Chapter 7

7. The Perfume Lady

"By any chance, are you going to be in a movie?"

Hyun-ju, who had stepped into the elevator, turned around at the voice from behind.

"Yes, that's right. Hello."

"Didn't you appear in Mr. Moonlight? They said you were a baby actor, right? Your baby can act?"

"No, it was just a coincidence. How can a baby act?"

"How old is he?"

"He's 10 months old."

"At that age, they don't know anything. My child was like that too. How old are you, Mom?"

"I'm 30 this year."

"I see. Anyway, nice to meet you. Can I take a look at your baby's face?"

"Yes."

She slowly examined Si-woo, who was in the baby carrier.

'Ugh! Did this lady take a bath in perfume? It's too much.'

The perfume smell stung her nose.

Unable to bear it, Si-woo buried his face in his mother's arms.

"Is your baby shy? He turned his face away?"

"Ah... Yes, sometimes."

Hyun-ju couldn't say, "It's because of the perfume smell," and just gave an awkward smile.

"Oh, if he's shy, will he be able to film well? In Mr. Moonlight, the baby was too young to even know what shyness was, but now that he's a bit older, he might start crying during filming. You need to take good care of him."

"Yes, I'll make sure to take good care of him so that he doesn't cause any trouble for the actors and staff."

Si-woo frowned.

'Who does this lady think she is, lecturing my mom?'

He didn't like it.

The two mothers, who got off on the same floor, walked together to the place where the movie crew was waiting.

Although no formal introductions were made, Si-woo easily figured out the identity of the perfume lady and the kindergarten child.

'That must be the child who will play my brother in the movie.'

In the movie, Han Tae-soo and Lee Su-jin's children were two: a five-year-old son and a two-year-old son.

'I'll be seeing this lady every time we shoot.'

At the meeting with the movie crew, Si-woo heard the name of the child who would be his brother.

"Hello, I'm Jeong-tae."

Jeong-tae bowed to the adults.

The movie crew members complimented him, saying he was cute.

Jeong-tae's mother, looking at her son with a proud smile, spoke up.

"Our Jeong-tae just started kindergarten a few days ago. He's very well-behaved and mature. Although this is his first time acting, he has been a kid model since he was three, and... Oh, he already has 34,000 followers on social media. He doesn't get nervous in front of the camera. I'll do my best, so please take care of him~"

Her pride in her son was evident in her rapid-fire speech.

"Hehe... When we asked about his modeling activities during the audition, I wrote down all the photo shoots and advertisements Jeong-tae has done so far. I hope he does well in this movie, and if there are any good roles in the future, please remember Jeong-tae."

Director Lee Han-soo said,

"Haha, you're very passionate, ma'am. He's already passed the audition, you know. I thought he was auditioning again."

Jeong-tae's mother covered her mouth and laughed.

After Jeong-tae's introduction, the crew members turned their attention to Hyun-ju, Si-woo's mother.

Hyun-ju, who had been told that she just needed to sign the contract and greet a few people, was very flustered by the unexpected atmosphere.

'What's going on? Is this normal? It feels like an audition.'

The situation had escalated because the baby actor personally picked by the notoriously picky Lee Su-jin and the popular kid model were both there, and the crew members wanted to see their faces.

"I'm... Si-woo's mother. Please take care of me."

Director Lee Han-soo broke into a broad smile.

"I heard about you. They said he didn't cry and finished the ending in one take, and everyone praised him."

Another crew member added,

"He didn't just finish the scene; he reacted to Lee Su-jin's acting. People on the internet weren't just saying he was a baby actor for nothing. Of course, it was probably a coincidence, but in that one shot, his reaction was really perfect."

Another crew member chimed in with more praise.

"He's not just a good actor; he's so cute. I had Si-woo's picture as my phone background for a while. But every time I saw it, I remembered how he called for his mom, and I kept crying, so I changed it."

The compliments poured in, making Hyun-ju blush and thank the crew members for their kind words.

"Does Si-woo cry a lot? I heard Lee Su-jin praised him for not crying."

Director Lee Han-soo asked.

"No, he doesn't cry much. Especially not outside..."

As Hyun-ju was answering, Jeong-tae's mother interjected.

"But I noticed he was a bit shy earlier... I'm not sure if that's okay."

Director Lee Han-soo reacted to Jeong-tae's mother's comment.

"Hmm? I heard from Lee Su-jin that Si-woo isn't shy at all."

Jeong-tae's mother waved her hand.

"Oh, in Mr. Moonlight, the baby was too young. Shyness usually develops when a child recognizes their mother, but at that time, he probably didn't even know who was who. That's why he called Lee Su-jin 'Mom.'"

Director Lee Han-soo nodded.

"Si-woo's mother, does your baby get shy a lot? Is it severe?"

It's normal for babies to be shy, but if it's too severe, it could make filming difficult.

Director Lee Han-soo asked, knowing that no mother would admit her child was severely shy in this situation.

Hyun-ju looked at Jeong-tae's mother with a flustered expression and spoke.

"No, he's really not shy... Right, Si-woo?"

"Awoong!"

Si-woo made a cute sound, as if in response.

Si-woo realized that the perfume lady saw him as a competitor.

