✏️How to Write a K-Drama: Chapter Seven

The "Real Date"? 🤔

Not yet caught up? Pick up where you left off in the Chapter List.

---

“I think that’s enough for me to work on for now.” She paused, eying him as she put away her notebook and pen. “But I’d like to take you somewhere. Walk with me?”

Jae Woon obediently stood up and followed her, even though he felt like she was leading him to the dungeons. She waved goodbye to the baristas, whose eyes Jae Woon could still feel on him, and the two of them left. They walked silently until she reached one of her favorite spots in town. He put his sunglasses back on as he looked through the large windows at the shelves and shelves of graphic novels. There were cushiony seats inside where people were curled up, snacking and reading manhwa.

“Let’s go in,” she said, pushing the door open. He reluctantly followed her. He’d never been to a comic cafe before despite his extensive collection at home.

Da Young racked her brain. What would be a good suggestion for him? She remembered when they were younger and bored in the waiting room, she’d share her pile of romance graphic novels with him and they would read together. She wondered if he remembered. She glanced at him. He was browsing the books, his body language signaling disinterest. He honestly didn’t seem to remember anything, but whenever he had felt down, she had shared one of her books, and that had always cheered him up. She wondered if he still read any. Probably not.

She naturally gravitated toward the romance section and he followed, peering at the new selections, many of which he already owned. His eyes flitted to Da Young, who was flipping through a new release.

“Why’d you bring me here?” he whispered, clearing his throat a bit. He was starting to sweat. No one, not even Jo Suk (or so he thought), knew about this particular interest of his.

“For inspiration,” she murmured, distracted. “Pick something to read.”

“This isn’t my style,” he said.

She glanced at him for a second, then went back to her book. “There’s something for everyone here. You’ll find something.” Yul Hee liked the gruesome and gory thrillers that sat in one dark corner of the store. She liked reading shonen a lot, too. Da Young glanced at Jae Woon and grinned, wondering how he’d take it if he found out about the sweet Yul Hee’s graphic tastes—or even the fact that she was the bratty girl he used to model with as a child.

Jae Woon feigned disinterest as he picked the latest volume of one his favorite series and plopped down in a chair in one corner, removed from the others. She plopped down in the seat next to him with her own pick.

“For research purposes, then,” he murmured, flipping through the pages.

“Of course,” she replied. The two sat there for an hour or so, reading quietly, Da Young occasionally glancing at Jae Woon to see if he was feeling any better. The corner of his lips were turned upwards and his forehead looked more relaxed. She couldn’t see his eyes as he still wore sunglasses indoors.

She leaned forward, covering him from view from the others and grabbing his attention. She whispered, “Don’t you think it makes more sense to wear a mask rather than sunglasses indoors? I’ll cover you. You should switch because you look suspicious.”

He nodded and quickly put on his mask and then took off his sunglasses. He could see her face clearly in front of him now without the dark tint of his sunglasses.

“Is the book any good?” she whispered.

“It’s okay.”

She nodded, and they went back to reading. A while later, they stood outside, stretching and moving their bodies to loosen up from the long period of sitting.

Jae Woon asked, “Was this helpful at all? I’m not sure what we were doing.”

“I always wanted to go on a date like this,” she said, “so it was helpful for me. Was it helpful for you?”

He shrugged. He was feeling better, though. He had never sat in a store like that to read, even though he had always wanted to. No one had noticed or bothered him; everyone had been immersed in their own reading. Was that really like a date, though?

“You know, in the one you were reading, the main guy is very different from the one you played in the cafe,” she said. “He’s silly and strange at first, but he grows on you because of his unique appeal. I want to create a character who, like him, is unapologetically himself and draws people in because of that, not because he fits some ideal stereotype of a man you might see in a drama. So I want you to be yourself. Don’t act when you’re around me. Then, I can study your natural charms and see how I can make you shine the most on screen. I’m sure that’s what viewers and your fans want.”

