An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 132

132 #25 – A Crisis for Some, An Opportunity for Others (1)

“Our last episode’s ratings are out!”

At Director Song’s words, we all turned to look at him.

I swallowed hard and opened my mouth.

“Director, what are the ratings?”

After asking him, I silently muttered under my breath.

‘Please… 20%…’

Soon, Director Song frowned with a serious expression.

At his gesture, I bit my lip.

Then, Director Song clenched both fists and shouted, shaking them.

“It’s over 20%!”

“Whoa!”

We in the restaurant cheered in unison.

Only then did Director Song smile brightly and shout.

“20.1%! It’s a close call, but we exceeded 20% in the last episode. Haa.”

Clapping and cheers erupted here and there.

I also let out a sigh of relief and slumped down in my seat.

The dreaded 20%.

The viewership ratings, built up steadily from the first episode, finally exceeded that percentage.

It was a drama that everyone discouraged, so it felt like a report card to show them we succeeded.

I let out a roar of joy at the score of 20% viewership.

“Whoa!”

The worries that had been weighing on my mind were instantly relieved.

I gulped down the soju [Korean distilled rice liquor] in front of me.

Director Song must have been the most anxious about the ratings.

But I, too, was always uneasy under the pressure of the ratings.

Tak-.

After gulping down the soju, I put the glass down on the table.

Director Song looked at the empty glass and shouted loud enough for the restaurant to hear.

“Everyone, stop drinking soju now!”

“Yes?”

At his words, everyone, including me, stopped the commotion and paid attention to him.

Director Song couldn’t contain his excitement and shouted again loudly.

“I’m in a good mood, so let’s order the most expensive bokbunja [Korean raspberry wine] instead of soju today! Haha!”

He laughed heartily and said to the employee.

“Boss! Change all the soju on our table to bokbunja. And reset the meat with the good stuff!”

“Yes, we’ll set it up right away.”

At Director Song’s words, the staff and actors began to cheer.

“Alright, eat a lot. I’m paying for everything today.”

“Thank you for the meal, Director.”

Director Song quickly filled a glass with bokbunja and stood up.

“Our ‘Temptation of the Mistress’ team. Good actors, and staff who followed me so well. I remember and appreciate you all.”

We raised our glasses following him.

Director Song continued, his face filled with joy.

“I’m so happy to finish with such good results, and as much as we’ve suffered, let’s eat and drink to our hearts’ content today!”

“Cheers!”

The glasses raised high above our heads clinked in the air.

The atmosphere here was truly like a festival.

“Senior, shall we have a drink?”

Seo In-woo poured me a drink and said.

“Sure.”

We tilted our glasses and continued the conversation.

“Are you going to rest now, Senior?”

“I haven’t decided yet, but I think I’ll rest for a bit and then do another project.”

Come to think of it, Seo In-woo is in a relationship with Shin Min-young.

The story he seriously told me on the last filming set came to mind again.

That Shin Min-young didn’t like me being close to him.

But seeing Seo In-woo keep talking to me, I was the one who was more conscious of her.

A few tens of minutes ago, Shin Min-young’s sharp gaze when watching the drama.

Now, when I turned my head, thankfully, Shin Min-young was not there.

I looked at Seo In-woo and carefully opened my mouth.

“Are you and Min-young doing well?”

He pouted and nodded.

“Yeah, the filming just ended, so we should go on dates often now.”

I nodded at Seo In-woo’s words.

And I had no more questions about her.

“In-woo, what project are you going to do next?”

I quickly changed the subject.

For a while, Seo In-woo filled his glass and continued talking to me.

***

Due to the aftermath of the company dinner, I couldn’t leave the house all day the next day.

Director Song, excited by the viewership ratings, kept calling for a second and third round, enjoying the dinner until dawn.

As a result, I was also feeling the effects of the company dinner until the next day.

And while I was at home, I received countless calls.

The last episode of a drama is more important than any other episode.

There are quite a few cases where things go well but then falter at the end.

However, the last episode of the drama ‘Temptation of the Mistress’ was well-received in terms of the story.

And the viewership ratings also broke its own highest record of 20%, so I received endless calls from acquaintances congratulating me on my hard work.

I spent my time getting plenty of sleep and rest that I hadn’t been able to get.

Ding-dong.

Then, at the sound of the doorbell, I jumped up and greeted the guest.

“Hyung!” [Older brother or close male friend]

It was none other than Manager Kim.

As soon as I opened the door, Manager Kim pushed out a takeout coffee and came into the house.

“You’re up?”

“Yeah, do you have a hard time if you don’t see me for even a day?”

At my joke, Manager Kim nodded with a playful face.

“Of course. I’m going crazy without seeing you? Haha.”

“Gross.”

I said, shuddering.

Manager Kim didn’t care about my joke and naturally walked to the table.

“But what’s going on at my house from the morning?”

At my question, he shrugged and replied.

“I said I was coming to your house today while going home after the company dinner.”

“That’s right. Don’t you have work, Hyung?”

“Of course. If you don’t have work, where would I have work?”

I shook my head and took a seat opposite him.

“Hyung is an employee of WG Entertainment, shouldn’t you be managing other celebrities?”

“I need to rest too. I’m taking a few days off now that the drama is over, too.”

“Oh, Hyung, you’ve worked hard.”

We took a sip of coffee and continued the conversation.

“Oh, right. You’re going to get a bonus this time.”

