Chapter 95: Official Filming of the MV

After trying on a good dozen or so outfits, the stylist finally picked out a suitable set for the two. With the mature makeup specially designed by the makeup artist, Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung no longer looked like high school students; instead, they seemed like young people in their twenties.

Seeing the two before her, Choi Sooyoung's eyes lit up. Since the director hadn't started filming yet and there was still preparation time, she hurried over and asked them to stand together and pose for a photo. To make her case, she even invoked the names of Chen Yuqi and Jung Sooyeon.

"Mm-hm, move a little closer. If you're too far apart, I won't be able to fit both of you in the frame. Soojung, rest your arm on Zhe's shoulder—yes, just like that! That's the feeling I want!" Gazing at Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung through her phone screen, Sooyoung kept directing them, trying to find the pose she was most satisfied with.

Wearing a blue-and-white striped shirt with the top button undone and white wide-leg pants, Jung Soojung naturally rested her hand on Chen Zhe's shoulder, tilting her head slightly toward him. Some of her loose, flowing hair fell onto his shoulder.

Chen Zhe, meanwhile, wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses, his white shirt with the top button left open just a little, and light blue jeans. His hands were tucked into his pockets, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, radiating a confident, free-spirited aura.

Standing together in their strikingly similar outfits, the chemistry between Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung was unexpectedly harmonious. The two of them looked like a couple straight out of a pictorial, causing Sooyoung's brows to arch involuntarily.

Seeing how well-matched Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung were, a few ideas began to stir in Sooyoung's mind. She raised her phone, found a good shooting angle, and then—click, click, click—a continuous stream of shutter sounds filled the air. After snapping over a dozen photos, she switched to a new angle and kept shooting.

"Soojung, your arm is getting a bit heavy!" Feeling as though Jung Soojung's weight was pressing down on him through her arm, Chen Zhe sensed a heaviness on his shoulder, as if a mountain were bearing down on it. His shoulder ached and throbbed, tingling with warmth. His lips twitched slightly as he murmured in a low voice meant only for Soojung's ears.

"Don't you dare say that. Keep whatever you're thinking bottled up inside. My legs are going numb from standing too—why hasn't Sooyoung unnie finished taking the photos yet!" Hearing Chen Zhe's words, Soojung felt he was hinting that she was heavy. Though she was gritting her teeth in frustration, she held back the urge to beat him senseless.

Her lips also twitched slightly as she whispered back in a low voice. But to Chen Zhe, her tone sounded like a suppressed fire, as if one misstep would burn him to ashes.

"Alright, you two can rest now!" Just as Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung were about to lose their pose and were getting ready to ask, Sooyoung's voice rang out like heavenly music in their ears.

The moment they heard they could rest, Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung hurriedly pulled apart, stretching their stiff bodies on the spot, trying to shake off the numbness and soreness.

They had barely moved for a few seconds when both of them felt a faint chill run through them, as if some dangerous gaze had fixed upon them.

Instinctively turning toward the source of the gaze, Chen Zhe and Jung Soojung both saw Sooyoung looking at them with an expression of lingering satisfaction on her face. A wave of dread washed over them, and they involuntarily shrank their necks.

"Lead actors, get ready! Filming is about to begin!" Just as the two were breaking out in goosebumps and about to say something, the director's voice blared through the megaphone across the set, interrupting their next move.

————————— Filming Break —————————

"Cut! Chen Zhe, what on earth is wrong with you! Are you trying to—" The earlier parts of the MV shoot had been going smoothly, until they reached the scene where the male lead recalls the first time he secretly kissed the female lead's cheek.

"Cut! Chen Zhe, what on earth is wrong with you! You can't even manage a simple peck on Krystal's cheek?" The earlier parts of the shoot had been going smoothly, until they reached the scene where the male lead recalls the first time he secretly kissed the female lead's cheek.

For some reason, Chen Zhe just couldn't get into the zone during filming. After being NG'd so many times, he couldn't even meet Jung Soojung's eyes anymore. The director had given him pointers several times, but he kept fumbling exactly at the critical moment.

Chen Zhe was already handsome to begin with, and the makeup only added a layer of mature masculine charm. In the scenes leading up to the cheek-kiss shot, the two had been locking eyes the whole time.

After holding the gaze for a little too long, Jung Soojung's cheeks unconsciously flushed with a faint rosy hue, making her look like a small apple ripening into full bloom—utterly alluring.

"Director-nim, I wanted to ask—could Krystal and I change up the action? Like touching foreheads, for instance?" After another NG, the director told everyone to take a break and find their focus.

Seizing the opportunity, Chen Zhe slipped over to Director Jang Seunghoon's side. After hesitating for a moment, he lowered his voice and quietly made his suggestion. After all, his actual mental age was twenty-five; sneaking a kiss on the cheek of an eighteen-year-old girl felt rather awkward to him.

"Hm! Don't tell me you've never even kissed a girl's cheek before!" Jang Seunghoon looked Chen Zhe up and down with a strange expression, staring at him until his skin crawled, before asking in a tone laced with curiosity.

"That's right! So..." Although Chen Zhe had a girlfriend before the rebirth and they had later broken up, he had experienced kissing before. It was just that the idea of secretly kissing Jung Soojung now filled him with an overwhelming sense of awkwardness.

Still, after the rebirth, he genuinely hadn't kissed any girl, so admitting it wasn't entirely wrong. Desperate to get out of this uncomfortable scene, Chen Zhe gritted his teeth and owned up to it.

"Hahaha, well, of course... that's a no-go! Krystal is a stunning beauty, after all. Your first kiss is with a beauty like her—what more could you possibly want? Or do you already have a girlfriend and that's why you don't dare to kiss her!"

Jang Seunghoon deliberately dragged out his words, keeping Chen Zhe in suspense. Only when hope filled Chen Zhe's eyes did he deliver the rejection. He winked at Chen Zhe with a slightly lecherous grin, but then, as if remembering something, he shot Chen Zhe a strange look and added a follow-up question.

"No, I don't! I don't have a girlfriend, Director. Please don't say things like that!" Hearing Jang Seunghoon's last remark, Chen Zhe hurriedly denied it. That kind of rumor absolutely couldn't be thrown around.

After denying it, Chen Zhe instinctively glanced at Jung Soojung, who was chatting with Choi Sooyoung. When she noticed his gaze and looked up, he hastily averted his eyes, refusing to meet hers.