Chapter 72
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Script Practice with Actress Hwang Soo-ah?
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In the end, my first time having sex with Mom while using a condom lasted over an hour.
It must have been because wearing a condom felt awkward—the sensation just wasn't there.
Since I couldn't finish quickly, the session naturally dragged on longer.
I tried to take it off and go bare, but Mom wouldn't allow it.
She even said she'd stop right then and there if I removed it.
Maybe she was trying to build up my endurance so I wouldn't pull it off in a situation like this later on.
If that was the case, then Mom's plan had been a resounding success.
If I had a status window, my patience stat would have shot way up.
That said, even Mom might prefer going bare.
Or maybe not? With a condom, it lasts longer, so perhaps that's better for her?
I should've asked how it felt different from going raw versus with a condom.
I'll ask next time.
"Sorry about this, Sun-hu. The food isn't to your taste, is it?"
While I was lost in thought for a moment, Soo-ah suddenly apologized.
I snapped back to reality at her words.
"Huh? Oh, no. It's really delicious."
Oh no. What was I thinking about in the middle of eating?
I hurriedly shoveled the food into my mouth again.
Maybe because I'd gone hungry so often as a kid, I could eat pretty much anything without complaint.
Compared to my super-picky big sister who was incredibly fussy about food, Mi-so who only ate like a speck of an ant's tear, and Mom who dieted 365 days a year, I was basically at food fighter level.
...But why exactly was I eating dinner at Soo-ah's place?
I'd definitely come over to practice lines.
After receiving Mom's sex ed lesson on condom usage, I'd showered in ten minutes flat and rushed straight to Soo-ah's house.
Unlike an unemployed bum like me, Actress Hwang Soo-ah's time was precious down to the second. I couldn't dare keep her waiting.
...Though I ended up being about five minutes late anyway.
Tardiness on the first day— I'd deserve getting kicked to the curb, but Soo-ah just smiled and forgave me.
She even loved the mini cactus I'd brought as a gift.
"Doesn't this totally look like you and me?"
The blooming cactus didn't look that much like Soo-ah, and the one next to it sure wasn't me.
I was more like the wilted cactus back at my place.
But I wasn't tone-deaf enough to say that out loud.
I just meekly agreed with her.
Watching Soo-ah beam happily at the pair of cacti made me happy too.
She was so thrilled, I almost felt grateful to the cactus I'd given her.
Good thing she liked it.
But the actual script practice we were supposed to do hadn't even started.
Nearly two hours had already passed out of the promised six.
All we'd done in that time was chat, look up cactus care tips on her smartphone, and have dinner.
I was thrilled just staring at Actress Hwang Soo-ah's face, but was she okay with this?
She'd carved out this rare free time, after all.
"Um, Soo-ah? What about practicing the script?"
I couldn't hold back and finally asked.
"Huh? We're doing it right now, aren't we?"
"Right now?"
Apparently, I'd been practicing lines without realizing it.
Did I have short-term memory loss or something?
"Im Shin-hye even said it herself—that I'm no good because I don't know how to love. That's what I'm practicing right now."
Actress Hwang Soo-ah said it a bit shyly.
"Ah~."
I let out a dumb noise in response.
Taking something like that seriously...
Mom went too far.
Soo-ah was treating advice from a senior actress she respected as gospel truth.
Love isn't something you learn through practice.
At least not the love I give or receive.
Soo-ah would be better off seriously dating a proper guy if that's what she wanted.
Too bad Mom had to introduce me of all people.
Hmm.
...Hmm?
"Ah!"
Suddenly, it hit me.
"Sun-hu? What's wrong?"
The part of this script that had always bugged me.
Why didn't Shin Ah-young (played by Hwang Soo-ah) just dump the male lead?
Why wait around for a guy who'd abandoned his wife and kids for an affair?
In real life, she'd have sued for a massive settlement and fled overseas by now.
Shin Ah-young clung to a man who had nothing going for him except his looks and family background. I just couldn't wrap my head around it.
Maybe Actress Hwang Soo-ah felt the same way.
That disconnect might have been why she couldn't immerse herself in the role.
Right now, she was searching for 'plausibility.'
Plausibility for why Shin Ah-young was so hung up on her husband.
Even outside the script's written lines, the characters' lives continued.
Shin Ah-young and Hwang Jin-woo were no exception.
Though things were rocky now, they must have had a sweet dating phase before marriage.
A romance so intoxicating that even after his cheating, she'd still cling to him.
By experiencing that dating era herself, she could feel firsthand why Shin Ah-young wouldn't let go.
That might make it easier to inhabit the character.
Maybe that's what Actress Hwang Soo-ah had in mind.
Recreating a character's off-script life to immerse herself fully.
Did Mom give that advice knowing it'd lead here?
Scary.
Do real actors go that far...!
