No one wants to live anymore. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0DqiMuY07g
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkqpIMYwEe
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2eZupU5BEO
37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt2w2dSGLPP
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WH51LkXTM
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIQ1NFGviaK
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUNoJZTRyXM
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlk06qVLA5M
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gTabhh20b
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH4MAbOVFe9
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM18PgkGZoo
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4CAmDU5y1H
his face was grayer than drywall, and the circles under his eyes deep enough to drown in.
“I mean… just because I went to bed late doesn’t mean I’m immune to sleep.”
He slumped into the chair with a sound like a bellows giving up its last breath.
Next came the art lead, carrying an empty egg tart box of unknown origin.
“So… food really can taste like nothing…”
She stared blankly at the box.
“I did add Thai basil…”
No one asked why there was Thai basil in an egg tart.
When the director walked in, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡouahVuwusc
this was the scene he saw:
The manager sitting upright, still looking somewhat operational.
But their tie was off by thirty degrees, one sleeve rolled up, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOeLKDA9eIV
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwxhhNoULVr
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI4l4PqHiyr
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCbReM7FdNK
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRytfHEhjku
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPeovf7j1y
The screenwriter let out a cold laugh.
“So we’re wrapping up a nearly 80,000-word script on the last day? Seriously?”
“And me…”
“I still have to get a bar, a warehouse, props, costumes, blood packs, a flying lighter, and the key to a pair of handcuffs… all in 24 hours.”
The art lead chanted the list like a curse.
“At this point, I’m not even sure if that handcuff belongs to our prop box or the boss’s personal collection…”
The manager didn’t join in the sarcasm. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvjjMq38y6D
Instead, he calmly opened his notebook.
“We need to cast two male actors this afternoon. The kind who are comfortable with explicit scenes.”
“Requirements: not shy, okay with blood, able to handle brutal filming hours, and with good chemistry…”
He glanced up mid-sentence.
“Because the director says there’s no time for rehearsal.”
The director looked up.
“I never said no rehearsals!”37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡytio5KtoqV
“I said… maybe we’ll have to act with our eyes.”
The room went quiet for a beat.
Then, the art lead pulled out another egg tart, plucked the Thai basil out, and dropped it into her coffee cup.
“Mmmh…”
“This is straight-up impossible.”
“Everyone knows it—except our beloved client.”
“At this point, I kinda feel like we’re being hunted.”
“We basically exorcised our own damn spirits——only to find out the script is called _Guiltbound_?”
“The next one should be called Deliverance. So we can deliver ourselves.”
The director looked around the table. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0pg5XN4qFh
Everyone had dead eyes, cold coffee, and the collective thought of never wanting to wake up again.
“The name?” he asked.
“Main character’s name.”
This time, all three fell silent.
Three seconds later, the art lead bit into her tart and said:
“Just call him ‘Tragic.’ Then we’ll have a couple: Tragic × More Tragic.”
The manager flipped through the notes.
“Or maybe Shen… something Shen… you know, like ‘sink-to-the-bottom’ Shen.”
The director didn’t answer. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyGmSorIeXA
He quietly wrote down a few names, thinking he’d fix them later.
He didn’t want to disturb the fragile balance in the room—— 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYFvg9TwDoE
because when everyone’s about to explode, 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtrPQzNhpZj
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvw2N1F7fMx
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxROgDdwGxJ
But these people… 37Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXwMeOjbyE
were already done with it.
