Facing the line of glowing red brake lights ahead, the Manager tapped the steering wheel lightly with his fingers.
“We’re almost there, but the traffic’s terrible.”
“Yeah, really. You must be tired, Chief, working all the way through Sunday.”
“On set, it’s nothing unusual. But at least we’ve got two days off starting tomorrow.”
About two weeks since the crank-in, filming was progressing smoothly.
According to the original schedule, they would have come up to Seoul to rest over the weekend, but the forecasted rain postponed the break.
They decided to shoot the rainy scenes in sync with the weather.
While many directors preferred water trucks to simulate rain, Director Jung Junhee chose to rearrange the schedule for a more natural look.
Song Hyunsoo had left around four, but Yoon Jooho and the other actors were still shooting the night scenes in Myeonghaeri.
As the car inched forward following the one ahead, the Manager spoke up.
“It’s important to meet the guy who’ll be taking over ahead of time. His name’s Kang Jungho, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. Kang Jungho. He’ll probably pick things up quickly.”
“Manager work, especially for the youngest manager, is fifty percent intuition and fifty percent stamina. Those with a good sense often end up working better than someone with three years’ experience within a month or two.”
The man at the wheel, Chief Nam, was a temporary manager filling in until Song Hyunsoo officially joined Look Planning.
Owing a lot to Director Bang, he had left the industry years ago to run a café with his wife in the suburbs of Gyeonggi Province.
But when called upon, he had come running without hesitation.
Now that Jungho was finally leaving ‘Jessica’ and joining next week, he was set to learn the ropes from Chief Nam for about a month.
They were on their way to ‘Jessica’ to help move Jungho’s belongings.
Drizzling rain coated Daehakro, which buzzed with people savoring the fading Sunday evening. Beyond the undulating parade of umbrellas lay Exit 1 of Hyehwa Station, just up ahead.
A forecast warned that after this rain passed, a last cold snap—the ‘flower-bloom cold’—would grip the city before true spring would settle in.
“Are you really not coming in, Chief? I can make you a cocktail.”
Just before getting out of the car parked opposite ‘Jessica,’ Song Hyunsoo asked the Manager once more. Smiling, the Manager shook his head.
“It’s more comfortable to wait here. I’ll just rest a bit, so take your time and come out when you’re done.”
Nodding, Song Hyunsoo dashed under ‘Jessica’s’ eaves without an umbrella and opened the door.
“I’m here!”
“Oh! Our actor Song has arrived.”
Unlike before, the Manager greeted him warmly, while Jungho stood behind, sneaking a sideways glance at the Manager.
Exchanging smiles with Chaeyoung, Song Hyunsoo shook the raindrops from his hair and looked around inside.
“No matter that it’s a rainy Sunday evening… isn’t it a bit too empty in here?”
“That’s why Hyunsoo, you have to work more. Jungho’s the one quitting. Did you promise?”
At the Manager’s urging, Song Hyunsoo’s chuckle turned into wide-eyed delight.
The three people seated at the innermost window table were familiar faces.
Idol-turned-actor Yoon Hyean, Park Dongha—who had been in the same group—and their Manager, Goo Yongjae.
Raising a hand in greeting, Song Hyunsoo headed straight for their table.
“Oh? Our regulars are back again?”
“We come once every few months and we’re the regulars? That’s serious.”
Park Dongha, who spotted Song Hyunsoo first, joked with a smile.
“Does frequency matter? As long as you come consistently, you’re all regulars.”
Since Yoon Hyean first appeared at ‘Jessica’ a few months ago, she had occasionally stopped by with those two.
Rumors had spread through the entertainment world that Yoon Hyean was rude to the point of being unbearable.
But meeting her in person, Song Hyunsoo found her entirely different from those stories.
Though she had always been said to resemble Choi Hongseo in appearance, their images were completely opposite—until now. Her expressions and aura had grown more similar to Hongseo’s, making the resemblance even stronger.
