--April 2020--

Chang-wook woke up two days later to a message asking him to call the director. They arranged a meeting at the director’s suite at the Hilton. When he and Chi-gu arrived, Chang-wook wasn’t surprised to see Ji-hyun with her manager already there. She was standing by the window with a bubble tea in one hand and her phone in the other. She was completely absorbed in the conversation and didn’t notice when he entered. Occasionally she nodded and then said something in a hushed voice. Her manager gave him a small bow and focused on whatever Ji-hyun was saying into the phone.

“Great. You are both here now. Alex? Chang-wook arrived!” the director called out to the American actor, who wandered in from one of the rooms with a large sandwich in one hand a bottle of coke in the other. He was followed by the translator who was carrying a plate of sandwiches.

“Have a sandwich. So, the reason we called you in was that… I want to include Ji-hyun in the scenes where your character is captured,” she said addressing Chang-wook. “After what I saw the other day, I think it would suit the character arc for Ji-hyun if she is part of your, well, downfall. What do you think? Ji-hyun has already agreed.”

As the translator explained the rapid-fire English, Chang-wook glanced over to where Ji-hyun was standing. She nodded but he couldn't tell whether she was happy or unhappy with the development.

“Sure. It sounds like a great idea,” Chang-wook agreed. “I’ll need to confirm with my company but…”

“Brilliant!” the director cut him off. “I mean it. We will work on the script and film the scene in a couple of days. I’m hoping to wrap everything up by the end of the month and hopefully get it realised for July Fourth Weekend.”

“That fast? Babe!” Alex looked shocked.

“We can do it. Come on,” she cajoled. “See what happens when you’ve worked together for so long! Ji-hyun, back me up.”

“I’m sure it will be possible director-nim,” she laughed. Chang-wook grinned. It was the first time he had seen her so carefree since a year ago. That also signalled the end of the meeting and Chang-wook found himself sharing an elevator with Ji-hyun plus their managers. The silence was awkward.

“Kaesaekkiya,” her manager swore. “Ji-hyun. We need to go to the company.”

“What happened?” Ji-hyun and Chang-wook asked at the same time.

“Aish,” Chi-gu was also looking at his phone. “Seo Kang-joon just announced that he is enlisting.”

The three men looked at Ji-hyun. Chang-wook was surprised to see how unfazed she was. 

“Kang-joon oppa told me a while ago,” she said. 

“Are you ok?” Chi-gu asked. Chang-wook could have smacked him. The last thing he wanted was to hear that Ji-hyun was upset that her not-boyfriend but boy friend was going into the army.

“Of course. Why should…” Ji-hyun paused. “It is a private matter and I don’t wish to discuss it.”

The press, however, had other ideas and that night Chang-wook guiltily watched a surprisingly candid interview with Seo Kang-joon. The young actor said that he didn’t have a reason not to go and that he thought it might help him in future roles if he went now. When the interviewer asked about his love life, strongly hinting about the dating rumours with Ji-hyun, Kang-joon smiled and described his ideal situation with a girl to wish him off to his service and keep his spirits up. 

“But I am very happy accepting my fans support. They mean everything to me. I won’t feel lonely when I leave. I promise to return with more good work.” 

Chang-wook decided it was the best he could hope for. There was no outright denial that Kang-joon and Ji-hyun had been dating but it was clear from the interview that Kang-joon did not think that he had a girlfriend. 

“I’m pathetic,” he sighed at Ggoma.

“Yes, you are,” the dog seemed to say as it his face.

—

Ji-hyun was grateful and somewhat surprised when three days later Kang-joon came by the set with a large bouquet and a drinks truck. She admired how gracious he was when his feelings for her had been genuine.

"Thank you oppa," she said after giving him a quick hug. He left immediately after—“I should probably go before Chang-wook gets here”— and she watched him drive off with a wistful smile on her face. He represented her girlhood hopes and dreams. But now she was a grown woman and with that came all the complex emotions along with the simple joys she could find in life. I’m really happy, she realised. Everything might be confusing but I’m really, truly happy.

