Chapter 46: Rising Star (1)
Chapter 46: Rising Star (1)
After several script readings, the time had finally come for full-scale stage rehearsals.
While I was currently pouring all my energy into script analysis, things were bound to get even busier from here on out.
That was why I didn't want to miss this opportunity if I could help it.
"I'm coming in, okay?"
"Yeah."
I prepared some tea as I glanced at Lee Ji-yeon, who was taking off her shoes at the entrance.
Although Ji-yeon and I were often stuck together at school, she hadn't actually visited my house that many times.
We usually met outside, or more often, I would go to her place.
‘Alright.’
I had been hesitating all this time, but after seeing the announcement for Seven Live’s 3rd Generation, I made up my mind.
I would at least bring it up once.
Who knows? She might actually show some interest.
‘I don’t expect much since it might interfere with her acting career, but...’
Still, maybe she could do it just a little bit, every now and then?
“...You have a really unpleasant look on your face.”
“That’s mean.”
When I spoke while slightly narrowing my eyes, Lee Ji-yeon began kneading my face with both hands.
“Your expression doesn't change, but I still get that vibe. You’re thinking about something weird again, aren't you?”
“What do you mean, weird?”
“You come up with the most random ideas sometimes.”
Anyone overhearing that would get the wrong impression.
Despite how I might seem, I was just an extremely ordinary high school girl, aside from having no friends... well, yeah, I was a high school girl.
“Oh my, Ji-yeon, you’re here?”
“Hello.”
“Hehe, honestly, what would our Seo-yeon do without you?”
My mother said that as she hurriedly put on her coat, saying she was going out to buy some fruit.
It seemed she intended to slice some for us while we were hanging out.
“Your mom.”
“Yeah.”
“I think her chest got even bigger.”
“...No way.”
“And she looks exactly the same as the last time I saw her. My mom would be so depressed if she saw her.”
“Your mother looks young too.”
Ji-yeon’s mother also had a fairly youthful appearance.
“My mom’s look is the result of blood, sweat, and tears. I’ll have to ask your mom later how she manages her skin.”
Even if she asked, Mom didn't really do anything special for her skin.
Maybe a face mask every now and then before bed?
She really was terrifyingly youthful.
In fact, wasn't Mom the truly mysterious one?
“So, what are we doing? Want to watch a movie like usual?”
Ji-yeon gestured toward the large TV as she spoke.
Usually, when the two of us were alone, we spent our time watching movies or dramas.
It wasn't just for fun; it was a chance to observe other actors' performances, discuss them, or practice ourselves.
Since Lee Ji-yeon was just as serious about acting as I was, she would ask me about acting whenever she had the chance.
Even though she technically had a longer active career than I did now.
“Today...”
I naturally turned on YouTube first.
“...”
And then my finger froze.
Originally, my plan was to naturally say, ‘I heard there’s this thing lately,’ and casually show her a VTuber video.
Then, depending on Ji-yeon’s reaction, I would naturally...
Naturally...
...
...Um.
‘This isn't easy.’
I wiped the sweat forming on my forehead.
I could feel Ji-yeon’s gaze as she stared at me blankly.
I mean, this is weird, right?
It’d be weird to suddenly play a VTuber video here, wouldn't it?
‘Get it together, Ju Seo-yeon. Are you ashamed of VTubers?’
I felt like... for the first time... maybe I was, just a little.
After all, Lee Ji-yeon was a total social butterfly who had zero connection to things like anime.
Since I couldn't predict her reaction at all, I couldn't bring myself to move my hand.
Was my modest hope—that Ji-yeon might show even a little interest—going to end here?
“Ju Seo-yeon.”
“Uh, yeah?”
“...Why is your algorithm full of such weird stuff?”
The YouTube app on the TV was, of course, logged into my account.
Naturally, it was filled with things I frequently watched.
And naturally, that included VTuber-related content.
“This is that thing, right? VTubers.”
Twitch.
I couldn't even bring myself to say yes, my body just gave a small involuntary twitch.
But how did she know?
