Chapter 60
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Clinic Confrontation
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Lee Jun-hyeong, playing the role of Kim Jin, haughtily delivered his line.
"You're Lee Jung-woo, right?"
"And what if I am?"
Do-jun—or rather, Lee Jung-woo—immediately sized up the uninvited guest who had barged into the hospital.
The man was dressed casually, but every item he wore screamed high price tags. Why would someone like him come looking for me on a weekday afternoon at two o'clock?
Before Jung-woo's thoughts could continue, Kim Jin snapped sharply.
"Park Ji-eun's been coming here a lot lately."
"Park Ji-eun?"
"The woman with the gray tabby kitten. You don't know her?"
Lee Jung-woo furrowed his brow around his eyes, digging through his memories. Someone who came 'often' with a 'kitten.'
One face came to mind without much effort.
"Ah, her. I know who she is."
"Ha, you know her? And that's all?"
Thinking he was feigning ignorance to act all high and mighty, Kim Jin let out an exasperated sigh.
But Lee Jung-woo paid no mind to the rudeness and responded politely.
"If you're here for her, it's not DHA's checkup day today."
"...D, DHA what?"
"D. H. A. The name of the cat Park Ji-eun brings. You didn't know?"
Then they weren't that close after all? A stalker?
For a split second, Lee Jung-woo seriously debated calling the police.
Anyone who actually knew Park Ji-eun wouldn't show up at an animal hospital to track her down. They'd just call.
He had a clean-cut, handsome face, but he seemed dangerous.
'Just in case, I should give her a heads-up if she comes in.'
With that in mind, Lee Jung-woo politely issued another eviction notice.
"We're in the middle of clinic hours right now. If you're not here for treatment, please leave."
"No! I'm not here for Ji-eun!"
Noticing the receptionist nurse's horrified expression and realizing the weird misunderstanding from Lee Jung-woo's attitude, Kim Jin frantically waved his hands.
"I'm here to see you!"
"Me?"
Lee Jung-woo gave him an utterly baffled look as he pushed his glasses back up his nose with his index finger.
"Well, it's no big deal. You're into Park Ji-eun, right?"
"No."
"Then it's already too la... Huh?"
Kim Jin gaped, at a complete loss for words. Meanwhile, Lee Jung-woo continued as if he couldn't comprehend it at all.
"I have no idea why you'd misunderstand like that, but I have zero interest and have never even thought about it that way, so you can head out now. I've got a scheduled appointment coming up."
"Ah, no... You meet her every three days?"
"That's just because someone who's never owned a cat before has a ton to learn if they're going to start raising one."
Kim Jin realized every single line he'd prepared to get the upper hand was now completely useless.
Lee Jung-woo let out a quiet sigh and offered one final farewell.
"I won't walk you out. Take care."
"W-wait a second!"
Grab!
At that moment, Kim Jin seized his arm.
"...!"
The staff, fully immersed in the scene, desperately stifled their screams.
He'd yanked so hard that Do-jun's body, twisting backward, staggered and toppled over.
'Was this scene always this intense?'
'The script just says 'grab the arm,' right?'
No matter how immersed they were, this was enough to shatter anyone's focus. The staff naturally assumed filming would halt.
And Lee Jun-hyeong, the one who'd pulled, thought the same.
'If I say I accidentally pulled too hard from getting too into it, what'll he do?'
He'd gone into filming with this plan from the start. The CEO had said something about movement soon, but there was still no word, so he needed to blow off some steam somehow.
He hadn't expected Seo Ji-hye to arrive quite this quickly, but one NG wouldn't be a big deal—just a quick scolding. He inwardly cheered to himself.
But then.
"Please be careful in the hospital. You'll startle the patients."
Before the cut signal even dropped, Do-jun pushed himself up and kept delivering his lines.
'He's just rolling with it?'
'This is total ad-lib, isn't it...?'
The staff's eyes all turned to Seo Ji-hye at once.
This was bad. She hated any deviations from the script most of all. The PD had said he'd check with her first, but it had blown up before he could.
'We're screwed. It's all over.'
The assistant director clawed at his hair, dreading a reshoot of most of the footage.
But...
'...Huh?'
Seo Ji-hye, who should've called cut a hundred times over, stayed silent. She was just watching the performance with a piercing gaze.
"You look like you have more to say. Come back after clinic hours. That'll be fine."
"How can I believe you if it's just words?"
Lee Jun-hyeong hadn't expected Do-jun to keep going either, so he panicked inwardly but smoothly fired back his line.
Dropping the ball here would be utter humiliation. He still had the wits for that much.
"Then ask Park Ji-eun herself."
"If it were that easy...!"
Ding-a-ling.
Right then, the animal hospital door swung open as Park Ji-eun made her entrance.
"Huh? Why's Kim Jin here?"
❤
"...Cut!"
The tension blanketing the set evaporated the instant the signal dropped, replaced by an explosion of applause.
"Whoa, that was no joke. What reflexes."
"The more I watch, the harder it is to believe this is his first time acting."
Unlike the excited staff, PD Kim Shin-hyo and the assistant director trembled in anxiety as they gauged Seo Ji-hye's mood.
Depending on her reaction, they'd have to reshoot a huge chunk of what they'd filmed so far—no helping it.
"Um... Writer-nim, should we delete the ad-lib and reshoot?"
PD Kim Shin-hyo asked cautiously. Deep down, though, he was betting she wouldn't.
