Master Plan — VIP Premiere Screening

"…Um, hello!"

"Pfft. Hahaha. So that's why our daughter ran off — she went to her room to put on makeup?"

"Dad! I had exams today, so I wasn't wearing any, and my face was a total mess! You could've at least warned me!"

Yeon-woo scratched the back of his head, breaking into a cold sweat.

"Well… bringing him here in person is better than just getting an autograph, right?"

"So-hyun, I'll be imposing on you for the day."

"Wait, what…? You're staying over? At our house? Jin Yu-han? Oh my god, this is insane."

Ryu So-hyun disappeared into her room, already dialing someone on her phone.

"Guys, guys, major emergency. Do you know who's at my house right now?"

Yeon-woo shrugged as he watched her door slam shut.

"Sorry about that. High school girls, you know."

"No, it's fine. She's lively. It's cute."

When So-hyun eventually emerged for dinner, she barely registered whether the food was going into her mouth or her nose — her eyes never left Jin Yu-han for a second.

After the meal, Yeon-woo and Jin Yu-han spread their scripts across the table and worked late into the night, trading acting techniques, running lines, and polishing every beat until the quality of the scenes climbed higher and higher.

The scenes shot on the special sets had the entire crew sharpened and ready, and the lead actors — having essentially lived together in an unofficial training camp — locked into their dialogue with seamless precision, delivering one excellent take after another.

"Man, that's good. Keep pulling quality like this and we're golden."

"Haha. Of course, sir."

Bureau Chief Hwang had been watching KBC Channel 1's drama ratings wither as the times changed — until Star Beyond the River started climbing like a rocket. These days, he was practically glowing.

The drama had aired through episode six, and the ratings kept rising until it was neck-and-neck with its rival, Baldur, trading the lead back and forth.

The story had advanced considerably: the three leads were jointly hunting down a series of arson cases ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in Gaegyeong, Lee Ji-baek's feelings for Hong Ui-yeon had deepened, and a faintly thrilling undercurrent had begun to crackle between the constantly bickering Seo Hui and Hong Ui-yeon.

Episode six, which had aired the night before, depicted Seo Hui taking first place in the civil service examination and Lee Ji-baek placing second. Paired with visuals that fit their roles like a glove and performances to match, the internet had gone completely berserk.

And from a production standpoint, when you compared the budgets invested, Star Beyond the River crushed its competitor in net profit by a landslide.

"Actor Ryu Yeon-woo's film opens this week, doesn't it? That'll put wind in our sails for sure."

"Oh, right. That's Park Chan-hong's movie, isn't it? Then four million tickets is the floor, not the ceiling."

As the premier hit-maker of Korean commercial cinema, Park Chan-hong was all but guaranteed to give the drama a meaningful boost.

Meanwhile, with the premiere only a day away, Yeon-woo was in the makeup chair for that evening's VIP screening.

"Yeon-woo, I've been watching the drama lately and it's so good."

"It's so fun!"

Director Jeong Ha-neul worked the brush with rapid, precise strokes as she spoke, and the assistant stylists behind her chimed in enthusiastically.

"Thank you. I'm glad you're enjoying it."

The shop door opened and Yeon-woo's stylist, Lee Ye-eun, swept in hauling an armful of garment carriers.

"Ye-eun unnie."

"Yeon-woo! It's been forever."

With historical dramas locking him into fixed costumes and no other public schedules to dress him for, Ye-eun had recently been reassigned to other celebrities under the agency's management.

"I know, right? It's already been over a month since the film's production presentation."

"Sponsors have been flooding us with clothes, all begging to dress you. Let's try everything on in a bit."

Yeon-woo's back broke into a cold sweat at the mountain of suit carriers stacked beside her.

Once the base look was set, Ye-eun dressed him like a doll, cycling through outfit after outfit, her face growing increasingly conflicted.

"I'm going crazy. This is the first time everything looks good on someone and I can't decide."

"I'm fine with any of them. How about this one?"

Yeon-woo casually picked up one of the garments strewn in front of him. Ye-eun nodded, then immediately shook her head.

"Yeah, that one was good too. No wait — was that other one better? Aargh. I don't know."

"In the film, he's a confident, mischievous problem-solver. What if we lean into that energy?"

Ye-eun's eyes lit up at the suggestion.

"Love it. Match the film's concept. Then it's this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one!"

When he stepped out in the outfit she'd chosen, Director Jeong Ha-neul and the assistants broke into applause.

"Perfect. Absolute perfection. Hold on — then we need to tweak the makeup a little too. Sit back down."

Director Jeong adjusted the look to something sharper and more defined, sculpting a cold, handsome edge to match the clothes.

"Flawless…!"

The shop door opened again and Min-su walked in.

"We should be heading out about now. Are we ready?"

"Yes. Take him. Our boy is perfect."

Director Jeong handed Yeon-woo over like a painter relinquishing a finished masterpiece.

Seong-sik, Jun-su, and Yu-ri entered the screening venue with the easy stride of people who'd done this once before.

Son Jin-uk and a host of other actors and celebrities had already taken their seats.

