Cameo (3)

A restless atmosphere hung over the set.

It had nothing to do with the usual pre-shoot scramble.

No — it was the woman standing right in front of them.

The woman who had arrived with Yu Ha-yeong seized every gaze on the bustling set in a single instant.

Whoa. Look at that mask.

Even Yu Hui-min, a man who was rarely impressed by anything, found himself genuinely startled. Beside him, the assistant director was already staring blankly into space.

"Hello, Director. I'm Jeong Yeo-un from YW. Please take good care of our girls."

Jeong Yeo-un offered a warm greeting.

"Hahaha! Well, this is a pleasure. I'm the one who should be thanking you."

Cameo roles paid, of course. But the fee was modest — practically pocket change. In reality, it was a friendship appearance. What director in their right mind would turn down a free Yu Ha-yeong-caliber actress?

And then there was the other one.

Just standing there, she was already a painting. The voice he'd heard during her self-introduction a moment ago had been excellent, too.

Great diction. Outstanding.

He'd have to see her act to be sure, but Director Ha had vouched for her — so the fundamentals were probably solid.

"All right, we still need to get some things ready on our end, so go ahead and rest for now."

"Yes, Director."

Jeong Yeo-un and the two women bowed and headed off.

"Hey."

He called for the assistant director. No response.

"Oh, for crying out loud? Hey!"

Thwack!

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"This bastard raising his voice at me?"

He raised his hand for another hit, then thought better of it.

"Bring me the script. And get Writer Park over here."

"Huh? Why?"

"Just do what you're told, you little shit. Look, we're gonna tweak the cameo part a little."

"What? You're revising it again? It's fine the way it is, isn't it?"

"It's fine. This is gut instinct talking — this is guaranteed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to blow up."

Yu Hui-min's eyes burned with absolute conviction. The assistant director had seen those eyes more than a few times.

"Got it."

Which was why he answered without argument.

"But Director, even without that gut of yours — with a face like that, isn't success basically a lock? She was insanely pretty."

"This little—! You son of a—!"

"Eek!"

He'd practically asked for it.

"Hey. Woo-bin. How've you been?"

"Ah! Hyung. You made it!"

The man Jeong Yeo-un greeted so warmly was Gong Woo-bin — the lead actor of Train to Ulsan, and the very person who had tipped them off about the cameo opportunity.

"Ha-yeong, it's been a while. Look at you — all grown into a proper lady."

"Woo-bin oppa! It's been so long!"

"Yeah. And this is…?"

"Hello. I'm Gil Ara. It's a pleasure to meet you, sunbae-nim."

Ara bowed with careful formality.

"It's still under wraps, but she's a new talent who just signed with our agency."

Jeong Yeo-un added by way of explanation.

"Ara-ssi? Nice to meet you. Wow, you're incredibly pretty. Hyung, your eye for talent is something else, huh? Where on earth did you dig her up?"

"I just worked hard on the pitch, that's all."

The part where he'd been completely played was classified information.

"Anyway, looking forward to working with you."

Gong Woo-bin extended his hand, and Ara took it.

"Yes, sunbae-nim. Thank you."

"Well, we've got more people to greet, so we'll head off first. Catch you later."

"Sure. I'll be in touch."

"Yeah."

After making a full circuit of the set, greeting every member of the cast and crew, they finally settled into the rest area that had been prepared for them.

Everyone's so nice.

They hadn't started actual work yet, but so far she hadn't seen any of the on-set power-tripping or the filthy underbelly of the entertainment industry that internet rumors loved to go on about. Part of that was probably because the people they'd met were genuinely decent — but Ara's face, a rare sight even in the industry, certainly didn't hurt either.

If gaming skill scaled with looks, I'd be set.

How many keyboards had she wrecked by now? And most of them only had one or two broken keys, so she couldn't bring herself to throw them out — they just piled up on one side of her desk, and every time she looked at them her heart ached.

"Huk! Ara, what's wrong? Did something upset you? Your face looks off."

"Huh? No?"

