Superstar From Age 0

“Yesterday’s colleagues become today’s enemies, huh?”

Kim Sang-jin, the director of the singer team, said, ‘I raised a tiger cub!’ and laughed. Ahn Da Ho, the director of the actor team, smiled and replied.

“I didn’t know he would grow up so big.”

“Really? You know Seo-jun, right?”

“Hmm.”

Ahn Da Ho avoided his gaze, and Kim Sang-jin chuckled.

“When will Seo-jun’s song come out?”

“Very soon. The recording is done.”

Ahn Da Ho said, recalling the recordings that were finished in one go. Kim Sang-jin scratched his chin.

“I see. Well, it should be fine since the kids will debut a month apart. It would have been bad if they had to compete with an actor from the same agency, and a superstar at that.”

Kim Sang-jin’s words made Ahn Da Ho laugh and ask.

“How about the Vermillion kids? They are debuting soon, right?”

Vermillion.

They were a boy group that would debut in March, following the girl group Amber.

‘I haven’t seen them much.’

He wished them well, since they were from the same agency.

He sometimes thought of Seo-jun from back then, when he saw them practicing with sparkling eyes.

“They are doing well. The kids that Choi Tae-woo managed are experienced, so they show good performance. They are very determined to succeed this time. Sometimes, they have to be stopped from practicing too much.”

“That’s just like Manager Choi.”

He felt like he was restraining himself a bit now, but Choi Tae-woo was sometimes too passionate.

“Is he going alone this time? Will he be okay?”

He was talking about the filming of [Shadow and Knight].

It was a Hollywood movie, so of course, it would be filmed in the US. This time, Choi Tae-woo decided to follow Seo-jun alone.

“There will be staff from King’s Agency, so don’t worry. Seo-jun is an adult, too.”

“That’s true.”

Kim Sang-jin nodded.

Seo-jun had been an adult for a few years, and he had even gone to the army. Why did he still look young?

“Besides, I asked the people who are filming with him to take care of him.”

“You are thorough.”

Kim Sang-jin smiled and said.

“So, when is Seo-jun leaving?”

“He will depart this weekend.”

***

Seo-jun met with his childhood friends after a long time.

He couldn’t meet them often during the winter break because of the fan meeting preparation, and during the semester, they were busy with their studies.

“You are leaving early?”

“Didn’t you say the filming was in March?”

It was mid-February now.

The internet was buzzing with Seo-jun’s fan meeting that had just ended a few days ago.

Seo-jun answered Ji-yoon and Mina’s questions with a smile.

“There are action scenes in [Shadow and Knight], so I have to train.”

“Oh.”

Park Ji-woo exclaimed.

At his quiet exclamation, Seo-jun and the others made a strange expression and burst into laughter.

“Ji-ho should be here to make a fuss.”

“Right. It feels weird sometimes.”

The most lively one, Park Ji-ho, was in Spain, so the atmosphere was quiet.

They had gotten used to it after a few years, but Seo-jun and his childhood friends sometimes felt that something was missing.

“Did you hear from Ji-ho? He was so excited about becoming a starter.”

“It was all over the news, too.”

[Park Ji-ho, selected as a starter for Barcelona FC!]

It was a news that shook Korea.

Maybe from next season, they would be able to see Park Ji-ho playing in La Liga. There would be a lot of overseas soccer fans staying up late.

“He was so happy that he wasn’t in the second team anymore. He was noisy all day long.”

Ji-ho’s twin brother, Park Ji-woo, said, and Seo-jun, Mina, and Ji-yoon laughed. Even without trying to imagine it, they could see Park Ji-ho screaming in their minds.

“Another celebrity was born. It’s amazing.”

“Our parents said they were lucky to live in that apartment, right?”

Superstar Lee Seo-jun and pro soccer player Park Ji-ho.

They were just kids who lived in the same apartment and hung out together at a similar age, but two out of the five of them were already famous enough to fill the news.

“Ji-woo, you are still in touch with that professor, right? The very famous one! His name is…”

“Professor Albert Mohr.”

He was someone they met by chance during their last trip to Europe, and the connection was still going on.

