No one wants to live anymore. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYrGuVND3l
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdv6BbsrcoB
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxYEALjtFH6
12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkzpWvpvgM3
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwesenOlxFb
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTWZ2kvEKkN
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmKuQykCF0K
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡduIky9znWF
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb9UCkg2GZy
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpMA6Vn4ExF
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLHEbRE1u69
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIM2e4aLC9h
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, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6auQinxc10
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, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbEvqMxU0I
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZlZJlELJe
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3IxbwU54rB
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYuB4gfoywa
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpT5PcqDtWK
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKpQErkaxhv
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. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡij4JTutOB7
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!”12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDDw8AIp4Df
“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. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡogWyaRCGxE
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. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PJkvyN2yE
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—— 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW8uxAu3djB
because when everyone’s about to explode, 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5nWyRBsfIB
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF4coCfHJ6H
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRTC8vMNQFv
But these people… 12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Iradckn5h
were already done with it.
