The First Script Reading
For the past five years, I had sat through a monthly evaluation right in front of the boss. But the look on his face right now was one I had never seen in all that time.
"Jinwoo..."
"Yes, sir."
"What did I tell you... I said you were meant to be an actor..."
"Thank you for thinking so highly of me..."
"I got chills watching you act just now..."
Was it really that good? I had my doubts.
"Talent like that... it'd be a waste to debut you as a villain..."
"Pardon?"
"Jinwoo, skip that role and wait. I'll bring you something much better..."
"N-no, it's fine. I actually like this character."
"But this is your debut. Image matters..."
"It's all right. I appreciate you looking out for me."
Honestly, taking on a serial killer named Choi Dooshik was a heavy lift. That much I couldn't deny. But to me, this role was the last sliver of light I had left. If I could put on a good showing here, another opportunity would come — and when it did, I could take on a better part.
It wasn't that I lacked ambition. I just wanted to rack up experience as an actor. That was all.
After wrapping up the meeting with the boss, I stepped out of the building. For the first time since joining the company, I actually had a schedule: my first script reading as an official cast member of the drama Traces of Evil.
A strange, giddy excitement set my heart pounding. Truth be told, I had never done anything like this. I didn't even really know what a script reading was. Did everyone just read their lines out loud and call it a day?
Not that I had many lines to begin with. I barely had a handful — and even those few were basically copy-pasted variations of the same thing.
"Wanna live?"
"Go on. Beg me to spare you."
"It'll hurt a little the first time. But you'll get used to it soon enough."
"Don't worry. I won't kill you right away."
Lines like those. I didn't even have to try memorizing them. They just floated up in my head on their own.
"It's a script reading... so the other actors will all be there, right?"
With zero experience and even less knowledge, my head was nothing but a tangle of questions. That was when a familiar voice piped up behind me.
"Of course. It's where everyone gets together and finds their rhythm..."
"Huh...?"
I stopped walking and glanced back over my shoulder. Just as I'd thought. It was her. How long had she been following me without making a sound?
"Hayoung..."
"Oppa, can I come with you?"
"Why...?"
"I'm actually... a huge fan of Hwang Mina unnie... I've binge-watched every drama she's ever been in, like, ten times."
"......"
"I just... want her autograph..."
Oh, right. That jogged my memory — Mom's request. Her earnest plea that I get Hwang Mina's autograph for her.
"I... I won't get in the way. I'll be super quiet... I promise..."
"...Aren't you busy?"
"Nope. I'm crazy free right now... We're family now, remember?"
"......"
Just a little while ago, Hayoung and I had sat side by side in the boss's office and signed new contracts. Mine was the company's first-ever actor contract. Hers was a girl-group trainee contract. So yes, we were technically family now... but we were walking completely different paths.
I was done with being some nobody idol. I had made up my mind to walk the path of a real actor.
I looked at Hayoung and muttered, a teasing lilt in my voice.
"What, you want me to sit at the same table as an idol trainee now...?"
That line had been one of my berserk buttons for five years. And sure enough, it landed on Hayoung just as hard.
"Hey! Why would you say something so hurtful..."
Between that cute face and how instantly she reacted, I suddenly wanted to keep teasing her.
"Pfft. I'm kidding. It was a joke."
"Ugh... for a second I thought that was your actual personality. I almost gave up on you..."
"Hey, Hayoung."
"Yeah?"
"Are you really going to do the girl-group thing?"
"Of course I am. That's why I came all the way to Seoul..."
That wasn't what I'd meant.
"I think you'd do better debuting as a solo artist than in a group."
"For real...? In what way?"
She grinned and leaned that cute face of hers in close.
"So which of my charms made your heart race, oppa?"
"Your voice."
"...Not my looks?"
"Hmm..."
"Hmm!?"
"You're not bad for a girl group, but..."
I've never been good at saying embarrassing things. That's just how I am.
"But...? So you're saying I'm not good, either..."
If I was being completely honest, her bright personality and cute looks could probably pull a decent following. But she wasn't goddess-tier — not the kind of face that goes down in idol history. She still had baby fat in her cheeks, maybe because she was still so young. If she grew a little taller and lost some of that softness, maybe it would be a different story...
"Are you a good dancer?"
"Not bad. You saw my Zerotwo earlier. Want a replay?"
"No, I'm good."
"Aww, dang..."
"All right, let me rephrase. Do you want to be in a girl group so you can get famous? Or do you want to become a real singer?"
"Both. Be in a girl group, get crazy popular, get famous, and make a mountain of cash..."
"...You're greedy."
"And you're not?"
"Yeah, I am."
"Pfft, see? People are all the same."
Anyway, it wasn't my life. Not really my place to meddle. I faced forward again and kept walking. Hayoung's voice drifted after me, dripping with pathos.
"Oppa... I really, truly won't be a nuisance. I'll be quiet. Please let me come."
I snorted a laugh and nodded.
"...Do whatever you want."
"Yes!"
On the bus, heading to the drama's reading. Once I officially debuted, the boss had promised to assign me a manager — it was even written into the contract. Still, it made me a little uneasy. I was only debuting as a villain extra. I wasn't about to start raking it in... and once I paid a manager's salary on top of that, I'd definitely be in the red.
"But oppa, your acting is actually insane. Watching you, I hit a wall. Like, ah — so this is the kind of person who becomes a celebrity..."
"Heh. That so?"
I'd felt the exact same way the first time I heard Hayoung sing. A crushing emptiness, mixed with the guilt of having wasted five whole years.