“Yeah, Professor Mohr! He is very famous worldwide, right? Since you are learning from him, you will be famous in that field, too, right?”

“I’m still a student, so I don’t know anything. And I’m not learning directly from him, I just contact him occasionally when I have a question.”

Seo-jun, Mina, and Ji-yoon smiled and said.

“You are humble. You must be busy with your college classes.”

“Right. When I see the amount of studying that medical students do on the internet, it seems like it would be hard to learn anything else.”

“It’s okay, because it’s fun.”

Hmm.

Seo-jun thought.

Of course, he also enjoyed and learned everything related to acting. Ji-woo would think the same way, naturally.

‘Studying is fun…’

“Of course. You might become a world-renowned doctor.”

“Right.”

“Agreed.”

Ji-yoon and Mina nodded seriously at Seo-jun’s words. Ji-woo laughed at his childhood friends.

“Mina, you also contact Charlie often, right?”

Seo-jun asked, and Mina nodded.

“Yeah. I think it would be better to experience cooking in the original place, even a little bit. I learned a lot from the last trip to Europe, too. I’m thinking about studying abroad.”

“I’ll miss you if you go, too.”

One by one, his friends were leaving.

It was for their future and dreams, but it was sad. Mina comforted Ji-yoon.

“It’s still far off. I’ll graduate from college first and then go.”

“Graduation? That’s next year…”

Unlike Seo-jun, who took a leave of absence for the army, and Ji-woo, who had a long academic period as a medical student, Mina and Ji-yoon were already seniors.

“No, it’s the end of this year when the semester ends.”

“Park Ji-woo, no flexing.”

Ji-yoon said, and Ji-woo shrugged his shoulders.

Mina said with a smile. “It’s not decided yet, so I don’t know when I’ll go. I’ll tell you when I know.”

“You have to tell me!”

“Okay.”

It was Ji-yoon’s turn next.

“How about you, Ji-yoon?”

“I’m the same as usual, you know. Writing drafts and throwing them away, writing and throwing them away, not saving them and losing them… and losing them again…”

It was getting more and more depressing.

“Cheer up.”

That was all Seo-jun, Mina, and Ji-woo could say.

“Oh, do you keep in touch with Grace?”

Seo-jun quickly changed the topic.

“Yeah. She’s been very helpful.”

Ji-yoon and Grace, who became friends during their trip to Europe, were still in contact, just like Charlie and Mina.

Seo-jun was proud to have introduced them.

“She’s very good at pointing out my weaknesses, though it hurts my heart…”

“Good medicine tastes bitter in the mouth.”

“Park Ji-woo, no flexing.”

Seo-jun and Mina laughed. Ji-yoon was the victim of Ji-woo’s fact attack, which used to be Ji-ho’s.

“Oh, by the way, did you hear about that, Seo-jun?”

“Huh? What?”

“Eclipse. Grace said there was another movie adaptation talk.”

At Ji-yoon’s words, Seo-jun, as well as Mina and Ji-woo, widened their eyes.

“Eclipse? You mean that? Grace’s sister’s best-selling novel?”

“The movie that flopped?”

“Park Ji-woo…!”

“Sorry.”

Anyway.

Seo-jun blinked.

“I’ve never heard of that before.”

“Hmm. Maybe it’s not official news yet?”

Ji-yoon tilted her head and said. “I heard it from a passing conversation. They said there was a remake offer. Grace’s sister screamed when she heard it.”

“Well, I can understand that.”

“The movie was so bad.”

The four of them nodded in agreement.

Anyone who saw the movie [Eclipse] would agree.

“But a remake? When was Eclipse released?”

“November four years ago. When we were seniors in high school.”

Mina’s words were answered by Seo-jun without a moment’s delay.

“Wow. You remember that?”

Mina, Ji-yoon, and Ji-woo exclaimed.

Seo-jun was really into movies.

They felt like giving Seo-jun a quiz on movie release dates. He would probably get them all right.

“But it’s only been four years and they’re making a remake?”