Because of Chang-wook’s influence, their fairy godmother was in charge of styling them for their final day of shooting together. Ji-hyun was so happy to see her that she barely registered Chang-wook’s thoughtful gesture.

"You seem ok after the breakup,” stylist eonnie said. 

"We were never going out. All that press was to protect me from those horrid comments online.”

"Was that a good idea? You could have just kept denying everything.”

“Yes. And it was good for me. I had the chance to… not date exactly but it was nice to have someone I could spend time with like that. It wasn’t fair to him but I think by the end he realised that we were not right for each other.”

"As long as you are ok. I don’t care how he feels.”

“Eonnie, you are the best.” 

Alex, her American costar, came to find her and gave a big hug. He explained that he had heard about the “break up” and that he had prepared a gift: a large box of chocolates.

"I was surprised to see him here,” Alex said, pointedly looking at the flowers.

“I was never dating him. I don’t know…”

"Must be hard to have that rumour when you and… Never mind. Director-nim picked out the chocolates." 

Ji-hyun laughed at how cute it was that he had started calling the director "director-nim". “When in Rome" was his response, which he gave with a charming wink.

“Looks like Chang-wook has perfected his timing,” the director smirked and pointed to the actor pulling up dressed, despite the heat, in full motorcycle leathers. He got off looking more like a movie star than Ji-hyun had ever seen him look before. The director glanced at Ji-hyun. “An impressive entrance. One handsome man leaves and another arrives…”

Ji-hyun found herself blushing at the obvious provocation. She thought it was strange that the director was going out of her way to heighten the tension—what else to call it but tension?—between her and Chang-wook. But it all fell into place when they started filming and the director pulled her aside. She explained they’ve decided that Ji-hyun’s character rather than the American spy would be the one to capture Chang-wook’s sadistic North Korean agent. 

"We haven’t told Chang-wook, of course. But it will be you coming through the door and saying the lines. Watch the rehearsal so that you know what we are doing. Adlib if you want. You two play off each other well so I trust you."

Ji-hyun nodded. It made sense now. The director’s insistence on another scene with them together, her attempts to make Ji-hyun on edge around Chang-wook.

Since the scene required Ji-hyun to shoot Chang-wook, one of the props people took her aside and showed her the gun safety rules. Even though it was fake the weight was the same. She remembered the feeling of having a gun pressed against her temple. How would her character feel holding the gun this time? Powerful? Scared? She watched the rehearsal and thought about why it was her character capturing such a dangerous and notorious spy. I’m looking to prove myself, she thought. I am wanting to face my past, my fears. I’m going to kill those fears once and for all. I’m going to take control of my life. All of my life. 

“Action!”

At the director’s call, Ji-hyun kicked down the door and pointed the gun towards Chang-wook, his face went blank with surprise and shock. 

"You, you won’t get away. You’re surrounded,” she said. Her voice trembled a little but she thought her character would be a little scared and trying to bluff her way through the situation. Whatever Chang-wook had planned disappeared. He just stood there waiting to see what she would do next. Ji-hyun walked towards him, gun raised. Suddenly it clicked and he looked sharp. He approached her at a leisurely pace.

"You don’t have the guts to shoot that gun. And who is backing you up?” he goaded.

Even though it was fake, to have anyone walk boldly towards you when you were holding a gun was intimidating. She barely hesitated before she pointed the gun a few metres in front of him and fired. He jumped back surprised by her ad-lib. 

"Maybe you should reconsider,” she said. "Down on your knees.”

It was the adrenaline she realised. She started walking forward. In the script the scene ended with him being shot in the chest after he pulled his gun on Alex—there would be about ten metres between them at that point. But Ji-hyun had a different idea. And magically Chang-wook seemed to know what she wanted to do. They inched closer together until they were close enough that if he raised his hand he could have pushed the gun away. The atmosphere was not just tense it was deadly. Somehow they needed to play the scene to its scripted end but they had left the script behind so long ago that it was going to take a lot of skill to get them back on track.

"You’re all grown up,” he smirked.

