CH35
Some cite differences in muscle and physique, while others claim it's merely a matter of infrastructure.
'I don't know if it's because I'm Asian, but I've never been particularly strong physically.'
Perhaps it was due to being abused and wandering the streets during his growth years, but he'd never been able to win a fight through strength.
This was similar during his childhood.
Some kids grew so fast it made him wonder if their food was mixed with growth enhancers.
Just like a kid who just tumbled to the ground.
Ian rushed to the child who had fallen.
"Harvey! Can you hear me? Are you okay?"
Football is a rough sport.
There are frequent reports of youth players dying.
Harvey sat up abruptly when asked if he was seriously hurt.
"What just happened? Why did I fly away!"
Ian couldn't explain his suspicions, so he playfully responded, "How am I supposed to know? Weren't you just careless?"
"Hmm. But I don't"t think it was enough to make me roll around."
Harvey, unable to shake off his suspicion, was teased by the surrounding kids.
"Pfft! Harvey is such a loser! Always acting so high and mighty."
"Let me try to imitate Harvey. Aaaah?! Rolling around like this?"
"Shut up! Ian, let's try again! Please?"
Ian nodded agreeably, curious whether it was a fluke.
They donned their protective gear carefully, with the coach's permission to tackle safely.
"Shall we go then?"
At Harvey's shout, they both ran.
Wham!
A heavy impact was felt on the shoulder pads.
Although no one fell as before, the coach and others were startled.
'It wasn't a fluke?'
Surprisingly, Harvey, who was much larger and taller, started to get pushed back.
Ian's understanding of technique and tactics was known to be superior, but dominating in a test of strength was another story.
If it were an adult, steroid use might be suspected.
After a brief struggle, Ian eased up as he saw Harvey's stance crumble.
It was clear. It wasn't just a good day.
'My physical abilities have improved.'
Ian flexed his still-energized hands.
He felt capable of doing well in any action.
***
'…Why did I have such a ridiculous thought?'
Regret washed over him for being so arrogant over a slight improvement in physical condition.
Ian's body shook violently in despair.
"Ian! You said you'd play until we're sick of it today! Get up!"
"Right! How can you be tired already after playing so little?!"
"You've been busy with other dramas lately and haven't played with us much. Hurry up! Please?"
Surrounded by the child actors of Invisible Children, Ian sighed deeply.
He wanted to beat up his past self for boastfully promising to play with the kids he had neglected due to other commitments.
He thought dealing with zombies would be much easier.
Just then, a savior-like voice called out.
"Ian! It's your turn for the next scene!"
"Yes! Did you hear that, guys?"
Don't you want to spare me now?
After a word spoken in jest turned into a real ordeal, the assistant director smiled at Ian.
"I know it's hard, but please understand. The season's filming is almost over. They're acting like this because they'll miss you."
"I know."
Ian looked around the set as he responded.
"Time has flown by so quickly."
The once unfamiliar set had become as familiar as the back of his hand.
He had spent so much time on set.
"And it's been almost a year since I returned to the past."
A year.
Before returning, he would have been satisfied with just a handful of zombie role appearances.
He could never have dreamed of filming two dramas at once.
Content with how he had spent the year, Ian arrived on set.
Zombies clustered around a car smashed into a building.
"Alright, since Ian is the child actor for this shoot, it's okay to act as scary as possible, got it?"
"Of course. Ian's probably the bravest one here, right?"
"Honestly, it's a bit much to call him a child."
Ian, embodying Noah's symbol, struck the ground with an iron rod.
"You know there's a scene today where I kill zombies, right? You might get hit by this rod."
"Hahaha, don't worry, the ones getting stabbed are just dummies. See over there?"
Following Miles' pointing finger, Ian saw a realistically made zombie dummy.
With the dummy ready to take the place of the zombie actors, Ian shrugged his shoulders playfully.
"Do you know? My hand might slip."
Even though it was a dangerous joke, everyone just laughed it off.
It wasn't the first time such a scene had happened, and everyone knew that Ian was always the most concerned about safety.
"Alright, let's start shooting."
As the director spoke, Ian let out a long breath.
Noah, who had a strong attachment to life, always prioritized his safety even when helping others.
Luring zombies to save other children was not typical behavior for Noah.
'It changed after being with the protagonist.'
The courage to sacrifice oneself for others and the greed for life.
Noah was constantly torn between these two.
Clap!
With the sound of the slate, the cries of zombies rang out.
"I must be crazy. Totally crazy!"
Noah cursed as he hit a metal sign on the ground with a stick.
With a clear clang, the zombies turned their cloudy, cataract-filled eyes towards Noah.
-Kyaaaaak!
"Aaaaaah!"
Noah ran away from the zombies and dodged them.
A staff member, surprised by the scene, said to the director,
"Huh? It seems faster than usual."
"Indeed."
It wasn't just a simple mistake; the sudden increase in distance made the zombie actors surprisingly speed up.
"Actually, it's good."
The excitement is provided by the speed.
It felt more precarious.
As Noah reached an SUV with a badly dented front, the director was about to cut the shoot.
Climbing up to the roof alone while escaping zombies would be difficult, right?
"Huh!"
Seeing Ian easily climb onto the roof higher than himself using the stick, the staff were stunned.
"…Should we cut?"
"Let's watch a bit more."
There was no rush to get the insert shots. After filming the zombies aggressively shaking the car, the director approached Ian.
"Ian, you seem to be in good shape today. No need for a stunt actor!"
"Speaking of which, shall we try jumping from the rooftop?"
"Uh, don't say such horrifying things. Don't you know 'rooftop' is a taboo word in our shooting location?"
The director, disgusted by Ian's joke, gestured for a model to be brought in.
