DBEM ~ 09

Chapter – 09

“Ah…”

Jun-hyup stammered, unable to find his words.

The revelation had completely caught him off guard.

Tae-o quietly studied Jun-hyup’s speechless face.

The distinctive, non-prescription glasses Jun-hyup had worn ever since they first met.

The same hairstyle he had never changed.

Despite serving faithfully at Tae-o’s side as his right-hand man for over five years, those were the only clues Tae-o had to identify him.

Truthfully, not recognizing people’s faces wasn’t a particularly significant inconvenience to Tae-o.

What troubled him far more…

Was being unable to tell what expression the person in front of him was wearing.

“So… that’s why…”

Jun-hyup’s voice trembled faintly, as though he had finally pieced everything together.

Judging from his tone, Tae-o assumed his answer had shocked him.

Turning away, Tae-o slowly spun his office chair toward the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Beyond the spotless glass, his own reflection stared back at him.

His unfamiliar features blurred together until they became nothing more than a hazy silhouette.

“First love…”

He quietly repeated the words that had slipped from his lips moments ago.

A phrase he had never imagined would come from his own mouth rolled strangely across his tongue.

In the end, a faint chuckle escaped him.

He had never realized that the nameless feelings he carried for her could be summed up with those two words.

Nor had he ever imagined he would admit them to someone else so openly.

Then…

The face filling his blurred memories surfaced once again.

A youthful face.

A face that always forced itself to smile brightly.

Soft hands…

Hands that gently wiped away the crimson blood clouding his vision.

“Can you… see my face?”

In Tae-o’s world—a world where he couldn’t recognize anyone’s face, not even his own—

She was the only woman whose face existed.

She alone was real in a world filled with lies.

How could he possibly not love her?

Bzzz—

His phone vibrated, pulling him away from the edge of his memories.

A familiar number appeared on the screen.

He had seen it before.

Yet he had never once pressed the call button.

After a brief pause, Tae-o picked up.

“Yes.”

“…Is this Director Seo Tae-o?”

The hesitant voice came cautiously, as though stepping from one stone to another across a clear stream.

Leaning comfortably back in his chair, Tae-o listened as though savoring the sound of flowing water striking smooth rocks.

Without realizing it, a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

He gestured for Jun-hyup to leave before replying leisurely,

“Yes, speaking.”

“It’s… Jung Seol-hwa. I found your number inside the envelope…”

“Ah, Ms. Jung Seol-hwa.”

Even to his own ears, his innocent tone sounded mischievous—as if he truly had no idea who was calling.

Click.

Just then, Jun-hyup quietly left the office, and Tae-o slowly spun his chair toward the window.

“I’ve finished reading the script you sent.”

If she had truly read that script…

There was no way she could refuse the drama.

Crossing one leg over the other, Tae-o calmly asked, already expecting her answer.

“And?”

But instead…

“Please let me audition. I want to be in this drama.”

It wasn’t the response he had expected.

His brows drew together as he tilted his head.

An audition?

A woman once praised as the nation’s greatest actress was asking to audition?

He would have understood if she’d confidently demanded top billing or exceptional treatment.

Was it humility?

Or the quiet confidence of a legendary actress?

“Let’s meet.”

“Right now.”

Either way…

He wanted to see her.

This woman who had defied every expectation since the day they first met.

Jung Seol-hwa—

The woman who had, after so many years, brought beauty back into his colorless world.

Studio TL Lobby

“Doesn’t Writer Kim Jin-ah seem uncomfortable that I came here?”

Chewing the gum a staff member had unwrapped for her, Ma Yu-gyeong’s face was full of irritation.

The staff trailing behind her immediately stiffened.

“No way, unni. She’s probably thrilled that you’re taking the lead. You’re a ten-million-ticket actress.”

“Then why does she look and talk like that? She wouldn’t even accept the cosmetics I gave her.”

“Writers are all like that. They’re naturally sensitive people.”

“Even so… it’s me we’re talking about.”

“Exactly. She’ll know her place soon enough.”

“You think?”

Yu-gyeong smirked.

“My boyfriend’s the director. If I don’t like the writer, we can just replace her, right?”

“Of course.”

Satisfied by the flattery, her expression finally softened.

“But every time I read this script… I keep thinking of Jung Seol-hwa.”

She clicked her tongue.

“So annoying.”

“I know. She even brought up Jung Seol-hwa earlier.”

“If she knew what that woman looks like now, she’d never mention her again.”

Yu-gyeong let out a mocking laugh.

There was a reason she was so sensitive whenever Jung Seol-hwa’s name came up.

Certainly, part of it was because Seol-hwa had once dated the man Yu-gyeong now loved.

