An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 51

51. #11 – There is no eternal Gap, nor eternal Eul. (8)

“Ready, action!”

Director Im’s voice echoed from beyond the megaphone.

The set, which had been bustling just moments before, fell silent at his word.

Jin Hwee-sung and Kang Chan-sung exchanged glances, their eyes meeting.

Neither of them uttered a single line, but the chilling aura emanating from them was palpable, affecting not only the staff but even the cameras.

One camera, its red light shining brightly, zoomed in on Jin Hwee-sung’s eyes.

Another camera captured Kang Chan-sung’s clenched fist.

A suffocating tension filled the air.

The cameras were rolling, but for several seconds, no words were exchanged between the two.

They merely engaged in a silent battle of wills through their eyes.

No one dared to breathe.

The intensity of their eye acting alone was enough to take one’s breath away.

Then.

Kang Chan-sung broke the silence with a sigh.

“Haa, seriously.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Jin Hwee-sung opened his mouth, his eyebrows furrowed.

“Hyung [older brother or male friend], are you going to keep working like this?”

Kang Chan-sung’s face twisted instantly at Jin Hwee-sung’s dissatisfied tone.

The fist Kang Chan-sung was holding trembled as if it would burst.

The camera captured every tremor from various angles, not wanting to miss it.

“This punk, I’ve been putting up with him…!”

The next line wasn’t a spoken one, but rather a stage direction.

Kang Chan-sung striking Jin Hwee-sung.

One camera was already aimed downwards to capture Jin Hwee-sung turning his head.

Jin Hwee-sung, too, began to prepare to turn his head when Kang Chan-sung swung his arm.

Thwack-!

In that instant.

Kang Chan-sung’s palm struck the back of Jin Hwee-sung’s head.

The loud sound instantly froze the set into an even more chilling silence.

Clearly, neither the script nor the rehearsal before filming included a real hit.

It was supposed to be just a feigned strike.

The sound of the hit to the back of the head was to be added separately in post-production.

But Kang Chan-sung struck the back of his head without any prior agreement, so hard that it echoed throughout the set.

As a result, Jin Hwee-sung’s head, unprepared, was forced forward.

The atmosphere on set was already tense due to the nature of the scene.

Kang Chan-sung’s sudden action made it feel like walking on thin ice.

Kim, the manager, turned red in the face at the sound of the thwack!

He immediately jumped up and lunged towards the set.

His anger towards Kang Chan-sung had not subsided, so getting angry at him was nothing.

With a face that seemed to say, ‘How dare you hit my actor,’ he thrust his chest forward, but the staff and the other actor’s manager next to him grabbed him.

The assistant director also grabbed Kim’s arm roughly.

All eyes turned to Director Im, but the megaphone in his hand was still not turned on.

He didn’t seem to have any intention of calling NG [No Good – meaning to reshoot the scene].

Rather, his gaze was fixed on Jin Hwee-sung.

“Aish!” [expression of frustration]

Jin Hwee-sung’s curse echoed through the set.

His words, like Kang Chan-sung’s actions, were not in the script.

Kim, the manager, raised his eyebrows at Jin Hwee-sung’s words and turned back to his spot.

The arms that had been holding him also disappeared one by one.

Jin Hwee-sung, who had been forced to lower his head by Kang Chan-sung’s strike, raised his head sharply and spoke again.

“You crazy bastard, how dare you hit an actor?”

“…What?”

“Just because you’re older, does that mean you can do anything? Is that it?!”

The one who was flustered by this situation wasn’t Jin Hwee-sung, who had been hit, but Kang Chan-sung, who had hit him.

His eyes began to waver.

Jin Hwee-sung didn’t stop there.

“You piece of human garbage who used to crawl around on the streets.”

Jin Hwee-sung narrowed his eyes and sneered.

“I felt sorry for you, jobless and struggling, so I brought you along to drive, but you think you’re something now?”

Kang Chan-sung swallowed his embarrassment and tried to immerse himself back into the acting.

He was confident in his ad-libs.

“What did you just say?”

“Are your ears blocked?”

But Jin Hwee-sung spat out the words without a moment’s hesitation.

“That’s why, you son of a bitch… it’s because of you that I’m called a drama actor. You know that?”

