Aura of a Genius Actor - Chapter 56: The Bet

༺ The Bet ༻

“The first hurdle for a man who wants to become an actor is sitting in a hair salon for over three hours. Brother, fighting!”

Four days after the reading and three days before the crank-in, Yoomyeong was at a hair salon in Cheongdam-dong.

Eun-soo cheered him on, hoping he’d endure today’s major task.

After the meeting with the costume team on the reading day, Eun-soo said that he needed to dye and perm his hair, and even get extensions.

It was a must for Bohyung’s character, who oozed elegance even when wearing clothes picked from a collection box. Thus, sophisticated styling was essential.

“You have to come back to re-dye and style your hair every week so the roots don’t show.”

Yoomyeong smiled at her words. To him, this inconvenience was still worth bearing, and probably for a good while longer.

There was endless washing, dyeing, and styling.

After four hours of work, his hair was finally done.

“Wow, the stylist is really the best. It’s exactly like what I imagined!”

Eun-soo jumped around excitedly.

His soft chestnut hair had natural curls waving down to his ears. Seeing his face with his eyebrows dyed to match, Yoomyeong awkwardly lifted the corners of his mouth.

Then, the makeup artist took over.

“Features like yours, which are clean and well-defined without any particularly striking aspects, will change dramatically with makeup. It’s a blessing for an actor.”

After leaving a one-liner, the makeup artist with ten years of experience began touching up his face with a brush.

Something moisturizing was spread on his face and seeped in with gentle pats.

Then, a large, ticklish brush swept over his entire face, and a small, spiky brush delicately drew lines as if painting.

After thousands of such touches refined his face,

“Wow… this is amazing. Brother, open your eyes.”

Yoomyeong slowly opened his eyes and was dazzled by the light.

As his vision gradually cleared up…

He saw Bohyung in the mirror.

*

He stopped by the company.

“That style suits you well.”

It was his first encounter with Yu-seok since the day he was assigned to a team. After leaving a short comment, Yu-seok asked about how things were going.

“Are you getting along well with Ho-chul and Eun-soo?”

“Yes. They’re nice and good at their job. Thank you.”

“I heard that you made a huge impression during the reading.”

Yoomyeong chuckled at his comment, wondering if Baek Seunghyo was the source.

“I just worked hard, that’s all.”

“I was wondering—”

“Yes?”

“What do you think of Bohyung’s character?”

Yoomyeong knew that Director Moon was also paying attention to this role. That was why he had been at the audition. The actor who played Bohyung in his previous life always gave Yoomyeong a sidelong glance whenever they crossed paths at the company.

“I think it’s an interesting role that’s hard to find.”

“That’s right. If played well, it could even eclipse the protagonists in terms of impact.”

“Yes. That’s what I intend to do.”

Yoomyeong had applied for Bohyung’s role with that intention. Bohyung was a character whose goal wasn’t to be popular, but one which was bound to be if played well. Knowing that such a role had previously fallen flat due to the wrong actor, he felt ambitious.

Yu-seok was impressed by Yoomyeong’s confident response.

“You seem cautious, but you’re like a different person when it comes to acting.”

Yoomyeong pretended not to hear what sounded like a mumbled comment.

“Now that this is getting interesting, do you want to make a bet?”

“What kind of bet?”

“Well, the ratings aren’t solely determined by your skills, which makes it tricky. How about we base our bet on whether the ‘Yoon Bohyung Fever’ appears in the articles or not?”

Though he said it jokingly, the idea of a supporting actor becoming so notable as to create a ‘fever’ was nearly impossible.

Yet, spurred by his competitive spirit, Yoomyeong didn’t hesitate to respond.

“What are we betting on?”

“Hmm, if you win… I heard you got your license, so how about a car?”

When discussing the casting with Director Lee Min-jung, Yoomyeong had thought about getting his license. He ended up with a road manager after signing with Moon Yu-seok, but the need for a license still remained, especially for potential driving scenes.

So, he went through an accelerated course and received his brand-new license just yesterday.

‘A car? That’s quite a big stake, but it seems fair given the difficulty of the bet.’

Yoomyeong confidently nodded.

“Alright. What do I bet if I lose?”

“Follow me.”

As Yoomyeong agreed to the bet, Yu-seok left the office with a puzzled Yoomyeong trailing behind.

They arrived at the underground parking lot.

Beep—

What came into view with a cheerful beep was a dazzling silver Ferrari.

“Drive this around.”

