Chapter 9

9. My Too Scary Wife

The lingering cold of March had finally dissipated, and a full-fledged spring had arrived.

It was the season for flower viewing and outings.

Siwoo went to the soccer field with his dad and mom, watched a soccer game, climbed Namsan, and toured Cheonggyecheon.

"Siwoo! Dad's over here! Can you take just ten steps?"

And then, early April.

At the Yeouido Cherry Blossom Festival, Siwoo finally took his first steps alone, wearing shoes.

In fact, Siwoo had been able to walk, run backward, and even jump over obstacles for a long time, but he chose to walk at the right moment.

'This is pretty normal. Finally, one less thing to worry about. Phew. Now, when will he start talking?'

Walking can be done suddenly one day, but speaking requires gradually increasing language skills to sound natural, which was a bit of a hassle.

'Should I just trigger a language explosion after his first birthday? No, I should let my parents enjoy the fun of watching him gradually learn to speak.'

I'll think about talking later; today, it's time to show them my first steps outside the house.

Siwoo waved his arms excitedly and waddled toward his dad.

Dohjin, who was sitting on his knees, called out excitedly.

"Wow! That's it! Hyunju! Siwoo is walking! Are you filming?!"

Hyunju, following Siwoo with worried eyes in case he might fall, said,

"Yep, bro! I'm filming! He's walking so well. Our son. What do I do? He used to just lie there with his eyes closed..."

Hyunju barely held back her tears as she watched Siwoo, who was walking hard with his small feet.

Siwoo, who seemed to be getting tired, stopped for a moment, turned to his mom who was filming him with her phone, and smiled broadly.

Cherry blossom petals flew and stuck to Siwoo's head.

"Mommy!"

Siwoo waved to his mom and then waddled over to his dad, who was waiting with open arms.

"Great job! Siwoo! Give Dad a kiss!"

Siwoo kissed his dad's cheek.

Dohjin, who received the cheek kiss, then pointed to his mouth with his finger.

"On the lips too!"

...I'll pass on the lips.

Siwoo turned around and went to his mom.

Dohjin, seeing Siwoo's firm back, laughed and said,

"He really won't kiss on the lips. Does he hate it that much?"

Hyunju, picking up Siwoo who was coming to her, said,

"He won't kiss me on the lips either."

Hyunju handed her phone to Dohjin.

"Check if it came out well. I need to send it to our parents and sister. She'll love it."

"It looks great. The cherry blossoms are beautiful, like a scene from a commercial?"

"Right? Siwoo is so handsome that he makes anything look like a masterpiece just by being in front of the camera."

Hyunju stroked Siwoo's head and smiled contentedly.

* * *

Time flew by as we enjoyed each day, and before I knew it, it was the shooting day for My Too Scary Wife.

"Our Siwoo, you've been sleeping well and eating a lot, so let's do our best today~!"

Hyunju and Siwoo, who was about ten days away from his first birthday, left the house.

After a long taxi ride, they arrived at a set in Ilsan.

Feeling the atmosphere of the shooting site for the first time in six months, Hyunju felt a bit nervous.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the set.

The set, which had been meticulously built over two months with a budget of about 300 million won, included the interior of a 30-pyeong apartment and other major indoor locations on a grand scale.

Siwoo and Hyunju, who had only shot one outdoor scene at a playground, looked around curiously and went to find the director and cast members.

"Oh, Siwoo's mom?"

Someone called out to Hyunju, who was walking through the complex set with a staff member.

A strong, familiar scent of perfume wafted over, even though she had only smelled it once.

It was Jungtae's mom.

"Hello. Jungtae, hello."

Hyunju greeted her.

Jungtae, who had just come back from the bathroom holding his mom's hand, hesitated for a moment and turned away without greeting.

'What a rude kid.'

Siwoo, seeing Jungtae ignore his mom's greeting, clicked his tongue.

However, he wasn't particularly angry.

Through multiple lives, he knew that kids at that age often don't greet others.

The deep bow he did in front of Director Lee Hansu and the staff was a thoroughly trained business greeting.

Feeling awkward, Hyunju withdrew her hand and said to Jungtae's mom,

"You came early."

Jungtae's mom answered matter-of-factly,

"I need to greet everyone and distribute snacks. Siwoo's mom, go have some. I brought them from a very famous dessert shop in Sinsa-dong, reserved a month in advance. I don't know if you can tell the difference, but..."

Jungtae's mom stared at Hyunju's outdated clothes, shoes, and slightly worn diaper bag.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Hyunju avoided Jungtae's mom's gaze and walked ahead.

"I'm going to greet the director."

"Come with me. We're coming back from the bathroom. Actor Han Taesu is here, and Actor Lee Sujin hasn't arrived yet, but Han Taesu really likes our Jungtae. He said he wants to adopt him or something."

"Ah, that's great."

"Right. After posting the casting news for this movie, our Jungtae's Instagram followers increased to 40,000. Fans said they will definitely watch the movie..."

Hyunju listened to Jungtae's mom's excessive talk with one ear and walked quickly.

She wanted to get Siwoo away from that strong perfume smell as soon as possible.

As they went deeper into the set, Hyunju saw Director Lee Hansu, whom she had met during the contract signing.

