"Yi-han!"
The thief... no, my future brother-in-law called out to me.
I had no idea if he'd tracked me down here somehow, but he sure looked desperate.
Shin Yi-han bowed his head politely first.
"You're eating, huh!"
Assistant Director Kwak Hoon glanced back and forth between the empty sundae guk bowl on the table and Shin Yi-han.
Then he casually tried to play off the "coincidental" meeting.
"Whoa, what are the odds? I was just about to grab dinner around here before heading back to the office."
Ha ha. Kwak Hoon scratched the back of his head with an awkward laugh.
Of course, coincidence my ass. It obviously wasn't.
Kwak Hoon had come rushing out here after Shin Yi-han went radio silent following the scenario he'd sent.
He figured the guy might still be sleeping since he wasn't answering, but what choice did he have?
'How am I supposed to just sit still!'
He'd wanted to storm straight to the guy's house if he could. But without a phone number or anything solid, that was impossible.
In the end, he'd wandered around the acting academy where he knew Shin Yi-han had studied—the only lead he had.
It was the spot where he'd first spotted him, after all... He thought maybe coming out here would ease the frustration a bit.
But running into him like this? Kwak Hoon patted himself on the back for heading out.
He couldn't have been happier.
Except...
The scene in front of him brought a twinge of betrayal.
You said you'd call as soon as you were up. Sob.
Making people worry and sneakily scarfing down food alone!
Kwak Hoon was a whirlwind of emotions.
But none of that mattered now. Yeah! A guy's gotta eat!
Kwak Hoon cut straight to the chase.
This was the important part.
"Yi-han, so you saw the messages I sent, right? Now that you're done eating, let's head to the office and really dive into that scenario—"
But Kwak Hoon couldn't finish his sentence.
He'd just noticed the woman sitting right in front of Shin Yi-han—his sister, Shin I-rim.
"...!"
His body froze solid. His face flushed beet red.
"Yi-han. Wh-who's this?"
He even started stammering.
No way... was this Yi-han's girlfriend?
Kwak Hoon's heart plummeted.
Shin Yi-han was giving him this weird look with an embarrassed grin, which only made it worse.
What the—? Was it true? Had he been ghosting because of a date or something, Yi-han?!
Kwak Hoon's mind spun into chaos in an instant.
But he couldn't tear his eyes off her.
How could her eyes be so huge without any double eyelids?
And that ponytail tied up so simply—why did it look so perfect on her... No. Snap out of it.
Staring at some stranger's girlfriend and having these rude thoughts on a first meeting?
Argh!
"It's my sister. My real sister."
Huh?
Shin Yi-han kindly explained to Kwak Hoon, who was putting on a one-man show.
"R-really?"
"Of course."
Kwak Hoon visibly relaxed at the words "real sister." Shin Yi-han couldn't help but chuckle.
He naturally introduced them.
"Sister, this is Assistant Director Kwak Hoon. The one who cast me in Murder's Delusion."
Shin I-rim wiped her mouth and stood up.
"Hello. I'm Shin I-rim, Yi-han's sister. I've heard so much about you."
"Ah!"
Kwak Hoon's eyes widened at Shin I-rim's professional smile.
"N-nice to meet you! I'm Kwak Hoon! I'm the assistant director on Murder's Delusion!"
Shin I-rim pulled out her business card and handed it over as Kwak Hoon nervously offered his.
"You're a PD from SBC...!"
"Yes. Looking forward to working with you in every way."
"M-me too!"
Shin Yi-han watched them and gradually lost the will to speak.
No, Kwak Hoon...
Aren't you way too into this?
Why's he clutching that new PD's card like it's treasure?
Why's he fidgeting like that over one casual comment from her?
His face was red like he'd fallen in love at first sight. Total meltdown.
It was exactly the same reaction as before.
Of course, that familiarity was reassuring.
But he hadn't expected this even after seeing her all disheveled straight from work.
To react like that to that look? Wow.
Shin Yi-han quietly marveled. If Shin I-rim knew, she'd smack him upside the head.
"Um, Assistant Director."
At this rate, Kwak Hoon's face might overheat and explode. Shin Yi-han called out to him.
She'd seen everything now.
"You've eaten, right? Shall we go talk for real?"
"Huh?"
Time to actually do this.
"Innocent Boy."
"...!"
Kwak Hoon's eyes sparkled like he'd been waiting for it.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Kwak Hoon looked full of regret the whole way saying goodbye to her.
[Red Film]
In the elevator up to the office, Kwak Hoon's face started coming alive again.
He looked like he was dying to talk about the scenario.
And honestly, Shin Yi-han felt the same.
He stepped off the elevator with a strange thrill, his lips already curving into a smile.
He naturally pushed open the office door ahead of Kwak Hoon and went in.
The familiar sight unfolded before him. Red Film's office was still small, but it had everything it needed.
A smile tugged at Shin Yi-han's lips.
How many times had he come and gone here with Kwak Hoon in the past? This place was pure nostalgia.
"Ah. Looks like everyone's out for dinner."
Kwak Hoon followed him in, scanning the room.
The office was empty.
It was quitting time anyway, and anyone left had stepped out.
"I wanted to introduce our actor to everyone. Oh well. Quiet's good too."
Kwak Hoon shrugged and pointed to one corner.
"Yi-han, let's talk over there."
It was a small meeting room space.
"I printed the scenario and took tons of notes. I've got so much I wanna discuss."
Kwak Hoon practically skipped over, his voice buzzing with excitement.
