Chapter 72 – Money – Part 13

Chapter 72 – Money – Part 13

Woojin answered immediately, as if he had already thought about what to drink.

“Apple kiwi juice.”

“Then I’ll go order that.”

Jo Jeonghwan quickly turned around.

At that moment, Woojin’s voice stopped him.

“Director, they say these pancakes here are so moist and delicious. They come with honey and whipped cream, and if you dip them, oh…”

At Woojin’s head shake, as if imagining it, Jo Jeonghwan reflexively said,

“I’ll order that too.”

Woojin nodded as Jo Jeonghwan went to the counter.

Just like that, Jo Jeonghwan returned to the private room.

“Teacher…”

“I’d prefer if you called me by my name. It feels awkward.”

“Ah, Woojin, how did you know I came by bus earlier? And that my girlfriend is a celebrity…”

Not only that, but also that he raises a dog and a cat.

Woojin said,

“And that you don’t often wear glasses.”

Jo Jeonghwan ran his hand through his hair.

He felt like he was being stripped bare and dissected piece by piece.

A chill ran down his spine.

Jo Jeonghwan asked in a low voice, as if it were a secret no one should hear.

“Do you… perhaps… tell fortunes?”

“No. I just helped you understand. The initials SM and JH on the director’s phone case. You recently removed them. You couldn’t wear a couple’s ring because you were careful since your partner is a celebrity. But you substituted it with something else. It looks like you used a watch, and although you’ve taken it off now, the mark is still on your wrist. Given the director’s profession, there’s a high chance of being involved with a celebrity. Not now, but five years ago. I only looked at the director from a relative perspective of the present, five years ago. Most importantly, among the supporting actors in ‘You Are God,’ Actor Park Heejin’s real name is Choi Sumin. The initials SM, it matches. The bus? When I first saw the director, the creases in his clothes hadn’t fully smoothed out. The sitting posture on subway and bus seats is different. How did I know you like to write manuscripts by hand? The calluses on your right three fingers are because you hold a pen a lot. Phalanges… finger bones can be fragile and crack without you even realizing it. I recommend typing. With a mechanical keyboard.”

“Ah…”

Jo Jeonghwan could only repeat “ah” with his mouth agape, unable to speak.

“You should probably bathe your dog. And it seems you’ve groomed your cat, but please take care of its claws often. Placing several scratchers around will help.”

“Ah…”

It felt like he was experiencing a new world.

It was culture shock.

Buzz- buzz-

When the vibration indicating his order was ready came, Jo Jeonghwan fumbled for it and stood up from his seat.

“I could have gotten it.”

Jo Jeonghwan waved his hand.

“No! No! Please stay seated. I’ll go get it.”

Woojin quietly watched Jo Jeonghwan’s retreating figure.

This is what Desire is.

Didn’t he look at me with discomfort at first, and now he looks at me positively?

Jo Jeonghwan is a person who intends to use me to fulfill his Desire.

Woojin intended to use Jo Jeonghwan’s Desire.

A thorough give and take.

Soon, Jo Jeonghwan returned and placed the food down. Woojin cut a pancake, dipped it generously in whipped cream, and took a bite.

The moistness of the pancake and the fluffiness of the whipped cream created a perfect harmony, delighting Woojin’s taste buds.

Then he took a sip of fresh fruit juice with apples and kiwis.

The sour juice offset the potentially rich pancake.

“I think I did well with the candle choice.”

“Huh?”

Jo Jeonghwan blinked and asked again, but Woojin was just spreading honey on his pancake.

“The combination has to be amazing.”

Woojin, eating his pancake, slowly nodded his head.

“As expected…”

Woojin’s small nods wouldn’t stop.

“Um…”

Jo Jeonghwan closed his mouth again.

Woojin was eating the pancakes with such reverence that Jo Jeonghwan felt if he even spoke to him, Woojin would curse him like a shaman.

Jo Jeonghwan still couldn’t shake off his bewilderment.

Soon, Woojin put down his fork, took a sip of fresh fruit juice, and spoke as if reading his thoughts.

“Director Jo.”

Jo Jeonghwan replied with a start at Woojin’s voice.

“Yes?”

“What do you usually say when you see someone yawning? If you think about it, you must have asked something.”

Jo Jeonghwan spoke cautiously, like someone getting their fortune told.

“Are you sleepy? Are you tired?”

Woojin nodded lightly.

“Yes. I said that after seeing something like that, just like you, Director Jo.”

However, the perspective of an ordinary person and Woojin’s perspective were completely different.

The depth of his observation was unfathomable.

“Ah…”

Woojin opened his mouth, thinking that this righteous path was convincing enough.

“How about a university student as the masked protagonist, instead of a detective? An office worker would also be good. The victim of the criminal would be their family or a loved one.”

There was a reason why Woojin mentioned family and loved ones.

For people, family was a powerful entity that could not be exchanged for anything.

Family, dormant in the unconscious, is so powerful that it causes an immediate reaction when an incident occurs.

There’s a saying.

I should have been better to them, I should have treated them better when they were alive.

Similarly, when someone in a family gets caught up in an incident or falls ill, the entire family rushes to eliminate the cause.

In other words, Woojin’s words meant to utilize the unconscious.

At that moment, Jo Jeonghwan spoke with a voice full of excitement.

