WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Potter
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Why Do My Dramas Keep Becoming Hits!? ◈
Chapter 49: Fake Madness, Real Madness (10)
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"Ha..."
Before the script reading properly began, Choi Woo-min, the youngest member of the making team, swallowed hard without realizing it.
What was this atmosphere? It felt like sitting on a bed of nails.
'Seriously, I can barely breathe.'
The director, crew, making team, and actors.
A dark, gloomy air seemed to seep from everyone in the room. Choi Woo-min awkwardly watched the mood and fidgeted with the camera tripod for no reason.
"Hey, quit spacing out and check the pin-mic audio. Don't start running around in a panic once we begin."
"Ah, yes!"
Startled by making PD Lee Jin-seok's rebuke, Choi Woo-min quickly put on headphones.
Beyond the heavy pads covering their ears, every bit of noise in the reading room came rushing in, sharply amplified. They adjusted the audio mixer's dials and checked each channel one by one.
The hurried footsteps of the crew. The flutter of script pages. The heavy sounds of people clearing their throats.
"This is honestly ridiculous."
Then, amid the white noise of the set, the actors' hushed conversation began to come through clearly.
"What did we do wrong that we have to clean up after that woman?"
"Exactly... I saw the articles. She's hopeless. The show's image is going to be ruined before it even airs."
"Can't she just leave on her own? Why is she insisting on staying and causing trouble?"
"They said the writer personally picked her, right? I don't get it. Why would he cast a junkie..."
The target of their collective resentment.
Naturally, it was Woo Yeon-hee, the cause of all this trouble, who had yet to appear in the reading room.
At the blatant way they blamed and tried to exclude one person, Choi Woo-min clicked their tongue inwardly.
'Seriously... Are they really celebrities?'
The childish yet vicious atmosphere reminded them of a nasty clique back in school. Choi Woo-min gave a hollow laugh and muttered,
"What are they, middle schoolers...?"
"You think celebrities are any different? They're all the same people."
"Y-Yes?"
Lee Jin-seok, who had been quietly adjusting the camera's exposure settings beside them, casually chimed in.
"You only see them on screen, so you must have some fantasy about them. But those images are all made by their agencies. In real life, celebrities are worse."
"Ah..."
"And that's a kind of protest, too. Drawing a clear line and saying, 'We're not in the same boat as that junkie.'"
Lee Jin-seok was right.
The actors' conversation through the headphones went beyond ordinary gossip. It was openly malicious and political.
They were creating a common enemy called Woo Yeon-hee to strengthen their own bond, then planning to isolate her so blatantly and relentlessly that she would eventually break down and leave on her own.
Realizing how cruel the industry could be, Choi Woo-min's expression stiffened bitterly.
"Still... They're all grown adults. Doing that so openly is a little..."
"What are you talking about? You think society is run by kids who gang up on people, stab them in the back, and raise hell?"
"..."
"School and society are the same. The only difference is that instead of school uniforms, they wear suits, and instead of fists, they beat people with money and connections."
Lee Jin-seok looked around the room for a moment, finished setting the lens exposure, and clicked their tongue.
One deep concern naturally rose in their mind.
'Will she even be able to act properly in this goddamn atmosphere?'
This was not even the first shoot yet. It was only the script reading.
A script reading was not just about going over the text. It was when the tension and power struggles between actors were at their fiercest.
If she was bombarded like this from the start and lost her nerve, then it was obvious she would suffer through all kinds of hazing during the months of filming ahead.
After thinking that far, Lee Jin-seok's gaze moved to Woo Yeon-hee's name tag, still waiting for its owner.
'This drama already feels like it's going off the rails.'
Just as they swallowed that bitter thought and rubbed the back of their stiff neck...
"Actress Woo Yeon-hee is entering!"
The assistant director standing at the meeting room entrance called out her name.
At the same time, the room's murmuring vanished as though someone had splashed it with cold water.
Only suffocating silence remained.
Creeeak!
The tightly shut doors of the large conference room slowly began to open.
As though rehearsed, dozens of hostile gazes in the room simultaneously shot toward the opening.
