“This fellow’s wack. Anyway, Mr. Maru. You’ll have a hard time later if you put too much strength into the beginning. You’ll be raising our expectations of you which will make you unable to react to most things.”
“I’d be getting a lot just by making myself known on my first entertainment show.”
“Are you saying that you’re already satisfied then?”
“No, I’m saying that I achieved my primary objective. But that won’t get edited out right? If it does, I might cry at home.”
“You’re already worried about being edited out, huh? Geez, the truth about entertainment shows has gotten too widespread. Even normal viewers know that editing is king. Of course, being an actor, I’m sure you know more than most people. Jay, isn’t that right?”
Younghoon suddenly directed a question towards Jay while talking to Maru. Jay, who was drinking some water, suddenly started coughing.
“Younghoon-hyung, please don’t ask me any questions while I’m drinking. I cough every time, and I might end up going to the hospital for it.”
“You should focus then. Mr. Maru here is talking.”
“You mean you’re talking. Sheesh, you’re quite something when it comes to making others suffer.”
Hamin kept watching as Younghoon and Jay bantered. It was hard to find the right time to cut in. She had been advised several times that she must not become part of the audience, but now that she was actually in the shoot, she realized just how hard it was to cut into a conversation. In dramas, the timings were already predetermined by the script. She thought that she would be able to speak easily as long as she was on the lookout for an opportunity, even if it was an entertainment show as it too followed a script to an extent, but unlike what she originally expected, she could not budge her lips. On top of that, the shock she received from the opening performance still remained within her. Thanks to Maru, who grasped the atmosphere in his hands, both Mr. Yoo and Miss Choi also remained smiling just like her.
“There’s something I was notified of beforehand. Miss Hamin, I heard that, despite your small build, you are known to be quite a drinker. How much can you drink?” Younghoon tossed her a question.
He seemed to be redistributing the attention that had been gathered on Maru. Thanks to that, she could be relieved a little.
“I can’t drink that much.”
“Why don’t you tell us? How many bottles of soju can you drink?”
“When I’m in a good condition, about three bottles.”
“Three bottles? Over how long?”
“Uh, the thing is, I drank while watching movies by myself, so it’s probably around 4 hours. I watched two.”
“You drank by yourself while watching movies? You’re a young woman. Why do you sound so tragic?”
She finally felt like she could talk about the story she had brought. Hamin thought back to that day and prepared herself to talk about it.
“I originally started off as an idol. I remained as a trainee for quite a long time as well. I was supposed to be a part of a girl band, so I practiced instruments a lot, but ultimately, I never got to go on stage properly. The president, who told me that everything will go well, suddenly cut off all contact, and the girls who practiced with me all looked for other agencies or started looking for other jobs after telling me that they no longer had any intention to stay in the entertainment industry. I can still remember it clearly. I bought soju and some snacks from the supermarket in front of my house, and I drank while watching movies. It was quite stifling.”
“The president ran off?”
“I’m sure he must have had his reasons. But it would’ve been good if he told us something at least,” she said with a smile.
It was something she could smile about as it was a thing of the past, and since this was supposed to be a show, it was all the more reason for her to stay smiling.
“What a bad person. I thought those kinds of people disappeared recently, but it looks like they still exist. Miss Hamin. Since we’re at it, you should give a message to that president you talked about.”
“Right here?”
“The greatest revenge is to become successful. You might have slipped up as an idol, but you received attention as an actress. Say something to the president who might be watching from somewhere,” Younghoon said as he pointed at the front camera.
Hamin turned around to look at the camera. This was her chance to get the screen to herself. There was no time to hesitate.
“President, are you staying healthy? I don’t know why you did that back then, but don’t scam innocent young people in the future. You’ll get punished for it. I mean it.”
“How soft. I’m sure you’re thinking about saying something else in your heart.”
