Chapter 10
Chapter 10
Is She Expecting Something Right Now?
My heart was pounding.
Cha Seoyoon herself wanted to meet and personally thank me.
‘Looks like she really loved the polar bear video.’
I mean, people were mistaking it for a trailer for her next movie, so the quality really was insanely high.
I didn’t technically make it myself,
but I still deserved enormous credit for directing the video app.
So I could proudly claim ownership.
‘I want to meet her too….’
Cha Seoyoon.
The actress who seemed like the very concept of beauty transformed into human form, radiating light even from far away.
Just watching her had already made my whole body tremble.
So what would it feel like to sit across from her in person,
make eye contact,
and actually have a conversation?
Even imagining it made my chest pound.
My heart felt ready to explode.
But it still wasn’t time for me to publicly appear as the owner of the 30THC channel.
There was no way to convincingly explain those unbelievable future CG effects to people.
And anyone digging slightly into my background would immediately realize I was a complete outsider to the video industry.
I couldn’t afford attracting unnecessary suspicion.
Until I built up a proper alibi—
no, proper groundwork—
30THC needed to remain online only.
[It is an incredible honor, but unfortunately our team is currently not located in Korea…]
Even while writing the rejection email, I regretted it desperately inside.
A date with Cha Seoyoon.
I was certain I’d regret this day forever.
I’d probably kick my blankets every night thinking about it.
The next day, at work.
“This is the camera we prepared for you, Doyoung. What do you think?”
“…It’s incredible.”
“You like it?”
“At the very least, it looks cool.”
Even at a glance, it looked far from ordinary.
Actually, amateurs often notice these things even more clearly.
The glossy body practically screamed at me.
I’m expensive as hell!
Can someone like you even handle my weight?
“…How much does this thing cost?”
“You’re better off not knowing.”
“…That’s terrifying.”
“Exactly. Better not to know.”
“…No, I feel like I absolutely need to know. Even just roughly.”
Team Leader Jo Woonseok grinned mischievously before answering.
“About the price of a domestic sedan. Just remember that.”
I knew this would happen.
“Ah, and that’s only the body price.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“The lenses, microphones, and extra equipment are all separate.”
“Then how much does everything combined cost….”
“That’s why I said you’re better off not knowing.”
“I’m pretty sure I clearly told you yesterday that I know absolutely nothing about cameras.”
“That’s exactly why you need better equipment.”
“…What?”
“When buying a car for your beginner wife who can’t drive yet, do you know why people buy a big sedan instead of some awkward compact or midsize car?”
“So other drivers on the road won’t look down on her?”
“Exactly. I wanted Doyoung to avoid getting underestimated out in the field too, so I prepared a high-end model.”
“Even so, this is ridiculous. This is like telling someone to practice driving in a Ferrari at a driving academy.”
“Oh? Doyoung, you’re more witty than I expected.”
Team Leader Jo Woonseok was actually terrifying.
Handing a beginner a camera body worth tens of millions of won without hesitation.
“What happens if I accidentally damage this thing?”
“I won’t make you pay for it, so don’t worry.
Just restoring WISH’s music video footage already made this camera insignificant.
You saved the company at least 2 billion won in losses.”
Hearing that relaxed me slightly—
but the moment I looked at the camera again, my fingertips started trembling once more.
Carrying around a sedan-priced camera.
“Alright, I’ll just teach you the absolute basics for now.”
A stoic staff member stepped forward.
He only explained extremely basic things:
how to turn it on,
how to record,
how to use auto settings,
how to replay footage,
and how to power it off.
“If you visit this address, you’ll find the manufacturer’s manual, so study it whenever you have time. And this channel gathers advanced usage tutorials, so watch those too. If you ever have questions, feel free to contact or visit me anytime.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Alright then, try holding it.”
“Yes.”
The moment I gripped it entirely on my own without the staff’s support, my hands started shaking violently.
My entire body tensed with fear wondering if I might drop it.
Team Leader Jo Woonseok clapped while laughing at me.
“Doyoung seriously looks like a veteran cameraman now. Equipment really does make the man.”
“If I walk around carrying this thing, people will probably assume I’ve got serious experience.”
“That’s exactly why I intentionally gave you a good model. You’re Hyejin’s dedicated camera manager, so if anyone looks down on you somewhere, I won’t tolerate it.”
“You really won’t hold me responsible if it breaks, right? There’s insurance, right?”
“It’s even insured against theft, so if you need money, you can secretly sell it. Ah, just don’t get caught by the company.”
Apparently Hwang Hyejin was currently undergoing intense acting lessons before the upcoming script reading.
She was at the academy right now.
I followed Team Leader Jo Woonseok there.
