Han Yooil sighed and looked out the window. The attire of people outside had become thicker.

‘It’s getting cold now.’

The convenience store had been Yooil’s part-time job for several months since his discharge from the military.

He would have quit the job if he was receiving a substantial signing amount from acting or had a regular income… but it wasn’t time yet.

【You’ll be able to quit soon, Yooil. Don’t worry.】

‘…No, I’ll handle it.’

Was it Charlie Chaplin who said life is a tragedy when seen up close but a comedy in long shot?

It’s the same for all service jobs. Convenience stores were no exception.

“Hey, hurry! Call me a taxi! Eh?!”

…This meant the occasional appearance of problematic customers.

A middle-aged man with disheveled appearance and flushed face started fumbling with items in the convenience store.

Drunken customers were present, not just late at night or early in the morning, but quite frequently. Yooil learned this through various part-time jobs.

“Why, because I’m not buying anything? I’ll buy! I’ll buy, okay?!”

“Sir, there’s a customer ahead of you. Please wait a moment, and I’ll assist you shortly.”

Yooil responded calmly without changing his facial expression and began to scan the multitude of snacks the man in the hat had brought.

Then, the swearing drunkard changed the direction of his anger. He started poking at the young man standing in front of him.

“Hey, you bastard, who are you to ignore me?”

Judging by his level of intoxication and the loudness of his voice, it didn’t seem like it would end easily.

“Sir. Please don’t do that.”

The drunkard, who had been touching the man in front, now started shaking a display stand in anger.

 

At that moment, the man, who had been quietly standing with his face covered with a hat and scarf, spoke for the first time.

“It’s okay. You can proceed with his transaction first.”

The man was polite.

Yooil responded with a similarly calm voice.

“…I’ve just reported to the police.”

“!”

The man with his face covered was startled and looked behind him. Fortunately, the drunkard didn’t seem to have heard it.

“At this point, he’s not in a state to have a conversation.”

“Hmm… I see.”

The man with only his eyes showing nodded and turned around again.

 

That’s when Brion popped up unexpectedly.

【Well done, Yooil.】

Though 90% of what Brion said was either unnecessary or aggressive, sometimes it could be quite helpful.

【Fortunately, a patrol car nearby is on duty. They are expected to arrive in 5 minutes.】

Just like now.

“Damn it…! Every one of you is pissing me off! Do you think I’m easy? Am I? You bastards…”

The man with only his eyes showing flinched at that voice. Han Yooil scanned the barcode calmly and said,

“I apologize for the delay, sir. I’ll finish your transaction quickly. …That’ll be 16,800 won.”

“Thank you.”

The man said. It was a pleasing tenor voice. He briefly lifted his head and looked at Yooil. His eyes, the only visible feature, met Yooil’s gaze directly.

He gathered the snacks into his arms and smiled with his eyes.

“Take care.”

The sound of the siren was heard shortly after the man left. Soon after, two police officers entered the convenience store.

“Oh, that guy’s here again.”

“He’s a regular troublemaker.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

The officers approached the drunkard with tired expressions. After a brief scuffle, the store regained its quiet only after the drunkard left with the police.

Han Yooil muttered softly as he gazed out the window.

“…I want to act.”

It was a spontaneous utterance.

【89% of stage 1 objective achieved.】

“…What?”

That was an unexpected remark.

However, Yooil couldn’t inquire further. New customers had entered the store. He began reciting the movie script in his mind, recalling his lines.

It was a long afternoon.

* * *

After his shift, Yooil headed to the rooftop café at school. With the semester break passed, there were fewer students around.

‘This is nice.’

It was the season when the sun sets early, and the sky was already darkening.

He took a deep breath as he looked at the mountains in the distance and the low buildings.

The rooftop café was his favorite spot in the school.

Even though he had only attended for one semester before enlisting in the military, he used to go up to the rooftop whenever he had a chance.

In fact, Han Yooil had always liked rooftops since he was young. It was a kind of hobby. Looking down from the rooftop always eased his claustrophobic feelings.

【Shall we practice?】

“Yeah.”

He nodded and then closed his eyes. The lines for the next day’s shooting scene came to mind.

[S#40 Rest Area Bench (Day)

The group has just finished their meal.

As they are conversing, Sohee suddenly collapses forward. Foam starts coming out of Sohee’s mouth.

Yooil: Noona… Noona!

A pale Yooil, along with Jongsun and Joonki, rushes towards Sohee. Jongsun’s expression darkens as he examines her.

Jongsun: …Could it be…

Yooil: What? What’s happening?

Joonki: What’s the matter?!

Jongsun: …Poison.]

Hearing that, Yooil slowly blinked.

“What do you mean, grandma?”

“Call 119 right now.”

Yooil, with a puzzled look, glances at Jongsun and then at Sohee.

So, is Sohee noona poisoned?

But why?

“Hurry up!”

