The Script from the Trash
Hmm... It felt completely out of place. Woo Dan-wol knew that much. He had caught a glimpse of it, but he needed to confirm whether the scenario sitting in the trash bin truly belonged to her.
He was that desperate to know. Because the book gripped in his hand was radiating a vivid purple glow.
That was why Woo Dan-wol grew even more curious. How could a scenario of such high quality be destined for the trash?
"That's correct, but why...?"
"Uh..."
Park Soo-yeon asked sharply. It was an attitude no proper member of society would take. Perhaps it came from having abandoned her dream of directing and being wrapped in self-doubt? Like a hedgehog curling into a ball, she had raised her quills in sharp defense.
"It looked good."
"...?"
Woo Dan-wol thought for a brief moment before answering. Even though he possessed a superpower no one else could see, speaking it aloud was an entirely different matter.
In the end, under the name of intuition, Woo Dan-wol confidently expressed his thoughts.
"How can you possibly know without even reading the content?"
"Because my intuition likes it."
"Hah..."
A laugh of utter disbelief slipped from Park Soo-yeon's lips. If she were still active in the industry, she would have bowed and scraped by now. But she was a discharged sergeant, a resigned employee.
Intuition? As if that made any sense. At that moment, Lee Hye-ri opened her mouth. The ever-reliable assistant.
"That's right. That's exactly why he's succeeding."
"......"
A simple claim gained weight the moment a witness appeared. Moreover, wasn't that witness a famous team leader in the industry? Even though she had gone independent, her ability hadn't disappeared.
"Actor Woo Dan-wol picked every single one of them."
"Director."
"......"
Park Soo-yeon's heart gave a painful twinge. Not assistant director, but director. Still, she didn't let it show. With a short silence, she successfully hid her feelings.
"...I quit my job."
"May I ask why?"
Woo Dan-wol asked. A rising star of an actor. But he wasn't the type to poke at someone's painful scars. Park Soo-yeon's lips parted, then closed again.
It was hard to put into words. She was exhausted. Having cast aside romance, compromised on her dreams, and been broken by reality, this was the state of a woman's heart and mind.
So perhaps that was why she ended up speaking words that could change her fate.
"I've worked as an assistant director for ten years. Without investors, how is a director supposed to make a movie?"
"I'll act in it."
"...Don't mock me."
Park Soo-yeon's voice grew rough. It was only natural. To dismiss all the time and effort poured into a scenario with nothing but a gut feeling?
As if she no longer wanted to speak, Park Soo-yeon waved her hand and turned away. Yet her expression told a completely different story.
Her heart was pounding wildly. She might have raised her voice to hide the joy threatening to bloom across her face.
He was a rising rookie and a proven actor walking a solid path. Though one could argue it was only two projects, once someone hit consecutive home runs, luck stopped mattering.
An actor like that said he would shoot a movie? Investors would wave their hands begging him to take their money. On top of that, his agency's CEO was Lee Hye-ri. Two people who satisfied every condition had come together.
"Please, at least take my business card, Director."
"...I got too excited. I'm sorry."
"I was being presumptuous. I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault, Actor. I just quit the company, so... I don't have a business card on me."
She turned her head completely away. The corner of her mouth kept twitching upward, her happiness circuit spinning at full speed. Park Soo-yeon, who had received Lee Hye-ri's business card.
Since she had originally come here for a different reason, the conversation between the people blocking the building entrance finally ended.
"Then please make sure to contact me."
"Thank you, CEO."
The moment Park Soo-yeon stepped outside, Lee Hye-ri finally asked.
"What on earth was that about?"
"Ahaha..."
Woo Dan-wol laughed awkwardly. It might be familiar by now, but that didn't stop it from being surprising.
Woo Dan-wol's occasional acts of getting completely lost in his craft could fluster even Lee Hye-ri. So he offered his gratitude. Whenever he slipped up, she always did her best to clean up the mess.
"Thank you, sis. I think I need to sign a lifetime contract."
"L-lifetime..."
If he had tossed it out lightly, she would have laughed it off. At the very least, if it had been a joke, she wouldn't have reacted. But watching Woo Dan-wol say it with a smile full of sincerity, how could she avoid misunderstanding even if she tried?
"Ah, you can't say things like that."
"What's wrong with it? Sis will handle everything perfectly anyway."
"Euu!"
