The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter 84

“…….”

“…….”

“……Uh…, would you say something….”

“Ah.”

I was momentarily frozen and then came to my senses.

I unknowingly scratched my ear.

So… I just got confessed to, right?

“Sorry. It was so unexpected.”

“No, it’s fine. I’d be flustered too!”

Baek Seo-jin had her head bowed deeply, hiding her face, but her neck, visible between her long hair, was red.

My throat felt dry. I tried my best to speak calmly.

“I’m not looking to date anyone right now… I’m sorry.”

“Oh…, I see.”

Thankfully, she responded calmly to my careful words.

What should I say next?

I was even more flustered because I hardly ever read scripts with romance in them.

If I had known this would happen, I would have asked Noh Bi-hyuk for some advice.

“Sorry for confessing so suddenly…. We’re not even close, so you must have been shocked.”

“Well… it was a surprising thing to hear.”

I answered, scratching the back of my neck out of habit, even though I was about to say no.

I didn’t know why my body felt so itchy.

I just wanted to get out of there.

“I fell for you at first sight during the entrance ceremony….”

But seeing Baek Seo-jin’s serious face made it hard to leave.

I naturally ended up sitting next to her along the stone wall behind the school, listening.

“I used to think it was silly to fall for someone just because of their looks, but it turns out I can’t control it.”

“Is that so….”

“And you’re so kind too… Is that your natural personality?”

“Well, I’m not really sure….”

The conversation continued awkwardly, but suddenly Baek Seo-jin started snapping at me with an angry face.

“Honestly! It’s a bit much for someone who looks like you to be in the same first-year class, isn’t it? You know you’re good-looking, don’t you?”

“Seo-jin, calm down.”

“Calm down? You shouldn’t act so kindly if you have no intention of dating someone! That’s practically a crime.”

“Yeah. Sorry….”

When she told me not to call her “Seo-jin” so affectionately from now on, I agreed, and she glared at me as if wondering how I could say that. What was I supposed to do?

Baek Seo-jin, who had been rambling, left without even saying goodbye.

I sat on the stone wall for a long time afterward, staring blankly at the ground.

* * *

“Yeon-jae!”

“Haa…. I knew you’d say that.”

I sighed and automatically spoke as soon as I opened my eyes.

“I like you too, Yeon-jae! Hehe!”

“Change your form quickly before I say something nice.”

The mist that had been laughing in Baek Seo-jin’s form changed its appearance only after I pulled its cheek.

The mist, now back as Nam In-hoo, shyly poked my shoulder.

“So? It was your first confession, right?”

“Let’s practice quickly. We have filming tomorrow.”

“I’m really curious! Can’t you tell me a little bit?”

“Where did we leave off yesterday?”

I thought ignoring him would make him stop, but today the mist was more persistent than ever.

But seeing his bright face after a long time, I couldn’t help but feel better too.

“What are you so curious about?”

“Everything! How did you feel when you got confessed to? Did you hear bells? Huh? Why didn’t you accept the confession?”

“I felt flustered. I didn’t accept it because I didn’t want to date. And isn’t hearing bells something that happens during a first kiss?”

“Same difference!”

What do you mean same difference?

For some reason, I lightly patted the excited mist on the back.

“Enough, right? Let’s practice now. You said you’d help.”

Only then did the mist come to its senses and stand beside me.

Without being told, he had changed into Lee Jin-woo’s school uniform, which was commendable.

Having acted together a few times, the mist did a decent job of imitating Lee Jin-woo.

I stifled a laugh and, to immerse myself, thought of Kang Tae-il.

* * *

“Tae-il, are you still hanging out with that kid?”

“Who?”

“The one who looks just like you.”

The question from Han-sung hyung was too sudden.

Though I was puzzled, I answered nonchalantly.

“Yeah. I see him every day. At the riverbank.”

“You’d better stop seeing him.”

“…? Suddenly?”

I was so taken aback that my voice cracked.

I was cutting my toenails and was startled, raising my head abruptly.

I was about to ask why, but seeing hyung’s face made me close my mouth.

“……Okay. I’ll do that.”

“Good. You’re a good kid.”

When Han-sung hyung had that look, it was best not to provoke him.

He patted my shoulder as if I made the right choice.

I scratched my temple, watching his retreating back.

‘I should at least say goodbye.’

I changed my clothes and quietly stepped outside.

I didn’t forget to grab a stick of snacks from my pocket.

The first time I gave a snack to Lee Jin-woo, he looked at me like I was some beggar, but he still thanked me in a gentle voice.

He acted like he was going to spit it out right away but seemed to like it since he ate it every time I gave it to him after that. Cute kid.

‘Sigh, what a shame.’

I didn’t know why Han-sung hyung said not to see him, but his words were law to us.

I felt bad that I couldn’t have our usual hour-long conversations anymore, but I had no intention of breaking the law.

I was sitting on the riverbank for a few minutes with a complicated mind when a familiar scent reached me.

“You’re here.”

“How do you always know I’m here without me saying anything?”

“I can smell you.”

Lee Jin-woo tilted his head.

Seeing his slightly furrowed brow, it seemed he was genuinely curious.

“What smell? If anything, it’s your smell I’d notice.”