'Does she think her son should be in the movie more? How childish.'

Si-woo, with the baby carrier's shoulder strap in his mouth, glanced at the perfume lady.

Jeong-tae's mother glared at Si-woo with a wary expression for a moment before turning away.

Si-woo, secretly smirking, leaned back into his mother's arms.

"We'll take that into account when we start filming, so you don't need to worry. Please help calm the baby on set. It can be really difficult if he cries a lot."

Director Lee Han-soo gestured for the casting manager to bring the contract.

Hyun-ju sat next to Jeong-tae's mother and filled out the contract as instructed by the movie company staff.

Since she had already been briefed on the contract content, it didn't take long.

"You look uncomfortable. Would you like me to hold him for a bit? I'd love to hold him..."

While Hyun-ju was signing, a crew member approached and asked.

It was the middle-aged woman who had set Si-woo's picture as her phone background.

"Ah, yes."

This was a chance to show that Si-woo wasn't shy.

Hyun-ju undid the baby carrier and carefully handed Si-woo over.

The middle-aged woman skillfully held Si-woo and admired his face, which she had only seen in pictures.

"Oh! He's so cute! Where else can you find such a cute baby in the world!"

As she turned to show Si-woo to others, more crew members gathered around.

"That kid is so handsome! He'll make a lot of girls cry when he grows up."

"Come here! Let me hold him too!"

"Director, the baby isn't shy at all? Look, he's smiling! He's even cuter when he smiles!"

Si-woo quickly became the center of attention.

Seeing the crowd gather around Si-woo, Jeong-tae's mother, who had already signed, sipped her water and stood up.

"He's not shy? He was so shy earlier, that's strange. I want to hold him again."

Jeong-tae's mother, who had finished signing, walked over to the crowd.

Hyun-ju was worried that Si-woo might start crying because of the perfume smell.

She quickly finished signing and stood up to follow.

"Si-woo, now let's go to Mom..."

As Hyun-ju was looking for Si-woo, Jeong-tae's mother got there first.

"Come here! Did you see that lady earlier?"

Jeong-tae's mother had already taken Si-woo from the crew member.

Si-woo's face stiffened as the perfume smell hit his nose again.

'Why is this lady doing this?'

Seeing Si-woo's frown, Jeong-tae's mother spoke loudly for everyone to hear.

"Oh, why are you like this? Are you going to cry? There are so many strangers around?"

Jeong-tae's mother stared intently at Si-woo.

Cry. Cry. Cry.

Si-woo felt like he could hear her thoughts.

'What a nerve.'

Si-woo smiled back at her.

The staff and crew members watching sighed in relief.

"He's not crying. Just like Lee Su-jin said, he's not shy at all."

"His smile is so cute. Even with so many people around, he's smiling happily."

"It seems you were mistaken, Mrs. Jeong-tae. This baby isn't shy at all."

Jeong-tae's mother, seeing Si-woo smiling and looking at her, bit her lip.

This made it seem like she was deliberately criticizing the baby, even if it was true.

Of course, it was true, but it wasn't something others should think.

"Yes, you're right. I must have misunderstood. Our Si-woo is so well-behaved."

Jeong-tae's mother, pretending to praise Si-woo, secretly pinched his leg.

Si-woo was startled by the pain in his thigh.

A grown adult was subtly twisting and pinching the soft flesh of a baby who hadn't even turned one.

Si-woo, determined not to cry, endured the pain, causing Jeong-tae's mother to apply more force.

'Why, why aren't you crying? Cry, baby. If you don't, I'll pinch you harder.'

Si-woo, who had cast a basic protection spell on himself to counter the pinching, suddenly burst into laughter.

With the brightest smile in the world, Si-woo reached out his hands toward Jeong-tae's mother's curly hair.

"Si-woo seems to like Mrs. Jeong-tae. He's laughing so much."

A movie company staff member, unaware of what was about to happen, laughed.

'Yeah, I like you. The first time I met a baby, an adult pinched my thigh. It's so familiar and nice.'

Si-woo, with his outstretched hands, grabbed Jeong-tae's mother's hair and pulled it mercilessly.

"Ahh! Ahh!"

As if he was having the time of his life.

"Ahh! What is this kid doing! Let go! He won't let go? Ahh! Do you know how much this hair costs! Ahh!"

Jeong-tae's mother screamed and tried to pry Si-woo's hands off.

But he was holding on so tightly that she might pull out a clump of hair if she wasn't careful.

"Ahh! Si-woo's mom! Si-woo's mom! Help me!"

Finally, Jeong-tae's mother called for Hyun-ju's help.

Unlike the fussing Jeong-tae's mother, Hyun-ju calmly spoke to Si-woo.

"Si-woo, the lady says it hurts. Let go of her hair."

Si-woo immediately let go, as if he had never pulled her hair.

The crew members, who had witnessed this, showered Si-woo with more praise.

"Wow, Si-woo listens so well!"

"Did you see that? He let go as soon as his mom told him to."

"If he cries, he'll stop right away if his mom tells him to. No wonder Lee Su-jin praised him so much."

Jeong-tae's mother, holding her aching head, looked at Si-woo in disbelief.

'This isn't right...'

The baby was still laughing cutely.

Oh.