The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Chapter 174

The day after the first shooting of Killing Horn, I arrived at a studio I had never seen before.

As soon as I rang the bell, the door was opened immediately, so I entered right away, but there was no one at the front door.

“…? Hello.”

I greeted the air, and a loud voice came back from deep inside.

“You’re here? Sorry, I’m… Oh! Just come in!”

The usually calm tone was nowhere to be found; it was a frantic voice.

I took off my shoes, neatly arranged them, and slowly walked inside.

‘This studio is pretty big.’

I was sure they said they painted in a small place.

Celebrities’ words were not to be trusted.

The long corridor was lined with paintings, almost like an exhibition.

‘That’s the painting I saw last time.’

It seemed like they moved everything here after the exhibition ended.

As I walked in, looking over each painting, I finally saw a person under the bright daylight.

“You’re here? Sorry I couldn’t come to greet you.”

“…What are you doing?”

“Well… I was cooking because you were coming, but it’s my first time…”

Singer Kang Se-hyun trailed off.

He seemed embarrassed to call the charred something in front of him food.

I was amazed at how such a result could even happen.

“You really put a lot of effort into this for me. I’ll enjoy it.”

“No. Don’t eat this. You can’t eat this. I’ll order delivery.”

“If I just scrape off the burnt parts, it’s fine.”

I said nonchalantly and washed my hands.

Sitting at the already prepared table, Kang Se-hyun awkwardly followed and sat down.

“But why are you alone? Where’s your manager?”

“Jin-bae hyung had a meeting scheduled. He said he’d come to pick me up in the evening.”

“Ah, he’s busy. You had your first shoot yesterday too, right? Thanks for coming today.”

“Thank you for inviting me. I’ll enjoy the meal.”

I lifted what looked like pasta with a fork and put it in my mouth.

As I ate without any reaction, Kang Se-hyun hesitantly ate the same food.

“Ew.”

And he spat it out immediately.

“…It tastes like garbage.”

Three seconds later, he mumbled in disbelief.

Seeing his shocked face, I replied calmly.

“It’s not that bad.”

“No, spit it out. Why are you eating that? Stop eating.”

As I moved my fork towards the food again, Kang Se-hyun quickly stood up and took the plate away.

I let him take it without resistance.

Honestly, I didn’t have the courage to eat it a second time.

“Do you like pizza? Should I order pizza?”

“Yes, I eat almost anything well.”

Feeling sorry for him since he had put in the effort, I picked up something that looked like ready-made pickles. They tasted good.

“I ordered pizza. It will take 30 minutes. You must be hungry. I’m sorry for cooking in vain.”

“Please don’t apologize.”

Since it was his first time, it meant he usually didn’t enjoy cooking.

I was already amazed that he invited me here, and the fact that he tried to cook for me was unbelievable.

‘Does he not dislike me?’

I watched Kang Se-hyun hurriedly fretting about my hunger.

He surely knew that I wasn’t just an ordinary middle school student.

‘Director Yoon only knows that there is someone behind me.’

But I gave Kang Se-hyun an MP3 player that shouldn’t exist in this world.

Even someone with connections wouldn’t have been able to do that.

It would be normal to feel creepy, weird, or at least reluctant.

So why was he acting so friendly?

“Hyung, am I not making you uncomfortable?”

Maybe out of curiosity, I asked without thinking.

“…? What?”

“I find it strange that you treat me so comfortably. From your perspective, you have every reason to feel uncomfortable.”

This was my first time here.

Since I didn’t know what Kang Se-hyun had set up, it was difficult to mention anything specific.

So I said it indirectly, but fortunately, he seemed to understand.

His face, which had been anxious about the delivery time, changed to a peculiar expression.

“…I’m not uncomfortable with you.”

That’s a relief.

As I tried to move on, he added more.

“I know you’re not an ordinary kid. At first, I had various thoughts, but… After a few days, I realized it wasn’t a big deal. Anyway, you did save me.”

“I just helped you out; saying I saved you is a bit—”

“No, you definitely saved me. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now.”

His face, looking at me, was calm.

“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to resolve the school violence controversy. I wouldn’t have been able to shoot the drama or hold an exhibition.”

“…”

“I just have to think about that. And since you asked me not to question the rest, I try not to think about it.”

Kang Se-hyun shrugged.

“So, I hope you can treat me comfortably too. I’ll help you whenever I can.”

“I’m already comfortable with you, hyung.”

“Like your manager?”

“…”

For a moment, I was at a loss for words.

See, he chuckled heartily.

“Of course, I haven’t done much for you, so expecting that much might be too much. But I’m quite greedy. I hope you can think of me that way.”

“…Why do you want that?”

Why would he want to be someone comfortable for me?

Genuinely puzzled, I asked, and he laughed loudly.

“Everyone around you would feel the same way, right? I’m no different.”

It was a clear explanation, but my doubts weren’t resolved.

Seeing my confused expression, Kang Se-hyun said that my current expression was the reason.

I still didn’t understand.

‘What on earth is he talking about?’

I decided not to ask further, thinking we wouldn’t be able to communicate.

Still, it was a relief he didn’t find me uncomfortable.

“Oh, by the way, I have something prepared for you. Perfect timing.”

“…?”

Still smiling brightly, Kang Se-hyun suddenly stood up.

