Chapter 71
Chapter 71
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Seonwoo the Psycho?
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Seonwoo a psycho?
Park Myungjin didn't take Ryu's words at face value.
After all, Ryu's way of speaking was full of room for misunderstanding.
Instead, he smiled.
"Seonwoo must have really caught your eye."
"...Ho, looks like the PD's even more smitten with that kid than I am."
"Me?"
"You call all the other actors by their last name with 'ssi,' but just Seonwoo for him."
Ah, had he been saying it like that?
Park Myungjin scratched his nose with an awkward expression.
"Well, he's the type who delivers ten times over if you ask for one, so how could I not like him? What about you, Writer? What do you like about him?"
"What I like... Hmm, maybe that desperate vibe?"
"Desperate? Don't the other actors give off that vibe too?"
"It's different."
Ryu stated firmly.
"They act to perform. He acts to survive."
"...To survive?"
Park Myungjin wore a puzzled expression, as if he couldn't quite grasp it.
A faint smile crept onto Ryu's lips.
Meeting Seonwoo in person had been a good choice.
Thanks to that, he could confirm that Seonwoo had pulled himself out of his depression, unlike what the questionnaire suggested.
Seonwoo himself seemed to view his past depression as just a distant memory now.
It wasn't hard to guess how he'd escaped it.
All he had to do was look at where his heart was headed.
Yeah. Acting.
Acting must have saved him.
But,
'What if he can't act anymore?'
He might shatter.
Maybe even worse than before.
When the lifeline you've finally grasped snaps, all that's left is the fall.
Maybe that's why he clings to acting so desperately.
For Ryu, it was welcome news.
That passion would make this work come alive.
The precarious edge peeking through in Seonwoo... it served as a wellspring of inspiration for Ryu.
'...But what if he actually wins?'
Ryu frowned.
It wasn't pleasant. As he'd told Seonwoo, he genuinely wanted him to drop out.
So he could portray Kim Seonwoo's death.
That death scene would surely be electrifying, making every hair on his body stand on end.
Ryu licked his lips.
This project appealed to him because he could write those uncontrollable variables.
But now, it felt a bit unstable.
For some reason.
Kim Seonwoo.
He might really win.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Until the script arrived, the One Room cast got a brief, legitimate break.
They'd probably have to charge ahead nonstop after this.
Everyone was in a mood to enjoy the moment.
Not everyone could savor it, though.
"Is this what it feels like to just wait for death... I'm like so depressed."
Justin muttered glumly.
Having been eliminated in the last judging, he was set to retire in episode 2 of One Room. He'd meet his end in some form, no doubt.
Minhee grinned at him.
"Think about how you'll die."
"...Isn't that decided by votes or something?"
"Well, could be a vote... Who knows? Maybe I'll kill you myself?"
"Nah... Your character doesn't seem like the type to go around killing people."
True enough.
If anyone here was first to get blood on their hands, it'd be characters like Jinwook or Yeonwoo.
And that's when it happened.
Jinwook slowly approached Justin, hesitated, then spoke.
"Justin, good work all this time."
"...Huh? S-suddenly?"
"Yeah. Suddenly."
Jinwook turned and walked away briskly.
Minhee, who had frozen like a statue watching it, soon furrowed her brow and turned to Yeonwoo.
"What are you gonna do about that? Clean up the aftermath quick."
"Why? It's cute."
"Yeonwoo. 'Cute' and that guy can never coexist. Don't make controversial statements like that again."
Minhee had always bristled at any mention of Jinwook.
She couldn't accept his problem-child traits; what wasn't right stayed wrong for her, even if beaten to death.
'He seems a bit better lately, though...'
Seonwoo gazed at Jinwook from afar.
He knew the condition for Yeonwoo's coaching was 'be kind to everyone,' but Jinwook was surprisingly diligent about it.
Was Yeonwoo's coaching that crucial?
Or maybe he didn't want to leave any regrets here.
Jinwook had always been the hated senior, but at least in this moment, he didn't look ridiculous.
It felt a bit odd to say, but... honestly, he seemed kinda cool.
Seonwoo hadn't expected that lump of pride to humble himself and give his all like that.
'I need to step it up too.'
Seonwoo's scores weren't satisfying anyway.
83 from the judges, 8 from the audience.
Considering Yeonwoo right in front of him had 86 and 9... even to pros and laypeople, Seonwoo's acting paled next to his.
Of course, Yeonwoo was incredible.
Even Seonwoo had to admit it was captivating.
But he couldn't just sit still.
This way, he might survive a few more rounds, but he'd drop out eventually.
And as Writer Ryu wanted... he'd act Kim Seonwoo's death.
