Chapter: 85
To start off, the reason Seoyeon learned to dance was not, surprisingly, because of a Virtual YouTuber.
After receiving an award, she had taken a break from acting, and during that time, she had become rather gloomy.
It was as if she had abruptly quit something that had become a significant part of her life.
“Seoyeon seems a bit down,” Min Sua remarked, deeply concerned.
Youngbin, after some serious contemplation, responded with, “Well, can’t we just find something else she likes and praise her for it?”
“Do you think that would even work?”
Although Sua teased him for that suggestion, she had no better ideas. So every morning, she diligently cheered Seoyeon on as she did her morning stretches.
“Look at you! You’ve got a good sense of rhythm when you move!”
“Really?”
“If you learned to dance, you’d be amazing at it!”
Seoyeon’s ears perked up at those words.
Her sense of rhythm was indeed quite impressive.
Being physically capable, she picked up dancing quickly.
“Wow, well done, well done!”
Without much thought, Sua continued clapping for her, and meanwhile, the excited Seoyeon diligently trained herself in dance.
“Um, Seoyeon, you’re doing great… but isn’t this a bit much?”
“You’re just praising me too much!”
Of course, they eventually reached this conclusion.
Nevertheless, Seoyeon felt quite confident in her dancing abilities.
Unlike singing, which involves expressing emotions, dancing relied solely on pure physical capability.
And skill was all that mattered.
Sure, rhythm was important, but as stated earlier, Seoyeon wasn’t tone-deaf.
She struggled with singing because she couldn’t convey her emotions properly.
Though she didn’t sing poorly, it felt almost like a displeasing impersonation of her emotions.
‘For starters.’
As the accompaniment began, Seoyeon closed her eyes.
It was the audition music she had prepared in advance.
In other words, it was a song from a particular singer that would later feature in Dream Future.
‘I shouldn’t just do any random dance.’
Though it was dance, it was still an extension of acting.
She had to showcase that accurately to the judges.
In the story, Jo Ha-rin was a lively character with a vibrant personality.
This meant Seoyeon had already given some thought to her dance moves.
‘Let’s start with light hip-hop dancing.’
Commonly referred to as the most widely seen dance style.
This was the type that the public generally found “cool.”
While she could technically do breakdancing, it would be overdoing it.
Besides, it didn’t fit her character concept.
‘Still…’
One move shouldn’t hurt.
She opened her eyes.
Seoyeon’s red eyes fixated on the judges.
Exhaling slowly, she smirked.
With a thump of the rhythm, Seoyeon’s feet started to move.
Her stance widened to shoulder-width, with one foot stepping forward.
“Oooh…”
The first exclamation came from the casting director, Shin-yoon.
Perhaps because the song was quite subtle, the dance struck a more significant impression.
‘She’s got long limbs, so her dance looks fluid.’
Of course, he wasn’t an expert on dance.
It was merely an evaluation from a spectator’s perspective.
But even ordinary viewers could see that Seoyeon’s movements were exceptionally smooth.
At the same time,
‘The expression…’
Only then did Seoyeon realize that she was simultaneously acting.
‘Jo Ha-rin was dancing on the street in this scene.’
Other judges picked up on it as well.
It wasn’t because of her dance or Seoyeon’s bright expression.
‘Her gaze.’
Park Jung-woo watched Seoyeon’s eye movements very carefully.
Rather than focusing strictly on the judges, Seoyeon rotated her body, attempting eye contact with the entire room.
The audience.
Imagining herself surrounded by viewers who watched her dance in the streets.
When Jo Ha-rin danced in the street, those were the gazes of the onlookers.
Her steps were somewhat constrained.
And her arm and leg movements seemed to highlight the space available to her, eventually coming to a sudden halt.
It felt as if she was showing the visible space around her.
Seoyeon imagined that the audition stage was actually the street where onlookers gazed upon her.
The song progressed to its climax.
As she leaned down,
“Wait?!”
Someone gasped in surprise.
That was because she naturally transitioned into breakdancing from her hip-hop routine.
Finally, with a passionate beat accompanying her,
Spinning, Seoyeon twirled her body.
