Chapter 58: Star Maker (4)
After finishing his talk with Park Seung-hwan, Kim Ji-hyun approached Si-woo and started talking. And once he finished speaking with Ji-hyun, three actors came over to talk again.
He had only come to check on and support the YouTube team, yet somehow he was the busiest of them all.
Fortunately, the other actors seemed hesitant and didn’t approach him.
After observing several more scenes being filmed, he noticed that everyone seemed to be giving their all in this drama, working well together without any rough edges.
“Alright, let’s move on to today’s final shoot.”
Thus began the last shoot of the day.
The final scene involved the teacher Han Young-jin—played by Park Seung-hwan—trying to persuade Choi Sung-yong—played by Kim Moon-sik—who dreams of becoming a soccer player.
While making a bet through a penalty shootout, Han Young-jin injures himself, and upon seeing this, his daughter Han Ye-jin—played by Kim Ji-hyun—runs over, slaps Sung-yong, and yells at him.
Since it was a slapping scene, it was best for everyone if they could finish it in one take.
Smack.
“Hey! Who do you think you are to my dad—!”
“Ye-jin!!!”
“Who do you think you are… Just who do you think you are…”
Sung-yong, suddenly slapped, was startled—but what truly confused him was the fact that she slapped him and then started crying.
Ye-jin knew her father was terminally ill.
Sung-yong didn’t.
So their emotional states were completely different.
“W-What…? You show up out of nowhere and—”
Sung-yong raised his voice belatedly, but Ye-jin ignored him and instead shouted at Han Young-jin.
“Dad, why are you doing this for someone like him? He’s trash! He’s not worth helping!”
Slap.
“Dad…”
Han Young-jin, who had hit his daughter for the first time, trembled as he opened his mouth.
“That’s enough.”
“How could you…”
“Not everyone gets the chance to grow their talent in a good environment like you. And I’m a teacher. A teacher doesn’t judge the worth of teaching or helping a student. And he’s not trash—he’s Sung-yong. My student.”
“Fine! Do whatever you want! Live or die, I’m done caring!”
After yelling, Ye-jin stormed off.
Han Young-jin picked up the soccer ball that had stopped in front of him and looked at Sung-yong.
“More importantly… I won, right? The last shot didn’t go in.”
“…Yeah. Fine. Let’s say you won, teacher.”
“Good. Then you’ll listen to me starting tomorrow, alright?”
“Whatever.”
“Is your face okay?”
“This is nothing. Compared to what I got in the soccer club…”
At Sung-yong’s grumbling reply, the director’s voice echoed across the set.
“Cut! Great work, everyone!”
When the shoot ended, the managers hurried to their actors.
Kim Ji-hyun’s cheek was much redder than Kim Moon-sik’s, even though they had both been hit.
Park Seung-hwan also walked over to check on her.
“No matter how many times I do it, slap scenes are hard to get used to… Sorry, Ji-hyun.”
“It’s okay, sunbae-nim. Actually, I think it’s a valuable experience. Please take good care of me next time too.”
“Thank you for saying that.”
With an ice pack pressed to her cheek, Ji-hyun walked over to Moon-sik.
“It must hurt a lot, right…? I’m sorry.”
“Ahaha! It’s fine! I could take ten more of those!”
“What kind of answer is that? Haha.”
Kim Moon-sik seemed to be completely smitten with the famous actress Kim Ji-hyun, smiling like a fool and waving his hands.
Si-woo approached them as both were holding ice packs.
“How are your faces? Both of you.”
“Her hand wasn’t that strong, so I’m fine.”
“I’m… it hurts a bit. Could you take a look?”
Just moments ago, Ji-hyun said she was fine—but now she removed her ice pack and leaned her face toward Si-woo.
Perhaps because she was hit by Park Seung-hwan’s rough hand, her cheek was more swollen than Moon-sik’s.
“Yeah… it’s definitely a bit swollen. Keep that ice pack on.”
But still, it felt burdensome.
Si-woo gently guided Ji-hyun’s hand back to her cheek, helping her hold the ice pack against it.
Watching the two of them, Kim Moon-sik stared at Si-woo with envy.
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“A-ah… n-no reason!”
At Si-woo’s question, Kim Moon-sik quickly turned his head away.
He couldn’t bring himself to admit he was jealous.
On the bus ride back—unlike the lively atmosphere when they departed—it was now eerily quiet.
After experiencing a real drama set, everyone felt the stark difference between themselves and professional actors.
Shooting a web drama made them feel unmistakably amateur.
Their attitude toward the work, the atmosphere, the discipline—everything was on a different level.
But this realization became valuable nourishment for these aspiring actors.
Time passed, and the auditions for small roles in Revenge Film ended.
“It’s disappointing, but those who didn’t make it should focus their efforts on our YouTube filming instead.”
“Yes…”
The actors who were eliminated sounded dispirited.
“And today, I think it’s time we change our YouTube channel name. What do you guys think?”
“Well… since the writer’s revenge arc is over…”
“Hmm…”
The team members pondered over the channel name.
“What if we just call it Revenge Film? We could have people submit stories of situations where they want revenge, then turn those into web dramas. Doesn’t sound bad.”
“Who’s going to write all the scripts? And it feels too one-sided toward a single theme…”
Since Si-woo had no intention of only writing revenge stories, Revenge Film was dismissed.
“Then how about something simple? Like Si-woo Film?”
“No.”
“I like it.”
“Me too.”
“Same here…”
Everyone except Si-woo loved Lee Yoo-jin’s suggestion.
“Then Si-woo Film it is.”
“….”
After Yoo-jin hurriedly finalized the conclusion and left the office, the other members also quickly scattered.
They had learned the proper way to handle Kim Si-woo.
