荡媚公熄乱文合集

Chapter 46: Lovely Juniors

After a day’s worth of filming ended.

Choi Ji-hwan cautiously approached me. Perhaps because of what happened in the morning, he had been avoiding me all day, but he somehow mustered the courage.

‘He must have been worried.’

In the drama, Choi Ji-hwan’s role is to bring down Kang Joo-heon, who looks down from a lofty position.

But the acting he showed today on set was rather disappointing. Whenever we had scenes together, he kept being overly conscious of me.

– Ji-hwan-ssi, why are you so stiff? Where did all the spirit you showed at the first audition go?

– …Sorry.

– …Alright. Let’s try again.

Fortunately, when we were filming earlier scenes, it wasn’t unusual for other actors to feel intimidated by me, so no one seemed to suspect anything specific between us.

However, we still have a mountain of scenes to shoot together. Today, we had few face-to-face scenes, so we barely managed to get through it.

In the upcoming courtroom scenes, we’ll be shooting for almost an hour straight. If Choi Ji-hwan keeps this up, it will be problematic for both of us.

‘Let’s at least hear what he has to say.’

Seeing how he followed me all the way to the parking lot right after filming ended, he must have something to say. Hopefully, he wouldn’t dramatically pull out a knife here.

I hoped it wasn’t the worst-case scenario where someone like Director Baek or Park Ji-hoon, or other candidates, instigated him, or where jealousy drove him to pull out a knife.

“I’m sorry-!!”

Fortunately(?) what I feared didn’t happen. As soon as Choi Ji-hwan met my eyes, he immediately bowed deeply and apologized.

As someone who fully understood his feelings, part of me wanted to generously let it go.

‘But our Joo-heon says not to.’

Kang Joo-heon, who had taken up residence in my mind, firmly shook his head. He said I shouldn’t go easy on someone who dared to mention Kim Eun-ha lightly.

“I’m pretty sure I warned you.”

Flinch-!

Choi Ji-hwan, who was bowing, noticeably flinched. I looked down at the back of his head with a cold gaze and spoke.

“Do you even know what you did wrong?”

“…Yes, I’m reflecting on it.”

“Tell me.”

“What?”

Choi Ji-hwan lifted his head slightly. He glanced at me cautiously and slowly raised his back, looking like he didn’t understand what I meant.

“You said you know what you did wrong.”

“Ah! Well, actually…”

After hesitating for a long time, Choi Ji-hwan finally started speaking. Once he began, he started pouring out various things, as if his mouth had loosened up.

He talked about what was discussed when he gathered with his peers yesterday, and why he acted the way he did.

“To be honest, even if you weren’t parachuted in, I knew you were the best fit for Kang Joo-heon. It seems I made a mistake out of momentary jealousy.”

“It seems?”

“I made a mistake! I’m sorry!”

Whoosh-!

Once again, Choi Ji-hwan deeply bowed and apologized, his voice resonating loudly in the parking lot.

‘…Well, if I thought a parachute was taking a lead role I worked hard for, I’d lose my mind too. People make mistakes.’

I fully understood his feelings.

He acted impulsively with youthful exuberance, but later, when he came to his senses, he realized how bold his actions were.

‘A parachute is quite something.’

It’s a roundabout way of saying someone has taken a spot without merit, but conversely, it means they hold significant power.

Especially in the case of dramas, the person must have enough influence to directly or indirectly impact the broadcasting station.

Even if it’s the lead role in a drama, he’s just a rookie actor in his first project.

Even the great Kim Young-ho doesn’t touch me recklessly, not just because I act well.

‘Still, I need to settle this.’

I wasn’t sure how much of Choi Ji-hwan’s apology was calculated, but I could feel his sincerity. However, it seemed a bit too easy to end it here.

Usually, considering social relationships, this would be enough to forgive and move on. Yet, Kang Joo-heon within me frowned once again.

“Choi Ji-hwan-ssi.”

“Yes! Sunbae!”

