Translated: reireiss, MTLs-nim 

Edited: reireiss, Grammarly ssi 

Support us on Ko-Fi or Patreon to keep this translation and the translators alive. 

Don't forget to leave a message that you support this novel by writing the title when tipping. 

Thanks^ ^ 


***

PLEASE!!

DON'T SHARE OR REPOST!!

***

Translator Note:

Just wanted to let you know that sometimes I won't translate calls(?) like 'oppa, hyung, eonni, nuna, etc.' and suffixes like '-ssi, -nim, etc.'

So...... Bear with me, please (/▿＼ )

Thank You!

***

Chapter 42 – Projects (5)

"Jay, are you calm now?"

"Yes. I'm sorry."

"No, it can happen when you're immersed yourself in the role."

Lee Hye-in, the actress who plays Kang Subin, patted Yoon Jay on the shoulder. Having made her debut at the age of 16, she was a 34-year veteran of the industry, and it's no exaggeration to say that she was chosen to play Kang Subin.

"Sunbae -nim, can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

Lee Hye-in was happy to listen to her handsome and talented junior.

"Have you ever been in the middle of a scene when a memory suddenly popped up and interrupted your immersion?"

"Like what exactly?"

"When a situation in the play bears an uncanny resemblance to my past."

Lee Hye-in thought about it and nodded. She was an educator who gave special lectures at various universities.

Han Da-yeon tries to listen to Lee Hye-in's golden advice, so she sneaks up near Yoon Jay. As Lee Hye-in and Yoon Jay show no signs of rejecting her, the other actors gather around.

"There is a scene where my mother dies, and the day of the shooting was the 49th day after my mother died."

T/N: In Buddhism, it’s believed that reincarnation takes place within 49 days after death.

"Ah......"

"You don't have to be so sorry, it's in the past."

"Weren't you sad? I mean, not as the role in the play, but as 'myself'......"

"Right, the Director also talked about it. Did I do NG 1 or 3 times that day?"

Lee Hye-in realized what Yoon Jay's intention was in asking this question.

She didn't know that he was a member of the 115 Disaster, but she remembered that the Director and staff had praised him for his physical strength because he was a former firefighter.

Seeing Choi Ara, who was closer to death than anyone else, in such a critical situation must have caused a lot of emotional turmoil for him.

"But then I used it to my advantage."

That's true. I used my camera phobia to play Baek Jinri, too. But now, I'm not so sure. Because I never know when the mask I've been working so hard to keep up will crack. Yoon Jay made an ambiguous expression.

"I won an acting award that year for that scene. It was because of that scene. It was so real, it made the off-screen audience cry."

The people around her nodded and said, 'Ah, that work?'. They pretend like they know it.

"You know, we're kind of hiding ourselves and revealing the character in the script like we're wearing a mask."

"Ah."

"But does it have to be completely concealed? If you mix it up properly, wouldn't it be a method and it becomes a realistic performance?"

Lee Hye-in added that, of course, that answer was not a good one because it can lead to mental fatigue. However, no matter how much you ignore it, you will keep thinking about it.

"Just...... Kim Sanghyun, just go with your own flow. If it's too much emotion, we can reshoot it, or we can edit it out, and that's what directing is for."

"Thank you."

Yoon Jay took a deep breath. I'll give it a shot. I don't want the shoot to be delayed because of me. He nodded to the Director, who looked over at him.

'Go with the flow, I......'

Shooting resumed. And I ran again, carrying Han Da-yeon.

 

"Please......!"

He became Kim Sanghyun and ran again and again to save Choi Ara. The man who had struggled to climb up the hill, panting in the beginning, was no longer there.

The compassion he felt for the people of Projects was melted into physical changes.

"Haa, haa!"

 

Just like before, the environment around him changed. A narrow alleyway, a school hallway, and a battlefield. So who's on my back?

'Ben? No. Ben's already dead.'

Last year, he already...... Now, I have to admit it. Ben is already dead, and if I tie it to the past with what-ifs, it's only going to be difficult for me.

So who do I have to take care of now? Choi Ara. Yes, I have to save her first.

The subtle change in his expression only added to the drama. The confusion of who I was carrying was replaced by the anxiety that Choi Ara might die.

 

'Don't die.'

