Chapter 86: Pick One for Me
by Gideon“Um… Zion? Could you…”
As Zion gently pushed him away, Do-won watched from the side, pouting as he gave Zion a pitiful look.
“Babe, what about me?”
“Why am I your ‘babe’?”
“Are you bored of me already?! How can your love change so easily?!”
Do-won threw a tantrum, demanding that Zion hug him too.
Zion turned away as if annoyed, but Do-won, now completely fired up, grabbed Zion’s collar and playfully yanked it upward.
Everyone’s eyes were instantly glued to Zion’s now-exposed abdomen.
“Ah, seriously. What are you touching?”
Flustered, Zion yanked his collar back down. Jubin quickly averted his gaze, sensing Zion’s embarrassment, but the others didn’t.
They kept stealing glances at Zion, their eyes filled with lingering longing.
Jubin felt uncomfortable under the weight of everyone’s gaze fixed on Zion.
“Hey, babe, you hit the gym early this morning, didn’t you? Your abs are harder than chocolate these days. They’re like steel. Pure steel!”
Do-won let out a sly, amused chuckle.
“If you’re so jealous, hyung, maybe you should start working out too.”
“Why would I do that when I can just look at your abs whenever I’m jealous?”
Ah, I can’t let this pointless jealousy show…
Jubin tightened his resolve, desperate to keep his swirling emotions from leaking out.
This was the kind of bickering that would have gone on forever if their manager hadn’t stepped in to stop them.
“Actor Do Zion, I knew you had a great build and were tall, but you’re really huge,” Joo-won said, stepping closer to Jubin in admiration.
Do Zion is just… fully grown.
Jubin swallowed the words, too embarrassed to say them aloud.
Suddenly, he found himself wondering exactly how much taller Zion was than him.
“Is there a big difference between us?”
“Just a bit. About this much?” Joo-won gestured, spreading his hand wide to show the approximate gap.
“Why are you asking?”
“Ah, I was just thinking… I’d like there to be a noticeable difference in our builds when we’re in a two-shot.”
In the drama, Hyeonseo would waste away day by day, suffering under Wang Se-gyeom’s extreme torment as the story progressed.
Unless they filmed all the later episodes at once, dieting for every single scene would be impossible…
Besides, if there was a clear contrast in their physiques, the audience would visually grasp the power dynamic between the two characters.
“No way… Are you planning to lose more weight?”
Jubin answered honestly, his gaze questioning why Joo-won was so surprised.
“Um, maybe a little?”
“Hyung, you’ve already lost so much weight recently. You don’t need to lose any more. Can’t you just… not do it?”
Had I really lost that much weight?
Jubin thought his jawline looked a bit sharper in the mirror while washing his face, but the scale hadn’t shown a significant change.
“Do you think I’ll look bad if I lose any more?”
“I’m worried your features will look too harsh.”
“Oh, really?”
Jubin’s resolve wavered at Zion’s firm opposition.
“Alright! Let’s start the chemistry read.”
Director Bae Eun-hye, having finished her preparations, opened the door to the conference room and called Jubin and Zion inside. Jubin grabbed his script and entered first, his eyes immediately landing on the taffy on the table.
“It’s taffy,” he remarked.
Zion followed him in, casually draping an arm over Jubin’s shoulder with a smile. The sight of the taffy sent a strange shiver through Jubin.
“Yeah, it is,” Jubin replied, forcing his voice to remain calm.
“There’s only one thing we can do with taffy, right?”
Instead of answering, he nodded in agreement.
The candy kiss scene doesn’t even happen until the latter half of the script, Jubin thought. Why are we practicing it now?
“Alright, let’s focus on your two scenes,” Director Bae Eun-hye said, reviewing the marked-up script on the table across from them. “We’ll start from the first meeting.”
Under her guidance, the two began to run through their scenes.
Working one-on-one was a stark contrast to the full table read. The focused atmosphere allowed Jubin to concentrate much better. Moreover, Zion’s voice—now far smoother and more grounded than it had been when they were younger—helped ease Jubin’s tension.
A faint smile tugged at his lips as he recalled their days in class together.
His diction is flawless, his projection is perfect, and his voice… well, that goes without saying.
His effortless aura was so captivating that I couldn’t help but respect him as a fellow actor.
“Hmm, Segyeom, I want your tone to get drier and more detached toward the end. But when you get angry, I want it to feel like a sudden, explosive outburst…”
As expected of Director Bae Eun-hye, the master of detail. She always set her expectations at the absolute limit of an actor’s capabilities, which made her demands both demanding and precise.
“Hyeonseo, you start off bright and innocent, but from the midpoint on, I need to see more of that stifled frustration—like you’re suppressing your emotions until they’re about to burst.”
