While Deok-su and Myeong-ye-rin’s issue kept the online buzz heating up, Seo Ju-won received a call as well.
“Re-reading, right? O-of course… I can do it! Thank you so much!”
Seo Ju-won placed the phone down with a dazed expression and shouted toward the direction of his departed senior, “Go on, leave already!”
“Wahaaaaaaa!”
His joyful scream echoed from the next room, but the wall he hammered against seemed completely oblivious.
He had passed the audition for the lead role in a drama that only came around once in several years.
In truth, he had been ready to give up.
That one audition—Han Young-jin had really given a good performance.
On paper, the character image seemed to fit Young-jin far better.
But… a miracle had happened.
“Ten years… or was it ten?”
Seo Ju-won threw himself onto the bed, back first.
The years of wandering without an agency after belatedly entering acting passed before his eyes.
Whether it was a newcomer writer’s work or cable drama, it didn’t matter.
Lying in bed reading the script, his phone rang again.
Answering, a woman’s voice flowed out.
“It’s Yoona Park. You know?”
“Ah, hello, senior!”
Seo Ju-won sprang upright from the bed as if spring-loaded.
“I thought you were older than me… wait, no, let’s get the family tree sorted little by little. More importantly, since we’re both leads, let’s get the lines in sync. Is the time good?”
It was an order, not a request.
He had no other schedule, but he would go anyway.
The next day, after a dazed phone call, Seo Ju-won wandered through Hongdae with the navigation guiding him.
“DH Entertainment… address is right here…? This must be it.”
A small sign for DH Entertainment sat above the entrance to the building descending into the basement.
He stepped down carefully and rang the bell; a man introduced as Kim Deok-su’s manager opened the door.
Inside, Kim Deok-su and Park Hyeon-woo were enjoying a tea break.
“Welcome, senior.”
When Deok-su stood to greet him, Seo Ju-won bowed his head stiffly.
“Thirty minutes early… time’s on our side. Everyone here is good with time concepts. Deok-su also arrived an hour ahead.”
Hye-yeong’s voice remained level and steady, exactly as during their call.
Deok-su spoke calmly as well.
“You arrived at a similar time to me, senior.”
“We value time above all. Everyone here does too. I don’t want to work with people who can’t keep time no matter how hard… ”
Hye-yeong was one of the rare actors who took time so seriously.
She had a reputation for shouting the moment filming was delayed.
Seo Ju-won sat neatly, inhaling the sweet scent of yuja tea, while Hye-yeong wandered around the office sniffing the air.
“… A damp smell. Deok-su’s staying in such a good place makes me suffer.”
“You had a time when you were moving around filming sites while living in a tiny place, didn’t you? Compared to that, I’m doing well.”
“Young and full of passion. Deok-su also has plenty of energy. Seo Ju-won, did you do a lot of practice?”
When the conversation turned to himself, Seo Ju-won straightened his spine.
“I-I haven’t seen much, b-but I’ll make sure not to let anyone down.”
“No need to be nervous. Just show your acting. I’ll do my best too…”
Seo Ju-won gave a faint smile.
Hui-yeong cleared the tea cups and the practice soon began.
Deok-su matched Seo Ju-won’s lines perfectly.
“Detective Lim Hae-seong, do you hear me? I am right now where you were talking about. Behind that building, the manhole. The body you mentioned is right there, alive.”
“Alive…? If it’s alive, then it’s the case of Yoo Ji-hyun’s murder…”
“But the hands have been cut off. Someone must have killed this person and staged it as suicide. For now…”
Seo Ju-won’s voice was soft yet powerful.
It matched the strong yet gentle image of Gwak Jun that Deok-su had imagined.
Thanks to this, Deok-su could immerse himself more comfortably.
‘They’re really good. Both first-timers as leads. Not bad at all?’
Hye-yeong’s eyes flickered with something like competition.
This time it was Deok-su and Hye-yeong’s turn to match.
With a gesture, Hye-yeong said, “Come on, Dru and Dru.”
“Then, let’s go.”