The warmth of Choi Ara's body on his back felt like an illusion. Kim Sanghyun's mind flashed through all the memories he'd experienced in Uisun City. At the end of all those memories, there was Choi Ara.

He had barely gotten to the bottom of the hill when Kang Subin, who had gotten to the bottom first, pulled up.

"Hey, over here!"

 

He rushed to the car and heard the Director give the okay sign. After getting out of the car and silently moving to the next location, Han Da-yeon called out to Yoon Jay.

"Op......"

"Da-yeon, shhh."

"What?"

"......Don't disturb him."

Yoon Jay's condition was unusual. It was a sensation Lee Hye-in had felt before. The staff cleared the area around him so as not to disturb the immersion.

 

The scene then switches to the emergency room at University Hospital. Kim Sanghyun is fidgeting in front of the operating room, while Kang Subin waits calmly in a chair.

"Ho-How did it go?"

"We'll have to transfer her to the ICU to see how things go, but we're over the hump."

"Haa......"

Kim Sanghyun collapsed to the floor. It wasn't an act, his legs actually gave out. Kang Subin grabbed his shoulder.

"Are you okay?"

"......Yes."

Kim Sanghyun looks up at Kang Subin and laughs through his tears. From doubt, 'Am I late?' to relief, to gratitude and affection for Choi Ara, who held on until the end.

 

'What an act......'

Lee Hye-in held on to her character as she struggled to break down amidst the flood of complex emotions. She did the same with the camera filming his face, and so did the Director who was watching through the monitor.

 

"Director -nim, Director -nim."

"Ah...... Cut! Great!"

The Director, who belatedly yelled the cut sign, jumped to his feet. It's a famous scene that needs no rewatching.

"Wow......"

"This is awesome."

While some people were enjoying the afterglow, Yoon Jay was still sitting there, stunned.

"Jay -ssi?"

"Jay."

"Ah, yes!"

They got a bit worried and called him, and Yoon J jumped up and wiped his tears

'I felt that sensation again.'

The sensation I felt at the end of filming <Children>. The moment I became fully synchronized, then I became Park Donghwa. I could feel that again, albeit briefly.

And...... I had gained something else. I didn't save Benjamin, but I did save Choi Ara.

'The Cap. said, it's not a good idea to hold it in too tightly.'

It doesn't matter that Choi Ara is a fictional character. By saving her, Yoon Jay was able to relieve his burden about Benjamin.

He understands why he was drawn to this work for no reason. He was able to channel his personal pain through it.

 

And on this day, that scene was broadcast. Lee Young-chang, who stopped what he was doing and sat in front of the TV, felt the discomfort he had felt before at this scene again.

"Hmm?"

The scenes that produced NG were also appropriately edited. The moment Yoon Jay's mask broke, at least Lee Young-chang could feel it. The actor's body appeared and disappeared for a moment.

Then, when Lee Young-chang saw the scene where Kim Sanghyun heard Choi Ara's progress, and then collapsed to the floor, Lee Young-chang's eyes sparkled like a child's at the subtle changes in Yoon Jay's expression and emotion.

"That's......"

Lee Young-chang once saw that in <Children>. It was only for a moment, but Lee Young-chang suddenly felt overwhelmed.

As he recalled his muse's appearance in the past, the viewers felt a different sensation.

 

— Hey, something feels strange to me in this scene. Ah, is there something wrong with me? I can't explain it.

└ Yeah, me too.

└ Wah. I can't explain it either, what is it?

— I mean, the scene is not that sad, but, strangely my tears come out;;

— So it's not just me.

— What? What is it? What on earth has he done to me?

— Is it because of Yoon Jay's acting? The directing was really uneventful. It's not like they're trying to make me cry or anything, but strangely I feel melancholy. Am I the only one?

└ That's true ㅠㅠ

└ So, I'm not the only one who feels that way. What exactly is that? His acting is really good.

 

These reactions were immediately transferred to the article.

 

'Projects' 15th episode's emotions were felt in the viewership... Breaking its own record.

Yoon Jay's mesmerizing performance as he runs to save Choi Ara in 'Projects' is a hot topic.

 

Lee Young-chang skimmed the articles and went to MyTube. He heard that the footage of behind-the-scenes is often posted on MyTube these days.

So he went in just in case and found that it had come up right after the broadcast. Since they didn't have a separate microphone on their body, he couldn't hear exactly what Lee Hye-in and Yoon Jay were saying.