If she already knew, wouldn't it be easier to bring it up naturally?
Just as I was about to open my mouth with that thought—
“You watch stuff like that?”
One of the top three scariest sentences you could hear from a friend came out of Ji-yeon’s mouth.
I clamped my mouth shut.
As I sat there just twitching and spasming, Ji-yeon let out a small "Ah."
“Did that sound bad? I was just genuinely curious.”
“...Really?”
“What’s with you? You’re acting weird.”
Ji-yeon gave a short laugh.
“Anyway, if there’s nothing else to watch, can I watch what I want?”
I hesitated for a moment before slowly nodding my head.
Watching Ji-yeon type something into the YouTube search bar, I squeezed my eyes shut.
‘I failed...’
Well, it was only natural when I thought about it.
*
‘Hmm.’
Lee Ji-yeon stole a glance at Seo-yeon as she scrolled through the channels.
Seo-yeon had her eyes squeezed shut and was biting her lower lip.
For Seo-yeon, who rarely showed much emotion, this was an extremely rare expression.
Ji-yeon chuckled at Seo-yeon’s face and then quietly checked Seo-yeon’s YouTube search history.
In her own way, Ji-yeon was curious about what Seo-yeon had been interested in lately.
Seeing that most of the search history was related to the play, Ji-yeon narrowed her eyes.
‘She really intends to do this play properly.’
It was hard to understand why Seo-yeon had chosen that specific play for her comeback.
Even when asked about it, she only gave a cryptic answer:
“I have to do this for my next project.”
‘Well, it’s Ju Seo-yeon, so she’ll figure it out.’
Ji-yeon didn't worry too much about it.
She’d find out once she saw the play.
So, more importantly.
‘VTubers?’
She saw various videos in Seo-yeon’s algorithm.
‘Hmm.’
Somehow, it seemed to fit.
Ji-yeon was aware of them through hearsay.
One of Ji-yeon’s friends was someone she had met at a voice acting academy.
‘That was a job where you used your voice, too.’
She hadn't been interested because it seemed like a career where you’d fail quickly without a lot of talent.
But seeing Seo-yeon react like that... it was a little fun.
She knew Seo-yeon often flinched at the sound of her own voice.
And right now, she looked completely dejected, as if she had tried something and failed miserably.
Ji-yeon could only guess that it had something to do with VTubers.
“Ju Seo-yeon.”
“...Yeah?”
Seeing Seo-yeon looking strangely discouraged, Ji-yeon let out a little laugh.
“It’s nothing.”
She had just thought of something amusing.
*
A few days passed.
Stage rehearsals began in earnest.
Even though Seo-yeon had researched a lot beforehand, the feeling was completely different from a drama.
A medium-sized theater with a total of 600 seats.
When she first heard the number, it didn't seem like that many.
But standing on the stage, the scale felt much larger than expected.
‘This is the first time I’ve acted in front of this many people... wait, no it isn't.’
Thinking back, there was Snow White.
Seo-yeon stood on the stage, quietly looking out at the seats with that thought.
“What, are you scared?”
As she stood there, a voice tinged with amusement reached her.
Turning her head, she saw Shim Cheong-seok looking at her with his characteristic grin.
“No.”
“I figured.”
He gave a sharp smirk.
Because Shim Cheong-seok had such sharp features, that smile felt wild, almost predatory.
Just looking at him, he seemed like a man who wouldn't fit the role of ‘Bae Seong-hak’ at all.
‘But his skills are the real deal.’
His acting, which she had experienced on this stage, was certainly impressive.
They called him the rising star of the theater world.
‘I suppose that’s why he was cast in an OTT drama right away.’
Despite never having appeared in even a minor drama, he had been cast as one of the leads in a major OTT production.
In a way, it was even more impressive than her landing the role of ‘Princess Yeonhwa’ in Taesumdal.
At least she had auditioned for that; Shim Cheong-seok hadn't even done that.
“I’m telling you this in advance.”
He wiped the smile from his face and spoke to me in a languid voice.
