Chapter 261
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 261
Chapter Title: The Final Performance
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The seven teams performing today were in their respective practice rooms for one last rehearsal.
The first team to take the stage was Jihyo's, and they were moving busily as their performance time drew near. The next team was Juhui's. Team 2 was practicing just as passionately as Team 1 for their final run-through.
And after four more teams, it would be the Mirror Team's turn.
“We have some time, so let’s check everything step by step.”
At Seojun’s words, the kids nodded.
As the kids were hard at work preparing for the stage, the third-year acting teacher came to see them. She gathered the team leaders in the hallway, and as she spoke, the six of them turned in unison to look at one person. At the end of their gazes was Lee Seojun, who was with his own team’s student directors.
Feeling his friends' eyes on him, Seojun scratched his cheek. He, too, had thought the graduation performance videos uploaded to N-tube were a bit lackluster, but he never dreamed it would lead to this.
The teacher smiled and began to speak.
“We’ve always staged the graduation performance the same way, but given the circumstances, many felt it would be good to change things up starting this year. So, we’re thinking of inviting professional directors to film from next year on. If you’re all okay with it, would you like to entrust this year’s filming to the three directors?”
The team leaders returned to their practice rooms and relayed the message to their teams, and the decision to entrust the filming was unanimous. The teacher, smiling as if she’d expected it, nodded and said.
“Alright, you all have your scripts, right? Mark the parts you want to emphasize—the ones you want filmed the best—and give a copy to me. I’ll make copies and pass them on to the directors.”
“Yes!”
The kids, who had been nervous about the performance just moments before, now gathered around their team scripts with excited faces.
* * *
At 1 PM, the school gates were closed to prevent any more outsiders from entering. Reporters, circling like predators hunting for prey, lingered outside the gates but could not get in.
Seo Eunhye and Lee Minjun, who had arrived a little early to look around Yeoul Arts Middle School, sat in the seats indicated on the tickets Seojun had given them.
They’d heard the seating was random, but luck was on their side; they had a central view of the stage.
“It’s been a really long time since we’ve seen Seojun in a play.”
“You’re right. The last time was when he was a first-year in spring, so it’s been eight years.”
“We only heard Seojun’s voice in the spring play. This is the first time he’s actually appearing in one, so I have to take a picture of him in costume later. It was a shame he was in regular clothes back then.”
Seo Eunhye beamed, holding her camera. Lee Minjun smiled and nodded, then noticed some people standing on the stairs of the auditorium.
“Isn’t that… Director Choi Daeman? Why is he over there?”
“Huh? Director Woo Junghan and PD Choi Minseong are there too?”
They had heard that the famous directors who gave special lectures would be attending the graduation performance, but neither the couple nor the other parents from the acting department could understand why they were standing there holding cameras.
* * *
After the parents, special guest lecturers, and the higher-ups from the ATR Foundation had all taken their seats, the students began to file into Yeoul Hall.
The first-year acting teacher led the first and second-year students to their seats. Their spot was, as Yang Juhui had jokingly said, right in front of the stage where there were usually no chairs, but today, folding chairs had been set up.
Leaving the seats near the entrance empty for the students who would be coming in after their performances, the first and second-year acting students sat down.
The teacher looked at them and said.
“This is the best spot. You can hear the actors’ breathing and see every movement and tremor from here. First-year acting students.”
“Yes!”
“Second-year acting students.”
“Yes!”
“Watch your seniors’ acting closely and learn from them.”
A senior who was making a name for himself around the world, and the other third-year seniors who had taken classes with him for three years.
The eyes of the acting students sparkled like stars.
“Yes!!”
* * *
While everyone was finding their seats, the three actors spotted Lee Dajin, who had just entered Yeoul Hall. After greeting the writer, So Eunjin, whom she was meeting for the first time, Lee Dajin’s eyes widened in surprise as she saw the three directors on the auditorium stairs, discussing the script for Team 1.
“Wow. How did those three end up together?”
“It looks like the video will turn out pretty well. It’s a relief we can preserve Seojun’s play with some great footage.”
“And with six cameras, no less.”
Kim Jongho and Lee Jiseok grinned in satisfaction. Seeing the two actors so in sync, Park Dohun, Lee Dajin, and writer So Eunjin couldn’t help but laugh.
