! Kahak-!"
The possessed transfer student was laughing his head off too.
Still stuck in the chair, twisting every which way like a maniac, wheezing with laughter.
"Whoa!"
Then, the moment the transfer student let out an exclamation...
"There's one behind you too."
Ooh? What? The friends got even more hyped.
It's talking? First time a possessed person's spoken properly!
A new twist, and they all giggled. No idea tonight would be this thrilling.
But that lasted only a moment.
"One next to it, one in front too!"
Cheerful yet horrifying.
"Aah! We're filling this place up!"
A voice like nails on chalkboard poured nonstop from the transfer student's mouth.
A bizarre tone mixing high and low pitches.
And those eyes, bloodshot and oozing raw desire.
'Uh...'
'W-wait.'
It started freezing everyone solid.
The exact opposite of the laughs from moments ago.
Chills turned to a gut feeling that something was very wrong.
"Gonna take it all! Everything! Kahahaha!"
His laughter choked the air right out of them.
Those nails even started clawing the sofa like mad.
Crunch, crack! His body suddenly twisted like it might snap.
Like it desperately wanted off that seat.
Finally, a beat too late...
"...T-time!"
One of the staff, dazed from the actor's performance, urgently spat out the line like he'd actually blanked.
"Crazy! Time's up!"
The others were the same.
Frozen stiff by the eerie scene for real.
"What are you all doing?!"
They finally panicked and jumped up at someone's shout. But their minds were blank.
Still, the shoot kept rolling.
"Grab the finger first!"
They had to end this possession.
Several boys rushed him, but the transfer student's hand clutching the red finger wouldn't budge.
Thud! Someone even got flung to the floor by that freak strength.
Impossible to stop.
And now the staff were starting to freak out for real, one by one.
'N-no.'
'Why won't it let go?!'
Their heads went completely blank. Not acting—this felt legit.
'Is this actually okay?!'
The actor's frenzied struggling left them disoriented. It didn't feel like acting anymore.
For a second, they wondered if something was really wrong. Even thought about cutting the shoot.
- The possession ends when the candle goes out and the lights come on.
Of course, it was just scripted action, but in their panic, no one remembered.
The staff kept wrestling the actor, so Bobby Puck, gripping the camera, had no choice but to step in.
'K-kids? What the hell?!'
'Blow out the candle to end it!'
Bobby Puck rushed into frame.
Fwoosh!
The brief darkness as the candle snuffed out was fleeting.
"Turn on the lights! Lights!"
The room lit up.
And that solved everything.
Plop. Roll—
The red finger that wouldn't leave the transfer student's hand finally hit the floor.
Gasp, heh! Heh!
Everyone's ragged breaths filled the silence.
That hand had felt impossibly unyielding, just like real.
No one could speak.
But they were the only ones rattled.
The transfer student calmly opened his eyes.
"......"
Slowly looked around.
The trashed living room from his doing, himself and his friends drenched in sweat.
And defying all expectations, he broke into a huge grin.
"This is insane!"
He exclaimed in awe at the wild experience.
Even let out an excited laugh.
The friends sighed in relief and laughed late.
"W-what? You're fine!"
"Thought we were in deep shit!"
"But it was epic, right?!"
Hahaha! They laughed to shake off the fear.
But they didn't notice.
That the transfer student was different now.
"Yeah! Totally epic!!"
He scooped up the fallen finger tenderly.
"Let's do it again! Yeah?"
Stroked it gently and yelled.
"One more time!"
Grinning from ear to ear.
Uh, now? He scanned his friends awkwardly backing away.
But that gaze wasn't for them.
It was fixed on the other presences crowding around.
No time to stop him.
In the end, the transfer student...
Smirk—
With a chilling smile...
"We allow you."
Gave permission to the unstoppable somethings.
It ended with that final line.
"......Cut."
Bobby Puck barely ended the shoot with a trembling voice.
This was precisely the story's conclusion.
Everything after would play out in the audience's minds.
But Bobby already felt like he'd seen the true ending.
That goosebump-inducing something.
That acting which froze everyone with a single voice.
Only a horrific finale came to mind.
And toward the actor who'd evoked all those emotions, Bobby Puck was purely aghast.
'Just a test shoot.'
'How is this a test?'
He'd nailed this insane performance in one take.
No cuts, straight through.
'And he'd only glanced at the script once...'
How could he deliver everything perfectly?
No—beyond perfect!
The actor had basically handled it all solo.
The scene they'd just witnessed was so brilliant, it was hard to believe it came from his script.
He'd created the exact shock he'd craved.
Bobby was at a loss for words.
And so were the other staff.
'...Insane. Totally insane.'
They shuddered, chills refusing to fade.
'Who said Leo would've been better as lead?'
'Who could pull off acting like this?!'
Just watching drained them dry.
The male staff who'd rushed in late to stop the transfer student felt it worst.
'Scared shitless, huh?'
'I nearly pissed myself... Thought it was real.'
'Forgot to blow out the damn candle like an idiot...'
Recalling the moment, they rubbed their arms.
Goosebumps wouldn't quit.
"Hyung!"
Only the manager, Na Seon-yong, held back his awe and approached his actor.
"You okay?!"
A cough even burst from Shin Yi-han's mouth.
"Hyung?! Hyung!"
Na Seon-yong frantically patted his back and handed him water.
That intense scene from earlier had him worrying something might be wrong.
Cough, cough!
The cough drew tension from the others nearby.
'Huh?'
'H-he okay?'
'Did he push too hard just now?!'
'Some acting aftereffect or...?!'
Gulp gulp. Shin Yi-han chugged the water.
With everyone watching...
"Ah. Swallowed my spit wrong."
Shin Yi-han replied in a casual, playful tone.
"Gave it my all so the finger wouldn't slip till the candle went out."
Puhuhu. He wiped sweat on his arm and flashed a huge, refreshed grin.
His cheerful expression deflated everyone around him.
'Uh... Totally fine...?'
'Are all Korean actors like this?'
Not a trace of the transfer student from before.
'And he just flips like that?'
'Even so, he's way too different from just now...!'
All the more shocking how effortlessly he'd returned to himself.