The moment Victor called “cut,” Zeno bowed his head and threw his button-up over his shoulders before heading backstage. He couldn’t wait to remove the harness.
Victor smirked as he glanced at Devon. “You did a good job with casting him.”
Devon still wasn’t over what had happened, so he merely nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, as soon as Zeno was gone, Sora had to stand next to the air conditioner. “Goodness.”
Shin smirked at her. “Are you hot?”
Sora still had to fan her face with her hands, unable to answer.
Then, Shin turned to Sangwon. “I told you—he’s good, right?”
Sangwon cleared his throat and turned to the side, drinking some more beer. “He’s a good dancer. He must have been a trainee before. That’s how most actors start these days.”
“He wasn’t,” Shin responded with confidence. “He was discharged from the army at the end of last year, and he coincidentally started acting this year.”
“Oh,” Sangwon muttered. “Then, I guess I have to see how he really is once the actual scenes start.”
Shin shook his head in amusement. It was clear that Sangwon was just in denial. Well, it was only a matter of time before Sangwon would also join those who were amazed by Zeno!
There was another person who was in denial—Billy. “B-but,” he stammered under his breath. The routine replayed over and over again in his mind. That was the kind of dance that they had to practice for months just to perfect for a stage! How could he have done it without prior dance knowledge?
Was Billy mistaken once more? Was Zeno just playing with him—again?
Zeno removed his harness and costume and placed it neatly back in the rack before changing it into his own clothes. The stylists, who were expecting to find the clothes on the floor, were surprised by how neatly arranged it was.
“Did you clean up already?” one asked.
Another shook her head.
Zeno, fully dressed in his lounge clothes, went out and was greeted with silence. Not because they didn’t like his performance but because they liked it way too much! They couldn’t even say anything.
“Zeno, great job out there!” Shin finally called from their table.
Zeno bowed at ninety degrees and waved before turning around, not in the mood to drink with them. He wanted a proper dinner.
With that, he spotted Jace with a wide smile on his face. Behind him was Misha, who had a wary look on her face. He didn’t bother giving her any attention and merely patted Jace’s shoulder.
“Meet me outside.”
Jace nodded enthusiastically while Misha watched the scene with wide eyes. What… was that? That felt like a scene straight out of a bullying movie!
Before Jace could go, Misha held onto his shoulder. “Do you really want to go with him?”
Jace pursed her lips out of nervousness from speaking with someone so beautiful. He stiffly nodded. “It’s not like I have a choice,” he tried to smile, but it came out as a grimace.
Well, Jace didn’t have a choice because he also wanted to have dinner with Zeno!
With that, Jace bowed and made his way out of the bar, skipping when he saw Zeno waiting inside the car with Moby.
He entered with a thud.
“You were amazing, as usual! I could hear panties dropping the moment you went out on stage,” Jace smiled.
“Yeah,” Moby nodded in agreement. “The people backstage were also going insane. I didn’t know you could dance like that, Zeno.”
“I can’t,” Zeno muttered, turning to the side. “That would be the last time I would be dancing.”
“What?” Moby exclaimed, turning around for a second. “But that would be a waste! Honestly, I hoped you would have made some kind of mistake so you start all over again.”
Zeno glared at him. That was the last thing he wanted to happen.
“Anyway,” Zeno muttered, turning to Jace this time. “You talked to Misha?”
Jace’s cheeks reddened before he nodded enthusiastically.
“Yeah, she was really nice to the extras.”
“I heard she was an extra for a long time before she was discovered,” Moby chimed.
“Ah,” Zeno muttered to himself. “So, that’s the reason.”
“She doesn’t seem very fond of you, though,” Jace added. “I think… she secretly likes you!” he teased, nudging Zeno’s shoulder.
Zeno smirked and shook his head. Jace had no clue. That kind of heated stare was from someone who had already formed an opinion on him. Misha definitely wasn’t fond of him, and Zeno already knew the reason why.
***
The morning after, Zeno woke up before his usual waking time. It was still dark when he went out on the run, enjoying the cold temperature and the clean province air. By the time he was done, the extras were already filming outside the set meant to signify the ‘ruins.’
“They must be filming the filler scene for the first fight,” Zeno muttered to himself.
At the First Circle, there was no rules. They were just ordered to kill each other within twelve hours, and that would eradicate 40% of the population, with his character, Andre, dominating the scene.
However, they had to have insert shots from the extras, and this was what they were currently filming. Devon was on site, giving the extras some directions while Victor scrolled through his phone.
Then, he grabbed his megaphone. “Let’s make this quick, everyone!” he exclaimed. “We don’t have all day, and by 11 AM, the main characters will be here with all of you in the fight scene.”
“If you want to rest before that, let’s all do a good job,” he added lightheartedly.
They nodded enthusiastically, so Zeno inferred that most of these artists were also given a first “big” chance like Jace.
Despite not being bothered, Zeno stood to the side, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
They started the fight, and right off the bat, it appeared they weren’t used to this. There were some fighting experts among the crowd; however, for a more natural scene, most of them were extras without prior fighting experience.
Zeno watched with hawk eyes. He didn’t stay there to see them film. He came here because he still hasn’t seen it—Victor’s switch.
Victor stood from his seat and brought the megaphone to his lips. “What the fuck are all of you doing?” he asked, his voice cutting through the noise and rendering everyone silent.
Well, Zeno didn’t have to wait long.
There it was—his uncle’s two-faced personality.