Taeksoo urged her. She couldn’t swear since she was on TV, but something on the level of ‘punk’ might be fine. If she went overboard, the producer would just edit it out, so there was no need to worry about it.
“Hey, you punk! Get a life!”
Since she was at it, she shouted with all her might. Younghoon was delighted, saying that that’s how it’s done. Seeing the hosts respond positively to her actions, she felt she had done something good. It was always the first time that was difficult. Now that she actually uttered it out loud, she felt much more confident.
“But if you were originally preparing to become an idol, doesn’t that mean that you can sing and dance as well? Or maybe not so much dancing since you said it was supposed to be a band.”
“I have terrible reflexes. I was also not the main vocalist, so I’m not that good.”
“But those who practiced are different. Let’s have a look at what you can do later.”
It was already agreed upon beforehand that she would sing. Younghoon probably said what was on the script. Hamin pretended to pull back but eventually agreed to it. The song she prepared was a ballad that wasn’t too high-pitched, so it wasn’t that difficult. Other than the intro, the shoot was currently going smoothly so far.
Younghoon then asked Mr. Yoo and Miss Choi how much they could drink. From how he was asking the same question, it was likely that the boring answers would get edited out. Mr. Yoo’s and Miss Choi’s stories were ordinary. Both of them just said that they were good drinkers, but that was it. They had no story. Hamin believed that her story was the best.
“Actually, the reason I asked you how much you can drink is because of Mr. Maru over here. Our writers picked up an amazing fact.”
Taeksoo handed over a question sheet. The hosts looked at the question sheet and started exclaiming. If this is true, then it’s simply incredible – Younghoon said in a small voice. Just what was on it that made them exclaim like that? Hamin looked at Maru through the corner of her eyes and perked up her ears.
“Let’s check these first. This is really unexpected. Is it true that you’re long-time drinking friends with Sir Yoon Moonjoong?”
“I’m not sure how you found that out, but yes. You’re right. I drink quite frequently with the elder.”
Maru replied with his eyes wide open as though he was truly surprised. For a moment, Hamin wondered who Yoon Moonjoong was before recalling the face of a great senior actor. Younghoon, who had been listening, suddenly cut in,
“About senior Yoon, I’m not sure about anything else, but I know he’s picky as heck when it comes to finding drinking partners.”
“I was lucky that the elder sees me in a good light. I met him for the first time while I was in high school. He said I looked polite and smart, so maybe that’s why.”
“Mr. Maru. You know you’re boasting about your youth, right?”
“Me? I only told you the truth though.”
“I’ve never seen a good guy who can boast so naturally.”
“Well, I have my way with being bad too.”
Maru didn’t seem awkward at all while talking to Younghoon. It was as though he had prepared for it. Younghoon laughed. He was probably excited because instead of getting single-word answers, he was getting entire stories. Hamin also prepared herself so that she could talk just as smoothly.
“Looking here, you two appeared together in the film Twilight Struggles, right? The senior appeared as the lead character, while you were a minor character. I watched this in the cinema, and it was quite a shocker. If I’m not wrong, it’s a story about a father’s murder of his own sons, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. It was a film that contained a slight social critic vibe. I watched the elder act right in front of my eyes, and it gave me goosebumps. He was truly scary.”
“It was scary when I saw it through a screen too. I can only imagine how bad it was to watch him from up close. How was it? I believe that must have been your first film too.”
“I only appeared for a brief moment, but it’s definitely a precious piece for me. The elder told me that there was a role that I’m suited to and told me to take the challenge, and I managed to win that role through an audition. It also became an opportunity for me to reform my mindset towards acting.”
“So you two share no ordinary relationship. You said that was back in high school?”
“Yes, that was when I was in my 2nd year of high school.”
“If that senior looked after you from such a young age, it must mean that he must have valued your skills highly.”
“Rather than skills, I think he just liked me because of how I acted.”
“No, no. I can’t say I’m very close to him, but he’s not someone who would suggest to someone to take a role just because he dotes on someone.”
