Life, Once Again!

Chapter 769. Sequence 4

“I’m sorry, but you can’t come too far forward. Please maintain a distance.”

“Hey, back off!”

A burly staff member said those words as he blocked the fans.

Kwon Jeonga looked at the obsessive fan who reached her arms out under the armpits of the staff to ask for a handshake before sighing. Considering the reputation of the actor she was going to interview today, there would be an uproar if she made a mistake during the interview. She recalled how she mispronounced the name of an idol due to a mistake, and that ended up going on TV without being edited out. She received murder threats from a group of unidentified people.

“It must be hard doing an interview in a place like this all the time.”

Jeonga ended up smiling at the person who spoke to her in a low voice with his head lowered. She fixed her eyes on the gentle-looking eyes under the thick eyebrows. She wondered if it was really okay for a man’s eyes to look so gentle.

“Mr. Giwoo, we’re on standby. We’re going to walk slowly, and as for your eyes, you can look anywhere you’re comfortable with.”

“Okay. Please take care of me, everyone.”

The fans around all started screeching when they heard Kang Giwoo’s deep baritone voice. Jeonga also almost screamed out ‘oppa’ while raising the cue sheet up high. This man was two years younger than her, but heck, a handsome guy was always an oppa.

“Ready, cue!”

At the producer’s cue sign, she looked at the camera. She had seven years of experience in doing street interviews. She was planning to use all her know-how today.

“Hello, everyone! This is Kwon Jeonga from Roadview. I’m sure you all must be annoyed because it’s hot both outdoors and indoors, right? Allow me to introduce to you an actor who will blow away all those annoyances. The man who makes people refreshed just by being looked at; the man stepping the boundaries of film and drama like it’s his own house! Please welcome, Mr. Kang Giwoo!”

Along with the applause from the audience, Giwoo’s greeting began.

“Hello. This is Kang Giwoo, who wants to become a good actor. Nice to meet you, everyone.”

Giwoo greeted the camera before turning around to kowtow before the fans behind him. This wasn’t agreed upon beforehand, so Jeonga looked at the producer for further signs. The producer in question gestured at her to continue with satisfaction.

“Mr. Giwoo. Do you know how much we wanted to see you? We’ve asked you to come to Roadview several times until now. Why did you come just now?”

“I also wanted to come because I enjoy watching Roadview, but I was too busy. And I mean it.”

“Well, I guess it’s true that you’ve been busy. You were in two films and two drama series just last year, weren’t you?”

“That was a really busy year. I don’t think I’ve ever been so busy in my life. While it was a great opportunity for me to grow as an actor, I also wanted to rest.”

Giwoo smoothly answered her. As expected of the number 1 actor who reporters found it easy to interview. Compared to the actors who always answered in short phrases, Giwoo was a master of interviews as well as a saving grace for reporters. Asking him one thing would get ten answered back, so there was a lot of fun in asking questions.

They walked towards the restaurant they had predetermined. On the way there, they also had a talk with the fans. Jeonga wanted to bring an obsessive girl in front of Giwoo, but she ended up doing the talk with a docile-looking girl due to the producer’s signal. Giwoo gave the girl a light hug as a goodbye gift. Jeonga felt a little envious as she looked at the girl who was drowning in happiness, wondering what it felt like.

They walked inside the restaurant. While proceeding with the interview, asking him about recent events, the program writer wrote a new question on a sketchbook and lifted it up. It was a simple question that they didn’t need to ask for approval beforehand.

“In your opinion, what is the piece that made the current actor Kang Giwoo?”

“Well, all the pieces I’ve done until now possess important meaning to me, so I can’t exactly choose one.”

“But people are bound to have things that are called their turning points in life, right? I think you should have something like that too.”

Giwoo stroked his chin. His fingers slid across the slightly grown beard, and Jeonga now knew how a man could look sexy. Giwoo, who groaned in a cute manner, opened his eyes and spoke,

“Have you ever seen the works I’ve appeared in?”

“Of course. I haven’t said it yet, but I’m a fan of yours too.”

“Then why don’t you choose one for me, Miss Jeonga?”

“Me?”

As she was thinking about how to answer that, the producer paused the shoot. Giwoo’s face had become sweaty. Makeup artists soon came around. She saw the new writer rush over to the store employee. It was probably due to the air conditioner. It was quite cool when they just entered the restaurant, but it had become hot while they didn’t know it. Only then did Jeonga realize that the air conditioner on the ceiling was silent. It seemed to have stopped.

“It’s quite hot, isn’t it?” Giwoo said. He held out a bottle of water while his makeup was being fixed.

Jeonga accepted the water bottle.

“This is more than enough. It’s not like we’re shooting outside after all.”

“That’s true, it’s better than the festival you ran before. I think it was two years ago? In Seoul plaza.”

Jeonga went through her memories. She remembered how she was left with proceeding a festival under the blazing sun. It only showed up for a brief moment on TV, but she had worked there for a whole four hours. The vicious heat suddenly became vivid, and at the same time, she felt thankful to Giwoo who talked about an event that even she had forgotten about.

“I do remember that. But how do you know about it?”

“I saw a glimpse of you before. Also, I looked it up again because I have an interview with Roadview today. We can only talk to each other if we have some basic knowledge of each other.”

The producer said that they would resume the shoot. Jeonga inwardly exclaimed as she watched Giwoo sit up with a clear smile on his face. While it was a natural thing for the reporter to investigate the actor they were interviewing as preparatory work, the opposite wasn’t true. Even if Giwoo’s considerations were just out of formality, she was surprised that he had prepared something at all.

