Chapter 1

From 0 years old to Superstar Chapter 1120

After the tense greetings ended,

the two actors, the director, the manager, and the producer sat around the table.

"Are you feeling better now? Are you okay?"

In response to Director Kim Suhan's question, Seojun smiled and replied.

"Yes, I'm fine. You must have been worried, and Actor Han Joonseo too."

Since Han Joonseo had seen him collapse that day, he must have been more worried than the others.

With that, Han Joonseo let out a light sigh and then smiled, saying,

"Still, I'm glad you're better."

"Please speak more casually. We'll be working together from now on, after all."

Seojun said this with a strange feeling.

He wanted to get along quickly.

"Yeah, yeah. Be more casual. We call each other Seojun among ourselves, right?"

Encouraged by his friend Kim Suhan, Han Joonseo hesitated for a moment, then opened his mouth shyly.

"I'm glad you're better, Seojun."

"Haha, thank you. Can I call you hyung too?"

"Of course you can…!"

Everyone laughed at Han Joonseo's delighted face.

Before the formal meeting about the movie, various stories were shared to create a more friendly atmosphere.

"Joonseo and I have been friends since high school."

Oh.

Choi Taeu's eyes widened in surprise at the long-standing connection. Seojun, who had read [Han Joonseo's Book], also pretended to be surprised.

It felt a bit dishonest, but he couldn't say that he knew some of Han Joonseo's past events, even if only vaguely.

Seeing Seojun and Choi Taeu's reactions, Kim Suhan seemed even more excited and continued to share stories. The producer, who knew that Kim Suhan and Han Joonseo were old friends, was also surprised by the story.

"We even went to see the children's play 'Spring' together. This guy watched all eight performances with me, and he was really envious when Seojun got your autograph?"

"Wow, really?"

Seojun feigned surprise, delighted.

He knew that Han Joonseo had watched all eight performances of 'Spring,' but he didn't know that he had been envious of the autograph. It must have been written in a different page of [Han Joonseo's Book] that he hadn't read.

With Seojun's surprise, Han Joonseo blushed.

He wanted to hit Kim Suhan's side for mentioning such unnecessary things, and he also wanted to get Seojun's autograph now that the topic had come up.

"There were others who watched all eight performances besides Director Kim."

"Then you must be the second fan of Na Jin, Actor Han."

The producer and Choi Taeu, who were surprised, laughed and said.

The story of 'Na Jin's first fan' was still famous.

The story of a famous child actor who appeared under a new name and the first fan who became a great director was bound to be interesting.

"We should include this story in the movie promotion later. Is that okay?"

"Yes, that's fine. Suhan, should I call you Director?"

Han Joonseo, who had briefly considered calling him Director, decided to speak more casually due to the relaxed atmosphere in the meeting room.

"Every time Suhan said he was Na Jin's first fan, I felt a bit jealous. I also watched all eight performances, you know."

"Now is the era of self-promotion. If you don't say it, no one will know."

Kim Suhan chuckled and teased.

"You're right. Don't worry. We'll make sure everyone knows that Actor Han Joonseo is the second fan of Na Jin this time!"

The producer's eyes sparkled at the good promotional angle.

"Why didn't you mention it before?"

In response to Seojun's question, Han Joonseo opened his mouth with a slightly shy expression.

"I wanted to tell you directly, Seojun. I couldn't do it like Suhan, but I really enjoyed the children's play 'Spring.'"

"Thank you for enjoying it."

Seojun smiled broadly.

"Indeed, almost no one can do what Director Kim can do."

The producer nodded in agreement, and everyone burst into laughter.

"And I also wanted to thank you for meeting me."

At Han Joonseo's words, Kim Suhan, who knew the story, gleamed with joy, while Choi Taeu and the producer, who didn't know, tilted their heads in confusion, wondering, "Thank you? For what?"

Seojun thought he knew.

"I don't know if you remember, but… do you remember the middle schooler you saved during the filming of 'Evil Spirit' in Ohgeori?"

The producer recalled, "Evil Spirit?" and Choi Taeu, who had reviewed all of Seojun's past, remembered the news about [Evil Spirit] and the incident.

"I remember."

Seojun nodded.

"The middle schooler who fell into the boar trap, the one I found."

Seojun's words brightened Han Joonseo's face.

He hadn't expected Seojun to still remember that day. After all, Seojun was only five years old at the time.

Seojun's words made Choi Taeu recall the news, and his eyes widened.

'Could it be?'

The producer had the same expression.

Although it was an old incident and he didn't remember seeing the news, he could guess the story from the actors' conversation. It was like a movie in itself.

"That middle schooler was me."

Han Joonseo, with a choked-up expression, finally revealed the story he had kept hidden for a long time, the one he most wanted to tell Seojun.

"The one you saved was me, Seojun."

If this story had been revealed to the world, Han Joonseo might have become famous without the years of obscurity.

Even if it was a story about another actor, it would have been interesting, but since the other actor was Lee Seojun, it would have been a hot topic.

Director Kim Suhan, his friend, had objectively assessed that with his good acting skills, Han Joonseo would have quickly established himself as a good actor.

But Han Joonseo didn't want that.

He didn't want to use Seojun's name to get ahead.

He just wanted to meet Seojun in person and express his gratitude.

And he wanted to tell him that the middle schooler he saved had become a decent actor.

Well, it turned out better than expected.

