The silence after the take was louder than any applause.
Yeon, the student director, slowly walked toward Jae-yun, wide-eyed. "That was… What was that?" he muttered. "How did you…?"
Jae-yun blinked, suddenly aware of everyone staring. The weight of the performance fell off his shoulders like a costume being removed.
"I just… followed what you said," he replied softly.
The actress playing the sister wiped her eyes. "That felt too real," she whispered.
The camera operator turned the screen toward Yeon to review the footage. On it, Jae-yun wasn't just acting—he was living grief. The trembling hands, the hollow gaze, the pleading voice. It didn't feel like a performance. It felt like a confession.
"No way this guy's a janitor…" Yeon muttered.
"I'm not an actor," Jae-yun repeated, stepping back. "I'll go."
But the door didn't open. Yeon blocked it.
"Wait—seriously, where did you train? You go to an underground theater school or something?"
Jae-yun just shook his head. "I watch films. A lot."
"You've never acted?"
"No."
"…Then what the hell was that?"
Jae-yun didn't answer. Not because he was hiding something, but because even he didn't know.
---
The Next Morning
A 13-second clip from the shoot surfaced on social media, uploaded by one of the crew members without thinking.
Caption:
> "We asked the janitor to stand in for an actor. He destroyed the role in one take."
#RawTalent #MethodActing #WhoIsHe
The clip spread like wildfire.
Within 6 hours, film students were re-sharing it on private forums.
Within 12 hours, acting coaches were analyzing the micro-expressions in slow motion.
Within 24 hours, someone from a national news site picked it up:
> "Is This Unknown 'Janitor Actor' Korea's Hidden Genius?"
---
Meanwhile, at the School
Jae-yun sat in the small break room eating instant noodles. He didn't own a smartphone. He didn't know he was going viral.
But as soon as he stepped onto campus with his mop cart, people started staring.
"Is that him?"
"That's the guy from the clip."
"He's not even a student…"
Yeon found him near the auditorium steps.
"Dude, you've blown up. That clip? It's everywhere. And guess what—some casting assistant from Nara Films just emailed me asking who you are!"
Jae-yun froze. "Why?"
"They think you're some underground method actor. They want to know which agency you're with."
"…I'm not with anyone," he said. "I just clean here."
"Well, not anymore," Yeon grinned. "You're gonna be famous."
---
Later That Night
Jae-yun sat in his tiny one-room apartment, the lights off. On the floor were old scripts, torn notebooks, DVD cases with handwritten labels like "De Niro Study" and "Rain Scene Practice."
He didn't know how to be famous.
He didn't want to be discovered.
But he couldn't forget that moment when the world went silent for him.
When he wasn't invisible.
He picked up his mirror, cracked and speckled with water stains.
He looked into his own eyes. Noticing, just for a second, something unfamiliar behind them.
A stranger.
A role he hadn't played yet.
---
End of Chapter 2