That was right, quickly. Very quickly.
Windmill.
In other words, breakdancing.
It’s considered one of the foundational moves of what is commonly referred to as breakdancing.
Moreover, it was probably the most recognizable move of breakdancing to the general public.
However, even basic move, it was hard for an average person to execute, and doing it without proper training would only look clumsy.
With her long limbs, she almost looked like she was about to drop her jaw in amazement.
She forgot that she was acting,
And as the song ended, Seoyeon’s hands found the floor and her body froze in mid-air.
“Wow!”
Involuntarily, one of the judges exclaimed in surprise.
Freeze.
This pose involved using the strength of her arms and upper body to support herself.
Typically, it’s a finishing move in breakdancing.
Seoyeon deliberately executed the windmill to showcase this ending moment as naturally as possible.
As her body, which had been spinning swiftly, came to a sudden halt in the air, the music concluded.
The judges gaped, unable to speak first.
No, they couldn’t.
‘Seriously, she dances too well?’
Actually, more than that, how is she maintaining her balance?
Is she just holding herself up with her arms?
‘Wow, that can actually happen.’
To those who had never witnessed breakdancing, it was an impressive move — no doubts about it.
Seeing their astonished expressions made Seoyeon feel unnaturally proud.
Her demeanor was entirely different from when she was singing, and Jung-woo chuckled softly.
‘…What an overdoer.’
Of course, Park Jung-woo thought this way, letting out a sigh of relief.
Nodding back at Seoyeon as she stood and bowed.
This performance had surely made up for any shortcomings from her singing.
‘As expected, she seems to do well with physical activities as a whole.’
Generally, while those who can perform flashy dance moves usually earn bonus points, they don’t hugely impact judgment outcomes.
The same goes for singing.
However, if done either too poorly or too well, there would definitely be repercussions.
Seoyeon’s singing fell into that category; the dance had too.
Let alone considering the character traits of Song So-ha and Jo Ha-rin.
“The dance moves and acting flow naturally. It definitely fits the character of Jo Ha-rin.”
During the Dream Future audition meeting.
“Her singing isn’t quite up to par, but we have time for some improvement.”
“However, it’s hard to improve her dance skills in a short period.”
Song So-ha.
Honestly, the production team wanted to cast Seoyeon for that role.
But the actress herself wasn’t particularly interested in the character.
Moreover, in the series, Jo Ha-rin would embody a character known for her dance skills.
She wasn’t incapable of singing, but her vibrant character was intended to showcase her dance talent.
“However, Jo Ha-rin’s role isn’t that…”
With that mumble, casting director Shin-yoon directed his gaze toward someone.
That someone was Im Jin-ha, the writer of this Dream Future script.
A writer still somewhat fresh and should probably be referred to as a “rookie.”
Normally, production writers are expected to make adjustments whenever they’re told to change the script, yet…
“Is there any chance we could adjust Jo Ha-rin’s role?”
“I think it would be best if her appearance frequency increased a bit after episode eight.”
Responding to casting director Shin-yoon and director Kim Pil-seok,
Im Jin-ha shook his head in denial.
“Changing the script would introduce too many alterations. I’m afraid it would completely ruin the content.”
Im Jin-ha rejected it, seemingly contemplating whether she should reveal her concerns.
Predictably, director Kim Pil-seok clicked his tongue internally.
‘Tch. Of all times…’
In one way or another, Im Jin-ha was a writer the director had his qualms with.
Though her experience was relatively fresh, she had two hit shows to her credit.
One of them was co-writing, while she was solely responsible for the other.
In any case, rookie writers with a hit show under their belts often have an edge.
Moreover, Im Jin-ha supposedly had some backing with the broadcasting company.
Rumor had it she had connections with certain PDs in the drama department…
Consequently, even if director Kim Pil-seok wanted to push back, it wouldn’t be easy for him.
“Im Jin-ha, writer.”
To her, Park Jung-woo smiled widely.
Im Jin-ha, who appeared somewhat tense, relaxed slightly at the smile.
“Yes?”
