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# Chapter 3
Han Jinil was the second most important character in I'm Going to School, right after the protagonist, Kim Mooyoung.
"Hey, Han Jinil. What are you doing? Hurry up."
"...Me?"
And now...
For some reason, I was standing in a classroom with Han Jinil's name tag pinned to my uniform.
'A filming set...?'
I quickly looked around.
Not just me—everyone else was wearing the school uniforms from I'm Going to School, complete with the characters' name
tags.
"What, don't feel like it again already?"
"I told you we shouldn't use a substitute goalkeeper. That's definitely why he's acting like this."
But something was missing.
Everything that should have been on a film set.
"..."
No matter how carefully I looked around, there were no cameras, no lighting equipment, nothing you'd expect during
filming.
There weren't even any crew members.
"...Wait."
"Where are you going?"
"If you don't want to play, we'll just go without you."
And yet...
For some reason, whether this was a film set or not had suddenly become irrelevant.
More accurately, the thought vanished from my mind entirely.
Instead, I walked toward someone I'd been unconsciously aware of from the moment I arrived.
Someone I'd been itching to confront for the past few days.
"Han Jinil, where are you going?"
"Ah, he's going to pick on Kim Mooyoung again."
"Doesn't he ever get tired of it?"
Ignoring the whispers around me, I stopped in front of Kim Mooyoung, who was sleeping with his head on his desk.
"Kim Mooyoung."
"..."
"Look at me."
Kim Mooyoung slowly lifted his head.
Whether it was because of stress or simply because he wasn't feeling well, he looked exhausted.
"Come with me."
For some reason...
The moment I saw him like that, anger welled up inside me.
"...Where?"
"To play soccer. The goalkeeper spot's empty."
"Sorry, Jinil. I couldn't sleep at all last night."
It was obvious he was telling the truth.
Even so, he looked at me with desperate eyes, pleading for me to believe him.
"I didn't even bring my gym clothes."
"Hey."
That desperate expression...
That pleading voice...
And yet...
The faint trace of pride still lingering inside him somehow made me even angrier.
"Do I look like I'm asking?"
"..."
"Get up."
There was no need to say anything else.
The moment I turned my back, I heard Kim Mooyoung rise from his seat.
It was as though he'd realized that if he hesitated any longer, the last shred of his dignity would disappear.
'So you've still got some pride left.'
In that case...
It looked like I'd have to crush even that.
"Let's go."
I called out to the boys waiting awkwardly by the classroom's back door.
Then—
Flash!
The moment I stepped through the doorway...
I was back in my bleak gosiwon room.
"...What?"
I froze.
I looked around.
Then looked again.
No matter how many times I checked...
I was standing inside my room at Shinchon Shine Gosiwon.
"Ah."
Only then did I notice the screenplay still in my hand.
"Argh!"
As though I'd grabbed something I never should have touched, I hurriedly threw the screenplay back onto the desk.
The screenplay.
The moment I opened it...
The story inside became reality.
'No... that's not quite it.'
More accurately...
When I opened to Han Jinil's first appearance, Scene #6—The Classroom—
I became Han Jinil.
'He wanted to break Kim Mooyoung's pride.'
Thanks to that...
Only after becoming Han Jinil did I finally understand him.
I'm Going to School didn't tell its story in chronological order.
It constantly jumped between the past and the present.
Some scenes even intentionally left it unclear which timeline they belonged to.
That's why I'd never understood why Han Jinil bullied Kim Mooyoung.
Or why he alternated between tormenting him and leaving him alone.
No matter how many times I read the script, I couldn't make sense of it.
'So this first appearance actually takes place in the latter half of the movie.'
'He'd already pushed Kim Mooyoung to his limit.'
'But seeing that tiny bit of pride still remaining irritated him.'
Now...
I completely understood Han Jinil.
I understood why he'd acted the way he did.
'Wait...'
I stiffened.
'Only after becoming Han Jinil did I truly understand Han Jinil.'
That sentence...
It felt incredibly important.
My greatest weakness.
The flaw I had never overcome, even after becoming one of Korea's top actors.
Or rather...
The flaw I could only overcome by sacrificing an unbelievable amount of time.
And now...
It felt like I'd found the answer.
'What scene does Han Jinil appear in next...?'
No.
I shifted my gaze toward the desk.
Besides I'm Going to School, the screenplay I'd just thrown aside...
Several other scripts Hana had gathered for me were scattered across it.
One of them immediately caught my eye.
Light and Darkness.
The project I'd auditioned for after failing the final audition for I'm Going to School...
Only to fail even more miserably.
The role...
'Kim Taesan.'
A boy who grew up in a loving family without ever facing hardship...
Until one incident dragged him into the darkness.
The part I could never perform...
Was Kim Taesan before everything fell apart.
The cheerful boy raised in a warm, happy home.
I'd been born an orphan.
Raised in an orphanage.
Twenty years ago, fresh out of the orphanage...
There was no way I could understand those emotions.
'Was that Scene 2...?'
The breakfast scene.
Kim Taesan eating breakfast with his family.
A home overflowing with both love and comfort.
The whole family sharing a meal together.
How delicious must that be?
How happy must that feel?
That was what I'd imagined while acting.
"..."
I had to see that scene again.
I slowly inhaled...
Then exhaled.
After calming myself, I picked up the script for Light and Darkness.
The moment I turned the page—
Flash!
"Everything okay at school?"