Choi Ji-hwan, like a soldier on high alert, quickly raised his head. I gave him a very soft and gentle smile.

“I want to treat our cute juniors to a meal.”

“Yes!? You, you don’t have to… No! I’ll gather everyone from my year and below you. Just give the order!”

Seeing my junior, who was ready to share even the last grain of rice with his peers, brought a benevolent smile to my face.

  *

“Wow, the atmosphere here is amazing.”

“Choi Ji-hwan, are you sure this is okay?”

“…Huh? What do you mean?”

“I came here once with my ex-boyfriend, and even the cheapest dish was tens of thousands of won. And that was just some breadcrumbs.”

A remark loaded with implications of whether he was overextending himself brought an awkward smile to Choi Ji-hwan’s face. He scratched his cheek for a moment before reluctantly explaining.

“…It’s okay. Although I gathered you all here today, our school’s sunbae is paying.”

“What!? Why didn’t you mention something so important earlier!?”

“A sunbae? Who is it? A guy or a girl? No, at this level, could it be Seo Jun-woo sunbae!? Wow, that would be amazing.”

“Sorry, he asked me to keep it a secret. But let’s start ordering. He said we could order anything on the menu.”

“Wow… This is top class.”

“It must be Seo Jun-woo sunbae.”

“Oh my gosh! It really is!”

The peers began to speculate among themselves, and Choi Ji-hwan awkwardly averted his gaze, unable to respond.

“Is he coming here in person?”

“No, he’s very busy.”

“But you never know, right?”

“…Well, maybe?”

“I’m going to the restroom for a moment!”

“Me too!”

The girls, who had come in full makeup and matching dress codes from when Choi Ji-hwan invited them to the fancy restaurant, now rushed to the bathroom to double-check their appearance at the mention of Seo Jun-woo.

The guys, unable to hide their excitement, were also looking at the menu with thrilled expressions.

“Ji-hwan, there are no prices listed here.”

“Yeah, that’s how places like this are.”

Wow-

His answer drew exclamations of awe from his peers. Watching them, Choi Ji-hwan let out a secret bitter smile. It was his first time here too.

‘…I have no idea what any of this is.’

Cassoulet, Boeuf Bourguignon, Quiche Lorraine, etc. The menu was filled with dishes whose ingredients he couldn’t even begin to guess.

As a result, the peers searched for each dish on their phones. An employee, seeing this, approached them cautiously.

“If you don’t mind, may I recommend some dishes for you? The VVIP requested that you all be treated to a full-course meal.”

“F-Full course…”

Though taken aback, they all nodded, and immediately, an array of dishes began to pour out.

Starting with appetizers to stimulate their appetites, followed by universally beloved steaks.

Every bite melted in their mouths like snowflakes, stimulating their dopamine.

“Ji-hwan, thanks for this luxurious treat.”

“Really. Honestly, seeing the prices, I wouldn’t be able to eat this with my own money, but since someone else is paying, it’s incredibly sweet.”

“But is sunbae~nim really not coming? You should try contacting him.”

“Ahaha…”

Choi Ji-hwan could only give another awkward expression at his peers’ praise and questions. He didn’t really have anything he could say.

He had just been told to reserve a restaurant he knew and let his friends have a ‘comfortable’ meal there.

“Come to think of it, you came here right after filming today, didn’t you? How was that guy? Did he show off and act all high and mighty again?”

“…That guy?”

Choi Ji-hwan swallowed his unease at the innocent question from his peer.

However, their greasy tongues, possibly thanks to the delicious food, didn’t stop.

“Who else would it be, of course, I’m talking about Kang Woo-ju. That guy must have a lot of money now. Why doesn’t he host an event like this?”

“Yeah yeah, I took a class with him, and I’ve never even gotten an ice cream from him. How can you call such a person a sunbae?”

“He hasn’t even graduated, so what kind of sunbae is he? In terms of graduation years, we’re actually above him. Next time you see him, tell him to give us a proper bow.”