“Wait here for a moment.”
Midway there, he suddenly parked by the roadside and got out.
Only the road manager and I remained inside the car.
Come to think of it, this was our first time alone together.
“…”
“…”
Wow, this atmosphere is painfully awkward.
Still, since I’m younger, maybe I should speak first.
“Um, Manager hyung. Did you get home safely yesterday?”
“Ah, yes.”
“Please speak comfortably. You’re older than me.”
“I’m older than you?”
The road manager stared at me like I’d said something absurd.
What?
Anyone could tell he was older.
“I’m twenty-two. You seem way older than me….”
“You’re twenty-two?”
Why did he sound even more shocked now?
“Yes. My birthday hasn’t passed yet, so I’m twenty by international age and twenty-two by Korean age.”
“…I’m twenty-five.”
“Can I call you hyung then?”
“Su-sure. Do whatever feels comfortable.”
He was way more shy than expected.
“…”
“…”
More awkward silence.
When is Team Leader Jo Woonseok coming back?
This is killing me.
“Anyway, hyung, I look forward to working with you.”
“Ah, yes. Same here.”
“You can speak casually.”
“I’ll do that once we get more comfortable. Right now it still feels a little burdensome. Ah! Don’t misunderstand though. It’s absolutely not because I dislike you or anything.”
“I won’t misunderstand.”
Finally, Team Leader Jo Woonseok returned.
His arms were loaded with drinks and snacks for the acting academy.
“Ah, if you were getting those, you should’ve taken me with you or asked me to carry them.”
“No, no. You need to carry the camera, Doyoung. Can’t have you wasting energy on stuff like this.”
Hopefully that wasn’t indirect pressure not to drop and destroy the expensive camera.
“Did you two at least break the ice a bit while I was gone?”
“Yes. I decided to treat him as my hyung.”
“Really? Though just judging by appearances, Doyoung looks like the older one.”
“I do look older than my age.”
That was simply true, so I didn’t think much of it.
But Team Leader Jo Woonseok quickly waved his hands.
“No, no. I didn’t mean it like that. Doyoung’s tall and sturdy, very manly-looking. And since you only recently left the military, your skin’s nicely tanned too.”
“My skin was always naturally dark though.”
“Manly and dependable. That’s good. Cameramen are supposed to look like that.”
At that moment, road-manager hyung casually muttered,
“Not a cameraman. A camera manager.”
“…?”
I didn’t understand immediately.
But Team Leader Jo Woonseok suddenly burst out laughing while clutching his stomach.
What?
What happened?
Did everyone understand something except me?
Even road-manager hyung’s lips twitched.
Wait—
Ah, no way?
“Hyung… was that a joke about me being a ‘camera manager’ instead of a ‘cameraman’?”
The road manager finally exploded into laughter,
while Team Leader Jo Woonseok practically flipped over laughing.
Ha.
Normally I laugh easily too, so other people’s laughter infects me quickly.
But this one I absolutely refused to laugh at.
Still, one good thing came from it.
The awkwardness between road-manager hyung and me disappeared.
The hierarchy and seniority stuff had gotten weirdly tangled and awkward,
but one terrible dad joke completely fixed it.
Still, that joke really was awful.
I almost committed insubordination.
“More desperate! Raise the tone more! No, not like that! I’m not telling you to exaggerate artificially! This is a drama, not theater!”
“Use more strength from your diaphragm! Your pronunciation’s getting sloppy!”
“You’re focusing so much on pronunciation that your facial expressions are dying! Are you entering some announcer competition right now? You’re an actress! Act!”
“No matter what happens, never lose the emotions! Hide the real Hwang Hyejin and reveal the character!”
Through the viewfinder, I watched Hwang Hyejin drenched in sweat while practicing intensely.
I’d thought she was simply a pure, innocent girl,
but now I could feel explosive passionate energy bursting out of her.
Something inside me started tingling strangely.
What if she changed outfits?
Styled her hair to fit the role?
Stepped into an actual set?
The moment I imagined it, my heart pounded wildly.
Just filming an actress practicing this hard already felt exciting.
So how thrilling would it feel to watch her fully transformed into a character?
【Would you like to convert the script scene into video using Hwang Hyejin’s current acting?】
Huh?
Wouldn’t that normally require the model’s permission?
【Model Hwang Hyejin has already granted permission.】
【Using Hwang Hyejin’s likeness for video production does not violate production ethics.】
What?
She already agreed?
But that happened yesterday in the van.
Shouldn’t that have ended already?
【Hwang Hyejin is currently conscious of Cha Doyoung’s filming.】
Could it be—
is she secretly curious right now?
About how I’m imagining her acting inside my head?