He stared silently at her for a moment, taking in everything she said, feeling strange inside but not knowing why or even what he was feeling. She waited patiently, enjoying the fresh evening air as the sun splashed the sky with hues of orange and pink.

“I see…” Jae Woon finally murmured. Then he flatly added, “But you’re still going to make me reenact tropes with you, right?”

She yelped, “Hey, tropes are tropes for a reason!”

“Same with characters,” he said matter-of-factly. “Not everyone is going to be alluring. There are certain expectations people have of the male lead and the actor who plays him. I’m that actor, a blank canvas for you to paint all your fantasies on, so just do whatever you think will appeal to the audience. I’ll leave you to it.”

He spun around and started walking away. She watched his back, frowning. He’s changed a lot. She followed a few paces behind him, watching his back. He had grown taller and more broad-shouldered since his middle school days, which was when she had last seen him in person, but it wasn’t the physical elements that surprised her the most. She was growing more and more curious about who he was now and what had hardened him—or whether this was who he always had been.

“You should quit.” For so many years, those words had haunted her—not because of the words themselves but who they had come from.

He suddenly spun around and she stopped short a few feet away from him.

“I can feel your eyes piercing my back. Do you have something you need from me?” he asked politely.

She shook her head. “No.”

“Why do you need me anyway for this? You never said.”

“I told you I had writer’s block.”

“All writers do. Why do you have to fake-date for it?”

“Because I’ve never dated before.”

He froze. “What?” His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Are you serious? How old are you, like 25?”

“I’m 29,” she said, annoyed.

“Then how’d you never date? How’d you write all those stories? They were so goo–”

“They were old. I first wrote them when I was a naive teen and edited them throughout my twenties. I think the innocence was part of the charm, but after a while, my well of ideas dried up. And experience or no, the innocence goes away, too.”

He spun back around and started walking faster, feeling even more burdened now that all of her romantic expectations were placed on him. She had absolutely no idea about anything? So she was also a blank canvas in her own way.

She jogged slightly to catch up to him, his long legs easily outpacing her own. “Did you watch both of my dramas?” she asked brightly.

“For research purposes,” he recited. “I like to know what’s popular these days and who the writers are and all that, of course. Have to stay up to date.”

“Uh-huh,” she said, unconvinced but smiling. “And you liked them so much you practically begged me to cast you in my new one.”

Jae Woon sighed and stopped. He didn’t know why he was struggling to maintain his composure. He was always good at wearing his mask around others as the reserved and manly star who had perfected the gentle smile and attentive gaze, but everything about this made him uncomfortable, and especially this writer, who stared up at him now, her eyes as expectant and searing as ever. He couldn’t read her, but it felt like she was always reading him.

What does she want from me? he wondered, irritated.

“You’re not how I imagined,” she said. “You wanted to be in my drama, but you’re not excited about working on it with me. You seem kind on screen, but you’re very brusque with me. Since when were you like this?”

Maybe I should just retire after all, he thought. Maybe I’m burned out. This is why I can’t be my regular self around her. This is dangerous. His treacherous imagination created more scandalizing headlines, like Actor Do Jae Woon Turns Eun Joo Ni Into a Cynic, Forever Ruining Her Romantic Writing Streak with the Realities of the Harsh Dating World—Writer Turns to Horror Genre to Cope. Long but effective. She could probably edit it to sound better.

“I’m sorry,” he said, trying to sound obliging. “What do you need me to do?”

There was no heart or soul in it. Da Young could read as much from his dead eyes. She suddenly felt like this was all as one-sided as it must’ve been years ago when he ended their relationship abruptly and never reached out again. Her eyes narrowed as she studied his face. He stared back. He really didn’t remember her at all.

“Maybe this isn’t for you anymore,” she said.

“What?”

“Maybe you should quit.”

Next week on 🌟How to Write a K-Drama🌟

“You like me that much?” Jae Woon asked, smiling warmly at the woman snuggling against his arm, clutching it like it was her lifeline.