Chapter 91

91. The Life of a Student

A few days ago.

"Hmm. So, you want some advice on your next work?"

Do Min-woo's expression became proud.

"Of course, you guys finally recognize my discerning eye. Hahaha!"

Indeed, it was a strange thing. This guy, so laid-back, had such remarkable talent.

"Let's take a look at Se-yeon's first, shall we?"

Unlike Jin-hyuk, who planned to spend the whole year as a student, Se-yeon had decided on acting as her career path and was scheduled to start her next work in the second half of the year.

"Here. I've discussed with the company and narrowed it down to three."

"Oh ho."

Do Min-woo carefully examined the synopses. Jin-hyuk was surprised by Do Min-woo's thoroughness.

Wasn't he just going to rely on his gut feeling?

"Um..."

Do Min-woo frowned.

"Is this what you picked?"

"..."

"They're all no good, in my opinion."

"Why?"

In response to Se-yeon's question, Do Min-woo began to explain with a serious expression.

"Well, just from the synopsis, there's no sense of the character's growth, you know? Se-yeon, you have a certain charm, a unique energy. Something that could really make a big impact..."

"My charm? What is that?"

"How can I explain it? It's something you feel in your heart."

In other words, he was saying his gut feeling wasn't very good. Jin-hyuk thought.

Do Min-woo said,

"Hey, Se-yeon. How about something other than this? Like a romantic comedy?"

"Romantic comedy?"

Se-yeon frowned.

"Right. Something fresh, lively, and energetic."

Se-yeon's frown deepened. She looked at Do Min-woo as if he was being ridiculous.

"Fresh, lively, and energetic."

"Right, right. Something like that."

Se-yeon had one thing in mind.

How could she do something like that? Just from the synopsis, she could feel it. That's why she immediately ruled it out.

"Hey, forget it."

Talking about fresh, lively, and energetic stuff.

No matter what happens in the future, Se-yeon had no intention of doing something like that now...

"Why, it might be okay."

"What?"

Se-yeon's eyes widened at Jin-hyuk's words. Jin-hyuk smiled.

"You have a surprisingly cute side."

"What?!"

"Really, really."

Se-yeon clenched her fists and trembled. That look was really...

cute.

"What are you two talking about? Why am I cute!"

Se-yeon pouted cutely.

"Ah, forget it. I'll choose on my own. What about Jin-hyuk's?"

"Sure? Then..."

Do Min-woo looked disappointed. Romantic comedies are good... he said.

"Let's look at Jin-hyuk's."

Jin-hyuk took out five synopses. Do Min-woo's eyes sparkled.

"Oh ho."

Do Min-woo carefully examined the synopses again.

"I like this one."

Do Min-woo quickly handed over one of the synopses.

"Since you did a historical action role, you should do a modern action role next."

"Have you thought about a dramatic transformation in your acting?"

"Transformation? Why, are you thinking of doing a romantic comedy or romance?"

"No, forget it."

Jin-hyuk wasn't ready yet. If there was no other choice, he would have to do it.

"I was just asking."

"In my opinion, a more daring acting transformation would be better for a movie later on. After all, movies have more diverse themes and more three-dimensional characters."

In other words, Do Min-woo was making a strangely reasonable argument.

"Anyway, I like this one. Just from the synopsis, doesn't it seem interesting? The character is appealing, and it feels fresh. It also seems different from existing dramas."

Do Min-woo rubbed his hands and smiled, clearly pleased with the synopsis.

Jin-hyuk asked,

"Um... Have you seen where this is being produced?"

"Produced?"

Do Min-woo flipped through the synopsis and asked.

"TVC drama production team? It's a cable channel?"

Jin-hyuk shook his head. Do Min-woo had missed the most important part.

"You didn't even check that before choosing it?"

"Um..."

Cable dramas had never had a viewership rating above 5%. They were still far from the reach of terrestrial channels.

"Fine! Fine!"

Do Min-woo nodded, looking satisfied.

"No wonder. The synopsis felt different."

"..."

"Cable channels have fewer restrictions compared to terrestrial channels. It's perfect for this kind of action story."

Indeed, Do Min-woo seemed to have a rough but sharp insight. Jin-hyuk tested him.

"Aren't you worried about the ratings?"

"Hahaha! If ratings were important, why would you include this as an option, Jin-hyuk?"

Do Min-woo's eyes sparkled.

"In my opinion, you're going to make history with this cable TV drama. The cable market is on the rise, you know?"

Do Min-woo shouted as if giving a speech.

"Who doesn't have cable these days? Plus, didn't 'Star Birth K Season 2' become a huge hit? The era of cable dramas is coming. You'll be the one to write the first page of that history. Ka! Fine, fine!"

Jin-hyuk chuckled.

He didn't know when he got dragged into Do Min-woo's argument.

Initially, he only expected to get Do Min-woo's gut feeling as a reference.

But the guy kept giving rough analyses, which, strangely, were quite convincing.

Was it because of Do Min-woo's gut feeling, or his always confident attitude?

In fact, TVC dramas were relatively avoided by the agency.

Naturally, the agency thought there was no reason to choose a cable drama over a major terrestrial drama.

The only reason it was on the list was because TVC offered the highest guarantee.

But Jin-hyuk was drawn to the content and the main character of this drama.

As Do Min-woo said, the lack of restrictions in cable dramas was also an important factor.

Jin-hyuk was secretly happy when Do Min-woo suggested this drama. He made his decision readily.

"Fine. Then, let's listen to our friend Min-woo and go with TVC."

"Ha ha ha! As expected, my friend Jin-hyuk! You made a good decision. You won't regret it."