#
"Writer, I look forward to working with you on this project."
"Oh, I'm the one looking forward to working with you. Thank you for coming all this way."
As the actors arrived at the reading room one by one, I went out of my way to greet and chat with them.
Seriously, they had it rough. Meeting such a lousy writer.
After a few suitably polite exchanges, the bleak mood had eased just a little when...
"Actress Woo Yeon-hee is entering!"
At the assistant director's cry, everyone's eyes turned that way as though on cue.
I stopped talking as well and naturally looked toward the conference room doors.
Creeeak!
Woo Yeon-hee finally appeared through the opening door.
And a deflated sound escaped my lips when I saw her.
"Uh..."
The first thing that caught my eye was her overwhelming beauty, impressive enough to make me marvel all over again.
She was dressed simply rather than flamboyantly, yet she stood head and shoulders above everyone else. The phrase "a celebrity among celebrities" did not seem exaggerated. Alone, she radiated an unmatched presence and aura.
But stranger than that was the composure in her expression.
'What? She looks really calm...?'
When I saw her at the audition, she had seemed extremely unstable.
She had looked ready to explode at any moment, so precarious that the slightest touch might shatter her.
On top of that, the articles had broken, and the whole world was tearing into her. The people in this reading room were glaring at her with resentment.
Yet rather than shrinking back, she stood there with an imperious air, not showing the slightest trace of tension. It was strange, to say the least.
'...'
Watching her quietly, I even felt as if I were seeing Woo Yeon-hee at the height of her glory, when she had dominated an era.
Step. Step.
Treating the vicious hostility pouring down on her from every direction as no more than pebbles on the roadside, she crossed the reading room without hesitation on those long, elegant legs.
Her graceful walk made this chaotic reading room feel like the runway of a fashion show under dazzling lights.
I was so drawn in by that confident stride that I watched in a daze for a moment.
"...?"
Before I knew it, Woo Yeon-hee had stopped right in front of me.
A moment later, after giving my face a quick sidelong glance, she slowly stepped beside me.
"...."
"...."
Like the other actors, I thought she would at least offer a brief greeting or pleasantry.
But even after a minute, she said nothing and only stared ahead.
Even the people who had initially watched the strange behavior with interest gradually began looking away.
'...This is uncomfortable.'
Where had that confident ease from when she first walked in gone? Why had she suddenly gone silent?
Was she waiting for the right moment because her pride wouldn't let her speak first, or did she simply dislike me enough to ignore me?
After who knew how long that inexplicable silence lasted...
Tap!
A small, luxurious velvet case suddenly slid across the table in front of me.
"...?"
"Take it. It's not a bribe. Just a gift."
Still refusing to meet my eyes, Woo Yeon-hee casually said it while looking straight ahead.
I opened the case with a puzzled expression and found a top-of-the-line fountain pen with my name neatly engraved on it.
Its glossy shine alone made it look unbelievably expensive.
But why was she suddenly giving this to me?
As I stared at it in bewilderment, she slightly lifted her chin and spoke proudly.
"Use that when you write the script from now on. If you're going to write, at least do it with some style."
"Ah."
I ran my fingers over the heavy fountain pen and answered evenly.
"I type my scripts on a keyboard."
"...."
"In Word. Tap, tap."
Woo Yeon-hee's face crumpled magnificently at my dry answer.
Her lips trembled as embarrassment and fluster crossed her face. Then, seemingly worked up, she snapped sharply,
"Just take it. You can throw it away after."
"Pardon?"
It was a top-of-the-line luxury fountain pen that looked easily worth more than several million won.
Even if I sold it secondhand, it would buy countless bowls of gukbap. Why would I be crazy enough to throw it away?
And it was a fountain pen gifted by none other than Woo Yeon-hee.
"Come on, how could I throw this away? It's too valuable."
I carefully closed the case and tucked it safely inside my jacket.
Then, deliberately putting on an exaggeratedly easygoing manner, I politely nodded to her.
"Thank you. I'll keep it as a family heirloom for the rest of my life."
"...Whether you let it rot as an heirloom or not, do whatever you want."
