An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 242

242. Episode 43 – What I Can Do (5)

Bang!

The gunshot echoed around me.

Hot flames erupted around me.

Whoosh.

The building was engulfed in bright red flames, the intense heat almost palpable on my face as I stood before it.

Soon, the massive structure was being consumed, turning a dark, ashen color.

Crash.

The blackened building began to collapse.

“Aaaaaah!”

“Save me….”

Amidst the screams of the people, I simply started walking forward.

No one tried to stop me or hold me back.

Because I was going to kill them all.

“Finally….”

I murmured in a very low voice.

Then, I raised my head, stared intently at the camera, and tilted my head as if questioning something.

With my eyes fixed on the camera, I stretched one corner of my mouth into a long, sinister grin.

“It’s… all over.”

The gun in my hand.

And the last bullet rolling around in my pocket.

I took out the bullet and loaded it into the gun.

I pointed the gun, loaded with a single bullet, at my head.

“I’m finally happy.”

A tear streamed down my cheek as I smiled at the camera.

Bang!

Finally, my finger pulled the trigger.

With a deafening gunshot, my body plummeted to the ground.

Thud…!

Lying in a pool of blood, I couldn’t even close my eyes, a chilling smile etched on my face.

And then, I stopped breathing.

“Cut! Okay!”

At Director David’s signal, Manager Kim rushed over to me.

Clap clap clap.

“Wow!”

“Great job, everyone.”

“Thanks for your hard work.”

And so, the final scene of the movie ‘The Reincarnated Ones’ was completed.

“Hee-sung, you worked hard.”

Manager Kim reached out his hand to me as I lay on the ground.

Clutch.

I took his hand and got up.

“Thanks, hyung [older brother or close male friend].”

Manager Kim responded with a smile.

“Mr. Hee-sung.”

And then, someone approached me.

It was Director David.

“Yes, Director.”

“You’ve worked so hard.”

“No, Director, you’ve worked hard. Thank you for your efforts.”

Director David extended his hand, and we shook hands, ending with a smile.

The set quickly began to wrap up.

The staff and actors packed their belongings, exchanging final greetings, but they didn’t linger long, knowing there would be an after-party.

And the staff went around to each trailer, asking the actors.

“The final party is tonight, are you attending?”

The question came to me as well.

As always, I shook my head.

“No. I don’t think I can make it.”

“Ah… but it’s the final party today….”

At his words, I bowed my head without making any excuses.

“I’m sorry.”

“…Yes, I understand. Alright. If you can make it, feel free to contact me.”

“I will.”

I said my goodbyes to them along with the movie shoot and quickly left the set.

***

Clink!

“Everyone worked hard. Let’s enjoy ourselves tonight!”

With Director David’s toast, countless actors and staff raised their glasses high.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Music blared.

Food and various kinds of alcohol were enjoyed in a free atmosphere.

It was a party reminiscent of an awards ceremony after-party.

The actors who attended the party looked around, searching for someone.

And the person they were all looking for was the same person.

“By any chance, is Jin Hee-sung not coming again today?”

Harley approached Eddie with a glass of wine and asked.

Eddie shrugged and replied.

“Yes, he’s absent again today.”

“Wow, that’s really something. Is there no party culture in Korea?”

Jason quickly answered, seeing Harley tilt her head as if she couldn’t understand.

“No. As far as I know, I’ve heard that Korea has a lot of party culture. They also have frequent dinners after filming.”

“That’s right. Korea is a country of excitement. There are many people with a lot of affection, so they probably drink as often as we do.”

At their words, Harley clicked her tongue.

“Then why doesn’t Hee-sung ever attend?”

Eddie frowned and murmured.

“Is he going somewhere good?”

“You’d think he’d get together with us at least once.”

“Come to think of it, we’ve never gathered with Hee-sung, have we?”

They nodded without anyone saying it first.

“Never. It’s not even his country, so he probably doesn’t have anyone to meet. I wonder where he goes every day after filming.”

“What on earth does Hee-sung do?”

The party of ‘The Reincarnated Ones’ without Jin Hee-sung.

It was unusual that the lead actor didn’t attend.

But in his absence, Jin Hee-sung was the center of everyone’s conversation.

***

“Hee-sung, aren’t you going to the dinner again today?”

The car arrived at the hotel parking lot.

Manager Kim got out of the car and asked me, and I nodded without a moment’s hesitation.

“Yeah, you can go if you want, hyung.”

“But how can I go without you? It’s the last one, are you sure you don’t want to go?”

Manager Kim seemed like he wanted to go.

I smiled and replied to him.

“I’m not going. You can go. I won’t be at the hotel anyway, so if you have nothing to do, go and have fun.”

At my words, Manager Kim smiled and shook his head.

“No. I’m going back to Korea soon, so I’m just going to look around LA and wrap things up.”

“Okay.”

We headed into the hotel together, and he raised his eyebrows and asked me.

“So, are you going there again today?”

At Manager Kim’s question, I immediately nodded.

“Yeah, I’m leaving right away.”

“Should I come with you today?”

“No, I want to go alone.”

He pursed his lips at my words and shook his head.

Then, he handed me the car keys and said.

“Drive carefully, and call me if anything happens.”

“Alright.”

Several tens of minutes later.

I headed back to the hotel parking lot.

I had to remove my makeup, so I showered, changed into comfortable clothes, and got into the car.

Now, I knew the way so well that I didn’t even need to enter the address.

I opened the window and stepped on the accelerator.

“Haa….”

The cold wind entered the car and touched my nose.