A staff member tapped the head of a model, which didn't look out of place even among the zombie actors.
"Just thrust your head forcefully. Got it?"
The model, unlike its wax and special material exterior, was filled with plaster inside.
The staff left after informing me that it was okay to stab as much as wanted, and the shooting resumed.
As zombies aggressively climbed onto the roof, Ian powerfully thrust the stick towards the head of a model resting on the roof.
Really powerfully.
Thwack!
"…Huh?"
The head that was torn off rolled on the ground, and silence fell over the shooting site.
Ian, who had clumsily climbed down from the roof, picked up the fallen head and awkwardly asked,
"…Shall we do it again?"
It seemed that he needed to be careful about controlling his strength from now on.
It was the day before his birthday.
***
March 1st.
It was his birthday, but Ian hardly remembered having a birthday party.
Not to mention the foster homes that hardly took care of him, let alone gave him the luxury to celebrate his birthday while wandering the streets.
For Ian, who would have been unremorseful even if he died immediately without the goal of becoming an actor, his birthday was not a day to celebrate.
It was the day he was dropped into this painful world.
So, the current scenery was unfamiliar to him.
"…So you're Dorothy?"
"I am Dorothy. But who are you?"
Rachel, sizing up Dorothy like a kitten with its fur bristled, and
"Wow! It's really Ben Roberts! Do you really hate child actors?"
"Yes, I do, so go play among yourselves."
"Why? Why do you hate them? Don't you like Ian?"
Even faced with Ben's cold attitude, Larry clung to him, causing disgust.
Wasn't this a perfect description of a total mess?
"Is it really okay to invite only this many people?"
With Daniel included, the trio from Beverly Hills Moms, Ayla and her daughter, and Ben Roberts,
Wondering if she invited too few people and caused any inconvenience, Chloe worried, but Ian shook his head.
"I've received enough celebration at school and on the Invisible Children shooting site. And look, there are plenty of gifts piled up over there."
He pointed to the stack of gift boxes in a corner of the house.
They were temporarily piled there because he couldn't muster the energy to take them up to his second-floor room.
"Birthday parties feel somewhat embarrassing."
Most homeless people live because they can't die.
Having lived among people who had to think of funerals before birthdays, birthdays were absent from his memory.
If his parents hadn't mentioned it, he might have completely forgotten about it.
"If that's the case for you, that's good, but let's invite more friends next time."
"We'll see then."
Daniel approached Ian timidly as he responded indifferently to Chloe.
"…Happy birthday."
"Thanks. You're auditioning for a movie this time?"
"Yes!"
Daniel, who was delighted to have gotten into a movie audition he had never had the chance to before, suddenly tensed up.
"It's for the role of the protagonist's childhood, so they need a white child actor. You can't participate."
"Who said anything about stealing the role?"
Ian responded curtly, rolling the word 'audition' around in his mouth.
'A movie audition, huh? I should look into it.'
There would be quite some free time between the end of Invisible Children Season 1 and the start of the next season.
Beverly Hills Moms didn't have many shooting days to begin with.
'I'd like to try shooting a movie this time.'
Not to mention dubbing, dramas, and movies are different.
Even an editor who won an Emmy, the Oscars of broadcasting, for editing would be doubted if they could edit a movie.
Naturally, the shooting sites are different too.
When Daniel mentioned the movie audition, Ian suddenly felt ambitious.
"I guess I should sign with an agency first. You've signed with one, haven't you?"
"I did it recently. They informed me about this audition."
Several major agencies that had been postponing appointments were now requesting to meet, saying they wanted to see him.
'The agencies are hot on my trail because of Charlotte.'
Charlotte's exposé had spread beyond Herman to others.
Hollywood was in turmoil with revelations about famous directors and actors popping up left and right.
In a situation where it was uncertain where the sparks would fly next, Ian, whose image had improved, was a coveted property.
As he was thinking of meeting with agencies, the doorbell rang, and Chloe's surprised voice could be heard.
"Oh my, Director!"
"How have you been?"
It was Gavin Davis, the director.
The three child actors recognized him and their eyes widened in surprise.
They knew Ben and Ayla were close to Ian, but they didn't expect him to be acquainted with Director Davis.
Ian approached Gavin, unfazed by the surprise of others.
"What brings you here? You said you couldn't make it."
"I just stopped by to give a gift. I'm really busy and have to go soon."
"Is that so?"
"Why don't you come out for a bit? Let's talk, just the two of us."
Wondering what kind of gift required a private talk, Ian stepped outside.
As the door closed with a thud, the faint voices of the excited children could be heard inside.
"What's the gift?"
"An audition opportunity. For a movie, I'm directing."
"Wow! A movie by you, Director? What kind of movie is it?"
A movie by the maestro, Gavin Davis.
Every actor coveted a spot in his films, and Gavin mentioned it casually as he handed over a piece of paper.
"It's an action movie with SF elements. It's about a hunter catching aliens hiding on Earth."
"Oh."
It was a well-known movie. Too famous, in fact.
Ian took the paper, smiled broadly, and responded.
"I'm really grateful, but I'm going to pass."
"…Why?"
Gavin, not expecting such a response, widened his eyes, and Ian explained.
"Um, I'm not sure if it'll be interesting. I'm also worried it might not suit your style."
Ian tried to put it as gently as possible, but Gavin expressed his frustration.
"Just tell me straight. I won't take it badly."
If that's what he wanted, Ian had no choice but to be honest.
"It seems like it's going to bomb."
"It's going to bomb?"
Yes, it was going to be a disaster. Not just any disaster.
A catastrophic failure that would end Gavin's directing career.
The paper in front of him was definitely a ticking time bomb.