At my shameless attitude, Woo Yeon-hee gave a small fake cough and sharply turned her head away.
With sharp gazes still pouring in from all sides, she had returned to the perfect poker face of a proud, haughty actress.
But this time, her tightly closed lips moved ever so slightly.
"And, um..."
"...?"
When I turned to look at her, she kept her eyes forward while only her cherry-red lips moved.
"I'm sorry about... that time."
"Pardon? About what?"
At my confused question over her sudden apology, her brows drew together slightly, and a flustered look crossed her face.
"F-For grabbing your collar...! At the audition..."
"Ah."
Woo Yeon-hee spoke in a low, tightly restrained voice.
Only then did I remember the terrifying moment when she had grabbed my collar and spat curses at me.
"You mean when you grabbed my collar and said, 'You fucking bastard, I'll kill you'?"
"I didn't say that much?!"
"...You did, though?"
Still, there was no need for her to apologize. From her perspective, she could have found it unpleasant enough, and if you thought about it, I was the one who should be apologizing.
With that thought, I forced a bright smile and joked as if it were no big deal.
"It's fine. I was happy just to see your face up close, Actress Woo."
"...! W-What are you saying? Don't say weird things!"
"What? Chances to see a top star like you are rare."
"What top star..."
At the end of her prickly retort, it seemed as though a faint smile briefly touched the corners of her lips.
A short silence settled between us.
Once our light bickering stopped, the peculiar tension that had been so sharp also seemed to ease, and the atmosphere calmed.
'...But isn't she leaving? Why is she still standing beside me?'
Woo Yeon-hee kept a straight face and quietly caught her breath.
Cutting through the settled air, she suddenly spoke again in a low voice.
"I debuted when I was six."
"...?"
"People had a lot to say back then. A snot-nosed child landed a lead role and held her head high, saying she was going to act. Of course people found it unpleasant. There were plenty of directors and writers who openly doubted and put me down."
There was a strange composure in her voice as she calmly recalled the past.
Her attitude even carried the seasoned confidence of someone who had faced and crushed this kind of open hostility countless times before.
"But do you know what those arrogant people would all say once the first episode aired and the ratings came out?"
"Well, what did they say?"
At my question, Woo Yeon-hee turned and met my eyes.
"'Ah, it was good that we believed in Woo Yeon-hee.' That's what they all said."
The corners of her beautiful lips curled upward in a smooth arc.
"Isn't it funny? They did nothing but doubt me, then acted as though they had always supported me and jumped on the bandwagon."
"...."
"But I'll make sure those words come sincerely from you, Writer."
Looking straight into my eyes, she spoke each word with firm resolve.
"'It was good that I believed in Woo Yeon-hee.' I'll make you say it. No matter what."
Her eyes were full of confidence.
They held the dignity of a true top star, someone who had chewed through every hardship from rock bottom with skill alone and climbed to the very top.
Seeing that look, an admiring exclamation slipped from my lips without my realizing it.
Celebrities really weren't something just anyone could become.
"...Haha."
Honestly, I did think things would turn out the way she said.
If the story continued like this, of course I would say, "It was good that I believed in Woo Yeon-hee."
But I couldn't tell her the full details, so I covered it with the first thing that came to mind.
"Then I'll look forward to it, Actress Woo."
"...."
Just as the air between us grew taut with a pleasant tension...
"All right, all right! Enough chatting. Let's get started!"
Director Pyo Won-ho, seated in the center of the head table, clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention.
The disorderly murmurs quieted, and at last, the curtain rose on the warlike first script reading.
#
"She's not still touching drugs, is she?"
From the back row where the managers waited, a thorny voice flew in.
At the blunt question, Han Young-soo reflexively lowered his head and put on a pleasant smile.
"Ahaha. She's completely quit. I'm keeping a close eye on her twenty-four hours a day, so there will never be another unpleasant incident like that."
"Well, if Team Leader Han says so, I suppose we should believe you. Honestly, our actor saw the articles and seriously considered dropping out. We were worried the drama would blow up before it even aired."
"...I'm sorry. We'll do better."
