“Do I really have to hold this?”
“Mm-hmm! It’s so cute. Yeonsu’s going to love it when he sees this.”
In my hands, I was holding a large banner with the words ‘Welcome to Britain, Nam Yeonsu!’ written across it in big letters.
As I looked down at it with a reluctant expression, the production staff beside me made an even bigger fuss, saying how excited they were.
I wasn’t exactly pleased, but what choice did I have when they were telling me to do it?
The cameras were still rolling even now.
This is acting too. Acting.
I absolutely love this banner.
Holding it makes me so happy….
I hypnotized myself with those thoughts and forcibly pulled the corners of my mouth into a smile.
I really hoped Nam Yeonsu would like it when he saw it.
Otherwise, all my effort would have been for nothing.
“Oh, looks like they’re finally starting to come out!”
At the production staff’s shout, I looked toward the departure gate.
I’d seen the announcement a little while ago that the flight from Korea had arrived, so I’d been thinking it was about time for them to appear.
The gate doors opened, and people who looked Korean began emerging among the other passengers, one after another. It seemed they had collected their luggage and were finally coming out.
Kim Sanho and the rest of the variety show’s production crew were arriving together, so I’d heard they would have quite a lot of equipment.
When someone suggested waiting a little longer, I waved the banner and carefully watched the people coming through the gate.
“Siwoo!”
How long had I been waiting?
Nam Yeonsu, Kim Sanho, and the rest of the production crew finally appeared, accompanied by three or four luggage carts piled high with belongings.
“Waaaah, Yeonsu-hyung!”
I enthusiastically fluttered the banner to welcome Nam Yeonsu.
Was it because it had been so long since we’d seen each other?
Or was I simply happy to see Nam Yeonsu here in faraway Britain?
The moment I saw his face, I felt a little emotional.
“I missed you!”
Nam Yeonsu said something to his manager, then hurried over with quick little steps and threw his arms around me.
That’s a more enthusiastic greeting than I expected.
“Uh, yeah. I missed you too.”
I lowered the banner I’d been holding and caught Nam Yeonsu as he rushed into me.
Then I gently patted his back while he hugged me tightly.
Our affectionate reunion was captured on camera exactly as it happened.
“It’s been a while.”
“Have you been well?”
Nam Yeonsu’s manager, my uncle, and Mother exchanged warm greetings too.
Meanwhile, right beside us, another group was exchanging greetings even more noisily than we were.
“PD Jo! How long has it been? Looks like you’ve lost some weight!”
“Senior, try eating British food for just one week…. You’ll end up looking exactly like this.”
It was the production team for this documentary-style variety show, led by Kim Sanho.
Meeting his team members again after so long, Kim Sanho patted his juniors on the shoulders and thanked them for all their hard work.
“You know the real hardships are only just beginning, right?”
“You say such cruel things with such a cheerful face, without the slightest hesitation……..”
It didn’t seem particularly encouraging, though.
“Hehe, Siwoo! I saw an article about you on my way here today!”
After finally releasing me from his intense hug, Nam Yeonsu spoke with sparkling eyes.
Of course, I’d seen the article he was talking about.
The cast members had all been bringing copies of that newspaper to show me since morning, so there was no way I could have missed it.
“Oh, really? My picture came out well, didn’t it?”
“Yeah! I even took a picture of it so I wouldn’t forget.”
“…You even took a picture?”
Nam Yeonsu showed me a photograph of my newspaper article that he’d taken with his manager’s phone.
When I gave him a dubious look, wondering whether he’d really needed to go that far, Nam Yeonsu burst into cheerful laughter as though he found my expression absolutely hilarious.
Seeing Nam Yeonsu’s bright smile again after so long put me in a good mood too.
“Yeonsu looks really happy, doesn’t he?”
“Right? See, I told you. This combination is going to be a hit. They’ll carry on that brotherly chemistry they had in Cactus.”
The production staff watched us with satisfied smiles as they kept their cameras rolling.
“Have you been doing well? Are you working on anything new besides this?”
“Yeah! Since I have to stay in Britain, my schedule’s gotten a little complicated, so I think I’ll start my next project next year. What about you, Siwoo? Aren’t you tired?”