His confidence was short-lived.

The moment he heard those words, Kang Chan-sung’s face hardened.

“What are you talking about?”

At his words, all the staff, including Kim, the manager, were engrossed as if they were watching a movie, not a film set.

They looked like people who had come to watch a fight.

“Didn’t you hear? I’m being treated like a ‘drama actor’ because of you.”

Kang Chan-sung couldn’t open his lips, as if he had swallowed honey.

His lips and facial muscles trembled.

In that moment, memories of the past flooded his mind.

The incident during his first film shoot.

It was his first film, so despite his great efforts, the only thing he heard on set was.

‘Stop acting like you’re in a drama. Do it properly.’

‘You’re a drama actor.’

Those words from top actor Choi Seo-bin had crushed his self-esteem.

It was nothing short of a trauma for Kang Chan-sung.

The countless words he had heard at that time and the situation seemed to unfold before his eyes.

In Kang Chan-sung’s eyes now, he saw Choi Seo-bin’s face and heard her voice, overlapping with Jin Hwee-sung.

Kang Chan-sung’s face turned pale.

Jin Hwee-sung had no way of knowing his inner thoughts.

That’s why he pushed even harder.

“A drama actor. A failure who can’t even get movie roles.”

“…….”

“Do you know why? Because the manager doesn’t know how to do anything.”

“Wh-what?”

He bit his lip and answered with an effort.

Jin Hwee-sung glared at him again and spewed out words.

“Do you think I don’t know? When you were filling in as Yoo Hyuk’s manager during my break, how much shit did you stir up in the film industry to hear those kinds of things? To the point where they were comforting me, saying it must be tough with such a clueless manager.”

Murderous intent began to rise in Kang Chan-sung’s eyes.

“You just stand there quietly on set every time, can’t do any marketing, and just fail at every meeting without saying a word. Do you even know how many CFs [Commercial Films, advertisements] you’ve ruined for me?”

Kang Chan-sung wanted to stop filming immediately.

He felt like his trauma would resurface.

But seeing the ridiculous expression on Jin Hwee-sung’s face, he couldn’t do that.

Losing his temper here meant losing.

He couldn’t let that guy get to him, since he was the one who started the ad-libs.

He held onto his crumbling mentality.

And tried to return to acting.

“I picked out all the scripts for you, you know that?”

“Scripts? Even the neighbor’s dog could read those. Just because you watch a lot of dramas at home doesn’t mean you’re good at reading scripts. The scripts that come to me are on a different level. I’m a ‘top star,’ and you’re just a manager.”

Jin Hwee-sung shook his head as if he was frustrated.

“Are you still not with it, always stuck in the driver’s seat?”

Kang Chan-sung gasped at Jin Hwee-sung’s words.

Director Im stared intently at their expressions with a satisfied look.

“Just don’t try to talk back to me, and just do what you’re told.”

“…….”

Kang Chan-sung’s fist trembled, but he held back.

In the scene, he was a manager.

A manager who couldn’t talk back to a celebrity.

This was Jin Hwee-sung’s intention.

To get back at him for acting superior to his manager in front of the coffee truck a few days ago.

To be exact, it was revenge on Kim, the manager.

The moment Kang Chan-sung hit Jin Hwee-sung on the back of the head, the entire scheme began.

Jin Hwee-sung, as if finally calmed down, took a breath and placed one arm around Kang Chan-sung’s shoulder.

After patting his shoulder a few times, Jin Hwee-sung lowered his hand and muttered to himself.

“Let’s do better, hyung.”

“…….”

Jin Hwee-sung glanced at Kang Chan-sung and walked away.

“Cut, okay!”

Director Im’s voice came from beyond the megaphone.

His voice seemed to convey not only the end of the scene but also high praise for their acting.

Director Im, who had jumped up from his seat, strode towards the set.

Clapping his hands, Director Im stood before them and opened his mouth with a very satisfied expression.

“The chemistry between the two was so good. Was it all planned out in advance?”

At his words, Kang Chan-sung and Jin Hwee-sung rolled their eyes quickly.

There had been no prior agreement at all.

Director Im, unaware of this, exclaimed in admiration.

“I was really surprised because I thought Hwee-sung’s ad-lib after getting hit on the back of the head was real. Did you guys coordinate it right before filming?”