* * *
At 1:30 PM, an announcement signaled the start of the graduation performance. It also mentioned there would be a short break after each play for the next team to prepare.
“Oh, there are breaks.”
“Well, it would be tough to watch seven plays in a row.”
Seo Eunhye and Lee Minjun nodded in agreement.
[First up is the third-year acting student Han Jihyo, Kim Suyeon…]
As the announcement for Team 1 played, Yeoul Hall darkened.
Not only the names of the actors but also the music and art students who had helped were mentioned without exception.
[Please give them a round of applause.]
A loud applause erupted, and the curtain slowly rose.
* * *
“Let’s go get ready now.”
The teacher informed the Mirror Team that Team 6 had taken the stage. Seojun and the others, who were in Practice Room 5 for their final rehearsal, left the room and headed to the waiting room next to Yeoul Hall.
While the set team double-checked the props and the music team leader confirmed the sound cues, the actors changed their clothes. Since they were all in their school uniforms, they needed to change.
“The clothes Minhyung picked out really suit the play.”
“I think so too.”
Seojun agreed with Juhui, who had just finished changing. Although Seojun had given a rough idea of the colors and styles, the outfits Park Minhyung had found were a perfect match for the play and the characters.
“Thank you!”
Moved by his seniors’ praise, Park Minhyung’s cheeks flushed red. Everyone burst out laughing at the adorable first-year.
While the Mirror Team was doing their final checks and easing their tension, the performance of Team 6 ended, and applause filled the hall.
The curtain fell, leaving only the final act. The lights in the theater came on for a short break, during which the set for Team 6 was cleared and the set for Team 7 was assembled.
“This way!”
“Minhyung! Where does this go?”
“Over here, senior!”
“Here?”
“Yes!”
The set team leader and the first-year student were directing the setup, each commanding one half of the stage.
They meticulously checked everything, not missing a single decoration on the wall. After cross-referencing the checklist with photos taken during the rehearsal, Park Minhyung shouted.
“Senior! It’s done!”
“Great. This side is done too.”
The set team, having perfectly completed their task, smiled as they descended from the stage. The Mirror Team’s music and acting members were all gathered there.
“Ugh. Do we really have to do this?”
The set team leader shivered.
“Why? I think it’s great.”
A third-year from the music team laughed, clearly amused.
“Me too!”
“When else would we get to do something like this!”
The first and second-years’ eyes gleamed.
At their reaction, the proposer, Seojun, smiled and held out his hand.
It was an indispensable ritual for any play.
On top of Seojun’s hand, Yang Juhui placed hers, followed by Kang Jaehan, Park Siyoung, and Jeon Sungmin. Then, the music and set team members also stretched out their hands.
“You all worked so hard this entire semester.”
At Seojun’s words, the others spoke up.
“Put on an amazing show.”
“Let’s blow them all away!”
“It’ll be amazing even if you just do it like the rehearsal!”
Meeting the sparkling gazes of their friends and juniors, the acting team and Seojun grinned.
“Leave it to us.”
At Seojun’s dependable words, the Mirror Team members giggled.
“One, two…!”
“Mirror Team, fighting!”
* * *
The curtain concealing the stage had yet to rise.
But even though it was still intermission, a hush of anticipation for Lee Seojun’s play fell over Yeoul Hall.
From Team 1 to Team 6, even the students who had just been on stage found empty seats and turned their gazes to the stage. The members of Team 6 hadn't even changed out of their costumes yet. The music and set teams of the Mirror Team also took their seats.
The first and last performance. A stage they might never see again.
Director Choi Daeman, Director Woo Junghan, and PD Choi Minseong captured the curtained stage through their camera lenses. Even this silence, thick with anticipation, was worth filming.
The three directors held their breath, slowed their heartbeats, and tried their best to remain composed. Knowing the captivating power of Seojun’s acting, they couldn’t help but be tense. They wanted to capture the heat on stage and the hearts of the audience without any wavering.
[Next up is a play staged by third-year acting students Lee Seojun, Yang Juhui, Park Siyoung, and Jeon Sungmin, third-year music student Kim Chaeyeon… and first-year art student Park Minhyung. It is an adaptation of the novel ‘Mirror.’ Please give them a round of applause.]
Finally.
A thunderous applause filled Yeoul Hall, and the curtain slowly rose.
The stage had been transformed into a familiar hospital setting.