“Mmm. I didn’t have any performances yesterday or today. And there’s no rehearsal today either.”
Our conversation naturally shifted to catching up on what we’d each been doing.
While filming The Cactus Flower Has Bloomed, we’d seen each other every single day, so there hadn’t been any need for that. But once filming ended, we’d had no opportunities to meet at all.
“Wow, you must be exhausted. How much longer do you have?”
“About a week. I’m not that tired. I’ve gotten used to it now.”
“That’s amazing… Siwoo, do you think I could come visit your rehearsal room?”
“The rehearsal room?”
I’d mentioned my schedule casually, but Nam Yeonsu suddenly asked his question after expressing his admiration.
“Yeah! I want to watch you practice before I see the performance… Would that be okay?”
“Hmm, I think we’d have to ask the theater company.”
Nam Yeonsu spoke to me pleadingly, then glanced at the production staff to gauge their reaction.
Seeing that look, I turned toward Kim Sanho first and asked,
“Would it be okay for us to go to our rehearsal room and film there?”
Jessica would probably say it was fine.
After all, it wasn’t just anyone asking to visit. It was Nam Yeonsu.
Besides, I’d heard from Jo Yisu that Jessica had been curious about Nam Yeonsu for quite some time herself.
And nothing beats seeing something for yourself.
Thinking that I could introduce Nam Yeonsu to Jessica, I studied Kim Sanho’s reaction.
If Nam Yeonsu had simply come to Britain to visit me, I could have contacted Jessica and taken him there myself. But right now, there were far too many people accompanying us.
I also felt a little uneasy about filming another country’s theatrical production preparations.
You’ll take care of the filming permissions, right? Right?
I sent Kim Sanho one meaningful look after another.
After listening to our conversation, Kim Sanho whispered something to the other production staff before addressing us.
“Then let’s do that. I’ll contact Rainbow Pictures and the British team right now. Siwoo, could you pass along the request first? After that, we’ll handle the negotiations.”
“Yes, sounds good.”
I nodded at Kim Sanho’s words and took out my phone.
There weren’t any officially scheduled rehearsals today, so we’d probably end up going tomorrow.
“Hello? Jessica? Is Yisu there with you too?”
When I naturally started speaking English on the phone, Nam Yeonsu stared at me from beside me with his mouth hanging open.
After briefly explaining what we wanted, I handed the phone to Kim Sanho.
“Ahem. Hellooo?”
His pronunciation was pretty terrible, but Kim Sanho managed to continue the conversation in English quite smoothly.
“This does feel more natural than having Yeonsu visit Siwoo at the theater.”
“It’s good material. I hope it works out.”
Despite the sudden change in the filming schedule, the production staff showed nothing but excitement.
It felt less like a variety show confined to a rigid format and more like a program that everyone was genuinely creating together.
There was a predetermined script and schedule, of course, but they were fairly loose.
There were only two cast members.
Han Siwoo and Nam Yeonsu.
And Kim Sanho had said that, for this variety show, he wanted to prioritize whatever the two of us wanted to do.
The schedule they’d prepared in advance was only meant to serve as a minimal set of guidelines, so we were free to adjust it according to our wishes.
“I didn’t think we’d end up changing the schedule this quickly!”
It seemed the conversation with Jessica had gone well.
Since it was the result I’d expected, I nodded as though it were only natural.
Even while busily making calls, Kim Sanho looked at us and grinned.
“You told us to say whatever we wanted to do, didn’t you?”
“Haha, that’s right. Good! I want to see you two traveling freely around Europe, so feel free to tell me anything else you’d like to do.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Even this spontaneous idea looks like it’ll make for great footage. Just imagine, the Jessica Brown might actually appear on my show!”
Oh, would you look at that.
So that’s why he’s so happy, huh?
I stared up at Kim Sanho’s face, which was practically glowing with anticipation, and asked,
“Aren’t the two of us enough for you?”
At my cheeky remark, Kim Sanho burst into loud laughter.
“Ahahaha! Seriously, bringing you along, Siwoo, was a stroke of genius.”
“Oh, come on. We’re only getting started.”
