T/N: Hey, y’all. I picked this up. Check out previous chapters from KnoxT. [NU]
I’d had plenty of moments as an idol when unexpected schedule changes left me flustered.
Things would be added or moved around at the last minute, and the little tasks I’d planned to squeeze into scraps of free time would often fall apart or get canceled.
But back then, the changes were mostly that a recording time got pushed back a bit or canceled outright. Most shows including music programs had fixed days, and the guest lists were packed tight, so it was rare for a schedule to change drastically.
Filming a drama, though, was a completely different world.
“Tomorrow morning… Busan?”
Hee-wook felt dazed by the sudden call. The shoot planned for Friday had been moved up because of the weather. They were doing it tomorrow. Lodging, he was told, had been arranged.
When asked if he could make it, Hee-wook hurriedly pulled himself together and nodded.
“Yes, got it. Yes!”
It was already 6 p.m. He pressed a hand to his forehead, then pinged Eunseong via the desktop messenger. Eunseong said he’d just gotten a call from the FD too.
[We should take the train tonight, right?]
[Lee Eunseong: I guess so..]
[I’ll check now]
[Lee Eunseong: Okay ㅠㅠ]
[Lee Eunseong: The others will come by van, right?]
Hee-wook’s hands froze at the question.
[Probably]
[Lee Eunseong: ㅠㅠ It’s rough not having a company]
[Still, the train’s faster lol]
His mouth tasted just as bitter, but he replied as if it were nothing. He’d just shoved the messenger window to the corner of his desktop and opened the browser to book tickets when a notification popped over the messenger icon. He figured it was Eunseong’s reply—but it wasn’t.
[Cheon Kyung-seo: Going to Busan?]
It was Kyung-seo. Startled, Hee-wook popped open the chat and typed a quick reply.
[Yep. You too?]
He hit send and only then realized how dumb the question was. Of course the lead would go. Kyung-seo must be darting about nonstop these days.
Well, he’s got a manager to drive him.
He thought that and curled his lip wryly. Like Eunseong said, being an entertainer with no agency and no manager meant he had to figure out how to get to Busan on his own, and that stung anew.
“First I should just buy the tickets…”
There was no time for self-pity. It was a weekday, so the night trains probably weren’t sold out, but still—better to reserve fast. He was checking departure times when the phone he’d left on the desk began to buzz.
He picked it up and hesitated. The caller was Kyung-seo.
“Hello?”
He answered, gripping the mouse with his other hand. He was about to book the 9 p.m. train.
—Where are you? At the station already?
“No, I just got the call…”
—Are you with any of the cast? Lee Eunseong? Han Dong-hoon?
“…I’m just about to buy tickets.”
Lee Eunseong made sense, but Han Dong-hoon, out of nowhere? Hee-wook blinked. And again with the clipped way he addressed people—was that a habit? Hard to tell if he had manners or not. From the way he talked to me, he actually seemed surprisingly warm in his own way.
Kyung-seo let out a faint sigh, then spoke faster than usual.
—Can you get to Gangnam in thirty minutes? I’ll drive you.
“Are you sure that’s okay?”
His eyes flew open. Taking Kyung-seo’s car wasn’t an option he’d even considered.
—Actors carpool all the time. We leave in thirty, so just get here.
“Uh, okay. I was planning to travel with Eunseong—would it be alright if he came too?”
—Mm, there’s a seat.
Answering curtly, Kyung-seo sighed again and added,
—If he says no, then you at least come.
As if Eunseong would refuse. Saying he understood and thanks, Hee-wook hung up, hurriedly threw on clothes, and called Eunseong.
“Lee Eunseong! Can you head out right now?”
After Eunseong, startled, asked what was going on, he explained the situation, grabbed a small bag, and bolted out the door.
He had to get to Gangnam in thirty minutes. Thank goodness it wasn’t a peak traffic time, he thought, flagging down a taxi.
＊＊＊
Thanks to going straight by taxi, it took barely under thirty minutes to reach Hwarang Actors. He picked up the already-arrived Eunseong and headed for the building’s parking garage. A man was standing next to a large van—a manager with a round, soft face. There was no sign of Kyung-seo.
“Hello, Manager.”
They hurried forward and bowed. The one who spoke out loud was Eunseong.
“Hello, Mr. Lee Eunseong. And…”
Wearing a warm smile, the manager greeted Eunseong first, then darted a glance aside. Meeting the curious look aimed at him, Hee-wook straightened his gaze.
“Seong Hee-wook?”
“Yes, hello.”
“Ho…”
Odd reaction. The way the man looked him over, as if fascinated, struck Hee-wook as strange.
“I’m Kang Woo-jin, Kyung-seo’s manager.”
“Yes…”
“We’ve met, haven’t we?”
Grinning, Woo-jin made Hee-wook lift the corners of his mouth awkwardly. He seemed to be referring to the day of Eunseong’s audition, when they’d run into each other at the station. Remembering how he’d awkwardly explained he had a station pass, Hee-wook flushed.
He was about to nod when movement sounded from behind.
“Hyung, don’t say pointless things.”
