No one wants to live anymore. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX3xauAVsvB
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe3ibELLEq8
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPkPFX9DYAQ
13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxjaoq5yOf
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡquTI3TZS5N
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5zCPPh7d49
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWJQZiw3XD
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlp7BDNd8i5
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBxGA0Uboyd
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ101jDiynSi
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldpGRCKXcq
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWzj956q0Mv
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, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHz80sfauex
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, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcTfo6FdUWS
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBYemhNjnqs
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUUVOLolUbr
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRx33j4I967
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkKXfyNNtXM
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHGxkvyqvRA
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. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHVBIQMuPad
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!”13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx2ItL14ugV
“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. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyaX2Zr0Q6C
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. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡecoYVkmcIb
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—— 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwbBrfZ1Th
because when everyone’s about to explode, 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAwA4OCIak
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88xWSGAYvj
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡijEH5jp8ip
But these people… 13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYs9WxZaUzp
were already done with it.
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