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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: One Step
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“One Star!”
Eun-seong called out to Han-byeol in a loud voice. Han-byeol pattered over and stood before him.
“Hey, son. Have you been well?”
“So-so.”
“Why such a limp answer? You should say, ‘I’ve been well!’”
“I’ve been so busy with studying and acting practice, I haven't had a moment to myself, you know? It was a very harsh time for a second grader.”
“Ah. That must have been tough. I’ll accept that.”
Eun-seong ruffled Han-byeol’s hair and smiled. Even when the ‘filial piety is paid with money’ man messed up his hair, Han-byeol no longer scrunched up his face and instead offered a small smile of his own.
He liked the gentle touch of Eun-seong’s hand as it stroked his head. It was just like how he would pet his cat, Yami, whenever she was being especially cute. He figured the ‘filial piety is paid with money’ man was petting him because he thought he was cute too, which felt pretty good.
“You haven’t been giving your mom a hard time, have you?”
“I don’t know. I’m just an ordinary elementary school student. I’m not at an age where I can do everything perfectly like adults.”
“Not all adults do everything perfectly, either. I don’t listen to my mom very well.”
“You should be good to your mom. You said you were being a filial son. Are you really just going to do it all with money?”
“Alright, alright. I’ll try.”
Eun-seong gave a bright smile and took Han-byeol’s hand. Han-byeol craned his neck to look up at him.
“Did you miss me?”
“Ah, you don’t even have to ask.”
Eun-seong clutched his chest, putting on a look of desperate longing, which made Han-byeol’s lips jut out. In response, Eun-seong groaned, clutching the area over his heart even tighter.
“If you overdo it, it feels like a lie.”
“It’s true. I missed our One Star so much, I thought I’d die.”
Embarrassed by Eun-seong’s reaction—his continuous groans of ‘Ugh, ughhh’—Han-byeol fidgeted with his fingers.
“You said today was a reshoot, right?”
“Yes. I guess I did really poorly that day. So they said we have to shoot it again.”
“Don’t be too disappointed. There’s a saying: ‘The first shot never hits the mark.’ Everything is a process.”
“‘Shot’? I’m a kid, I can’t drink shots.”
“It means your first attempt at something. Not that kind of shot.”
“Oh. Okay. I won’t forget.”
His towering height, broad shoulders, and large hands.
This perfect adult, walking alongside a comparatively small child, was the star of the film set. Han-byeol, feeling a tickle in his chest, looked up at Eun-seong again.
“Did your first shot not hit the mark either?”
“I think I had to do about ten reshoots for my first role. I was terrible. So, keep your head up.”
Eun-seong looked down at Han-byeol trotting along behind him.
“But how long are you going to keep calling me ‘Ahjussi’? You know what our relationship is, right?”
“I know, but… We’re not filming right now, so it doesn’t come out easily.”
“You have to try. It takes practice. Go on.”
“…Dad.”
“There you go. That’s my boy.”
Eun-seong stroked Han-byeol’s hair again and walked on, holding his hand. At first, he’d disliked him so much. He’d never wanted to see Go Yeon-joo’s son.
But strangely, his eyes were drawn to him. He cared for him. When he wasn’t there, he missed him, and when he was, he wanted to hold his hand.
“Eun-seong!”
They were walking side by side when Tae-gon’s voice called out, and Eun-seong turned around. Tae-gon approached with his characteristic smiling face, his gaze landing directly on Han-byeol.
“Well, well, so it’s you. Han-byeol.”
At Tae-gon’s words, Han-byeol’s round eyes widened.
Trying to get on his eye level, Tae-gon spread his legs wide and squatted down. Aside from his flashy clothes and thick, tattooed eyebrows, his hairline was indistinct and the whites of his eyes were murky, giving him a cheap look.
“Hee-ya, you look much better in person. You’re a handsome kid.”
Feeling the unfamiliar, rough energy from the man, Han-byeol half-hid behind Eun-seong. Eun-seong looked down at him and said,
“Go to the director. You need to get ready for the shoot.”