'That could be fun, but...'
He didn't want to die quietly.
He wanted to show his best... no, beyond his best.
'How?'
Seonwoo pondered.
Was the Kim Seonwoo he played truly his best?
If asked to redo it now, he wasn't confident he'd do better.
But settling felt off.
Unfortunately, no time to dwell.
6 PM, sun already gone—too late for evening.
The script from Ryu arrived.
Not the full episode 2, of course.
A sidescript covering the first 10 minutes or so.
Even for a genius like Ryu, scripting a whole episode in a day was impossible.
Impressive he'd written even this much overnight.
Seonwoo dove in.
What would Kim Seonwoo show in episode 2?
Still that colorless gray, that listless attitude?
His expression turned subtle as he read amid the curiosity.
'...What kind of combo is this?'
An utterly unexpected development unfolded.
Kim Seonwoo... subtly linking with another female character?
Suddenly, Ryu's smirking words came to mind.
He'd thought it was a joke...
—Well, love might do it?
Was he serious?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The character tangling with Kim Seonwoo was none other than Yu Jieun.
Kim Seonwoo calms Yu Jieun amid her panic-induced breathing trouble, leading her to unilaterally lean on him afterward.
Not quite a love line.
Just Yu Jieun, thrust into extremity, clinging to him one-sidedly.
In fact,
Yu Jieun: Th-thank you, mister...
She called him "mister" in the script.
...Honestly, that stung a bit. Jieun's real age was 23. Only a four-year gap.
This was all so far, but it was clear they'd be linked going forward.
At least until one dropped out.
Made sense, in a way. Yu Jieun was the youngest here, and Kim Seonwoo seemed the easiest to rely on.
He appeared the calmest in this bizarre mess.
'Not love, probably...'
Still, Ryu clearly aimed for a special rapport between them.
Not just them.
Episode 2 was where everyone truly started connecting.
Conversations sparking antagonism and affinity.
And the two stealing the show,
Justin: You fucking bitch! You, you came sent by my mom too, right? Huh? That's why? Hey, how much? How much did she offer? I'll give more, okay? Hey, meds. Give me my meds... please?
Justin, raging from withdrawal, earning wariness from all,
and
Park Munhyeon: Everyone, calm down. We're all in the same boat. Instead of fighting, shouldn't we assess the situation first?
Park Munhyeon, wielding soft charisma as the emerging leader.
Seonwoo nodded inwardly.
'Gonna send them off with flair.'
The two slated to exit in episode 2.
To make their finale shine, they needed the spotlight.
The issue?
"Everyone, to the bus!"
Tight schedule—no practice time, straight to set.
So on the bus, script in hand, Munhyeon beside him smiled calmly.
"How's the script? Like it?"
"Hmm... The script itself is good, but my character's a bit vague."
"Yeah, Kim Seonwoo's pretty subdued."
Munhyeon nodded understandingly.
Seonwoo sighed unwittingly.
"Yeah. Fits the character, but... disappointing. Should have some flash, even briefly, but nothing yet."
"And it might stay that way?"
"Yes."
"Hm..."
Munhyeon pondered instead of replying.
He spoke as the bus neared the set.
"One thing I learned in 30 years at the company... Even the most pathetic people have something worth seeing in hindsight."
"...Kim Seonwoo too?"
"That's for you to judge."
Munhyeon smiled, patting his shoulder.
"Look closely. Who knows? Might sparkle more than you think."
—Thanks to that mindset, even amid the rubble, Kim Seonwoo... seemed to sparkle.
Why?
That line from Im Mubeom during judging flashed back.
Still hard to grasp then and now.
How did Im Mubeom see that sparkle Seonwoo himself hadn't felt?
Seonwoo intuited.
To flesh out 'Kim Seonwoo' richer... he needed to find that light Im Mubeom saw.
Entering the set, he kept mulling.
'Kim Seonwoo clearly doesn't sparkle.'
When do people shine?
Seonwoo thought: chasing dreams.
Not just career ones.
Life with friends, space exploration, battling illness for one more day, protecting kids... anything you devote your heart to is a dream.
But Kim Seonwoo devoted to nothing.
His heart to devote had withered.
How could such a person shine?
'Wish I could just stamp 'no shine' and move on.'
But Munhyeon's words that everything shines somehow... and Im Mubeom's that gray Kim Seonwoo sparkled... wouldn't let him compromise.
What if skipping this step meant missing Kim Seonwoo's chance to shine?
He couldn't allow that.
'Screw it. I'll make it work.'
Seonwoo gripped the color bead.
When you don't know how, just do it.
Not halfway,
desperately.