She valued the script highly, sure, but she was a pro among pros. She wouldn't scrap acting that surpassed the script just because her senses were off.
At that moment, Seo Ji-hye's lips parted slowly.
"PD Kim."
"Yes, Writer-nim."
"What were you about to say earlier?"
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Kim Shin-hyo faltered for a second before pressing on.
"Actually, there was a spot earlier where Do-jun tweaked the lines a bit like he just did. I was going to ask your permission for it."
"Tweaked the lines?"
Fearing he'd upset her, he quickly added,
"To be precise, it was subtle changes in tone and nuance. The content stayed the same."
"Is that so? Then send every one of those parts to me first."
"Pardon? Oh, yes. Got it."
"And this take we just shot? It's good. Keep it as is. I like it."
"Understood."
PD Kim Shin-hyo's face lit up. If she'd greenlit this level of ad-lib, the earlier takes would almost certainly pass too.
"And didn't I say I'd wrap the script in a week?"
"Uh? Oh, yes. You did say that."
"Make it two weeks."
"Pardon...?"
"Two weeks. I've got another killer idea brewing now."
Seo Ji-hye watched Do-jun fixing his outfit with the stylist's help and thought to herself.
Maybe—just maybe—this project she hadn't expected much from could end up as one of the best works she'd ever done.
❤
"Idol, huh? You handle curveballs without batting an eye."
"Ah! No, sunbaenim."
"What do you mean no? You saying I'm too old and my eyes are going?"
"Ah, no..."
What am I supposed to say...
Lee Sun-jeong let out a hearty laugh at my flustered state, then nodded and continued.
"Fair enough. It's not just quick thinking, though. That kind of stuff flows naturally when you're fully immersed."
"His emotional delivery is insane when he sings, too."
Park Min-ha said proudly. Lee Sun-jeong let out an impressed "Ho!"
"Really? Then I might have to request a song next time."
"Ah! Anytime. I could sing right now."
"Not now. I'd just look like some old lady bullying a poor junior."
"Ah, no! Absolutely not."
"What do you mean no. You planning to trash-talk me behind my back?"
...Sorry, but could everyone please just leave me alone?
It was obviously a joke, but I had no clue whether to laugh or look awkward.
If there were other rookies around, it'd be easier, but these were all intimidating seniors.
"Tough to respond to, right? Say you need the bathroom and bail."
Apparently my panic was showing too much, because Park Min-ha whispered beside me.
No way, even if...
"What? What're you two whispering about without me?"
"Just saying you did great acting."
"Then why whisper? Min-ha, you've been hiding stuff from me lately, huh?"
"Hehe. No, sunbaenim."
"Always thinks a smile fixes everything."
She scolded her, but a faint smile played on Lee Sun-jeong's face.
"So why go singer instead of actor?"
Suddenly the arrow swung back to me.
...Smiling does fix everything? She just let it slide.
I quickly answered Lee Sun-jeong's question.
"I've always dreamed of being an idol. It's not that I never wanted to act, but I never dreamed I'd get a chance like this."
"No, that's not what I meant. You were at your old company for seven years before switching, right? You could've debuted as an actor there. Why prep for idol all over again?"
She even knew that?
It was touching that an actress called "Teacher" knew my backstory so well, but also a bit burdensome.
'Just how far did those articles spread?'
Crazy GH idiots.
Anyway, I had to answer, so I summed it up short and sweet in one line, without dragging.
"After I got discharged, my manager suggested trying acting, but they terminated my contract that same day."
"GH got lucky. That manager could've gotten a promotion too. Must suck for him."
"Our company's the best."
Lee Sun-jeong nodded at Park Min-ha's words.
"Finder's keepers."
After that, the praise for my acting from earlier kept coming.
Honestly, though, everyone here seemed better at acting than me...
Lee Sun-jeong went without saying, Park Min-ha was acclaimed, and even the sub-lead Han Yeo-wool got rave reviews for her skills. Hell, Lee Jun-hyeong was known as an acting pro.
'Kinda embarrassing.'
Getting praise for "great acting" among a cast like that was awkward, but it also felt absolutely amazing.
'Maybe text Min-jae hyung.'
I thought of Kim Min-jae, who'd sworn up and down that I had potential and shouldn't give up on acting.
After seven years together, he knew me better than I knew myself.
As that crossed my mind, Lee Sun-jeong's voice rang out.
"Keep doing it with confidence from here on. But be careful."
"Pardon?"
Careful? Of what?
I looked at her, puzzled by the cryptic words. Lee Sun-jeong's face was dead serious.
"You seem like the type who dives headfirst into the role. Kids like that get long-lasting aftereffects from projects. Can't have that when you've got singing gigs too."
"Ah! Yes. I'll keep it in mind."
"It's not the kinda thing you can just 'keep in mind'..."
With that, she gave my back a couple encouraging pats with her rough hand.
A lot of people had voiced similar worries, but hers hit different. It felt like genuine advice straight from the heart, making my chest tighten a bit.
"Alright, I'm off to prep for the shoot, so handle your business. Bet you were bored stuck with an old timer, huh?"
"Ah, no."
"No way, sunbaenim."
"Ugh, all talk!"
She left nothing but her booming laugh behind as she turned to get ready.
The rest of us followed suit, heading back to prep for the next shoot.
Even with the grueling filming ahead, somehow my steps felt much lighter than before.