 

[Behind the Scenes of Projects] Of course, Lee Hye-in! Yoon Jay was so immersed in tears after her special acting lecture during filming ㅠㅠ

└ Actor Yoon Jay, you're really good at acting.

└ I'm crying unnecessarily at that scene too, what did he really do to me? ㅠㅠ

└ Wow, I feel like I shouldn't say this, but he cries so beautifully.

└ I guess he was really immersed in it, I can’t stop crying ㅠㅠㅠ

 

As he watched Yoon Jay on the screen, Lee Young-chang remembered him as he always was.

Yoon Jay had confessed his childhood wounds and assured him that he was fine now.

However, Lee Young-chang could see the scars that hadn't healed yet. Something else had happened at another time that he didn't know about.

Then...... The Yoon Jay he'd seen so far must have been a membrane and that expression that had just appeared in a flash......

'That must be your real self.'

He quickly deleted the screenplay he had been working on. The screenplay he is working on for Yoon Jay seems to be getting stuck.

***

In the car heading to the farewell party, Yoon Jay belatedly searched for reactions to <Projects>.

 

— Honestly, it's also Eva who paints poor people as good.

T/N: Sorry, but I also don't know what or who 'Eva' is referring to here.

— Isn't it too obvious?

— Choi Ara, why does she look like that?

— The intention is good, but shouldn't they pay anyway?

— Look at that, if you are poor and have no children, you die alone like that.

— Do you have to watch the drama like that, considering every single thing? Please, a drama is a drama.

└ 222

└ I mean, it's not really a big deal, but it feels like they're trying to stir up controversy.

 

There were some forced words to keep the Rising Star, Yoon Jay in check, but there were so many different opinions.

If <Children> came out now, it would have been hard to avoid controversy. Park Donghwa is a person with cerebral palsy, so there would have been even more comments. Yoon Jay shook his head.

 

— I think there should be dramas with this kind of subject matter.

— Honestly, I liked it, but it was just sad that they said it was a new wave.

— It's better than the stupid cider story.

 

But there were also quite a few favorable reviews. Although it was a slow story, most of it was because of humanism. In addition, the fact that the serial murder case heightened the tension of the drama also played a role.

 

— Yoon Jay's acting has improved even more;;

— That swirling scene at the end was crazy. It wasn't really designed to make me cry, but it brought tears to my eyes.

— I'm really looking forward to what his next project will be.

— It's hard to be an actor... I'm really looking forward to the next project ㅠ

 

The Writer, Woo Tae-yoon said this at the reading.

I made <Projects> because I was inspired by an article I read on the internet. The article says that being poor is the truth and being rich is kind.

Poverty is an individual personality problem, not a social problem, and the gap between rich and poor is a social problem, so why do these people wear tinted glasses and try to blame each other?

[And then, I saw Jay -ssi on TV. Well, you know, there's a scene where he confronts the Emperor at the end, right?]

[Are you talking about the line where he says that different rewards for different people will split them?]

[Yes.]

When I saw that scene, I really wanted to cast Yoon Jay. But I was halfway through writing the script when I saw that scene broadcast.

 

"Writer -nim, how are you feeling now?"

"Hm......"

As a rookie writer, Woo Tae-yoon faced many dilemmas while writing <Projects>. Is it okay for him to write these people like this? What if they curse at him for being unreasonable?

But now that it's the last episode, he thinks differently.

 

The 'Projects' Effect... Local Governments Strengthen Low-Income Support Projects

A large-scale arrears management group that appeared in ‘Projects’ is being formed... Recruiting volunteers

City councilor's interest in 'Projects' focusing on marginalized groups... We need a warm gaze from society

 

We can't make everyone happy anyway. But...... Woo Tae-yoon held out his cell phone screen to Yoon Jay.

"I think this should be enough."

"I see."

"How are you feeling, Jay -ssi?"

Even during his busy writing time, Woo Tae-yoon saw the scene where Yoon Jay was carrying Choi Ara and running down the stairs. Although he didn't say it to everyone, he knew that Yoon Jay was strange back then.

"......I really liked it."

With a burden lifted from his shoulders, Yoon Jay's expression was bright.


***

Satisfied with our translations?

Support SeiRei Translations by tipping on Ko-fi or Patreon.


***


Previous | Table of Contents | Next


***


What do you think about this chapter?