Chapter 28: 028, Naoki-san, you really are a genius!

After washing up, he had the makeup artist apply a bit of concealer to cover his dark circles.

Naoki Nagayama waited by the equipment cart in the studio for the trip to the outdoor location.

Once the surge of excitement subsided, a wave of exhaustion washed over him.

After changing into a black suit, Naoki leaned blankly against the open trunk of the car, holding a piece of bread intended for breakfast, yet he couldn't bring himself to eat it.

His young, handsome face had become pale and haggard, his deep eyes filled with fatigue, and his once-neat hair lay disheveled upon his head. The loose suit hung on his frame, looking wrinkled and lifeless. The cool morning light served only to highlight a sense of both despondency and poignancy in Naoki Nagayama.

An actress once said that the most attractive thing about a man is that sense of "brokenness."

Konako Higuchi and her assistant, Marin Koyanagi, were the first to feel it.

Having just greeted the director upon arriving at the studio, the two women caught sight of the male lead's "broken" appearance. When Naoki Nagayama managed a strained smile toward them, an electric sensation surged through both of them, and an instinctive urge to protect him arose.

"Naoki-san, what happened to you?" Konako Higuchi asked with heartache. "How could you look so... after only two days?"

"Haggard, isn't he?" Shuichi Itō's triumphant voice drifted from behind.

"It was all my idea! Two days without sleep, plus a little bit of alcohol—and just like that, that look of haggard sorrow from losing a beloved one appeared!"

"Shuichi-san, how could you!" Konako Higuchi said indignantly. "Isn't Naoki-san too pitiful..."

"Exactly, exactly! How could you do this to Naoki-san!" Marin Koyanagi added from the side. "Naoki-san is such a good person..."

"Huh? But it's for the commercial, and the effect is great, isn't it?" Shuichi Itō said, sounding bewildered.

"Hmph, Shuichi-san, are you a demon?"

"Yeah, you're just too mean..."

Naoki Nagayama was a bit dazed. *Wait, it's early morning, and I've already been handed a 'good person card'?*

The outdoor shoot went very smoothly. In the previous indoor segment, Konako Higuchi had filmed a scene looking at a photo album to reminisce; thanks to the hard work of the staff, the set decorations for the indoor scene were successfully transitioned.

Aside from Naoki Nagayama having to walk that street over a dozen times in a row, everything else could be considered highly satisfactory.

How to express sadness, how to express nostalgia, how to use body language to convey regret...

Shuichi Itō coached Naoki Nagayama on-site, causing the women on set to give him nothing but dirty looks.

"Naoki-san, thanks to you, I've become public enemy number one for women," Shuichi Itō couldn't help but tease on the drive back that afternoon.

"Shuichi-san, have some confidence in yourself. Even if it wasn't me, you'd still be public enemy number one for women."

"Hahaha, you bastard~" They laughed heartily in the car.

In the final scene, they returned to the eaves of a house to hide from the rain. The haggard male lead in his suit and the female lead, looking exactly as she did when they first met, gazed at each other amidst the kaleidoscopic lights.

Suddenly, a little girl ran over—it was their daughter, standing in the same spot to avoid the rain, pointing in the same direction at the blooming cherry blossoms.

"That's a wrap, everyone!"

Shuichi Itō had actually prepared a confetti cannon in secret, startling the entire set at the very end.

The little girl on set was Shuichi Itō's daughter; who would have thought this guy was already a winner in life with both a son and a daughter!

The next step was editing. Naoki Nagayama would still need to help out, but the filming phase had reached a conclusion.

"Naoki-san, you'll need to be involved in the editing process too~ After all, it's your creative vision~"

"Hai, hai. But first, let me go home and sleep!" He truly couldn't hold out any longer.

In the evening, Daiyu Yoshimura came to pick Naoki Nagayama up.

"Thank you so much, Daiyu-san!"

"It's no problem, it's what I should do."

Back home, he forced himself through a shower and then collapsed onto the bed.

His last thought before his mind went black

*"It's decided. Once the payment comes in, the first thing I'm buying is a car!"*

As it turned out, even a fit 19-year-old couldn't handle two days without sleep.

The next day, Naoki Nagayama was woken up by hunger.

When he opened his eyes, it was already 2:00 PM.

His head felt heavy and groggy; he didn't feel at all refreshed after his sleep.

He turned on the gas stove, put a pot of water on to boil, and went to take a shower at the same time.

By the time he came out, the water was boiling. He dumped three packs of instant noodles into the pot along with all the seasoning. Instant noodles boiled in a pot are much tastier than those soaked in hot water. Naoki Nagayama swallowed large mouthfuls, only soothing his stomach after he had finished every last drop of the broth.

After cleaning up the kitchen, he finally had time to listen to the messages on his landline. As expected, they were from Shuichi Itō.

"Naoki-san, did you oversleep? Don't forget we have editing today~" This was at 9:00 AM.

"Naoki-san, still not up?! It's this time already, you can't leave the editing to me alone, get over here!" This was at 12:00 PM.

"Naoki Nagayama, are you planning to dump all the work on me? You're dead! Get your ass over here right now!" This was just a moment ago...

Cold sweat dripped down his forehead. Shuichi Itō must be absolutely furious by now.

He rushed out and took a taxi to the studio.

To his surprise, when he saw Shuichi Itō in the office, the man wasn't angry. After glancing at Naoki Nagayama, he simply said, "Naoki-san, you're here!"

Naoki Nagayama hurriedly whispered to Daiyu Yoshimura beside him, "Daiyu-san, what's wrong with Shuichi-san? He's not angry at all?"

"Actually, the film is basically edited. I just finished watching the overall effect. Shuichi-san must have been moved by this tragic romance; even someone my age had tears in my eyes."

*Is the effect really that good?*

Shuichi Itō seemed to have regained his composure. He turned around and said, "Naoki-san, take a look too, even though I've done most of the work."

A small sense of indignation returned.

Naoki Nagayama began to watch. As expected, Shuichi Itō was an experienced producer; the editing was smooth, the montage techniques were skillful, and the rhythm of the flashbacks matched the background music perfectly.

However, "It's a bit *too* smooth~"

Daiyu Yoshimura was puzzled. "Isn't smooth good?"

Shuichi Itō also looked over, appearing as if he wouldn't let Naoki Nagayama off until he said something meaningful; to him, the work was already perfect.

"Shuichi-san, if the story flows smoothly like this, there's no problem. But regarding the music, could we add the sound of brakes right when the female lead has her accident, and then have a few seconds of silence?"

"If we do that, there will be no sound for the visuals, won't it be too abrupt? Wait, let me try." Shuichi Itō suddenly thought of something and immediately began to operate the equipment.

The studio, of course, had sound assets for braking.

Before long, a new rough cut was ready.

The three of them sat around the screen to watch the new version.

The moment they heard that braking sound, their breathing seemed to pause, and their heartbeats felt as if they had skipped a beat.

It wasn't until the music started playing again that they began to breathe normally.

A long while after the rough cut finished playing, Shuichi Itō finally spoke: "Naoki-san...

As expected, you truly are a genius!"

(End of Chapter)