“Oh, look who’s talking tough now. Wanna die?”

Though my words were harsh, a smile was already creeping onto my lips.

He was smiling too.

The sullen Lee Jin-woo from a month ago was gone, replaced by a more relaxed-looking kid who occasionally smiled.

‘Ah, it’s really a shame.’

I originally planned to get straight to the point, but I genuinely felt bad.

Now naturally climbing up the riverbank, Lee Jin-woo sat next to me. What?

“What’s wrong with you? Are you sick?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“Your face says it all. Did you hurt your stomach?”

I noticed he was walking a bit oddly, and when he sat down, he seemed to hold his breath briefly.

It’s not like he’s been fighting. Did he bump into something?

When I looked closely at his stomach, he suddenly stiffened his face.

Lee Jin-woo was making a face I’d never seen before.

“……Do I look like I’m in pain?”

“Yeah. If it’s that bad, use a hydrocortisone cream. That works fastest for bruises.”

I couldn’t exactly lift the shirt of someone I’d only known for a month, so I just looked at him a few more times.

Suddenly, he clammed up and stayed quiet.

‘It’s time to bring it up.’

There were plenty of excuses.

I could lie and say I was moving to another orphanage in a different area.

But seeing Lee Jin-woo so unusually quiet made me hesitate.

“Hey, Tae-il.”

“Yeah?”

“I can’t come here anymore.”

But the words he said were the exact same ones I was going to say.

I was about to joke that he beat me to it, but my voice faltered.

“Hey… are you okay?”

Lee Jin-woo looked at the river as if he were dead.

“…….”

He didn’t answer for a long time.

He briefly buried his head between his knees, then looked up at me.

“Can’t you give me your phone number even now?”

“……Huh?”

“We’re kind of friends now, aren’t we?”

What is he saying?

I was about to answer that I didn’t have a phone, but his eyes seemed to already know the truth.

‘His eyes….’

The eyes I met were steady and calm.

Yet, they looked oddly confused, like the serene sea before a giant wave hits.

I had to say something, but my throat felt choked, and no words came out.

“It’s okay. I’ll give you my number, so make sure to call me.”

“…….”

He handed me a note and stood up.

Looking up at the sky, I closed my eyes against the shimmering light of the setting sun.

After saying, “See you later,” he disappeared in an instant.

“What the heck….”

When I came to my senses, I was alone.

I stood up with a feeling like I had been possessed by a ghost and looked down at the note in my hand.

‘010-XXXX-XXXX. Lee Jin-woo.’

His neat handwriting suited him perfectly.

But the thin paper felt oddly fragile.

“Cut!”

At the shout, I closed my eyes.

After a moment of short, yet long, confusion, I opened my eyes again, and Nam In-hoo spoke as if he’d been waiting.

“Six seconds.”

“Thanks.”

Manager An Jin-bae, who had watched me several times, started timing my reactions.

I told him not to bother, but he said it was no trouble.

“…….”

Usually talkative after the cut sign, Nam In-hoo was unusually quiet today.

He buried his head between his knees, mimicking Jin-woo’s posture, and muttered.

“You… really… did it.”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing.”

I asked again, not understanding his muffled words, but Nam In-hoo just shook his head.

Maybe he was still immersed in Jin-woo’s emotions, as he stared at the river with a sad look.

I considered saying something but decided to silently look at the river with him.

“Yeon-jae! Oh my, our lucky charm! This is crazy.”

The calm atmosphere was shattered as Director Yoon Kang-yeon burst out.

I followed him to check the filming, and I was stunned by the incredible scene captured.

“I planned to center the direction around your eyes, but seeing it executed so perfectly, I almost cried.”

The soft light of the setting sun was perfectly reflected in my eyes.

My gaze floated like a mirage in the air.

It was the same kind of look that appeared in all of Director Yoon’s films. It was fascinating.

Director Yoon’s face was flushed, perhaps excited about achieving the exact scene he wanted.

He seemed so excited that it made me a bit embarrassed.

“Let’s switch characters and shoot again. This time, Yeon-jae will play Jin-woo, and In-hoo will play Tae-il.”

“Yes.”

Nam In-hoo and I went into the tent to change clothes.

He seemed more downcast than before but showed no sign of it in front of the camera.

Once the filming of Lee Jin-woo was over, the sunset was almost completely gone.

‘If we were a little late, we would’ve had to shoot again tomorrow.’

Unusually, we had back-to-back evening shoots today.

I hurried to eat and practice for the next scene when Manager An Jin-bae approached with a smile.

“Actor, Lee Jung-hyun sent a group lunch box.”

“……Again?”

That hyung, really.

I sighed and called him, only to be met with a much higher-pitched voice than before.

Since returning to Korea, Jung-hyun hyung’s mood had been sky-high.

The call, which began with nagging, ended with me thanking him.

Every passing staff member kept thanking me, making it even more chaotic.

The lunch box, which included fried shrimp, was quite substantial, but Nam In-hoo still looked gloomy.

I thought about asking if something was wrong but decided it wasn’t my place.

But even after hearing this, I couldn’t stay quiet.

“Just do it half-heartedly. I’m not in the scene anyway.”

“What?”