If so, then I'd have to cooperate seriously too.
"—right?"
"...It's a bit different, but not completely wrong."
Huh?
I'd been totally convinced that was the answer, but Soo-ah's response was ambiguous.
"Still, your take is cool, Sun-hu. Maybe that's the ultimate ideal for an actor."
Soo-ah nodded seriously and continued.
"So, shall we try that? Give it your all to 'seduce' me, Sun-hu. Make me so hooked that even after marriage and kids, when you cheat, I'll still cling to you."
"...I, uh, I've never actually seduced a girl before."
I desperately wanted to help Soo-ah, but I didn't think I could pull that off.
My only girlfriend was a brief high school fling that ended in a quick dump.
It's different from Mom, big sis, or little sis.
Just a little while ago, I could barely talk to women without fumbling. No way I could seriously seduce Soo-ah.
"I know. That's part of the seduction line, right? You're really good at acting, Sun-hu."
"...I'm serious."
"If I didn't know you better, I'd have fallen for it. Ever thought about becoming a real actor?"
She'd said something similar at that drinking party before, but Soo-ah seemed to have some weird misunderstanding about me.
What the hell did Mom tell her?
She was treating me like some pickup artist pro.
I appreciated the vote of confidence, but... it felt kinda off. Was this even a compliment?
"Then let's go with the 'innocent guy' setup for you, Sun-hu. Since I'm older, I'll take the lead."
"...Okay."
That kind of setup, huh...
It wasn't a setup for me.
"Sun-hu, want to watch a movie then?"
The movie Soo-ah picked was an ancient classic.
Roman Holiday, starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck.
Sitting side by side on the sofa with Soo-ah, watching an old film on her TV that felt like a theater screen.
The sofa and TV hadn't been there last time I visited.
There were also new things like a table, decorations, and dishes.
The place had felt barren before, but now it was properly furnished.
Actress Hwang Soo-ah surely wasn't short on cash, but she'd been swamped with drama filming.
I felt bad for making her fuss over stuff like this because of me.
She'd even cooked dinner herself, it seemed.
"Audrey Hepburn is still so pretty even now. That face from 70 years ago? Unreal."
"People 70 years from now will say the same about you, Soo-ah."
"...You know that pickup line is super cringy, right?"
Ah.
Did that come off as a line?
I meant it sincerely.
"But it's unfair. Coming from you, it doesn't feel gross at all."
Soo-ah kept her eyes on the screen and quietly took my hand.
It was small and delicate, like it might break.
I almost said, 'It feels like I'm holding Audrey Hepburn's hand,' but that'd probably sound like another line, so I held back.
Instead, I gently squeezed her hand back, and she leaned her head on my shoulder.
Then she started whispering.
"Truth is, I watched this movie with Mom and Dad when I was little."
When she was little? Kids don't usually go for old films like this.
Some kind of actor prodigy training?
If I had a daughter like Actress Hwang Soo-ah, I'd probably want to raise her as an actress too.
"I hated it back then. Thought it was boring. Mom scolded me, so I watched it grudgingly. Even cried while writing a review."
Painful memory, yet she spoke like it was a fond reminiscence.
Hard to imagine a kid enjoying it.
Forcing her to watch? These days, they'd call it child abuse.
But she grew up to be an amazing actress, so it worked out?
"I regret it so much. I should've tried to enjoy it. Now I can't watch it with them even if I want to."
I felt wetness on my shoulder.
Soo-ah was crying.
Ah~.
A real player would've dropped some smooth line to comfort her right then.
Hugged her or whatever.
Lacking eloquence, I just pretended to watch the movie while lending her my shoulder.
What would Hwang Jin-woo from the script do?
Comfort Shin Ah-young with some cool dialogue, probably.
That's why she clings to him so hard.
"Hic... sob..."
Soo-ah's quiet sobs filtered through the movie audio.
I pretended not to hear.
Soo-ah had fallen asleep before I knew it.
She must've been exhausted. Filming schedules probably left her short on sleep.
Same went for Mom, so I resolved to go easier from now on.
Even after Soo-ah dozed off, I watched the movie to the end.
It left a bittersweet aftertaste.
Why did she want to show me this movie?
Like Audrey and Gregory, we're a pair that can never be— was that her way of telling me not to get ideas?
Hmm.
No clue.
Maybe she just felt like watching it.
"Soo-ah, I'm heading out now."
We still had some time left from our agreement.
But she didn't look like she'd wake up anytime soon.
Couldn't linger in a place with a woman sleeping alone.
I decided to leave first.
I carefully lifted Soo-ah off my thigh, laid her on the sofa, and covered her with a blanket.
In the end, we didn't practice a single line.
I hope this time meant something to her today.
Would be nice if it did.
Before leaving, I gently wiped the tear stains from the corner of her sleeping eyes.