No one wants to live anymore. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd6IiQHaRtz
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡinG4eigYBR
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKekxbZtlBP
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldXn2MEBZB
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlkP4blb8nC
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvLsn3G7b51
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWZX1aIyiVW
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0UOzTxaB45
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyYcOm46pwU
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzrkUV4hlH
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvts1CepsKI
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa7Sfq012Cz
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, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJiY1XzrAc
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, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWdbw6oyWst
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdmdZEct6R
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF2m4SS8voW
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFvVoTlxhLg
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwGVdd78FM
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDZe3IwZt7t
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. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKuLGvELtQS
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!”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPg6HA0tFM8
“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. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGxEn3yrey
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. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBqbOu91Ou
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—— 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ66PwP7GnRM
because when everyone’s about to explode, 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwPBraS0hiM
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWG4Cv8JHQS
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6fqiYkWxcU
But these people… 27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL6bEniEb8q
were already done with it.
