Chapter 55: Interested in discussing the script together?

Lee Elijah, a somewhat peculiar name.

When Myung-yeon first heard it at the script reading session, he assumed she was a foreigner, only to find out later that she was a proper Korean.

"Myung-yeon-xi, we're going to be working together after all, so there's no need to be so formal."

Lee Elijah’s eyes were very pretty when she smiled.

This was precisely why Myung-yeon felt she didn't quite seem Korean; not only did her name sound foreign, but even her appearance had a faint, mixed-race quality to it.

"Then I should call you Noona, right?" Lee Elijah was born in nineteen-ninety, making her four years older than Myung-yeon.

At twenty-two years old, the only same-age actress Myung-yeon had ever partnered with so far was Jung Soo-jung.

That little ice cube was considered quite young among them, and even she was older than him by a month.

"Sure, then I'll just call you little Yeon."

A production crew usually spends several months filming together. Unless someone's personality or character is exceptionally poor, relationships among the cast tend to be quite harmonious, at least when it came to forms of address.

Even Kim Ji-won had to call Lee Elijah unni when they met.

Taking advantage of the moment, Lee Elijah sat down right beside Myung-yeon. "Little Yeon, I heard you're Kim Eun-sook’s student?"

"That's right." Myung-yeon’s resume was no secret within the industry; anyone who cared to look could easily find out.

This older sister had a rather fascinating aura.

Though Kim Ji-won was two years older than him, that particular unni was mostly adorable in private, always making people unconsciously overlook her age.

Lee Elijah was different. She exuded the aura of a mature woman—at twenty-six, things were indeed different.

Myung-yeon’s eyes habitually drifted downward along her clothes. If Lee Elijah hadn't messed with her collar before coming over, he would snap his own neck and shove his head right into it.

The very first lesson Kim Eun-sook taught him was that while one could play around in the entertainment industry, one must never let the lower half of the body dictate the brain.

Keeping his guard up never hurt anyone; after all, there weren't that many free lunches just dropping from the sky.

"No wonder the director keeps saying you have a great grasp of your character. Even if I had debuted earlier, I wouldn't be as impressive as you."

Lee Elijah’s attitude wasn't particularly overly enthusiastic, but the subtle movements of her limbs constantly drew the eye.

Teetering on the edge, yet angled in such a way that nothing untoward could be discovered.

Myung-yeon smiled. "Well, of course, that's all thanks to my teacher. She taught me a great many things."

Kim Eun-sook was practically a gold-plated brand in the Korean screenwriting world, and quite a few of his fleeting romances happened because people wanted to get a foot in the door through his connection with his teacher.

Myung-yeon was a man of his word; if he said he would handle something, he would handle it. Once he slept with someone, he would definitely introduce them to audition opportunities.

As for handing out roles directly...

Sorry, that was impossible; he always made his stance clear beforehand.

Even so, some rookie actresses didn't mind. The industry looked glamorous on the surface, but the competition was brutally cruel. A single opportunity could change one's destiny, and getting that opportunity just by sleeping with someone was already a pretty good deal.

Of course, Myung-yeon wasn't completely indiscriminate; sleeping with the wrong person would lead to trouble.

Everyone still needed to be a good match for each other.

Lee Elijah’s true motive still needed a bit more observation.

"I don't quite understand this part of the script. Could the two of us run lines together?"

"Sure, no problem."

After a short while, Lee Elijah left with her script. The two of them hadn't exchanged a single ambiguous remark throughout, yet both understood each other perfectly.

"Tsk, it seems I've been focusing too much attention on Kim Ji-won," Myung-yeon chuckled, shaking his head, failing to realize there was such a character in the cast as well.

Still, from his perspective, ten Lee Elijahs couldn't compare to a single Kim Ji-won.

He was willing to play the game of push-and-pull with Kim Ji-won, and would even feel a pang of guilt if they broke up. If it were someone of Lee Elijah’s type, pulling up his pants and looking at her even one extra second would mean he lost.

Myung-yeon suddenly thought of it from another angle.

Since sugar-coated cannonballs were delivering themselves right to his doorstep, he could completely take advantage of this to do something.

Jung Won-yong sneaked over stealthily. "Little Yeon, I just saw Lee Elijah-xi come over."

He knew his artist's nature all too well. A mature woman like Lee Elijah was obviously the kind Myung-yeon liked. Anyone who had been knocking around this industry for years developed a keen eye; certain things could be seen at a glance.

Kim Ji-won and Lee Elijah were basically two completely opposing types of actresses.

Jung Won-yong’s description was neutral, devoid of any critical judgment—after all, on the premise of not harming others, mutual consent was nothing to frown upon.

Some people had ulterior motives and wanted to take shortcuts, while others genuinely faced real difficulties.

There was still a distinction between the two.

"Yeah, we were talking about some script matters." A single glance from Myung-yeon was enough to know what was running through that hyung's head. "We didn't talk about anything else."

"Better be careful, just in case you get caught by some leverage."

"Won-yong-hyung, I'm not the kind of guy to lose his mind over lust."

"Sigh, if only you and Kim Ji-won hadn't broken up. It would've been great to have her keep an eye on you."

While filming Descendants of the Sun, Myung-yeon had been exceptionally well-behaved because he was deeply entangled with Kim Ji-won at the time and had no mind to spare for anyone else.

"Won-yong-hyung, I know what I'm doing. I won't cause you any trouble." Myung-yeon smiled to reassure him.

He genuinely needed to interact with Lee Elijah a bit more to figure out what this unni was really after.

A film crew was a relatively enclosed space where a group of people spent months living in each other's pockets while immersed in another illusory plot. Sometimes actors would invest themselves too heavily, making it difficult to detach their emotions.

Another point was that certain behaviors during filming weren't necessarily driven by a deep scheme; attractive men and women simply catching each other's eye to alleviate loneliness was also a common occurrence.

In short, wherever there were people, there were bound to be new tricks.

Myung-yeon always maintained his politeness and socialized with the rest of the cast precisely to foster good will—the goal of sleeping together could very well serve that same purpose.

It's always good to part on amicable terms for the future, after all.

...

Kim Ji-won finished her day of shooting.

She took the bottle of water handed to her by her manager, took a couple of sips, and rested for a moment before getting ready to head home.

In China, drama crews might book a unified hotel for accommodations, but Korea was too small; shooting often took place around Seoul, making it entirely possible to go home and sleep after work.

If the filming schedule was heavy, they would just make do inside the van.

The location for Fight for My Way was right within Seoul, making commuting home very convenient.

Kim Ji-won leisurely packed her things, her eyes instinctively scanning for Myung-yeon's figure—this had already become a habit of hers.

Wait, why was that guy smiling so brightly, and the woman beside him... wasn't that Lee Elijah? Go Dong-man’s ex-girlfriend in the drama, her own rival.

When did those two hook up?