“Well, then, in the event that an unexpected situation arises, would adjustments be doable?”
“Unexpected situations?”
“Oh, like a role unexpectedly gaining immense popularity.”
Given the common knowledge of who was meant by ‘the role’ in that context, it was crystal clear.
Jo Ha-rin.
When Kim Pil-seok and Shin-yoon had discussed it, it was serious; now, the act of speaking concerned Park Jung-woo as well.
“Oh, of course.”
Giggles accompanied that response, making Kim Pil-seok want to smack his palm against his face.
In the end, one couldn’t help their expression.
‘…Nevertheless.’
Park Jung-woo’s words were incredibly meaningful.
That “unexpected popularity” concept.
‘Does he mean that Jo Ha-rin might gain a larger reaction than anticipated? Or perhaps…’
Kim Pil-seok realized something.
The The Chaser movie’s release coincided with Dream Future’s timing.
If Park Jung-woo was hinting at that…
‘It can’t be dismissed as mere exaggerated praise either.’
Recalling Seoyeon’s acting from the auditions,
And her unexpected dancing talent.
According to Park Jung-woo, her physical capabilities are pretty solid overall.
One way or another, she had a flair for performing.
“Let’s make a decision then.”
Director Kim Pil-seok stated while looking at two photos.
Song So-ha.
And the faces of the two actresses cast for Jo Ha-rin.
*
It was two days later when Seoyeon received the news about Dream Future.
Manager Park Eun-ha gently tapped her shoulder, a look of disappointment on her face.
“Seoyeon, what’s going on?”
Feeling a prickly sensation, Seoyeon thought, ‘Did I… fail?’
Even if she couldn’t sing well, this seemed a bit harsh.
Just then, right before Seoyeon slid into gloom, Eun-ha proclaimed,
“They contacted me that you’ve been cast as Jo Ha-rin.”
“Oh, really?”
“Hmm?”
Though she expected Seoyeon to be disappointed, the brightness instantly returned to her face.
There wasn’t an obvious change in expression, but her eyes sparkled.
Having spent time together, Eun-ha gradually learned how Seoyeon expressed her emotions.
Though she struggled to show it, her feelings recently had become abundantly rich.
‘Surprise.’
She thought she had been dropped.
Even though she initially aimed for the role of Jo Ha-rin in the audition, Eun-ha presumed Seoyeon had been targeting the main heroine, Song So-ha.
Since that was a leading character in the story.
“Oh, and…”
As Eun-ha was about to relay more information,
Buzzz!!
A vibration echoed from her pocket.
She naturally took it out to check, her expression becoming perplexing.
“What’s up?”
“Huh? Oh, you’ll understand once you receive this call.”
“Excuse me?”
What could that possibly mean?
Seoyeon questioned, but first accepted the phone handed by Eun-ha.
If it had been a sketchy call, she wouldn’t have been offered it so casually.
“Hello?”
She answered, nonchalantly, just in that moment.
“Joo Seoyeon?!”
Upon hearing that voice, she could tell the caller was taken aback.
A woman’s voice.
At that unfamiliar sound, Seoyeon thought,
“Who is this?”
“…….”
She sensed an unexpected disappointment from the other end, but that must have been her imagination.
Regardless, the caller paused to catch her breath before speaking again.
“I—I’m Jo Seo-hee.”
Her voice trembled.
Ah, Jo Seo-hee.
Thinking back, that voice did fit this description.
Seoyeon hadn’t focused deeply on her friend-turned-fan, making it merely a passing thought.
“Nice to meet you.”
“Oh, um. I’m not really doing that great right now…”
Seoyeon raised an eyebrow at Seo-hee’s reply.
Was that really her? With such a rare, subdued voice, she almost doubted if it was even Jo Seo-hee at all.
“Anyway, what’s up to cause you to call out of the blue?”
“That’s because…”
Seo-hee’s voice faltered again, as if debating whether to go on.
But then,
“It’s about that film you mentioned…”
“Yeah?”
Understanding the anxiety in Seo-hee’s tone, Seoyeon finally connected the dots.
‘Ah, so that’s what it’s about.’
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