On the meeting room table sat the printed Innocent Boy script, plastered with so many Post-its it was hard to tell how many times he'd read it.
Impressive. Shin Yi-han smiled faintly at the thorough prep.
The moment he sat in the meeting room chair, Kwak Hoon pulled a business card from the table.
"So, first off, Yi-han."
He tamped down his urge to dive into Innocent Boy and brought up his biggest question—the most important one.
"Can you give me the writer's contact info?"
Sending that email right after the company dinner meant the scenario was already finished beforehand. Nothing else made sense.
Kwak Hoon wondered if the writer was one of Shin Yi-han's acquaintances or someone from the academy.
How else could a script like this just pop out of nowhere?
"Or at least pass on my card. I really wanna meet and talk face-to-face!"
Kwak Hoon slid the card toward Shin Yi-han earnestly. He wanted a meeting with the writer ASAP if possible.
How did they dream up something this insane? Any other scripts from before?
How could words on a page shake someone up this much?
And if they trusted him enough to hand over the script, how close were they to Yi-han?!
He had a ton of questions.
"I even told the CEO I can't do this without this script."
Kwak Hoon's face was pleading.
Shin Yi-han just smiled quietly in response.
The writer of this script? Predictable question.
Kwak Hoon probably wanted to dissect every line with them right away.
A guy like him would fully interpret the writer's vision and bring it to perfect life on screen.
But to do that...
Something needed wrapping up first.
It was what he'd decided back when he first thought of sending the scenario.
'The duality between actor and writer.'
The completed scripts of an established writer versus starting from zero as a rookie actor.
He planned to settle that right here.
The reason he'd offered this script in the first place...
It was the same mindset as back then.
In front of Kwak Hoon, who'd offered him the lead despite his hard-won comeback chance.
The moment he'd handed over a scenario instead of acting.
Yeah, that's how it was.
'...I'll go with this.'
No. I don't want this one.
'Lead, supporting... doesn't matter.'
I want the lead and supporting roles so bad it hurts.
'Just let me try this instead, hyung.'
This isn't what I want to do, hyung.
Truth is, I really wanna act.
Even with this awful face.
Please.
But back then, he had to swallow all those feelings.
He knew it was impossible.
It was rage he couldn't voice.
No matter how badly he wanted to act, if no one would watch, what was the point?
Just thrashing to grab even a piece of it.
If he ever got to act someday, he'd write the world he wanted to live in.
...But this felt like a divine prank.
Now it was actually possible.
Everything had changed—no hesitation needed.
"Assistant Director."
Shin Yi-han looked up and called to him.
"Can you keep a secret? About who the writer is."
"Huh?"
Kwak Hoon sounded flustered by the question.
Shin Yi-han smiled softly, face resolute.
The conclusion was simple.
'Faceless writer.'
Honestly, he'd lived plenty as a writer already.
More than enough.
So this time, he wanted to go all-in as an actor. No holding back.
"Not revealing it for now."
"Uh, okay?"
Not forever, of course.
Just until...
Until he reached a spot where the writer in him couldn't be hidden anymore.
"Some no-dual-role policy or something?"
"No."
"As long as the public doesn't know?"
"Including the other staff. The Director knowing would be ideal."
"M-me alone?"
"Yes."
Shouldn't be too hard.
He'd done it before in the past.
His hyung had fronted for the faceless writer back then.
Especially when half his face was scarred from burns.
"Who the heck...?"
So Shin Yi-han answered flatly, casually—only possible with someone trustworthy.
"Me."
He pointed at himself with a fingertip.
"But right now, I'm not the writer."
This time...
"I wanna be the actor."
Absolutely.
Shin Yi-han smiled gently.
Kwak Hoon could only gape in front of him.
He was totally thrown.
Wa-wait a sec. What...?
At first, when asked if he could keep a secret, Kwak Hoon figured it was just a typical writer quirk.
Some hated showing their faces. It happened.
Not even that unusual.
No big issue.
But the real shock...
'It's him.'
For a split second, Kwak Hoon couldn't believe Shin Yi-han.
Was he messing with him? It felt that off.
Come on, right?
Acting so brutally intense... and writing this too?
'No way that makes sense!'
What kind of monster was this?
But the Shin Yi-han he'd seen the last few days wasn't the joking type.
And seeing his expression—firm smile, unwavering eyes—Kwak Hoon had no choice but to believe it.
Like every word was dead serious.
"F-for real?"
"Yes."
"For real?!"
Kwak Hoon kept double-checking. Each time, only firm affirmations came back.
He took a deep breath, then exhaled.
"You... really."
His lips twitched up involuntarily. He touched them.
A dazed laugh escaped.
"No idea how much more you're gonna shock me."
He couldn't gauge what kind of person he'd cast.
Or rather, what lucky charm had rolled in.
With writing and acting like this...
How could he not be hyped for what it'd create?
And Shin Yi-han fully agreed.
He was pretty damn confident.
Confident he could shoot straight to the top with this.
"Now that that's out, let's aim here."
He knew exactly how.
Shin Yi-han flashed a cocky smile and pulled out his phone.
It was something he'd planned from the moment he handed Kwak Hoon the script.
- Seoul Independent Film Festival
The nation's biggest indie film contest.
As an indie fest, it didn't have massive public reach.
But what if a heavyweight director—multiple Cannes contender—joined as a surprise wildcard judge?
And only he knew?
Yeah.
For him as both writer and actor, it was an opportunity he couldn't miss.
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