Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Translator: Penny
Chapter 12
Acting is expressing.
Whether it's a protagonist or antagonist, a lead or supporting role, it doesn't matter.
It's about materializing a character that previously existed as text in a script through an actor's expressions, voice, and gestures.
However, in most cases, acting inevitably involves at least a slight subjective interpretation by the actor.
There can be acting that's close to the correct answer, but there's no such thing as acting that is the correct answer.
Although there are countless examples of acting that are obviously wrong.
It's a natural story, in a way.
Not all actors are identical machines from head to toe.
The result of various factors—accumulated experiences, honed acting skills, current psychological state—being turbidly mixed together is what we call acting.
The act of auditioning is simply about finding the acting that best meets the director's requirements among those diverse performances.
"I'm not angry at you, Mister. I'm not disappointed either. I just... I just realized you're still alone. Yes, that's all it is."
Therefore, what's happening in front of Kwon Jong-hyuk right now cannot be called an audition.
Ha-eun, who should be evaluated by Kwon Jong-hyuk, isn't trying to act as close to the correct answer as possible, but rather, Kwon Jong-hyuk is forcing Ha-eun's acting to be recognized as the correct answer.
"I'm sorry for making you worry. This won't happen again."
With eyes that have given up on everything, including any expectation towards 'Mister.'
With a voice that tries to pretend to be okay, even as her throat tightens.
With powerless gestures that have long given up on the act of holding hands with the person who was once her only companion.
She was asking Kwon Jong-hyuk, the chief director of My Neighbor Mister, as if demanding an answer.
If this isn't the appearance of 'Kim Jia,' then whose appearance is it?
No, could any other appearance even be called Kim Jia?
It was closer to a recreation than acting.
A presumptuous recreation, as if Ha-eun was telling Kwon Jong-hyuk what kind of moments Kim Jia in My Neighbor Mister had experienced.
No matter what Ha-eun said, no matter what expression she made.
It was just Kim Jia.
A pitiful girl who wasn't even allowed the slightest hope that things would get better with time.
She was definitely different from the other child actors who tried to interpret and understand the character of Kim Jia.
It was as if she had already experienced similar things to Kim Jia countless times.
After that, not trying to forcibly imitate the character of Kim Jia, but naturally, like flowing water.
Telling Kwon Jong-hyuk words not that Kim Jia would say, but words that she said as Kim Jia.
"Then, I'll be going now. Oh, I'll return the borrowed umbrella tomorrow morning."
She bid farewell only at the very last moment.
"...It's over."
Even after Ha-eun, who had been Kim Jia until just before, returned to her original self.
Kwon Jong-hyuk's closed mouth didn't open for quite a while.
After all, they were lines he had already heard dozens of times during the audition process.
Yes, they were definitely sentences he was sick and tired of.
'Were these... originally these kinds of lines?'
The sorrow, complexity, and dryness contained within them were completely unfamiliar.
Raw emotions that hadn't been corrected even by a grain of sand.
Yet, they weren't exaggerated or hidden.
She perfectly delivered lines that could easily become nothing more than a childish tantrum.
There wasn't even a hint of the childishness that the actress playing Kim Jia should be most wary of.
'...It was you.'
For the first time, he felt a certainty that he hadn't felt when watching any other child actor's performance.
Almost simultaneously, Jeong Do-cheol, feigning nonchalance, patted Ha-eun's shoulder slightly aggressively.
"Our Lee's acting skills aren't dead yet, not dead at all. No, it seems like they've even improved?"
"Ah, that... Thank you."
After that, Ha-eun's small body swayed precariously whenever Jeong Do-cheol's burly hand touched her.
It was right after that that Jeong Do-cheol's question—whether he still thought Luna Entertainment didn't have any talent—struck Kwon Jong-hyuk's ears.
"Who doesn't know that our Director Kwon is picky? But don't assume that there's no one who meets that pickiness."
Was it just his imagination that he was making a seemingly gleeful expression?
Anyway, if even Ha-eun, who had become Kim Jia herself, didn't receive a passing grade, then no one in this world would receive a passing grade.
Slowly opening his mouth, which had been firmly closed until this very moment.
"I will contact you again as soon as possible, CEO Jeong."
