“That was it?”
“It was alright, I guess.”
“I got chills, honestly. But he didn’t even do much. Maybe they just cranked up the air conditioner.”
As Zeno went down the stage, Hyunjin shook his head.
“He acted with no emotion at all.”
Jihwan nodded in agreement. “I guess my expectations were high because I watched ‘Broken Chains of Justice’ from start to finish.”
“I thought it was good,” Jisoo suddenly said, her gaze not leaving Zeno, who had placed his straw hat back on.
“Huh?” Jihwan asked, turning to her with a confused expression. “It wasn’t much at all.”
“Yeah,” Jisoo shrugged. “But I think it suited the scene very well. He wasn’t flustered, either.”
“Out of everyone, I think he did the best.”
Hyunjin and Jihwan locked gazes before shaking their heads.
Selina, on the other hand, sighed, going back to her game. “Ah, boring. I want to go home.”
Meanwhile, Minseok couldn’t help but smirk. “What was that? There was no technique at all,” he muttered. He was as monotone as a robot—just like how he was during their warm-ups at the Metro Acting Workshop.
As Zeno got back to his seat, Jace gave him a comforting pat on the back.
“Honestly, you did much better than I expected,” he said, making Zeno purse his lips.
That wasn’t what he was aiming for.
“Hey, don’t be upset,” Jace continued, sensing his sour mood. “Chaewon PD didn’t even stop you, so that’s a good start. You might have a shot in the non-speaking roles.”
“That’s not what I want, though,” Zeno muttered.
Jace pursed his lips and let out a deep breath. ‘This guy must be really upset.’
“This is only your first audition,” Jace chimed. He had felt upset after his audition, especially since he was stopped right away. However, seeing that Zeno was more upset, he felt a little bit better.
Just then, Chaewon PD made her way back to the platform, her eyes subconsciously going to the last hopeful. She cleared her throat, capturing everybody’s attention.
“Thank you, everyone, for attending. We will contact those who made it.”
With that, everyone started leaving the venue. However, Chaewon PD called the attention of the last hopeful. “Zeno Han? We do not have your contact information.”
Zeno pursed his lips. He scrutinized his system to see if the penalty quest was accomplished, but it was still ongoing. He sighed and wrote his number and email on the paper.
As he did so, Chaewon couldn’t help but observe him.
Not bad. Really not bad.
Well, if he became an actor, it would be hard to land main leads with his current appearance.
However, if he improved his acting a little bit more, Chaewon could see a lot of potential.
As soon as Zeno wrote his contact details, the success notification finally appeared.
[Penalty Quest#1 Accomplished]
He sighed in relief and bowed his head before scurrying out of the venue with everybody else.
Jace craned his neck to look for his newbie friend but couldn’t find him in the end.
Meanwhile, inside the conference hall, Chaewon PD, Ian, and the rest of the staff were silent.
The script for the last scene was still lying on the table.
“We don’t need a second screening, do we?” Insu asked with a small smirk.
Chaewon PD nodded, holding onto the two scenes she liked the most. “We’ve got them.”
Ian, on the other hand, silently nodded in agreement. His voice was a bit hoarse from being the applicants’ counterpart for the entire process. However, it also made him practice his lines—even if they’ve already filmed some of them already.
With that, Chaewon PD stood. “The venue is already booked, right?”
“Yes, PD,” Jiho replied. “The team had already booked Disaster Island for three days and two nights.”
“Good,” Chaewon PD said. “Then, contact these two right away. We needed them to sign the contracts ASAP so we could finish filming the scene. We’re short of time.”
“You don’t mind if I go first, do you, Ian?” she asked.
The well-known actor shook his head. “Yeah. I have some things to check with the company. I’ll see you during the last stretch of the filming, PD.”
Chaewon smiled and ruffled his hair. “The movie will be a great hit, Ian,” she said. “Another legendary movie is going to be under your name.”
Ian nodded, watching as they left the conference hall, leaving him all alone. Then, he grabbed the sheet that contained Scene 25.
It was a scene that was yet to be filmed—a part where his desperation needed to shine through.
“So, that’s the feeling I need,” he said to himself.
Ian was actually having a hard time trying to portray such emotions during his practice. Although he had been an actor for more than four years, his roles couldn’t be considered as diverse.
He started his career as the chronic second-male lead—the more decent guy that the main female lead never chose. In that sense, he wasn’t used to acting desperate.
Because second-male leads needed to be understanding. Second-male leads yielded. They were nothing but an instrument for the main male lead to get the girl.
It was only two years ago when he started being cast as the main character in films and dramas.
So, even if he had a rich history of works and was declared a great actor by the industry, he felt he wasn’t a complete actor yet. He was given such titles because the characters he had played thus far were something he was comfortable with.
Being the main character of Code Black was a challenge to him, especially acting-wise. However, after acting with Zeno Han, he began to understand what his character needed in that particular scene.
“Huh,” he muttered, biting the nail on his thumb with a small smile. He suddenly felt excited to act the scene out.
“I’m looking forward to working with you.”