Life, Once Again!

After Story 248

“Even if you look at me like that, you won’t get anything from me.”

A pair of round eyes followed him. It was a golden ball of fluff that kept following him with an expression that said ‘play with me.’ He told him multiple times to rest, but he didn’t even pretend to listen. He was a smart dog, so he should’ve understood what he said, but he still wagged his tail, wanting to play with him.

“Okay, fine.”

He eventually raised the white flag and threw the ragged ball into the dog pool. The golden retriever flapped his large ears and jumped into the pool.

“Good work attending to the dogs.”

“Sure. They’re important.”

He looked at Haneul standing behind him. She was wearing a light blue dress, just like her name[1].

“I was thinking about eating now,” Haneul said.

“Do you think we can eat now? I think that one’s gearing up right now. If I say that we should stop playing, he’ll become dejected.”

“It’s garlic shrimp, so we can eat here. I should come out and eat here too. Wait a moment, I’ll bring it out.”

After Haneul went back into the holiday house, the dog returned with the ball in his mouth. After shaking off the water from his body, he placed the ball right at his feet.

“Again?”

He really didn’t get tired. Maru looked down at the dog collar that was reflecting the sunlight. Doochil. That was his name. Maru thought that the name was rather Korean-like for a foreign breed.

He threw the ball and the dog ran into the pool, creating a large splash. The third time it happened, his wife brought some food. It was shrimp on top of olive oil. He placed the garlic-seasoned shrimp on a baguette and took a bite.

“He hasn’t changed how he can’t let other people take care of his dogs,” Haneul said.

“There was an accident in this life, so I think he’s looking out for them even more.”

“An accident?”

“One of his acquaintances left a dog with a dog hotel and that dog ended up crossing the rainbow bridge because of neglect. I think he hasn’t trusted any businesses since that instance.”

“He cherishes them like his own children. I can see why.”

Haneul hugged Doochil, who came over all wet. Doochil looked at his wife with his unique Golden Retriever smile before rubbing his nose against her, like how typical dogs would say hello.

“Wait.”

He took out his phone and took a photo of his wife hugging the dog.

“I think it would look better if the dress was a little wetter.”

“Are you talking from an artistic standpoint or a personal preference standpoint?”

“Probably both?”

Haneul laughed and threw the ball. While the golden ball of fluff swam in the pool again, they had their meal.

“Now that I think about it, it’s been a really long time since the two of us came outside like this.”

“We planned to go to the sea together, then we got work, so we said we should go watch the winter sea, then we became busy again…. The timing was rather off,” said his wife while handing him a slice of watermelon.

Maru looked inside the holiday house while eating the watermelon. The two cats that played around the cage had widened their territory to the sofa.

Their steps were light as though they thought that it was a safe area.

“How’s the shoot? You’re almost in the last stages.”

He smiled at his wife’s question.

“I was full of worries when I started off, but unexpectedly, we didn’t hit any blocks. The chemistry between the people is good, and while I thought we’d have some trouble renting equipment because we couldn’t borrow anything from the Creative Content Agency, director Na resolved that problem for us. I didn’t refuse because I thought it’d be okay to receive that much help.”

“I think that person really likes making connections here and there. He’s been sending all sorts of gifts to Daemyung, asking him to write something good.”

“That kind of life is fun. You can focus on what you like. Isn’t it great?”

Haneul nodded.

“You said you had a few offers for work, right?” Maru asked.

“It looks like people liked my musical. The sudden influx surprised me.”

“Those people have eyes too. In the first place, anyone who watched your first movie properly should’ve taken an interest in you.”

Maru only pitied the producers, directors, and casting managers who failed to recognize a gem that wasn’t even a source stone, but a fully polished one. If he was one of them, he would’ve done anything to sign a contract with her before she managed to join JA.

Now that she started working with JA, her value would skyrocket without end.

“The musical’s over now, so I should get some rest before I start working again.”

“A drama? Or a movie?”

“I had a miserable failure because of a movie, so I’m doing a movie again. You know I hate losing.”

“I hope you get a good scenario.”

“The scenario was good last time too. The shoot was fun as well. I didn’t know that the final piece would turn out like that though. That’s why I plan to send a love call to a director I trust. I had a look at his filmography in this life, and his skills hadn’t changed. From what I hear, there’s already a script going around, so I’ll rush over the moment there’s a talk about auditions. I like doing interesting pieces, but I am quite concerned about my career as an actress. Maybe there’s still a long way to go before I mature.”

“If you aren’t mature, then who is?”

The dog, which was playing around in the water, seemed to have run out of energy and lay down under the parasol. He panted with his head resting on his two front paws before lying down on the side.

Haneul stroked the dog on the stomach.

“Oh, right. I got a rather difficult advert,” she said.

“A difficult advert?”

“A perfume advert. They seemed to think that I’m just an exclusive model for Friendly Aroma. They told me if I broke the contract and signed one with them, they’d pay me above the standard payment in the industry. Pretty funny, isn’t it?”

“The advertiser would definitely feel rather weird if they find out you work in the same industry.”

“Should I pretend not to know anything and sign the contract? I think it’ll be interesting.”

“That’s business malpractice, you know?”

Maru went back into the house with the empty plates. He wiped the oil with some paper towels and washed the dishes.