"If anything's bothering you, just tell me, okay?"

"Okay."

Jeez.

There were times when Yu Ha-yeong's observational skills felt almost unnervingly sharp.

"Ara."

"Yes, Representative?"

"From now on, you're the face of our company too. Let's work on your expressions a bit. I'm fine with it, but if you're too blank, people might feel uncomfortable around you, you know?"

He had a point.

"All right! Let's practice right now. Give us a smile."

"Ooh! I wanna see too!"

Yu Ha-yeong piled on at Jeong Yeo-un's request, and Nam Tae-woo and Jang Min-a were watching with clear interest as well.

Uh. How do I do this?

Having the stage set so blatantly only made it more pressure. But there was no dodging this one. She had decided to live as an actress. For a celebrity, image was everything. The Representative's request was entirely reasonable.

That said, a forced smile wouldn't cut it.

Maybe if I think of something happy…

Something that would bring out a natural smile.

Then a memory surfaced unbidden.

Allies overwhelmingly outmatched. The situation already spiraling into catastrophe. And then — the goddess of the battlefield descending upon the scene. The Lone Tower making her entrance. It was a miracle. It was salvation. And when she opened her mouth, the entire lobby went silent with awe.

[From this moment on, I am running this game.]

Ah, how magnificent!

And that solitary figure charging into the enemy ranks alone — she looked just like a fairy-tale hero. Then the sound ringing in her ears:

[PENTAKILL]

A hallucination, maybe, but crystal clear. And the words that appeared on screen:

[VICTORY]

Her team showering her in applause and endless praise. The enemy spamming a flood of filtered, unintelligible rage. And then the avalanche of friend requests — every last one of which she rejected before coolly shutting down the game.

She ran through the whole fantasy in her head.

There was simply no way not to smile. The corners of her mouth lifted of their own accord, and her luminous yellow eyes curved into crescent moons.

Huk!!!!

She's a fox!! Ara is enchanting people!!

Everyone present was almost certainly feeling the same thing Yu Ha-yeong was.

"Uh… Ara."

Jeong Yeo-un's voice pulled her out of the daydream.

"Maybe dial it back a little."

"Pardon?"

"I just think that would be better. Everyone agree?"

At Jeong Yeo-un's words, every head nodded in unison.

"?"

The cast, including Ara and Yu Ha-yeong, gathered at the assistant director's call around Yu Hui-min.

Once he confirmed everyone was present, Yu Hui-min spoke.

"So, here's the thing. We've revised the script a bit."

A thin sheaf of freshly revised pages was distributed to the actors. A brief reading period followed. The cast caught the changes almost instantly.

"Ju-hui-ssi, Dong-geon-ssi — I'm gonna need you two to suffer a little."

"Suffer, nothing. This is way better if you ask me."

Hong Dong-geon, a man in his sixties with a rather fierce face, answered with easy coolness.

"I'm fine with it too. The role itself hasn't really changed much from what was already there."

Ye Ju-hui, a middle-aged woman with a sharp, exacting air, accepted it just as readily. The two of them were playing the villains in Train to Ulsan — perfectly cast for their looks. Of course, both were thoroughly kind people in real life.

"Great. If we're gonna get hated anyway, might as well go all the way and make it count!"

"Yes."

"Sounds good."

Clap!

Yu Hui-min drew everyone's attention.

"All right — we start shooting in thirty minutes. Memorize the new pages as best you can, and anything that falls short, we'll fix with on-the-spot feedback. Dismissed for now!"

Back at the waiting area, Yu Ha-yeong and Gil Ara read through the revised script again, committing it to memory. Thirty minutes vanished in a blink.

"—Standing by!!!!!!!"

Cast and crew assembled on set.

The rookie. Let's see if she can act half as well as she looks.

Everyone was thinking roughly the same thing.

"Scene 32. Action!!!"

Yu Hui-min called the start of the take.

"Ugh, unnie! I got it, okay? Can you please just stop nagging me already?!"

