other peoples problems

Part 6

It should have been a pleasant change of pace from drama.

The scenes being filmed didn't require any of the troublesome main cast members to show up and therefore, Kim Rok Soo was spared a giant headache from dealing with all of their nonsense and horrifying drama and just everything.

He had to come in because it was a special episode about Cale's minions having enough of his shit with the up and coming action actor, Rex, taking on the role of the minion that was showing them the way to break free from Cale's domineering and abusive ways.

The plot was just as cliche and trite as the rest of the damn Drama but Kim Rok Soo didn't particularly care so long as he didn't have to deal with any bullshit. He'd only met Rex once before, despite his relevance to this plot he was a new addition to the cast.

Sometimes Kim Rok Soo thought that writers just rolled some dice with various cliches listed on all sides and decided what filming would be like any given week that way.

Overall though, he really didn't have any problem with Rex. He'd been assigned as one of the two extra minions who followed closely behind Rex at all times and thus far he'd been a down to earth and comfortable guy to talk to in between scenes. Kim Rok Soo wasn't opposed to small talk. Small talk was so much better than learning about his coworkers deepest traumas.

Unfortunately, Kim Rok Soo still had the curse known as being observant and what he'd observed today was Rex constantly looking down on his phone every opportunity he was given.

It was no big deal. Lots of people did that. With the addition of portable communication and mini computers at the touch of a finger, it had become practically second nature to most humans to flicker their eyes towards that faintly glowing screen at the soonest possible convenience.

To the average person, that was precisely how Rex's behavior would appear. Just another phone addict jonesing for his fix.

There was a very subtle difference between a person who looked at a phone for recreational purposes and one who was worried sick. Especially in professional fields like this, people worked hard to mask the second one as much as possible. But Kim Rok Soo was observant and he was standing mere feet away from Rex for hours now.

None of my business. He clearly doesn't want anyone to know. Pretend you didn't see it. Move on.

The director called a break and Rex said a few amiable words before meandering over to a corner and huddling there with his face glued to the screen and a barely hidden expression of angst weighing down his handsome face.

Kim Rok Soo sighed.

He was not going to get involved. But it couldn't hurt to grab the guy a coffee or something. Just something to give him the energy to get through whatever he was struggling with.

Kim Rok Soo remembered in passing that Rex had added extra sugar and milk to his coffee earlier so he mimicked that and also grabbed two donuts, as Rex clearly shared his sweet tooth.

"Oh, thanks." Rex looked so genuinely taken aback by the gesture and a genuine smile spread over his face. "You're a really nice guy, huh?"

"Not particularly." Kim Rok Soo replied, wincing at the implication. He had no desire to be a 'really nice guy'. He just wanted to be a guy who was able to pay his bills and survive.

Rex accepted that and sipped his coffee, letting out a surprised but pleased oh when he realized that it matched his tastes.

They stood in companionable silence with their snacks and Kim Rok Soo let down his guard, hopeful that this at least would be one of his increasingly few interactions with coworkers where he didn't have to be exposed to all sorts of personal nonsense.