No one wants to live anymore. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyS33UiESx
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ694YNuUMC
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYiHu59ziOc
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLzEGP21Z4M
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6RMSmiTjY8
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOngBAcJfLT
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEgFqadrV3
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjjLFWZ6POh
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIjqHPej3Tf
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqyn4czKHFg
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn3julaor2J
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlx7ukKUCPl
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, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSklZHp95j5
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, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeVOxEfXyC5
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltSTT1Wnoc
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX6Lz5ndB3p
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxEcBf827fA
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDBHrgYyfg
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa16hSSPkFR
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. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ36tPlxrBL5
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!”22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwQgsQn89to
“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. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfMmpIArcUa
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. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazPrIVhEkU
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—— 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJOvtTVQdDW
because when everyone’s about to explode, 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhy43V74yk2
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXKcXQzm6Rq
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUNPhc3TFP
But these people… 22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrY1ax9hsTC
were already done with it.
