Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Parents' Surprise
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The moment it was confirmed he'd be taking on the performance, Seonwoo called Seonjun first.
"Bring Mom and Dad?"
"Yeah. Tonight's the show. You two don't have anything going on, right?"
"That's true, but... the lead role? You?"
"Not the lead exactly, just the understudy... but there were some circumstances. Anyway, I'm counting on you!"
The first thing that had come to mind when he heard he might get to play the lead was his parents.
He had promised to tell them right away if he got the lead role, but that had been indefinitely postponed after he failed the audition.
Who knew when another chance like this would come if not now?
I'm so nervous.
Unlike Seonjun, Seonwoo had never given his parents any cause for worry.
They probably never even dreamed their son was pulling off something like this.
He couldn't help shocking them, but he wanted to ease their concerns at least a little.
And that all depended on what kind of performance he put on today.
He had to show them.
Ah, with this level, our kid has real potential on the stage. We can trust and support him.
That was the reaction he needed from them.
"...Why am I so nervous?"
Seonwoo gave a wry smile.
It was the first time he'd felt this shaky since he started acting.
It made sense, though. It was his first performance in front of his parents, his first as the lead.
So many firsts all at once.
"In your career, taking a lead role like this has gotta be a first even in Cheongsong Troupe history, right?"
Hyeseong said with a grin.
"So, what's it feel like? Any words?"
"I'm nervous."
"That's normal. Minhee here threw a hysterical fit her first time as lead too."
"...Why drag me into this all of a sudden? Should I bring up how you cried backstage after flubbing your line?"
"Sorry..."
As always, Hyeseong and Minhee ended up bickering.
On any other day, Seonwoo would've tossed in a quip, but right now his heart was pounding too hard.
Seonwoo murmured quietly.
"It feels just like my very first time on stage."
"Hmm. Yeah, I get that. Even supporting roles can't afford mistakes, but if the lead falls apart... the whole show crumbles."
"Right..."
"But honestly, I'm not worried."
"...Me?"
"Yeah. I've seen how hard you've practiced all this time."
Hyeseong replied with firm conviction.
Yechun, who'd been listening silently, chimed in.
"He's right. Honestly, you've been practicing the most out of anyone here."
"Well, I've had the time..."
"Still! I've never seen an understudy practice this hard!"
"Yeah. You can do it, so don't worry too much."
Seonwoo smiled.
It felt good hearing that from them.
It meant they could see his efforts too.
His lingering anxiety eased a bit.
Now he just had to show them.
Seonwoo summoned Heejae's color bead into his palm.
He could feel it. Heejae's imagery, packed full in that bead.
It was like it was begging him. Burst me now. Paint the world with me.
I was gonna do that anyway, no need to beg.
In truth, Seonwoo had always been starving watching others on stage.
But now it was fine.
Seonwoo picked up his phone.
The notification on the screen.
[Bro: On my way with Mom and Dad.] His stage was finally ready.
Now he just had to show them.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "What's this sudden talk of seeing a play?"
Lee Jeonghee, mother to the Seonjun and Seonwoo brothers, replied with a reluctant expression.
Seonjun had suddenly suggested going to a play. Not next week or in a few days, but tonight.
"Mom, it's a show your son worked hard on."
Seonjun replied slyly.
It wasn't a lie. It was a work her son had prepared. Though Lee Jeonghee seemed to misunderstand it as Seonjun's own project... well, a little surprise like this was fine, right?
"Why go see that one so suddenly?"
"You'll find out when you get there."
"You're just like your dad, so unique."
"...Why drag me into this when I was just sitting quietly?"
Seonjun's father, Kim Youngsik, made a reluctant face.
Seonjun grinned and waved it off.
"Come on, just come. It'll be fun."
"It's not hard to go, but... a play out of nowhere? Isn't theater pretty different from video work? Did you just write the script or something?"
"Hmm... that's a secret too."
"Can't do anything with you..."
Seonjun chuckled inwardly as Jeonghee sighed deeply.
His little brother was finally delivering some entertaining content after so long.
What faces would Jeonghee and Youngsik make when they spotted Seonwoo soon?
They won't be happy, that's for sure.
How many parents cheer when their kid starts acting?
Even Seonjun had faced fierce opposition when he first declared he wanted to make films.
And Seonwoo had been the steady one, walking the elite path.
When Seonjun was off chasing movies, his parents took comfort in "At least we have Seonwoo."
But now that son was suddenly acting.
A positive reaction would be the real surprise.
Still, Seonjun wasn't worried.
If the talent he remembered from Seonwoo had fully bloomed... swaying their parents' hearts wouldn't be hard.
Wonder how much he's improved.
Honestly, he'd been shocked hearing about the lead role.
Sure, it was stepping in as understudy replacement, but where else did that happen? Understudies were like trainees in theater, but lead-level ones weren't for just anyone.
It meant Seonwoo had grown insanely in the past few months.
And...
"The performance will begin shortly. Please turn off your cell phones, and note that re-entry is not permitted if you leave the auditorium during the show."
Now it was time to see the results.
The lights dimmed, plunging everything into pitch black.
Perfect darkness, where only the masking tape on stage was faintly visible.