At Eun-seong’s gentle voice, Han-byeol hesitated for a moment before giving Tae-gon a quick nod and running off. Tae-gon watched Han-byeol’s retreating back and let out a smirk.
“It’s not like I was going to eat him. When you greet someone, you should say hello. The little brat just ran off.”
As Tae-gon’s gaze remained fixed on Han-byeol, Eun-seong took a step forward and gestured with his chin in another direction.
“Let’s go to the waiting room.”
“Ah, right. Let’s do that.”
Eun-seong turned and walked away quickly, as if determined not to give him another second.
*
“The atmosphere on set isn’t bad. Lots of familiar faces, too. This is what I like about working in Korea. Everyone knows everyone after one degree of separation.”
Tae-gon entered Eun-seong’s waiting room and sat down on the sofa as if he owned the place. Placing his sunglasses on the table, he crossed his legs and gestured for Eun-seong to sit with a flick of his head.
“What brings you all the way to the set?”
Eun-seong asked as he sat down. Tae-gon smiled.
“I’ve been so busy with business trips lately, I haven’t had a moment’s peace. I always make it a point to visit you on set, but I just haven’t had the chance. You understand, right? Hm?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. When the CEO of the agency shows up, it just makes everyone on set tired.”
“Who cares if those guys get tired? My job is to make sure our actor is comfortable.”
“And you make me more tired than anyone else.”
Eun-seong’s reply was like drawing a line in the sand, but Tae-gon just laughed heartily. He looked at Eun-seong with a satisfied expression, as if he’d done something admirable, before speaking.
“So? Is it bearable?”
“It’s a job, so I just do it.”
“Isn’t it uncomfortable, seeing Go Yeon-joo’s son?”
At the mention of Yeon-joo’s name, Eun-seong lifted his eyelids and looked at Tae-gon.
“Work is work. And you, Daepyonim, should know better than anyone that I don’t think about anything else when I’m working.”
“But Eun-seong. The more I think about it, the more I feel like this isn’t that kind of problem. How little must Director Jin and Go Yeon-joo think of you to involve her son in this? Don’t you think?”
Tae-gon put on a concerned expression, and Eun-seong leaned back comfortably against the sofa. He draped an arm over the headrest, answering as if he could see right through him.
“Listening to you, it seems it’s not me who’s uncomfortable, but you, Daepyonim.”
“Me? Of course I’m uncomfortable. They’re latching onto you, trying to suck you dry. How could I possibly be happy about that?”
“Latch on and suck me dry?”
Eun-seong let out a quiet laugh. There was a hint of sarcasm in the way he repeated the words, and the smile vanished from Tae-gon’s face.
“Daepyonim. I’ve told you before. Leave Go Yeon-joo alone. It doesn’t matter, so just leave her be.”
“…”
“I don’t understand why you keep poking at someone who doesn’t matter and making things weird. Do I look that pathetic, panting after a woman who’s married and has a kid?”
Eun-seong’s voice dropped, as if disgusted by the vulgar words, and Tae-gon held up a hand. It was a gesture to say, ‘Don’t misunderstand.’
“I’m not worried about what you’ll do to Go Yeon-joo, I’m worried about what *she’ll* do. You know me. I can’t stand seeing pests buzzing around you. Cleaning them up is my job.”
“It looks like you’ve already tried to do some ‘cleaning up’.”
“…”
“Is that why you sent Jeong Ju-mi to the set? To ‘clean up’ Go Yeon-joo?”
Eun-seong cut him off at the vague part of his sentence. Tae-gon’s face froze, and three or four seconds passed in silence.
A few days ago, Tae-gon had failed to obtain Han-byeol’s detailed profile. When he received a reply from Changrok Entertainment stating there was no more information to provide, he became convinced they were intentionally hiding the child’s details.
What on earth did Go Yeon-joo want to hide? A detailed profile would only contain personal information like his full name, date of birth, and address. What among those things could possibly be so difficult to release publicly?
“If you’re done, you should go. I have to head to rehearsal now.”
