Superstar From Age 0

“My name is Jung Ga-ram. I'm eighteen years old.”

“Kwon Yoon-chan. Same age, but…”

Kwon Yoon-chan hesitated for a moment before opening his mouth.

“…I don't go to school.”

It was the beginning of the second semester.

A normal high school student would be at school at this time.

He had to stay with Jung Ga-ram until he left anyway, so he couldn't hide it.

“Me neither.”

Jung Ga-ram smiled as if it was nothing.

Kwon Yoon-chan looked at Jung Ga-ram with a puzzled expression.

He didn't think he would skip school, unlike himself, who wore shabby clothes.

‘I thought he was traveling with some kind of experiential learning report…’

He didn't know why, but Kwon Yoon-chan felt a slight, strange sense of kinship with him, just because they both didn't go to school.

“Stay here.”

Kwon Yoon-chan opened the door to the next room and went in to put away the soju bottle and cigarette pack. Jung Ga-ram came in with his suitcase.

There was an old blanket with an electric mat and a thick television that looked like it belonged in a museum.

“Turn on the electric mat if you’re cold.”

“Okay.”

Kwon Yoon-chan, who was holding a pile of clothes, said.

The room looked like it belonged to Kwon Yoon-chan's father or grandfather.

‘I thought he lived alone since he didn't have any other shoes or stuff…’

The room felt cold and lifeless, as if no one lived there.

“Let's have lunch together!”

Jung Ga-ram, who was about to unpack his suitcase, said. Kwon Yoon-chan's body flinched as he was about to go out.

“Just leave me some rice and a spoon for what you were going to eat.”

“…”

Kwon Yoon-chan closed his mouth. He was planning to skip lunch.

Jung Ga-ram felt sorry for him.

He didn't think he would take good care of himself living alone.

“What side dishes do you have?”

“…Only kimchi.”

There was only kimchi that the welfare center gave him in the fridge.

“Then let's go out and eat while we’re shopping? I’ll pay.”

Jung Ga-ram suggested and Kwon Yoon-chan nodded after a moment of thought.

Jung Ga-ram put his clothes on one side and reached for his laptop, but Kwon Yoon-chan stopped him.

“Put your valuables in your suitcase.”

“…Okay.”

Jung Ga-ram rolled his eyes and put his laptop back in his suitcase.

As Jung Ga-ram was about to put on his shoes, Kwon Yoon-chan took his suitcase out of the room and headed somewhere.

Jung Ga-ram's expression turned strange.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

“Sometimes thieves come by. They’ll steal it if you leave it like that.”

…Wow.

Jung Ga-ram's eyes widened at the unexpected remark.

***

“Do you have rice?”

“No.”

A pork soup restaurant at the foot of the mountain.

Kwon Yoon-chan shook his head at Jung Ga-ram's question as he scooped up the hot soup.

Jung Ga-ram nodded and wrote down on his phone's memo app.

“What about eggs? Any other side dishes?”

“…I have kimchi.”

“I heard that already. Then let's buy some eggs. I like eggs. It's my food money, so I’ll pay. And let's buy some ham. And onions. And meat.”

Jung Ga-ram wrote down the list excitedly. He didn't seem to think about how to carry all that stuff home.

“It feels like I'm living on my own. I wanted to live with my friends. Playing games all night and eating delicious food. Do they deliver here?”

“…Friends?”

Kwon Yoon-chan asked back at Jung Ga-ram's nod.

“We’re the same age, right? You're not my little brother or my hyung, so you’re my friend.”

That was unfamiliar to Kwon Yoon-chan.

A child who couldn't receive parental care had signs of it everywhere.

And other children of the same age quickly noticed that and looked down on them or avoided them.

So from elementary school to middle school for three years. Kwon Yoon-chan lived alone.

“Oh. We have to clean the bathroom too.”

This kind of ‘conversation’ was also unfamiliar to him.

Kwon Yoon-chan replied a little late at Jung Ga-ram's words.

“…I clean it sometimes.”

“Do you? Didn't you see the mold!? I thought the floor was that color!”

Kwon Yoon-chan smirked at Jung Ga-ram's shocked expression.

Just spray some water and wipe it with a cloth, what else?

“Let's buy a pot too. And a frying pan.”

“There's one at home.”

“I saw it earlier and the coating was all peeled off. Then the eggs will stick to it. Oh. Make me a soft-boiled egg.”

Kwon Yoon-chan looked at Jung Ga-ram with a dumbfounded expression. His face, eating the white soup, looked so shameless.

“Are you always like this?”

“I've been having some mood swings lately. I guess it's puberty.”

He had never seen anyone say that with their own mouth. Kwon Yoon-chan nodded his head with a flustered expression.

“…I guess so.”

This morning. He met him in a strange way, and this happened.

Kwon Yoon-chan, who bit a piece of radish kimchi, laughed without realizing it because he was so dumbfounded.

After having lunch, Kwon Yoon-chan and Jung Ga-ram headed to the nearby mart.

“Have a nice day.”

The owner of the pork soup restaurant clicked his tongue as he came to clear the table after the two boys left.

“They left half of it.”

On the table, there was one empty bowl and one half-full bowl.

***

“Scrub hard.”

“Is this not coming off?”

“I asked the staff for the strongest one. It’ll come off. I don't care what you do later, but I want the bathroom to be clean while I'm here. I'm paying 20,000 won a day to stay here. Do you know that the nearest guest house is only 15,000 won a day?”

“Mm-hmm.”

At Jung Ga-ram's words, Kwon Yoon-chan scrubbed the bathroom floor with a new brush, wearing rubber gloves.

Even Kwon Yoon-chan thought that renting this house for 20,000 won a day was too much. But he couldn't just tell him to leave, since 20,000 won, or 40,000 won tomorrow, was too precious.

Meanwhile, Jung Ga-ram cleaned up the kitchen and filled up the empty fridge.

“Of course, the fridge should be full.”

Jung Ga-ram smiled contentedly and headed to the washing machine in the bathroom.

He chuckled as he saw Kwon Yoon-chan crouching and cleaning.

He looked at the washing machine, which was old and rattling.

“Kwon Yoon-chan. Is this not broken?”

“…I don't think so.”

He felt uneasy at Kwon Yoon-chan's hesitant answer.

Fortunately, the laundry was done without a problem.

Jung Ga-ram shook the clothes and hung them on the clothesline.

The clothes of Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan, which were soaked in seawater and salty, were lined up on the clothesline.

“The laundry is done. How about the bathroom cleaning?”

“Just spray some water.”

Splash!

The bathroom door opened wide.

Kwon Yoon-chan was spraying water on the white foam with a basin.

He was speechless at the sight of the bathroom that appeared through the white foam. Jung Ga-ram also admired it sincerely.

“Wow. The color is totally different.”

“…I know.”

Kwon Yoon-chan didn't expect the color to change so much either.

He thought the tiles were dark gray, but they were light gray.

And the black grout lines were originally white.

He felt a chill down his spine at the change.

“We should clean more often from now on.”

“Yes, we should.”

Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan sprawled on the floor after cleaning the bathroom.

They felt more tired because they didn't do this kind of work often.

“What time is it?”

“4 o’clock.”

‘I wonder if we should eat dinner at 6 o’clock?’

Kwon Yoon-chan always ate when he was hungry, but he felt like he had to eat dinner at a proper time because there was someone else.

“What should we eat for dinner?” 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

He also had to choose a menu. It was a strange thing for Kwon Yoon-chan, who mostly ate ramen.

Jung Ga-ram answered coolly.

“We bought meat, remember? Let's eat meat.”

Kwon Yoon-chan lost his appetite at that.

It seemed like a long time ago that he grilled meat and ate it.

‘I could buy more ramen with the money for meat.’

That's how Kwon Yoon-chan lived, so it was strange to have someone next to him.

But it wasn't so bad.

“Cut, okay!”

He heard the voice of director Min Hee-kyung.

“That's a wrap!”

The shooting for today was over.

Kim Han-seok bowed to the staff and directors who were packing up the shooting equipment.

He lay down on the floor again.

He was exhausted from cleaning the bathroom over and over for the shooting.

Seo-jun leaned against the wall.

A cool breeze blew.

“Hyung. The bathroom really changed, didn't it? I was really surprised.”

“Me too. The art team must have worked really hard.”

Seo-jun laughed at Kim Han-seok's words.

To be honest, seo-jun was also a little swayed.

****

“Ready, action!”

Jung Ga-ram, who had breakfast, settled in one corner of the kitchen.

He put his laptop on the table and connected his mouse.

Kwon Yoon-chan, who came back from the bathroom, looked at him for a moment and opened his mouth.

“What are you doing?”

“I'm editing a video to upload on YouTube. I was too tired yesterday and just fell asleep.”

He even laid an electric blanket on the floor because it was cold.

Kwon Yoon-chan sat down there too.

It was his first time having a quiet conversation with someone since he moved into this house.

Click click.

The sound of mouse clicks was heard.

Kwon Yoon-chan felt like he couldn't sit still when he saw Jung Ga-ram concentrating.

He went to his room and came back with a book.

He leaned against the wall and sat down.

The small kitchen became a cozy living room.

Jung Ga-ram lifted his head as he was deciding where to cut and where to keep.

“What book is that?”

“…A Korean textbook. I'm studying for a high school equivalency exam.”

It was comfortable enough to answer something that he wasn't even asked.

“If you have any questions, ask me. I studied a lot.”

Kwon Yoon-chan snorted at Jung Ga-ram's words.

“How many people would say they can't study?”

“I'm serious. I never missed being first since elementary school.”

For a moment.

“I did nothing but go to academy and do homework every day… And I had a good brain too, so being first was natural.”

Jung Ga-ram's smiling face faded and returned to normal, but Kwon Yoon-chan didn't notice his boastful words behind him.

***

“Hey. Kwon Yoon-chan! I want soft-boiled! I won't eat it if you give me hard-boiled like this morning.”

Jung Ga-ram yelled at Kwon Yoon-chan, who was holding a spatula.

“Then do it yourself!”

“I can't! It's your turn to cook today!”

Jung Ga-ram didn't back down either.

“Did you clean then?!”

“I did!”

The old house became noisy.

They became close in no time. Kwon Yoon-chan thought he didn't need to charge him for lodging, let alone food.

“Did you find a part-time job?”

Kwon Yoon-chan, who grumbled but still gave him a soft-boiled egg, asked him.

The perfect soft-boiled egg was split in half by chopsticks.

He picked up one of the side dishes that filled the table, which he bought from a side dish shop.

Kwon Yoon-chan shook his head and answered.

“No. They don't take minors.”

“Why don't you try without asking? How did you get the last part-time job?”

“I took less money.”

Jung Ga-ram gritted his teeth at the hourly wage that Kwon Yoon-chan said.

“Let's report them to the labor office.”

“Forget it. Where else would they let me work like that? The boss of that store is a gangster, so if the rumor spreads, I won't be able to find another part-time job.”

“Bad guys!”

Jung Ga-ram's anger tore the egg into pieces.

“Do you want to try YouTube too?”

“You need a camera and a laptop for that.”

“I’ll lend you mine.”

“Forget it. I don't even know what to film.”

Hmm.

Jung Ga-ram nodded at Kwon Yoon-chan's words.

“That's true. You need a lot of views to make money, but I don't get many views either.”

“Oh. I saw it.

‘I’ll ask if I can film and upload it!’”

“Hey!”

Jung Ga-ram's face turned red in an instant at Kwon Yoon-chan's imitation. He laughed at that.

“Cut, okay!”

Kim Han-seok relaxed his body and collapsed at director Min Hee-kyung's shout.

“The shooting is too hard.”

“We’re doing well, so let's cheer up.”

If there was an NG, the same scene would repeat and the shooting would be delayed, but only OK came out, so the shooting went faster.

He analyzed the script thoroughly, but he felt like he was living as Kwon Yoon-chan and Jung Ga-ram every day.

“Am I doing well?”

“Yeah. You're doing great.”

Kim Han-seok smiled sheepishly at Seo-jun's words.

Kim Han-seok smiled and followed Seo-jun's laughter.

He stretched lightly.

He turned his body this way and that and saw a familiar face among the staff.

He was surprised to see a face he never expected to see here.

“Huh? Ji-seok hyung?”

Lee Ji-seok, who was wearing a shabby baseball jacket, smiled and waved his hand.