Chapter 14: I’m Glad I Became a Writer. (3)
On his way home, Kim Si-woo scrolled through the flood of malicious comments on articles about him, a faint smile on his lips. They might be targeting him now, but soon those arrows would turn back on them—faster and sharper.
By Saturday morning, his phone buzzed with a call from Shim Ji-young.
“Hey, noona. I’m ready.”
- Good. Come downstairs.
“Downstairs?”
- Yeah, I’m in front of your place.
“Your place?” Kim Si-woo rushed downstairs, and sure enough, a black van—Shim Ji-young’s—was parked outside.
Knock, knock.
Slide.
When he tapped the door, it opened, but only her manager greeted him.
“Hello,” Kim Si-woo said.
“Hi, Writer,” the manager replied.
As soon as he climbed in, Shim Ji-young’s first words were about his outfit.
“What’s with you? Is that the only decent thing you own?”
“Yeah, it’s the only thing that looks good!”
“Sigh… we’re going to the department store again soon. No, buy some clothes with the money I gave you!”
“I don’t have any money.”
“What?”
Shim Ji-young’s face twisted as she stared at Kim Si-woo, who’d received 300 million won from her. Sometimes he seemed immature, but claiming to be broke after that kind of money confirmed it—he was like an irresponsible younger brother.
“You’re burning through cash faster than I thought. What did you do with 300 million? Buy a house?”
“No, I gave 200 million to my mom, and the rest is for something else.”
Her assumptions shattered by his unexpected answer, Shim Ji-young coughed awkwardly and looked away.
“Ahem… so what’s the 100 million for?”
“Legal fees.”
“Legal fees? What for?”
Seeing her alarmed expression, fearing it was related to the movie, Kim Si-woo quickly reassured her.
“No, no, it’s not about the movie.”
He explained he’d hired a lawyer to sue the trolls leaving hate comments on his articles. Shim Ji-young let out a sigh of relief.
“I thought someone was trying to buy your script for a fortune or cancel the contract.”
“Nah, unless they’re offering, like, 10 billion plus penalties, why bother? We already signed the contract.”
“What?!”
His casual mention of selling for 10 billion made her shout, and Kim Si-woo shrank back, mumbling.
“I mean… sell it for 10 billion and write another one…”
“You… take the bus home.”
“No, noona!”
Their banter continued as the van arrived at Triple Actors, Shim Ji-young’s agency. Today was the audition day for ‘Don’t Forget’.
“This is gonna take forever, isn’t it?” Kim Si-woo asked.
“Probably. Like, 99% chance it’ll drag on.”
Stepping out of the van, Kim Si-woo was already dreaming of going home.
“Uh… you might have to sleep over in Seoul. Word got out, and not only our actors but tons from other agencies applied too.”
“Can’t you just do it without me?”
“Nope. Let’s go.”
Shim Ji-young grabbed his arm, dragging him into the building, which was packed with actors preparing for auditions.
“Wow… so many actors,” Kim Si-woo remarked.
Shim Ji-young looked at him, incredulous.
“You have no idea how many unknown actors there are, do you?”
“Well… I was never into this stuff. I just figured if you’re on TV or in movies, you’re there. Don’t most people only care about the leads?”
“Exactly. That’s why this audition’s so popular. Even the leads, besides me, have to audition, and the supporting roles have a lot of screen time too.”
Chatting, they reached the audition room, where a staff member, Triple Actors’ president Han Seung-jin, and an employee from the main investor awaited.
“You’re here?” Han Seung-jin greeted.
“Hi… oh, we meet again?” Kim Si-woo said, recognizing the investor’s employee.
“What? You two know each other?” Han Seung-jin asked, puzzled, looking between them.
“Yeah, he’s my fan, right, Kang Jin-soo?” Shim Ji-young teased.
“Ack! You remembered my name… It’s an honor!” Kang Jin-soo beamed.
“Of course, you came to every fan signing event.”
As Shim Ji-young and Kang Jin-soo exchanged warm words, Kim Si-woo greeted Han Seung-jin and sat at the judges’ table, his nameplate in front of him. At his feet was a massive stack of A4 papers.
“Is this the list of auditionees?” he asked.
Han Seung-jin nodded.
“President… it’s not too late to go home, right? I think I forgot to feed my dog.”
“You don’t have a dog,” Shim Ji-young interjected, sitting beside him.
“…”
“President, make sure he doesn’t run off.”
“Uh… got it,” Han Seung-jin agreed.
Trapped, Kim Si-woo sighed.
“Let’s begin. Send in numbers 1 through 3,” Han Seung-jin instructed.
Three auditionees entered, each delivering a forceful greeting before sitting.
- Hello!
The first role: Kim Ye-ji, one of the targets of the protagonist, Han Ye-ri, in ‘Don’t Forget’. Ye-ji, an academically excellent and attractive girl from a wealthy family, orchestrated the bullying of Han Ye-ri’s daughter, Han Seul-gi, driving her to suicide. Despite her cunning, she was acquitted.
Recalling the role’s details, Kim Si-woo watched the actors prepare.
“Alright, number 1, please show us your performance,” Han Seung-jin said.
The first actor stepped forward, performing Scene 14, where Ye-ji explains why she bullied Han Seul-gi.
“It annoyed me. Everything she did in front of me…”
After her performance, the second and third actors followed. When they finished, Han Seung-jin spoke.