Yooil snaps back to reality and starts to act. His body, which had been frozen, seemed to thaw all at once.

Right, I need to contact someone, call 119…

【…Yooil, there’s a presence detected not far from here.】

‘Huh?’

Yooil tightly closed his eyes and then reopened them. His blurred vision gradually cleared.

【The subject is approaching.】

…Are you a navigation system now?

Yooil was about to voice his complaint when someone indeed approached him. It wasn’t a typical call of his name.

“Hey…! Convenience Store!”

“…?”

Yooil turned his head, blinked for a moment, and then let out a sound of recognition. It was the same customer who had faced the drunkard’s harassment at the convenience store earlier.

“Nice to meet you. Are you a student at Wolmyeong University?”

At Yooil’s question, the man wearing the hat rolled his eyes.

“No, I’m not a student…! I came to see someone I know.”

And then he smiled. The only visible part of his face, his large eyes, crinkled into a crescent moon shape. Seeing those eyes, a thought flashed through Yooil’s mind.

‘…A celebrity?’

Now that he noticed, the man’s small face and slender figure gave off an extraordinary vibe.

There were a few celebrities in the acting department at Wolmyeong University besides Ji Eunho. Han Yooil remembered how Kim Jinwoo would get excited whenever they happened to meet celebrities.

Yooil wasn’t particularly interested in such matters. After all, actors or idols were just professions.

Moreover, they were at a school where people came to study, not work, so he didn’t want to unnecessarily attract attention.

【You’ll soon be like that too, Yooil.】

Yooil ignored Brion again and shook his head.

“Well then.”

As Yooil was about to leave, the man looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Then he chuckled softly and bowed his head, saying goodbye.

‘Is he in a good mood?’

Yooil shrugged and got on the elevator.

Now it was time to prepare for tomorrow’s film shoot.

* * *

While Yooil was at the rooftop café, Lee Hyejin, having just finished the semester, was glued to her bed, focused on her phone.

More specifically, she was engrossed in BlueChat. She absentmindedly posted anything on BlueChat.

[@jinnnny

Not doing anything but want to do even less of anything.]

Having many followers meant that even the most trivial posts quickly gathered empathy. Yet, Lee Hyejin’s boredom did not fade.

“Isn’t there anything fun?”

For example, like theater, theater, or theater.

Indeed.

Even after the semester had ended, she couldn’t break away from <Romeo in Wonderland>.

Lee Hyejin scrolled through BlueChat posts with a dry expression.

[@gmrgmr

Her face is crazy again today (picture) (picture)]

[@qmfforvjcjehfdl

Eunho-ya, I love you (crying GIF)]

“Is fangirling fun…?”

But she wasn’t particularly drawn to anyone.

However, at that moment, a face suddenly flickered through Hyejin’s mind.

-My love, my wife. Even the god of death, who drank all your honeyed breaths, couldn’t conquer your beauty.

Murmuring his lines as if he were handling something so fragile it might break any moment, he tenderly caressed the woman’s face…

“…that was really great acting.”

‘If he were an actor, I would have taken photos of that scene already and set them all as my wallpaper…’

Lee Hyejin shook her head. To harbor such thoughts about a mere stranger, not even a celebrity. She slapped her own cheek and refreshed her feed once more.

Then, a post caught her eye.

[@dkdlzn

Our show’s vampire and the boy on stageㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Insane (photo) (photo)]

“Show…? Ah, Jung Suho.”

Theatre and musical buffs, colloquially known as ‘thea-mus buffs,’ had various nicknames for their favorite actors. Jung Suho was affectionately called ‘Show.’

“Is this a poster?”

Staring blankly at the photo, Lee Hyejin almost dropped her phone.

“…c-classmate?”

She thought she was mistaken, but she wasn’t. Indeed, it was her classmate.

The first poster featured the young, frail-looking Han Yooil crouched beside Jung Suho, who was dressed as a vampire.

In the second poster, Han Yooil’s face was utterly different. His skin was pale, his lips curled into a sinister smile, as he stared piercingly into the camera. This time, Jung Suho, clad in a grey sweatshirt and jeans, sat beside Yooil with a somber expression.

“Crazy.”

Lee Hyejin clamped her mouth shut.

‘Why on earth are you there?’

Just days ago, they were attending lectures together…

And yet, she found herself coveting these posters, wanting to plaster them on her wall.

From then on, Lee Hyejin began collecting tidbits of information like gathering specks of dust.

‘Movies too… and theatre? Really?’

It seemed Han Yooil, a student of Myungwol University’s Department of Korean Literature, was aiming to become an actor.

‘This means a real debut… right?’

Lee Hyejin’s heart started racing. And her lips, too, curled up uncontrollably.

‘I can start fangirling now…!’

That was when she started sharing related articles and photos as if possessed.

Lee Hyejin creating a new account for her fangirling started around this time too.