No one wants to live anymore. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycWOvf45sj
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4b7J2TJJcm
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA93Ftibvvq
255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSvZjbsUMj
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjfhoU7xucb
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDYXjKTRvPt
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2rtpWecyN
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPqPhTblYF
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvnsjERMAHB
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVeJZu0dwTm
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyL8GffMAQh
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75vmEBiYat
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, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnMa4ufRRnS
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, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOwYxfY2Gtg
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WRNpXIOKB
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8pemonBLMB
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOIYi7tzoF5
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNwgsyAL8sn
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRDNdhiiDjN
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. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeEdH93LwvV
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!”255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4huhwK2Rrl
“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. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuV6lRp4mXx
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. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeSn96cow8Z
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—— 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjGQO5eT9wK
because when everyone’s about to explode, 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjMdGTENbsO
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTaJFUQRHFq
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtpRBA9RRRL
But these people… 255Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVNkDS7hml
were already done with it.
and then Add to home screen.