Chapter 145
Brandon’s answer was slightly ambiguous. Me being Mitchell’s ideal type? It was likely just a polite response.
I’m not sure how Mitchell had talked about me to his brother, but Brandon probably thought of Mitchell and me as a couple. We had lived together in LA and exchanged naughty jokes in front of Brandon, after all.
Unless he was trying to separate us, of course he would have to mention me as Mitchell’s ideal type.
I told him I really didn’t mind and asked him to tell me the real ideal type. I had asked with the mindset that it couldn’t be helped if he said he didn’t know, but Brandon explained Mitchell’s ideal type in almost excessive detail.
– An actor with excellent acting skills? It would be good if they’re persistent with a bit of quirkiness. They need to give Mitchell the assurance that they’ll never leave his side. Physically, if they have a good build from working out hard and have cute looks on top of that, it would be perfect. Mitchell likes that kind of man. He’ll definitely fall for them when he meets them. I guarantee it.
Brandon’s words were surprising. Being brothers, they must exchange deep inner thoughts, but this was almost like he had been inside Mitchell’s head.
Even after thanking him and hanging up, I was a bit dazed. Although I was bewildered by the flood of information, some words stuck in my ear.
A man with a good body who’s cute and works as an actor.
“Good body, cute, and actor. Good body, cute, and actor…”
I kept muttering to myself, trying not to forget, as I returned to Mitchell’s penthouse. Mitchell, who had come out of the bathroom, was on a call with someone. His gaze towards me looked somewhat displeased. It was probably because I had disappeared without saying anything.
Throughout the phone call, Mitchell maintained a serious expression while keeping his gaze fixed on me.
I sat on the sofa by the window, using my phone while glancing at Mitchell. Mitchell was on the call in the opposite living room, but the house was so spacious that I couldn’t even hear his conversation. That was a bit disappointing.
“A man with a good body who’s cute and works as an actor.”
I can work out more for the body.
I’m already working hard as an actor.
So, now I just need to become cute?
Shit… How do I do that?
I had encountered the biggest hurdle.
***
Finally, “Mirror Match” began filming.
It was the first large-scale project Seimon undertook as they entered the film industry, with an unknown director at the helm, and Mitchell, who was thought to be taking a break from acting, decided to appear, giving up his vacation. The fact that Mitchell’s co-star was Bae Geon-woo, a Korean actor who was practically a newcomer in Hollywood, made “Mirror Match” the focus of attention across the industry.
Every film media outlet covered and analyzed “Mirror Match” daily, and Geon-woo’s background was thoroughly investigated.
As the film production process was strictly confidential, the buzz died down somewhat after the main filming preparations were completed. However, there was someone who reignited people’s interest.
It was director Hugo Turner, who had dismissed Geon-woo.
“Seimon is proceeding with two projects, and even the great Seimon makes mistakes in their choices. Of course, I’ll do my best not to harm Seimon. If one side causes damage, it’s only right to make up for it on the other side.”
Director Hugo appeared on a talk show and made outrageous statements, creating a confrontational structure between “Mirror Match” and “Space 9”. Even people who had thought of the two works separately began to see them as rivals following Hugo’s comments. Even the fact that “Space 9” was scheduled to be released around the same time as “Mirror Match” added to this.
As a result, Director McKenney’s burden grew day by day.
On the first day of filming, he appeared with a seriously haggard face, worrying all the staff. McKenney tried his best not to show it, but it was unavoidable when the pressure was clearly visible on his face.
McKenney was absolutely miserable. It wasn’t that he had a specific ailment, but he felt like he was slowly wasting away. As his stress peaked, he even lost his appetite and could barely eat these days.
At least today, his heart warmed at the thought of the two lead actors. Seeing them, he felt a slight relief from the suffocating pressure. He took a deep breath and officially began filming.
“Alright, we’re starting now.”
Today’s scene was the first meeting between Logan and Nathan. It was a rather important scene where Nathan, the investigator, visits the home of Logan, the psychopath writer.
Nathan knocked on the door of a house at the end of a quiet alley. The sound of knocking echoed along the walls. When there was no response from inside, Nathan frowned slightly before turning the doorknob. He entered through the unlocked, broken door at will.
