The Boy in the Tree
Oh dear.
"Hey, station chief, why are you threatening PD Seonwoo Yeongjae like that?"
He was doing a great job already!
"We can't lose."
"PD-nim! Hang in there!"
"Ah, you're stressing me out."
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae suddenly tore open a pouch and swallowed it in one go.
I gave an awkward smile.
He's drinking cabbage juice.
It couldn't possibly taste good, and yet he downed it as though it were sweet.
"I survive on this stuff."
"D-Director..."
Ki Cho-un tugged at the director's sleeve.
"Does that actually work?"
The director fished another pouch out of his pocket and handed it over. Ki Cho-un tore it open at once and gulped it down.
Guess all of them have bad stomachs.
The director muttered again.
"One of the staff just said it. That we absolutely have to win."
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae looked at me and muttered,
"Our Gongja can't lose."
I smiled awkwardly.
No, I'm the one who should be feeling the pressure...
What exactly was PD Seonwoo Yeongjae feeling, then?
"Ugh, my stomach hurts."
"PD-nim, I'm sorry. It's because of my injury!"
"No, no. This is just the harmony of the evil of broadcasting schedules and the satans who egg it on! Should we perform a shamanic rite? No, we need a full-blown exorcism!"
An evil, satans, and an exorcism. PD Seonwoo Yeongjae, your worldview is mixing genres.
I feel bad for him for no reason.
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae bowed his head deeply and said,
"Everyone's going on and on about how we have to win. Fine. I can understand the others, but the writer too..."
Huh.
This is news to me.
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae patted my head.
"The writer's gotten all fired up too and keeps revising the script. I mean, why is everyone like this?"
Fair enough.
"I don't have anything to say, since the revised version is better."
Oh. I see.
"So, honestly, I'm worried about this scene too. Will our Gongja be able to pull it off? He has been acting pretty well so far, but still. This is genuinely hard acting!"
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae's eyelids twitched, and then he opened another pouch and drained it.
Ah, drinking two packs of that will only make it worse.
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae took a deep breath and said,
"It's fine. This is dandelion juice."
Oh, I see.
"For the record, we also have pumpkin juice and onion juice."
Well. Just eat pumpkin and onion normally. Why are you juicing them?
Ki Cho-un called out brightly, "Director, I have apple juice!"
"I see. Let's trade later."
Don't trade.
"Anyway, let's do our best."
"Yes. I'll do everything I can."
"Gongja."
"Yes!"
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae patted my head and said,
"You said you wanted to win, right?"
"Yes!"
"I see. Then there's nothing for it. Our Gongja wants to win!"
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae gritted his teeth.
"I'll do my best too."
No, I mean, it wasn't that serious.
Hey. We were going to win even if you didn't do anything.
I only fanned the flames because it was a sure win, but somehow the mood had gotten a little strange.
PD Seonwoo Yeongjae went back to his seat. I blinked, then headed to my mark and stood there.
Well, I'll just repay them with a good performance.
I took a deep breath. It was time to cry on cue.
"Stand by— hey."
When the camera director signaled, the director immediately shouted,
"Gongja, please check your hair!"
Ah.
I ran a hand through my hair.
Too many people have been patting me on the head.
A staff member hurried over. I gave an awkward smile. To be honest, this wasn't my fault.
* * *
"Stand by, cue!"
I grabbed the hem of Ki Cho-un's robe.
"Is it true?"
I blinked. Lee Yoon, who had learned that the young lord was his father, was heartbroken.
He'd been mocked and lived all his life as a fatherless child.
In truth, his father had not even known of his existence.
"Is it truly true, my lord, that you are my father?"
Ki Cho-un slowly bent his knees. Then he touched my face.
"Yes, Yoon. I am your father."
Ki Cho-un's projection and acting were both excellent.
For all my worry, he's doing well.
Then I had to match him.
I blinked twice, and soon tears streamed down my cheeks.
"Why did you come only now!"
I shook my head and pulled away from Ki Cho-un's hand.
I steadied my breathing.
"Why did you only recognize me now! Didn't you say so yourself? That parents recognize their children at a glance, no matter how far apart they are, no matter if they've never met!"
Ki Cho-un gathered me into his arms.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Yoon. Your father didn't recognize you."
"Liar! Do you know how much! How much!"
The camera caught me crying.
"Cut! Perfect!"
I sniffled and wiped away my tears. Ki Cho-un caught his breath and used a tissue to dab at my face.
"Hey, Gongja. It's a little late, but..."
"Yes?"
"Aren't you an absurdly good actor?"
So you noticed now?
I shook my head.
"Gongja still has a long way to go."
Of course.
"Oh, uh. Really?"
Ki Cho-un scratched his head.
"Th-that humility. Man, I can't even hold my head up."
Is that so?
"Hyung is really good at acting too!"
There you go. A compliment.
"You think so? Of course you do, right? You can tell I'm good too, right? I studied this scene hard! But I was a little worried. For a kid who still has trouble with pronunciation, wasn't this scene pushing it a bit too far?"
So he did know.
Honestly, that's exactly right.
Later on, people would probably say it was weird how I acted that well.
Well, let's just call it genius.
But still.
The lines in the script are fine, so why doesn't the speech itself change?
How long was I going to keep saying "Yes!" and "I did!" like this?
It really doesn't change at all.
Maybe it'll sound natural once I grow up a bit.
Ki Cho-un took my hand and said,
"Let's go watch the monitor!"