Yoon Hyean had also changed her stage name to ‘Hyunseo,’ as if shedding an old past to become a new person living differently from before.
“Isn’t today a filming day? Shouldn’t ‘Jessica’ be closed?”
At Park Dongha’s question, Song Hyunsoo teased.
“No, you’re the popular actor who knows my schedule inside out…”
“It wasn’t me; Hyunseo hyung told me.”
“Oh… Hyunseo is practically my biggest fan.”
Sitting right next to their table, Song Hyunsoo met Hyunseo’s gaze and they exchanged shy smiles.
“That’s why your name’s similar to mine—Hyunseo.”
There was one more reason why Hyunseo felt special to Song Hyunsoo.
She had just wrapped filming for the movie .
It was the movie Choi Hongseo had only prepared for but never got to shoot before he passed.
In that film, Hyunseo played the role Hongseo was supposed to take.
“By the way, when does the movie finally release? I’m waiting until my eyes fall out. At this rate, our movie will come out first.”
“Why would you be more anxious than us about ?”
“It’s an important movie to me. Right, Hyunseo?”
Song Hyunsoo sought Hyunseo’s agreement. Hyunseo already knew what meant to him.
Song Hyunsoo had asked her to shoot it well, to ease the lingering pain of his friend even if just a little.
Hyunseo smiled silently, with a quiet smile reminiscent of Choi Hongseo’s deep expression.
“There’s been so much noise about whether we’re going to Cannes or not for weeks. When will we find out if we’re invited?”
This time Hyunseo answered Song Hyunsoo’s question.
“We don’t know the exact date. Just that it’s early next month.”
“Tch, acting all high and mighty.”
As Song Hyunsoo clicked his tongue, his phone vibrated in his jumper pocket.
He pulled it out casually, and the name that flashed across the screen was Kang Insu Inheritance Friend.
『“Is this f*cking Yoon Jooho?”』
Every time he got a call from him, that phrase popped into his mind and made him smile. “F*cking Yoon Jooho.” No matter how much he imagined it, Song Hyunsoo had to force back the laugh rising in his lips.
“Ah, why call someone who’s off work? So annoying…”
No one around knew who was calling, nor did they care, but putting on a show of grumbling, Song Hyunsoo stood up. Then, looking at Hyunseo, he made a serious declaration like a warning.
“You have to go to Cannes. Walk that red carpet thing all over.”
Then he smiled and added,
“That was my friend’s last wish.”
Hyunseo just smiled, but Song Hyunsoo seemed to understand the meaning behind it. Like saying, “I know how you feel, and I’ll make sure it happens.”
A smile that to others looked the same, but like Choi Hongseo’s smile, it conveyed something deeper.
Staring at that smile so like Hongseo’s, Song Hyunsoo scratched the back of his neck and turned away with a bitter feeling.
Though he was glad to see Hyunseo come by, looking at him always reminded him of Hongseo.
Passing through the kitchen behind the counter and out the back door, he called Yoon Jooho again, phone tucked between shoulder and ear as he lit a cigarette.
[Why didn’t you pick up?]
As soon as the call connected, Jooho demanded straight away.
“I was talking to some regulars. Do you get so anxious if I miss one call?”
[What?]
“I said, is it break time or what?”
[Just finished scene 35.]
“Did it come out how you wanted?”
[Well, they said okay.]
“I should’ve just stayed and watched the shoot today too. I’m curious.”
[If you keep doing that from the start, your body won’t last. Rest when you can.]
Amidst the raindrops, he exhaled thin smoke, looking up at the empty sky.
The day after the first script reading, sitting right here, he had remembered how anxious he was comparing himself to a superstar like Yoon Jooho.
Now, as the superstar’s lover, he was monopolizing his precious rest time like this. Life was mysterious.
[Are you going to have dinner with Jungho before heading home?]
