Love Me Stage Left; Soonhoon

05

11 JANUARY

"ALRIGHT, PEOPLE! THE opening sequence is one of the most iconic scenes in the entire film – let's give it all we got!"

Heechul's voice comes ringing through the auditorium much too enthusiastically for a group of worn-out teenagers, and Jihoon can't help feeling bad when no one makes the effort to respond to it. Actually, that's a lie – Yoojung claps her hands rapidly from her corner of the room, a clunky camera slung around her neck because she's apparently part of the yearbook club (and Jihoon has to wonder, what does this girl not do?).

Although none of them will readily admit to it, their esteemed director has a point: the opening sequence is pretty important, and Jihoon has been running around like a chicken with its head cut off to ensure that it goes smoothly. Thankfully, it's one of the easier scenes, with only two actors and the backdrop to worry about. And Jihoon doesn't even need to worry about the latter – it's out of his realm of control, and it looks great.

When Minghao isn't helping out in the costume department, he's lending a hand to the art students working on set design; at one point, Vernon looks at the backdrop – a huge, hanging canvas that's been painted – and whistles. "The beach set looks sick." Minghao nods in agreement.

"Right? Ten worked on it, mostly. He's really good." And he is, clearly. It's a big thing, having to cover the width of the stage, but it almost looks entirely made of watercolor; shadow and light are used perfectly to highlight the high points of the water, crashing over the shore, and to add depth where depth is needed. The grains in the sand almost look real, like Jihoon could sift through them with his hands, the waves pouring over jagged rocks in the background.

When Soonyoung comes on stage, in denim capris and a yellow button up that Jihoon knows they'll be making fun of later, Chaeyoung follows him and they stand together in front of the set. They look good, and Jihoon isn't too petty to admit it; part of what made Chaeyoung so perfect for the role was her short blonde cut, which she'd started sporting a couple weeks before auditions, and Soonyoung is actually pulling off his greaser hairstyle.

They start running through the scene – Danny and Sandy (Soonyoung and Chaeyoung) running across the beach, holding hands, showing the perfect picture of summer love to 1980s Americans. Lovely.

This time, Jihoon is petty, and he can't help shoving two fingers down his throat to Wonwoo next to him while they watch.

From where Jihoon is standing offstage, Chaeyoung's back is to him and he can see Soonyoung's face. He can picture the look in her eyes, imitating that of the actress in the actual film; sparkling, wide and sweet. She says, "Danny, is this the end?" and Soonyoung smiles, little creases folding at the corners of his eyes.

"Of course not. It's only the beginning."

It's sweet, it's exactly what the script calls for and with all the right emotion. Soonyoung is a theatre kid in all his annoying, obnoxious qualities, but he's also genuinely talented. Chaeyoung holds her own, too. Heechul did have to take some creative liberties in adapting the original screenplay to make it less – well, suggestive though, so the kiss comes after this. Jihoon reminds himself that it's not a big deal. It's acting, after all, and only lasts about two seconds. He's got no reason to blow a fuse over it.

But he swears he's not imagining it when Soonyoung meets his eye from across the stage before going in for the kiss. It's heavy and startling, and Jihoon's insides turn to gelatin when he sees it. When their lips meet, he can still feel Soonyoung's gaze lingering on him. He swallows.