Chapter 130: Play With Me
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 130: Play With Me
[I fucking love Kim Eojin ahhhhhh]
[Sigh... why aren't there any bad boys like that at my school?]
[Kim Eojin is on another level!]
Praise is supposed to be a good thing...
But for some reason, I couldn't figure out why it was so hard to look at. I put down my phone and closed my aching eyes.
Still, it was a relief.
Putting aside comments about my face, not many people were criticizing my acting.
Then again, I barely had any lines, so it was almost funny to see anyone critique my performance at all. Even so, I couldn't shake the feeling of tension as I scrolled through the comments.
Vrrr—
My phone vibrated.
It was the manager, who had said he would contact me.
[Hello.]
[Yes! Taemin-ssi! Have you had a chance to check the reactions?]
[Ah, yes. I was just looking at them!]
His voice sounded somewhat excited.
I had a feeling that whatever he was about to say wouldn't be too bad.
[Well, to get straight to the point, uh... the company's reaction to you has been extremely positive!]
[...Is that so?]
[Yes! The live reactions have been great, and considering the scale of the drama, the buzz it's generated is excellent! We're also getting a lot of inquiries from all over.]
It was something I always thought, whether it was texts or phone calls.
Things without a physical presence always felt vague, so none of it felt real to me.
[Inquiries from where, exactly?]
[I heard we've gotten offers from similar dramas, as well as for commercials.]
...Commercials? Me? In a commercial?
My mind went blank as I pictured the kind of things I’d only ever seen celebrities do on TV.
[Ah... of course, the dramas aren't for major networks or anything like that. They’re just a bit bigger in scale than your current one.]
Maybe he thought I was getting my hopes up, because the manager’s tone became placating, as if to calm me down.
I wasn't really expecting anything like that, though.
[I see...]
[In any case, the drama ends next week, so once we see how that goes, we'll probably move on to your next schedule right away.]
[Understood.]
I thought that meant I could just chill for another week, but that wasn't the case.
[We'll need you to start your acting lessons tomorrow.]
[Acting lessons?]
I asked for confirmation, surprised by the sudden new requirement.
[Yes. There's a chance you might have a short drama shoot during your contract period, so we need to start preparing for that right away.]
Ah... is that so...? I guess I have to...
It wasn't exactly welcome news, but I knew all too well that I couldn't hope for another stroke of luck like last time.
[Alright. Should I go to the same place as before?]
[Yes. I'll come pick you up every morning.]
[Ah... okay...]
[Well then, get some rest, and I'll see you tomorrow!]
[Yes. Thank you.]
More and more of my time was being spent as the human 'Han Taemin'.
During the last break, it felt like I spent far more time living as 'Lucario'.
If I had once been active under the name Pink Army with my face hidden, now I was living as Han Taemin, my face revealed to the whole world.
...Was it okay for things to change so drastically?
Lying on my bed and staring at the ceiling, I brought my hands together and rubbed my face.
Wait a minute. Don't tell me the acting lessons will end so late that I'll miss the stream?
Luka's stream was always at 8 PM.
As long as I got back before then, it should be fine.
Ah. But if I get home at exactly 8, when the hell am I supposed to go on dates with Doah...
If I got home at 8 PM on the dot, that would be a problem too.
On the weekends... I guess...
On days without practice...
The thought sent a cold wind blowing through the hole that had just opened up in a corner of my heart.
That was unacceptable.
See Doah only once a week?
Having grown used to seeing her every day, I hated the thought of being apart from her more than anything.
I considered calling the manager back and gripped my phone tightly, but instead, I called my girlfriend.
The phone rang and rang, but Doah didn't pick up.
Just as I was about to hang up, thinking she was busy, I heard her voice.
[Hellow...]
Unlike my troubled self, her voice was endlessly peaceful.
[...Were you sleeping?]
[Mhm...]
My worries turned to dust and vanished.
It was as if Doah's voice had a spell on it; not a single negative thought could surface.
[Whatcha doin'...] Doah asked, even in her sleepy state.
A small smile escaped my lips as I told her about my new schedule.
[They told me to start acting lessons tomorrow, so I was feeling sad.]
[Don't go...]
Did she even know what she was saying?
