An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 101

101. Episode 20 – In a Strange Place (4)

It had been a month since we started filming overseas.

Though it wasn’t quite like Korea, I was gradually becoming comfortable with life and filming in Australia.

During the initial shoots, adjusting to the completely different environment required a lot of effort.

An unfamiliar atmosphere, harsh sandstorms, and unexpected situations occurred frequently.

Like the saying that humans are animals of adaptation, despite the adversities, I quickly began to get used to this place.

Spending a month in this hotel was boring, like being stuck in a remote cabin in Korea.

Of course, after filming, I practiced for the next shoot.

But I couldn’t just do nothing with the rest of my time.

It wasn’t just a day or two, but four weeks, and we couldn’t just be confined to our rooms.

So, in the beginning, I would chat with Manager Kim.

Or I would lie on the bed, exhausted from filming, and try to sleep.

But the other actors were also spending their days the same way.

Eventually, the actors who got along would gather every evening for a casual beer.

Rather than just killing time, when else would we have the chance to talk and bond with these actors every day?

I loved this gathering that was created after a hard day of filming and practice.

It wasn’t easy to meet and share drinks with actors so comfortably in Korea either.

Today, after finishing another tough shoot, we gathered with our usual members.

“You all worked so hard today!”

Hansia smiled brightly and raised her beer high.

Clink-.

Our beers clinked against her glass.

Soon, the beer went down my esophagus.

The hot desert weather.

The beer you drink after filming in a place where your throat is parched is truly a gift.

“Ahhh.”

We all put down our beers and exclaimed simultaneously.

“When I go back to Korea, I think I’ll miss this beer.”

I nodded in agreement with Seo Hyena’s words.

“That’s right. We’re only drinking one or two cans because of filming, so doesn’t it feel more precious?”

She clapped her hands at my words.

“Haha, I guess so. Maybe that’s why it feels more special.”

After Seo Hyena finished speaking, Han Dongmin looked at us with envious eyes and said.

“I don’t have many scenes to film, so I’m envious of the taste of beer that my seniors feel and drink with this sense of accomplishment.”

“Hey, Dongmin, you’ll do better in the future.”

“That’s right. Then, there might be times when you miss having time to rest, right?”

We shared small talk and clinked our glasses.

There are a total of 5 actors who meet after filming, including me.

Hansia and Seo Hyena, the lead actors, along with Kim Seunghee.

And even Han Dongmin, who is a supporting actor but has a similar presence to an extra.

So, there are a total of 5 people.

Kim Seunghee looked at me and opened her mouth.

“But is Yuna not coming today either?”

At her question, I shrugged my shoulders.

“I… don’t know?”

Kim Seunghee smiled awkwardly at my words and replied.

“Looking at it, it seems like Heeseong is the closest to Yuna among us. Or am I wrong?”

“Um… I don’t think it’s much different for me than it is for Seunghee? Haha.”

She burst into laughter at my words.

“But it would be nice if Yuna could talk and hang out with us too. I don’t think I’ve ever had a private conversation with her.”

Hansia spoke up at Kim Seunghee’s words.

“That’s right. I have a lot of scenes with Yuna, but I don’t think I’ve had any conversations other than work-related ones.”

I quietly nodded at their words.

The only lead actor not present was Song Yuna.

But it wasn’t surprising.

I never even thought she would come to this gathering in the first place.

Song Yuna was always the same in other filming locations too.

Still, I thought that she might come out since it was a long-term overseas shoot and she couldn’t overcome the boredom.

But as expected, my expectations were not met.

I’m even curious about her not leaving her room at all.

We resisted the urge to gulp down our beers, knowing we had a long shoot the next day.

We spent time savoring the beer little by little.

As the short hand of the clock moved past one notch.

Hansia asked Kim Seunghee a question.

“Seunghee, how’s your love life these days?”

It could have been a sensitive question.

But we had already built up a friendship over the past month, so we casually threw out conversation topics.

And Kim Seunghee, who was receiving it, also shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly.

“I… broke up a while ago.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, as I started preparing for this movie, I gradually got busier… and my boyfriend, no, that jerk, was also preparing for various things, and we drifted apart like that.”

The atmosphere instantly became somber at her words.

Kim Seunghee hurriedly opened her mouth.

“Please don’t ask who it is. His job is an actor… that’s all! Haha.”

She immediately raised her beer with a bright face.

So, we clinked our glasses with her beer without saying anything.

After that, the conversation naturally flowed into love stories.

“Then what about you, senior?”

At her words, Hansia slightly raised one corner of her mouth.

“I… want to date if a good person comes along.”

Hansia drank her beer alone.

Han Dongmin widened his eyes as if curious and asked.

“But where do you all date?”

At his words, the attention was focused on Han Dongmin.

Han Dongmin frowned with a serious expression and said.

“I mean, even if I walk around on the street, no one recognizes me. But it seems like even if the seniors wear hats and masks, everyone will recognize them because they’re too famous.”

Hansia, Kim Seunghee, and Seo Hyena burst into laughter at his words.

Then Kim Seunghee spoke first.

“Of course. I even went out in the middle of the night with a full set of hats, masks, and scarves, but they recognized me and I ran away.”

Hansia chuckled at her words and replied.

“Where else would celebrities with well-known faces date? There’s only the car or home.”

“That’s right. Or we have no choice but to call more acquaintances and hang out.”

As I listened to their conversation, Hansia looked at me.

“By the way, Heeseong, don’t you have a girlfriend?”

I nodded at Hansia’s words.

“…Yes, I don’t.”

“I think Heeseong would be popular?”

Kim Seunghee nodded in agreement with her words.