“Would you like to go outside too?”

He picked up the two cats looking outside from the sofa. When he tried to open the door and take them out, they struggled and turned around. They really hated going outside.

“I think the dog owner is coming,” Haneul said as she walked over.

Maru saw a car entering the parking lot. He checked the license plate on the black sedan. It was indeed president Lee Junmin’s car.

“He’s early. Maybe his work ended earlier?”

He walked to the parking lot. The dog, which had been lying down, was following him before he knew it. He wagged his tail as though he realized that his owner had arrived and rushed to the car.

“Hey, hey! Wait.”

As soon as he got out of the car, Junmin was assaulted by the living fur generator. He lifted the large Retriever up in the air as though he didn’t care that his expensive suit was getting wet.

“That’s curious. You didn’t even get out of the car, but he realized you were coming.”

“He’s like this at home too. I’m not sure if he can differentiate engine noises, but he always comes to the yard and causes a fuss whenever my car goes into the parking space.”

“He seems to like you a lot.”

“Maybe it’s this he likes, not me.”

The president struggled and put his hand in his pocket. What came out was a dog snack that dogs went crazy for. The dog went back down on the ground after putting the snack in his mouth.

“You must’ve worked hard looking after this one.”

“I almost dislocated my arm throwing the ball all the time.”

He went inside the house with Junmin. Haneul, who was inside, brought out some cooled tea. While they drank, the two cats approached Junmin. Even though the cats would always start off by hiding whenever there was a guest at home, they dug into Junmin’s embrace.

“This is my first time seeing them act like that,” said his wife.

“Really? They look really docile.”

“Not at all. Whenever we had guests at home, they would run away first before quietly coming over and scratching them. But they aren’t wary of you in the slightest.”

The two cats hogged one of Junmin’s legs each and yawned. Junmin, who was drinking tea, carefully put down the teacup and patted their heads.

“Whenever I meet people after interacting with these creatures, I feel stifled. Both are the same in the regard that they’re true to their desires, but one of them keeps trying to hide that, which makes me tired. I can see it in their eyes anyway.”

“I think the people you talk to also feel stifled when they talk to you, you know?” Haneul said with a smile.

The president laughed.

“I’ll go take a walk with Doochil. You two can have a talk.”

Haneul went outside with the dog. Junmin looked at Haneul, who was on the other side of the glass wall.

“She’s such a quick-witted fellow. I see you’ll never be able to lie to her all your life.”

“I can’t even dream of it. Whatever it is, I’ll tell her everything honestly.”

“In some aspects, that makes life easier. A life dominated by your wife isn’t so bad.”

“I guess your wife does have a solid grip on you too.”

They talked about trivial stuff for a while before silence pervaded. Junmin changed his expression slightly.

Maru took a sip of water. What was about to follow was probably about work.

“I heard from head manager Choi that you’re in the final stages.”

“Yes. We shot all the important scenes, and only a few supplementary cuts are left.”

“What about the rough cut editing?”

“It just came out. We all watched it together yesterday.”

“Do you think it’s good?”

“I’m not entirely sure yet. It has the feels down, but there are still a lot of things to remove and add.”

Junmin nodded.

“Even if you received help from other experts for the shoot, it shouldn’t be easy using video editing tools.”

“I think director Lee knows and is thinking about it.”

“Have you looked into video editors?”

“Yes. We have scouted one.”

“Is it someone that I might know?”

“No, he’s in the process of learning just like director Lee. He’s a young video editor who has experience with indie film editing and a video editing office.”

“A young director and a young video editor. That sounds like a combination that could lead to ruin. There’s no influence from the production company or the distributor, so that’s all the more reason it might not turn out well.”

“Maybe.”

Maru realized Junmin’s intentions. He was not someone who would bring this up without reason.

“I can ask video editor Kim Cheongsoo for help with the editing.”

“I see. He’s someone who takes on a lot of big-budget projects in Chungmuro.”

“He’s working on a few right now. The number of works going through his hand will continue to increase next year, and even the year after that.”

A movie that a director shoots and a movie that was fully edited by a professional editor were two completely different movies, even if they were created from the same source.

With one of the highest-level video editors in the industry working on the job, the composition and the flow of the story would become incomparably better than the rough cut they had right now.

“He can only make time for a few days. Even if it’s me asking him for help, I can’t do anything about any of the appointments he made beforehand.”

“Director Lee would be floored if he heard that.”

“You should know well that producing a good video source and editing that well are two different talents.”

“Yes. That person should be able to perfect the composition of the film.”

“Say it if you need help. I can set up an appointment with him right now.”

Maru shook his head softly.

“I am really grateful for your offer, but we’ll have to find a next opportunity for director Lee to work with him. What he needs right now is not a completed map, but a path to find his own color even if that means stumbling.”

“You know I do not offer twice, right?”

“Yes, I do.”

“You might regret it. If a film that you participated in as a lead character and even paid for the production goes out to the world in a terrible state, your reputation will plummet. Even if you did not participate at all in the production, people will not think that way.”

“I started this after taking that into account. Doing what the actors want. Isn’t that the philosophy of JA that you have founded, president?” he replied with a question.

[1] “Haneul” means sky.

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