Jubin meticulously noted down the director’s advice. I’ll have to go home today and study exactly how to adjust my tone and mood for every single line.
“Um, Director?”
“Yeah? What is it?”
“Is the size difference between me and Zion okay?”
Director Bae Eun-hye stood up, stepped back a few paces, and studied the two men for a long moment before tilting her head.
“There’s a difference, but…”
She seemed disappointed that they didn’t meet the specific contrast she was looking for. Jubin, thinking the same, spoke up first.
“I’ll manage my weight.”
“Why should only you do it? I’ll do it too,” Zion countered.
As they bickered over who would take on the burden, Director Bae Eun-hye hummed thoughtfully before issuing an order.
“Both of you, stand up. Face each other and hug as hard as you can.”
Jubin and Zion rose in unison and pulled each other into an embrace.
As if by design, Zion ended up doing the holding while Jubin was the one being held.
“The height difference is perfect,” the director mused. “I think it would be great if Jubin fit perfectly in his arms. But don’t overdo the weight management. You’re not bad as you are.”
“I’ll adjust as much as I can,” Jubin said, trying to pull away naturally. But for some reason, Zion held him tight, refusing to let go.
“Do Zion?”
Jubin shot him a look that clearly asked, Can you let go now? But Zion just shook his head in refusal and hugged him even tighter.
“Stay just like that for a moment.”
The request felt ominous. Director Bae Eun-hye tore open a piece of taffy she’d already set on the table, a mischievous grin spreading across her face.
“Ta-da!”
Is she really about to do something with that? Jubin watched her warily.
“About that final taffy-kiss scene… I wasn’t sure what size we’d need, so I’ve prepared a few different sizes, all marked.”
Which meant…
“Take some time to practice and pick the best size.”
Jubin blinked, speechless, as Zion tightened his embrace, clearly pleased with himself.
“We need to decide on the approximate size and shape,” Director Bae Eun-hye explained, “but the staff can’t really test it out, and just imagining it has its limits.”
She then turned to the two of them. “I’m counting on you,” she said, pressing a cardboard box filled with various sizes of yeot—traditional taffy—firmly into their hands.
“Leave it to us,” Zion replied confidently, flashing a grin as he looked to Jubin for confirmation. “Right, sunbae?”
Do Zion is way too excited, Jubin thought. He’s so thrilled he has no intention of letting go.
“I’ll do my best,” Jubin agreed lightly.
“Great. I’ll leave it in your hands. Could you two clear the spot for the next person?”
Director Bae Eun-hye seemed to find the sight of Zion hugging Jubin completely natural, treating it as if it were the most casual thing in the world.
Jubin tried to subtly push against Zion’s broad chest, which was pressed firmly against him, refusing to let go.
“Who’s next?” he asked.
“Ji-soo and Chan-gyu,” the director replied.
“Yes, I’ll call them right away.”
Jubin struggled with all his might to pry Zion off, but the man wouldn’t budge. He ended up being dragged out of the room, still trapped in the embrace.
“Ji-soo, Chan-gyu! Please go in,” Jubin called out loudly.
Ji-soo pretended not to see them and walked right past. Chan-gyu, however, couldn’t help but comment, “Aren’t you two a little too close?”
“Hahaha…”
Jubin offered an awkward laugh, letting it stand in for an answer. Even after they stepped outside, Zion refused to let go, forcing Jubin to finally snap.
“…Get off me.”
Jubin wanted to ask Joo-won for help, but he was nowhere to be seen.
“But you smell so good, sunbae.”
With that, Zion only squeezed him tighter. Jubin sighed softly and asked, defeated, “Aren’t you hot?”
What is wrong with him? Why is he clinging to me even more?
A shiver ran down Jubin’s spine from the subtle touch, and he pushed Zion away with a low, warning voice. “Hey, stop messing around. That’s enough.”
“Alright,” Zion replied, stepping back obediently.
Do-won, returning from the lounge with coffee, glanced at the paper bags in their hands and asked a question.
“What’s that? Did the director give you guys gifts?”
Jubin sighed and shook his head. “No, it’s a mission.”
“A mission?”
Do-won immediately grasped the implication of the mission and burst into laughter. “What? Do you two seriously have to practice the taffy kiss?”
“You’re the one who said it during the table read, Do-won,” Jubin said, letting out a small sigh before playfully shifting the blame.
“I’ll buy you some expensive wine~ Drink it while you’re at it~”
He’s totally just watching the fire from across the river, Zion thought.
Do-won left the reading room again, claiming he needed to use the restroom, leaving the two of them alone once more.
Zion leaned against the common table, using it as a makeshift chair, and asked Jubin, “I heard you turned down Iconic Mood?”
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