No one wants to live anymore. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6L4LapGuBf
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfKEOG93JzC
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0xJNzwJD6P
26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7aYGDzIfBm
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡusGzDYQSbh
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfGK8JBIYNN
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBsI874ieKk
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2IQCvOfgsL
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ05HBGfjXCg
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFHwsstxl1o
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCnIMF2RoTn
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGn5Lo7LG70
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, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkQBqtdoMJg
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, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzumdd3P3OX
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhRge4ENHia
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsROFkgfKN3
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8zHBjOjRYX
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncFUuIfZVN
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYnmFlQiu9
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. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwT8wsUtMgj
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!”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc80hqyTyek
“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. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6QHoLPdnz
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. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡip4GGeUiY6
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—— 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOhCIxZXhQw
because when everyone’s about to explode, 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYSZs6MwGy
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGOq4QFQZy9
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtk6UUDd9zI
But these people… 26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmA2qGB1WGe
were already done with it.