“That’s right. I think there are a lot of actors around who have a crush on Heeseong?”

Kim Seunghee twisted the corners of her mouth suspiciously.

I thought it was still a luxury to spend time on romance.

I wanted to avoid the attention being focused on me in the topic of romance.

So, I quickly turned my head and looked out the window.

Swish.

Just in time, I heard the sound of a strong wind.

The window was shaking in the wind.

All the actors turned their heads at the sound.

“Oh my, why is the wind blowing so hard?”

“I know. We have a shoot early tomorrow morning.”

They looked out the window with worried faces.

I also sighed briefly and muttered.

“The wind is so strong, I’m worried about tomorrow’s shoot….”

***

Whistle-!

As expected.

Before the alarm even rang, I woke up to the sound of the strong wind hitting the window.

It seems like the weather isn’t good today.

After quickly finishing my preparations, I left the room.

When I opened the hotel door, I squeezed my eyes shut at the sandstorm that rushed in.

Still, I couldn’t go back into the room.

Because there were more shoots waiting for me today than usual, I frowned and headed to the filming location.

The morning shoot was in full swing.

“Cut, NG!” [NG stands for ‘No Good,’ a common term used on film sets to indicate a take that needs to be reshot.]

The shooting started to stop intermittently due to the sandstorm.

Due to the wind, the actors couldn’t say their lines properly, or they were flustered and forgot their lines.

I also squeezed my eyes shut and started reviewing my lines in preparation for such mistakes.

It couldn’t be helped that NGs were happening due to the environment.

But I thought I should finish the shoot as quickly as possible without any NGs due to my mistakes.

Whistle-.

I turned my head to the opposite side as the wind blew again.

I was muttering and going over my lines when I saw Song Yuna standing in front of me with a frown.

Her manager must have left for a moment, as Song Yuna was standing there alone, looking blank.

Song Yuna was brushing back her hair, which was flying in the wind, with a very annoyed face.

After the scene being filmed now, it was Song Yuna’s turn.

My eyes went to her, who had a stiff expression.

She kept pushing back her hair that kept falling over and was taking off her necklace.

She had a new necklace in her left hand, and she was struggling to take off the necklace that was fastened with her right hand.

She should have waited and asked her manager or stylist to do it….

As I was feeling sorry for her while watching her, suddenly:

Whistle-!

Bang.

A sandstorm started to blow.

One of the lights that was standing fell weakly in the wind.

The actors and staff crouched down at the sudden unexpected situation.

Song Yuna’s eyes at the end of my gaze widened.

Before I knew it, she had taken off the necklace she was wearing.

The unfastened necklace flew away in the wind.

But I was the only one who saw it.

Song Yuna’s long hair covered her face, and she brushed her hair back and looked around.

In the meantime, I quickly approached her.

No, I ran to the necklace she had dropped.

Because Song Yuna was brushing her hair back to find the necklace she had dropped.

Fortunately, I was able to find it before it flew away far and picked up the necklace.

“Huff.”

I blew the sand that was stuck to the necklace with my mouth.

Song Yuna was waving her hands around in the sand.

It looked like she was looking for the necklace she had dropped.

I approached Song Yuna and said.

“Yuna, are you looking for this?”

She, who was squatting, frowned, raised her head, and looked at me.

I held out the necklace in my hand to her.

Then, she stood up from her seat with wide eyes.

“Ah…!”

She only looked at the necklace, not me, and then took it and started examining it.

“Is this Yuna’s?”

At my words, she still fixed her gaze on the necklace and nodded.

Then she peeked up and looked at me.

“Yes, it’s mine.”

And then she turned her head away as if nothing had happened.

She muttered in a very small voice.

“…Thank you.”

Song Yuna turned around and walked away after finishing those words.

I didn’t run to pick up the necklace in a hurry to hear a great greeting.

I just shrugged my shoulders at her still cold and stiff expression.

***

Knock knock.

After a shoot that was more difficult and tiring than any other day, as I was lying on the bed, I opened my eyes at the sound of knocking on the door.

I immediately got up from my seat and headed to the door.

“Yes, who….”

When I opened the door slightly, Manager Choi of Song Yuna was standing there.

I opened the door wide.

“Oh, Manager Choi, what brings you here?”

I asked him with a surprised face, and Manager Choi forced a smile with a stiff face and said to me.

“About picking up Yuna’s necklace earlier.”

I raised my eyebrows at his words.

Manager Choi looked around and continued to speak.

“That’s a keepsake from Yuna’s mother.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, it’s like a lucky charm for Yuna, so she always wears it. But if she had lost it today, it would have been a real disaster.”

Manager Choi raised and lowered his shoulders as he imagined it.

“I can’t even imagine it… whew.”

Then he shook his head and took a long breath of relief.

“Anyway, I came to thank you on her behalf for today’s work.”

Manager Choi bowed his head.

I waved my hand and replied.

“No, it’s okay.”

He glanced at his room and said.

“Yuna also says thank you, but she’s too shy to come here to say hello. She said she got a lot of sand on her face today, and her throat hurts.”

As soon as Manager Choi finished speaking, I shrugged my shoulders.

Then I threw a joke with a playful expression.

“Yuna didn’t say anything, and you just came alone, Manager Choi? Haha.”

Even at my joke, Manager Choi shook his head vigorously with a serious face.

“Ah, really, no.”

And he said to me with a more serious expression than anyone else.

“She really said thank you.”

I could tell from Manager Choi’s tone and expression that there was not a single lie added to that statement.

I nodded and said to him.

“I’m so glad you found it.”

And I smiled at Song Yuna’s room.