Chapter 3

I never thought I would be revolving the revolving door of a student performance.

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Romeo in a Strange Land (2)

Bang-

Romeo drops the sword he was holding. He drags his weary body and moves with difficulty towards his cold, lifeless wife, Juliet.

"Juliet, Juliet..." he murmurs, checking her pulse.

Mischievously, his lover's heart no longer beats. Romeo trembles as he endlessly caresses Juliet's face.

Lee Haejin stared blankly at the scene.

'Completely... like a different person.'

Is this really the person who gave me a ticket to come watch the performance? Really?

Holding her breath, Haejin gazed at the tips of his fingers and his trembling eyes.

Romeo takes out the poison from his coat and swallows it.

With eyes filled with fear, terror, and sorrow.

At the same moment, the lights dimmed, and only then could Haejin catch her breath.

'Phew...'

This was the first time she had seen someone perform so closely. It was a more dynamic and intense experience than she had expected.

'Amazing.'

Haejin clutched her pounding heart and blinked.

Soon, a new act began.

The noise of a bustling city began to seep through the darkness. The sounds of cars passing, people walking, and advertisements blending together.

As the lights slowly illuminated the stage, Romeo was still lying in the same spot. The lying Romeo slowly opens his eyes.

Someone notices Romeo and approaches him.

"Hey, why are you lying here? Did you drink?"

"Who are you...? I've never seen you before."

"Huh? I'm just a passerby."

"Juliet, where is Juliet?!"

Romeo reaches out his hand in a hurry. His flailing hand grabs the passerby's collar. The passerby, suddenly grabbed by the collar, pushes his hand away roughly, startled.

"What, trying to be a jerk after I tried to help you..."

"Wait, wait a moment..."

With a dazed look, Romeo slowly gets up and looks around. Soon, he realizes something is off.

No matter how far he walks, the familiar scenery does not appear.

The stone-paved roads, the beautiful low buildings, the square always filled with interesting news, and the Ponte Pietra are nowhere to be seen.

Romeo finally realizes. This is not Verona.

"Where... where is this place?"

Thus, Romeo, who lived in 15th-century Verona, Italy, suddenly finds himself in the middle of 21st-century Seoul.

Romeo continues to talk to the passersby. No actual actors appeared on stage, but Romeo grabs the invisible people, asking where he is and how to get back to Verona.

'Stage with no one, yet it feels so natural.'

Haejin quietly marveled as she watched him.

Romeo's eyes, which had been repeatedly rejected by people, catch sight of Juliet distributing flyers.

The first emotion to soften Romeo's face upon seeing Juliet is surprise.

Then, longing and joy begin to mix in.

Like drops of different colored paints falling on water, his face comes alive.

"Juliet!"

Romeo calls out the name he has longed for with a hoarse voice.

'...!'

Haejin covers her mouth. It was because Romeo, without hesitation, ran and embraced Juliet in one go.

"O Lord, you are alive..."

Romeo mumbles with a blissful expression, as if he has gained everything in the world. Haejin's expression, who had been watching them happily, suddenly changed. The following scene was something she had never expected.

"What, you crazy bastard!"

With a loud slap, Juliet, Romeo's beloved, delivers a fierce slap to his face.

'...!'

Haejin, who had thought it would be a romance, was taken aback. Romeo being slapped by the heroine and dragged to the police station was not what she had expected. In the midst of this, Romeo stubbornly claims that he is Juliet's husband.

The actor who had appeared as a passerby earlier reappeared as a police officer. As the three of them engage in a comic exchange, creating a situation like a daily sitcom, laughter erupts from the audience. Haejin, too, chuckles as she watches Romeo's continuous antics.

'Ah, really funny.'

The play, not too heavy, made the slow pace enjoyable rather than tiring. She was now looking at him as 'Romeo' rather than 'Han Yooil'.

Romeo, who has fallen into a strange land called Seoul, is shocked to find that the woman he calls 'Juliet' is not Juliet but Kim Joohee, an ordinary college student.

Thinking he is in a dream, Romeo tries every method to return to his previous world, even considering jumping from a high place. At that moment, Joohee, who appears from somewhere, shouts and grabs him.

After a brief commotion, the two begin to talk in a safe place.

"Hey."

"..."

"Why do you think I'm your wife?"

At Joohee's words, Romeo turns his head.

He looks at her for a long time, someone who resembles his lover but is not his lover.

"I can tell. To me, you are clearly Juliet. My wife, my love..."

He slowly raises his hand. But his hand does not reach Joohee.

