At Choi Rina’s strange behavior, Kang Rojun, who was also the writer of 'Rental Lover', thought, “Huh?”
Choi Rina turned her head unconsciously and then froze. It was at this moment that PD Jung Soo-ryeong stepped in.
“What’s going on? Why are you acting like that, Choi star??”
By the time everyone’s attention focused on Choi Rina, she awkwardly smiled and rubbed around her eyes.
“Ah, I’m sorry. Something got in my eye.”
“I don’t know. Dust maybe? There’s quite a bit of dust here.”
“Really? There’s that much dust?”
Choi Rina, while continuing to rub her eyes, gestured an apology toward Rojun as well. At the same time, she screamed inwardly.
‘It was a hundred times easier to act when his face was covered!!’
With just one touch from Kang Rojun, her self-hypnosis or self-defense had crumbled. It wasn’t because veteran Choi Rina was weak. This situation was simply unusual. The unexpected appearance of No. 1 from 'Produce That 100!', that No. 1 being writer Kang Chul-soo, and the fact that he was ‘Lover No. 4'. Moreover, though she hadn’t realized it yet, Choi Rina was currently falling for No. 1 from 'Produce That 100!'.
The acting with Kang Rojun had begun before she was mentally prepared.
His touch filled with affection.
It would be strange not to waver.
This didn’t feel like a man’s touch, but more like the sensation a fan feels when meeting their favorite artist. Regardless, she brushed off avoiding his face with a vague excuse.
‘Hold on, just for now, hold it in.’
She steeled herself with the mindset of being a professional.
“It’s okay, PD-nim. Let’s go again.”
The action cue was given again.
Kang Rojun’s hand reached out again. This time, Choi Rina didn’t avoid his face. Her method was to just fall for Rojun’s visuals. And because of that, her reaction came out genuinely. The female lead who couldn’t take her eyes off 'Lover No. 4' for even a second. This wasn’t acting, this was Choi Rina’s true feelings.
‘No... how can a human being look ?’
Kang Rojun was terrifyingly handsome.
There’s a saying that someone so unrealistically handsome is scary. For a moment, Rina found Rojun frightening.
At this point, PD Jung Soo-ryeong said.
“...As expected of Choi star.”
She smiled with great satisfaction while watching the camera monitor.
‘Writer-nim’s acting is killer, but Choi Rina’s improved even more. She really looks like a girl who’s fallen in love, lost in a dream, doesn’t she?’
PD Jung Soo-ryeong, interpreting Choi Rina’s true emotions as acting, whispered to the cinematographer.
“In terms of two-shot visuals, ‘Lover No. 4’ totally dominates, right?”
“Yes. Writer-nim’s face is just absurd to begin with. B-But... is it just me seeing this?”
“‘Lover No. 4’ is appearing more beautiful than the female lead.”
He was referring to Kang Rojun as seen through the camera monitor. PD Jung Soo-ryeong was aware of it too. This wasn’t a matter of being cool or pretty. It was about aura. Of course, Choi Rina was among the most beautiful top actresses. But looking at the footage right now.
'It might be a first for a female lead to be visually outshone by a male actor.'
'Lover No. 4' had the upper hand.
A second short vibration buzzed from Kang Rojun’s wrist.
After finishing the preliminary meeting and acting, Choi Rina got into the light gray van that was waiting. She looked into her compact mirror right away. She had arrived here confidently, but way too many unexpected things had happened.
Moreover, No. 1 from 'Produce That 100!', writer Kang Chul-soo, and 'Lover No. 4' kept overlapping in her mind. Her heart raced wildly. It wouldn’t calm down. Then she recalled the moment she had flinched away from Lover No. 4’s touch.
She covered her face with both hands. It must have felt like a humiliating moment from the past. Even as she let out a small sigh.
She picked up the script for 'Rental Lover'.
‘I can’t make the same mistake during the actual shoot. Not in front of No. 1- no, writer-nim. And especially not an NG. I’m going to train even harder.’
Her fighting spirit flared up several times over.
Meanwhile, inside PD Jung Soo-ryeong’s car, Kang Rojun looked out the window while secretly checking his wrist smartwatch. During the preliminary meeting, he had received two notifications from the 'AI Simulation'.
-[You have completed the hidden mission ‘Confidently Introduce Yourself as the Writer!’ Reward: 15 Coins.]
-[You have completed the hidden mission ‘Fluster the Fellow Actor Through Acting!’ Reward: 15 Coins.]
The hidden missions that popped up related to the side job. Rojun quietly smiled without showing it outwardly and cheered inwardly.
‘Nice bonus, and two of them at that.’
While driving, PD Jung Soo-ryeong chimed in.
“It wrapped up well. People were really surprised to see you, writer-nim, but it was right to reveal your identity before the script reading. If it had been revealed during the script reading when everyone needed to focus on acting, they would’ve been too overwhelmed to perform.”
She was absolutely right. Even though the script reading is conducted more simply than the actual shoot, it’s still a crucial part of drama production for syncing lines, emotions, and timing. If a bomb like that went off there, the actors and key staff wouldn’t have been able to concentrate.
So Kang Rojun agreed.
“More importantly, now that the actual script reading and the first shoot are all that’s left, how do you feel?”
“That’s how it usually is. But once you’re on set, something inside you just starts boiling.”
Maybe it would. When he first got on stage in 'Produce That 100!', some unnameable emotion had surged within him, so it was obvious this would be similar.
‘It’ll feel different from 'Produce That 100!', but I’ve gotten really used to the camera.’