She collected herself after being in awe, before continuing with the interview.

“If I could be so bold as to choose a piece that made you mature as an actor, I would like to pick ‘Building’. You’ve made yourself known through ‘New Semester’ before that, but I think Building was the movie that left the deepest impression on the audience.”

“Building is also a very meaningful work for me. But when I first heard that I would be in it, I was very worried. Not only was it a disaster movie, but the scale was also quite big as well. On top of that, it pressured me when I found out that senior Lee Hyuk and senior Ahn Joohyun were going to be acting with me. They are splendid actors after all. I couldn’t sleep at night back then because I thought I would get in trouble if I didn’t do well.”

“The first time is hard for anyone. Despite those worries though, you managed to splendidly decorate the cinemas. There were no acting skill controversies, and in fact, you were highly praised as it was the birth of a new worthy actor.”

Giwoo scratched the back of his head and smiled in embarrassment. This was an image of a boy that was discovered in the midst of a grown man. Jeonga saw the eyes of the writers sitting next to the producer sparkle. It was absolute allegiance. Jeonga thought that she probably had the same eyes as them.

“It’s quite embarrassing. It’s only thanks to the scenario and the acting of the seniors that my lack of skill wasn’t pronounced. I was lucky.”

“You’re being way too humble. Tell me honestly. Don’t you think you did well?”

Giwoo hesitated for a while before replying ‘I just said heck it but then did well’. This guy possessed a sense of humor as well. He knew when to dive and went to surface. The producer looked satisfied as well.

“How did you feel when you found out that you were an actor of 10 million tickets?”

“You might think that it’s an obvious answer, but it felt like a dream. Of course, I’m sure that the senior actors and the skills of the directors were the main driving forces of those 10 million tickets, but I dare say I greased the train that was rushing towards the 10 million mark. I was happy. Actually, after the movie got released, I watched it three times in secret. Among those 10 million, three of them were from me.”

“Did you watch it by yourself?”

“Yes. When I did, I really regretted it. I thought I could do better. I think it was back then that I resolved that I should try harder so that I would regret less while watching my own work. Though, I still find many things lacking if I have a look at the footage that gets shot.”

“I’m sure no one can find fault in your acting skills, Mr. Giwoo. Actor Choi Jaewoo once mentioned that you were a promising youth actor. Do you know that?”

“I did. I’m not gonna lie. I jumped on the spot when I found out that a senior I respect said something like that about me.”

“Uhmm, I’m sorry for asking, but can you think of what happened back then and reenact it for us?”

Giwoo smiled awkwardly before standing up and jumping on the spot. He was quite tall, so he looked like his head was about to bump into the ceiling. This man was not hypocritical, he definitely had a pure side to him- Jeonga thought such as she told him that he had done enough when he covered his face in embarrassment. She then continued the interview.

“Oh, here comes a question filled with the writers’ ulterior motives. Are you perhaps dating anyone right now?”

“I really wish I was.”

“Are you sure you aren’t meeting someone in secret while saying those words?”

“In fact, I would love it if that was the case. It’s another wish of mine to meet someone good and live a happy life, but maybe because the acting side went so well, I don’t have any talent on the romantic side.”

“Then here comes a sudden question! I, Kang Giwoo, have received a confession from an actress, yes or no!”

Giwoo waved his hand and looked around.

“I wish that was the case, but it never happened. It looks like I’m not that charming as a man.”

“Now, that’s an answer I can’t believe. Mr. Giwoo, are you sure we won’t find you through a dating scandal later?”

“If I ever find someone I like, I would love to reveal it on Roadview first. I can promise you that.”

“You know that what you said was caught by the camera, right? If you are ever in a good relationship later, you must tell us about it, okay?”

“Of course.”

The interview progressed smoothly. There weren’t many questions left.

“Since we talked about your past works, we can’t not talk about your upcoming drama. ‘Doctor’, what is this drama about?”

“I can’t tell you a lot of things because we haven’t started the shoot yet, but I can assure you that it’s a passionate story regarding passionate actors.”

“From the rumors, I heard that you were going to be showing a good chemistry with Miss Han Gaeul.”

“I met Gaeul when we were doing ‘Building’. We are friends with acting skills that are on par with each other. But ‘chemistry’ doesn’t really fit the context here. She doesn’t see me as a man.”

“Oh, did Miss Han Gaeul appear in Building as well?”

“Yes, she showed really good acting. I heard that even the director back then stood up to applause. She had a short role, but her role left a deep impression, so I learned a lot as well.”

“I see. So the meeting from 5 years ago is continuing through this drama.”

“That’s how it is.”

“Do you know that YBS has also scheduled a medical drama, just like ‘Doctor’?”

“Yes. I have heard. From how their shooting schedule is similar, it seems likely that we’ll be aired at around the same time.”

“Are you confident?”

“I’m not sure. The only thing I can do is do my best in my position. The results are for the viewers to judge. Well, I do hope that our drama does better. I don’t like losing that much.”

“You have a competitive spirit after all?”

“People who know me call me obsessive. Actually, there aren’t that many people who want to lose in this world, are there?”

“That’s true. Since you’re doing it, it’s natural to want good results.”

As the designated drama promotion time was done, it was time to wrap things up. Jeonga asked the last official question on the questions sheet,

“What is acting to you, actor Kang Giwoo?”

“Half of my life.”

“Thank you for watching, that was actor Kang Giwoo.”

Jeonga applauded and said her finishing commentary.