Two women who looked like sisters. The younger one was snapping at her older sister with open irritation.

"Eat properly. And call Mom and Dad more often."

!

The actors and crew watching from the sidelines went still with surprise. The blank-faced rookie was gone. Ara had become Choi Su-yeong completely — an older sister fretting over her little sibling.

"Ugh. So boring. So boring."

Yu Ha-yeong, as Choi Su-a, made a face of pure disgust and kept hammering away at her phone, whether her sister was talking or not.

Kyaaaaaaaaaak—

A woman's scream, distant.

Someone's being murdered!!!!

Then came the unbelievable words that followed. Everyone inside the station turned toward the source of the voice.

Kugugugugugu.

A vibration was building underfoot, growing stronger by the second.

"Huh?"

"What is that?"

Like everyone else, the two sisters had no idea what was happening. And then they saw them.

An enormous throng of blood-soaked people pouring in through the entrance. Every single one of them looked wrong. The moment they entered the station, they began falling on the uninfected people.

Uwaaaaaaagh!!

Kraaaaagh!!!!

Screams erupted, and the station interior descended into pandemonium in an instant.

"U-unnie! Wh-what is that?!"

"What are you doing?! Run — now!!!"

Grasping the situation in a heartbeat, Su-yeong seized Su-a's hand and bolted.

Thud!

"Kyaaaaak!"

Another fleeing person slammed into Choi Su-a and sent her sprawling. As she fell, her jeans tore against a jutting concrete edge.

"Su-a!!"

"Get up — now!! We have to run! Hurry!!"

"O-okay!"

At her sister's command, Su-a scrambled up and started running again.

"Unnie! But where do we even go?!"

The entrance was already swarming with the transformed.

"The train! We go for the train!!"

There was only one option left. Hands locked together again, they ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sprinted for the platform where the train was waiting.

"Okay!!!"

Yu Hui-min's cut call. They'd nailed it in a single take.

"That was too good. We're riding this energy straight into the next scene!!"

Crew and camera equipment shifted positions.

"Action!"

Fleeing the people who had turned into zombies, the sisters dropped down onto the platform.

Hah! Hah!

They were gasping for air, but their legs refused to stop.

"Huk! U-un-nie!!"

"Hah! Just— a second!"

The train was already pulling out.

"Pl-please!! Just take us — just us!!!"

It still wasn't moving that fast. The sisters ran for their lives, pounding on the closed doors.

"Please!!!"

Kyaaaaaaak!!!

Behind them, zombies that had already reached the platform were closing in. The train was picking up speed now, the doors slipping farther away with every second.

Hisss— clack!

"Hurry!! Grab on!!"

From inside, Lee Ji-hoon — Gong Woo-bin — thrust out his hand. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The sisters caught it and hauled themselves into the train by a hair's breadth, just barely escaping the zombies' grasping fingers.

Clack—!

"Huk, huk — th-thank you."

"Huk! Really — thank you so much."

The endless full-speed sprint left a metallic taste thick in their throats, their breath whistling like steel.

BANG!!!

!!!

A massive crash from the rear cars, loud enough to jolt anyone who'd been lying down to rest in the connecting passage.

"This way! Hurry!!"

Everyone in the rear cars had already turned. The sisters followed Lee Ji-hoon toward the front. There, a crowd of people sat in stunned, vacant shock.

"Everyone! We have to move to the forward cars!! The rear cars are already gone! This one will be breached any minute. We have to go forward!"

Lee Ji-hoon's shout snapped people back to themselves.

"He's right! Let's get moving!"

Lee Gi-jeong — Hong Dong-geon — backed him up. The passengers heaved their heavy bodies up, preparing to move forward.

"Huuuuk!! Young lady!!"

In that moment, Kim Jin-ok — Ye Ju-hui — pointed at Choi Su-a's leg.

"Get— get away from her!!"

The others saw Su-a's leg and scrambled to put as much distance between themselves and her as possible.

"Huh?"

