Episode 7

“Ha! Why am I the first one? Let’s go and get it over with.”

“Anyway, I’m going to pass, so do your best.”

“Hmm, no you are not.”

One of the students from the drama school got up, exchanged a fist bump with a friend, entered the audition room, and after about 3 minutes, came out with a somewhat dark expression.

“Thank you for your hard work. We will contact you with the results later. I’m sorry, but you can’t have conversations with others. Please head straight over there.”

The staff standing in front of the door guided Na seong-jin towards the exit.

“Next contestant, number 2, Jung Soo-yeon.”

Jung Soo-yeon, who had gained a bit of recognition among the younger generation for her web dramas, went in and came out a while later. Just like the previous contestants, her expression was gloomy.

‘Ugh, what should I do?’

As she exited the audition room, Jung Soo-yeon let out an involuntary sigh.

‘If I keep doing this, I might end up following the same path as Joo-young unni.’

With a dark expression, Jung Soo-yeon left the audition room.

An actor standing next to Yeon-woo, noticing the gloomy atmosphere, struck up a conversation.

“Phew, the atmosphere is quite intense, isn’t it?”

“Seems that way. It’s my first time, so I’m nervous.”

Yeon-woo smiled slightly as he responded to the actor who initiated the conversation.

“Just do what you usually do in front of the camera, and you’ll be fine. Well, I’m not really one to talk either. Phew!”

Offering advice to Yeon-woo about the audition, the actor himself seemed to be getting tense, taking deep breaths.

“Anyway, let’s aim for good results. I’m Ahn Jun-ho. If you happen to make it into this production, it’ll be my third time. I’ve only played small roles, so I’m pretty much unknown.”

Extending his hand to Yeon-woo, he asked for a handshake.

“Sure, I’m Ryu Yeon-woo. Senior, this is my very first time.”

Yeon-woo shook his outstretched hand and smiled brightly.

“Oh! senior? what are you talking about? But still, seeing your face, you’ll become famous soon, won’t you?”

“Thank you for the kind words.”

At that moment, the staff called out for Ahn Jun-ho.

“Number 4, Ahn Jun-ho? Ahn Jun-ho, please come in.”

“Hey, why do I have to be number 4 of all numbers? This time, is it a fate? I’ll go in first, Yeon-woo.”

Ahn Jun-ho greeted Yeon-woo and get up.

After that, several more people auditioned, and Yeon-woo’s turn approached.

“Next up, let’s see… Ryu Yeon-woo? There’s no photo on the profile?”

“Oh, that’s him. Just a few days ago, Jung Cheol-min asked me to recommend a student for the audition, so I told him to just send in some basic personal information.”

Upon hearing Director Kim Han-soo’s words, writer Choi Mi-hyu responded with a pleased tone.

“Ah, so it was Cheol-min’s recommendation. It’s been a while since I’ve seen him. Wasn’t the last time during ‘Seeing the End’?”

“Oh, Cheol-min also appeared in one of Writer Choi’s works as a supporting character, right?”

“Yes, Director. He was an outstanding supporting actor. Even though the work didn’t do well, Cheol-min did really well back then.”

As Kim Han-soo and Choi Mi-hyu reminisced about Jung Cheol-min, Assistant Director Jun Yoon-seok chimed in.

“But that actor… His acting is quite exceptional. His teaching skills are really lacking, though. They have sent actors to auditions for commercial films from that field multiple times, but I’ve never selected anyone.”

“Hmm, maybe the right talent hasn’t been discovered yet. Jung Cheol-min might be in the province now. It seems the pool of talent differs between Seoul and the province in this industry.”

At that moment, the door opened, and Ryu Yeon-woo walked briskly into the audition room, standing in the center.

“Hello! I’m Ryu Yeon-woo, an aspiring actor who applied for the audition of ‘Summer’s Wardrobe’ this time.”

His appearance was truly like a finely carved sculpture, with a halo of light seemingly emanating from behind him.

“Wow… We found him.”

Choi Mi-hyu dropped the pen she was holding onto the desk as she exclaimed.

With her words unintentionally spoken in a low voice, the production staff regained their focus.

“Cheol-min asked us to take a look at one of his students. First of all, the visuals are remarkable.”

“Thank you, Director.”

Upon hearing the mention of Jung Cheol-min, Yeon-woo recognized that the director was Kim Han-soo.

“As for acting experience, you don’t have any yet. Also, you are still a minor, and well… How long have you been acting?”

“Yes, I’ve been learning acting for about 6 months.”

Assitant Director Jun Yoon-seok seemed intrigued but slightly disappointed.

“While your appearance is certainly striking, it’s only been 6 months. Well, let’s see how it goes. Shall we start, Director?”

Director Kim Han-soo nodded in agreement with Assistant Director Jun’s words and instructed Yeon-woo to do a freestyle acting performance.

“Is it okay if I act out any role from the script?”

“Yes, if there’s a role we’d like to see more of, we’ll specify a scene for you to perform again. So, feel free to act out any role or scene from the provided script.”

“Understood. Rookie actor Ryu Yeon-woo, starting scene 16 of episode 2.”

Watching the young man about to start his performance, writer Choi Mi-hyu silently prayed for his success. If his acting ability matched his perfect appearance, he would be a blessing.

Yeon-woo placed the script he brought next to him, and the production staff handed him the script and found scene 16 of episode 2. This time, the role he would be acting was ‘Cha Woo-joo,’ the son of a chaebol.