“Ah. Right? I’ve taken up your time again. Let’s get up.”
Tae-gon stood up along with Eun-seong. After looking down at the floor for a moment, Eun-seong lifted his head and spoke to him.
“The kid’s dad is here on set, too. Did you know that?”
“Huh? Really? The kid’s dad is here? Why?”
“He’s a veterinarian. He’s stationed here as the German Shepherd trainer.”
“Ah… I see. A veterinarian.”
The information matched what Hae-yeong had said, and Tae-gon rubbed his chin. The fact that the whole family was on set complicated his thoughts again.
For a moment, he felt a bit foolish, wondering if he was worrying about nothing when there was really no issue.
“It’s time. Let’s go.”
“Since I’m here, I’ll just go see Go Yeon-joo for a bit, Eun-seong. It’s not like we’re strangers, I’ll just say a quick hello…”
“Just go, Daepyonim.”
Meeting Eun-seong’s gaze, which had turned instantly cold, Tae-gon slowly closed and opened his eyes.
“Alright. I guess it would just be uncomfortable for both of us if we met. I’ll just go.”
…There’s something. There’s definitely something.
“Eun-seong.”
Eun-seong turned when Tae-gon called his name.
“What is it that you want to protect the most?”
“Myself, of course.”
“Right?”
A piece of a secret that Jin Hae-yeong knows, and Im Eun-seong knows, but that I’m not supposed to know.
“For me, it’s you.”
*
One Step
“Hah… To think I admitted it with my own mouth.”
After several rehearsals, Eun-seong let out a groan as he prepared for the actual shoot.
‘The kid’s dad is here on set, too. Did you know that?’
He had sold out Dr. Joo to stop Tae-gon’s misplaced concern and meddling. If Tae-gon found out that Yeon-joo didn’t currently have a husband, he wouldn’t just stand by and watch.
‘He’s a veterinarian. He’s stationed here as the German Shepherd trainer.’
Somehow, he had to keep her in Tae-gon’s blind spot. He couldn’t let her be subjected to misplaced distrust and useless suspicion. In the end, he’d been forced to acknowledge Dr. Joo as her husband, and though he was flooded with his own complaints about it, he consoled himself by thinking that if it could make Tae-gon back off, it was a hundred, a thousand times better.
Eun-seong had worked with Tae-gon for a long time without any major complaints. Tae-gon’s uninhibited personality wasn’t bad for a business partner. But now, what he had once considered a strength felt like an obstacle, and there was no way to avoid it.
…Sigh.
Since he tried to perform even the most difficult action scenes without a stunt double, he felt drained before the main shoot had even begun. Only after his makeup and hair were given a final touch-up did Yeon-joo approach him.
As soon as she came over, she crouched down to wipe his shoes and straighten his trouser cuffs before slowly standing up. The protagonist Eun-seong was playing was a flawless character, so every little detail had to be perfect. It was no exaggeration to say that filmmaking was a battle of details, and so not a single one could be overlooked.
After meticulously adjusting his cuffs, Yeon-joo suddenly spoke.
“The shoot will probably take a long time, won’t it?”
“Well, we won’t know until we start. Why do you ask?”
“You said you wanted to spend time together.”
Eun-seong looked down at Yeon-joo with a startled expression. Her eyes still fixed on his jacket, she continued.
“If you’ve changed your mind, I’ll just go home later…”
“It won’t take long. No, it’ll be over in a flash.”
“…”
“I’ll try.”
He knew full well that he couldn’t shorten the filming time by his will alone. When Eun-seong said he would try, Yeon-joo lowered her gaze, her lips barely moving.
“But it’s difficult for you to be in places with a lot of people, isn’t it?”
“Of course, it’s difficult.”
“Then where…”
“We’ll have to meet where no one’s around.”
The fitting finished, Eun-seong lifted his chin. He pulled down the hem of his jacket as if brushing it off and adjusted his wristwatch.
“See you after the shoot. Where no one’s around.”
The moment the words left his mouth, Eun-seong turned and walked away.