And without warning she shot him right in the chest. The blood bag broke and he crumbled to the floor. She dropped the gun and backed away. Though she knew what would happen when the blood bag broke it shocked her when she heard his little “ooff” as he took the impact of the shot. The door opened and the American spy rushed in.

"What happened?” he asked, genuinely confused as to what had taken so long for the gun to go off. “You shot him.”

“Yes,” Ji-hyun just about remembered to answer in English.

She went over and looked down at Chang-wook. He was still alive as the script required.

"Never underestimate me," she said in Korean. 

“CUT!” the shout came out loud from the director. “That was brilliant. Wow. Ok. We will need to redo some angles but wow.”

Ji-hyun flopped onto the ground next to Chang-wook. She glanced over at him and smiled. The scene was exhausting but also thrilling. They worked through a couple more angles but instinctively everyone knew that first take would be the one that made the final cut. It felt like the perfect end to her character arc. Now when they shot her final scenes a few days later, it made sense for her and the American to go their separate ways. She wasn’t a pathetic rookie anymore but a capable spy defending her homeland.

In her dressing room, stylist-eonnie hugged her. 

"You were… I don’t even know how to describe that,” she said through tears of happiness.

Chang-wook stood in the door to her dressing room. He had already changed into plain clothes. "I... I wanted to get the chance to say that you are wonderful. It was better than the script. So much better. I don’t know how you did it."

“Thank you, Orabeoni. I think we did well. We worked hard and we did well.”

—July 2020—

The trailer for “The Northern Night” landed only a few short weeks later. Though Ji-hyun and Chang-wook didn’t appear in it together they were already rumoured to have at least one scene together. When it finally premiered in Hollywood for the Fourth of July weekend, Ji-hyun felt like her world had been turned upside down. Both domestically and internationally no one could believe that their scenes were ad-lib’d. The director discussed how much she had trusted two actors she had never worked with before.

“I was aware they had worked together before but the synergy on set was surprising—and immediately apparent to everyone. Ji-hyun in particular, you could see her maturity doing scenes she had never done before. It takes a lot of trust to have that kind of relationship on set. Chang-wook as well I’d seen “Fabricated City” so knew he could do action but playing a sadistic spy is different. That first hostage scene. I mean it was incredible. And after we called cut he just went straight back into boyfr—… he is a real gentleman.”

In addition to appearing at the premieres in LA, London, and Seoul, they spent the next couple of weeks doing interviews together. During one of their joint interviews in London, the reporter commented on how comfortable they were together.

“Oppa and I have known each other for many years,” Ji-hyun explained. She smiled at Chang-wook in awkward camaraderie. As the press tour had progressed it became easier and easier to be around him. Today, in particular, was a good day. “I think that we probably know each other better than anyone else in the world sometimes… in acting, I mean. We have done so many emotional scenes together. Oppa always takes care of me so it is easy to create believable scenes. When we are filming, whatever the scene, I trust him completely.”

“Yes! It is incredible how you have done romcom and now thriller together! Chang-wook what are your thoughts?”

“Do you see her?” He asked. He gave Ji-hyun a bright smile. “She is right. We have done every kind of scene. As an actor you leave a part behind when the filming ends but with Ji-hyun-ah… she is always showing a new side. She might be one of the most complete people I’ve met. She is always surprising me.”

However, neither of them dared to take the first step and initiate the conversation that might fix their relationship and address all the emotions bubbling just under the surface. That changed after their last press meet in Seoul.

“Do you want to grab a drink?” Ji-hyun abruptly asked as they prepared to leave. There weren’t any staff around and she had already sent her manager home. Chi-gu hovered nearby and they both saw his minuscule shrug which seemed to grant Chang-wook permission and say “why not?” at the same time.

“The bar?” he asked.

“No, I was thinking of that place we went. When your mother made those sandwiches.”

Chang-wook felt a rush of emotion. She remembered that day, so soon after he had left the army. She wanted them to be private and chat.

“Sure. The code is the same. Do you think you can get there on your own?”

“Yes.”

An hour later he arrived to find her sitting on the same bench from a year ago. She was wearing a baggy t-shirt tucked into a pair of loose shorts. It was so different from the hyper-polished Ji-hyun that had sat next to him at the interview a few hours before.