And then, that moment.
"...This should do it."
A low woman's voice echoed.
Dry. As if she'd exhausted every last drop of life... utterly parched.
"This will be... everything."
The next instant, a spotlight hit a woman standing precariously on the bridge railing. Teetering as if she'd fall any second, staring blankly down at the ground.
The moment she suddenly looked up toward the audience,
"It's going to end."
She threw herself off—and the stage went black in a flash.
The direction's still top-notch.
Seonjun nodded inwardly.
An opening that pulled anyone in. But what he was waiting for wasn't the play's theatrics.
Seonwoo.
When would his brother appear?
Luckily, not long.
"You're gonna confess?"
"Yeah."
The very next scene.
A classroom. Boys in school uniforms chatting.
A boy scribbling intently on a letter, face full of excitement.
No, Seonwoo.
"...?"
"?"
Question marks appeared on Jeonghee and Youngsik's faces.
No mistaking it—their son, Seonwoo. But why was he up there?
And...
"I told Yebin to meet tonight."
"...She said yes?"
"Yeah."
What was that acting?
It was so lifelike, they forgot for a second it was their son. Not Seonwoo, but a real high school boy in love.
Jeonghee turned to glare at Seonjun.
Seonjun just grinned back silently.
If it weren't a play, she'd demand answers right then, but she couldn't.
What the hell is going on?
Her heart dropped from the shock.
Something was off. Had he started acting as a hobby, climbed to lead, and invited them as a surprise? She'd tried thinking that, but... no, it didn't fit.
Jeonghee looked back at the stage.
Seonwoo was still performing.
The lead...?
Yes.
The more she watched, the clearer it became.
Incredibly, their son Seonwoo was the lead.
When had he started acting? To handle lead, it wasn't a day or two. Secretly since college?
Had he nurtured this dream that long?
She didn't know.
Jeonghee simply watched Seonwoo's acting.
"What do you mean? Wait, who... died?"
Seonwoo acted.
The despair of losing the one he loved.
"If I just jump... if I just die, I can go back, right?"
The pure devotion willing to embrace death for another.
"Why... why did Yebin die again?"
"...It wasn't that? That Yebin chose death?"
Heejae looped back through time countless times, desperately removing the causes that led Yebin to her death.
Standing up to the bullies who tormented her,
Confronting the teacher who humiliated Yebin in front of everyone for petty reasons,
Even brawling with the stalker who harassed her under the guise of affection.
Yet Yebin kept dying, her corpse returning each time.
And Heejae, to save her... kept leaping from the bridge over and over.
When Jeonghee came to, she realized she was deeply immersed in the play.
...What am I doing right now?
At first, her mind had been all on Seonwoo.
Why was he here? Why hadn't he told them? What were his plans now...?
Then she'd thought his acting was surprisingly good, and now... she was lost in the story he brought to life.
It was excellent acting.
Not just because he was her son. There was a captivating charm that left audiences spellbound.
It deserved it.
Acting so immersive she forgot he was her son.
As if the character "Heejae" from the play had leaped into reality.
Jeonghee glanced around.
The audience watched Seonwoo with mouths agape, entranced.
She'd never acted, but she knew some things from life.
Nothing harder than winning hearts.
Yet Seonwoo's acting did it effortlessly.
Seonwoo... had this talent?
Jeonghee's hand began to tremble slowly.
Youngsik quietly took it in his.
Jeonghee looked at him. He smiled silently under her gaze full of emotions.
And so they watched the stage quietly for a long while.
After repeating death for Yebin countless times, Heejae finally realized her deaths weren't from a reason to die... but a lack of reason to live.
He sought her out and begged.
Even without a reason to live, even if every day was hell, couldn't she just keep living? If you die, I won't be able to either.
"Even without a reason to live, even if every day is torture, can't you just stay alive?"
"..."
"I won't ask for a reason to live. Just... a reason not to die... can't that be me?"
A tattered soul after endless deaths and suicides.
But what still shone through the ruin... was Heejae's love.
She could feel it.
From his moist eyes brimming with unshed tears, his lips quivering with pathos—how desperately Heejae wanted her to live.
"...Okay."
So it didn't feel strange when Yebin, who always chose death no matter what, finally relented.
Seonwoo's Heejae conveyed that heart so vividly.
If they felt it from the seats, the one onstage must feel it more. That's what she thought.
Jeonghee stared blankly at Seonwoo.
A great actor. An amazing one. But that was her son. She couldn't believe it.
Was she dreaming?
The stage had ended before she knew it.
Curtain call. As actors bowed amid applause, Jeonghee thought.
Her mind was a mess.
She couldn't even fathom how to process this.
No one would call this hobby-level acting.
She could already guess what Seonwoo would say after.
What reaction should she give?
She didn't know.
But one thing she did.
"And the reason she won't die... 'Heejae'!"
With the emcee's line, Seonwoo took the stage.
Cheers erupted like they'd been waiting—louder and wilder than for any previous actor.
Her hesitation was brief.
She didn't know what to do as a mother, but as an audience member, her response was set.
It was great acting.
Amid the roaring cheers, Jeonghee's applause quietly blended in.