“Thank you. We’ll contact you individually with results in a week.”
- Thank you!
The three left, and the auditions continued swiftly. But after passing 100 candidates, the repetitive scenes, lines, and vibes started to feel maddening.
“Thank you. Results will be sent in a week.”
As the 120th auditionee left, Kim Si-woo rubbed his tired eyes.
“This is exhausting. I’m totally drained.”
Grading each candidate was pushing his fatigue to the limit. But Shim Ji-young’s words quickly silenced his complaints.
“Deal with it. For these people, this one audition could change their lives.”
For a moment, Kim Si-woo thought to himself:
‘Maybe I should write a movie that casts a ton of unknown actors.’
‘Either way, I’m putting ‘no audition judging’ in my next contract.’
Just then, an extraordinary actor appeared.
“Hello,” greeted the 141st candidate.
Her voice stood out among the others, commanding attention with an overwhelming aura. She was even more famous than Shim Ji-young.
Her name was Jung Se-yeon.
Debuting as an idol, she began acting at 20. Initially, people doubted her skills, assuming an idol couldn’t act. But her talent grew daily, and nearly every project she touched became a hit. Known not just for her acting but for her keen eye for projects, she was a certified hitmaker.
Kim Si-woo wasn’t the only one stunned—Han Seung-jin, Shim Ji-young, and Kang Jin-soo all wore dazed expressions.
As Jung Se-yeon began her performance, the judges shared a single thought:
‘We found her.’
Her portrayal of Kim Ye-ji differed slightly from Kim Si-woo’s vision, but it was undeniably vivid. Her skill made it easier to focus on the details. But there was no time to linger—over 1,000 actors still awaited their turn.
After Jung Se-yeon left, the auditions continued, but her performance cast a shadow over the others. Ordinary actors couldn’t compare, and Kim Si-woo felt a pang of sympathy.
‘Do they realize how big the gap is?’
Even in a single audition scene, the disparity in acting talent was glaring.
Watching them, Kim Si-woo felt reaffirmed in his choice to be a writer. But he didn’t realize he himself was a prodigious talent.
When the 1,000th auditionee finished, everyone let out a collective sigh.
- Haaaa…
“Save me,” Kim Si-woo groaned.
Despite snacking on candy and chocolate to stay energized, the exhaustion was overwhelming.
“It’s already 5 p.m. Can we go home now?” he asked.
“There’s still 100 more to go. Let’s finish up,” Shim Ji-young replied.
They’d have to endure roughly three more days of this, with 1,100 candidates a day. Kim Si-woo didn’t even want to go home anymore—he just wanted to collapse into bed. Shim Ji-young’s earlier comment about staying overnight in Seoul was becoming reality.
“Alright, I’m treating everyone to dinner tonight. Let’s eat!” Shim Ji-young announced.
“Can we get beef?” Kim Si-woo asked.
“Of course.”
Free beef was a lifeline for Kim Si-woo, who’d been unemployed not long ago.
“Let’s hurry up and finish!”
Bzzz.
His phone vibrated.
“What? An unknown number?” Kim Si-woo muttered, rejecting the call.
“Come on, let’s wrap this up and eat beef!”
“Yeah, let’s do it!” Kang Jin-soo, Shim Ji-young’s fan, said with a glint of madness in his eyes.
After powering through the final 100 auditions, Kim Si-woo stretched his stiff body.
“Ugh, it’s over. Beef. Beef.”
“Dinner with Actress Shim Ji-young. Dinner. Dinner,” Kang Jin-soo echoed.
Like kindred spirits, Kim Si-woo and Kang Jin-soo packed up quickly.
“Let’s go. I’ll take you to a great beef place,” Han Seung-jin said.
At the renowned beef restaurant, Kim Si-woo stared at the menu, speechless.
“…”
“What’s wrong? Why aren’t you ordering?” Shim Ji-young asked.
“The… prices.”
Even for Hanwoo, the costs seemed absurd. ‘Is this beef sprinkled with gold dust?’
“Ugh, boss! Ten servings of the set menu!” Shim Ji-young called out.
“Yes, ma’am!” the waiter replied.
‘Ten… ten servings?’
Frustrated by Kim Si-woo’s hesitation, Shim Ji-young boldly ordered for everyone.
“Don’t freak out. Our president may not look it, but he’s loaded,” she teased.
“What do you mean, ‘may not look it’?” Han Seung-jin protested.
“He was a heartthrob back in the day, but now he’s just a potbellied ajusshi,” she quipped.
As Shim Ji-young bantered with Han Seung-jin, Kim Si-woo and Kang Jin-soo watched, amused. Fresh Hanwoo hit the grill, and the sizzling sound and aroma made Kim Si-woo’s mouth water.
Sizzle.
Gulp.
‘I want to eat already…’
As the beef finished cooking—
Bzzz.
His phone rang again.
“Ugh, so annoying. Who keeps calling?” Kim Si-woo grumbled, answering the unknown number.
A drunken man’s voice came through.
- Well, well, Writer Kim Si-woo. Busy?
“Who’s this?”
- It’s me, Kim Min-ho.
Click.
Hearing Kim Min-ho’s name, Kim Si-woo hung up immediately and popped a piece of beef into his mouth.
“Goddamn it, I’m trying to enjoy my beef, and that lunatic calls.”