From that part, McKenney felt something.
In a tense situation, a smile briefly flashed and disappeared on Nathan’s face as he realized the door was broken. It was the smile of Investigator Nathan. The moment he recognized this fleeting subtlety, McKenney held his breath, completely absorbed in Geon-woo’s acting.
The pressure that had been weighing on his mind eased once again.
“Hello, Mr. Logan. I’m sorry for barging in.”
It was Geon-woo’s first line.
As Nathan inspected the cluttered house one by one, he discovers Logan lying in a hammock in the backyard the moment he opens the back door.
Nathan, the case investigator, wore a perfectly fitted navy blue suit like a prosecutor and carried a square bag, while Logan, sprawled in the hammock, was naked. A large beach towel precariously covered Logan’s body.
When these two completely contrasting figures entered the same frame, everyone held their breath. Logan barely glanced at Nathan with just his eyes, without turning his head. Nathan took in Logan at a glance and stared at him quietly.
Logan asked in a languid voice.
“Who are you?”
“I’m the investigator in charge of the 4117 Street murder case.”
Nathan asks Logan for help. He persistently and at length explains why Logan is needed for this serial murder investigation, but Logan’s ears seem closed. Instead, he simply scrutinizes Nathan with a strange gaze.
Nathan feels an eerie chill under Logan’s gaze. However, even though he wants to give up and leave, he doesn’t back down. He walks up resolutely and finally stands in front of Logan.
“An appropriate activity fee will be provided.”
“How much are you going to pay?”
“…Since we’re not a private company, it’s not much, but-”
“I’m rich. I don’t want to do annoying things for that kind of pocket change.”
“Are you perhaps not confident?”
At the blatant provocation, Logan’s lips twisted upward. The tense Nathan continued his persuasion.
“I know you’re a genius. Can’t you use that brilliant mind to catch criminals?”
“It’s not that I know crime well because I’m smart, it’s instinct. Like how beasts hunt relying on their instincts.”
“Then, the hunt…”
“I’m always hunting. No one knows who the target is.”
Logan quietly closed his lips and looked Nathan up and down. Nathan felt torn apart under the sharp gaze. Even after exchanging just a few words, he felt overwhelmed. But strangely, Nathan thought he wanted to clash more intensely.
“Have you ever thought about making criminals your prey?”
At that, Logan laughed like a madman. Logan came out of the hammock with a smile on his face. Nathan glanced briefly at the exposed body before turning his gaze back to Logan’s face.
Logan, standing tall in front of Nathan, lazily tied the beach towel around his waist and brushed back his messy hair.
“New prey… Well, I have been bored lately.”
Logan looked at Nathan with a slight smile, his eyes narrowing. Then he spoke a name he hadn’t been told.
“You’ll make things interesting for me, won’t you, Nathan?”
As Mitchell’s last line ended, a moment of silence descended. Soon after, McKenney’s voice boomed.
“Cut! Okay! That was great!”
People who had been holding their breath began to make noise one by one, and the set instantly regained its vitality.
It was perfect acting. For a scene that would open the movie, it was so satisfying that McKenney thought there was no need to reshoot. He checked the filming monitor and was certain.
‘We’ve got it.’
The pressure that had been weighing him down suddenly disappeared. He could feel his spirits rising as if he were a general with an army of ten million.
He kneaded his sweaty hands and looked at the two protagonists in the distance. Mitchell had seated Geon-woo in the hammock instead and was standing in front, chatting quietly. They were waiting to shoot various angles based on the footage they had just filmed.
Staring at their backs, McKenney quietly clenched his fist. The combination of Mitchell’s ripe acting and Geon-woo’s delicate yet captivating performance was perfect. It felt as if they were really in Logan’s house in 1982. It was a huge resonance that he hadn’t seen during the script reading.
This is definitely going to work!
McKenney, who had been wilting until the start of filming, was completely revived. He didn’t care about sci-fi blockbusters or rivals or any of that; he just focused on creating his own film.
“Director, it’s good, isn’t it?”
As the fire lit up in McKenney’s eyes, the surrounding staff noticed it too. Everyone steeled themselves at the blazing enthusiasm. Now was when it really began.