Lee Hye-ri walked with her head bowed low. She looked like a criminal, but it was a desperate effort to hide her flushed face. Trust level one hundred percent. The continuous stream of confident words had completely dismantled her.
It was incredibly joyful when someone believed in you without the slightest doubt. His pure smile that seemed untouched by the ways of the world made Lee Hye-ri renew her vow once again today. She would never let him fall into danger within the treacherous entertainment industry.
And so the two followed the late-arriving staff member's guidance and continued on their way. They rode the elevator.
To the floor where the company's CEO and an experienced film director waited. The doors opened. Lee Hye-ri and Woo Dan-wol stepped inside.
There stood a woman with a rigidly upright nose. A woman whose appearance resembled a walrus with an enormous snout.
From the very first glance, she was an unpleasant person. The look she directed at Woo Dan-wol was far from kind. Beneath an ordinary gaze lay a very subtle, veiled desire.
"I'd like to look at the script."
"Yes, yes... You can look right here..."
Someone roughly twice his age. Lee Hye-ri let out a small sigh. If Woo Dan-wol hadn't insisted on coming, she would have stopped him. The rumors surrounding this woman were far from good.
He slowly examined the script. His eyebrows twitched. It was acting, of course.
He had wondered, but he had already recognized the script's color.
For those very rare occasions, he would carefully review the scenario, yet the result was the same. It was indeed a script that matched the green color.
"......"
His eyes met Lee Hye-ri's. She understood his intentions faster than anyone.
Before he could open his mouth, the director's laughing question filled the room.
"There may be some exposure. Is that all right?"
"No."
"...?"
Woo Dan-wol's expression turned ice-cold. His gaze filled with disgust. It was less disgust for the director and more for the pathetic script itself.
It was as if his eyes were saying, This is a chicken coop...
He wasn't an actor sensitive about exposure. However, he wasn't generous enough to overlook a poorly written script or an older woman who spoke casually from their first meeting.
The director became flustered. As if she had heard wrong. In a situation where he should have been bowing his head and begging to be cast, his behavior was incomprehensible.
How much alcohol and flattery had new actors poured out just to appear in her works? It was an action she couldn't understand.
"I won't be doing the audition."
"What..."
"Something has come up. It seems I need more time for self-reflection."
He had tried to wrap it politely. But the packaging made his true feelings far too obvious. Perhaps that was why the director's expression grew even uglier.
It didn't quite flush red and blue, but it was clearly on the verge of exploding.
The world believed Woo Dan-wol was in the middle of self-reflection. Yet the fact that he had come all the way here could only mean he was preparing for his next project.
But something came up? Right after looking at the script? Nevertheless, Woo Dan-wol bowed deeply. The very picture of courtesy, the king of apologies that left others speechless.
It was a perfect ninety-degree bow.
"I'm sorry, Director."
"...It can't be helped."
"You..."
"I'll contact you later."
Lee Hye-ri led Woo Dan-wol outside. "I'll contact you later" was simply another way of saying she would never associate with her again.
You couldn't be loved by everyone in the world, and Lee Hye-ri was a woman who drew clear lines between allies and enemies even in society. The Korean entertainment industry was far too ruthless to be shaken by a single auntie.
The two walked out of the company with their heads held high. If they hadn't encountered Park Soo-yeon, they might have agonized over the decision. But having found a perfect replacement—no, a scenario that surpassed it—the only task left was to win her over.
That evening, Park Soo-yeon, who had returned home early, was playing with her son.
"Mommy, mommy!"
"Aigoo. My precious boy."
He looked about three years old. The precious child welcoming his mother home earlier than usual smiled brightly. After playing energetically with him in the living room, the call for dinner came.
An ordinary man in his thirties. A stay-at-home husband who was the father of a child contemplating employment. The family that had survived on the meager salary of an assistant director.
Quitting the company today would surely shake their foundation, but a household built on love born from romance did not collapse easily. Even though it was a time when they needed to tighten their belts.
The dinner table was more generously prepared than ever. Deliciously grilled meat, soup, rice, and more side dishes than usual.
Seeing it, the corners of Park Soo-yeon's eyes grew moist.
"Ah, is it already menopause?"
"You'll do well, honey."
The man wearing an apron smiled. Should she look for manual labor? As Park Soo-yeon was worrying, the phone began to ring.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Director. I'm sorry for contacting you first."