Superstar From Age 0

“All the audience members are here!”

The staff who were managing the extras announced through the radio. The staff, who were already busy, became even more hectic.

“Let me brief you quickly.”

As Sarah Roth, the director, looked around the whole set, Emily, the assistant director, explained to Seo-jun, Catherine, and Paul instead.

“We’re going to shoot the first scene of the concert in one take, from start to finish.”

Although they already knew this, Seo-jun, Catherine, and Paul listened attentively.

“You’ll also hear the performance of the musicians you met earlier, from start to finish. So please focus. But don’t worry, there will be some breaks in between.”

“Okay. Don’t worry.”

“We just have to think of it as a real concert.”

“I love concerts!”

The three kids nodded at Emily’s words.

Emily smiled as she remembered how they looked when they were younger. They had grown up so much, but they still had the same innocence.

She also gave them some other details about the shooting.

“Let’s move to the waiting room then!”

After checking everything, Sarah Roth, the director, led the staff and the actors to the first shooting location, the waiting room. The waiting room was filled with cameras and lights that had been installed beforehand.

Seo-jun and Catherine, who were wearing casual clothes instead of black suits, and Paul, who was always with the documentary filming team, prepared for the upcoming shooting.

“Let’s start shooting!”

As always, Emily shouted.

They thought that they wouldn’t hear this voice for much longer. Seo-jun adjusted his clothes and entered the camera angle.

“Ready,”

Sarah Roth shouted.

“Action!”

A waiting room in the Brad Hall.

Gray was quietly looking at the violin on the table.

Somehow.

He no longer felt that the violin was heavy and sad.

He had decided to perform at the charity concert after thinking about the people he had met, the memories he had made, the emotions he had felt, and the beautiful melodies he had played with his own hands.

He felt like he could enjoy playing the violin now.

He smiled unconsciously and asked what song he should play. His manager and friends said, “Play whatever you want.”

Hmm.

That was a more difficult answer.

He wondered what song would be good, as the day of the charity concert came.

“But Rebecca. Is it okay for me to sit in the audience?”

Gray turned his head and asked Rebecca, who seemed busy.

Usually, the performers who would go on stage would wait behind the stage or in the waiting room until their turn came. But this time, they were waiting in the audience.

It wasn’t really waiting, it was more like watching the concert.

“If you feel uncomfortable, you can stay in the waiting room.”

“No. I’m not uncomfortable. I like listening to the performances.”

He had heard that all the performers except him were amateurs, but he enjoyed music whether it was amateur or professional. He had enjoyed listening to various performances lately. He smiled naturally when he thought of the old musician, the three musketeers, and the Linda family.

“But do I go on stage like this?”

Gray looked at his clothes and said. He was wearing casual clothes that he could see on the street, not the black suit he had worn at the concerts.

“Your turn is the last one, so it’s okay. The people who perform before you are amateurs. If you bring your violin right away, it will be too obvious. So we decided to have a longer break. You can change your clothes and get ready then.”

Rebecca said very naturally, as if she had become his manager. Gray nodded. It wouldn’t take long to change his clothes, so he thought it would be fine.

Knock knock.

There was a knock on the door.

“The concert will start soon!”

“Okay! Let’s go!”

Rebecca answered cheerfully, and Gray and George laughed.

***

“Oh! They’re here!”

The audience was excited by the arrival of Seo-jun Lee, Catherine Miller, and Paul Oden. Choi Yoo-seung, Natalie, and their friends were the same.

“You saw them two years ago, right?”

“Yeah. We even played together.”

Choi Yoo-seung and Natalie smiled at their friends’ words. Of course they remembered. They would never forget it in their lives. That summer concert. The orchestra performance that was perfectly matched like a completed puzzle. It was still vivid in their minds, as if it would appear in their dreams.

“But it’s different to listen like this.”

“Right. Right.”

Natalie nodded at Choi Yoo-seung’s words.

As the audience calmed down after the announcement that the shooting would start, the extras focused on the shooting as instructed by the staff.

“So they’re shooting it like a real concert, right?”

“That’s right. Except that the breaks are longer and the performers are amateurs.”

The extras were also informed of the shooting content roughly, just like the actors.

“Gray will perform too, right?”

“I asked him earlier, and he said he would do it at the end.”

They whispered quietly, and then

[We will start shooting now.]

The announcement was heard.

The extras started to concentrate on the shooting.

***

“Ready, action!”

It had been a long time since he sat in the audience.