In the previous scenario, defying his father’s opposition, he entered the modeling department and ended up being kicked out of his home. With nowhere to go, he spent endless hours on a campus chair. At that moment, a basketball from a nearby hoop flew and hit the bike next to him, causing the bike’s mirror to shatter due to the impact. Yeonwoo’s acting scene comes right after that.

It’s the scene where he goes to the house of the male protagonist in the drama, Kang Seo-joon, who had thrown the basketball, not for compensation for damages, but to insist on living with him in exchange for not taking legal action.

There was a certain strategic reason for choosing this scene for the freestyle acting. Scene 16 of episode 2 was the most versatile in terms of expressing a range of facial expressions among the scenarios provided for the audition. Moreover, it was the most powerful weapon that Yeon-woo currently had to offer.

‘All right, it’s my first audition, but I’ll show only what I’ve practiced.’

Yeonwoo, who is now starting to act in earnest.

“Well, I don’t know about that. You wrecked my bike, so I’ll crash here. Besides, there are two rooms anyway.”

Yeonwoo blocked his ears pretending not to hear anything and lay down on the stage.

And then, after a short while, he got up abruptly and whispered the next line like a street vendor, in a persuasive tone.

“You see, I have nowhere else to go. And hey, do you even know how much that motorcycle costs? It’s not something you can get for cheap. Do you know how tough the world we’re living in these days?”

Was it because he hadn’t been learning acting for very long that he didn’t have high expectations? Yet, Yeon-woo was pouring out his lines quite naturally, and the production staff seemed interested.

“Hey! Stop it! Let go. Don’t drag me! Oh, look at this kid’s strength!”

Even though there was no one in front of him, Yeon-woo delivered his lines with an urgent voice, as if he were really being pulled.

“Hey, are you really going to kick me out in this cold weather?”

“Oh, it was the start of a new semester. It’s spring. Wait, don’t you know about ‘Spring cold’?”

Yeon-woo continued to pour out his lines, somewhat clumsily and in a fast-paced manner. His acting wasn’t outstanding but considering he had only started acting six months ago, it was an impressive skill.

However, the gazes of the production staff observing Yeon-woo seemed to reflect exactly that sentiment.

‘I guess I need to leave a mark and get at least one role… I should do it, right?’

Yeon-woo began to practice mind control internally.

‘I am Ryu Yeon-woo. I’m eighteen years old, so I can be cute. I can be cute enough.’

With this determination, Yeon-woo widened his eyes and deliberately looked towards the production staff.

“Hey, buddy, think again. We’ve known each other for just a day. Look at my rabbit-like eyes. Doesn’t that change your mind?”

He covered his face with both hands and blinked his eyes naturally.

The big and innocent-looking eyes that could make anyone mistake him for a girl’s, blinked rapidly, transforming into aegyo and melting the hearts of the production staff who were absentmindedly watching.

“That’s it. Thank you for watching.”

Yeon-woo’s trembling cheeks as he lowered his head were undoubtedly a result of misunderstanding.

Soon, Yeon-woo’s expression returned to neutral, and he returned to the center of the stage where he had placed the script.

Several seconds had already passed since he started reciting his lines.

“Isn’t the pronunciation, okay?”

“If you refine it little by little, it will improve quickly, right?”

“It’s only been six months. If you’ve improved this much at the academy, you’ll catch up quickly once you’re on set.”

Kim Han-soo, the director, who had regained his composure in the evaluation after the murmurings of the judges beside him, nodded with a determined expression.

“Good job. Let’s see, Scene 32 of episode 3? Let’s take another look at this one. You can take your time and read it slowly.”

Pointing to the script that Yeon-woo had placed on the ground, Director Kim ordered a different scene.

‘If it’s Scene 32 of episode 3… Hmm, that’s right, a specified acting scene for Cha Woo-joo.’

After a brief pause, Yeon-woo opened his mouth.

“I’ll start right away.”

The production staff were taken aback by Yeon-woo’s words.

‘He’s starting right away? It’s not even a supporting role scene… Could it be? Did he memorize the whole script?’

“Come on, pick one. Your body? That sweater? It suits you so well, Noona. Your face is pretty, so of course, anything suits you, doesn’t it?”

Yeon-woo’s natural acting made it seem as if there was a female student trying on a sweater on his body right in front of him.

“Since there’s a fitting room inside, why don’t you put it on and come out? Huh? I’ll take a look. Noona.”

With a smile in his eyes, he talked to the customer on his right side, and then his expression suddenly changed to an annoyed one when he looked to the left.

“Hey, Jeong Yeoreum. You definitely said that, right? If you sell twenty of these today, you’ll give us a free room in your house, right?”

Then Yeon-woo continued his dialogue, pretending to find Yeoreum annoying and waving his hand dismissively.

“I don’t know. Whether you’re newlyweds or just roommates, it doesn’t matter. As long as you let me stay, that’s enough for me.”

As Yeon-woo’s expressions changed rapidly, when he looked to the right, he smiled brightly and chatted with the customer. When he looked to the left, he dealt with Yeoreum in an annoyed manner as Cha Woo-joo.

“This… If he can do it perfectly to this extent, which I initially planned to shoot separately twice, then maybe we can go for a full take. And if that’s possible, the visuals will be even better.”

Watching Yeon-woo’s acting, Director Kim Han-soo continued to nod, jotting down notes.

“That’s it, thank you for watching.”

In no time, Yeon-woo finished his acting and stood in the center, bowing slightly.

Applause echoed in the audition room, and writer Choi Mi-hyu smiled widely, as if she had forgotten she was in an audition.

Assistant director Jun Yoon-seok, who had been curious from the beginning, asked the question he had in mind.