Page 23 of ASAP
I read the script for Sun’s drama on the train ride to the filming location, which is a small town on the eastern coast of the peninsula. The Sea Prince is a fantasy romance about an amnesiac deity who washes up on shore during a particularly bad storm—his doing—and is rescued by a local fisherman’s daughter. She’s got a grudge against the god for sending all those awful storms. She, of course, doesn’t know the identity of the mysterious naked man. Rom-com hijinks ensue as the heroine is a level-headed country girl and the sea prince is literally a fish out of water.
Hyemi’s role in the episode is that of a schoolgirl who stumbles upon a magical conch shell holding the Sea Prince’s memories. Nathaniel plays a water god who inhabits a local bathhouse. And I...
“I’m playing a mermaid?” I look up from the script. Secretary Park sits across from me. As Joah’s representative, she’s accompanying Hyemi and me to the filming site. The scriptwriter, who must have worked through the night to come up with our individual storylines, sent the revised script to Secretary Park, who in turn, reviewed the contents before printing them out and delivering them to us.
“Yes,” Secretary Park says, “a mermaid who’s fond of warmer temperatures, which is why you eventually end up at the bathhouse.”
Hyemi stirs from where she’s curled up in the window seat. Immediately upon boarding the train, she’d fallen asleep, and neither Secretary Park nor I had the heart to wake her.
Hyemi’s role in the episode, unlike Nathaniel’s and mine, is actually significant to the plot. Her character’s family puts the magical conch up for sale after she brings it to them, leading Sun to discover the conch and restore his memories, the catalyst for the second half of the drama.
But even with such an important role, she doesn’t have many lines to memorize. It’s a better use of her time to catch up on much-needed sleep.
Three hours after leaving Seoul, we arrive at the station, which consists of a single platform and three tracks. I haven’t been to the sea in a while, and as we exit out front, I take a deep breath of the salty, crisp air. It’s a little warmer than in Seoul, and the sun is out, so I let my cardigan fall to the crook of my elbows. Closing my eyes and tipping my head back, I stay like that for a brief moment, the sunlight warming my face and shoulders.
A production assistant waits for us in the parking lot and we drive another fifteen minutes along the coast to where the production crew has set up base camp beside the beach, with several tents and food carts.
The “set” is a functioning fishing village, whose elderly residents are being compensated for the use of their homes and businesses. They were also extended invitations to act as extras in the drama itself, with many of them taking up the offer if only to impress their grandchildren.
“Min Sori-ssi, Woo Hyemi-ssi.” A man wearing black metal frame sunglasses with orange gradient lenses and stubble on his chin—presumably the drama’s director—greets us upon arrival. While giving us a brief tour of the set, he explains the day’s schedule. Hyemi will film her first scene by the beach, which is where she’ll discover the magical conch shell, and then I’ll film mine by the tidepools. And then later tonight, Nathaniel and I will film our scene together in the bathhouse.
As we walk from the beach toward the actors’ tent, I notice a dazed-looking woman walking along the coastline holding two cups of coffee and drinking from both.
The director follows my gaze. “That’s the scriptwriter,” he whispers. “Let’s not bother her.”
Over by the tents, Sun lounges beneath a large umbrella, sunglasses on the bridge of his nose. He’s also drinking coffee, though he only has a single iced americano.
“Youngmin sent over a coffee truck,” Sun says, raising his cup. “Help yourself.” He nods to indicate a brightly colored coffee truck set up between the tents. Two baristas in matching green-striped uniforms take orders from a short line of crew members. The drinks are already prepaid by Youngmin, his face depicted on a banner that runs atop the truck with a message to Sun: CONGRATULATIONS TO THE SEA PRINCE, OH SUN! FIGHTING!
“Maybe later,” I say, my stomach feeling a little queasy now that I’m about to film my scenes.
“Where’s Nathaniel?” Sun asks. “I thought he’d come with you from Joah.”
At the mention of Nathaniel’s name, my heart starts to pound faster. I haven’t seen him since my talk with Jenny. When I got back to the house, he was on a call, and so I’d hurried upstairs. It’s unreasonable, but I have this sudden fear that he’ll know, with one glance at my face, that I’ve been thinking about being with him again, and I’m not ready for that conversation, not until I talk with my mother.
“He’s coming later with Ji Seok-oppa,” I tell Sun.
“Hyemi-ssi,” Sun says, having apparently just noticed Hyemi hovering behind me. “Hello.”
She gives him a ninety-degree bow. “Thank you so much for inviting me.”
He nod-bows back to her. “If I’m forced to endure Nathaniel’s company,” he drones, “I, at least, can have the pleasure of yours.”
“Oh, but Nathaniel-seonbae is much more talented and charming than I am,” Hyemi says.
“I see you’re a Nathaniel fan,” Sun drawls.
“I like you too! I mean...” Her entire face turns beet red.
I intervene, throwing a protective arm around Hyemi’s shoulders, then lead her away. She’s due to costume and makeup anyway. “Don’t let Sun tease you,” I say. “He wants you to say you like him best in XOXO, but he’s too old for you. You should prefer someone closer to your age.” Just like I prefer Nathaniel, who was born in the same year as me.
