An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 75

75. #16 – The Person Riding the Wave and the Person Swept Away by the Wave (3)

Crackle, crackle.

In front of us, firewood burned merrily, and behind, the intense sound of waves crashed against the shore.

“It gets dark quickly because it’s an island.”

Despite the warm weather, the sky seemed to darken rapidly.

Or perhaps it only felt that way because there were no streetlights to illuminate the surroundings. There was no chance of finding anything that glowed on a deserted island.

At Seo In-woo’s observation, Shin Min-young looked up at the sky and said,

“Still, it’s a relief the rain stopped.”

“That’s right. If it had rained… it’s too awful to even imagine.”

Just as we started setting up the tent, the light drizzle ceased. Thankfully, we didn’t get soaked.

“The weather is so nice here, but it’s strange that it’s raining so much on the mainland….”

Shin Min-young shook her head, and Seo In-woo, ever optimistic, chimed in with a bright smile.

“Still, where else would the staff have packed plenty of water and food?”

“That’s true.”

“It feels like we’re camping, which is nice, right? Haha.”

We all laughed at Seo In-woo’s positive attitude. We couldn’t stay depressed forever just because we had to spend a day here. It wasn’t like we could go back to the mainland anyway.

Although the weather was warm, the temperature gradually dropped on the deserted island surrounded by the sea. We moved a little closer to the fire.

“Hee-sung, come closer; you must be cold,” Shin Min-young said, pointing to the fire.

“Yes, I will.”

I stepped forward at her invitation.

“The situation turned out like this, but thanks to it, we’re having this kind of experience,” I said, watching the red-burning firewood. Shin Min-young nodded in agreement.

“That’s right. Well, this will become a memory when we look back on it later.”

Seo In-woo clapped his hands and exclaimed, “That’s right! If we talk about this as a behind-the-scenes story when we go on entertainment shows later, it’ll be a real hit!”

We started chatting, letting our imaginations run wild.

That’s right.

All we could do was talk.

We couldn’t do anything else.

I had forgotten for a moment that this was a deserted island and that there was nothing here.

It wasn’t that cell phones didn’t work here; it’s just that the batteries were dead. We had a portable charger, but we were trying to conserve our cell phones as much as possible, either for emergencies or to save power.

Fortunately, we got along well with the other actors, so we started talking to each other to get closer, thinking it was a good thing. Thanks to this unexpected opportunity, I felt like we were bonding more than we had at our first company dinner.

“Are the other actors resting separately?” Seo In-woo asked, looking around.

Some supporting actors were resting with their managers or doing their own thing. It wasn’t mandatory to gather in one place.

I craned my neck and looked around, not necessarily searching for someone, but curious about Song Yu-na, who I hadn’t seen since earlier. Rather than being worried, I wondered if she was yelling at her manager, Chief Choi, somewhere again.

Then, Shin Min-young shrugged and sighed softly. “But just sitting here like this, time really doesn’t pass.”

We all nodded in agreement.

“That’s right. It’s not even 7 o’clock yet.”

“If we played a game or something, time would pass quickly,” Shin Min-young suggested, and Seo In-woo grinned.

“A drinking game?”

She waved her hand dismissively. “Haha, no. Just… a board game?”

Our eyes met, and I smiled. Then, a thought struck me, and I exclaimed, “That’s right!”

Shin Min-young flinched in surprise at my outburst.

“I have a board game.”

“Really?” she asked, her eyes widening.

When I nodded vigorously, she smiled brightly and said, “Wow! Did you bring it to play this time?”

“Yes, I originally brought it to play together if we were bored at the accommodation, but I never thought I’d take it out here.”

Her eyes sparkled. Seo In-woo also approached me with interest.

“It’s perfect because I’m bored. Hee-sung, where’s the board game?”

“It’ll be in my luggage. I’ll go get it.”

“Okay, then I’ll clear some space here,” he said, and they began making room with the excited faces of children who had just been given something to play with.

***

“Hey, there’s no way to do it like that!” Seo In-woo said playfully as Shin Min-young placed her game piece on the board.

She smirked. “Then it’s my turn, right?”

“Yes, let’s see how well In-woo does. Haha.”

Seo In-woo shrugged and straightened his back. “Ahem, ahem.”

A small throat-clearing sound reached my ears, and we all turned toward the noise. Song Yu-na had approached us unnoticed. She pretended not to be paying attention and fixed her gaze on the sea.

I assumed she had just wandered over, but Seo In-woo, seemingly unfazed by her presence, lowered his head and rolled the dice.

“I’ll do it.”

“Oh!” Shin Min-young raised her eyebrows as she looked at the dice roll.

“Oh yeah, then I’ll go forward. Haha,” Seo In-woo laughed heartily, teasing Shin Min-young.

Meanwhile, I wasn’t looking at the game board. I was watching Song Yu-na out of the corner of my eye. She had her arms crossed and was casually facing the sea, but her body betrayed her interest. Song Yu-na’s eyes kept darting glances at the board game.

I chuckled, amused that she had come all the way over here to watch us play, even though she could see the sea from anywhere.

“It’s Hee-sung’s turn. Here’s the dice,” Seo In-woo said, handing me the dice.

I took them and addressed Song Yu-na, not Seo In-woo. “Yu-na.”

At my words, Song Yu-na blinked and tilted her head. “Yes?”

“Did you come to see the sea?”

“Ah… of course.”

Seo In-woo tilted his head and asked Song Yu-na, “Would you like to join us?”

Song Yu-na still shrugged, her arms crossed. “If you don’t want to, don’t,” I said lightly.

