Chapter 74

74. XOXO

On the fourth day of the U.S. schedule, there was Youngmin's concert.

There were only two things Siwoo had to do at Youngmin's concert.

The other one was to teach the choreography of the "Lion Family" song by Pink Pororo, which had recently swept the United States, to the audience together with Youngmin.

Since he had already mastered the choreography of both songs perfectly, there was no difficulty, and Siwoo was not the type to feel intimidated by an audience of tens of thousands.

“Waaaaaah~!”

Siwoo, who cutely wiggled his body and performed the U-nana dance and the disciplined "Lion Family" dance, characteristic of a kindergartener from the birthplace of Pink Pororo, received a huge cheer and exited the stage.

It was a fun experience.

Two days later.

Siwoo was heading to the filming location in a car driven by an employee of God Entertainment in LA.

Taewoo and Heeju were also with him.

“Siwoo, are you nervous?”

Heeju asked.

“No~”

“Not nervous about filming in the U.S.? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine~ After all, I don’t even have any lines~”

Siwoo meant that he had nothing much to do compared to Korea, so he wasn’t nervous, but Taewoo thought differently.

“Disappointed that you don’t have any lines? Our Siwoo speaks English well.”

“Do you think they would have given you lines if you had auditioned?”

Heeju asked, and Taewoo shook his head.

“There was no chance to audition. This drama is so competitive that even the extras have to fight for their spots. We should be satisfied that Siwoo will appear in a popular drama. They said they would give him a one-shot for promotional purposes in the Korean market.”

“Might as well give him a line. He’s really well-recognized in Korea.”

“Did you know that in the latest episode of 'Black Arrow,' the top Chinese actress only appeared for three minutes?”

“Yes, I know. Even those three minutes were because of Chinese investors. She only had one line.”

“That’s how it is. The U.S. market is brutally realistic unless you can show something impressive right in front of them. But if you do, the treatment changes immediately.”

While munching on a snack, Siwoo thought.

‘So, I just need to show something impressive in front of them?’

But today, he didn’t feel particularly motivated to show anything or achieve anything.

His mind was more focused on the performances of American kids his age rather than his own acting.

It felt more like a field trip to Universal Studios than going to a filming location.

‘They said I just need to sit there. I’ll really just sit there and come back.’

Friend 23.

Except for his role in Mr. Moonlight as a baby, this was the first time Siwoo would play a part where his face and name wouldn’t be shown.

* * *

It was a huge mansion with an enormous garden.

Siwoo was watching the water spout from the fountain in the yard.

The sculpture in the center of the fountain was quite delicate and beautiful.

While recalling the story and characters of the drama XOXO that his aunt had told him on the way, Siwoo walked around the fountain.

‘First, Mom is a successful businesswoman in the fashion industry. The female lead, the eldest daughter, is a high school star in Beverly Hills who makes headlines just by walking. The second daughter is a sharp and meticulous model student. The youngest is... a well-behaved and kind child, but she didn’t appear much in the previous season. Wait, does that mean I’m a child from Beverly Hills too?’

With no information about the Friend 23 character, it felt more like a field trip than acting, but as he walked around the fountain, some interesting ideas came to mind.

Alright.

Friend 23 is a child from Beverly Hills.

He must be rich, right?

His parents are...

‘Can I just decide on my own? They didn’t tell me, so I have to figure it out myself.’

Dad’s job is a Major League Baseball player.

Mom is... a pianist?

What’s my English name?

Edward Lee.

‘Great. I’m Eddie.’

Friend 23 now had a name.

While Heeju and Taewoo watched, Siwoo, who had been enthusiastically spinning around the fountain, saw a group of children appear in front of him.

The ages of the children ranged from those similar to Siwoo to those a few years older.

The atmosphere became noisy as soon as the children arrived.

“Alright, everyone, be quiet! We’ll start filming soon, so wait nicely with your friends!”

“Okay~!”

The children responded with excited voices, as if they were at an amusement park.

Lucy, unlike the other children, was preparing for the shoot inside the mansion.

She was dressed beautifully, her blonde hair was curled to look more voluminous, and her eyebrows and makeup were neatly done.

“Lucy, you look so beautiful today! You’re shooting with kids your age again? How do you feel?”

“I like it. I love playing with my friends.”

Lucy looked into the hand mirror the staff member handed her.

In the drama, a small and beautiful princess, who was celebrating her birthday today, was smiling at herself in the mirror.

“Why, do you think you look very beautiful too?”

“Hee~”

Lucy smiled sweetly.

While the staff member was tidying up around Lucy, she asked,

“By the way, how was the concert? I wanted to go, but it was really hard to get tickets.”

Six-year-old Lucy put her hands up to her mouth and pretended to shout.

“I saw the baby lion~! With grandpa~ and grandma~ and dad~ and mom~ and sister~”

“Yes, you all went together? Well, he does a lot of concerts for his family.”

“Yes. And Little Shin was there too, and I wanted to get his autograph.”

“...Little Shin? Oh, the kid from the 'Beautiful in the Past' music video? He’s about Lucy’s age, right?”

“Um... probably? We learned the Lion Family dance. Like this~ Baby lion~ Tu ru ru tu ru~”

The staff member couldn’t help but laugh at the cute princess’s Lion Family dance.

“You’ll definitely become a star someday. Lucy, do you want to go out and play with the other kids while you wait? But you have to play nicely. Don’t mess up your clothes or hair.”

