CH69

Film and documentary shooting.

Both proceeded smoothly.

'I wish Cooper had called by now, but when I think about the project, everything is going well.'

What began as group communication for fun gradually turned into personal communication, bringing Ian unexpected benefits.

"Wow… you're dealing with such concerns."

From a broader perspective, these were common concerns about academics, friendships, and family relationships, but the details revealed more colorful stories.

-My dad's snoring kept me from sleeping, so I didn't grow taller, and then he ran away. Isn't that funny?

-The girl I like heard me fart! I guess God really is dead.

-Last time, I wore mismatched socks to an exam and did really well. Should I do it again?

For Ian, who was far from being an ordinary student, such conversations provided valuable insights for acting.

He put aside his usual scripts and immersed himself in the role of a lonely John, which is why he was so absorbed.

However, the documentary team saw it differently.

"Amazing. Is it really good to counsel the kids like that?"

"He was such a good kid when I first met him. Did I ever tell you about the first time he met my grandson?"

Isaac and the filming team smiled contentedly.

A series of misunderstandings continued during the filming.

The bell rang at the house where the four lived, and Ian opened the door.

"Ian, how have you been?!"

"Lotti, welcome!"

Unlike usual, the reason why Charlotte did not shout out Honey could be seen by looking at the camera following her.

After a light hug, she said, curiously, "So this is the house where four men live together?"

"Yes. Ben, Damian, Director Davis, and I live here. It's really great, isn't it?"

Ian answered with an innocent face.

The documentary team found a topic of interest, and the film side got good publicity, all calculated as business. But to outsiders, it would look like they knew nothing.

"As if he isn't an actor, he's quite sly."

"Let's move on to the next scene."

Charlotte subtly stepped aside to make room, and a man followed her in.

"This is the famous counselor, Jacob Morris."

"Jacob Morris."

"Ian Pryce."

After a brief introduction, Ian welcomed them inside, and the three roommates, now off duty, greeted them warmly.

Like a former party enthusiast, Charlotte knew all three well and happily chatted as she toured the house.

"I was worried about how our Ian would get along with three men, but he's doing well, isn't he?"

"Hahaha, it's an unnecessary worry. How well do we take care of him, right?"

"…Exactly."

Just yesterday, Evan had been annoying him all night in a video call because he was the only one Evan wanted.

"Have some conscience," Ian nudged Ben, while they playfully bickered away from the camera.

Charlotte then suddenly asked, "Can I take a tour of the house? I'm really curious about how each of you lives."

"…What?"

This wasn't part of the plan.

Seeing her playful smile, Ian shook his head internally. He knew about the filming, so he thought filming the rooms wouldn't be a problem.

'I'm sure you'll regret it.'

This question made the three hesitate a bit. Of course, the reason for their hesitation wasn't because of themselves.

"My room is fine, but the others are just…"

"What? Your room is the problem. My room is perfectly fine."

"Let's all just stop. Both are the same."

Brimming with unfounded confidence that their room was fine, the three boldly opened the door.

"…Hmm, should I edit this?"

"That's why you shouldn't just open Pandora's Box."

Although the three made an indignant face, one shouldn't make such a face if they had a conscience.

The room, supposedly upgraded over ten days, was in worse condition than before.

'I have no idea where they are getting these peacock merchandise from.'

When they really brought back a peacock couple t-shirt, it was shocking.

"Let's go to my room."

The scene for promotional purposes was sufficient by now.

Ian handed over the document containing the conversation he had compiled to the counselor.

"We won't broadcast anything without the consent of the parties involved later. You know to keep it a secret, right?"

"That's fundamental for a counselor."

Unlike California, even if recording conversations is legal in New York, broadcasting them is another story.

The counselor, noticing the meticulous document, asked just in case.

"Is there anyone here who you think needs counseling?"

"Yes, first Cindy. The whole family here needs to receive counseling. There's no way a father would leave home just because his daughter pointed out that he snores. There must be other family disputes."

"And?"

"And Diaz, who asked if he should wear mismatched socks during exams. Superstitions are friends with obsessive-compulsive disorder. It means he's under a lot of stress."

"That's accurate. Do actors these days study psychology?"

The counselor's question prompted Charlotte to link arms with Ian in a friendly manner.

"This guy is not ordinary."

