Rebirth: King to Superstar

The five of them got back to the drama house and Joon-won went back home after that. But before he went he did ask the assistant for a ticket and she told him to get it tomorrow morning when he comes in for practice. Reaching home he sent fell on the couch a bit exhausted. He closed his eyes and took a small nap and by the time he woke up he noticed it was already dinner time.

Joon-won stood up and went into the kitchen. He was very hungry as he didn't have any snacks in the afternoon. He cooked up some cheesy pasta after watching several videos he found on the internet and ate it with happiness. Falling on the couch again, he exhaled in relief. He wouldn't go to work on the weekend this time and the complete practice session only started at 10. He could afford to go to the gym an hour late, so he can catch some extra sleep too. 

Before he started practicing his role once again, he took out the phone once again and dialed Min-Seok's number. It's been a while since he talked and noticed there were only 8 days until the National exams for Yun-hee. The phone rang a few times until he heard Min-Seok's voice from the other side and noticed his breathing was heavy. 

"Joon-won. What are you doing? How are the holidays?" 

"Before I answer that, where are you? Why are you breathing so heavily? Are you not at home?" 

He heard a laugh as a response to his series of concerning questions, and Min-Seok responded before he asked again, "It's nothing. I was just washing some dishes until now. The phone wasn't with me, so I had to run to the living room to get it. Now tell me how you are." 

"I'm fine. This Sunday I'll be acting in a theatre drama. So everything is good. How is Yun-hee? The exams are only 8 days away. Is she studying well?" 

"What? You are acting in a theatre drama? When did this happen? You should have told me earlier about this. Wait, I might make it there if I ask the boss for an emergency leave tomorrow." Min-Seok shouted in surprise.

"What are you talking about, dad? He is in a drama? Why didn't he tell us that? Wait, give me the phone once. When did this happen?" He heard Yun-hee shouting from the distance, and her footsteps getting closer. 

But before he could answer, he heard Yun-hee again, "Wait, let's do a video call." And he heard his phone vibrate. He took it away from the ear and saw the video call option pop up. He clicked on accept and saw a girl's face on the phone. 

Joon-won could instantly recognize who that is from the memories he had. It was Yun-hee and for him; it was the first time he was seeing her, not through some memories he had from the original body owner. She had the same black hair as he did, but she was much more beautiful than he was. Seeing her, he thought if the guy got most of the bad genes out of the two. The girl could become an actor with the looks.

"Now tell us, what do you mean by acting in a drama? We thought you joined the theatre a few days ago. How did you get a role this quick?" As she continued to question him. 

"I auditioned for it. The drama house holds auditions every week for that week's drama and this time I even participated in it. After seeing my skills, they gave me the role. That's all." 

Before Yun-hee could continue, the phone got grabbed by Min-Seok and he looked at him before saying, "Joon-won, why did you become so thin? Are you not eating well there? You should eat more." Completely disregarding the topic of the drama.

Joon-won finally got a look at the person he has been talking to quite a few times after he came to the world. The first parent figure he had in both his lives and even though they weren't related, he could feel a strong connection due to the original Joon-won and he didn't mind the connection at all. It gave him a sense of belonging and security, something he longed for a long time. 

Joon-won could see a lot more similarities between how he looked, at how Min-Seok looked. Min-Seok looked normal, not handsome, but just an average person you wouldn't put much focus on when he is in a crowd. He had gray hair and wore glasses to help with his eyesight. There were distinct differences between how Yun-hee looked from Min-Seok. If both were told to stand side by side, no one would guess they were father and daughter. This led him to think about who the mother was. 

"Joon-won, can you hear me? Why is he stuck? Is our internet slow, Yun-hee?" Min-Seok tapped on the phone while looking to the side as he thought there was a problem with their internet connection.

"No, nothing is wrong, dad. I just thought it's been a long time since I saw your face. Don't worry about me, I am eating fine. So don't worry too much about it." And Min-Seok nodded with a slight relief after he heard him. 

"Dad, that's not the main point. Now tell us about this drama you told you got into. Tell us more about it." Yun-hee pushed herself into the frame and asked him once again.

Joon-won nodded and repeated the same thing. "I auditioned for a role today and got it. I'll perform this Sunday on stage in the drama house. We even got to do a little photoshoot for it." 

"You did a photoshoot? Like the ones celebrities do? Send us the pictures. We also want to see them." Min-Seok asked him, a bit amazed. 

Joon-won thought for a second and said, "I don't have the pictures we took in that photo shoot, but I have a picture I took after I changed into my costume when I was trying it out. Let me send it to you." And sent them the picture Kar Jung took. 

"Woah! Your costume is a suit? What role do you play for a suit?" Yun-hee gasped as she looked at the picture. 

"I play the villain role. I'm a big shot who wears suits in it. So my costume is a suit." He shrugged and replied.

"You are the villain of the drama? You do know that people do not like the villain, right? You should have tried for the hero role." She asked him again. Min-Seok also nodded while looking at him. 

"It doesn't matter. It's just a role and the people don't care if I play it or someone else plays it and the villain role is better than the hero role in the drama. So it's good that I'm getting the best role in the drama. Many people will take notice of me then." 

Both of them nodded after hearing him and Min-Seok asked, "Do you want us to come there? We want to see you act on a stage for the first time. Should we come tomorrow?" 

Joon-won felt good when he heard how much Min-Seok wanted to support him. He knew it would be tough for him to take a day off and come, especially when Yun-hee's hold days were only a week away and he didn't want any distraction for her. 

So, he shook his head and said, "No, it's alright. You both don't need to come here at all. Yun-hee's exams are coming up in a few days and these last few days are crucial for her, so be there to give support. I don't want her wasting 2 days just for my drama and the drama will be available online too. I'll tell you guys when it will be available online and you can watch it at home. So no need." 

Min-Seok nodded, and they continued to talk for another 10 minutes before they cut the call. Joon-won placed the phone to the side and closed his eyes. His thoughts were occupied with the fact that he wasn't an orphan. Seeing both of them, even though it was through a screen, was really emotional. He could see how concerned Min-Seok got, and that was something he never thought he would have.

After a few minutes of silence, he quickly organized his thoughts and got to work. He took out the script and went through all the scenes and acted them out once again to see if he needed to make any changes. He wanted it to be perfect after knowing they were going to watch it. It was important for him. 

After a few hours of practice, he went to bed at nearly midnight. Before jumping on the bed he didn't forget to keep an alarm for his gym session, he didn't want to miss that and went to sleep.