“If you don't adjust to the stage properly, you won't even show half your skill. I’ve seen it plenty of times—kids who fly during the reading but fall apart on stage.”
He said that, then added as if remembering something:
“Of course, I’m not talking about you. You definitely have a different scent.”
...Scent?
When I squinted at that peculiar expression—
“If I were to give you a tip: treat the real thing like a rehearsal.”
“Like a rehearsal?”
“Dramas allow for retakes, but plays don't. So I’m saying you should relax.”
He took a long stride toward me.
“If you act with too much tension and try to give it your absolute all, you’re more likely to make a mistake.”
“But isn't that normal? To put in the effort and act with everything you’ve got.”
“Well, yeah. It’s normal.”
He looked down at me, standing right in front of my nose.
“If you can actually do it.”
This was a challenge.
He was telling her to try.
Seo-yeon looked him in the eye.
Meeting his gaze, she tried to read his intention behind those words.
Was it a provocation?
Or interest?
She felt an unreadable emotion.
Even if Seo-yeon was dull regarding her own emotions, she was sensitive to the emotions of others.
Of course, that was closer to the result of synthesizing ‘information’ she had experienced early on.
“The role of Hong Jeong-hee is very important.”
He said, looking down at Seo-yeon.
“Because she’s the villain?”
“Yeah. A villain without a presence is worse than having no villain at all.”
Shim Cheong-seok shrugged.
“Based on the script reading at least, that won't be an issue. And...”
Seeing the other actors slowly making their way onto the stage, he whispered into Seo-yeon’s ear in a low voice.
“I want to try acting for real, just once.”
Acting for real?
When Seo-yeon sent him a questioning look, he moved away with a faint smile.
...He was a truly enigmatic person.
*
Yeonhwa High School.
A private high school with approximately 800 students.
It had many students confident in the arts and physical education, though it was slightly lacking as a college preparatory school.
Still, it was a high school that performed around the average.
“We received a request saying they want to film at our school.”
“Filming?”
It was a sudden agenda item brought up during the faculty meeting.
Filming? Were they shooting a drama?
As the teachers looked at the principal, he cleared his throat and continued.
“It’s a program called Looking at the Past and Memories.”
Was there such a thing?
It was a variety show most had never heard of.
That meant it was a show with low recognition and popularity... or so they thought.
“Ah, I know that one. Isn't that the variety show that airs at 5 PM on Sundays?”
Since the broadcast time was during the weekend prime time, many people were aware of it.
The principal breathed a sigh of relief at that reaction.
He was glad it had some level of recognition.
“If this goes well, we can promote the school, right? From what I’ve heard, they’re coming here to... reenact? Yes, reenact a drama that aired a long time ago.”
“Yes, yes. As far as I know, the concept is having students film old variety shows or dramas.”
However, the teachers who knew about the show had ambiguous expressions.
‘Will that really be good promotion?’
To be honest, it wasn't very entertaining.
It was only slightly interesting when a student who was exceptionally good at acting appeared, or when things were a total mess... but otherwise, who knew.
“Ahem! Furthermore, luckily for us, a guest actor will be appearing with us during our filming. To help with the acting.”
“A guest actor?”
Thinking it wouldn't be anyone famous if they were appearing on a show like this, someone spoke up.
“It’s the actor Park Jung-woo. You all know him, right?”
“Whoa, really?”
“Park Jung-woo is coming to our school?”
He had long since shed the title of ‘son of a legendary actor.’
Currently, for those in their teens and twenties in South Korea, he was the number one actor they most wanted to meet.
Park Jung-woo was the actor who proudly held that spot.
“So, the theater club... the teacher in charge is Song Da-yeon, right?”
“Ah, yes, yes.”
“They asked us to pre-select about ten students to participate in the filming. Is that possible?”
“Of course!”
Teacher Song Da-yeon was confident.
After all, the theater club currently had Lee Ji-yeon, who was appearing in a cable drama.
Even if it was just a formality, she was definitely a member.
‘Ji-yeon will definitely say she’ll do it, right?’
Knowing that girl’s greed for acting, she surely would.