"Neither is Lotti, but in a different sense."

"Honey, that kind of talk hurts my feelings."

As she habitually blurted out 'honey' and regretted it, Ian quickly responded.

"Alright, darling. But we are in the middle of a consultation. Do you think our darling's condition is serious?"

"Hahaha, you might as well get a consultation right away."

The two skillfully navigated the crisis with a contrived act and sighed a sigh of relief internally.

Unaware of any strangeness, the counselor continued sorting the documents.

"My role is to meet with the parents and check for changes, right?"

"Yes, we have to first see if talking over the phone helps."

It's not too late to proceed with counseling after that.

When the shooting was almost at its end, Ian's phone rang. It was a number he had memorized for this new phone opened for the shoot.

'Cooper Miller.'

It was the awaited number, and Ian immediately answered the call.

"Hello!"

-…Hello, John?

A timid and awkward tone.

Just as Nathan had described, Ian smiled broadly.

Finally, a connection was made.

***

Filming was underway centered around a building in New York. 

Amid the busy moving staff, two people were leisurely observing the scene.

"What do you think, Mr. Ko, now that you're here?"

"It was worth coming. There's a lot to learn. It's definitely not like back home where we could stick together and even shoot overtime."

The shooting schedule was incredibly tight. Although it was a known fact, seeing it in person made a different impression.

Felix slightly furrowed his brow at Ko Jun-hyuk's response.

"Not that. I'm talking about the kid that brought you all the way here."

"Do we even need to talk about it? You can see for yourself."

The child actor was a nominee for the Emmys, so there was no worry about the acting. More intriguing was how the actor blended in on set.

"It's fascinating. Everyone, actors and staff alike, seems to really care for each other."

Despite being a child actor, the young star was central to the shoot, outshining even more expensive actors.

"Considering how high-profile actors have strong egos, it's surprising."

"It looks like fitting into the set won't be a worry. The bold role suits him well, too."

"Didn't I tell you? My friend said so. Should we cast him in Grand Line?"

"That's why I'm more curious and came here. Let's start with a conversation."

Grand Line.

It's a movie being produced with investment from a Korean company and Felix, set in a world devastated by the eruption of the Yellowstone volcano leading to a severe ice age.

Grand Line refers to a giant wall-like city built in the desert.

People living in the lower levels of a 100-story building only see the sun for a few minutes when it's highest in the sky, unlike the upper class living above.

It's hard to get sunlight through the windows. The reason is that during construction, the windows were made into mirrors to reduce the greenhouse effect, not anticipating an ice age.

This fictional building created disparities in sunlight exposure based on height, which accentuated class differences.

The main story of the movie revolves around the lower class no longer tolerating this inequality and starting a revolution.

As Jun-hyuk was recalling the plot of the movie, a familiar voice reached his ears.

"Darling, is that enough?"

"Yeah, after all, it's free labor, so there should be some compensation."

"Who would think you're not a businessman with that outright lie. Do we need to do this between us?"

"I don't know what you mean. See you later, honey!"

Ian shook his head as he looked at the disconnected phone.

'Darling? Does he have a lover?'

While Jun-hyuk was contemplating something that might make the involved party hate if they heard it, the boy who had approached quietly tilted his head.

"Are you new here? Ah, you must be extras!"

"Uh, yeah. Right?"

"You must have come early. Your scene is still a long way off."

Even in a filming location, Ian approached strangers without any hesitation and sat down nearby.

His eyes twinkled with curiosity, looking as innocent as a child, which was worrying.

"My name is Ian Price. What are your names?"

Felix, seeing that Ian didn't recognize them, smiled mischievously and answered.

"I'm Philip, and this friend here is Jun, who's Korean."

"Wow, I'm also of Korean descent! Nice to meet you!"

Ian shook hands enthusiastically and handed his phone to Felix.

"I have a favor to ask. Could you film my next scene with this phone? I need to practice a bit."

"That's easy!"

Felix confidently took the phone, and Ian took a deep breath.

The bubbly atmosphere vanished like dust, and his face was marked with deep anger and disgust.

"You think I can't kill someone? Don't equate me with a beta."

His low voice carried heavily suppressed emotions, and as Ian stepped forward and reached out his hand, Jun-hyuk felt a chill.

"…Die."

