No one wants to live anymore. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFqJOv4fv6
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZVeirSZyo
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKi4KpfG817
327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeev6THnKtH
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡruSb1RFC8R
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbkAdZMoJ7
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaNBO4AvSOy
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCT313vRn8O
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlZvujQleml
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh7o9B7L2s9
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2yMFGtc849
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAQGwkCSz0O
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, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZh9ArzGLNS
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, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6xEsdRhTcq
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8oTeln9FS
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡerTpZx6bsW
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9J8EomL0A2
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ24VKUslwQq
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQIozoZmKOn
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. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9cI5X50leX
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!”327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOjvaVTLNnC
“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. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrjTfgdBBw
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. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2kahO8KONx
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—— 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7rFZAwzcd
because when everyone’s about to explode, 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8BbwkM1SiQ
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvYp0zzfrMJ
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7N57QMfUCE
But these people… 327Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYeFLo7e13l
were already done with it.
and then Add to home screen.