But there was another reason.

Back when Yu-gyeong was an unknown actress, she had constantly been compared to Seol-hwa because they shared a similar image.

Time and again, she lost auditions because of those comparisons.

To the struggling actress she had once been…

Jung Seol-hwa was an insurmountable wall.

Even after landing roles, hearing herself compared to Seol-hwa had been unbearable.

Then she met Jeon Gi-beom.

The man once known as Jung Seol-hwa’s boyfriend.

That meeting changed Ma Yu-gyeong’s life overnight.

“Director, could you coach my acting after filming?”

Gi-beom hadn’t resisted her advances.

Thanks to him, she secured the starring role in Blood Chronicle.

When the movie surpassed ten million admissions, she earned the prestigious title of a “ten-million actress.”

But…

It still wasn’t enough.

She wanted to climb even higher.

High enough that no one would ever dare compare her with Jung Seol-hwa again.

“How dare anyone mention Jung Seol-hwa in front of me?”

“That bitch.”

“I’ll crush her completely.”

To achieve that…

She had to become the lead of this drama, a project practically guaranteed to succeed.

“I have to get this role. It’s TL’s first drama production. With their distribution network, it’ll explode not just in Korea but overseas too.”

She aggressively chewed her gum as she stepped toward the elevator.

Then…

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a woman lingering outside the entrance.

“Wait.”

Yu-gyeong stopped before entering the elevator.

She stared through the glass.

The woman’s face was too beautiful to simply ignore.

She wore plain clothes.

Yet she seemed to glow naturally, her beauty piercing the eye like sunlight.

Just like Jung Seol-hwa had in her younger days.

“No way…”

The name flashed through her mind, reigniting her irritation.

Why would she be here?

“Hey. Your hand.”

A staff member instantly held out a palm.

Without hesitation, Yu-gyeong spat the gum into it.

Then she narrowed her eyes, carefully studying the woman outside.

“What is it, unni?”

“That woman…”

It couldn’t really be Jung Seol-hwa…

…could it?

She strained to make out the face in the distance.

For just a brief instant…

The woman looked exactly like the Jung Seol-hwa she remembered.

Beautiful.

Unscarred.

But the reflection in the dark-tinted glass kept disappearing behind trees, making it impossible to see clearly.

Yu-gyeong watched for a long time.

Then she suddenly laughed.

She remembered the horrifying scarred face she’d seen at the café.

Right.

There was no way Jung Seol-hwa could be walking around Studio TL with such a flawless face.

She had personally seen that Seol-hwa’s career was beyond saving.

“I must be losing my mind.”

“How could she possibly be here?”

“And looking perfectly fine?”

It was just because Writer Kim Jin-ah had put her in a bad mood.

That woman was probably just someone who resembled Seol-hwa.

Shaking off her uneasiness, Yu-gyeong pressed the call button on her phone.

“Hello? It’s Yu-gyeong.”

“I think Writer Kim doesn’t like me.”

“Can you scold her for me, Director?”

“Or better yet… can’t you just replace the writer altogether?”

Pouting pitifully, Yu-gyeong stepped into the arriving elevator.

Meanwhile…

Seol-hwa stood outside the Studio TL building.

“I got here a little too early.”

She had left home far sooner than necessary because of her excitement.

Standing before the entrance, she looked up at the sky.

Looks like the snow’s finally stopping…

That morning’s forecast had confidently predicted another heavy snowfall.

Yet sunlight now pierced through the dark clouds that had blanketed the sky for days.

Lowering her gaze, Seol-hwa slowly traced the glass shimmering in the pale sunlight.

Like a sweet dream…

She kept checking her reflection in every passing window.

A part of her feared that when tomorrow came, her old face might somehow return.

Or perhaps disappear again.

She repeatedly forced her tense shoulders to relax.

But each time, the stiffness crept back.

The script clutched tightly in her hand felt as though it might slip away at any moment.

Steadying her grip, she walked toward the entrance of Studio TL, where workers were still finishing the final cleanup.

Why does Seo Tae-o want to help me?

More importantly… will he really let me audition?

Questions churned endlessly through her mind.

“Hoo…”

She let out a long breath and reached for the door.

Just then—

A tall black shadow suddenly fell across her.

Startled by the sudden chill, she quickly turned around.

“The weather forecast was completely wrong today.”

Since when had he been standing there?

“Ah…”

“They were certain it was going to snow.”

As though he had been waiting for snowfall…

Seo Tae-o stood before her, holding an oversized black umbrella in one large hand.

His tall figure looked down at her quietly,

Still carrying the lingering cold of winter.