The shooting continued to proceed smoothly after that.
The two child actors performed their roles well, and any shortcomings were skillfully covered by the veteran actors.
Thanks to that, the staff’s evaluations of the child actors improved.
After arriving at the set, Suhyeon exchanged greetings with the staff.
He noted the change in the staff’s disposition toward him.
At the time of the first shoot, he was just a “cute child,” but now he had transformed into a “cute child actor.”
Some might ask, “What’s the difference?”
But for Suhyeon, as the person involved, there was a distinct difference between “child” and “child actor.”
It would be nice if they saw me not as a child actor but as a full-fledged actor… but that’d be impossible at this age.
No matter how well one acted, the term “child actor” invoked the perception of being “less capable than adult actors.”
The once protective “they’re just a kid” mindset became a constraint.
What can I do when I’m only five years old? I should challenge myself with different roles while I can still can.
Any other child actor confident in their acting skills might have felt frustrated by adults’ tinted glasses.
But Suhyeon focused on the benefits rather than the inconveniences caused by his age.
Society, especially the entertainment industry, was inherently unfair, so rather than despairing and struggling against it, it was better for his mental health to find the positive aspects and be happy.
This is a typical mental victory, but to survive in this field without it, one must be in the top 5% or have other side jobs… It would be nice if the public understood these struggles. Sobs.
While lost in his thoughts and then pretending to wipe away imaginary tears, Suhyeon soon remembered today’s main star and straightened out his costume.
The reason he arrived at 9, despite the call time being 2, was simple.
There he is!
A neat actor was chatting with his manager from a distance.
But in Suhyeon’s eyes, the actor was glowing.
Today was Lee Seohan’s first day of shooting.
“Hello, sunbae! I’m Kang Suhyeon, playing the role of the ‘young Jiwu’!”
“…Hello. You’re polite.”
Suhyeon, who had naturally approached him while greeting others around, greeted Seohan with a child-like bow and a smile.
At Suhyeon’s bright and adorable smile, Lee Seohan’s manager slightly loosened his lips, and Seohan greeted Suhyeon with a soft smile.
“Everyone’s praising you. You’re amazing for your age.”
“Thank you!”
“Actor Lee Seohan, here are today’s shooting materials… Suhyeon, hello? You came early.”
“Hello.”
While exchanging greetings, one of the ADs noticed Seohan and came over.
He handed over some necessary materials for today’s shooting.
What scene was being shot, the sequence of filming, locations, etc.—the manager only conveyed what Seohan needed to know.
After confirming it was the same as the materials he had received the day before, Seohan nodded and returned the papers to the manager.
“There are no changes.”
Seohan never raised his voice, and a smile always lingered on his lips.
Seeing this, Suhyeon admired him internally, and his eyes twinkled.
Wow, he has a great personality, too.
The paper handed by the AD was for final confirmation before shooting, so many actors don’t often check it themselves and just let their managers tell them if there were any changes.
In severe cases, sometimes they’d openly show their displeasure or treat it as irrelevant.
I really want to be friends with him.
When Suhyeon’s eyes shone with desire, Seohan turned his head, and their gazes met.
Perhaps because of the rose-colored glasses, the smile on his lips felt warm and soft.
“AD, you seem to be close with this kid.”
“Ah, Suhyeon? He’s the set’s idol these days! Cute, smart…… and he’s a good actor, so there’s almost no NG.”
At the staff’s praise, Seohan’s fingers, which were softly moving, momentarily paused.
It was a minor movement that would have been missed if one wasn’t constantly watching.
“…Aha. A clever one. Cute.”
Suhyeon was taken aback after witnessing Seohan’s reaction.
At first glance, it seemed like a compliment.
But from Seohan’s gaze and attitude, Suhyeon detected a strange prickliness.
Why? Did he notice my ulterior motive?
Confused by his unexpected reaction, Suhyeon was thrown into disarray.
He frantically ruminated whether his impure intentions had been exposed or if there had been a misunderstanding or error.
“Oh, Suhyeon. Why are you alone? Where’s your mother?”
When all the adults left and Suhyeon was alone to contemplate, Kwak Chaemin appeared.
His figure walking around without a manager was rather free.
“…Hello. She’s currently wrestling with her laptop because of some urgent work.”
Chaemin had been playfully waving his hand in front of Suhyeon’s face, but upon seeing his strangely deflated expression, he rummaged through his pocket.
And then he offered Suhyeon the lollipop he had been frequently sucking on.
“Did something happen? You don’t look well. Do you want to eat this?”
“…I’ve been instructed by my mother to limit candy to one a day because I’ve been consuming too much sweet stuff recently.”
“If your blood sugar drops, you’ll be the one suffering, right? You should store up energy while you can. Here, take this. Take this.”
Unable to resist Chaemin’s persistence, Suhyeon reluctantly accepted the candy and began to gaze at the ground again.
Seohan’s attitude was still bothering him.
“Hmm. Shall we speculate why this hyung behaves this way towards you?”
“…”
“Because of Lee Seohan?”
“…?”
“Did he ignore you?”
“…Do you know something?”
Reading Suhyeon’s interest, Chaemin straightened his back, twisted his lips in a cheeky smirk, and puffed up his chest.
His demeanor, combined with his sharp yet elegant impression, made him resemble a mischievous villain.
“He’s hard to deal with, but he’s good. He’s a bit aloof.”
Chaemin explained the behind-the-scenes story.
Lee Seohan disliked actors who garnered attention for anything other than acting since he had honed his craft on solid acting skills.
While he was kind to the staff, he was quite demanding of his fellow actors.
If an actor was below his standard, he would ignore them, and so on.
In summary, he took great pride in his acting and disliked those lacking acting skills.