Deok-su gathered his voice and continued.
“…Is this the dignity the police are talking about? Nonsense. Is there any dignity left for the Korean police to lose?”
“Yes, what dignity do Korean police have…? But those without dignity don’t rummage through garbage bins looking for condom scraps like anyone else.”
“No, I investigated, I did. Why are you being picky all of a sudden?”
“Since you lack dignity, you act undignified. It’s only fair.”
While Seo Ju-won felt comfortable, Hye-yeong felt the pressure.
It wasn’t an uncomfortable pressure that would stop her from acting; it was the kind that tightened the tension and deepened immersion.
Deok-su saw only Detective Choi Jung-ah; Hye-yeong was gone.
‘She must have practiced a lot.’
Hye-yeong was also amazed by Deok-su.
Her acting was even more stable than during the camera test.
She portrayed the character Lim Hae-seong—cold on the outside, blazing inside—with both action and voice.
“Hello! I’m Choi Jung-ah, who has just received her transfer! I am…”
In the scene with Seo Ju-won as well, Hye-yeong showed steady acting.
Deok-su was stunned.
‘Amazing. You have to carry two emotional arcs at once… and you switch and immerse that quickly. Top actors are different.’
It was practically one-person acting.
The veteran feel Hye-yeong needed to match with him, and the fresh, growing energy she needed to match with Seo Ju-won.
Her performance across both phases had no awkwardness.
The problem was Seo Ju-won.
“Choi Jung-ah! I, I… Haa.”
“Ju-won, hold on. Am I hard to work with? Was Gwak Jun the type who struggles with juniors?”
“S-sorry. I’ll try again.”
Unlike when working with Deok-su, Seo Ju-won was far too tense while matching Hye-yeong.
Mistakes piled up because of it.
Hye-yeong’s face gradually changed.
“Tension is okay. Let’s try again.”
Following her words, Seo Ju-won gave everything he had, but he could not show her the exact image she wanted until the end.
Seo Ju-won had always matched Deok-su perfectly.
With Hye-yeong, he could only produce the image of an inexperienced trainee who had never faced a camera.
“Detective Lim Hae-seong! It’s your turn now. I…”
“Haa. I’m really annoyed.”
In the end, Hye-yeong stood up from her seat in anger.
When Deok-su followed her out, she clicked her tongue and muttered, “It’s too mismatched for someone so good. Still, your acting with Deok-su fits really well… Does that person have stage fright or something?”
“Probably…”
Such conditions were fairly common among actors.
“I’m sorry, senior. I’ll match with you together.”
“That’s right. Deok-su recommended him. You know Deok-su is taking responsibility for this too, right?”
The person who actively recommended Seo Ju-won was Deok-su.
He naturally felt the weight of that responsibility.
After she left, Deok-su sat facing the still-practicing Seo Ju-won.
“Sorry, L’Vyu. Did the senior get angry?”
“She did, but… for now, let’s just match. Do you have any stage fright with seniors, by any chance?”
Seo Ju-won nodded with a sigh.
“Actually… I have some stage fright with female actresses. Not severe, but… when matching with the senior, it’s especially…”
“The senior’s vibe isn’t that strong, is it? If it’s female actress stage fright…?”
Seo Ju-won explained that he made mistakes because of excessive tension when acting with female actresses.
Now that such incidents were rare and he felt safe, Hye-yeong had triggered the symptom again by matching with her.
Deok-su stepped outside briefly and picked up his phone.
When advice was needed, there was only one person he could turn to.
“... Female actress stage fright? It happens sometimes. Mostly with inexperienced newcomers. Why? Deok-su, you’re not the type to get that…”
“I’ll explain the reason later. How do I treat it?”
“You have no choice but to act with female actresses often. You have to get used to it for the treatment to work.”
After the call, Deok-su, deep in thought, grabbed Yun Chae-gyeong, who was about to leave work.
“... If it’s something like that, it’s my specialty. Okay.”
After hearing Deok-su’s explanation, Yun Chae-gyeong gladly offered to help with the reading practice.