Heh heh-

The ridicule started again. Perhaps because these people had a lot of grievances with their seniors due to various injustices, they couldn’t stop talking once Kang Woo-ju became the subject.

“Honestly, I’m so jealous of Kang Woo-ju. I wish I could hook up with a chaebol and make my life easy. Why doesn’t one fall from the sky for me?”

“With your looks, it’s impossible.”

“Tsk tsk, what ignorant mortals. None of my ex-girlfriends ever stopped contacting me. One night is enough for anyone.”

“So that’s why you always ghost them?”

“Ugh, you filthy bastards.”

The girls pretended to be disgusted by the boys’ crude conversation, but their upturned eyes indicated that they didn’t really mind.

“Are those guys really men?”

“Ah, I miss Jun-woo sunbae.”

“It was so happy back when we were in school together. I heard a rumor that he’s coming back soon. I’d re-enroll just to follow him around.”

“How can people from the same class be so different?”

No matter how the topic changed, it always circled back to the same subject like a ghost.

After all, everyone here was either an aspiring actor or a supporting actor. The jealousy towards Kang Woo-ju was especially intense.

None of them had seen his acting firsthand, and only a few had even had a proper conversation with him.

“…He doesn’t seem like such a bad person.”

“Huh? What did you just say?”

“Did I hear that right?”

“What’s with you all of a sudden?”

The table, which had been bustling with laughter and chatter, suddenly fell silent. All their sharp gazes turned towards Choi Ji-hwan.

Flinching, but not retracting his statement, Choi Ji-hwan continued in a clearer voice.

“…When you actually get to know him, he doesn’t seem like such a bad person. No, is he bad? I’m not sure myself. He’s a bit odd in many ways, but…”

Shaking his head as if he didn’t quite understand his own words, Choi Ji-hwan took a big gulp of the expensive wine he barely knew the name of to soothe his itchy throat.

But his condition didn’t improve at all, and he found himself stifling a bitter laugh as he looked at his peers, who were staring at him as if he had lost his mind.

‘When I leave, they’ll probably talk behind my back just like they do about the sunbae.’

He wasn’t any different from them.

He was fully aware of that.

But the difference between them and himself was.

“…This wine is more astringent than I anticipated.”

As if he had eaten spoiled food, his mouth, tongue, throat, and even his stomach all felt nauseous.

Whether it was because of the wine or the reflection of his own image in the empty glass, Choi Ji-hwan couldn’t decide.

He stood up from his seat, looking around at the group.

“I don’t feel well, so I’m leaving early. You guys finish your meal.”

“Hey, Choi Ji-hwan! What’s wrong with you?”

A peer next to him grabbed his arm, but Choi Ji-hwan silently pulled his hand away. The peers who saw this let out derisive laughs.

“He was chatting just fine before, and now suddenly he’s pretending to be all noble. Is it because he landed the lead role and now needs to manage his image?”

“Did he get paid off by Kang Woo-ju or something?”

“…”

Choi Ji-hwan silently listened to the increasingly harsh insults from his peers.

Normally, he would be furious at their excessive criticism, but for some reason, the more he listened, the more ashamed he felt.

This was because he saw his own past behavior reflected in them like a mirror. If he could, he would sew up his past self’s mouth.

“I’m leaving.”

With nothing more to say, he turned to go. Or at least, he was about to when it happened.

“Leaving already?”

“…!?”

Choi Ji-hwan turned his head in the direction of the voice, eyes widening in surprise.

His peers also stood speechless, mouths agape. All eyes were on a man confidently walking into the restaurant.

“Sunbae…”

Kang Woo-ju lightly patted Choi Ji-hwan’s shoulder, who was staring at him blankly.

He then sat in the seat the quick-witted staff had prepared, as if it were the most natural thing. He looked around at the stunned group and smiled.

“Judging by your faces, I don’t think I need to introduce myself.”

He was smiling.

His tone was soft.

But why did it feel so suffocating?

“Nice to meet you, my lovely juniors.”

Gulp-

The sound of dry throats swallowing echoed from all around like a chorus.

*****