"...No, I know. You are not her."

"Thank goodness you know."

"That's why I want to die. To meet her, I must go to the god of death."

A clear tear falls from Romeo's eyes, which had been looking at Joohee.

'...!'

Haejin covers her mouth again. She felt like she might let out a curse-laden exclamation.

'Is he crazy?'

Haejin thought that if a man looked at her with such an expression, she would be ready to give him anything he asked for.

But Joohee, looking at his face, frowns.

"...Barking."

The neatly arched eyebrows under her smooth forehead twitch. Romeo, startled, blinks several times.

"...What did you just say..."

"Seriously, what's more precious than life? It's ridiculous... If my mom were alive, she would have hit you first."

Romeo, a 15th-century Italian romantic, opens his mouth wide at Joohee's blunt words. To him, they were too realistic and harsh. Romeo looks at Joohee as if he has seen a living corpse.

"Hey, snap out of it. This is Seoul. A city where you have to fight for survival. If you have time to talk about love, get a job."

"Job?"

"Work and get paid. You said you have no money and no home, right?"

Thus, Romeo, who had only thought of labor as a lower-class job, starts working.

At first, Romeo makes annoying mistakes that make the audience laugh, but he finds his calling.

He starts working at a medieval-themed cafe!

There, Romeo meets people who like him and is recognized. He finally begins to live as a person with various dreams, not just as someone's lover.

"You are my benefactor."

Romeo's warm words make Joohee shake her head.

"To be honest, you are my benefactor."

"What do you mean..."

"On the day you tried to jump from the rooftop, I was also there to die. Life was too hard."

Avoiding Romeo's surprised eyes, Joohee speaks.

"When I said those things about your mom, I was actually talking to myself... But after saying them, I really wanted to live."

Joohee continues slowly.

"Also... seeing someone who tried to die for love working and living well... I wanted to live well too."

Romeo, who had been quietly watching her, smiles gently.

"You are braver and stronger than any knight I have ever seen."

And he extends his large hand and asks.

"Will you accept me as a friend?"

"...What, weren't we already friends?"

"From now on, we will be even stronger friends."

Joohee smiles at his words.

"Sure. Friend."

She shakes his hand firmly. Their faces, looking at each other with bright smiles, are visible...

...and the lights slowly dim.

*

Soon, the lights on the stage come back on. From the first blackout to the end of the actors' bows, the audience clapped for a long time.

Among those clapping was So Yijin, a senior of the drama club and an active playwright in Daehak-ro. She genuinely enjoyed the play.

The well-placed humor and the touching ending were good, but most of all, no one could have been a better fit for the role of Romeo.

As soon as the play ended, she caught Hyejoo, who was among the people.

"Hey, Yijin-ssi! Thank you for coming."

"Jiyou, who is he?"

"Ah, Yool?"

No matter how casually she asked, Hyejoo was not surprised at all. Instead, she looked proud, as if introducing her own child.

"He's new. Han Yool."

"Is he in the acting department?"

"He's in the Korean literature department. Isn't that surprising?"

"Is he going to continue acting?"

"I haven't asked him that yet... Ah, Yool!"

Hyejoo then caught Han Yool, who was coming out from backstage, wiping his sweat. So Yijin, looking at Han Yool with sparkling eyes behind her glasses, approached him, pushing her short perm hair behind her ear.

"I really enjoyed the play."

Han Yool bows his head and thinks.

'...What can I say, he looks like a real playwright.'

【You're right. This is So Yijin, the playwright. She wrote the plays and , which are scheduled to be restaged in Daehak-ro this year. If you want to know the exact location of the performances...】

'Enough.'

Han Yool ignores Bryun and looks at So Yijin. She is a person who suits round glasses and a short hippie perm.

"Where did you learn acting?"

After a short thought, Yool answers.

"Um... I taught myself."

"Taught yourself? You did vocal and movement exercises too? All by yourself?"

"Um, yes."

'...Amazing.'

So Yijin looks at Yool, trying to hide her surprise. She thought he was at least an aspiring actor, even if not from the acting department.

'No exaggeration, clean diction... It looks like he has had professional training.'

But he learned it on his own.

Yijin lets out a small exclamation and begins to scrutinize Han Yool from his feet to his face.

'He's tall, has a good figure, and a decent face.'

"...Yool-ssi, do you have any plans to get into theater?"

"Um... What?"

Yool, about to answer absentmindedly, looks at her in surprise. So Yijin's face remains serious.

Han Yool watches Yijin, who takes his number and leaves with a happy face.