“I’m starting to get a picture here? And profiling too…”

“Yes. I’d like the protagonist to be someone who likes places with few people, who prefers secluded spots.”

Jo Jeonghwan’s eyes were clouded with anticipation.

He looked like someone ready to accept anything Woojin said.

As if he were possessed by something.

“Why?”

“He can’t control his self-consciousness. He’s struggling with the feeling of information being forcibly injected.”

“I don’t quite understand. Could you explain it a bit more clearly?”

“Director Jo, I think we need to properly establish our relationship first.”

“Excuse me?”

Woojin pulled out an A4 paper from his bag and casually handed it over.

“What is this…?”

“I heard from Detective Kim Taehyun. He said you’d even write a written statement and get it notarized if necessary.”

“Ah… yes, I did. I did.”

“Would you like to read it?”

Jo Jeonghwan began to read the A4 paper Woojin had prepared.

But,

his pupils gradually widened.

Soon, his muscles reacted, and his eyes seemed to tear open.

In contrast to Jo Jeonghwan, Woojin merely brought the fresh fruit juice to his lips.

“These conditions…”

The content stated that if the movie surpassed ten million viewers, he had to buy a 3 billion won house.

The profit distribution between the investors and the production company was roughly 6 to 4, plus the distributor’s actor guarantee, and so on…

Above all, he was a director who had already flopped a movie once.

And he had no credits for five years.

It was obvious that if he demanded 3 billion won from investors, they would think he was crazy.

“Mr. Woojin… 3 billion won is a bit much…”

“Yes. That’s why I stated it. If it doesn’t exceed ten million, this written statement will be completely nullified.”

“You don’t seem to know this industry well, but ten million is not an easy number.”

“I wish you wouldn’t keep setting limits. Is Director Jo a director who can never make a movie that ten million people will watch?”

“That’s…”

“The complete nullification stated in the written statement is also a reflection on myself. My reflection that I thought carelessly. Even if 9,999,999 people watch it, if it falls short by just one person and doesn’t reach ten million, I won’t receive a single won. Conversely, I will do my best to help Director Jo achieve ten million viewers.”

There was one thing Woojin hadn’t said.

The first thought was to let his family live in a nice house, but the second was the group experiment.

Originally, when a group forms, rules and order emerge, but movies were different.

Even when viewed as a group, perspectives differ due to individual tastes and personalities.

However, if you use hormones and the unconscious that control emotions, the story changes.

People only want to see what they want to see, and only want to believe what they want to believe.

If you reduce these two to one and speak from the perspective of an audience member.

Immersion level.

It’s the same even when watching a movie that mobilized ten million viewers.

Often, directors either consciously created these things or unconsciously did, touching upon hormones.

As Jo Jeonghwan hesitated, Woojin spoke first.

“If you take this written statement and meet with a notarization lawyer, I believe Director Jo will be challenging to become a ten-million-viewer director.”

Jo Jeonghwan let out a long breath.

3 billion won.

He had to persuade the investors.

He might be called crazy, but he had to persuade them somehow.

“Why don’t you tell the higher-ups this? If I reach ten million, I’ll receive 5 billion won. But if I don’t, I won’t receive a single won. It’s not gambling. Because the director can reach ten million. You can decide the amount as you wish.”

Perhaps he gained strength from Woojin’s words.

Jo Jeonghwan put strength in his eyes and slung his bag over his shoulder.

Let’s go get it notarized.

Woojin calmly rose from his seat.

I was introduced to a lawyer by an acquaintance, a Deputy Division Chief Prosecutor. I think you can go there.

Deputy Department Head…

Yes.

Woojin made sure his desire couldn’t do anything reckless.

***

Woojin and Jo Jeonghwan met with the lawyer, put their thumbprint on the written statement, and even recorded their voices.

Thus, a day passed.

Jo Jeonghwan, who was eating cup noodles in front of his PC, received a message from Woojin.

[I sent an email.]

Instantly, Woojin’s words flashed through Jo Jeonghwan’s mind.

‘Do we need a Main Writer, a Sub-Writer? How about the Director and I try to make one? If you don’t like it after seeing it, the Director can choose, right?’

“Cough! Cough!”

Choking, Jo Jeonghwan quickly checked the email.

He thought it was absurd, but his body reacted first.

Then he downloaded the file and opened the Hangeul window.

Had 20 minutes passed like that?

“What the hell is this….”

‘The guy who said he couldn’t even take dictation…’

Not only the characterization but also the dialogue was included.

With about a third of the story progressed, Jo Jeonghwan called Woojin as if he were possessed by an editor.

It felt like 20 minutes had evaporated.

“H-hello?”

-Yes. Director, did you see it? How was it?

“What about the next content?”

I’m thinking. I have to do my assignments and there’s a lot to think about.

“No, Woojin… This is a 3 billion won problem…”

It was a remark that completely disregarded Woojin’s position.

It was, literally, a thought from his own perspective.

I have more important things than that.

Jo Jeonghwan blinked his eyes.

‘More than 3 billion won?’

By any chance, have you mentioned the contract to your superiors? Of course, I assume you didn’t mention my name as we discussed yesterday.

“No.”

Jo Jeonghwan clenched his fist while looking at the Hangeul window.

“I’m going to go make a deal now.”

Good luck.

Woojin’s voice came clearly to Jo Jeonghwan’s ears again.

You are not alone.