For her, it was also a chance to participate in reading practice.
“... N-now…”
“Trainee. Be a little calmer…”
After that, Seo Ju-won frequently visited DH Entertainment every day to practice reading lines.
A few days later…
The long-awaited script reading day arrived.
On Deok-su’s right sat Hye-yeong and on his left Seo Ju-won, while the production team—including CP Lee Young-san and writer Cho Yu-ri—occupied the most visible central seat.
“Hello, I’m Cho Yu-ri, the writer who penned this script. Please take care of me.”
Following Cho Yu-ri, Hye-yeong stood up.
“Actress Park Hye-yeong. This work is really good… I hope everyone comes back with good faces.”
When Seo Ju-won flinched from tension, Deok-su lightly grabbed his arm.
‘No need to be nervous yet. It won’t be different.’
“... Hmmm.”
After everyone’s introductions, the serious reading began.
Deok-su and Hye-yeong’s smooth reading flowed into Deok-su and Seo Ju-won’s perfect match.
“I don’t know what you see in my eyes, but one hour ago, she was alive! She was alive!”
“... Calm down. Stay composed. The next victim…”
Deok-su and Seo Ju-won continued their stable match.
‘Clearly, these two…’
‘Both Deok-su and Ju-won are saving each other. The image is great.’
Lee Young-san CP and Cho Yu-ri nodded at each other.
Their match was definitely stable.
And then came the problematic match between Seo Ju-won and Hye-yeong.
“Hey, rookie.”
“Y-yes! I…”
“Haa. Put on some clothes. We’re going to the site.”
There was no more trembling in his voice.
Hye-yeong widened her eyes in surprise without realizing it, as if she were watching a real senior speak.
When the flow broke, Lee Young-san CP let out a small sigh.
“Yuna, it’s not time to rest yet. Who will get coffee?”
“Ah, sorry, director. I must have been too excited.”
Hye-yeong smiled awkwardly and matched Seo Ju-won without further issue.
“... Senior! Let’s go together!”
“Can you catch the culprit by running like that? Faster! Faster, faster!”
Watching the two who had become true seniors and juniors, Deok-su let out a small sigh of relief.
‘It was fortunate that her stage fright wasn’t too severe.’
The female actress stage fright had put the situation at risk of the actor being replaced.
Thanks to the special training with Yun Chae-gyeong, Seo Ju-won’s reading was now definitely stable.
During the break, in the break room, Hye-yeong handed a drink to the lone Cho Yu-ri.
“Writer Cho, is this your first work? How could you write something like this from the beginning?”
“You’re flattering me, senior.”
“Flattery is out. I really came here after throwing away three scripts just for this. When I see you, I feel like I’ll write a melodrama…”
“Aigoo.”
While Hye-yeong held Cho Yu-ri’s hand and laughed, Deok-su entered.
Cho Yu-ri greeted him with a wave; Hye-yeong’s smile lingered on her face.
“Deok-su, it was good today too. But what happened with Seo Ju-won? He seemed like a completely different person.”
“I practiced with our trainee.”
“Is that enough? It seemed like there were problems.”
“Eight hours a day. Our trainee suffered too.”
Hye-yeong stuck out her tongue and grinned.
The worried reading sessions passed safely, and drama preparation advanced steadily.
Promotion began with the uploading of making films to YouTube.
And before long…
“Just make sure the rating exceeds 10%!”
Kim Yoon-sik, the filming director, stuck five-thousand-won bills into a pig’s mouth.
Next, staff from Jimmy’s Bar, C-Camera, and the recce team also received money in their mouths.
Yun Chae-gyeong, who had come to observe following Deok-su, stared with wide eyes at the numerous staff.
“T-there are really so many. All those people and facilities are only because of today’s filming…”
“Exactly. All these people are ours, centered around the hyung…”
When Park Hyeon-woo looked energetic, the production staff shouted, “L’Vyu, get ready! Rehearsal starts!”
Deok-su, who was sitting in an actor’s chair receiving makeup, walked past Park Hyeon-woo and entered the angle.