Close-up, Jun-hyuk felt a flicker of hesitation and sadness in the boy's face.

Whatever the scene was about, it was clear he didn't fully understand his own emotions.

When the touch felt heavy, he suddenly smiled brightly.

"How was that?"

"…You're good."

"Hehe, right? Did you film it well?"

"Let's check it out."

Ian confidently viewed the footage and burst into laughter.

"Ahahaha, what is this? The video isn't a passport photo, who films it like this!"

"Why not! It was a scene important for facial expressions."

"You really can't film videos or photos, just like Director Gavin said."

As Felix started to retort and Jun-hyuk laughed lightly, they both froze for a moment.

They realized they had been fooled by the boy.

Ian, having dropped his playful facade, formally greeted them.

"You are Felix Edwards, friend of the directors Isaac and Gavin, and Director Jun-hyuk Go from Korea, right? I'm Ian Price."

Watching the boy smile innocently, they both chuckled inwardly.

The thought that they had been tricked lingered in their minds, and Gavin, who had approached Felix, laughed mischievously.

"Didn't I tell you? He's not ordinary. Also, wouldn't you be able to recognize the director of a project under contract?""

"Well, that's true."

It was too convincingly playful to suspect.

"Did you enjoy my performance?"

"Yes, we'd regret it if we didn't cast you."

Jun-hyuk answered immediately. There was no denying his acting skills.

'Strangely, I don't dislike him even though I've been deceived.'

For some reason, there was an indescribable charm about him that made him hard to dislike.

Felix felt the same.

"Nice acting. The special snack I ordered was worth it."

"Oh! Snack?"

Ian brightened at the mention of snacks, just as Gavin grimaced.

"What's wrong?"

"Felix, this guy says even British food tastes good."

The joke about British food being so bad that they colonized places just to avoid it?

Gavin asked Felix seriously.

"Tell me honestly, what did you order?"

"Ha, what could I have ordered that's inedible? I ordered pizza. Pizza. It's a common snack on set."

That was certainly true, but it left a nagging feeling.

Soon they found out why.

"Director, the pizza delivery is here for the snack…"

The assistant director, with a slightly sour expression, opened the pizza box.

"Hawaiian pizza has arrived."

Thick pineapple slices topped the pizza prominently.

As the special snack was finally revealed, an uproar broke out on set.

-Aaack! Who ordered this atrocity?! Don't tell me it's all pineapple?!

-Hold back! The Italian is going berserk! My friend, this isn't torture!

-I like it, though. Why all the fuss?

-A hearing! We need to hold a hearing right away. These people are heretics!

Gavin sighed as the filming location became noisy.

"Get out of here right now, my friend."

The gourmet who received a red card was chased out of the filming location.

***

Starting anything is difficult.

Once Ian began communicating with Cooper, he soon started to reveal his deeper troubles.

From being severely ostracized for his awkward speech and mixed-race Asian identity to his stepfather scolding him for not being manly enough.

The suppressed anger was palpable.

'Even so, crimes cannot be condoned.'

Still, it felt fortunate that there was a chance to intervene.

Now connected with Cooper, whom he originally targeted, Ian even went as far as to distribute the phone numbers of the Beverly Hills Moms trio at the school.

"…What did you do? The filming team is asking if it's okay to shoot like this?"

Baffled by Ian's question, Larry immediately denied any wrongdoing.

– I did nothing wrong! I just had a thorough conversation.

– Yeah, you monologued for over two hours.

The eardrum destroyer, Larry.

– And what about you? Are you a Rai agent? Why do you promote Rai so much?

– Oh, you talk nonsense? Music therapy is clearly a part of psychotherapy. Of course, I should introduce them to Rai music.

Dorothy, blissfully unaware of the dire future, steadily accumulated karma.

"What about Daniel?"

– He's been charming a woman over the phone, and now she's flying out here because he said he lives in LA.

Daniel creating problems as well.

It was hard to criticize since the students' reactions were positive. All Ian could do was chuckle.

As he listened to everyone boasting and babbling, Isaac tapped Ian to get his attention.

"Ian."

"Yes?"

When he turned, he saw a serious expression.

He could roughly guess what had happened.

"I've heard some troubling things have been found at the home of this Cooper you've been talking to recently."

Cooper was at a crossroads that would decide his future.