Hayoung put on a deadly serious face and recited Choi Dooshik's handful of lines at the empty air.
"Should I let you live...? Mmm, I don't wanna~ I'm gonna kill you right this second~ Stab! Stab! Die, you bastard!"
It was so ridiculous I couldn't help laughing.
"Hey, what was that supposed to be..."
"Heheh."
Hard to believe we'd only known each other for three hours. The more I looked at her, the more she surprised me.
"Ahh~ I'm starting to get hungry."
The second those words left her mouth, my face went ice-cold.
"......"
"It's about lunchtime, don't you think?"
"...It's only ten."
"Exactly. Perfect for brunch..."
"......"
"Oppa, can we eat for free at the company cafeteria?"
"Yeah..."
"WHAT!? Then why didn't you say so!?"
"About what..."
"We should've eaten before we left. It's free..."
"......"
"Oppa, should we go back? Should I ask the driver to pull over?"
She was leaning so far forward she looked ready to launch herself out of her seat. I shot out a hand and blocked her.
"No. Just hold on a little."
"But..."
Hayoung's face instantly crumpled.
"I'll buy you lunch later."
"Wait, for real? Nice! Yes!"
She threw a full-power uppercut at the air, genuinely thrilled. Were human beings really this emotionally volatile? Today was just one surprise after another.
In front of the conference room where the Traces of Evil script reading was being held, the air beyond the glass doors was so cold and composed it was almost oppressive. A heavy, serious atmosphere without a trace of a smile. I needed to knock and go in, but I couldn't find the right moment. Everyone inside was reading their scripts with such grave expressions.
"Oppa... aren't you going in?"
"Just a second..."
I peeked through the glass, studying the room for a long while — and someone smacked me on the back.
"What are you trying to steal, peeking through the door like a thief?"
I jumped and spun around, and found a face I knew. I bowed my head in greeting before anything else.
"D-Director... h-hello!"
"Oh!? Idol Man..."
The director broke into a huge grin and grabbed my hand.
"Well, well, Idol Man. Good to see you again. What are you doing out here instead of going in?"
He yanked the conference room door wide open. Seizing the moment, I ducked my head and slipped in behind his considerable bulk, using him as cover. Hayoung's urgent voice called after me.
"Oppa, fighting!"
I gave a quick nod, matched the director's stride, and successfully melted into the room as if we were one person. The moment he appeared, everyone inside stood up as one. I sidestepped like a crab, inching sideways, and slipped naturally into the crowd.
I was just letting out a quiet sigh of relief when—
"Hey! Idol Man! What are you doing over there?"
The director's booming voice snapped every pair of eyes in the room onto me.
"......"
"Don't just stand there like a statue. Get over here."
"Huh? O-okay!"
I bolted over to him. He snorted a laugh, planted a hand on my shoulder, and pulled me against his broad chest. Then he turned to the room and introduced me.
"Curious who this handsome kid is? Most of you have never seen him before. This guy right here... is the universe's greatest superstar, the Ultimate Idol Man."
The room went dead silent. A beat later, a few people forced out a laugh. I had no idea what face to make, so I just stared blankly into space and thought about something else.
"Jeez, that joke landed like a brick... He's a former idol from Wooju Entertainment. You people don't get it? Do you have zero instincts?"
Only then did they start clapping, one by one, wearing awkward smiles.
"Haha..."
"Haha, that's our director..."
"Wow, there was a deeper meaning... Director, your jokes are still kicking?"
"Wow... I nearly died laughing..."
"Puhaha! Wait... he's from Wooju Ent, so he's a universe superstar idol!? I never would have guessed!"
"Wow... Director, you should host a comedy show when this drama wraps."
I did my best to match their rapidly shifting expressions. Laughing too hard would have been weird, so I just lifted the corners of my mouth a tiny bit.
"Stop forcing those laughs, you're making the kid look pathetic. Anyway — this friend here is the rookie actor who'll be playing Choi Dooshik in our drama."
"What?"
The forced laughter died, and the room went cold again. Everyone tilted their heads and scanned me from head to toe.
"But he looks... really young..."
"What does age have to do with acting?"
"Director, he's way too good-looking to play a vicious killer like Choi Dooshik..."
"Director. Choi Dooshik is the most impactful opening scene in episode one..."
Apparently I didn't match the image they had of Choi Dooshik. They all started pushing back. But a leisurely smile played at the director's lips.
"That's the twist. I thought the exact same thing you did, at first."
We sat around the big table in the conference room and the script reading began. The atmosphere was so solemn that even breathing too loudly felt like a crime. But the scarier part was this: the director, stuck to my side like a magnet, reading my script right along with me.
It was so intense I was starting to sweat. He had his own script, obviously. So why was he leaning all the way over toward me, craning to look at mine?
"......"
That stare was so oppressive I couldn't even turn the page. The director whispered, so quietly I almost missed it.
"Idol Man..."
"Yes?"
"Got all your lines memorized?"
"Ah, yes. There aren't that many..."
"That's what I'm disappointed about too. I think we need to give Choi Dooshik more lines... I'll talk to Writer Lee when she gets here."
"Thank you..."
"Don't be nervous. Be bold. This isn't even a shoot — why are you so tense?"
"Yes, sir..."
The director gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze.
"Idol Man. Want to hear a secret that'll blow your mind?"
"Huh?"
He leaned in and whispered right into my ear.
"....!?"
I stared at him, stunned.
"I'm serious, kid."