Han Young-soo swallowed the burning frustration inside and bowed deeply.
Even in the face of the rude, sharp barbs thrown by the other actors' managers, he had no choice but to endure.
As unfair and infuriating as it was, he had nothing to say even if he had ten mouths. More than anyone, he knew that they had become uninvited guests and a ticking time bomb on this drama.
A little later, Director Pyo Won-ho and the writer finished their greetings, and the script reading formally began.
"Since the making camera is rolling too, let's all say a few words before turning the pages. We need some footage for the behind-the-scenes video later."
Leaning against the wall and watching the scene, Han Young-soo looked at Woo Yeon-hee at the head table with anxious eyes.
Please, just don't make a scene here.
Swallowing hard, he clasped his hands together.
"Hello, I'm Lee Tae-hwan. It's a great honor to work with such wonderful senior actors, as well as such an excellent writer and director..."
"Nice to meet you! This time, I..."
The greetings were formal but friendly.
Yet as Han Young-soo watched the smooth relay of introductions, his expression gradually hardened.
The actors took turns mentioning one another's names and expressing warm expectations, but not one of them said the three syllables of "Woo Yeon-hee."
It was a perfectly clear, solid glass wall.
They were openly treating the lead actress seated right in front of them as if she did not exist, deliberately trying to isolate her.
'Damn it...'
Just as Han Young-soo swallowed a helpless sigh at the childish yet cruel power struggle, it finally became Woo Yeon-hee's turn, the moment everyone had been waiting for.
"....I'm Woo Yeon-hee."
A cold silence settled over the warmly charged room as if someone had poured ice water over it.
Han Young-soo felt his heart drop as he stared only at her red lips.
"First, I would like to apologize here for the trouble caused by my personal controversy. I didn't want to inconvenience anyone again, but I ended up making the atmosphere on set heavy."
Woo Yeon-hee did not avert her gaze.
There was not the slightest sign of weakness, no lengthy pleas about how unfair it was or attempts to seek sympathy.
It was a somewhat arrogant apology that simply acknowledged and accepted the facts as they were.
"Yes. I know how precious and important an opportunity this project is for all of you. So until the day filming is completely finished, I will strictly control my behavior and be careful to avoid causing any more trouble. I will make sure my name does not stain this drama again."
Perhaps her characteristically calm attitude gave off an odd sense of trust.
The eyes of a few people who had been glaring harshly softened ever so slightly.
Han Young-soo finally breathed out in relief and rubbed his chest.
Yes. If she just finished the greeting warmly like this, maybe the tangled threads could loosen, even a little...
"However, there is one thing you've got wrong, and I think we need to clear that up."
Woo Yeon-hee suddenly gave a quiet laugh, and one corner of her mouth slanted upward.
Her lazily lowered eyes flashed coldly.
"A lot of people seem to think that because I've had some public troubles, my acting ability will hit rock bottom, too. That I'm mentally falling apart and won't even be able to deliver my lines properly, that I'll ruin the emotional flow and become a nuisance on set, that after taking a few years off, I won't even be able to film properly."
"...?"
"I hear people have been saying things like that behind my back, wondering if I can even act properly... You know what?"
At the abrupt change in her tone, people's brows furrowed in confusion.
As they watched her lips, wondering what she was talking about, Woo Yeon-hee gave a scornful laugh.
"I'll do just fine, so you all should do your jobs properly."
The moment she said it, people's eyes slowly widened.
What did she just say?
Their expressions all seemed to say exactly that.
Yet even before those shocked reactions, Woo Yeon-hee calmly crossed her legs and drove the point home.
"Why? Did I say anything wrong? It's true that my private life has hit rock bottom and people are criticizing me for it. But I've never once been criticized for my acting in front of a camera."
"H-Hey!"
"And you all know it deep down, don't you? No matter how much scandal surrounds me, once I hold a script and the cameras start rolling, not one person here can beat me."
Amid the confused atmosphere, where everyone was left speechless by that nuclear-bomb-like declaration, Woo Yeon-hee finally gave an arrogant smile and added one last thing.
"So don't waste your time worrying about me. You all should do your jobs properly instead."
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