From their places, the friends glanced toward the front rows reserved for the cast and spotted Jeong Su-yeon.

"Huh? That's Su-yeon over there."

Hearing her name, Su-yeon turned, found them, and waved with a bright smile. A moment later she stood and moved over to sit beside them.

"Su-yeon!"

"Hey, guys! Yu-ri unnie!"

Having grown close after their trip together, Su-yeon greeted them with a warm smile. After so long without a single real friend, the sight of these new faces filled her with genuine joy.

They were still catching up when Yu-ri's eyes went wide.

"Wait — that's Jin Yu-han. Kyaaah—!"

Jun-su ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠jabbed her in the side.

"Ow, what?"

"Fan or not — Yeon-woo's fine. Jin Yu-han is not."

Yu-ri snorted at the naked jealousy in his voice.

A little later, Yeon-woo's family filed in and sat down. Jin Yu-han spotted them, walked over with a bright smile, and greeted them warmly.

"Huh? Yeon-woo's parents and Jin Yu-han know each other?"

"They've probably met through the shoot he's doing with Yeon-woo."

"Wow, Yeon-woo's little sister So-hyun has really grown up. Good genes don't lie. She's gotten pretty."

This time Yu-ri jabbed Jun-su in the ribs.

"What? She's a high schooler. She's still a kid."

"That's rich, coming from the guy who texted me when I was still in high school."

Su-yeon watched their bickering love-spat with a faintly envious little smile, while Woo Seong-sik clamped a hand over his mouth and made exaggerated gagging noises, shaking his head in mock disgust.

Meanwhile, Lee Jin-ah — café manager under the handle YeonuJina — had met up with the members an hour early to chatter about Yeon-woo before an entertainment staffer guided them into the VIP screening hall.

"Oh my god. My hands are shaking."

"None of us have seen him in person before, right?"

"Except for YuriRabbit, who said she was his school senior — I don't think anyone else has."

"I saw him from a distance once at the Korea Arts Awards."

"We have to remember everything we see and hear today and report it all back to the fan café — everything except the movie itself! This is a critical mission."

Chattering nonstop, the members of Woo's filed into their assigned seats near the front. Not long after, a staff member's cue signaled the start of the screening.

The lights dimmed, and the main trailer for Master Plan began to roll across the screen.

The fans had already looped the trailer on YouTube dozens of times; they practically had every line and sound effect memorized.

The trailer ended, the lights came back up, and a side door by the stage opened.

Director Park Chan-hong led the way, followed in order by Maseok Do, Ryu Yeon-woo, Han So-hyun, and Jeong Ha-gyun.

"Oh no. Oh no. That's our actor."

"My heart is about to explode."

The house announcer's voice rolled through the speakers.

"Please welcome them with a big round of applause."

Waaaaah!

The instruction was hardly necessary — cheers and applause were already thundering through the hall.

Following the announcer's cue, Director Park Chan-hong offered his greeting first, then Maseok Do, and then it was Ryu Yeon-woo's turn.

The moment Yeon-woo took the microphone, the room fell quiet.

And then — like a martial arts master's battle roar — a woman's voice blasted through the silence at full volume.

"You're so freaking handsome—!"

Wahahaha.

The hall dissolved into laughter as the audience craned their necks, hunting for the source of the shout.

Even fan café manager Lee Jin-ah jumped — the roar had erupted from the seat right beside her. She turned to look. It was the shy member who'd barely managed a word since they'd first met at the café.

Wherever that courage had come from, the girl had unleashed it at full volume, then buried her face so deep her ears burned scarlet.

…So that's it! She barely spoke from the moment we met so she could gather all her strength and unleash it in one blast.

Jin-ah pulled out her phone and typed something ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠into her notes app, nodding sagely at this bizarre conclusion and filing it away as a lesson learned.

Once the laughter settled, Yeon-woo lifted the mic again, smiling as he began.

"Thank you so much for cheering so loudly."

He caught the girl peeking up, gave her a warm eye-smile, and formed a heart with his fingers. She flushed crimson all over again and dove back into her seat, while the Woo's members beside her flailed and pounded each other's arms in absolute chaos.

As expected — great courage is always rewarded.

Jin-ah nodded once more and reopened her notes app.

Yeon-woo continued.

"This film is a comprehensive gift set of entertainment that our entire cast and crew poured everything into, just for all of you. Please enjoy the screening — and thank you sincerely for giving us your precious time today."

He finished with quiet dignity and bowed deeply. Cheers erupted from the audience.

From his seat, Jin Yu-han watched his friend onstage and gave a small nod.

I need to start carrying myself like that too — like a real lead — whenever I do stage greetings or interviews.

He thought back on all the times his naturally reserved personality had reduced him to clipped one-word answers the moment a mic was in his hand, and quietly resolved to do better.

After Han So-hyun and Jeong Ha-gyun finished their greetings, the cast descended from the stage to thunderous applause.

The theater gradually darkened.

Against a black screen, the film's title rose alone into view.

And at last, Ryu Yeon-woo's first starring film began.