As if they planned to use the stage split in half, only the right side was illuminated. The audience’s eyes were drawn to the right. It was decorated as a lobby where patients would register and wait.
There were plush sofas for patients to sit on and a counter where a nurse stood. At the lobby counter, Park Siyoung, playing the nurse, was organizing charts.
*Ring, ring.*
The phone rang. The nurse, who was organizing charts, picked up the phone and mimed speaking, but her voice was inaudible.
And a moment later.
*Ting-a-ling.*
A bell chimed, and the nurse at the counter smiled as she greeted someone entering from the edge of the stage.
“Welcome, Doctor.”
Yang Juhui, wearing a light-blue striped shirt and a jacket, smiled and greeted her back.
“Hello. Have you had lunch?”
“I just had a quick bite. Oh, Doctor. There’s a patient waiting for you in the consultation room.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Hearing the nurse, the doctor nodded and headed toward the center of the stage. It was the boundary with the left side of the stage, which was completely dark.
As Yang Juhui mimed opening a door, the sound of a creaking door was heard, and the left side of the stage was illuminated.
With the left side finally visible, the audience’s gaze shifted.
The left side of the stage was a consultation room with a doctor’s desk and a monitor. Unlike the typically small consultation rooms with only a simple chair, this one had a sofa and a table. The sofa was arranged in an L-shape so the audience could see clearly.
On the part of the sofa facing the audience sat a man in a soft white sweater, his head slightly bowed.
As the doctor stepped into the room, the lights on the right side of the stage, the hospital lobby, went out. The audience’s focus was now entirely on the consultation room.
Sensing a presence, the man lifted his head. He was a young man with a gentle face.
“Sorry for the wait. It’s my lunch break.”
“Oh, no, it’s alright.”
“Just a moment.”
The doctor walked naturally into the consultation room, hung her jacket on a coat rack, and put on a pristine white doctor’s coat. She draped a stethoscope from her desk around her neck and sat on the main part of the sofa.
The audience quietly watched the profiles of Yang Juhui and Lee Seojun, who were sitting on the sofa.
‘Is it just because it’s the beginning? It seems pretty ordinary.’
The doctor picked up a chart from the table in front of the sofa and took a pen from her coat pocket.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Jung Chaewon. And your name is?”
“Hello. I’m Kim Jinwoo.”
“May I call you Jinwoo?”
“Yes, Doctor.”
Kim Jinwoo smiled as gently as his voice sounded. His slightly curly hair and faint smile seemed to reveal his personality. The relaxed atmosphere made Jung Chaewon smile as well.
Jung Chaewon stood up, went to a corner of the room, and brought back two teacups.
“This is a tea I received as a gift recently. It has a wonderful aroma and tastes great. Would you like to try some?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Kim Jinwoo took the teacup from Jung Chaewon, fiddled with the warm cup, and then placed it on the table.
“The fact that you’ve come to our clinic… does that mean you have something worrying you?”
“...Yes.”
A shadow fell over Kim Jinwoo’s gentle smile. The sight of him forcing a smile was pitiable. Jung Chaewon took a sip of her tea and asked kindly.
“If it’s not too difficult, could you tell me about it?”
Kim Jinwoo nodded. The very reason he came here was to seek professional help. Hunching forward slightly and fiddling with his hands, Kim Jinwoo hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Lately… there are people trying to kill me.”
“...I see.”
After a brief pause, Jung Chaewon nodded. Sensing the silence, Kim Jinwoo continued with a bitter expression. He looked just like a puppy caught in the rain.
“It’s not a lie, Doctor.”
Kim Jinwoo’s expression wasn’t one of blaming or resenting Jung Chaewon for not believing him. It was simply a look of sadness at receiving the same reaction even in this last-resort place.
Jung Chaewon’s gaze shifted slightly.
It wasn't his stubborn insistence, but rather his reaction that piqued her interest.
“What kind of people are trying to kill you, Jinwoo?”
“I don’t really know two of them.”
“Two of them? So there’s someone else?”
“Yes. That person… I know who… and where they are.”
Jung Chaewon tilted her head.
“Then shouldn’t you report it to the police? I’m a psychiatrist; I can’t help you with that.”
With a heavy sigh, Kim Jinwoo’s lips trembled as he managed to utter the words.
“It’s me.”
“Pardon?”
“...Another me… is trying to kill me.”