“Not too close,” she says, so soft I almost don’t catch it.
I raise a brow, letting my arm drop as she walks ahead. She’s not interested in Youngmin, then. Which leaves Jaewoo. I watch her pityingly. She’s in for heartbreak, as Jaewoo is very much a boy already in love.
I only have time to see Hyemi start her scene before I’m rushed to hair and makeup.
Stepping inside the tent, I’m surprised to discover that the hairstylist is none other than Kim Soobin, my friend who’d saved Hyemi and me before our recording of Catch Me If You Can.
“Eonni!” I squeal.
“Sori-yah!”
“Thank you for letting me borrow your outfit the other day,” I say, after we hug. “You were a lifesaver.”
“It was exciting to see my clothes on the episode!” She giggles.
Her girlfriend, RALA, is the makeup artist, and together they blow out my hair and affix me with rhinestones.
When the costume designer—a thin man with a shaven head and tortoiseshell glasses—arrives carrying a garment bag, Soobin introduces me. “This is our mermaid, Min Sori.”
His blue eyes—colored lenses, presumably—widen. “Oh, you are perfect.” He hurries forward, unzipping the garment bag. “Your secretary already sent over your measurements. This is what we were thinking.” Inside is a corseted bodysuit intricately beaded with pearls and stones in aquamarine, cobalt, and sapphire blue. The costume is shoulderless, and while it’ll cover my stomach and chest, it won’t cover much else. He also holds up a pair of black shorts. “You’ll wear these underneath, of course.”
He rubs the top of his head. “I know it’s a little much...”
“It’s stunning,” I say. And probably wildly uncomfortable, but I’d endure much in the name of fashion.
I smile at him. He’s clearly a genius. “I’d be honored to wear it.”
“It’s going to fit snug against your chest, is that all right? We’ll also probably have to sew you in. You ate today, right? And drank plenty of water?”
I hesitate, then say, “Yes.” Which isn’t quite the truth. I was too nervous to do much of either, but I’m feeling fine, fueled by nerves and adrenaline.
I undress behind a screen for privacy, and put on the corset, stepping out with the back untied. I breathe in as he tightens the strings of the corset, and then breathe out, feeling the pressure against my chest.
“Does it hurt?” the designer asks. “I can loosen it if it’s uncomfortable.”
I take several deep breaths. It’s a little tight, which makes me a tad uneasy, but... “I’m fine,” I reassure him.
He gestures me over to a floor-length mirror. “What do you think? We don’t want to show too much cleavage or we’ll get censored.” He laughs, as if he’s joking, but I have a feeling he isn’t. “Your long hair will cover most of it.”
I study my reflection in the mirror, turning around to admire the outfit from all sides. The structured corset is fitted perfectly to my body, clinging to my chest, narrowing at the waist, and flaring slightly at the hips. With Soobin’s makeup and the costume, the effect is stunning. “I love it,” I gush.
An assistant brings me a robe to wear over the costume, then escorts me from the tents to my first filming location, a tidepool that the set designers have accented with fake starfish and jewels. A fog machine billows a white vaporous trail over the pool, giving it a dreamy, mystical atmosphere.
After removing my robe, a different production assistant helps me step into the pool, and I find a spot to sit that isn’t too uncomfortable. I hope I’m not disturbing some poor crustacean.
“In this scene we want to give off a mysterious, ethereal aura,” the director says from behind the camera. “You’re a beautiful mermaid, caught in a tidepool with a mission to deliver a message from the Sea King to his son, but alas, you cannot speak outside the water! What to do!” I’m caught up in the director’s fervor, nodding along. “Perfect, hold that face exactly.” He films me from different angles, moving the camera along a temporary track. “Now shiver, like you’re cold. You long for warmer waters. If only there was a place you could go.”
It’s a lot like modeling, since I don’t have any lines. I’m grateful to the scriptwriter who found a workaround so I wouldn’t have to speak. Soon the director yells, “Cut!”
“That was perfect, Sori-ssi,” he says. “You’re a natural on camera.”
I step out of the pool, eagerly reaching for the robe, this time for warmth.
On the way back to the tents, there’s a crowd gathered outside Youngmin’s cart. Sun is nowhere in sight, presumably having left to film his scenes with the lead actress.
I approach Hyemi, who’s waiting by the cart, her cheeks flushed. She’s still wearing her school uniform, her character’s name printed on a small metal tag affixed to her blazer. “What’s all the commotion?” I ask.
“Nathaniel was just here,” she says, her eyes bright. “He was taking photos with some of the staff members. I took one with him too. Want to see?”
She holds up her phone. In the picture, Hyemi poses back-to-back with Nathaniel, her hand raised halfway to her face, caught mid-laughter. He must have said something to amuse her. Then my gaze travels to Nathaniel. He’s laughing too, nose scrunched, dimples on full display. I’m arrested by the sight, feeling slightly out of breath, which isn’t conducive to wearing a corset.
I’m just looking at him in a photo, and this is how I feel. How will I feel later tonight when we film our scene together? I need to make sure he doesn’t suspect anything has changed; nothing has, at least not outwardly. I just need to hide my feelings from him a little longer.I’ve done it for the past two years, what’s two more nights?