The Face Genius Actor

Episode 044

As I rang the doorbell in front of the luxurious house, a voice said, “Just a moment,” and the metal front door opened.

Then, a vast lawn, rarely seen in Seoul, unfolded before our eyes.

It was a moment that made me realize how incredibly popular Park Jun was.

“Wow. Is this the class of Seorae Village?”

“Indeed. It’s impressive.”

“Living here, there would be less traffic, right?”

“The traffic would be the same.”

“Is that so?”

“The arrival time would be different though.”

Lee Joo-yeon, as always, worried about Seoul’s traffic congestion.

She was such a consistent person.

As we exchanged trivial comments, Joo-yeon and I crossed the yard, stepping on the stepping stones laid between the beautiful landscaping.

Then we could see Park Jun standing in front of the opened door.

“Senior. Hello.”

“Hello!”

“Welcome, both of you…. Oh?”

Park Jun was surprised to see the shopping bags in our hands.

“I intentionally didn’t tell you it was my home so you wouldn’t bring gifts.”

“Ah… So that’s why…”

“Haha. I had my own idea, but it seems your sense was better than mine. I’ll gladly accept the gifts.”

Park Jun took the gifts we handed over in both hands.

It seemed he really didn’t want gifts, but he didn’t want to reject our sincerity either.

Instead, he accepted them happily, saying, “This is expensive wine. How did you know I like wine? Thank you so much,” and even greeted us kindly.

Seeing this, I thought it was a bit unexpected.

After we had filmed together, Park Jun no longer visited Team B’s set.

But whenever we met occasionally, I felt he treated me more warmly than before.

We had actually gotten closer.

‘It was certainly like that, but…’

I never thought Park Jun would invite all of us to his home like this.

I couldn’t help but think that way.

In fact, before my regression, I had heard that Park Jun didn’t casually invite others to his home.

Park Jun was known to be quite reserved for a celebrity.

Even with Jung Se-hee, whom he was close to, he still used formal speech.

This alone showed how cautious he was.

But to invite everyone like this.

‘Was that just a baseless rumor too?’

But something still felt off about that explanation.

I had heard similar things recently as well.

Although Park Jun rose to stardom with his appearance in “The Night is Dark and the Morning is Bright,” this wasn’t his only work, of course.

He had starred in various dramas and movies before, gaining quite a bit of popularity.

It’s just that “The Night is Dark and the Morning is Bright” was his first drama as the sole lead.

Having appeared in many works, Park Jun inevitably met many people.

But he had never invited any of them to his home.

That’s why I never dreamed I would come to Park Jun’s house today.

‘To even receive such a warm welcome… It’s a strange feeling…’

I thought this as I followed Park Jun’s guidance.

As expected, Park Jun had set the table as lavishly as the landscaping in the yard.

The interior was so modern and beautiful that I couldn’t help but think, ‘So this is what a celebrity’s home looks like.’

It was that impressive.

“Wow. Amazing.”

Lee Joo-yeon, always honest with her emotions, let out an unreserved exclamation.

Park Jun scratched the back of his head in response.

“I meant to prepare some light snacks to eat while watching the broadcast… but things got bigger than I expected.”

“Indeed. It’s incredible.”

“I haven’t had many opportunities to invite guests, so I made a mistake. But don’t feel too burdened. Even if there’s food left over, I’ll eat it all eventually.”

“No way! Senior! I’ll eat hard too! I’m confident in my eating abilities!”

Joo-yeon answered with such enthusiasm that it seemed she might really devour all the food.

Park Jun smiled, seeming relieved.

‘Hmm… From what he’s saying, it really does seem like he doesn’t often invite others to his home…’

I was curious why he invited us like this.

But I didn’t dwell on it too much and took a seat where Park Jun directed.

It wasn’t the kind of problem I could solve by thinking about it constantly.

People don’t always act according to their personality anyway.

There’s a reason the word ‘whim’ exists.

As time passed, other people started arriving one by one.

“Wow. Park Jun’s house is so nice. I’ve been wondering why there was no invitation even after moving to the neighborhood, but now I see why you kept it hidden.”

Jung Se-hee, who was already close to Park Jun, exclaimed as she entered the house.

Park Jun glanced at me and made an excuse that wasn’t really an excuse.

“I didn’t hide it, I just didn’t have the opportunity to invite you. Please sit here.”

A little later.

With Gong Hyung-jun’s arrival, all the people Park Jun had invited were gathered in one place.

Checking the time, there was still plenty of time before the first broadcast.

So we decided to raise our glasses for a toast.

There’s nothing better than a toast to overcome awkwardness.

“Park Jun should give the toast.”

“Yes, the host should do it.”

“Senior! Please!”

“Toast! Toast!”

People urged him, and Park Jun stood up, pretending to give in.

He cleared his throat and began to speak.