At Ji-woo’s question, their eyes turned to Seo-jun. He was the one who knew the most about movies, after all.

“It’s a rare case, indeed.”

Seo-jun shrugged and said.

“Maybe when a short film or an independent film becomes popular and they want to make it into a commercial film? Or when a movie is so popular that they remake it into a drama.”

“The common point is that they are popular.”

Seo-jun nodded at Ji-woo’s words.

“Of course, they have to think about the production cost and the profit. And they have to make it interesting enough for people to watch the same content again.”

“Then what about Eclipse?”

At Mina’s question, Seo-jun thought for a moment and answered.

[It was definitely a special case.]

“I guess… it’s because the novel is so popular. The novel fans want a movie adaptation.”

“But there is a movie adaptation. It failed, though.”

“They failed so badly that the fans ignored it completely, didn’t they?”

At Ji-woo’s words, Seo-jun, Mina, and Ji-yoon remembered the comments about the movie [Eclipse].

-Movie Eclipse? I’ve never seen such a thing.

=22 What are you talking about? Eclipse is only a novel.

=Look. Even the American kids say there is no such thing (link)

=That’s why I’m still waiting for the Eclipse movie adaptation.

=…But why am I cryingㅠㅠ

“That might be true.”

In the hearts of the novel [Eclipse] fans, the movie [Eclipse] was a non-existent work.

“Then there might be a possibility that the movie adaptation offer is real?”

“That might be true. After all, the main target audience of the movie is the Eclipse fans, who want it the most.”

At Seo-jun’s words, Ji-yoon clasped his hands together as if praying.

“I hope they make it well this time…”

“They won’t repeat the same mistake after seeing the failed version.”

If they did, that would be a disaster.

After thinking for a while, Mina opened her mouth.

“But even if the fans don’t know, wouldn’t it be hard to attract the general audience?”

“I would be hesitant to watch a remake of a failed movie.”

Ji-woo agreed, and Seo-jun nodded.

“They would have to cast popular and talented actors. Actors that the general audience can trust and watch just by their names.”

Popular.

Talented.

Actors that the general audience trust.

Ji-woo, Mina, and Ji-yoon’s eyes turned to their friend who was drinking orange juice.

“Like you, Seo-jun?”

“What. Yeah?”

Seo-jun blinked and smiled, and Mina, Ji-yoon, and Ji-woo laughed.

***

A few days later.

USA, LA.

Seo-jun and Choi Tae-woo arrived at their accommodation in LA. It was the same house they stayed in when they filmed [Over the Rainbow 2] last August.

“The house has been cleaned, so you can use it anywhere.”

The King’s Agency staff who came to pick them up at the airport said, and Seo-jun and Choi Tae-woo decided to use the same rooms they stayed in last time.

“What are you going to do for dinner? There are some ingredients in the fridge, but I can buy some now if you are tired.”

At the staff’s words, Seo-jun, who had finished unpacking and came down, smiled and said.

“We have some guests coming, so it’s okay.”

“Oh. Really? Then I’ll be going now. Please contact me if you need anything. There are bodyguards, too, so don’t worry.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Seo-jun and Choi Tae-woo watched the staff leave and headed to the kitchen.

“What can I help you with?”

“Just a moment.”

He then started to prepare the food for the guests who would arrive soon.

“Can I cut it like this?”

“Yes. That size is fine. Just chop the vegetables there.”

Choi Tae-woo’s knife skills were not bad, though not as good as Da Ho hyung.

They wouldn’t have to worry about food.

Seo-jun thought in a Korean way as he cooked, and then he heard the doorbell ring.

“They must be here!”

Seo-jun wiped his wet hands and hurried to the front door with a bright smile. Choi Tae-woo followed him with a slightly nervous face.

The other side was noisy even before the door opened, and Seo-jun laughed softly.

Soon, the door opened, and

“We’re here!!”

“Hi, Jun.”

“Jun! How was the script?!”

“Did you have a good time?”

Rachel Hill and Evan Block, Jonathan Will and Director Ryan.

The [Shadowman] team, who had gathered in one place after a long time, greeted Lee Seo-jun with a big smile.