No one wants to live anymore. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLS0mRH83K
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkOCdwWdCX4
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaKmuGm5jER
376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcKUcCeIPQ4
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNu6GXFbxlr
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8lTW6kOd2c
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeRs2kdcJ9Z
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvkc7SYWhTx
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Ddqfos7dm
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmuYqJohxS
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIv33OSYiE6
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4AcFc678q
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, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDbZGejZZU5
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, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8Zvsq9bsT
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYw9H0DW3f
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYvw597c7gJ
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5xSosL24kM
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR5nYVnY9Pa
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcFe9cMHpCG
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. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSxHsZCvbM
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!”376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDFulPRlV3v
“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. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4vdDtofp8T
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. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTupIgLKZRA
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—— 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoH5RlZPmZT
because when everyone’s about to explode, 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxW8MQeB3G
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEHGPeoowT9
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjnoXXrz3x
But these people… 376Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCGpF9sBSA
were already done with it.
and then Add to home screen.