As my gaze returned to the game board, Song Yu-na shouted urgently, “Are you short on people?”

“Pardon?”

“No, if you’re short on people, I’ll join you….”

Song Yu-na trailed off. I barely suppressed the laughter that threatened to erupt at her obvious desire to play.

After swallowing hard, I smiled and said playfully, “Well… it’s not that we’re short, so you don’t have to force yourself. Sit down if you want to join us.”

Eventually, a smile bloomed on my lips. What she wanted was for us to coax her into playing the game with us, but Song Yu-na reacted to my unexpected words. She must have known that I was joking, and she immediately glared at me.

“Haha, I’m kidding. Let’s play together, Yu-na.”

It wasn’t Song Yu-na who was excited at my words, but Seo In-woo. “That’s right! Yu-na, let’s play games together!”

I smiled and shook my head at Seo In-woo’s enthusiasm. Song Yu-na sat down in the seat next to her that Seo In-woo had prepared with a haughty expression.

“Then… let’s just do one game.”

A smile bloomed on her face as she spoke.

***

After the first game ended, I put down the dice for a while, exhausted from playing so passionately. “That was really fun.”

“I know.”

“What would have happened if Hee-sung hadn’t brought the board game?” Shin Min-young said, a smile never leaving her lips. She pointed to the game and continued, “Let’s take a break and do it again!”

Seo In-woo smiled helplessly at Shin Min-young and shook his head. “Min-young really likes board games, it’s true.”

“Of course. Let’s put a penalty on our next game!”

“Oh, that’s a good idea!” I said, and Seo In-woo also grinned. “There are four of us, so we can do it as a team battle.”

At the same time, our eyes turned to Song Yu-na. Song Yu-na, who had said she would only play one game, blinked as if she couldn’t resist. It seemed to be her way of expressing enthusiasm.

We drank soda instead of alcohol and switched the topic of conversation.

“Will our viewership ratings be good?” Shin Min-young asked, and Seo In-woo replied with passionate eyes, “Of course, they have to be good. Min-young is in it, and Hee-sung is also the lead.”

Then he smiled and turned to Song Yu-na. “Yu-na is also making a cameo appearance. And it’s also my first supporting role, so I really hope it goes well.”

“It has to be. Let’s film hard.”

Seo In-woo nodded vigorously. He glanced at his wristwatch and rolled his eyes quickly. “Ah, the drama ‘Red Flower’ is starting to air now.”

Red Flower. I also knew the drama, the one that had offered me the lead role, but instead of me, Park Min-joon got the part.

“That’s right. The lead in that drama is actor Park Min-joon, right?” Shin Min-young asked, and Seo In-woo confirmed, “Yes, that’s right. Park Min-joon finally got the lead role.”

When I didn’t say anything, he turned to me and asked, “Hee-sung, do you know the Red Flower drama too?”

“Yeah, I know it,” I replied nonchalantly. I didn’t want to talk about Park Min-joon for long, but Seo In-woo kept asking me questions about the story.

“Do you know Park Min-joon too?” Before I could answer, Seo In-woo said, “That’s right. Didn’t you work together before?”

I nodded, and he smiled brightly. “Then how do you think the drama will be? Have you ever talked to Park Min-joon about the Red Flower drama?”

Looking at Seo In-woo, who was asking with such genuine curiosity, I finally revealed my honest feelings. “Um… to be honest, I hope the drama doesn’t become a big hit.”

Seo In-woo’s face registered surprise. It wasn’t just Seo In-woo who was startled; Shin Min-young and even Song Yu-na stared with their mouths open.

“Are you not on good terms?” Shin Min-young asked cautiously, and I quickly shook my head.

“No, it’s not that….”

Seeing their expressions, I added, “Actually, I was going to appear in that drama, but I didn’t.”

Shin Min-young exclaimed as if she understood. “I know exactly how you feel!” Then her lips twisted. “I’ve turned down a project before, and even though I said I wouldn’t do it, I kept worrying about whether the viewership ratings would be good.”

“Min-young has had that experience too?”

“Of course. So I checked the viewership ratings like crazy as if I was in it and even monitored the drama,” she said, shaking her head as if remembering that time. “I really understand Hee-sung’s feelings.”

Song Yu-na held a soda instead of a glass of alcohol, and I clinked my soda against her bottle.

The night grew darker, and our game was in full swing.

“We win if our piece goes in this time, right?” The game was quickly heading toward the last turn. The teams were me and Song Yu-na against Shin Min-young and Seo In-woo.

It was Shin Min-young and Seo In-woo who were smiling, not me.

“Haa- let’s proceed quickly,” I said to Seo In-woo in a blunt tone. He smiled brightly and stuck his tongue out at me.

“You’re so annoying…!”

“What to do? It looks like Hee-sung is going to lose this time? Haha.”

The dice left Seo In-woo’s hand, slowly rolling in the air as if in slow motion.

Tak.

The dice fell to the floor.

“Wow!” Seo In-woo and Shin Min-young shouted and bumped each other’s hands. “We won!”

“Haa….”

I sighed deeply. Song Yu-na glared at me with a dissatisfied face. Pretending not to notice her gaze, I shouted to Seo In-woo, “So what’s the penalty?”

“Um…,” he whispered to Shin Min-young and exchanged words. The two, having decided on the penalty, looked at me and Song Yu-na alternately. Soon, Seo In-woo grinned and pointed. “Go get the portable charger from the boat parked over there!”

Our eyes moved to the boat he was pointing at, barely visible in the darkness.

Song Yu-na shook off the sand on her pants and got up. “Haa… let’s go.”