“Then, although I’m embarrassed, I’ll give the toast. To the success of ‘I Will Cast Love’ and to our relationship!”

“Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

Everyone raised their wine glasses high and raised their voices.

Fortunately, or should I say luckily.

There was no one at this gathering who didn’t enjoy drinking.

Because of that, everyone could happily empty their glasses.

The slightly awkward atmosphere was eased with a drink.

Gong Hyung-jun, who acted as a mood-maker on set, moving between Team A and Team B, downed his wine in one shot.

Then he joked:

“A gathering of all the lead actors. As expected, Park Jun shows leadership befitting the main male lead. Right, Mi-hwa?”

“Huh? Ah, yes. I’ve wanted to get closer to everyone when given the chance, so I’m glad we’re gathered like this. By the way, did you really down that wine in one shot?”

“Is that not allowed?”

“It’s not that it’s not allowed, but I’m worried you might get drunk before we watch the first broadcast together.”

“Our Kim Jung-hee is nagging even here.”

“If you’d behave well first, I wouldn’t have to nag. I’m tired of it too, Yoon Jung-hoon.”

Gong Hyung-jun and Lee Mi-hwa, who boasted fantastic chemistry on set, naturally conversed using their character names even here.

After continuing such banter-like conversation for a while, Lee Mi-hwa sighed as if giving up.

Then she turned to me and Lee Joo-yeon and spoke:

“Come to think of it, I heard you two are from the same theater troupe? I was in a troupe too.”

“Oh, really? Where were you? Was it perhaps a troupe in Chungmuro?”

With the socially adept Lee Joo-yeon joining the conversation, the atmosphere quickly became lively.

The topics of conversation changed rapidly.

First, the talk about theater troupes shifted to works currently gaining attention in the theater world.

Then again, there was mention that these days people seem more interested in musicals than plays.

After that, the conversation led to Jung Se-hee’s past activities in musicals.

Because actors who had been active in various fields like chameleons were gathered in one place, the conversation topics were endless.

Even if someone didn’t know much about plays or musicals, it didn’t matter.

It wasn’t straying from the big interest of acting.

So everyone participated happily in the conversation.

I was enjoying the current conversation too.

It was natural since I hadn’t actively interacted with other actors before my regression.

It was a good time to learn what concerns contemporary actors have.

Especially, how actors view various art fields.

We had similar conversations at the wrap-up party for “Arrest”.

But it wasn’t a place where we could hear such honest thoughts like now.

The fact that only actors were gathered here contributed to creating this atmosphere.

After all, people with the same profession tend to understand each other.

As we were talking about musicals for a while and the conversation was moving towards movies,

Finally, “I Will Cast Love” began.

At the same time, I felt the air change slightly.

It was a situation where the success of the work would soon be determined.

The tension inevitably increased.

***

“It’s starting!”

“Yes, it’s beginning.”

“I hope the response is good…”

Although they were all actors, everyone’s attitude towards watching the first broadcast was different.

In Gong Hyung-jun’s case, he already had a community site open on his smartphone screen.

He had a strong will to check viewers’ reactions in real-time.

Lee Joo-yeon was watching the drama with a stiff expression, perhaps due to the tension of appearing in a drama for the first time.

On the other hand, Lee Mi-hwa leaned back comfortably in the plush dining chair and started watching TV in a relaxed posture.

I was curious to see how Park Jun and Jung Se-hee would react, but other than the atmosphere becoming a bit more serious, there wasn’t much change.

‘Hmm… I wonder which side I look like to others…’

While I was observing people, the first scene of “I Will Cast Love” came on.

At the same time, I felt the slightly tense atmosphere gradually easing.

It couldn’t be helped.

It was immediately apparent that the quality of the drama was exceptionally high.

As the atmosphere relaxed, people gradually started laughing at writer Kim Hee-soo’s unique comedy code.

The first person to burst out laughing was Lee Mi-hwa, who had looked the most relaxed among us.

Once Lee Mi-hwa started laughing, others began to laugh as if they couldn’t hold it in anymore.

It was so funny that we even forgot the fact that we had acted in the drama ourselves.

Moreover, “I Will Cast Love” wasn’t just a drama full of funny scenes.

It was a masterpiece, very skilled at appropriately managing emotional lines where needed.

We were swept up in various emotions as we watched “I Will Cast Love” intently.

It felt like the drama had ended when I closed my eyes and opened them again.

Even after watching the preview for the next episode, which we already knew all about, with interest,

Park Jun spoke first with a much lighter expression.

“As I expected, but the quality is even higher than I thought. Our drama.”

At the same time, I felt people’s gazes oddly focusing on me.

I couldn’t understand why people’s gazes were concentrating on me like this.

As I was feeling puzzled, smartphones started ringing loudly.

It wasn’t just my smartphone either.

Other people’s smartphones were ringing frantically too.

It was just like a disaster alert.

The typhoon called “I Will Cast Love” was approaching.