[January 2020]
Eunbyeol wiped her hands against the skirt of her dress, desperately trying to calm her nerves as she walked towards the MV shooting site. In the distance, she could see the staff, the cameras, and the members, all walking around and preparing. Some of the members were playing around with each other, some were helping the staff, and some were practicing their dance moves.
She repeated their names over and over again in her head, wanting to make sure she knew everyone.
They were X1, the powerhouse rookie group that was already taking over the world, despite having debuted less than a year ago. After months of uncertainty, here they were, preparing for their comeback. Everyone knew their story, and everyone knew them. It was impossible not to.
Still, she'd been so focused on her acting auditions, so focused on her own life, that she hadn't actually known much about them until recently. They were a household name, but once she passed their audition and got the spot in their MV, she finally started researching them. And slowly but surely, she was finding herself becoming a fan.
"Um... hello?" she said hesitantly to a man who looked like the director. "I'm Moon Eunbyeol. I'm here for-"
"The MV shooting, I know," he said distractedly, his eyes on the papers in his hands. "I'll call you when it's time. Just stand to the side or something for now, we're still setting up."
"Okay, thank you," she said, bowing quickly before scurrying off to the side. She was unsure where to go though. She ended up sitting alone in a far corner of the room, fanning herself with one hand. It was really hot in the room, and she became envious of the X1 members who all had little fans that they were holding. Still, their outfits looked a lot less airy and light than hers, so she was grateful for the outfit she'd been told to wear.
Eunbyeol continued fanning herself, and wished that she'd broughten water or something with her. She usually brought a bag everywhere she went, a bag to contain her phone, water, pads... things like that. But the staff had told her not to bring everything, because they'd have everything she could possibly need on set. So all she had was her phone, tucked away in one of her dress pockets.
She figured there was water for her somewhere around here, but as she scanned the filming site, she found that she was too nervous to actually get up and look for some. She was too nervous to ask anyone too.
"Would you like some water?"
She looked up to see Seungwoo standing next to her, holding out an unopened bottle of water.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, unable to contain her surprised expression as she jumped out of her chair, almost tripping and falling to the ground.
Seungwoo grabbed onto one of her arms, steadying her. "Be careful," he warned. "We wouldn't want you to get hurt before filming even starts," he teased, letting go of her arm as she stood straight again, and holding out the water bottle to her again.
"That would be bad," she agreed, taking the water. "Thank you. Um... I'm Moon Eunbyeol, nice to meet you," she said quickly, realizing that she forgot to greet him.
"It's nice to meet you too," he said, taking her hand and placing a small handheld fan in her palm. "If you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask me, or any of the members or staff. We'll be happy to help," he said, smiling kindly at her.
"Thank you," she said, bowing as he walked away. She sat down in her chair again, her heart racing at that sudden interaction.
Eunbyeol, if you're so flustered over that, how are you going to film the scenes?
Self doubt suddenly plagued her, and she took a few sips of the cool water, trying to calm herself down and organize her thoughts. She put down the water and began pacing nervously. At least the fan was helping her.
"Moon Eunbyeol!"
She startled at the sound of the director's voice, but quickly placed her fan on the chair next to her water and ran over without hesitation.
"We're going to do the first shot," he told her as he began walking towards some of the members who were practicing. "You read the instructions, right? Don't worry, you'll have a practice run and then we'll try to get it perfect the second time, alright?"
She nodded, too nervous to say anything as the director picked Hangyul and Wooseok from the group of practicing boys. He brought the three of them to the middle of the makeshift stage, and for a moment, feeling all eyes turn to her made her nervous.
"It's a school concept, and we're at a school dance," the director said, skimming through his packet of papers as he gave them instructions. "Eunbyeol, you're standing on the sidelines, okay? Wooseok and Hangyul, you'll start to walk towards her at the same time. Wooseok, you get there first, offer her your hand, and lead her to the dance floor. The spotlight will stay on you guys, and Hangyul... look sad as you watch them. Think of this like a drama," the director joked. "You guys are filming your first drama."
Wooseok and Hangyul laughed, and she gave a nervous chuckle too.
"We'll do a few run-throughs with just the three of you, and then we'll bring in the other members and the extras to the stage, and try filming, okay? Let's get this right!" the director said excitedly, grinning at the three of them. "Okay, places now."
Eunbyeol ran to the far side of the stage, and everyone else took their places.
She closed her eyes, taking a breath and settling her nerves.
You're not Moon Eunbyeol. You're a movie star. A girl adored by every guy in the room. You're the main character.
When her eyes fluttered open again, when she heard the director yell "action", she was ready. She was more than ready. She was in actor-mode, nervously and sadly playing with her fingers, her gaze trained to the floor.
She heard the sounds of footsteps but didn't look up until Wooseok was standing right in front of her. Then slowly, she lifted her gaze to meet his.
Wooseok wordlessly held out his hand to her, his eyes gentle and kind. A shy smile played on her lips as she took his hand, following him to the dance floor.