【That's good. A good start, Yool.】

Thus, the drama club team, having finished their first performance, orders an early dinner in the empty theater. As Yool bites into a large egg sandwich, Bryun speaks.

【Yool, you don't have to worry about ticket sales anymore.】

'What? Why?'

At that moment, a production team member, eating a ham and cheese sandwich, jumps up.

"Wh-what! Amazing!"

"Why? What happened?"

"Did someone cancel their ticket again?!"

"No, it's not that..."

She immediately shows her phone. The screen is filled with newly added ticket purchase records.

"Wow, what is this?"

"Look, the ticket sales are increasing in real-time!"

"Unbelievable!"

Amid the surprised voices of the drama club members, Bryun's voice rings out again.

【Thirty minutes ago, a new post about the play written by Lee Haejin was uploaded to Bluechat. Would you like to see it?】

'What, is that possible?'

A semi-transparent window instantly appears before his eyes.

'F*ck!'

Yool has to bite his lip to keep from shouting. On the grayish window that blocks his view, white text appears.

"Guys, please come see the Moonmyeong University Drama Club's regular play 'Romeo in a Strange Land' if you have time. The content is great, and the acting is insane; by the way, I'm going to see it again tonight. I'm still feeling the afterglow... I'll summarize the content below."

And below the post, the number of rechats, showing how many people have shared the post, is increasing in real-time.

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I will do my best as well.

Bryun's prediction was accurate.

After the first performance, the number of tickets sold gradually increased, and by the last evening performance, the audience seats were packed without a single empty seat.

Thanks to this, the staff were in a state of great excitement. It was one of the most attended performances among all the plays the drama club had put on. Many people who had already seen the play came to see it again.

"Amazing, it's completely full!"

Fifteen minutes before the last performance, a stage team member gives a nervous thumbs up. Yool mutters.

"I didn't expect the audience seats to be this full."

"Me neither."

Minji answers softly. She, wearing Juliet's dress for the fourth day, smiles with a tense face.

"Let's do our best until the end."

"Sure."

The two quietly bump fists.

'My hands are so cold.'

【It seems to be due to nervousness. Currently, Minji's heart rate is about 20% higher than usual.】

'...Does he even measure other people's heart rates?'

It's not surprising anymore. While Han Yool sighs and adjusts his clothes, Minji whispers.

"But... you're not shaking at all."

"You're not shaking now, even right before the performance."

"No, I am nervous."

"I'm still shaking even though this is my third play. I sometimes forget my lines..."

She laughs, embarrassed.

"Yesterday, I almost messed up the performance, remember?"

Han Yool recalls. In yesterday's evening performance, Minji slapped Romeo, who was about to jump from the rooftop.

-You crazy bastard!

And in the next moment, she forgot her lines.

If Han Yool hadn't pretended to touch his cheek and whispered the next line, it might have been silent for several minutes.

"I couldn't say it yesterday, but... thank you."

"It's nothing, really."

Yool, who answered like that, looks at his right hand.

'...Am I not the type to shake?'

Thinking about it, he never had his heart race or legs tremble when auditioning in front of Hyejoo or performing on stage.

It was just a gentle excitement and a slight thrill that spread through his body like powder in water.

【Han Yool, you are naturally less affected by external influences. Not getting nervous easily is one of the most advantageous factors in acting.】

'Bryun.'

【Yes, Yool.】

'No interference mode.'

【...Understood.】

With Bryun's voice no longer heard, Yool can relax his body with a more comfortable expression.

Thus, the curtain of the last performance rises.

.

.

.

Yool recites his last line, which he has practiced hundreds of times.

"From now on, we will be even stronger friends."

"Fine. Friend."

The final blackout of this stage arrives.

The audience continues to clap until the lights come on and the actors finish their bows.

Yool carefully meets the eyes of each person clapping for them. People are clapping enthusiastically with sparkling eyes.

"You're handsome!"

"Minji is pretty!"

"I love Romeo!"

Encouraged by the shouts, Minji and Han Yool smile.

'...Ah.'

At that moment, Yool feels something warm and fuzzy rising from deep within his heart. It tickles.

It feels like foam would come out if he opened his mouth.

It's a feeling he has never experienced before. It's too intense to be just a simple sense of loss.

'I don't want to leave the stage like this.'

It wouldn't be strange if his feet were rooted to the stage.

However, the play is over. The lights that had brightly illuminated the stage are now off. It's time to leave.

Yool moves his heavy feet and exits the stage. Wiping his sweat, he thinks.