“He’s cool.”
“You’re close to me… What? Cool?”
“He’s cool, isn’t he! It shows that he’s full of professionalism. If I show him I’m serious about acting, he’ll change his behavior, right?”
“Huh? Well, at your level, you’ll pass… No, why? You didn’t react this way to me, did you?
Observing Suhyeon’s sparkling eyes, Chaemin made a “that’s not it” face.
His advice was partly intended to make Suhyeon dislike Seohan, but the situation had turned out the opposite.
“Well, about that… um.”
“What do you mean, umm? Huh? Are you treating me like this because you know that I like cute things? Do you know what happens if you discard your pledge of allegiance? …Your cheeks are so squishy!”
“Ah, it hurts. Stop it.”
Despite being bothered, Suhyeon’s eyes twinkled.
He admired the logical reason for the cold treatment he had received earlier.
As expected of Lee Seohan-sunbae. No wonder my heart got hot every time I watched his acting. It was because he was overflowing with passion. I want to be recognized quickly.
Suhyeon clenched his hands tightly.
He wanted to be recognized by Seohan before the shooting ended and become close like brothers.
“Hyung, let me go. I have to go watch sunbae’s acting now.”
“They are just getting ready now. It will be a while before the shooting starts. Wasn’t it because of me that you came? How can love change?”
“I never liked you that much? Your acting is a bit….”
“…You really are a bad kid? I would punch you if you weren’t so cute.”
He, who was pouting his lips, dragged Suhyeon, who was about to leave, to the shooting site.
The entire walk was filled with Chaemin’s incessant complaints, but Suhyeon was too pleased with her elevated perspective to pay much attention.
* * *
The lead actors’ performances were excellent.
Actress Choi Ayeon, playing the role of Lee Gaeun, performed the vibrant and plucky female lead, while Seohan and Chaemin appealingly portrayed different types of male leads.
I wish I could’ve seen more. It’s a shame.
Suhyeon looked at the clock pointing at two.
His schedule was delayed by an hour because of the lead actors’ shooting, but what he regretted more was not being able to watch their filming.
I wish we were closer so I could ask him to spare some time to watch my acting… Why am I playing the role of a ‘young kid’ that doesn’t have an overlapping scene with him!
While Suhyeon was despairing over his part, Seora stood beside him. She eventually pulled his sleeve.
“Suhyeon, your noona is coming.”
“Ah, I see. Thanks.”
“Is anything hurting?”
“No, it’s just because of acting.”
“Mm… Aren’t you done for today?”
“Ahahaha.”
Suhyeon mechanically chuckled as he recalled the upcoming scene.
It was a scene where the “young Jiwu” and the “young Gaeun” were discussing her dreams.
The “young Jiwu” encouraged her to chase her dreams, fostering not only a deeper trust in him but also kindling the sparks of a blossoming love.
Kid, it’s my role today to make love bloom on your face… What does this writer expect from a five-year-old character?
He was internally swearing at the writer again when the surrounding noise disappeared completely with a sharp strike sound.
Suhyeon also completely erased his idle thoughts and focused entirely on Seora.
“This jar is said to have been fermented by our grandma’s mom!”
“That’s impressive.”
“Right! This one is kimchi my mom and dad made the year before last, and then that one is…”
As the camera started rolling, Seora introduced the pots in the yard while holding onto Suhyeon’s hands.
The jars, props as they were, were filled not with pickles or kimchi but with water.
But when they opened the lid, they would make a sour face and laugh.
“When I grow up, I want to help Dad. I’m going to be the Lee Gaeun leading Gaeunjeong!”
Seora revealed the “young Gaeun’s” ambition with a bright smile.
Her tightly clenched little fists were determined and cute.
“That’s right.”
Suhyeon looked at her and smiled softly.
Then, with a deliberate motion, he slid his right hand into the space created by her clenched left fist, their fingers intertwined with a firm and unmistakable connection.
“You can do it.”
At Suhyeon’s whisper, Seora’s face turned bright red.
Even though she knew beforehand what the lines and sequence of actions were, it was because Suhyeon’s deep, black eyes ruthlessly attacked her heart.
“Cut. Seora’s face is too red! Cool down and do it again!”
It was so flushed that it was enough to cause an NG.
“Ugh, are you a swallow or what?”
“… A swallow?”
“My mom told me that any man who is kind to just any woman is a swallow. But why a swallow? Isn’t a swallow a bird?”[1]
“Well. But the important thing is that you’re not ‘just any woman.'”
With a cold, wet towel pressed against her face, Seora grumbled. Suhyeon teased her while wearing a serious expression.
“Ugh…!”
Of course, for Suhyeon, it was a joke only, but Seora took his words seriously, and her face flushed even more.
“Seora, if you blush like this, we can’t shoot.”
“Huh? Oh! I’m sorry. I’ll cool down quickly.”
“No, I, um, sorry…”
Seeing her face pale instantly, the staff who had joined in on the joke awkwardly spat out an apology.
Seora’s face, which had turned pale, regained its original color only when Suhyeon tapped her on the back and reassured her.
“Seora, fighting! Yoon Seora is ready!”
“Then let’s just do the last line and move on. Ready!”
On the PD’s cue, filming resumed.
Seora, who had steeled herself, portrayed the scene with just the right amount of shyness this time and easily got the okay sign.
“Phew, one scene is over…”
“We still have four scenes left, so let’s hang in there… Huh?”
Suhyeon was encouraging Seora when he stopped in his tracks upon seeing an unexpected figure among the busy staff.
Lee Seohan, whom he thought had left the set, was watching the two from a distance.
[1] This is a very cute wordplay on the Korean word “제비.” The word refers to a “swallow” in English, but it is also slang for a playboy.
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