“…What??”

Yoomyeong voiced his disbelief loudly, feeling dazed.

“I hardly use this car anymore, so don’t feel pressured. I have plenty of cars.”

“…Still, this car is too much…”

He was thinking more along the lines of a compact car. Even that seemed a bit much but acceptable since he agreed to the bet.

But this… suddenly, the stakes seemed overwhelmingly higher.

Seeing Yoomyeong’s dumbfounded reaction, Yu-seok chuckled.

“A car like this will soon seem trivial to you. Of course, I’m not saying I’ll give it to you right away. Drive it around, and I’ll transfer the ownership to you if you win the bet.”

At those words, Yoomyeong remembered that this was a ‘bet’.

“And if I lose?”

“I’ll take it back.”

“Is that all? It doesn’t seem like I have much at stake in this bet.”

“You lose.”

“Pardon?”

Yu-seok smiled knowingly.

“Shin Yoomyeong, you’ve never had the experience of losing something you thought was yours, have you?”

It was a strange question.

But upon reflection, it was true. He had only ever wanted one thing, and since he never had it, he never lost it. He was only just beginning to taste what it felt like.

“Experience the feeling of losing something you thought you had right before your eyes if you lose. That emotion will also help you grow as an actor. Feel your life’s joys, thrills, and frustrations. Shin Yoomyeong, you’re too stiff. You should let loose a bit.”

A stiff person? Was that how he really appeared to others…?

“I’m not particularly greedy for a car, so would I really feel a sense of loss if I had it and then lost it?”

“Haha, maybe a little bit? You’ll know once you drive it. This car is not just any ordinary car.”

He handed the car keys to Yoomyeong and casually walked away.

Beep—

Yoomyeong pressed the car key as if in a trance,

And the finest beauty blinked its eyes.

*

Vrooooom—

The car roared powerfully, its body vibrating.

Yoomyeong stepped on the accelerator.

The slightest hint of approach made other cars part like the Red Sea. His heart pumped wildly, racing with the speed.

He felt like he was truly back in his twenties.

‘I guess I understand a bit what Yu-seok meant by ‘not just any car.’’

Driving the car felt like embodying the feeling of success.

Screech—

Having reached Suwon and parked in an apartment parking lot, Yoomyeong called home.

It had been a few days since he had been home, as the company provided him a place to stay during busy periods.

His parents was at work, leaving only his younger sibling, who was practically fused with the floor at home.

{Hello—}

“Judging by your voice, you’ve just gotten up from lying down, haven’t you?”

{Ah… If you knew that I was lying down, then why didn’t you call on my cellphone?! Do you know how much energy I used from moving from my room to the living room’s phone?}

She was a typical teacher, using a barely remembered unit for her quip.

“Come downstairs.”

{I don’t want to.}

“If you don’t come down now, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”

{What? Did you buy chicken?}

Her voice brightened, and the call abruptly ended. She must be rushing down at the speed of light.

Yoomyeong leisurely rolled down the car window, anticipating Jiyeon’s expression.

Looks around—

Jiyeon, having come down to the first floor, looked around curiously. Even from afar, her expression seemed bright.

Then, she furiously opened her phone and started pressing the number buttons rapidly, clearly annoyed.

RRR—

“Hello—”

{Hey, Shin Yoomyeong, are you training a dog?! Are you playing tricks on me while you’re in Seoul?!}

Yoomyeong chuckled at Jiyeon’s reaction and then honked the horn gently.

??

Spotting the silver Ferrari, a car never before seen in their neighborhood, Jiyeon’s eyes widened. To make himself visible, Yoomyeong extended his left hand and waved his phone vigorously.

“Shin Jiyeon, over here—!”

“What’s this? Are you crazy? You went into acting and now this… huh? Oh my goodness!”

Jiyeon, who had been rushing over to confront her seemingly crazy brother, stopped in her tracks. Her jaw dropped as she caught sight of Yoomyeong.

‘Who is this… good-looking person?’

.

.

“Make it run faster!!!”

“Calm down. You’re going to raise your blood pressure at this rate.”

“Ahh… I should’ve gotten my license! What have I been doing all this time?”

“Merging with the floor?”

“Why did I do that?”

Jiyeon, who had temporarily gone crazy due to an overload of adrenaline, finally calmed down after a 30-minute drive.

“But really, what is this? You didn’t go into debt to show off or anything… right?”

Now that she had her fun, Jiyeon seemed worried about the aftermath and cautiously prodded her brother, to which Yoomyeong chuckled.