Gray thought. The people around him greeted him lightly as they saw him. He smiled and shook their hands. His expression brightened as he saw the happy people.

Rebecca and George sat on either side of Gray. The documentary filming team also found their seats, using the invitation seats widely. Half of the camera was on Gray, and the other half was on the stage.

“Hmm. Are they filming this too?”

“They’ll put some of it in the editing.”

Hmm. George would take care of it.

Gray nodded and brightened his eyes at the concert he hadn’t seen in a long time. He had been traveling around the world and performing, so he rarely had the chance to attend other musicians’ concerts.

Soon, the audience went dark.

Beep—

A warning sound was heard, and a thrilling silence fell on the concert hall.

The first stage of the charity concert was a performance by people who looked like they were in their twenties. It was a piano quartet, consisting of piano, violin, viola, and cello.

He paid more attention because there was a violin. The violinist, who looked like he was Gray’s age, played the violin with a soft expression, full of affection.

It wasn’t just the violinist. The piano, the viola, and the cello also played with a smile on their faces, as if they were happy and enjoying themselves.

♬-!

Of course, it wasn’t perfect.

They were nervous because of the stage full of audience, and they made some mistakes here and there. They didn’t have the skill to cover up their errors naturally, so they were noticeable.

But no one cared about those mistakes.

Both the performers and the audience smiled and listened attentively.

It felt like spring to Gray, who had erased the winter. He thought the cold would never end, but before he knew it, it was spring with flowers blooming.

‘Of course, the expectations for professionals and amateurs are different.’

But their love for music was the same.

He felt the soft backrest of the chair on his back. Gray realized that his body had relaxed.

He was sitting in the audience, but he was unknowingly tense because it was a ‘concert hall’.

His mind became comfortable, and the music sounded new.

It was a classic piece that Gray had played at some concert, but it felt different.

Gray’s left fingers moved along with the violin melody. Rebecca and George smiled as they saw him. Gray looked up at the stage with an oblivious expression, which made it even more so.

Clap clap clap clap!!

The first stage was over.

Without Sarah Roth’s okay sign, the performers bowed with flushed faces and left the stage. It felt like they had come to a concert, not a movie shooting.

The second performers came up on the stage.

They were middle-aged performers. They looked like ordinary people from any neighborhood, but they had a coolness in their neat outfits.

Piano, contrabass, saxophone, trumpet, drum.

They played jazz.

He thought only classical pieces would come out!

Gray’s eyes widened.

The concert hall was filled with the unique atmosphere of jazz. The audience’s heads seemed to move along with the rhythm.

Like the previous performance team, they also made some mistakes, but the jazz team’s performers also had happy faces. Their wrinkled faces had pure smiles like children. Gray’s heart fluttered at their smiles.

Clap clap clap!!

The second performance was over.

“Cut! Okay!”

They had a break with the okay sign.

“They were all amazing!”

“Right! It felt like a real concert.”

As they fixed their makeup, Seo-jun, Catherine, and Paul talked with excited expressions.

“Director. Are they all actors?”

“The first team had some majors, but most of them were not actors and had different jobs. They wanted to be musicians when they were young, but they couldn’t because of the circumstances.”

“I see. Is the pianist a major?”

“Huh? How did you know?”

“Because he was good.”

“As expected, it’s Jun!”

Emily, the assistant director, who was listening next to them, exclaimed. The three kids laughed at her reaction. Sarah Roth also smiled and said.

“Shall we continue with the next shooting?”

“Yes!”

***

The third performance team was younger than Gray. They wore suits and bow ties and walked awkwardly on the stage, but they looked happy when they held their instruments. Seeing them, young Gray whispered.

‘I want to play too.’

‘…Me too.’

Gray thought the same and fiddled with his hands.

The charity concert continued, leaving only the last performance, and they had a 20-minute break.

“Let’s get ready. Gray!”

“Okay.”

There was no hesitation in Gray’s answer.

Rebecca and George looked surprised for a moment, then smiled.

It seemed enough as it was, but there was still something left.

****

Gray Vainy’s waiting room.

The break was 20 minutes long, but it didn’t take long for Gray to change into a black suit.

Should he practice while waiting, he wondered, and George set up a monitor in front of him.

“? What is this?”

“It won’t take long, just watch.”

Gray nodded, saying he knew. His friends wouldn’t do anything to harm him. Gray looked at the monitor.

There,

The interviews of his precious friends were shown.

