No one wants to live anymore. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjIcE6DrjdI
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ns9GqWnJm
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5UxfACONaw
21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXoqb9mkHD
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75PH2YH3gs
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8CfPVVCdXi
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPCqoMsy6w9
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9JQyU92hgZ
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrSw9E2tg1Q
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeyXA7lZuWT
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vJwftelxv
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT7JaGP34g3
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, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡal2tnkNbkB
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, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtNMrcKxNT2
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjtnMNcXh15
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD8TzpNb15K
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRwMCJqN7n2
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI2TGV9Kkh6
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd3VweV8Sef
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. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0aaLJ6jw10
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!”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8IMzWE1ory
“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. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQzF7cGvGwq
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. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiQ3mH9Cz4
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—— 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrc3e2VpVBS
because when everyone’s about to explode, 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsSVWR0v6Lj
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHgwkNbJ1K
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1HsWY2ND54
But these people… 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHqmuGFZ59
were already done with it.