Hyunju, holding Siwoo, walked quickly and greeted him.

"Director, hello."

"Welcome. Was it difficult to come? It's a bit far, and Jungtae's mom said she had a hard time driving here."

"Yes, I came by taxi..."

"Wow, it must be hard to take a taxi with a baby. Next time, ask our staff to pick you up. Or, if you live close, you can ask Jungtae's mom."

"Um, I'm fine..."

While listening to the conversation, Siwoo shuddered inside.

Did he have to smell that perfume in the car all the way home?

Just thinking about it made him feel nauseous.

As Siwoo was trying to figure out how to get his mom to refuse more strongly, a man approached Director Lee Hansu.

"Jungtae's mom has a great personality. She brought snacks for the staff and offered to drive everyone."

Hyunju's eyes widened as she recognized the man.

It was Han Taesu, the male lead of My Too Scary Girlfriend, a movie that had been a part of her youth.

He wasn't a strikingly handsome actor, but he was a versatile talent who excelled in various genres.

"Hello, you must be Siwoo's mom. I'm Han Taesu."

"Yes, I'm Siwoo's mom. I'm a big fan. I really enjoyed your movie when I was twenty."

Hearing this, Han Taesu smiled shyly.

"Thank you. It was all thanks to Sujin. I think I'll just follow her in this movie too."

After speaking humbly, Han Taesu showed interest in Siwoo.

"Is this Siwoo? Can I see the famous baby actor's face?"

"Yes."

Hyunju turned Siwoo, who was leaning against her, to face him.

Seeing Han Taesu, Siwoo thought to himself,

'He just looks like a neighborhood big brother.'

He was an ordinary-looking man, the kind you might see anywhere.

Siwoo had heard that his dad had played a friend3 in a previous work with this man, but if you only considered looks, his dad should have been the lead and this man the friend3.

But reality was the opposite.

Not only that, his dad had failed as an actor, while this man had become a star.

This meant that this man's acting skills were exceptional.

Siwoo realized that the most important ability for an actor was not looks but acting skills.

'If looks are magic, then acting skills are... life force?'

The higher the magic, the more impressive techniques you can use.

But you can live without it.

On the other hand, life force is life itself.

For example, his dad was an actor with high latent magic but a short lifespan.

'If you have both, you'd be perfect.'

If you not only had both but maxed them out?

'Looks... I think it was from the 70th life... I've been maxing out my passive skill and being born with it, so that's done. If I just intensify my acting practice, I might get another legendary trophy in this final life.'

Siwoo hadn't yet decided how to fully enjoy and die in this final life, but he briefly considered that an actor's life might be quite interesting.

Since there would be no 101st life, the profession of an actor, which allowed him to experience various lives, was quite appealing.

'After living so many lives, I still want to live more. I must be really greedy.'

As they say, the one who has tasted meat will crave it, and Siwoo, who had lived and enjoyed many lives, had a strong attachment to life.

'An actor... Actor Yoon Siwoo... Hmm... Sounds good.'

While Siwoo was thinking about the life of an actor, Han Taesu was examining Siwoo's face with his mouth open.

"Wow~ Oh~ Wow~ Really... Han Su! Do you remember? Sujin used to hate kids 10 years ago?"

Han Taesu, still looking at Siwoo, said to Director Lee Hansu.

Director Lee Hansu nodded.

"Yes. Sujin hates two things the most: kids and cats. She's emotionally explosive in acting but very dry in real life. I'm really worried about her. I wonder if she can even get married."

"Marriage... Well... It's not necessary, and if she likes a guy, she can get married... Anyway! This is why Sujin calls him SiwooSiwoo? Wow, he's so cute! If I had a guarantee that I could have a kid like this, I'd do anything, right? Han Su, don't you think so?"

"What?"

"Um... Don't you think Sujin might want to be a mom? I'd do anything if I could have a baby like this?"

Han Taesu, amazed by the incredibly cute aura of the 11-month-old Siwoo, exclaimed in admiration. Jealous, Jungtae's mom interjected,

"Actor Han Taesu said he wanted to adopt our Jungtae too~ Hehe!"

"Me? I did?"

"Um? No, you... said that earlier."

"Oh~ Did I? Jungtae is cute too. Wow, but Siwoo is unrealistically beautiful. Are you an angel baby? Hahaha!"

Siwoo clenched his fingers.

'What are you saying, mister? It's so cringeworthy.'

Just as Siwoo's limbs were about to disappear, Director Lee Hansu, checking his phone, called out to everyone on set.

"Lee Sujin is running late, so let's shoot the scene with Taesu and the kids first!"

The staff quickly prepared for the shoot.

The assistant director said to the moms,

"We'll shoot the kids first. There's a living room over there. You can play with the toys while waiting. When we shoot, just follow the script: Jungtae should do well, and Siwoo should just stay quiet and not cry. Got it?"

Holding his mom's hand, Siwoo waddled to the living room, puffing out his cheeks in frustration.

'I'm not a decoration. Why do they always tell me to do nothing?'

This was his second shoot after six months.

Just sitting still wouldn't be fun.

'I need to do something to make it interesting. Okay. I'll show you the acting skills I've developed over five months.'