"Yes!"
He walked off smiling, and I watched him from where I stood.
Come to think of it, he seemed prickly at first...
When had we gotten this close?
I guess we're nearing the end of filming.
Lee Yoon didn't have many scenes left now. He only appeared a little at the ending.
That's a little sad.
The mood on set was good, after all.
Whenever I turned my gaze and happened to meet someone's eyes, they would smile at me.
Everyone's so kind.
Would I get to meet people like this again in the future?
I looked at the monitor. The cinematographer said,
"That's good. Really good."
"Gongja really does seem like a genius. How does he act like that?"
"Look at his breath control. Crying while still delivering lines well is a skill all on its own. And he's doing it with pure genius instinct."
That's practice, actually. How could you do that by instinct?
Still, no one would ever think I practiced.
I looked around. Ki Cho-un asked,
"Why do you keep looking around?"
"Because I'm sad."
"Huh?"
"I like it here! And I like hyung too!"
Ki Cho-un blinked, then scratched his head.
"R-right. Uh... I, I'm happy! Gongja! I like you too!"
"Thank you!"
"Good grief! I'm done for!"
The staff patted my shoulders.
"Aww, you're adorable. Gongja, I like you too."
"Me too."
"Me too. Our little cutie. There aren't many shoots left, so we hate to send you off."
"Oh, really? I want to see you again!"
"Should we ask the director to add more scenes?"
"Come on. Could that even happen?"
Right. Impossible.
Still, these people really do like me, huh.
How touching.
I smiled brightly and said,
"I think I'll miss you!"
"Oh, uh..."
Ki Cho-un suddenly pulled me into a hug.
"Me too!"
Well, I wasn't exactly talking to him.
Through the gap in Ki Cho-un's clothes, I could see the staff looking at us with warm, affectionate eyes.
Well, good is good. Let's just leave it at that.
I kept smiling.
* * *
This is frustrating.
I looked up at the sky. It was brilliantly blue and high above, yet I felt empty to the bone.
I mean! The results should be out by now.
Inyeon, in which I appeared, and Mountain Ballad of Seosan, which I had turned down, were already airing on TV.
Ah, this is cruel.
By now, the winner would probably already be known.
Why can't I watch it?
I was so frustrated I thought I might die. I let out a long sigh.
This is all Mr. Deoksu's fault.
That night, Mom and Mr. Deoksu had discussed something seriously. And after that, the topic disappeared completely.
No, why?!
There were probably plenty of internet articles laying the result bare.
Then why am I the only one who doesn't know?
Wasn't this a little too much?
I let out another long sigh.
If I had a schedule, someone would tell me the result.
As it happened, after that shoot wrapped, I was on break.
It's been two months!
I want to know! What happened?
Well, honestly, there is a way to check.
I muttered softly,
Total Coins!
Text floated up in the air.
823,342
It's gone up a lot.
Looking at that, it was obvious we were winning.
If only I had a smartphone.
I smiled wryly.
But if I got one of those, Mom would say she'd drop a few films or whatever...
I sighed again.
If only Ansan-daek or one of the aunties would tell me...
But both of them had also clammed up after Mom asked them to.
The conclusion was the same.
So frustrating!
It had been ages since we entered the information age, and yet I was the only one lagging behind like this. Did that make any sense?
I kept sighing and looked ahead. The beautiful garden of Seongbuk-dong came into view at a glance.
Guess that's what happens when you're a conglomerate family.
The broad garden was full of flowers and trees, and there was even a pond off to one side.
I've never gotten close to it because they said it was dangerous.
Judging from the person who occasionally came to feed them, they were probably raising koi too.
A hobby for the silver-spoon crowd, huh.
Well, it was the kind of hobby you could have when the hired staff took care of everything.
I let out a breath and leaned against a tree. Sunlight shattered through the leaves.
No matter how much nature I look at, the frustration won't go away.
Ugh, how was I supposed to get a smartphone?
Tap tap-
Huh? What was that?
I heard a strange noise from above. When I looked up, I jumped in fright.
"G-gah!"
An unfamiliar child was sitting on a tree branch.
I thought it was a bird.
No, why is there a kid up there?!
The child said in a dissatisfied voice,
"Hey, I got here first!"
Is that so.
The child leaped down. I admired it purely.
Wow, they can jump from that high?
Were they just athletically gifted?
I blinked. The dark-skinned child had a mouth that looked especially sullen.
Who is this?
Had there been a kid like this?
Even if there had been, how would I know?
Come to think of it, this was the house where the Sungjin Group owners lived.
I'm just living here under someone else's roof, after all.
The boy said,
"You're Ma Gongja?"
I nodded.
"You're that half-breed?"
I narrowed my eyes.
"The half-breed living in the annex that Lady Soo-jung brought home!"
For a child so young, he already showed signs of becoming the next Hitler.
"You're supposed to be really famous, huh?"
I didn't feel like answering. I let out a sigh.
"You were amazing in that drama, right? They say you're a genius and all that?"
Oh. So that was how it was.
I knew it, but hearing it from someone else still feels fresh.
So I really had become a genius.
"You beat Han Su-yoon in that drama, didn't you?"
Whoa.
I looked the boy over from top to bottom.
He's telling me information I didn't know!
The boy said,
"Hey, why aren't you saying anything? Do you even know who I am?"
I had no idea. But one thing was certain.
Information!
I smiled with all my heart and all my sincerity.
"Hiya. I'm Gongja!"
What's your name?