“And lighten up. If it’s really an issue, just say I asked you to forward it to him. You always stress over trivial things.”
It seemed like I should be thankful to her, even though it felt like the right moment to be angry.
Well, now that it’s sent, maybe that’s for the best. I looked at the screen again, feeling somewhat relieved yet defeated.
“See? I was right, wasn’t I?”
“…”
“And add a message under the photo you sent to Kim Jun. Just sending the photo alone seems off. It’s like you’re blackmailing him with some secretly taken affair photos. Just the photo, boom. Prepare the money. Something like that.”
“Affair? What are you talking about?”
Jeong-Eun chuckled at my slightly exaggerated reaction.
“Just saying. Why turn so red as if you really had an affair?”
I couldn’t come up with a witty retort to Jeong-Eun, who only spoke the truth. Reluctantly, I agreed with her. It made sense to add an explanation. Just sending the photo might confuse Jun.
Now I started to worry about what to write. Jeong-Eun had confidently sent the photo, but now I had to add a sentence under it. The rush made it harder. The photo already had a timestamp, so I couldn’t afford to leave a trace of unnecessary deep contemplation.
What to write? I need to write something before he checks it…
“Director, you need to be on standby soon. Are you ready?”
The staff’s voice, with large headphones on, jolted me back to reality as they entered my dressing room. I had been up since 5 AM due to the time difference with the US. My mind felt hazy, perhaps due to the early start and the aftermath of the video conferences that began at that time.
“Ah, yes. Should I go now?”
“Yes. Please come this way with me.”
As I stood up, my crisply ironed suit pants fit perfectly around my legs.
It’s one of Korea’s biggest talk shows. Since they adjusted the shooting date to fit my schedule in Korea, I couldn’t neglect it due to the tightness of my personal schedule.
Even while moving to the studio, I continuously stretched my neck up and down, left and right, trying to shake off the grogginess.
“Director, I’m a huge fan.”
Just as I was stretching my neck backward, a staff member suddenly turned around and confessed to being a fan, causing me to hurriedly lower my neck in a somewhat awkward manner. My voice, having flowed out from a fully relaxed neck, sounded embarrassingly odd.
“I’ve been on a loop watching your recent movie ‘the train’. How could you come up with such a concept? First love really is painful and worth seeing.”
It must have been an attempt to relax my tense face before shooting. But, the last sentence made me slightly furrow my brows.
First love isn’t necessarily painful and worth seeing. If it had been possible, I would have desperately wanted to preserve it.
Bright by nature, the staff member, unaware of my slight change in expression, eagerly continued.
“So, when I heard about the plan to document your first love story, I’ve been eagerly awaiting it. Will the content in that movie be the origin of the sentiments in ‘the train’?”
In a theoretical sense, it was correct. The reason behind making ‘the train’, the way the movie turned out, was all because of Haru.
“It could be seen that way.”
“Ah, so you’ll be covering the breakup with her and everything after?”
That question, seemingly light but far from it, caused me to unintentionally stare at him for a long time.
To outsiders, it might just seem like a simple breakup, but to me, it was a memory of being abandoned without reason by someone I loved.
It’s not a decision to be made lightly. Especially since I would be the director filming that scene. It’s also a matter of whether I can handle those emotions from that time.
Answering his barrage of questions, I soon arrived at the studio set.
Before going in for the shoot, I checked my phone one last time. But the messages that had just popped up on the screen made my pupils shake more than necessary.
“Jun, it’s Haru. The photo my colleague writer posted on the board… – 3:19 PM”
The mere two letters ‘Haru’ always draw an immediate reaction from me, so I quickly opened the message.
Soon, a staff’s urgent voice echoed in my ear, saying it was time to enter. Without being able to respond, I quickly pressed the save button on the photo. I repeatedly pressed it, fearing it might disappear.
From then on, I couldn’t help but smile, realizing that the corners of my mouth kept curling up.
The Villainous Demon Lord Laid an Egg for Her (Female-Dominated)
Several months after transmigrating into a book, Yu Wu found herself facing the demon lord Li You, who could no longer conceal his dragon horns. With one hand on her aching waist and the other gripping a sharp sword, she stared at him.
The demon lord’s eyes were red with fury:
“This is all your doing! Today, I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Yu Wu rubbed her temples. Putting aside the taboo against bloodshed during pregnancy, wasn’t it this very man who willingly walked into her trap that day?!
Warnings:
- Male pregnancy.
- Height ratios are set to mirror typical male-female height proportions.
- Characters include a foot-loving demon lord and an eldest daughter from an immortal family’s concubine lineage.