He hadn't anticipated that the minor role in [Dandelion] would lead to an Academy Award nomination, or that the lead role in [Fate] would attract ten million viewers.

Still, he was happy.

He felt he had become a good actor, one he could be proud of in front of Seojun.

"I really wanted to thank you for saving me back then."

Seojun, who already knew, managed to hide his surprise and smiled warmly, filled with joy rather than surprise.

"That middle schooler was you, Hyung! I never thought we'd meet like this!"

The idea that the middle schooler who had fallen into a mud pit and the actor in front of him were the same person was still astonishing.

And hearing it directly from him made it feel even more vivid than reading [Han Joonseo's Book].

Han Joonseo also smiled, seeing Seojun's joy.

He had been waiting for the day he could meet Seojun and express his gratitude.

"Thank you so much, Seojun. They said that if you had been a little late, I would have lost my leg."

At Han Joonseo's words, everyone's eyes dropped. Of course, Han Joonseo's leg was hidden under the table.

"Are you okay now?"

Seojun, who knew from numerous works that Han Joonseo's leg was fine, couldn't help but ask, thinking of the 'first life.'

Han Joonseo smiled brightly in response.

"Thanks to you, Seojun, I'm completely fine."

What a relief.

Han Joonseo smiled again, seeing the relief in Seojun's expression.

"Ah, it was on the news, right?"

"Yes, it was. But my face wasn't shown, so no one knew."

In response to Choi Taeu's question, Han Joonseo nodded. The producer, eyes wide, searched for the news on his phone.

"You also wrote a post on the internet back then, didn't you?"

Kim Suhan, who had heard this story from Han Joonseo before, excitedly interjected.

"The nickname was 'Junbeopjilju,' and if you look at the first and last characters, it's 'Joonseo'!"

"Ah! That's right! Here it is!"

The producer, finding the still-existing post, showed it on his phone. Seojun and Choi Taeu looked at it with interest. Han Joonseo blushed at the post he had written as a middle schooler, and Kim Suhan burst into laughter.

"I was so surprised when I first heard this story!"

"I was also very surprised. I didn't think you would become an actor."

Seojun's words made Han Joonseo scratch his cheek. It was a bit embarrassing to admit, but he also wanted to tell Seojun.

"Originally, I was a fan of Seojun. Watching your works made me think, 'Maybe I could try acting too.' I found it fun and kept doing it."

"Joonseo appeared as a zombie in Escape. I don't know if you know."

At Kim Suhan's words, Seojun smiled and said,

"I know. I found all the works Joonseo appeared in. You were the zombie who got hit by an arrow from Go Joo-won."

"Ah, ah, that's right."

Han Joonseo, surprised that Seojun knew, smiled and continued.

"If Seojun hadn't saved me back then, I probably would have lost my leg and wouldn't have been able to act."

"No, that's not true."

Seojun shook his head.

The firmness of his words surprised Han Joonseo, Kim Suhan, and Choi Taeu.

"Even if Joonseo had lost a leg, you would have continued acting. You love acting so much."

Somehow, Seojun's tone was more confident than Han Joonseo's.

"R-really?"

"Yes, really."

Seojun's firm words made Han Joonseo, who was initially flustered, smile brightly.

Hearing that Seojun believed he would continue acting in any situation was as gratifying as hearing that he was a good actor.

"After becoming an actor, I really wanted to appear in a work with Seojun. I'm so happy we can work together now."

"Me too. I wanted to meet the middle schooler from back then, and I've always wanted to work with Joonseo. I never thought we'd meet like this."

And I also wanted to meet 'the first life' if possible.

'Those three people were all the same person.'

Thinking about it again, he couldn't help but smile.

"Wow!"

The producer, who had been listening to Seojun and Han Joonseo's conversation in silence, finally let out an exclamation. His eyes were wide and sparkling.

"Such a connection! You didn't mention it all this time? If I were you, I would have said it right after my acting debut."

"I didn't want my name to be mentioned every time I appeared."

Choi Taeu smiled.

As a manager, it was a grateful thing.

"Ah, then for the promotion of this movie…?"

"Since I wanted to tell Seojun first, if Seojun is okay with it, it can be published in an article."

At Han Joonseo's words, the producer's gaze turned to Seojun and Choi Taeu. Seojun, seeing the earnest look in his eyes, smiled and nodded.

"I'm fine with it. I think everyone will find it interesting."

"Thank you, Seojun!"

The producer, a senior at Han Yang University and a team member of the independent film [Hwa], cleared his throat and continued.

"Can you tell us a more detailed story? Is there any other story?"

"Other stories…"

Han Joonseo and Kim Suhan, who were thinking, were interrupted by Seojun.

"I've seen Joonseo's play. I didn't know it was Joonseo, the middle schooler, at the time."

"Ah, you mean the play 'Jury'?"

Kim Suhan and Han Joonseo recalled the article about Seojun watching the play [Jury]. They had talked about it a lot with their friends at the time.

"Yes. I went to see it because Uncle Jongho was in it, and I saw Joonseo in the role of a juror."

The producer's eyes sparkled at Seojun's words.

"Oh! So Actor Lee Seojun watched the children's play 'Spring' that Actor Han Joonseo saw, and Actor Han Joonseo watched the play 'Jury' that Actor Lee Seojun appeared in?"

"Yes, that's right."

It was a truly amazing connection.