Zeno was recognized twice on the street even with his straw hat on. That was supposed to be his safety feature, but it failed not once but twice!
He felt like ripping all his hair out.
Wait, that didn’t seem like a bad idea.
Having bald patches might turn some people off from him.
He arrived at the company, appearing absentminded. The celebration started as soon as he came in.
“Zeno is a star! We got variety show offers left and right!” Moby exclaimed.
Jace pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes. “I can’t say I’m fully happy for you, my rival. However, I am happy that this place might earn some good money soon. The landlady has been coming here every day.”
Just then, the door burst open, and an old woman with very curly hair and gold jewelry as big as pans came inside the room.
“The rent for this month better get paid, or I’m sending you all to massage heaven upstairs,” she threatened. “And no!” she exclaimed, looking straight at Zeno. “They’re not a massage parlor.”
With that, she slammed the door shut, leaving the entire room in silence.
“Prepare the money, Moby,” Bobby said to his assistant.
Moby seemed hesitant. “But that’s for your daughter’s piano lessons, sir.”
“I’ll figure something out,” Bobby smiled. “For now, we need to stay in this place. We can’t go bankrupt when Zeno has just joined us.”
“Why can’t you?” Zeno asked. They turned to him with raised eyebrows before bursting into laughter.
“Oh, you’re so funny,” Sarang chuckled.
Zeno kept a straight face through it all. “Oh, by the way,” Moby started off, grabbing something from the shelf.
“Here’s the full script of ‘Stars in My Ordinary Sky.’ The filming is set for Wednesday next week. It will be filmed and aired simultaneously because Story Lab has a fast turnover. They usually release two series a month and make a second season based on its performance.”
Zeno grabbed the script and decided to read it a little later. For now, he had to get one thing accomplished—his livestream. He had never thought of making a social media account. In fact, aside from professional ones, he had never tried using one.
What was the point when he was going to leave in the end?
“I want to make my own Sigmoid account,” Zeno smiled.
Bobby smiled happily. “I thought you would have never suggested it! That’s actually perfect. After the release of your photos, your fans keep wanting more. You should all take an example from Zeno–strike the cauldron while it’s hot.”
Jace stood with a determined expression. “Because of that, I’ll look for more auditions.”
“Me too,” Leni said.
Sarang looked at them and felt the same way. “Let’s do this!”
With that, they made their way out of the office. Bobby looked at them with a proud smile.
“Well, I have some work to attend to. You can stay here if you’d like,” he said. “Moby will accompany you.”
Zeno shook his head and stood. “I’m going, too.”
“I’ll memorize the script at home.”
“Yeah, you do that,” Bobby said. “Tell me if you have any difficulties.”
Zeno once again shook his head and started his journey back home. Fortunately, no one recognized him as he boarded the bus. With that, he opened the script and began reading through his lines, internalizing the storyline.
As Zeno continued reading, he began to feel he had made the wrong decision.
This script was written way too well. The nuances of the characters and the dialogue flowed naturally. Although, it felt a bit more rushed than the average drama, which was to be expected since it was a short series.
However, aside from such factors, Zeno thought it was a solid script. It wasn’t amazing, but it had the potential to become popular, especially among the younger generation.
With that thought, a shiver ran down his spine. He shook his head. Story Lab hasn’t been doing well for the past year. Well, their views were still up there; however, they were more famous for having cheesy scripts and cringe-acting. In short, they were famous for being bad.
It was the fact they didn’t cast aspiring actors for the main characters but influencers with a great following.
If there were two things influencers weren’t blessed with—it was the talent in singing and acting. Somehow, they were almost never good at those things but always tried to enter the industry.
With that, Zeno shrugged. Even with a decent script, he felt that this drama would end with the same fate.
He had only skimmed through the storyline when it was first given to him. However, reading it now, his character has become clearer.
Jimin was an average student whose parents were working in the city. He grew up in his mute grandma’s presence, which inherently made him the silent type, too.
His neighbor was the main female lead, Sohee, a bright girl with a dull mind. She worked hard but had bad luck. She was the last in their class, but the teachers still loved her. Sohee was born to a humble family, with their house just right next to Jimin’s. So, they have been friends since then.
However, in their first year of high school, Jake, a smart, poised teenager from Seoul, transferred to their school due to his mother’s work. He was the complete opposite of Sohee—an unattainable man with the best grades, a pleasing yet cold personality, and a handsome face.
Together with their other friends, Rami and Doyun, the five of them navigate their last year of high school. The main story was centered around Sohee’s pursuit of Jake and the reality of how opposites do not actually attract.
Now, where does that place Zeno’s character?
Well, of course, Jimin had always loved Sohee. Through and through, he was the one there to support her—the best friend she turned to for advice when she was hurting because of Jake.
Never the choice. Not even an option. He was just… there.
And that was exactly how he liked it.
However, he didn’t like how the script resonated with him, even in a minuscule way.
It reminded him of what it was like to love—a feeling he had tried to forget but somehow still remained.