Only then did the two sisters notice it themselves. Through the torn jeans, a massive stain of blood, vivid and red. The wound from when she'd fallen while running.

"Wait — please!! It's not what you think!!"

"That's right!!! It just tore — that's all!! She just got hurt normally!!"

Terror-stricken, the crowd began surging forward again. The sisters stepped closer, trying to explain.

"Uwaaaaah!!! Stay back!!!"

But no one was listening anymore.

BANG!!!! BANG!!!!! BANG!!!!!!

A tremendous crashing from behind. The people fled forward like a tide going out, and soon only the sisters and Lee Ji-hoon remained.

"Everyone! Just a moment!!"

"Ji-hoon-ssi, get over here — now!!"

"She's not a zombie!! If she were going to turn, she would have by now!!"

Lee Ji-hoon defended the sisters.

"What if the incubation period is long and she turns later?! Are you going to take responsibility for that?!"

"Exactly! Why say things you can't back up? I'm sorry for the young lady, but this is how it has to be!! We don't want to end up like that either!!"

A panicked crowd's reason had already shut down completely.

"But still!! This isn't right!"

"Enough!! If you're not coming through, we have no choice but to shut and lock the door!"

Bang bang!!! Crrrrack!!

The door behind them began to buckle under an enormous force.

Huuuuk!!

"Young lady!! What happened to your sister is tragic, but the living have to live — hurry!! You too, Ji-hoon-ssi — hurry!!!"

"But…"

Lee Ji-hoon was devastated. As a fellow human being, he felt revulsion toward them — and yet, ironically, he understood exactly how they felt.

"U-unnie…. And Ji-hoon-ssi…?"

Choi Su-yeong's tightly clasped hand was trembling violently.

"I-I'm fine… so go! Run, unnie!!"

BANG!! CRUNCH!!

"Hurry!!"

There was truly no time left.

"Just get the young lady and Ji-hoon-ssi over here already!!"

From the front, there was no more patience to spare.

"Ji-hoon-ssi. Thank you."

Choi Su-yeong smiled as she spoke.

Thud—

And she shoved Lee Ji-hoon forward with all her strength.

!!!

"W-wait!!"

The people in the forward car seized his collar and hauled him through.

"You too, young lady — hurry!!"

"Yeah, unnie!! Hurry!!!"

Choi Su-yeong turned to face her sister.

"I'm not going."

"Unnie!!!! Please!!!!"

Su-a tried to push her through, but Su-yeong didn't budge an inch.

"See? I told you to exercise more."

"Please…"

The two hands gripping her collar shook uncontrollably.

Crrrk—

They were at the absolute limit now.

"Young lady!! I'm so sorry!!!"

Lee Ji-hoon's hollow eyes were the last thing she saw before the door slammed shut without mercy.

"Unnie! Why?!"

"Su-a. You're my little sister. Where would an unnie go without her sister?"

"Hic…. Unnie…. I'm sorry…. I'm so sorry……. Because of me……."

Su-yeong held Su-a and soothed her.

"You didn't do anything wrong. And those people aren't wrong either. The situation just made them that way. So let's not resent them too much."

"I'm so scared……. How can you be like this, unnie……? Aren't you scared…?"

She was. She was terrified.

BANG!!

Turning into one of those things was, for all practical purposes, the same as dying.

"Yeah. It's okay."

Even so, she couldn't let it show.

"I'm your unnie."

To keep her terrified little sister calm. Out of sight, she clenched her fist so hard the trembling barely stopped.

"Even if I turn into one of them, I'll protect you. I promise, Su-a."

Hands of the already-turned were thrusting through the rear door. Su-yeong quickly unbuckled a belt and bound Su-a's arm tightly to her own, locking them together.

"This ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠way, we won't get separated."

So.

Don't worry.

CRUNCH! BANG!!!

Su-yeong wrapped her arms around Su-a, shielding her completely. She buried her sister's face against her chest, covering her eyes and ears.

Su-yeong watched the zombies charging toward them.

"My little sister."

.

.

.

.

"O-okay!!!!"