feel me | yeonbin

001

Yeonjun sees red.

The red blinking lights of cameras trained on him, surrounding him from all sides like a well-coordinated and benign attack. He's used to the attention. He's used to being filmed. In fact, he's most comfortable in front of a camera. Always has been.

"This question is for Choi Yeonjun."

The pen stills between his fingers as Yeonjun glances up with a practiced smile, eyes searching the sea of press for the speaker. He recognizes the woman; she's attended his press conferences in the past. Yeonjun is almost certain that she's a quiet fan of his work, because her reviews don't show up online for any other shows or movies unless he's on the cast list.

"Yeonjun, you came right off the set of The Tenant Upstairs and onto the set of Cheap Kills," she says into the microphone, her laptop screen illuminating her face. "Did you find it difficult to switch from humble landlord to sadistic thrill killer?"

"Thank you so much for your question," Yeonjun says as he adjusts the flimsy cubed decoration attached to the microphone with the Cheap Kills logo on it. The words roll off his tongue at this point. "Uh, to be honest, landlord and thrill killer are sometimes synonymous, since landlords tend to kill your wallet and bank account."

The collective laughter is polite from the press, even though Yeonjun's castmates are all suppressing real laughter without the filter. The corners of Yeonjun's mouth twitch as he readjusts the mic in his hand. Press conferences are just another work day for him, a staple of his ten-year career, though the staple only bounded the pages of the last four years of his time in the spotlight.

"No, no, what I mean to say is-I found the switch to be much easier with my castmates by my side," Yeonjun says instead with a smile. "They encouraged me and helped me get into the mindset without losing myself. I got a lot of good advice and guidance from them for this role, so I'm grateful."

It's a token answer, and the media is pleased as Yeonjun nods and sets down the mic, sliding the switch to OFF with his thumb as he does. The next question comes, but it's for the cast as a whole, and Yeonjun doodles his own name on his notepad in English as he listens and nods along. The follow-up question is for his Cheap Kills love interest, and Kwon Yeyoung answers the question with grace; Yeonjun adores her. She has a millennial sense of humor and they have good chemistry together. With his pen still on the paper, Yeonjun starts to draw a calico cat.

"My question is for Yeonjun," the journalist declares, so Yeonjun positions his pen over the notepad, ready. He can tell that this man's question isn't going to be deep and thought-provoking just by the playful lilt in his voice. "Hi, Yeonjun, how are you? I'm a fan of your work. In the previews, we see your character threatening a young man from a large conglomerate. How does Daeul feel about that?"

Yeonjun exhales sharply through his nose when he laughs with a shake of his head as the press chortles again, this time without the polite edge and with a little more amusement, like they're already chummy with Yeonjun, the best of friends. It's like Yeonjun can feel the way they all lean forward so that they can capture Yeonjun's response in fascination.

"I'm sure he's just glad that it's not him," Yeonjun replies. The press is in the palm of his hand, of course, because they laugh again. They don't know the reality. A few cameras flash like a picture can capture Yeonjun's spoken words, and on his left, Yeyoung nudges Yeonjun with an elbow good-naturedly, tucking her hair behind her ear. Yeonjun grins at her, setting the mic down politely again, but the next journalist lifts her hand.

"To follow up on that," she says eagerly, "will we get to see the happy couple on the premiere red carpet together?"

"Ah, focus on the show, focus on the show," Yeonjun insists, waving his hand dismissively over the laughter. "No one has asked Yeyoung about all that fake blood yet. It tasted like cherry."