“I want to, but I’m too tired. I’ll drop Jungho off and then go home to unpack.”
The boxes he brought from the attic room were still piled up just as they were. He planned to tackle them over the break.
“Hey, senior.”
Looking up at the shabby signs for a PC room, billiard hall, and pub, Song Hyunsoo suddenly called out to Yoon Jooho.
[Why.]
“Nothing.”
[Don’t dodge like that. Just say it.]
“When our movie’s done, will you come with me to see Hongseo?”
[…]
“Ah, I’m not trying to pressure you. Just, if you have time…”
[Is that a proposal?]
“Wh-what proposal?”
He almost dropped his cigarette on the ground.
[Wanting to introduce me to that guy is basically a proposal.]
“No, no proposal… or maybe it kind of is…”
From the other end came Jooho’s amused laugh. Babbling, Song Hyunsoo just laughed along.
Once filming for the first movie was safely over, he thought he’d finally be able to visit him. To finally summon the courage to face his death.
He’d take Jooho along and make that bastard so shocked he’d fall over. Hey, Choi Hongseo, say hi. You know Jooho, right? He’s my boyfriend. Pretty cool, huh?
If only he could see that dumbfounded look…
Song Hyunsoo exhaled a long plume of smoke toward the empty sky.
The stars were hidden behind the rain clouds, but the signs blurred by the moisture gave off a warmer glow than before.
■
The room nearest the entrance.
Five boxes, each about the size of a post office No. 4, were stacked neatly in two rows.
After showering and changing clothes, Song Hyunsoo stood in front of the boxes with a determined expression.
Since these weren’t urgent things he absolutely needed, he had kept putting off dealing with them until now.
“Today, no matter what, I’m finishing this.”
Meow, meow. Agh?
Monroe circled the boxes, sniffing and tapping them with a front paw before looking up at Song Hyunsoo with a tilted head.
After stroking her head and back a few times, Song Hyunsoo lined up the boxes, peeled off the tape, and opened them all.
He planned to sort out what to throw away, what to keep, and what to donate separately.
“Five boxes will be quick.”
But once he started digging through the boxes, progress was slower than expected.
When he found a diary, he spent half an hour flipping through it.
Then spotting a theater pamphlet from a play he had performed with the troupe, he lingered another ten or twenty minutes, fondly browsing.
“Ah… if I keep this up, I won’t finish before senior comes over.”
Determined to speed up, he noticed Monroe was nowhere to be seen. From the rustling sounds, she was probably inside one of the opened boxes causing mischief.
“Monroe, where are you… here you are. No, not this box, it’s not sorted yet. Come on, play with this box instead, okay?”
Fishing her out of the smaller box she had crawled into, Song Hyunsoo put her in another.
Then he pulled out the box she had been rummaging through.
It was a box where he had gathered a few things he considered valuable.
He first picked up a perfume bottle, about one-third full.
“Wow, I didn’t throw this away? Well, I guess I couldn’t—it’s expensive.”
There were always four or five perfumes on Jung Jiin’s desk, and this was Song Hyunsoo’s favorite scent.
Somehow, Jung Jiin had noticed and once gave him a brand-new bottle of the same perfume.
It was a high-end brand that Song Hyunsoo hadn’t even heard of back then.
“I only saved it for really important days.”
Other things Jung Jiin had given him were stored in the box too—a leather wallet he’d used well until last year, and a luxury brand T-shirt.
“I wore this a lot for a while. Oh, it’s still fine. I’ll wear it at home.”
Holding the T-shirt up in front of his chest, Song Hyunsoo froze as if he had pressed a pause button on a video.
In that brief moment when a glass falls off the table, the mind can process countless thoughts all at once.
Suddenly, fragmented memories that seemed unrelated snapped together into a perfect puzzle.
That montage pointed to a chilling conclusion.
He heard the sound of a non-existent cup smashing to pieces on the floor.
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