‘Why her?’
Han Seongtae couldn’t help but be surprised when he saw who was approaching him.
Kim Rina. She was standing right beside Han Seongtae.
The lab itself was open to all students regardless of year, so that wasn’t the issue.
He just hadn’t expected her to come talk to him.
“Me?”
“Yes, senior.”
Han Seongtae blinked at her nodding face.
While it wasn’t unusual for a junior to speak to a senior, he couldn’t help feeling a little flustered.
“What is it?”
“I have something I wanted to tell you privately, Senior.”
“Hmm…”
Han Seongtae tilted his head at her words, then reflexively glanced to his side at the strange feeling.
He saw Kim Minseok staring blankly at him from beside him.
After a moment of blankness, Kim Minseok gave a peculiar smile at Han Seongtae’s gaze and abruptly stood up.
“I was too oblivious. Should I move my seat?”
‘Hey.’
“Seongtae, this hyung is proud of you.”
‘That’s not it.’
“Talk freely, relax. Got it? I’ll be over there, far away.”
‘You crazy bastard, that’s not it!’
It was clear Kim Minseok was misunderstanding something.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have made that sly smile and moved aside.
Tap tap.
Watching him tap his shoulder and walk away, Han Seongtae let out a deep sigh and turned his head.
“…?”
Kim Rina, the one who caused the misunderstanding, tilted her head as if unable to understand the situation.
Her face seemed to say she didn’t know why Kim Minseok was stepping aside.
‘Studied directing, but all he’s got is an overactive imagination. How am I going to explain this later?’
Knowing Kim Minseok loved teasing his friends, Han Seongtae already worried what he’d say about this incident.
After tapping the script a few times, Han Seongtae spoke to Kim Rina.
“Don’t just stand there. Sit down. Your legs must be killing you.”
“Ah, yes! Thank you!”
Saying thanks in the shared study room.
Han Seongtae chuckled softly and shook his head.
“So what is it you want to say?”
“Please help me with my acting!”
“Acting?”
“Yes! I really hope you can help me, Senior.”
Helping with practice wasn’t difficult at all.
Han Seongtae had his own practice times, and they could just do it together during those times.
‘The problem is I’m getting busier and busier.’
Shooting for ‘Baeknyeoncho’ was increasing steadily.
Some days involved filming over ten hours, and pulling all-nighters was common.
There were also meetings with Netflix.
After meetings came filming, and it was obvious as day that things would get even more hectic than they were now.
But he couldn’t bring Kim Rina to the set.
The staff were on high alert because of the risk of leaked footage.
Maybe she could come as a day manager or for a tour, but…
‘Kim Rina can’t really be called an actress yet.’
Bringing her, still technically a civilian, to the set wasn’t a good idea.
“I can help you with your practice.”
The conclusion he reached after much deliberation.
“The problem is, I have my own filming schedule, so I can’t help you much.”
“That’s okay. Just knowing you’re willing to help is incredibly grateful to me.”
Kim Rina hastily shook her head.
She seemed genuinely satisfied just by the fact that she could receive Han Seongtae’s help.
Seeing this, Han Seongtae felt puzzled.
“But may I ask why you’re asking me specifically? There are other seniors and professors, too.”
Although Han Seongtae was filming, it wasn’t as if the others couldn’t act.
Among the upperclassmen, there might be someone who acted better than Han Seongtae.
If she asked the professors, they would surely help her wholeheartedly.
To his question, Kim Rina opened her mouth as if asking Han Seongtae was the most natural thing in the world.
“Because I like you, senior.”
“…Huh?”
Han Seongtae faltered for a moment, and she, belatedly realizing the meaning of her own words, hurriedly added.
“Ah, I mean, this is… I mean, your acting is great. I saw you in that musical last time. I wanted to be like that too!”
Her flustered rambling was almost endearing.
Han Seongtae chuckled and continued.
“I get what you mean. I’ll help. It’s not that hard.”
“Thank you!”
“But the problem is, the only time I can help is at night. Is practicing at night okay?”
“At night? Why at night? Senior, are you…?”
“…”
What reaction should he give?
This was his first time dealing with someone like this, so his mind raced.
Just as Han Seongtae was staring intently at her, deep in thought,
“You don’t have to look at me with such contempt.”
Seeing her mutter this softly, he couldn’t help but smile.
[‘The One Who Defined an Era’ smiles faintly, thinking she’s cute.]
[‘The Actor of Eternal Youth’ sparkles their eyes, thinking things are about to get interesting.]
It felt like the gods were saying things were about to get interesting.
Hmm.
―Kim Minseok: I’m tired, so I’m heading home. Come over when you’re done. Let’s grab a bite together.
First, I need to go meet my friend.
―Joo Heera: Where are you now?
Kim Rina, moving out of the department room, could see the message from her friend.
―I just left the department room.
She was about to send a message and move on when she saw the quick reply and let out a faint smile.
―Joo Heera: Why the lab? Didn’t you say it was uncomfortable with the seniors there?