“You want to butt in everywhere, huh, hyung? Are you sure you know senior Yoon?”
Jay told him to stop pretending like he was close, which made Younghoon cough awkwardly and get some drinks. While the two hosts continued with their banter, Hyuktae continued asking the questions,
“Our writer got confirmation from Sir Yoon Moonjoong himself. Allow me to mimic him for a second: ‘I’ve never seen a young man who can drink better than that boy Maru.’ So, being us, we investigated a little, and someone unexpected gave us some info. There are a few famous drinkers in the industry, and one of them is a member of my group: Sungjae-hyung.”
“Sungjae-hyung?”
Maru acted like he was acquainted with him. Hamin stayed silent and observed the situation. She found it absurd that Maru had bigshot connections like Yoon Moonjoong and Ahn Sungjae. One was the giant of the acting industry, while the other was from a top-tier idol group.
“It turns out you’re quite close to Sungjae-hyung, huh? When he found out that you’re coming to Chatterbox, he even said that he was willing to help.”
“We received acting lessons together. Even after that, we met up quite frequently to talk to each other.”
“How did you get to know him? Did you meet him for the first time at those lessons?”
“My sister is a fan of TTO. I said hello to him to get an autograph, and that’s how we met. After that, various things happened and we got close.”
Hyuktae nodded.
“Sungjae-hyung is no joke if he decides to set his mind to drink. You know about it, Jay-hyung, right?”
“I do. I don’t think I’ve seen a better drinker than Sungjae around me. He can drink five bottles in one sitting.”
“Yet, that same Sungjae-hyung told me that he has never seen Han Maru get drunk. Usually, Sungjae-hyung is the type to help other people get home when drunk, not the other way round, right? But he told me that he often had Maru help him get home because he got drunk.”
“Don’t even start on that. Once he gets drunk, he will grab onto something and not let go, and there were more than a few times that I had trouble putting him away. Oh, is it somewhat wrong to use ‘putting away’ for a person?”
“No, I would describe it that way too. I know because I had the same experience a couple times.”
Hyuktae and Maru laughed while consoling each other for their hardships. Thanks to the continuous mention of bigshot figures, the hosts all shifted their attention to Maru. She thought that this would be the end of it, but no. The writer sitting in the front suddenly started writing something before giving it to Hyuktae. Hyuktae looked at the paper that the writer gave him and spoke,
“Please excuse us for a second. We’ll give someone a call. This person rarely ever appears on TV. Maybe this is his first appearance in a talk show, even if it’s just his voice.”
“Who is it?”
“You’ll find out soon.”
As Hyuktae talked about it, one of the staff members came in with a phone connected to a microphone.
“Producer Kang, who is it?” Younghoon asked the producer.
The atmosphere had gotten much freer while some setups were underway.
“Director Park Joongjin.”
“The film director?”
Hamin clearly heard what the two talked about from the side. The super director who would get 7 million views at least with every work was giving a call because of Han Maru?
“We’ll resume the shoot now.”
When a staff member clapped the slate, the shoot resumed as though nothing had happened. As they waited after putting the phone in the middle, the phone’s connecting ringtone could be heard. The hosts all knew that they were expecting director Park Joongjin, but they all talked about who it might be. A man’s voice flowed out amidst the people’s attention.
-Hello?
“Ah, yes. Hello, director. This is Chatterbox of RBS, and I’m Hyuktae. We said hello once last time. Do you remember me?” Hyuktae said smoothly.
-I do remember you, Mr. Hyuktae. You’re good-looking, so I definitely remember you.
“You sound like someone told you to say that, but thank you anyway, director.”
When they heard a laugh, the hosts laughed as well, and so did the guests.
“Director, I’m sorry but could you introduce yourself to the audience?”
-Sure. I’m honored to appear on such a renowned entertainment show. I’m Park Joongjin, a run-of-the-mill film director.