He foreshadowed that Kwon Jong-hyuk and Ha-eun would meet again soon.
However, strictly speaking, he had only provided Ha-eun with the opportunity to compete for the role of Kim Jia with other child actors who had been placed on the final candidate list.
It wasn't that he had confirmed Ha-eun for the role of Kim Jia.
One way or another, what Kwon Jong-hyuk was trying to create wasn't a one-person show, but a movie.
No matter how outstanding her acting skills were, if she didn't blend harmoniously with the other actors appearing in the same scene, it would ultimately be meaningless.
What was most important was whether or not she could work well with Kang Seon-woo, another lead actor.
"Hello? Ah, Kang Seon-woo. This is Kwon Jong-hyuk. I'm calling to let you know about the Kim Jia role casting."
He finally confirmed the screen test schedule for the final decision on the Kim Jia role, which he had been postponing.
Only, with the conviction towards Ha-eun that still hadn't left his mind.
Whether they did a screen test or another audition, he felt that the child actor who would play the role of Kim Jia in My Neighbor Mister had already been decided.
\\
"Hey, Ha-eun. How was the... audition?"
Facing him was Lee Jun's gaze, which was sorry for forcing her to audition, but also slightly curious about the results of the audition.
In response, she gave him the same nonchalant answer as always, saying that it seemed to have gone okay.
Jeong Do-cheol, who had accompanied her to the audition, was cheerfully laughing—while simultaneously patting Ha-eun's shoulder with his thick hand until it was on the verge of dislocation—and enjoying how he had completely crushed Kwon Jong-hyuk's pride.
But the expression on Kwon Jong-hyuk's face that Ha-eun had seen was lukewarm.
She couldn't really predict whether Ha-eun's acting had exceeded Kwon Jong-hyuk's passing grade.
Or whether Ha-eun, like the other child actors at Luna Entertainment, would also be rejected.
This time, Ha-eun's acting was based on her memories from her past life.
It was the result of appropriately mixing together the various scenes from My Neighbor Mister* that remained in her memory, and what she had sympathized with Kim Jia in the past.
Well, since he said he would contact her as soon as possible, it seemed like he didn't see it too badly.
She was thinking of working hard if she was given the opportunity.
After that, she lightly finished the dinner that Lee Jun had prepared in advance—mainly meat dishes.
Then, she headed to Na-yeon, who always came to pick her up right on time when her singing lesson was over, and briefly told her about her impressions of the audition.
"The camera was bigger than me. And it had all sorts of weird buttons attached to it."
"Really? That must have been fascinating."
However, a question that Ha-eun hadn't really thought about was soon heard from Na-yeon.
"Hmm, even if our daughter gets to appear in a movie, it'll probably be about 10 years from now."
She belatedly remembered that the movie Ha-eun had auditioned for a few hours ago was rated R.
It was after that that she brought up a story that Jeong Do-cheol had suggested to her on the way back from the audition.
"Hey, Mom. Isn't it hard for you to come pick me up every time?"
"Is our Ha-eun worried that Mom's legs will hurt? Oh, you're so sweet."
Almost simultaneously, she was pulled tightly by Na-yeon, and rubbed and rubbed.
She was briefly suffocated by the pressure that didn't match her petite height.
Anyway, she felt a little bad that she seemed to be making Na-yeon suffer every time she had singing lessons with Deobeulli.
While buried in Na-yeon's soft skin, she somehow managed to lift her head.
"The CEO said he'd assign me a manager. He said he had a feeling I'd be busy in the future."
"A manager? Who?"
"Well, I don't really know who the manager is... I think I'll have to ask separately later."
She conveyed the news that Ha-eun would soon have a manager.
Also, that she wouldn't have to be picked up anymore and could just ride in a car driven by a manager.
"Then, you're really a proper actress now. Actress Ha-eun, please give Mom an autograph!"
"I don't have a pen or paper. I'll sign it later..."
As Na-yeon requested an autograph in a slightly playful tone, a blush slowly began to rise on Ha-eun's face.
Both of her ears also turned noticeably red, telling Na-yeon that she wasn't used to being called an actress.
Still, it wasn't a completely unpleasant feeling.
She thought that after a little time, she would get used to this ticklish feeling as well.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny