Superstar From Age 0

“I bought some mackerel!”

The youngest staff member brought some mackerel that were already cleaned and ready to grill, but it was not just one or two.

He smiled and explained to the curious staff members.

“He told me to buy some for lunch.”

“Really? I heard mackerel is in season these days… It must be delicious.”

They chuckled as they imagined the crispy grilled mackerel.

“Aren't we eating too well for a shooting?”

“I know. I think I gained some weight lately.”

“Me too. I guess it's because we’ve been going around the local restaurants since Suwon.”

They had been enjoying the local cuisine recommended by the natives, except for the time when they had a hard time filming the hospital scene in Seoul.

“We’re gaining weight while Seo-jun is losing weight.”

“He's really good at managing himself. And he's still nice even though he's on such a strict diet.”

Some of the staff members who had tried eating only salads for a few days nodded their heads.

The others also agreed, having experienced skipping a meal or two.

“It makes you so irritable when you’re hungry.”

“And it must take a lot of energy to act while crying and thrashing around.”

“And it's not like the shooting is done in one take.”

They thought he was really amazing.

“And his manager who checks his health every time is amazing too.”

The staff members looked at Seo-jun. His manager was checking his health as usual.

“Are you feeling dizzy?”

“I'm fine.”

“Are your hands and feet numb?”

Seo-jun smiled and clenched his fists.

He chuckled as Anh Da Ho asked him various questions, and answered them honestly.

Anh Da Ho nodded and filled in the circles on the questionnaire that he had requested from the doctor.

He was healthy today.

He had lost weight, but his complexion was fine.

Anh Da Ho felt that Seo-jun had a healthy constitution in this situation, and smiled lightly.

“But you’re almost done with losing weight.”

He didn't need to lose any more weight, since it wouldn't make much difference when he wore clothes.

From the hospital scene, they planned to cover it with makeup.

“Da Ho hyung. They say maintaining weight loss is harder.”

Seo-jun said, and Anh Da Ho laughed.

***

“Ready, action!”

The smell of grilled mackerel filled the yard.

Two pieces of mackerel cut in half were pressed on the grill and cooked over the fire.

Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan put a lighter in an empty tin can and lit it.

Kwon Yoon-chan grilled the mackerel and Jung Ga-ram held a basin of water to prevent fire.

“Is this smoked? You have to get closer.”

“It's hot!”

Jung Ga-ram giggled at Kwon Yoon-chan's clumsy skill.

“I cooked it well in case it was undercooked.”

The grilled mackerel was placed on a plate.

Some of the flesh stuck to the grill and became ragged, but it looked decent when flipped over.

Jung Ga-ram picked at the mackerel flesh with chopsticks.

“The outside is a bit burnt, but the inside is well cooked.”

“Yeah?”

Kwon Yoon-chan, who had been waiting with the grill in front of the fire in case it was undercooked, blushed.

“I was going to grill it again if it was undercooked!”

Kwon Yoon-chan put down the grill and ran to the floor.

He peeled off the blackened skin and ate the white flesh.

He exclaimed.

“Oh. It's good. You should try it too.”

“Yeah.”

Jung Ga-ram smiled and picked up his chopsticks.

Kwon Yoon-chan smiled brightly at Jung Ga-ram's wide-open face. It was worth going out to buy mackerel in the morning.

“It's good!”

Kwon Yoon-chan relaxed and started eating at Jung Ga-ram's exclamation.

Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan's chopsticks moved busily.

They felt closer after yesterday's incident, and Kwon Yoon-chan was happy.

When half of the mackerel on the plate was gone, Jung Ga-ram stopped moving.

Ah.

His hand holding chopsticks trembled.

His stomach churned as if he was about to vomit. Jung Ga-ram got up quickly and ran to the bathroom.

Kwon Yoon-chan got up awkwardly at Jung Ga-ram's sudden action.

Ugh. Ugh…!

The sound of vomiting came through the open door.

Kwon Yoon-chan didn't know what to do at that sound.

A moment later.

The sound of water flushing came, and Kwon Yoon-chan hurriedly poured water into a cup.

In that short time, Jung Ga-ram showed his face palely.

“Are you okay?”

Kwon Yoon-chan handed him the water, and Jung Ga-ram drank it slowly and nodded.

“I think I had a bit of indigestion.”

He didn't seem flustered at all, and Kwon Yoon-chan calmed down too.

“You didn't eat much, did you? Do you want to go to the hospital?”

Jung Ga-ram shook his head quickly at Kwon Yoon-chan's suggestion.

“I’ll be fine after a rest. I have a weak stomach.”

He looked like he was used to it. But Kwon Yoon-chan thought for a moment and brought a needle and thread from somewhere.

“…What are you going to do?”

Jung Ga-ram's face looked even paler as he saw that. Kwon Yoon-chan smiled slyly and showed him the sharp needle.

It seemed to sparkle in the sunlight.

“I'm going to prick your finger. It's the best remedy for indigestion.”

“…Can you do it?”

He was not sure about the folk remedy, but he was more worried about Kwon Yoon-chan holding the needle.

“I do it to myself too.”

Kwon Yoon-chan skillfully sterilized the needle in boiling water and sat next to Jung Ga-ram.

“I learned it from someone who came from the welfare center. It's the best when you don't have any digestive medicine. I used to press it with a pen or something, but it's better to prick it with a needle. You have to sterilize the needle and use it.”

He sat next to him and patted his back, and Jung Ga-ram closed his mouth.

How old was he when he was in the past, and how did he suffer alone without any digestive medicine?

Kwon Yoon-chan slid down Jung Ga-ram's right arm and tied his thumb with a thread.

He pricked the side of his thumb where blood pooled, and blood came out.

“You must have had a bad indigestion. If it doesn't come out, let's go to the hospital.”

“Okay.”

Jung Ga-ram felt a bitter taste in his mouth as he looked at the dried blood.

It seemed like it was time to go back.

“I'm going to see the sunrise tomorrow.”

Kwon Yoon-chan, who was putting away the needle and thread, flinched.

He remembered why Jung Ga-ram had said he would stay here.

“So you’re leaving now?”

He knew he would go home someday, but he didn't expect it to be now.

No, come to think of it, he had stayed too long in this town where there was nothing to see or do for a trip.

“Yeah.”

An awkward silence fell.

“Cut, okay!”

“I’ll take a break and go!”

At the assistant director's words, everyone put down their equipment one by one.

Seo-jun wiped off the fake blood with a tissue and checked the monitor.

The subtle expressions of Jung Ga-ram, who was hiding something, and Kwon Yoon-chan, who had nothing to hide, were well captured in the close-up shot.

“It came out well.”

“Right?”

Director Min Hee-kyung also smiled brightly with satisfaction.

Then, Kim Han-seok called out to Seo-jun.

“Seo-jun hyung! The cinematographer said he grilled some mackerel for us!”

“What?”

Seo-jun and Director Min Hee-kyung looked at Kim Han-seok's voice with a puzzled expression.

Near the iron barrel where ‘Kwon Yoon-chan’ had lit a fire, Kim Han-seok, the cinematographer, and the staff were gathered.

The firewood that was probably for backup was filled in the barrel and burning fiercely.

“There's a trick to this too.”

The cinematographer had a grill that was probably for backup in his hand, and between the grill, there were mackerels that were supposed to be for lunch.

“You have to flip it right here!”

Wow!

For some reason, Kim Han-seok and the staff admired the cinematographer's skillful skills.

Seo-jun and Director Min Hee-kyung laughed.

***

“Ready, action!”

Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan moved from the dark dawn before the sun rose.

To endure the cold morning breeze, they brought a thin blanket and something to lay on the ground.

They also brought warm yuja tea to warm their bodies while waiting for the sunrise.

Kwon Yoon-chan's eyes kept turning to Jung Ga-ram.

His face was still pale from vomiting yesterday.

He was worried about Jung Ga-ram who refused to go to the hospital.

‘I should buy some digestive medicine on the way back.’

By then, the pharmacy would be open.

“Shall we go?”

“Yeah.”

Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan hid their valuables so that no one would steal them and took what they needed.

Then they closed the rusty gate firmly.

And they slowly went down the hill that had become familiar.

“So… when are you going back?”

“I'm going tomorrow.”

“That's fast.”

Thud thud.

The footsteps of the two boys heading to the beach were heavy.

***

The beach where Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan arrived was empty like when they first came.

The two boys laid a blanket that they brought for a mat on the sand and put their luggage on it.

The wind was chilly because the sun hadn't risen yet.

Jung Ga-ram and Kwon Yoon-chan wrapped their bodies with the blanket.

Jung Ga-ram poured warm yuja tea from a thermos into a paper cup and handed it to Kwon Yoon-chan.

He also took one for himself.

“I finally see it.”

He originally planned to go back sooner, but this was good too.

The pain from the day before yesterday seemed like a dream.

His mood had been fluctuating ever since.

He felt infinitely worse, then grateful for everything, then hopeless as if he was falling endlessly.

“This is my first time seeing the sunrise with someone else.”

Kwon Yoon-chan said with a smile.

“I think I’ll never forget these days until I die.”

Jung Ga-ram looked at the end of the sea at Kwon Yoon-chan's bright voice.

The sea was slowly turning red as if the sun was rising.

He felt his heart swell slowly.

It was a harder trip than he thought, but it was more fun than he thought.

Maybe it was because he stayed at Kwon Yoon-chan's house at the end.

“Me too.”

Jung Ga-ram smiled softly and replied.

***

“The sun is rising!”

Kwon Yoon-chan looked at the sun that was showing its round end with sparkling eyes.

It was just a sun that rose every day, but it had a power that made him speechless.

This must be why people go to see the sunrise every year on New Year's Day.

“Hey. Don't you have to record a video? You couldn't do it last time.”

Instead of an answer,

Thump,

something fell with a sound.

Kwon Yoon-chan, who was admiring the sun without taking his eyes off, turned his head to the sound. Jung Ga-ram, who was wrapped in a blanket, had collapsed.

…?!

Kwon Yoon-chan froze at the sudden situation.

He couldn't understand why Jung Ga-ram had collapsed, so he stiffened and couldn't move.

He felt like he had stopped breathing.

But that was only for a moment.

Kwon Yoon-chan screamed like a scream in the anxiety that engulfed him like a huge wave.

“Hey! Jung Ga-ram?! What's wrong?!”

Kwon Yoon-chan grabbed Jung Ga-ram's shoulder with his trembling hand.

He didn't even use much strength, but Jung Ga-ram followed his weak force.

He clearly saw Jung Ga-ram's head droop weakly with that movement.

Gasp!

Kwon Yoon-chan was startled and let go of his hand.

He looked at the collapsed Jung Ga-ram with his eyes shaking.

The sun rose slowly.

Under the bright sky, Jung Ga-ram's pale face and Kwon Yoon-chan's frozen face were clearly visible.

“Jung Ga-ram! Ga-ram!”

Kwon Yoon-chan's scream echoed on the beach in the anxiety that overwhelmed him.

***

“Cut, okay!”

Seo-jun opened his eyes at Director Min Hee-kyung's words.

His eyes were no longer cloudy with pain.

“Seo-jun hyung. Aren't you too good at acting?”

Seo-jun, who got up and dusted off the sand, was different from Kim Han-seok, who still had Kwon Yoon-chan's emotions left.

It was because he had immersed himself as much as possible for a good performance.

“How can you do it so well when I've never heard you say you were sick?”

He would have thought Seo-jun really collapsed if he wasn't warm.

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

“I did better when I was a prince.”

The scene where he created the atmosphere with the faint smell of death, lowered his body temperature, and acted.

The death of Seongnyeong Daegun.

‘He was so good that he scared Uncle Jong-ho.’

Kim Jong-ho must have been worried until he left because of that.

Seo-jun didn't act that much after that.

Kim Jong-ho was an adult and he remembered it for so long. How would other people feel?

He was more careful and adjusted for this [Working Title: Travel] because his partner was his younger brother Kim Han-seok.

‘Make it look good on camera, but not make the partner worry.’

So it was harder to act, but it was more fun.

“That's true. You were amazing in the last scene too.”

“Ha ha ha.”

Seo-jun laughed brightly at Kim Han-seok's words, recalling the herbalist boy he played in the last episode or so.

‘Well, that's gone now.’

The staff came to Seo-jun and Kim Han-seok one by one as they finished their conversation.

“Good job!”

That's how the shooting in Busan ended.