“Okay!”

Lucy hopped off the chair.

“Ah!”

Lucy, who was about to go outside with the staff member, turned back with a surprised exclamation.

She had forgotten to take her book, "Harrington and the Dragon’s Egg," which was on the vanity. After picking it up, she finally followed the staff member out.

The mansion was bustling with preparation for the shoot.

Party decorations were set up everywhere, and a beautiful three-tiered cake, which might or might not be edible, and numerous birthday gifts were scattered on the floor.

In front of them, a grand piano, which was beautiful just to look at, occupied a spot.

Seeing the piano, Lucy, looking a bit scared, turned around and ran outside.

The children were gathered near the fountain, playing happily in small groups.

When Lucy opened the door and came out, all the children’s eyes turned to her.

“It’s Lucy!”

“Lucy’s here!”

“Lucy~!”

Lucy raised her hand and greeted them energetically.

“Hi!”

“Hi~!”

The children’s chorus of greetings echoed back.

Lucy looked around to find the friends she had met on set before.

Familiar faces started to appear.

Tommy, Peter, Julia, Abigail, Baby Lion, Sam, Beth...

“Huh?”

...Baby Lion?

Did I see that wrong?

Lucy’s small body turned towards Baby Lion.

Her eyes widened, and her mouth opened wider.

There—

The child—

The child who, two days ago, was wearing a baby lion costume and teaching the Lion Family dance enthusiastically at the concert—

“It’s the baby lion!”

Lucy shouted.

Siwoo was in a bind.

“Please... please... please...”

“Please... please... please...”

“Please... please... please...”

It sounded like a chant, with children pleading from all directions.

All the children had gathered in front of him.

“Show us the Lion Family dance...”

A Caucasian boy about Siwoo’s size said.

‘Wow, the Lion Family dance is this popular? It must be the best K-pop ever.’

Whether in Korea or the U.S.—

Children are—

When Siwoo raised his arms slightly, as if he had no choice, the children’s eyes lit up.

Finally!

They were about to see the professional Lion Family dance!

Thump thump.

Seeing the children’s excitement, Siwoo slowly moved his arms.

The children’s parents and the filming crew were also watching.

Siwoo, who had intended to sit quietly and watch, couldn’t resist the strong presence and made a lion’s mouth shape with his arms.

“Wow!”

The children cheered and mimicked Siwoo’s movements with their arms.

Siwoo bowed his head slightly and muttered to himself.

‘...Can someone please play the music?’

“A baby lion... tu ru ru tu ru!”

“Baby~! Lion~! Tu ru ru~! Tu ru~! Cute~! Tu ru ru tu ru~!”

As if hearing Siwoo’s thoughts, the children started singing in unison.

Feeling the thrill of being serenaded, which foreign singers visiting Korea often praise, Siwoo performed the Lion Family dance, a national exercise for Korean children from kindergarten to elementary school, in sync with the song.

The children stood up and followed Siwoo’s movements.

Lucy was also smiling widely, jumping and singing loudly.

As the children were playing happily, transformed into lions, a staff member called them from the mansion’s entrance.

“Come inside and get ready for the shoot~!”

“Okay~!”

Siwoo, who had unexpectedly united the initially awkward children, led them into the mansion with Lucy at the front.

A moment later—

“Ready, action!”

Siwoo’s first shoot in the U.S. began.

Siwoo stood in line with the gift he was supposed to give.

He wasn’t sure if this was a common practice in the U.S. or just in this house, but the children were holding their gifts, waiting their turn, and at the end of the line, Lucy and her mother were ready to receive them.

On one side of the living room, the drama’s main character, Elena Graham, was sitting on the sofa, leaning back in a slightly rebellious posture.

Elena, with heavy smoky makeup, looked at the children in line and smirked, delivering her line.

“Happy birthday, Anna. It’s amazing. I should invite about a hundred people to my birthday too.”

The actress playing the mother shouted, pointing to the stairs.

“Go upstairs! Now!”

Elena sprang up from the sofa and walked towards the stairs.

Halfway up, Elena leaned on the railing and waved at the children.

“Hi~ Have fun! Be careful of that lady, she’s really bad! Roar!”

Elena laughed and disappeared up the stairs.

Siwoo found it a bit refreshing.

The tone of the lines was different from Korea, and the content and characters were also different.

It felt completely different from watching a finished movie or drama.

“Happy birthday, Anna!”

“Thanks, William!”

“Happy birthday.”

“Thanks for coming, Mark!”

The children, who had been given lines and names, greeted Lucy, and Lucy, to portray the character of Anna, slightly raised her chin and received the gifts with a bit of arrogance.

Then, Siwoo, who was supposed to get a one-shot, appeared behind the children.

At that moment—

“Cut! Okay!”

It was impossible to capture all the children’s greetings.

The scene was cut as soon as the children in front of Siwoo had their lines, and Siwoo’s face appeared on camera.

Siwoo stood in front of Lucy, holding the gift, feeling a bit dazed.

‘...Huh? It’s over so quickly? They said I’d get a one-shot. Could this be it?’

“Alright, let’s move to the next scene! Lucy, get ready for the piano! Do you want to practice a bit?”

The staff members were busy setting up for the next scene.

Siwoo, who had been standing with the gift in the middle of the set, quietly turned around and felt a bit strange.

‘What is this feeling?’

Siwoo’s expression changed.

Oh.