Chapter 79

79. "Are you going to send it back...?"

"Cut! Okay!"

Siwoo, wearing a mermaid suit, delivered his line in the bathtub, and the camera zoomed in on Seohyun's bewildered expression before the cut sign appeared.

This was the first scene of the drama.

Afterward, a subtitle reading "One month ago" appeared below Seohyun's face, and the drama would then start with the situation where Siwoo and Seohyun first met a month ago.

"Good job! They say a good start is half the battle. We've already shot half the drama. Let's do our best from now on!"

Director Lee Sangcheol gave encouraging applause to Seohyun and Siwoo after completing the first shoot.

"Thank you. I'll do my best."

Seohyun reviewed the footage with the director and then sat down on the bed.

Siwoo, with the help of the staff, climbed out of the bathtub.

"Siwoo, are you cold?"

"No, I'm not cold at all."

The agency staff changed Siwoo's clothes and dried his body with towels and a hairdryer.

The warm weather of late spring and the carefully controlled water temperature made him feel not cold at all. In fact, it felt like he was in a spa, and he almost wanted to stay in longer.

When Siwoo, who had dried off, came out of the bathroom, Seohyun, who was sitting on the set bed, called out to him.

"Senior Siwoo~ Come sit here."

Siwoo, leaving the staff preparing for the next scene behind, sat next to Seohyun.

Seohyun took a Mytch from his pocket.

"Do you want this? Your sister watched the drama you were in and bought me Mytch. I don't know if you still like it, though..."

"I do."

Siwoo extended his hands politely.

Seohyun peeled the wrapper and placed the Mytch on Siwoo's hands.

"Is it good?"

"Yep~"

Siwoo rolled the jelly candy in his mouth while looking at Seohyun.

'He looks like he didn't sleep well. I wonder if he's eaten. Well, it'll get better gradually.'

As he worried about his junior and ate the Mytch, Director Lee Sangcheol called out to Siwoo.

"Siwoo, can you come here for a moment? When you were in 'Hotel Red Moon,' you were too young to do this, but even though you're only seven, you're the lead actor, so I'll teach you how to monitor the footage."

Ding!

Monitoring?

He had watched the footage from behind adults before, but he had never formally given opinions during monitoring.

Siwoo got off the bed and went to Director Lee to learn about monitoring.

Since he had seen it many times over the shoulder, it wasn't particularly difficult.

"If you have anything to say about the footage, you can tell the director. In 'Red Moon,' the director knew you were good at acting and improvising, so just speak your mind. Got it?"

"Got it!"

Siwoo answered confidently.

'It feels like I'm really a professional actor. I bet it would feel great to get this treatment in Hollywood too.'

The set was revolving around seven-year-old Siwoo.

It was a unique experience.

"Go and read the script with Seohyun and prepare. We'll start shooting soon."

"Okay~"

As Siwoo turned to go back to the bed, Nam Juseok, who was watching among the staff, called out.

"Yoon Siwoo, fighting! Do your best!"

Director Lee said to Juseok.

"Juseok, watch Siwoo carefully. His lines, his movements, his expressions. Study them well."

"Got it! Director! I'll copy everything exactly..."

"No, can you just copy? Your body and situation are different. Remember the key points and show them at the right time."

"..."

"Do you understand?"

"..., Yes."

He doesn't get it.

"Let me give you an example. In 'In the Name of the God,' what was Yomra's habit?"

Juseok thought for a moment and then spoke.

"Kicking the floor?"

"Right. In 'Hotel Red Moon,' how did Suho react when he first saw the hotel in chaos?"

"He kicked the floor."

"He stomped his foot. That's the kind of key point you need to catch and sync with Siwoo."

"Ah, got it! I understand. But..."

"What? Speak up."

"Since Siwoo is a good actor, what if I act and Siwoo follows me? I think Siwoo can catch it well..."

"Since Siwoo is... good... you should follow Siwoo... to make the drama better..."

"Ah, right! I was shortsighted! I'll do my best!"

"Good, with that enthusiasm... do your best. Juseok! Let's become a professional actor!"

"Got it!"

Siwoo, peeling a grape-flavored Mytch, let out a slight sigh.

'...It's a bit overwhelming.'

The shooting continued.

Director Lee Sangcheol skillfully led the set, shouting numerous "Ready, action!" and "Cut!"

"Ready, action!"

The location was still the one-room set.

Since it was the first day of shooting, they planned to shoot a few early scenes in the one-room apartment without much pressure.

Siwoo and Seohyun were sitting on the floor, preparing a meal.

Siwoo, wearing a blue T-shirt with "Prince of the Sea" and small English words written in many places, given to him by Jungtae's mother, was sitting on the floor, tapping his feet.

"Bring me food. Bring me food. Bring me food."

Seohyun, stirring the seaweed soup in the pot on the gas stove, turned her head sharply and snapped.

"Hey! Am I your servant? Stop saying 'bring me food' and at least bring the spoon and chopsticks yourself!"

Siwoo continued to tap his feet.

"I can't reach. I can't reach. I can't reach."

"Can't... reach...?"

"Shin Eunsoo, you just inflicted an indelible sense of humiliation on a mermaid's heart~"

As Siwoo, who was tapping his feet and pleading cutely, suddenly stiffened and delivered his line, Director Lee Sangcheol couldn't help but admire him.

'Wow, look at that seven-year-old kid changing his expression. This is clearly talent, not effort.'

As the staff tried to hold back their laughter at Siwoo's adorable pout, Seohyun continued her line.

"What humiliation? Do you know how much it costs to feed and house you?"

Siwoo, pretending to be angry, prepared for an argument.

"Does feeding and housing me mean you can treat me however you want and use me like a slave? Humans are bad! I'm disappointed!"