Do Min-woo burst into his usual hearty laugh. Jin-hyuk said,

"Then, shall we make a bet on the ratings this time?"

Jin-hyuk raised an eyebrow. He was curious. Would Do Min-woo's prediction be right this time?

Do Min-woo said,

"Let's talk about that after the college entrance exam is over."

Huh?

Hey.

Jin-hyuk was taken aback.

Just like in the decisive moments of TVC's variety show 'Star Birth K'.

We'll be right back after this commercial.

***

The cherry blossoms bloomed and, as always, quickly faded.

The lush greenery of the plants filled the air, and the chirping of cicadas soon filled the campus.

The new semester for the college entrance exam students passed by in the blink of an eye.

Swish—

The summer shower washed away the heat outside the window.

Jin-hyuk, who was studying on the 28th floor, looked down at the city enveloped in the rain from his room.

A new song that he had listened to for over a decade played through the earphones in his ears.

Your fading memories

Your trembling figure in the rain...

It was the old song "In the Rain, Longing" sung by the new singer Ye-seon in a different world.

Ye-seon's recently released mini album.

The remake of "In the Rain, Longing," originally sung by Ye-seon's mother, Song-ha, surprised Jin-hyuk.

The arrangement was almost identical to the version he had heard in his previous life.

It was an arrangement that made him feel as if he was living in two worlds.

Perhaps because it was a remake, the title track of the album was a different song.

Surprisingly, or perhaps inevitably, after the title track briefly topped the music charts and then fell,

"In the Rain, Longing" has been at the top of the charts for four consecutive weeks.

"Jin-hyuk! Thank you so much, really."

Moved by the fact that her mother's song topped the charts, Ye-seon called, and Jin-hyuk's heart also felt warm.

"Hey, Jin-hyuk! I'm so disappointed."

Indeed, that day, Jang Dong-soo, the producer of NTN who had discovered Jin-hyuk first but lost him to WP, called after having a drink.

"You told Ye-seon to remake her mother's... no, Song-ha's song! Man, wouldn't it have been great if you had worked with us? Jin-hyuk, you know I like you, right? No, I don't, man!"

He was probably saying something that didn't make much sense because he was drunk.

Jin-hyuk chuckled as he recalled that day. Then, as he moved his gaze from the window back to his book,

Beep.

— Jin-hyuk, how's your studying going?

It was a message from Ye-seon.

— Yeah, I'm working hard.

— Sorry to bother you. Keep it up!

Ye-seon sent an encouraging message with a selfie of her clenched fist.

Beep.

— Are you studying hard?

It was Se-yeon.

— Yeah, I am.

— Good. Keep it up! Don't get distracted.

Se-yeon sent a selfie with a clenched fist, but with a different meaning.

Selfie.

Se-yeon, who had recently started doing something she hadn't done before.

Perhaps it was the influence of the role she had taken on. After jumping around, she ended up taking a supporting role in a romantic comedy.

Fresh, lively, and energetic.

Just like the expression in the selfie.

'After the drama ends, I'll have to collect some blankets.'

Jin-hyuk planned to collect Se-yeon's photos.

Despite dedicating himself to his studies and keeping a distance from his activities,

the agency was still producing content.

Namely, the study videos of Woo Jin-hyuk.

From one hour to two hours, three hours... up to ten hours. Unedited, real-time study videos were posted on video sites.

Jin-hyuk's videos on the recently popular 'VTube' were a huge hit.

— Perfect focus. Woo Jin-hyuk's study video. Watching it next to you makes you feel like you're studying with Jin-hyuk, which helps you focus a lot.

└ ㅇㅇ I've studied with this for 5 hours. I'm going to try for 10 hours.

Among the 700,000 college entrance exam students, 1.7 million high school students, and an equal number of middle school students, the videos were widely used by female students and even male students as motivational videos.

Parents were also thrilled.

In the history of entertainment, there had never been such enthusiasm from parents for an entertainer's video, nor had they ever recommended such videos to their children so much.

It didn't stop there. The videos were also a hit with office workers as motivational and focus videos.

That wasn't the end. Due to the popularity of 'High School 2' and 'Hong Gil-dong' across Asia, students from China, Japan, and Southeast Asia were also watching.

In fact, the entertainment industry wasn't just waiting for Jin-hyuk's return in Korea.

"Since he's a huge hit across Asia and isn't active, it's a bit disappointing."

"Right."

Lee Kwang-soo, the head of WP Entertainment, sighed. Especially, the guarantees from China were incomparable to those in Korea.

Although he did a few CFs overseas after 'Hong Gil-dong,' it was only due to the influence of 'High School 2.'

"2012 Hong Gil-dong" was just starting its official broadcast overseas.

The Korean historical drama 'Hong Gil-dong' was a huge hit across Asia, even more so than in Korea.

In Iran, where Korean historical dramas are popular, it reportedly had an 80% viewership rating.

Naturally, inquiries for Jin-hyuk's appearances and CFs were pouring in from overseas, and the fees were incomparable to before.

In such a situation,

"When I said, 'Until November, I can't film due to college entrance exam preparation,' they were taken aback."

Lee Kwang-soo laughed, seemingly finding it absurd even as he said it.

"JBS in Japan contacted us, saying they want to do a documentary on the Korean college entrance exam, which even big stars can't avoid."

Jin-hyuk's college entrance exam life, which was shared with the entire nation, had become a shared experience with all of Asia.

With Asian fans eagerly awaiting Jin-hyuk's return, the clock for the college entrance exam students, synchronized with the Ministry of National Defense's clock,

continued to tick without fail, as it always did.