Manager Kim said to me with a smirk.

“What bonus?”

“I got a call this morning that an additional bonus is coming out because the viewership ratings exceeded 20%.”

“Wow, that’s awesome?”

I bit my lip and kept smiling.

Even without that, I was getting a pretty high appearance fee for playing the lead role in the drama.

The sole lead role in a Monday-Tuesday prime-time drama.

It’s a position where the pay is bound to be high without even saying it.

But on top of that, a bonus due to the viewership ratings.

Moreover, it felt even more valuable because it was the 20% that was exceeded in the last episode.

“There’s more.”

Manager Kim said, wetting his dry lips with a meaningful look.

At his expression, I pulled my chin in and stared with wide eyes.

Manager Kim tore his lips wide open and continued in a loud voice.

“This time, MBS is giving the drama team a reward vacation for their hard work!”

At his words, I opened my mouth wide and screamed silently.

Manager Kim opened his mouth again with an excited face.

“They’re going to Hawaii.”

“…Jackpot.”

With wide eyes, I slumped back in my chair.

Soon, I came to my senses and poured questions at Manager Kim.

“Then when are we going?”

“The date is…”

Before Manager Kim could finish speaking, I asked again.

“Then are you going with us too? Are all the staff coming? Without anyone missing?”

Seeing me, who was excited like a child and didn’t stop talking, Manager Kim burst into laughter.

“I’ll answer one by one. Haha.”

It was also the first time for Manager Kim to receive a reward vacation for a drama I appeared in.

He seemed quite excited and happy.

His eyebrows, raised high, seemed to prove that feeling.

“Reward vacations are usually…”

Manager Kim went on and on explaining to me in a very excited, high-pitched voice.

Like that, we calmed down while drinking coffee.

Manager Kim suddenly spoke to me.

“Hee-sung, are you going to rest this time and do your next project?”

“Um… I haven’t thought about the details yet. Why?”

“No, there’s also the reward vacation. You worked hard during this drama.”

As he said, the filming intensity of this drama was quite high.

A filming schedule that rushed without a break.

On top of that, I had hardly slept properly.

I smiled at Manager Kim’s words and nodded.

“Anyway, there’s hardly anything new starting at the end of the year, so let’s take a good rest.”

“I will.”

“Let’s rest and flex while choosing a project.”

He said with a smile.

I couldn’t stop smiling as I thought of the bonus.

***

After Manager Kim left.

A house left alone.

I was lost in thought, looking out the window.

I had always lived busily, so being lost in thought like this didn’t feel boring, but rather relaxed and happy.

Darkness was slowly beginning to settle outside.

There were no more scripts in front of me, and there were no special schedules.

“Ah… what should I do for dinner today?”

Then suddenly a thought came to mind.

“That’s right, I need to binge-watch Senior Seo-bin’s drama.”

The drama Blackman, which I hadn’t been able to watch because I was busy filming.

I quickly moved to the sofa and played the first episode of the drama.

Before I knew it, three hours had passed since I had been watching Blackman in my seat.

I played episode 4 without hesitation.

“Wow, Senior Seo-bin. You look especially handsome in this drama.”

At that moment, as I was smiling faintly while looking at Choi Seo-bin.

Bee-beep.

The cell phone I had placed on the sofa began to ring.

As soon as I checked the caller ID, I was startled and pressed the receive button.

“Hello?”

-Oh, Hee-sung. Can you talk?

The person who called me was none other than Choi Seo-bin, who was on TV.

-Really?

“Yes, I was resting at home and watching Senior’s drama. I just turned on episode 4, and Senior called me, so I got goosebumps.”

-Thank you for monitoring my drama. Haha.

“No, it’s such a popular drama that I had to watch it after filming ended. Besides, it’s a drama that Senior is in, so of course I have to watch it.”

-By the way, the drama’s viewership ratings were good. I wanted to call and congratulate you on finishing successfully.”

“Ah, thank you.”

-I was going to call on the day of the drama’s last episode, but I was too busy filming, so I’m calling now.

“Oh, I’m grateful just for the call. Are you very busy filming?”

Choi Seo-bin shook his head at my words and replied.

-Yeah, I’m not even halfway through yet, but I’m so busy. Are you doing well?

“Yes, I’m free now.”

-I’m jealous. Once I get my busy filming schedule sorted out, let’s have a meal together.”

“That would be great. I’m unemployed now, haha. I’ll be waiting, Senior.”

-Okay. If the drama just ended….

At that time.

Choi Seo-bin’s surroundings began to buzz.

In the chaotic atmosphere, he couldn’t finish his sentence.

-What? Are you sure about that?

Choi Seo-bin urgently asked someone next to him, not me.

At that sound, I frowned and focused on the voice I heard.

-Hee-sung.

“Yes, Senior.”

-I’m sorry, but I’ll call you again later.

“Yes….”

Before I could finish answering, the call was cut off.

I only heard it for a moment, but it was clear that something serious had happened at Choi Seo-bin’s filming location.

Maybe… was there an accident on set?

Did someone get hurt?

With a worried mind, I quickly went to the internet.

The fastest news in times like this was internet articles.

The moment I was typing to search for ‘Blackman’ in the search bar.

An urgent celebrity news alert rang.

[Im Ha-joon, the lead actor of the Wednesday-Thursday drama ‘Blackman,’ sent to the prosecution on charges of smoking marijuana…. ]