Then he handed me a canvas wrapped in thin paper.

It was so large that it was hard to hold with one hand.

“Can I open it?”

“Of course. It’s yours.”

Mine?

Hearing that, I carefully started unwrapping it.

I slowly removed the tape one by one, afraid I might damage something.

After some time, I finally faced the canvas.

A painting filled densely with various paints, without a specific form. This is…

“…It’s me.”

It was me.

There was no human form, but I recognized it immediately.

Kang Se-hyun smiled brightly, as if he knew I would recognize it.

“Yes, it’s you.”

“…”

“I watched everything you appeared in over the past few days. I started painting it after being inspired by ‘Twins,’ but as I continued, I found myself thinking more about ‘Goodbye, My Summer’ that we filmed together.”

The painting contained various shades.

The heavy texture reminiscent of the dark riverside from ‘Twins.’

The bright brushstrokes evoking the fresh sunlight from ‘Goodbye, My Summer.’

What thoughts went through his mind as he filled this large canvas?

For a moment, I was overwhelmed with emotions and couldn’t speak.

After staring at the painting blankly for several minutes, I realized it was rude and belatedly thanked him.

“Thank you, hyung. Really, thank you.”

“Yeah. I’m glad you like it.”

I wondered if I deserved such a gift.

It felt like receiving a gift beyond my means.

The funny thing was, I didn’t want to let go of it.

As if someone would take it away, I couldn’t take my hands off the painting. Seeing this, he laughed.

“Yeon-jae, put the painting down and eat the pizza first. You can take it home later.”

“Should I put it by the entrance? I might forget otherwise.”

“Pfft, sure, let’s do that.”

As soon as he permitted, I ran to the entrance.

Not wanting to put it on the floor, I looked around and carefully placed it on a table.

“The pizza is delicious.”

“Indeed.”

And the pizza tasted very good.

For some reason, Kang Se-hyun kept chuckling throughout the meal.

I didn’t even have the time to ask why he kept laughing.

My mind was filled with the painting I had just seen.

‘I want to take it home soon.’

Kang Se-hyun’s studio was quiet.

There was no TV or radio.

In the quiet living room, devoid of any music, the only sounds were of us eating.

In that serene silence, I felt my body float.

It was a strange, yet increasingly familiar feeling these days.

* * *

A few hours later, singer Choi In-joon also arrived at the studio.

“Our Bambi, how have you been? Long time no see!”

“Hello.”

“The suit you wore at the last awards ceremony was amazing. I even set it as my phone background!”

The youngest member of Space, singer Choi In-joon, was the same as ever.

‘He’s like a big dog.’

Not in a bad way, he really was like a big dog.

The ever-enthusiastic Choi In-joon, who seemed to wag an invisible tail, was stopped by Se-hyun hyung.

“Choi In-joon, stop. We agreed to take it easy last time.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

After our awkward conversation last time, I met Choi In-joon occasionally.

I was bewildered by his apology for hurting me,

but later realized it was because of what I said at the ‘Goodbye, My Summer’ wrap party.

‘Why are you still holding onto something that happened so long ago?’

He said he was too immature from being treated as the youngest, and that he would be careful from now on, so I told him not to worry about it.

Feeling confused at seeing how Choi In-joon and Se-hyun hyung seemed like family was purely my problem.

Seeing the two of them made me think of Noh Bi-hyuk and Jin-bae hyung, which made me wonder what was wrong with me, but now I know.

I was jealous of Choi In-joon.

‘So, I should be the one apologizing more.’

After talking a lot with him, I felt much more comfortable around Choi In-joon.

When his admiration for me became overwhelming, Se-hyun hyung promised to intervene, but honestly, this was fine.

‘If I think of him as Byeon…’

I should be grateful instead.

With that in mind, I said,

“Should I send you some other photos taken at the awards ceremony? Not the ones on the fan cafe.”

“Huh! That would be great! Wow, thank you so much!”

Choi In-joon’s face lit up.

While sending him the photos via message, an unexpected comment came up.

“Bambi, I met your friend. Bi-hyuk.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah. He’s very polite. We talked about you so much that we lost track of time.”

Choi In-joon smiled brightly.

Thank goodness. Suddenly, I felt good.

“Bi-hyuk really likes Space. I listened to your songs a lot with him. Please take good care of him.”

I smiled sweetly on purpose.

“Of course! I even promised to buy him a meal next week.”

“Thank you. He loves dumplings.”

“Really? Then I should look for a Chinese restaurant.”

As we continued our cheerful conversation, Se-hyun hyung interrupted.

“Geez, anyone would think you’re his mom.”

“Bi-hyuk says the same thing.”

I responded casually to the joke.

As the three of us chatted, Choi In-joon suddenly tilted his head.

“But Bambi, isn’t that hat uncomfortable? You can take it off here.”

“Oh, this is a hat attached to a wig.”

“Huh? Wig?”

Choi In-joon’s expression turned even more puzzled.

Thinking it was awkward to explain, I simply raised my hand.

When I took off the hat secured with the wig, my natural hair spilled out.

“…!!!!”

“I dyed my hair for the role. Because of spoilers, fans don’t know yet… Hyung, are you okay?”

Choi In-joon’s face turned pale.

I tried to get closer, but he backed away.

And three seconds later, a tremendous scream was heard.