"What, what disappointment. Humans... are not... like that... No! When have I ever treated you like a slave? Tell me. Tell me."

"Tell you to put the spoon and chopsticks down... In our kingdom, we've never even moved a finger during meals..."

"..."

"Why? Look at the words on my shirt. Prince- of- the- Sea- I'm a mermaid prince."

Siwoo, lying on the floor with his short legs crossed, looked up at Seohyun, who responded with a sarcastic smile and a snort.

"Whatever. I've never been to the ocean. How do I know if you're a mermaid prince or a mermaid beggar? Besides, did you just read English? Do mermaids know English these days?"

Siwoo returned the snort.

"Hmph. Are there no foreigners among mermaids? And you, think about it. In the ocean... no, that's not it."

"What? What is it?"

"It doesn't matter. Human memory is like that. But let's eat quickly! The flounder and sea bream look so delicious! I'm so excited~"

Seohyun, placing the bowl of seaweed soup and the grilled fish cakes on the table, said with a dismissive tone.

"Ha, flounder and sea bream? Dream on."

Ding!

The doorbell rang.

"Huh? Who is it?"

While Seohyun was puzzled, Siwoo, who had been rolling around, jumped up.

Siwoo, sitting in front of the table, said affectionately to Seohyun.

"Eunsoo, I'll definitely protect you! I'll protect you, and you'll feed me. We're the perfect partners."

"You can't possibly... No, right? Hahaha~ No, tell me it's not true. Right now."

"I'll go get it."

"Get what... what?"

"Order flounder and sea bream sashimi~ by phone."

"...If a child calls, they'll think it's a prank and won't bring it, right?"

"I spoke like an adult. Hello~ Mr. Owner. I'd like to order a plate of flounder and sea bream, please."

"..."

"Are you going to send it back...?"

Siwoo, with his hands clasped under his chin, looked at Seohyun with a desperate and sad expression.

It was time to wrap up the scene.

Next was Seohyun's turn to act.

Seohyun, looking at Siwoo, who only pretended to be a child when it suited him, with disgust, couldn't help but turn her head away, unable to resist his fatal charm.

"J-just eat. Eat. You must miss your hometown food too! Ugh! I'll just work more! When you first came, you were so innocent and mysterious..."

Seohyun, pinching Siwoo's cheeks lightly, went to the front door to get the delivery.

Director Lee called out.

"Cut! Okay!"

Clap, clap, clap!

Every time the "Okay" sign was given, the staff clapped to boost the confidence of the young Siwoo and the newcomer Seohyun.

"I've heard from the staff who worked with Siwoo before that he really memorizes long lines and acts well. They said working with Siwoo saves a lot of shooting time, and it's true."

"His expression was really! So cute! Emoticon~! Emoticon~! Does God Entertainment also give out mermaid emoticons?"

"He has good chemistry with other actors, like when he acted with Han Yurim. Seohyun, for a newcomer, is doing well. Their interaction flows naturally, doesn't it?"

The staff exchanged opinions and marveled at the scene they just shot.

Siwoo was sitting on a folding chair, drinking juice through a straw.

Sip, sip

"Siwoo, if you're hungry, let me know. We have snacks."

Tae Woo, looking pleased, spoke to Siwoo, who was having a good first day as a lead actor.

"Siwoo, wait a moment, let me check your hair."

The stylist, who had been working on Siwoo's slightly messy hair from the long shoot, fixed it.

"Thank you~"

"Aww, you're so polite. Siwoo. We're almost done. Keep it up."

"Got it."

Feeling a great sense of responsibility for all the people working for him, Siwoo, after finishing his juice, got up, hugged his script, and went to Seohyun.

"Shall we practice?"

"Sure~"

Siwoo and Seohyun did a quick rehearsal to check the last scene they would shoot today.

A moment later, Director Lee's voice echoed through the set again.

"Ready- action-!"

After shouting so much today, Director Lee's voice was a bit hoarse.

Siwoo and Seohyun opened the front door and entered the house.

They were holding shopping baskets.

Siwoo spoke first.

"Making a child carry a shopping basket... That's too much."

"What's too much? I carried it the whole way and only let you hold it for a moment when we went up the stairs."

"I... in the sea..."

"It's land here. And you're not really a child, so stop whining. You're a hundred times stronger than me."

"Tch."

"Besides, most of it is for you to eat. You... we need to talk. This can't go on. We'll go bankrupt."

"Is the money I gave you before useless~?"

Siwoo asked with a slightly dejected look.

Seohyun, looking like she was about to grab her neck in frustration, shouted.

"T-the... sea money? Shells?"

"They're not just shells. They're officially issued shells made by the kingdom... Ah, I should have brought pearls."

"Right! You should have brought pearls!"

"I left in a hurry."

"Ugh, never mind. Sit down."

Seohyun put the shopping basket under the sink and sat on the floor with Siwoo.

"I... I really didn't want to have this conversation... But I think we need to be realistic... I've been thinking about this for a while, and it's really hard to bring up... "

"U-uh, what is it?"

Seohyun, who had been bowing her head, slowly lifted her face.

Seohyun's eyes were strangely shining.

"...Your scales are so beautiful and shiny, so pretty."

"..."

"They were beautiful. You said you liked being complimented on your scales."

"Y-yes... So..."

"Can't we... just... take one... and sell it? Make a necklace? A bracelet?"

Siwoo, with a fearful expression, slowly backed away.

On the contrary, Seohyun, gradually losing her sanity in front of the dwindling bank account, said with a smile.

"Just one~ quickly... let's go to the bathroom... I'll take it off without hurting you!"

"It's not really painful, but..."

"Really!?"

"Ah!"

As Siwoo, who had made a slip of the tongue, covered his mouth with both hands.

Bang, bang, bang!

Someone knocked roughly on the front door.

Oh.