“That’s right. I’ll look forward to it. And you too, Yeonsu. That scene where you were so happy to see Siwoo was wonderful. It was enough to move this old man’s heart.”
“Really?”
“Mm-hmm, really. Just keep doing what you’re doing. It’s already incredibly entertaining.”
Nam Yeonsu looked visibly relieved at Kim Sanho’s words.
Just how hard had his father been on him again before he came to Britain?
The thought almost made me frown, but I barely managed to compose my expression when I remembered that all of this was being filmed too.
“We’ve gotten in touch with the British theater people as well! They said it’s okay!”
“Okay! Then shall we visit Siwoo’s rehearsal room tomorrow?”
“Waaaah!”
Nam Yeonsu threw his arms into the air in celebration, and we all left the airport together.
The following day, I arrived at the rehearsal room where I went to work every day, bringing Nam Yeonsu and the filming crew with me.
Originally, Nam Yeonsu had been scheduled to explore Britain on his own until my performances of RUN came to an end.
The plan was either to film him scouting locations with the production staff under the premise of deciding where we should go together, or to let him rest during the day and meet up with me at the hotel in the evening for brief filming sessions.
He’d been expecting to film alone, but perhaps because he was getting to film with me from the very first day, Nam Yeonsu looked exceptionally cheerful.
“Are you that happy you don’t have to film alone?”
“Of course! What if I worked really hard filming by myself, but none of it was interesting and they edited everything out…?”
“So you’re okay with getting edited out as long as it’s with me?”
“Gasp! No! We’re not going to get edited out.”
“How would you know that, hyung?”
I teased Nam Yeonsu as we walked down the corridor, then flung open the rehearsal room door.
“I’m here!”
At my arrival, the cast members who had been busy preparing for rehearsal immediately whipped their heads around.
“Siwoo!”
“Our superstar has arrived!”
They must have already heard from Jessica and Jo Yisu, because the actors excitedly rushed toward us.
“Welcome to Britain!”
“Oh my goodness! We heard Siwoo’s friend was coming, but he’s really so young! Didn’t they say he’s as famous as Siwoo in Korea?”
“I heard he’s Siwoo’s senior.”
With so many English greetings being thrown at him, Nam Yeonsu became a little flustered and stiff.
“N-Nice to meet you……”
The cast members were delighted all over again by the sight of Nam Yeonsu nervously stumbling through his English.
“Is this going to be broadcast on Korean television? Hello, Korea!”
“Me too! I want to be on Korean TV too!”
Off to one side, the British actors were making a tremendous fuss, crowding in front of the camera that was filming us.
“Aren’t you going to stop them, Jessica?”
“Why should I? They’re all welcoming Siwoo’s filming crew. It’s nice to see, isn’t it?”
I let out a deep sigh at Jessica’s sly smile.
Jo Yisu and Jessica stood side by side, watching the lively actors with pleased expressions.
“H-Hello? Jessica.”
“Oh, Yeonsu. Glad to see you. I really wanted to meet you.”
“Uh, um……”
Unable to keep up with how quickly Jessica spoke, Nam Yeonsu looked at me as though asking for help.
Seeing that, I quickly spoke to Jessica.
“Jessica, Yeonsu isn’t as fluent in English as I am. Please speak as slowly and simply as you can.”
“Ah, all right. I’ve gotten far too used to you in so many ways, Siwoo.”
Jessica nodded in understanding and began speaking slowly, using simple and easy English.
Perhaps he could understand her at that level, because Nam Yeonsu’s expression brightened.
He even managed to answer her fairly well, though he stumbled over his words.
He did keep glancing at me every now and then, as though checking whether what he was saying was correct.
Just as I thought.
Given how overbearing his father was, I’d expected as much, but it seemed he’d received quite rigorous early education.
He appeared more comfortable with English than I’d been worried he would be.
“By the way, Yeonsu. If you’re Siwoo’s friend, does that mean you’re as good at acting as Siwoo is?”
“Oh, then I’d love to see you act sometime.”
Oh, dear.
The cast members were far more interested in Nam Yeonsu than I’d expected.
The British actors’ eyes, filled with anticipation, were fixed relentlessly on Nam Yeonsu.
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