“So, what are your plans?” She asked without any introduction.

“I have been offered a movie and a couple of dramas. But I am thinking of taking a vacation. What about you?”

“I’ve accepted a drama. I start filming next week— it will be pre-produced. There is also a movie. I have a couple of CFs… I am trying to adjust to having all this work and not going to school. Last year…” she sighed. He understood. Last year she was finishing her degree, last year she had been free.

“You are much better than you think you, Ji-hyun-ah,” he smiled. “I think that you could transition into films if you wanted. Oh, I’m not saying that dramas are bad. I love you in both. But you have a… something. I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Thank you. I don’t know. I am still so young. I have a lot of time. There are so many roles I want to take on,” Ji-hyun gazed at the Seoul skyline seemingly lost in her thoughts.

“You do. Take your time. You don’t need to rush things. Don’t rush… don’t rush anything Jiji.”

But she didn’t hear him. She was looking intently at a message that had just come through on her phone.

“I have to go,” she stood up. There were tears of frustration in her eyes.

“What happened? Can I help?” he put a hand on her back.

“No. I… Please understand… don’t believe anything you read in the papers.”

“What happened?”

“I might as well show you,” she held her phone out to him.

He looked at the photograph of her and Seo Kang-joon having dinner together. The caption suggested that they were back on. 

“When?” his question wasn’t angry. 

“It is old. Months and months ago. When he told me about his enlistment. We… he enlisted so that he could forget me. Why is this happening?”

“Ji-hyun…” he didn’t know what to say. He knew that there was nothing romantic between them but it still hurt that he was stuck on the sidelines, again. It put another pause on his plans to win her back. Those plans had rushed to the fore when she had asked to meet him one on one. All the memories of why he had been holding back the last four months. To protect her, to protect them from scandal. 

“Excuse me?” a woman came up to them. He froze. Of all the times and places when he needed to be alone with her, to help her, someone was butting in. 

“Can I have a picture?”

“I’m sorry but this isn’t a good time,” he apologised.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“No…”

The woman smiled and left. 

“What if?”

“No, I don’t think…”

But, of course, Luck wasn’t with them. They were caught on CCTV leaving the building ten minutes apart and it went online. A few nasty netizens said that sweet Ji-hyun was clearly playing the field. 

Soop fired off a statement immediately:

“We will be taking legal action against all of those who have been found invading the private life of our actors or making malicious and untruthful comments online.”

In combination with Glorious Entertainment, the video and comments were taken down. Five lawsuits were filed the next day, including one against a member of the building staff who had given a reporter the CCTV footage.

Ji-hyun called Chang-wook the next day.

“We need to avoid each other for now. I can’t… I have a drama coming up. I need to focus on it. And you have a movie.”

“I guess you don’t trust…”

“Don’t you dare accuse me… Do you know what was being said about you? Have you read any of the comments they had to take down? It is disgusting! How can you act as if nothing can hurt you?”

“You shouldn’t read the comments.”

“They are saying you seduced me. That you seduced me when I was a teenager. It is disgusting. They are saying horrible things about you. I won’t have it. If you won’t take care of you, who will?”

“My company is taking care of it. So is yours. I’m able to take care of myself. Don’t worry Jiji. We are going to protect you. And who do you think should be taking care of me? You?”

“Of course me. Why do you think I’m drawing a line? Just… Just wait. We can…”

“I’m not waiting anymore Ji-hyun. We can remain costars, colleagues but I’m not going to sit on the sidelines. I am going to protect you—in the way the I see is best. Surely I can do that best if I keep you by my side.”

“That is selfish and you know it. This conversation isn’t going anywhere,” and she hung up. Ji-hyun swore. The situation was getting out of hand and the last thing she wanted was Chang-wook thinking that playing "knight in shining armour" was the best way to handle a bunch of bitter, nasty netizens. She had no intention of giving into the mob or, for that matter, losing him again. Because the last few months had convinced her of one thing: she wanted him in her life. She wasn't sure how he would figure there but he would.