“No. My boss lent it to me.”

“Ah, I see — the boss lent it to an unestablished actor who hasn’t even started filming yet. How generous!”

“It’s true. He has high expectations of me.”

At that, Jiyeon closed her mouth with a doubtful expression.

She knew that her brother wasn’t one to boast or act rashly. But how good must his acting be for both their parents, who saw his play, and his boss to have such high regard for him?

It seemed she would have a chance to clear her doubts sooner than expected.

After both of their parents came home from work, Yoomyeong broke the news.

“I’m going to be in a drama.”

“What? A drama?!”

“When? On which channel?”

His mother and sister both screamed at the same time.

“It’s a mini-series that will air on KBK in early December. It’s called ‘Showbiz Studies.’ I was lucky enough to get a supporting role…”

“Wow, not an extra or a minor role, but a supporting role?”

Jiyeon’s mouth fell open.

“Oh my, congratulations to our son!”

“You’ve been busy lately, but I see it was for a good reason. You’ve worked hard.”

His mother was in tears while his father smiled proudly, the wrinkles deepening around his eyes.

Since his parents had already seen his acting, they didn’t seem surprised and was just touched by the early opportunity. Yoomyeong felt almost guilty for not telling them sooner in fear that it might fall through and that it would disappoint them.

“Yes, I’ll do my best! I’ll be busy for a while, so I might not be able to come home often. Watch me on TV.”

“You’re that busy? What if you get sick…?”

“My boss is taking good care of me. Don’t worry too much.”

“Mom, isn’t brother’s boss amazing? He lent a Ferrari to a newbie driver…”

“You’re going to be a teacher, and you talk like that?”

“Isn’t it true, though?”

Amidst his mother’s nagging and Jiyeon’s retorts, his father quietly opened a book and then took out a 100,000 won check.

“What do you want to eat?”

“Meat.”

“Meat.”

“Honey, what’s that money for?”

At that last question, his father cleared his throat.

*

{It’s been a while since I was on a drama set!}

Miho finally followed him to the set after a long period of wandering(?).

According to Miho, the energy in the theater was similar to the lively taste of fresh sashimi, while the energy in a movie shoot was grand and impressive like gourmet cuisine. Lastly, the energy of drama set was like the stimulating taste of instant food. Of course, the flavor changed depending on the work and the actors.

True to the spirit fox’s words, the drama set was a whirlwind of activity.

“The crane hasn’t arrived yet! Are we shooting or not?!”

“The light bulb over here shattered! Don’t walk through here until it’s cleaned up!”

“Is the production team around? The lunch delivery person needs to get paid before they can leave!”

This urgent atmosphere was what a drama set was all about.

Unlike in films, where scenes could be reshot indefinitely until perfect and extensive post-production editing was possible, dramas often required more immediate and raw performances due to tighter schedules and budgets.

Yoomyeong arrived an hour early today, greeted everyone, and was now checking out the atmosphere of the filming set.

Ah—

He warmed up his voice and did some light stretching.

Flipping through the script, he reviewed his highlighted lines.

Just then, someone tapped Yoomyeong’s arm. Startled, he jerked back in surprise.

“Hello, rookie actor— Oh… hi.”

“Hello. You’re brimming with energy. I’m envious.”

The person who lazily greeted him and then sprawled in a chair like a jellyfish was Cha Harin. Yoomyeong checked the time, wondering if it was already call time. However, there was still 30 minutes left.

He came early because he was a rookie, but she, a 12-year veteran actress, was also consistent in arriving early.

“Where did you learn to act, brother?”

“Huh? I was in my university’s theater club, but I haven’t had formal training.”

“Really? Then where did you get the inspiration for that unique acting style…?”

Hearing Harin mutter to herself, Yoomyeong flinched.

Just as she mentioned, there was indeed a key reference that helped Yoomyeong shape his character, Bohyung.

He was the guardian angel of the protagonist, Kim Hana.

He was kind, warm, and sweet, and on ‘her side.’

But he was also sometimes as sharp as a blade, possessing insight that penetrated the ways of the world.

Someone who usually hid his claws under his cuteness but was able to swiftly strike when needed. It was a familiar character to Yoomyeong.

{Hey, she has a unique way of handling her presence. It’s interesting.}

The blue figure swirled around before settling on Harin’s shoulder.

It was Miho.

The prototype Yoomyeong would create for the character of Bohyung was based on her existence.

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