A voice that carried. Seeing a long shadow fall in front of him, Hee-wook turned. Wearing a black mask, Kyung-seo walked over with steady steps. When their eyes met, he dipped his chin in a small nod.
“Thanks for calling me.”
“Sure.”
Hee-wook quickly offered his thanks, and the brief reply given, Kyung-seo went around to the van and opened the front passenger door. Woo-jin’s mouth fell open.
“What, you’re taking the front seat? Since when?”
“Just feel like it today.”
Deadpan, Kyung-seo answered and sat up front. Staring at him in disbelief, the manager hurried to open the rear door. Meeting Eunseong’s eyes once, Hee-wook climbed in.
The van interior was very comfortable. The seats were wide and plush—nicer than most premium buses. Two Planet, a five-member group, had ridden big vehicles too, but a soloist like Kyung-seo had an even larger van.
He was looking around in fascination when there was a click, and both he and Eunseong glanced forward.
Kyung-seo had opened the glove compartment and tossed a phone inside. But there was another phone in his hand. Spotting that, Eunseong spoke up.
“Do you use two phones? Like, one for business and one for people you’re close to?”
At the question, Hee-wook also looked forward with curiosity. Kyung-seo paused, then slammed the glove box shut.
“Gasp.”
Startled by the loud noise, Eunseong swallowed. Without offering any explanation about the rough slam or the two phones, Kyung-seo turned his gaze away, cold. The overly icy attitude made even Hee-wook frown in surprise.
The air in the van turned scratchy and stiff from his behavior. Seeing the drama cast in the back seat freeze up, Woo-jin forced a loud laugh.
“Ha ha! He’s got a bit of a nasty personality! Sorry about that. He’s very sensitive about his privacy…”
“N-no, it’s fine. Sorry, Kyung-seo.”
Awkwardly laughing, Eunseong apologized. Woo-jin nudged Kyung-seo with an elbow, but he said nothing, folding his arms and staring straight ahead. Giving up, Woo-jin pulled out of the space. The van glided forward and soon exited the underground lot.
“We’ve got a long drive. Feel free to nap. Ah, I forgot to put on music.”
As if he couldn’t stand the quiet, Woo-jin reached toward the nav screen to play something. But no music came on.
“Wait.”
A large hand (Kyung-seo’s) had swiftly grabbed his wrist.
“Don’t turn that on.”
“Huh?”
“Turn on the radio.”
His tone was as hard and cold as ever. Meeting his eyes, Woo-jin’s widened.
“Ahh! Okay, okay.”
Without complaint, he switched to radio. Only then did Kyung-seo release his wrist and fold his arms again.
Frowning slightly, Hee-wook studied him. He had no idea why he was acting like this. When he’d called earlier to offer a ride, he’d been brusque but not this prickly.
Is it uncomfortable having people he’s not close to in his car? Then why invite us?
He mulled it over and came up with a hypothesis: Maybe he’d called Hee-wook, but bringing Eunseong along had made him uncomfortable. But that didn’t make sense either.
It was Eunseong, not Hee-wook, whom Kyung-seo had first told to drop honorifics, and the one he saw more often on set was also Eunseong. From his perspective, if anyone was awkward, it would be Hee-wook, not Eunseong.
He was impossible to read. Resting the back of his head against the seat, Hee-wook watched Kyung-seo’s handsome profile. Unlike his calm expression, the van was filled with the lively voice of a radio DJ chattering over a bouncing beat.
“Back again like clockwork—‘Keyword Playlist!’ Today we’re joined by runway goddess, model Jeong-hee, so today’s keyword is ‘Runway.’ We’ll play songs with ‘run’ or ‘way’ in the title. First up!”
Our song title has “run” in it too. Thinking of their last title track, Hee-wook chuckled. Then the DJ’s next words made his whole body jolt. He’d assumed they’d pick a more famous song.
“Two Planet’s ‘baby, run.’”
A familiar intro flowed out. Beside him, Eunseong let out a “Wow!”
“Oh, this is…!”
Woo-jin, surprised, started to say something and then clamped his mouth shut. In that moment, Hee-wook caught Kyung-seo shooting him a sharp look. Grinning, Eunseong leaned forward.
“You know this track? It’s ours. Our group used to be called Two Planet. They’re playing it on the radio?”
“Ah… ha ha, I’ve heard it before.”
“Really? Not many people know it.”
Beaming, Eunseong slapped his knee. The song moved past the intro into the chorus. With the fast tempo and thumping beat, the choreography still vivid in his mind, Hee-wook’s hands and feet twitched on their own.
“Did you like this song?”
Kyung-seo spoke then. When Hee-wook looked up, their eyes met in the rearview mirror.
“Not sure. Did I… like it?”
At his equivocal answer, Kyung-seo knit his brows. Hee-wook gave an awkward smile.
“Back then it wasn’t ‘I like it,’ it was ‘I absolutely have to nail it,’ so I didn’t have room to think about liking or not. I wish I’d enjoyed it more.”
“Yeah?”
“What do you think of it, Kyung-seo?”
It was probably his first time hearing it. If possible, he wanted to hear something nice.
“…It’s sad.”
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