She probably wouldn't remember.
When Doah was fast asleep, she would answer if you spoke to her, but she wouldn't remember the conversation later.
[They want me to go every day. What should I do, Doah? We won't be able to go on dates as often.]
I took the opportunity to vent my frustrations.
Yeah, whatever. I'll just have to tell her again when she wakes up anyway.
[Don't go... play with me...] Doah whined like a child.
I wanted to run over to her place right that second and shower her cheeks with kisses.
[I have to go make money to support my dear idol.]
Even though I replied with a laugh, Doah kept pouting.
[Nnngh. I'll make the money... you play with me...]
[A guy's gotta have some pride, you know.]
[Kim Eojin... is a jerk...]
I couldn't laugh out loud for fear of waking her up completely.
I clamped a hand over my mouth, stifling my chuckles.
[Alright, Doah. Go back to sleep for now and call me when you wake up. Okay?]
[Mhm...]
Haaa... yeah...
With Doah, I felt like I could do anything.
That's how she made me feel.
*
"Alright. Let's go again."
...Why are you doing this to me.
I wanted to run out of the room crying, but I couldn't bring myself to say a single word of complaint.
The acting lesson had started at 10 AM.
Thankfully, the manager had said he'd make sure I was done by 5 PM.
The schedule was almost identical to a school day, but what mattered wasn't the hours, but the content.
Screeeech—
The chair slid back as I stood up.
My mission was to walk to the front of the whiteboard.
Whipping my head around, I looked at the teacher with a desperate plea in my eyes.
"Getting up was fine, but your posture is still hunched when you stand."
I had assumed the basics of acting would be things like practicing emotions or imagining scenarios, but reality was far from it.
The fundamentals started from the very solid ground up.
Nothing was easy.
I was someone who spent more time typing than talking.
I was someone who spent more time lying down watching streams than moving around and exercising.
For a person like me, practicing speaking loudly with precise pronunciation was akin to torture, and straightening my back to walk properly was pure torture itself.
"Taemin-ssi."
The teacher's hands grabbed my shoulders and pulled them back.
A short scream escaped my lips at the feeling of my muscles being forcibly torn.
"Keuk!"
"It's going to be a real problem if this hurts you. You need to think of this exact posture as your default."
Just as the pain subsided and my shoulders returned to their original position, the teacher squeezed them firmly once more.
"This doesn't just apply to actors; it's for everyone. This is."
"Ah... yes..."
If this were a game, I would have slammed the logout button by now.
I want to go home.
I miss Doah.
Luka-tan... save me...
"Hoo... Let's take a 10-minute break and then go again."
"Okay..."
The moment the teacher left the practice room, I buried my face on the desk.
Right. I should at least text Doah.
[Doah.]
[Yes?]
She must have been working on her computer, because her reply was instant.
[Acting... is so hard...]
[But it's 3 o'clock now, aren't you almost done?]
No! Don't say that!
There are still two hours left!
Her words hit me like someone telling a soldier on a short leave, "Wow, your break is flying by."
My fingers trembled as I typed.
[No! How could you say that?]
[I meant you should finish up quickly and come see me?]
Ah... is that what she meant?
Was I just being overly sensitive?
Feeling needlessly awkward, I scratched my head.
"Shall we get started again?"
...Why are you back already?
It's only been 8 minutes!
I felt like I was back in a high school cram school.
As the trauma from my college entrance exam days began to creep back up, I let out a deep, internal sigh.
After sending Doah a quick text saying I'd call her when I was done, I resumed the hellish training of sitting and standing, over and over.
I wondered if this was really helping, but when the teacher filmed me, I finally realized just how awkward my movements were.
I thought I was moving naturally, but it was a delusion only I believed.
The teacher ended the class, reminding me that Rome wasn't built in a day, and I waited in the practice room for the manager.
Creeak—
The door opened, and my savior, who would take me home, walked in.
"Ah! Manager-nim!"
I was happy to see him, but his reaction suggested the feeling wasn't mutual.
"Taemin-ssi."
"Yes."
"Uh... by any chance... umm..."
Unlike his usual self, who would explain things calmly, his face was clouded over.
"...You don't have any history of school violence or anything like that, do you?"
A question mark appeared over my head.