“Sigh… do whatever you want.”
Si-woo reluctantly accepted having his name used and then headed to a real estate office with Lee Hae-soo, as previously planned.
“But why are we suddenly looking for a house…?”
“There’s someone I want to bring from Busan.”
When Si-woo explained about Hong Soo-yeon, Lee Hae-soo’s eyes filled with emotion.
“Si-woo… you’re really kind, you know.”
“Me?”
Si-woo had heard people call him a pushover, but kind was new.
Well, it made sense—being kind and being a pushover were separated by a very thin line. And Si-woo’s actions often fell on the pushover side.
Once they entered the real estate office, the agent noticed Hae-soo’s attorney badge and became extremely nervous—his hands trembled even while offering coffee.
Thankfully, thanks to Hae-soo’s credentials, they were able to find a nice apartment near his home and sign the contract that very day.
“Hae-soo, are you heading back to the office now?”
“No… this was my last task for today, so I can get off work.”
Hearing she was done for the day, Si-woo naturally invited her to a meal.
“Then… would you like to grab dinner? I feel like I always trouble you with personal matters.”
“Yes, I’d like that.”
Si-woo and Hae-soo headed to a nearby Chinese restaurant.
“One large sweet-and-sour pork, spicy garlic shrimp, palbochae, special jajang, and brisket jjamppong, please.”
It was a lot for two people, but that didn’t matter.
Considering everything Hae-soo helped with, ordering at least this much made Si-woo feel better.
“Isn’t this too much? I can’t eat that much…”
“Then just eat a little bit of many things.”
“…Thank you.”
Surprisingly, they ended up talking about everyday life more than anything else.
How Hae-soo’s younger sibling was doing…
What Si-woo’s younger brother was up to lately…
Whether either of them had been going through anything stressful recently…
It had been so long since Si-woo talked about something that wasn’t movies or dramas that it felt strangely refreshing.
“Oh! And I recently booked a travel package for my parents. Hae-soo, maybe you should send your siblings on a trip too? Experiencing an overseas flight when they’re young isn’t a bad idea.”
“Oh! That sounds like a great idea.”
“It’d be nice if you took a trip somewhere too, Hae-soo.”
“Hehe… I’m too busy with work.”
Si-woo shook his head, as if he expected that answer.
“At this rate, you’re going to collapse. Didn’t you say you only sleep about four and a half hours a day?”
“That’s why I take my vitamins every day.”
She proudly pulled a bottle of supplements from her bag, smiling.
“By the way, have you watched the drama Our Teacher that’s airing right now?”
“Yes! Of course. But um… how should I say it… it’s fun, but the acting is a bit…”
Surprisingly, after watching Don’t Forget, Hae-soo’s standards for acting had risen to match Shim Ji-young’s level.
“But it seemed fine when I watched it in person yesterday.”
“Is it different when you see it live?”
Suddenly, Hae-soo showed interest in watching a live shoot.
“Next time we get a chance, let’s go see it together.”
“Yes!”
And just like that, Si-woo made plans to take her to a filming set.
***
A week later, a large taxi departing from Busan arrived in Seoul.
“Hello, I’m Kim Si-woo.”
The passengers who stepped out were Hong Soo-yeon, her grandmother, and her younger brother.
Her grandmother had not fully recovered her strength and needed a wheelchair.
She smiled warmly and held Si-woo’s hand as he greeted her.
“Oh my, my granddaughter told me all about you. She said you paid for my surgery… Thank you so much.”
“It’s nothing. Let’s head inside quickly—the weather’s cold.”
All of Soo-yeon’s family’s belongings fit into just three suitcases.
Most of their old appliances weren’t worth bringing, so clothes and photos were all they needed—three suitcases were enough.
Si-woo pulled two of them, while Soo-yeon pushed her grandmother’s wheelchair.
Her little brother followed behind, pulling the last suitcase bravely.
At the apartment where Soo-yeon’s family would be living, Si-woo explained which hospital her grandmother would be visiting, how to use the care taxi service, which school her brother would transfer to, and even pointed out his own home so they could come if an emergency happened. Before leaving, he handed them cash for living expenses.
“If you run out, let me know. And! For work—starting tomorrow, just take your grandmother to the hospital first, then come straight here.”
As Si-woo explained where the company was, Soo-yeon nodded silently with her head bowed instead of answering aloud.
“…Are you crying?”
“N-no, I’m not!”
“Sure. You’ll have plenty of times to cry later, so save your tears.”
“…Tch. You’ve never dated someone before, have you, ajusshi?”
“What?”
“How can you say something like that in this situation?”
Her tone suddenly shifted into a scolding one.
Flustered, Si-woo quickly changed the subject and spoke to her younger brother.
“Anyway! Since you moved today, I’ll treat you all to black bean noodles. Hey little guy, what do you want to eat?”
“Special gan-jjajang, extra-large!”
“Eating gan-jjajang already? Fine, I’ll get you the seafood special version. So make sure you behave and listen to your sister and grandma.”
“Yes!”
Si-woo quickly ordered through a delivery app.
Juk (rice porridge) for the grandmother, plus three seafood gan-jjajang and sweet-and-sour pork arrived.
The younger brother ate happily, getting black sauce all over his mouth, and his grandmother smiled warmly at him.
For Hong Soo-yeon, this ordinary, simple moment felt overwhelmingly precious.
And she kept finding her eyes drifting to Kim Si-woo—the one who made all of this possible.
Get it together, Hong Soo-yeon. You need to pay off your family’s debt first… You don’t have time for romance.
Still… does the writer-nim even have a girlfriend or not…?
At that moment, Hong Soo-yeon had no idea.
She didn’t know that powerful rivals were already sharpening their claws for Kim Si-woo.