At Director Im’s words, Jin Hwee-sung slowly nodded and replied.

“Yes… well, something like that.”

Kang Chan-sung barely suppressed his anger and forced a smile.

“It was a truly legendary scene today.”

Director Im gave them a thumbs up.

“Thank you.”

At Jin Hwee-sung’s reply, Director Im patted him on the shoulder and replied.

“Everyone worked hard.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than the staff on set shouted one by one.

“You worked hard!”

Kang Chan-sung immediately turned around and disappeared from the set.

Jin Hwee-sung bowed to the staff.

Creak.

The car door opened, and as Jin Hwee-sung got in, Kim, the manager, greeted him with a bright smile.

“Hwee-sung, you worked hard.”

Kim, the manager, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, turned to look at Jin Hwee-sung and raised one corner of his mouth.

“Thanks.”

Kim, the manager, felt a mixture of guilt and gratitude, thinking that he had taken revenge for him.

Jin Hwee-sung also knew that, but he pretended not to know and tilted his head.

He hadn’t done it to hear his thanks.

“For what?”

At Jin Hwee-sung’s question, Kim, the manager, swallowed his laughter and shrugged his shoulders.

“Nothing. Shall we get going?”

Jin Hwee-sung nodded and leaned back in his seat.

“Ah, I want to eat chicken. Hyung, want to eat together?”

Kim, the manager, who was holding the steering wheel, laughed heartily and replied.

“Sounds good. I’ll pay!”

***

As soon as Kang Chan-sung got into the waiting car, he threw the clothes he was wearing onto the floor as if throwing them away and shouted.

“Ah, this is so fucked up!”

Manager Shin had also seen what had happened on set a little while ago.

He couldn’t say anything to Kang Chan-sung.

He was sure that if he offered any clumsy words of comfort, he would pour all his anger on him.

Just then, Manager Shin’s phone rang.

He let out a sigh of relief, picked up the phone, and quickly got out of the car.

Kang Chan-sung, left alone in the car, couldn’t easily calm his anger.

He punched the passenger seat and shouted as if wailing.

“Jin Hwee-sung, you son of a bitch, really!”

His face turned red and blue.

Kang Chan-sung, trembling, looked at the script and threw it hard towards the driver’s seat.

Still unable to relieve his anger, he bit his lower lip while looking at Manager Shin, who was talking on the phone outside.

***

“Hello!”

The car arrived at the set.

As I opened the door and got out, I saw the assistant director passing by right in front of me.

I quickly greeted him.

The assistant director turned around at my voice.

“Oh, Hwee-sung.”

As I ran up to him, the assistant director smiled brightly and raised his eyebrows.

“Your acting yesterday was really good. I was going to tell you it was 100 points, but I couldn’t yesterday.”

As I rolled my eyes at his words, the assistant director spoke again.

“Wow, the way you shouted and spat out the lines without hesitation after getting hit on the back of the head by Chan-sung….”

The assistant director continued, acting out the scene.

He seemed to be talking about the emotional scene with Kang Chan-sung the day before.

I smiled brightly and replied to him.

“Haha, thank you, director.”

At my words, the assistant director looked around.

Then, he put his hand next to his mouth and opened his mouth as if whispering.

“Hwee-sung’s manager is amazing.”

I tilted my head at his words.

“What do you….”

At my words, he winked and lowered his voice even more.

“Yesterday, when Chan-sung hit Hwee-sung on the back of the head, it wasn’t agreed upon, right?”

“Yes?”

He raised one eyebrow as if he knew everything.

“Yesterday, as soon as Hwee-sung got hit on the back of the head, your manager was so surprised.”

“Ah….”

“If it had been agreed upon, your manager would have known.”

I nodded at his words.

“Anyway, your manager was so angry that he tried to jump onto the set.”

My eyes widened at his words.

“Really?”

“Yeah, so the other managers and we stopped him in a hurry. You’re lucky to have such a manager, Hwee-sung.”

I bowed my head at his words.

The face of Kim, the manager, flashed through my mind.

His actions and expressions were drawn in my mind.

My heart burned hotly.

I became even more desperate for success.

Only when I rise high will my people rise with me.

I want to succeed.

No, I must succeed.