I was sitting at a dining table.
With my parents.
"..."
"Taesan. Your father's talking to you."
Tap.
When I didn't answer, my mother quietly urged me under her breath.
Ignoring her...
I simply thought—
'Can't we just eat quietly?'
It wasn't that I didn't want to answer.
I wasn't upset.
I just couldn't understand why he asked the same pointless question every single day.
School was school.
Every day was the same.
"So... same as always."
Still...
I didn't dislike my father.
And I knew he enjoyed these little conversations.
So I answered without sounding annoyed.
"Doyoon was late again. Eunwoo kept whining because he doesn't want to enroll in another weekend academy."
I also casually slipped in enough information to reassure my father that I got along well with my friends.
"What's wrong with Eunwoo? Isn't he transferring to an academy in Daechi-dong?"
Not long ago, my father had subtly expressed concern over why I never talked about my friends.
"Oh, right... Dad, when are you leaving for your business trip? This weekend?"
"Yeah. Around lunchtime. Why?"
"Ah... Then I probably won't be able to see you off. I promised I'd go with Eunwoo while he signs up for his academy."
Truthfully...
I didn't need to go with him.
I was just too lazy to make a round trip to Incheon Airport over the weekend.
"Hmm... I'd still like it if you came."
As always, my mother quietly whispered.
"No, no. It's only a short trip this time. Why don't we treat it like a date? Just the two of us."
Fortunately, my father smiled as he took her hand.
"Well, if it's a date, I won't complain."
"Then how about we grab lunch on the way instead of heading straight to the airport?"
"Really? I've been craving naengmyeon. How about Eulmyeondae? It's been a while."
Perfect.
I didn't have to go to the airport.
Mom got to enjoy a date with Dad.
Everyone won.
"Haha. See? I'm making room so Mom and Dad can enjoy some time together."
I laughed.
Flash!
"Haha... Ha..."
Then I realized I was back in my tiny room.
My laughter faded.
Not because I'd suddenly become aware that I was laughing to myself like an idiot.
But because...
'He wasn't smiling simply because he was happy.'
For the first time...
I understood Kim Taesan's feelings.
I'd grown up believing that eating together as a family had to be endlessly joyful.
How could it not be?
I'd never had one.
But reality wasn't like that.
Even the most precious things...
Could become ordinary to the people who already had them.
Even if they knew they were precious...
They couldn't stay conscious of it every single day.
Just like I had with Hana.
"Hana..."
Thud.
The script slipped from my hands.
Han Jinil.
Kim Taesan.
Only after living as both of them did I truly understand them.
If I could actually become the character...
I wouldn't need to force myself to immerse myself in them.
I wouldn't need to struggle to understand them.
Which meant...
'I don't have to sacrifice my entire life the way I used to.'
I'd finally reached the answer.
'Even if I become an actor again...'
'I can still spend plenty of time with Hana.'
The realization crashed over me like a tidal wave.
---
Around the same time...
"Hana! Where are you going?"
"Hey! We have to study for finals!"
Ignoring her friends, Yoo Hana hurried out of the café.
'What a joke.'
The reason she was so angry was simple.
Earlier...
"Are you really going to keep dating your boyfriend?"
"Even if you're not planning to marry him... an aspiring stage actor is a bit..."
"He's not even a stage actor. He's just an actor trainee, isn't he? I think you should date someone with at least the
minimum qualifications."
"Hana... You're not offended, are you?"
Her friends had said those things.
"My brother's opening his own clinic as soon as he finishes his residency."
"Yep. His parents are paying for everything. They even joked they're making me a doctor's wife the moment I graduate."
"That's nice. Families should be on the same level. Maybe you can't move up in life, but you definitely shouldn't move
down."
Thinking back...
They'd already been talking about the same subject during lunch.
Maybe the two of them had planned this conversation from the beginning.
'Who cares about family background?'
'Who cares about his job?'
'The only thing that matters is that I love him.'
No matter what she did...
Her anger refused to subside.
Not while calling a taxi.
Not after climbing into the back seat.
'And what's wrong with being an actor? Just wait until he makes it. Haven't you seen successful actors buying houses
worth tens of billions of won?'
Even if he didn't make it...
It wouldn't matter.
She'd support him herself.
He had the looks.
He had the talent.
With CS Film, where her father was the CEO...
Or CS Media, where her uncle was the CEO...
Success would only be a matter of time.
She kept arguing with imaginary opponents inside her head.
'Huh...? Wait.'
Suddenly...
A thought crossed her mind.
"No matter what anyone says, I'm quitting acting."
Jihoo had said that out of nowhere.
'Could it be...'
'Is he giving up his dream because of me?'
There had to be a reason.
And right now...
Only one explanation made sense.
"Excuse me, driver. Could we change the destination?"
Originally, she'd planned to calm down at home before talking to him.
Now she'd changed her mind.
"Please take me to Shinchon Shine Gosiwon, near Exit 2 of Sinchon Station."
Yoo Hana loved watching Kang Jihoo act.
She loved the passion in his eyes.
The way he chased his dream without hesitation.
She'd fallen for him after seeing him perform in Gyeongsu and Gyeongsu's Father in the first place.
'And now he's giving up that dream because of me?'
'Does he seriously think I can't support one man?'
Yoo Hana's usually gentle eyes sharpened.
'He's dead.'
Forget studying for finals.
Today...
She was going to knock some sense into Kang Jihoo first.