Only then did I feel like I was taking a breath I had been holding in.

No music played in the car.

I didn’t particularly want to listen to exciting songs or sad songs, or even any sound at all.

I just blankly focused on driving and felt the wind.

The car, after driving for a long time, arrived at the place I visited every day.

Swish.

The wind was blowing fiercely today.

Because of that, the waves were crashing high.

“…I feel like I’m going to live.”

I walked to the spot I always sat and plopped down on the ground.

A place where the water doesn’t reach in front of the rocks.

Since coming to Hollywood to film this project.

I had come here every single day.

It wasn’t like there were things to do or many people.

Maybe that’s why I came here.

The sky was darkening.

The crashing waves.

That’s all I wanted to see.

In this place where no one was around, all I could see was darkness and waves.

And all I could hear was the sound of the wind and the crashing waves.

This itself was the only element of healing for me.

For some reason, when I came here and sat down, felt the wind, and listened to the sound of the waves.

I couldn’t feel any thoughts or pain.

Thoughts about the 10,000 years.

Even the vague fear of the end that was coming soon.

The worries of those who were left behind.

And the memories and longing for Song Yu-na, all the emotions I felt for her, although I couldn’t be sure.

When I was here, I couldn’t think of anything.

It wasn’t like I had positive and happy thoughts.

It was just a place where I couldn’t think of anything.

A place where my head was cleared and I could shake off my worries and concerns.

So I came here every day.

After filming, I dragged my tired body and drove here without Manager Kim.

Since coming to Hollywood, I had just been living like this.

“The wind is nice today….”

I don’t think I’ve ever felt that it was nice.

The only reason I come here is to forget the pain.

I was just coming here to survive.

Today, I was able to forget my suffering for a while as I quietly watched the crashing waves for several hours.

***

“You should have rested a little more before editing. You came already even though filming ended yesterday?”

The staff member sitting in the editing room asked Director David, who had entered.

“Yeah, I couldn’t wait to see the footage.”

“Oh my, Director, your passion is unstoppable. Haha.”

Director David raised the corners of his mouth, pulled up a chair, and approached the monitor.

“Let’s see the footage quickly. I didn’t even drink much alcohol yesterday because I wanted to see this.”

At his urging, the staff played the compiled footage.

“I haven’t touched anything yet, I’ve just connected them in order.”

The first video appeared as soon as the play button was pressed.

The screen started with Jin Hee-sung’s face.

Director David’s smile disappeared, and he scrutinized Jin Hee-sung’s acting with a furrowed brow.

“Skip to the next one.”

“Yes.”

Director David stared intently at Jin Hee-sung’s appearance on the screen with a more focused expression than he had on set.

His lips showed seriousness instead of a smile.

“Haa….”

An expression as if he was deep in thought.

The staff watched Director David’s gaze and continued to skip through the footage.

Director David didn’t move from his seat for several hours.

His face was becoming more and more distorted as if he was getting more serious.

Director David clicked pause on the last scene.

Jin Hee-sung’s face filled the large screen.

A single tear flowing from one eye.

But cold eyes that didn’t feel any emotion.

And Jin Hee-sung’s long, curved corner of his mouth made Director David, who was looking at the screen, feel a chill down his spine.

“…This is crazy.”

Director David zoomed in as if to close up Jin Hee-sung’s face.

He stared intently at his face and stroked his arm, which was covered in goosebumps.

“Jin Hee-sung… this actor, I guarantee, is an actor sent by God.”

The staff member sitting next to him nodded blankly at Director David’s words.

“Yes, Director. I have goosebumps.”

“Me too. And get me a meeting with the production company right away.”

At his words, the staff member widened his eyes in surprise.

“Right away?”

“Yeah, we need to have an urgent meeting.”

At Director David’s words, he tilted his head and asked.

“What should I say is the reason for the meeting?”

At the staff member’s words, Director David fixed his gaze on Jin Hee-sung in the screen and raised the corners of his mouth.

“Tell them it’s because of the movie title.”

The staff member scratched his head as if he didn’t understand his answer.

Soon, he contacted the production company.

One hour later.

The production company representative gathered in the editing room.

Director David said that it would be better to show them than to talk about it in detail, and he abruptly played the video for him.

And after all the parts that Director David wanted to show came out.

Director David opened his mouth to the production company representative.

“This has surpassed the scenario I set. This movie is the best of all the movies I’ve ever made; no, I think my life’s masterpiece will be born.”

At his words, the production company representative and the staff member next to him opened their mouths in surprise.

Soon, they nodded with an expression of agreement.

Director David played the scene where Jin Hee-sung’s chilling smile appeared and said.

“Look at this scene. This is not just acting that an actor can do. I’ve seen hundreds, no, thousands of movies, but this is the first time I’ve seen an actor acting like this.”

The production company representative also nodded and replied.

“This scene still gives me goosebumps even when I watch it again. Why is this actor only now seeing the light….”

They continued the conversation with praise for Jin Hee-sung for several tens of minutes.

While they were talking.

Director David opened his mouth to him.

“I think this movie came out so well that I don’t think it could come out like this even if we filmed it again and again. All of this is really thanks to Jin Hee-sung. It’s not an exaggeration to say that it’s all because of that one person.”

At his words, the production company representative looked at Jin Hee-sung in the screen as if there was no disagreement.

Director David continued.

“So, I want to change the title.”

“The title… isn’t the current title ‘The Reincarnated Ones’?”

“Yes, the title of this work, which I am confident will be a masterpiece… should never be simple.”

He bit his lip and twitched his lips with an expectant expression.