The Scandal | VSOO

thirty-three | off-script

Third Person POV

Two weeks had passed since the initial filming, and it had been exactly that long since the two leads had seen each other.

So far, the schedule had worked in Jisoo's favour. Separate scenes. Separate storylines. Separate worlds. Jisoo filmed alone, or with other cast members, carefully orbiting a version of the drama that didn't require him.

It was easier that way.

She didn't have to think about him...her coworker, as she now insisted on calling him.

And for a while, it worked.

As the days went on, Jisoo found her rhythm. Early call times, late-night shoots, the constant shuffle of scripts and wardrobe changes, it all started to feel natural. Familiar, even.

To her and to everyone else's surprise, acting wasn't nearly as difficult as she'd imagined.

It helped that her character felt... close.

Too close.

The emotions came easily. The heartbreak, the hesitation, the quiet longing, it all lived somewhere inside her already. She didn't have to create it.

She just had to remember.

"You've been fidgeting since we got into the van."

Irene's voice cut through the silence. From the driver's seat, she glanced at Jisoo through the rearview mirror, watching her flip through the same page of the script for what felt like the hundredth time, her fingers tapping restlessly against the paper.

"UGH!" Jisoo groaned, dropping her head back dramatically.

"Unnie!!! It's not too late to turn back the van and tell them I'm sick." Jisoo whined.

Irene let out a quiet sigh.

She knew exactly what today meant.

Today was the day Jisoo and Taehyung would finally film together again.

And suddenly, all that confidence Jisoo had built over the past two weeks seemed to unravel at the edges.

Irene was still in a dilemma, as Jisoo's manager and practically older sister, she can't help but feel a sense of worry having Jisoo interact with Taehyung so often. She's afraid he'll hurt her again and if he does, she wasn't sure Jisoo would survive it a second time.

But then there was Rosé's voice, lingering in her mind. A memory from when Rosé reached out to Irene for help,

If they can't go back... at least let them end it properly.

Closure.

It sounded simple.

It never was.

Still... Irene knew Jisoo deserved that much. A conversation. An ending that didn't leave cracks behind.

Maybe this drama, ironically, would give them what real life hadn't.

"Jisoo," Irene said lightly, masking her thoughts with a teasing tone, "if you keep acting like this, I might start to think you still have feelings for your ex-boyfriend."

"Unnie!" Jisoo shot up instantly. "Over my dead body. As if I'd have feelings for my coworker. He wishes he could have me!!!"

Jisoo's grip tightened around her script again, knuckles paling slightly as her eyes dropped back to the page.

She read the same lines.

Again.

And again.

And again.