―I had something to do.
―Joo Heera: What suddenly? What could you possibly have to do there? So you’re at the main building now?
―Uh, yeah, the main building.
After Kim Rina’s text, there was no reply.
But she didn’t worry much and kept walking.
She knew exactly what it meant when a friend asked for her location.
“Rina, let’s go grab some food!”
Kim Rina gently smiled and nodded at her friend, who had approached and linked arms with her.
“What should we eat?”
“See that new pasta place that just opened up ahead? The interior’s pretty nice.”
“Alright. Let’s go there.”
“Okay!”
The moment Kim Rina nodded, Joo Heera beamed and tugged her arm.
They arrived at the pasta place.
Just as Joo Heera said, the interior was quite pretty.
It had a nice vibe for couples.
“This is delicious.”
“Right?”
The taste was also quite good.
It was worth coming here at least once a month, if not once a week.
Kim Rina glanced at her smartphone while eating pasta.
The screen remained dark, with no messages from anyone.
Yet, a faint smile lingered on her lips.
“Ah, but why did you go to the practice room? Kids don’t even go to the department room to practice these days.“
“Ah, that…”
“Don’t brush it off like it’s nothing. What is it? Someone as shy as you wouldn’t have a reason to go to the department room alone.“
Kim Rina smiled awkwardly at Joo Hee-ra’s question and grabbed her smartphone.
The reason she went to the department room.
“Because I want to act well.”
“…What?”
“I wanted help.”
The more Joo Hee-ra listened to Kim Rina, the more her head tilted sideways.
“I got a good mentor.”
Her smartphone lit up brightly.
There, written alongside Han Seongtae’s name, was a phone number.
“I don’t really get what you mean… Anyway, it’s a good thing, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, that’s good then. What do you say we grab some food and hit the karaoke place?”
“No, I have to practice today.”
Kim Rina immediately shook her head at her friend’s suggestion.
Just because she had a mentor didn’t mean she could sit back and do nothing.
Having seen Han Seongtae act in person, Kim Rina was determined to work hard until she met him again.
She wasn’t the type to let an opportunity slip through her fingers.
Clink.
The door opened and Han Seongtae stepped outside.
Leaving the building and walking away, he held a bag containing chicken from a famous brand in his hand.
He didn’t answer the call, so it went to voicemail…
‘He must be sleeping.’
On the way to Kim Minseok’s house.
Han Seongtae tucked his smartphone into his pocket upon hearing that he wasn’t answering.
The distance from Korea University to Kim Minseok’s house wasn’t far.
A ten-minute walk would get him there.
Han Seongtae went straight to Kim Minseok’s house.
Even after entering the door lock password and stepping inside, there was no response from within the house.
Squeak.
Opening the door to the bedroom where Kim Minseok was, he saw the quilt on the bed bulging.
‘The chicken must be cold by now.’
Wondering what to do, Han Seongtae closed the door and quietly stepped outside.
He looked so tired; it seemed better to let him sleep a little longer.
‘If I’d known this would happen, I should have brought the script.’
Han Seongtae sighed and moved on.
Peering around the room, he noticed light spilling out from the room Kim Minseok used as his studio.
The monitor screen was still on.
He could see a video being edited there.
“It’s just a day, right?”
Recognizing the familiar footage, Han Seongtae immediately sat down in front of the monitor.
It was a video he hadn’t seen since the awards ceremony, making him feel quite pleased.
‘So this is what he’s been working on all this time.’
Whenever he came to school, Kim Minseok was always clutching his laptop.
Han Seongtae knew he was studying video editing, but he hadn’t expected the subject matter to be ‘Haru’.
[‘The One With a Thousand Faces’ asks what it’s like to see it once.]
Before the message even finished appearing, Han Seongtae already had earphones plugged into his ears.
He wanted to see how much Kim Minseok had grown.
According to the memories he carried from his past life, Kim Minseok was quite a talented person.
However, that talent had been left to rot for far too long.
Now, just as that talent was beginning to blossom, Han Seongtae couldn’t help but wonder how Kim Minseok would fare.
―Whoooooo.
An eerie wind sound came through his earphones.
“…!”
It was merely the sound signaling the start of the movie, but Han Seongtae’s eyes widened considerably.
Until the footage played out and ended.
Han Seongtae was so engrossed in the movie he doubted he was even breathing.
“Ha…”
[‘The One With a Thousand Faces’ says he’s developed quite a lot and is impressed.]
[‘The One Who Lives and Dies by Speed’ says Kim Minseok has talent.]
It was quite good.
Compared to the old ‘Haru’, he could confidently say it was more than twice as good.
From the sound effects to the way he seamlessly blended in the gods.
It showed he wasn’t the Kim Minseok of the past.
“He said he was working hard.”
Han Seongtae let out a hollow laugh as he looked at the scattered traces of practice strewn across the monitor.
Just as he was living a life different from his past life, the lives of those around him were also changing.
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