No one wants to live anymore. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfrh7QIQ3S6
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY9Ybl62NXx
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8xTpCTJ9B
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUpf6TnonWb
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKizzyWLqAl
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡslWG1U1CO6
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0yvAZ4jdhw
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXRQQAK6Xnz
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4TfU1BVF7p
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnL7YJXt3pW
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6dyClqORLE
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbq7kjg3qPU
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, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXAMhqk29G7
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, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6eDgWMBgGO
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy2eY0IJrW0
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2TappRtru8
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRchN9c7Ga4
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4kPLFSav1L
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbGgyOh4G5
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. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbnihZHvjSD
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!”11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeBEraxQEOc
“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. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOxCjn2UfA1
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. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡivFFvBc7sK
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—— 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbL7kjNKuEY
because when everyone’s about to explode, 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxyYJOZ551G
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUedRfyPUTM
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJhrStlkLER
But these people… 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ftMyeaDdo
were already done with it.