Gray’s eyes widened as he heard Rebecca and George’s stories. He had hidden it, but they already knew. And the people he had met during the documentary shooting were all the people his friends had called.

But the words after that were more shocking.

[They were the people who sponsored you.]

He thought of the old musician. He thought of the three musketeers. He thought of the Linda family. He thought of his mother and the child he could never meet again.

His breath was stuck, and emotions he couldn’t express with words swirled in Gray’s heart. His chest was full and tears seemed to come out. He should have greeted them properly. He wanted to say thank you. He could keep playing the violin thanks to them.

The friends on the monitor said that the sponsors gained strength from Gray’s performance, his effort. He thought of the expressions of the sponsors who played. He also thought of his mother and the people of Downlock who smiled as they listened to the performance.

Tears flowed without him knowing.

I,

I must have done well.

He must have done well enough to meet their expectations.

The burden that had piled up silently melted like snow, and became tears that disappeared.

[There’s still the charity concert left. To be exact,]

George on the monitor said with a smile.

[It’s a concert for Gray Vainy.]

“…A concert for me?”

Gray asked with a choked voice, and George and Rebecca nodded with a smile.

“Yes. This charity concert is for you.”

“The performers on the stage and the people in the audience. Do you know who they are?”

Gray thought of the faces of the people who showed great performances, but he couldn’t think of anyone and shook his head.

George and Rebecca looked at their kind friend and said.

“You said that, Gray. You wanted to help others as they helped you.”

“They were the people you sponsored since you started making money.”

At the same time, the monitor showed the audience filling the Bread Hall. Gray looked at the monitor with trembling eyes. He saw people of all ages and genders happy and smiling. Among their happiness, he saw a new emotion.

Gratitude.

Gray took a deep breath.

Ever since he earned his first income from playing the violin, he had been supporting people who needed help through crowdfunding. He hoped to help those who wanted to do music regardless of their age or gender, even if it was a small amount.

“And there are also people who supported you. They all came to see you.”

The people who supported Gray and the people who Gray supported were gathered in the Bread Hall.

It was the power of the broadcasting station.

“Gray. Just like you didn’t ask for anything when you helped these people, the people who supported you didn’t ask for anything either. They just want you to play the violin happily.”

Gray’s face, which was already full of tears, became even wetter. That’s why he could only nod slowly instead of speaking.

“Cut! Okay!”

At the okay sign of director Sarah Roth, Seo-jun, who was crying, stopped his tears. Choi Tae-woo admired his ability to cry and stop as easily as turning a faucet.

Seo-jun calmed his reddened eyes with a cold towel and monitored the scene he had just filmed with Catherine and Paul. Next to him, director Sarah Roth, who was also monitoring, opened her mouth.

“Hmm. Should we do this one more time?”

“Yes. Sure.”

Seo-jun nodded. It was an okay cut, but he thought it would be okay to do it one more time. The extras would be having lunch and they had plenty of time.

Only Seo-jun, whose makeup was erased by tears, had to do his makeup again and prepare for filming.

The scene they filmed again was from Seo-jun’s line, ‘…A concert for me?’

“Ready, action!”

“…A concert for me?”

Gray said in a choked voice. George and Rebecca nodded their heads with a smile.

“Yes. This charity concert is for you.”

“Do you know who the performers on stage and the people in the audience are?”

At Rebecca’s words, Gray recalled the faces of the people who had shown amazing performances, but he couldn’t think of anyone he knew and shook his head.

The two looked at their kind and sweet friend and said.

“They are the people you supported.”

“…Huh?”

“They are the people you have been supporting for 10 years.”

Gray blinked his eyes.

It was a line that was not in the script. Was it an ad-lib? But it was a bit strange to respond to. Gray had started earning money from playing the violin 7 years ago.

‘So he supported them since 7 years ago…!’

Gray, who had been looking at George, turned his eyes to the monitor again. He had forgotten to breathe.

Gray Vainy’s trembling eyes were reflected on the monitor screen and directed to the people sitting in the Bread Hall. People of all ages and races were talking and enjoying themselves with the person next to them.

They were all unfamiliar faces.

But they looked happy.

10 years ago.

His excellent ability to interpret lines did not miss that word.

Crack-!

A crack appeared on Gray Vainy’s perfect face. Slowly, the ‘real’ began to show through the cracks.

There was no cut sign and the filming continued.

He couldn’t control the huge emotion that seemed to swallow his body and mind any longer.

At that moment.

‘Gray Vainy,

Became Seo-jun Lee.’