Chick 235
by Cristae235
The set was decorated with colorful toys.
The only thing different from ordinary toys was their enormous size—as though made for giants.
But that alone made it a dopamine paradise for a five-year-old.
Getting her makeup done, Groo could barely contain her excitement as a toy train, large enough to carry a child, began moving.
“Wow!”
“Groo, look at unnie. Let’s make a fish mouth, hup!”
“Hup!”
Groo pursed her lips and put on a solemn face, setting off laughter from the staff at her sheer cuteness.
Today’s concept for Groo was a wind-up angel doll.
After finishing her makeup, they attached a wind-up key and tiny wings to her back, earning exclamations of delight throughout the set.
“She’s unbearably adorable, really.”
“Groo, look at the man here. Cheese—”
“Chee—se!”
“She’s so beautiful.”
“Groo looks even prettier in person.”
As the staff lavished attention on Groo and snapped her photo, a flamboyantly dyed man stepped forward to introduce himself.
“Groo! You’re so pretty and cute. I’m Jake Kim, and I’ll be taking your picture today.”
The people surrounding Groo graciously made way.
…!
According to Wooju, Jake was currently one of the most influential rising photographers.
“Hello! I’m On Groo, from the Ustizia Preschool Chick Class!”
Groo bowed deeply, and Jake grinned as he held out his hand for a handshake.
‘A handshake! Just like grownups!’
With a determined look, Groo grabbed his hand with both of hers and pumped it energetically up and down.
Jake laughed out loud and straightened up.
He turned to the staff with outstretched arms in theatrical tone.
“I have such a good feeling about today!”
The staff laughed at Jake’s words.
He meant he liked the subject, which was a sign the shoot would go smoothly.
With Jake leading, Groo stepped up onto the set.
“Groo, have fun here and do what you like.”
Squeaking, Groo climbed up onto the massive toy train she had been eyeing from the start.
“So cute! You’re doing great!”
Thanks to Jake’s praise, Groo’s nerves began to melt away.
She started to play naturally with the toys, blending right in.
“They said she was a rookie, but she’s doing well.”
“Right? I was worried about shooting with such a young child, but she hasn’t cried at all. She’s so easygoing.”
“And most important of all, she’s pretty.”
“Exactly.”
“Yeah, that’s what matters.”
Laughter bubbled up all around.
Thanks to the adorable, personable child, the studio was filled with energy.
Click!
Click!
The shoot continued like that. While Groo was hugging a giant teddy bear, people in suits suddenly poured into the set, immediately recognizable faces in their midst.
On Suhyeong and Nam Jiwon—the two chairpersons—had arrived.
“Hm?”
Jake, camera in hand, turned when a staff member whispered in his ear.
The crew, tense at this unexpected visit from the advertisers, waited for guidance as Jake ran a hand through his hair, visibly displeased.
“Whoa— Why’s the photographer reacting like that?”
“Uhhh, what to do… he hates it when the clients show up. Says they interfere too much…”
“Man… just our luck…”
“Hope they don’t start nitpicking every shot.”
While the staff fidgeted anxiously, Jake’s expression stayed sour.
Groo, noticing the change, began to fidget herself and glance around with wide eyes.
Everyone picked up on the shift in atmosphere, both staff and photographer alike.
Groo’s face tensed, and Jake clicked his tongue in embarrassment.
What a fool I am. Making a kid tense up by acting so unprofessional in front of a rookie child model.
‘Damn. If she starts crying, we’re doomed.’
If the child cried, they’d have to redo her makeup, and it would take forever to calm her down again.
‘Should we call a break?’
Maybe, if he played with her a bit, she’d laugh again.
Jake was lowering his camera, contemplating a break, when—
After rolling her big eyes for a moment, Groo suddenly fixed her gaze directly on the camera.
…!
Jake lifted his camera back up.
A gentle smile began to bloom on Groo’s face, as if sunlight was shining on her.
Click!
Jake smiled as well.
The child, as if sensing his discomfort, returned a mature, reassuring smile.
He let out a short laugh.
Who’s the real professional here…?
Jake waved his hand.
“Great! Let’s keep this going!”
With just one smile from Groo, the mood instantly turned. The set melted into warmth again.
The clicking of the camera resumed atop waves of adoring coos.
Click!
Click!
And Jake wasn’t the only one taking pictures.
On Suhyeong and Nam Jiwon, each with a posse of secretaries in suits, were busy snapping photos of Groo with their own phones.
They began comparing and arguing over whose shot was better.
“Come on, anyone can see my picture’s the best.”
“That’s your problem, Chairman On. You have no sense of aesthetics. Mine’s far superior. Secretary Kim, look—compare for us, will you?”
“Uh… Me, sir?”
The staff, previously nervous, giggled at the sight of Secretary Kim flustered between the two.
Apparently, the chairpersons were not here today in their capacity as clients.
Today, they were nothing more than a proud grandpa and grandma, absolutely smitten with their granddaughter.
With that, the set regained its lively cheer.
“Alright, last shot! Jump!”
At Jake’s prompt, Groo leapt off a toy box.
“Yay—!”
Click! Click! Click!
Cheers for her cuteness mingled with the rapid-fire shutter.
Jake set the camera down and gave a gracious bow in the chairs’ direction.
On Suhyeong looked puzzled, but Nam Jiwon read the intention and smiled contentedly.
“Looks like it was easy working with Groo. That stickler rarely bows for anyone.”
“Ahem.”
On Suhyeong, a faint smile on his lips, cleared his throat to hide his pride.
After the cheerful shoot came to an end, it was time to check the photos.
“Huh, Seo Wooju?”
“It’s Seo Wooju.”
Murmurs spread among the staff as Wooju appeared at the shoot with his manager.
“Wooju!”
“Uh—!”
Groo ran to greet him, and Wooju turned bright red in surprise.
The manager, waving to Groo, nudged Wooju with his elbow.
“Groo’s really pretty today. So that’s why you wanted to come, huh?”
“Stop it—!”
Wooju smacked his manager on the arm and nervously licked his lips.
Then, glancing around, he spoke.
“Groo, you…”
“Hm?”
“You… You look really pretty today.”
The compliment was brimming with shyness.
Flushed as well, Groo shook her head from side to side and giggled bashfully.
“Thank you. Wooju, you’re… um… very avant-garde today.”
“Avant-garde?”
“It means you’re ahead of your time.”
Groo faithfully parroted something Joorim had once said.
Wooju, sheepish, tugged at his shirt.
“Oh, this—I might have to go back to set later.”
Perhaps because it was a zombie movie, Wooju was wearing shredded clothes and wore special-effects makeup of wounds all over his face and body.
“Oh, isn’t it your turn to film soon?”
Come to think of it, Wooju had been gloomy about not being able to attend Groo’s shoot because the schedules overlapped.
So Groo had offered to visit Wooju’s set instead.
“Well… the shoot’s been delayed because a dungeon appeared.”
A dungeon had suddenly opened at the rented filming location.
If only it had been cleared before shooting started, it wouldn’t be a problem. But for some reason, the raid kept getting postponed and the dungeon still hadn’t disappeared, even on the day of filming.
“A dungeon?”
“Yeah. We asked the guild that owns it to attack it, but I guess they’re saying it’s too tough.”
“Whoa! Is it a strong dungeon?”
“Triple-A class, I think? That’s what they said.”
“I see…”
AAA-class was just below S-class. Depending on which guild was responsible, it could be a big challenge.
“So now we’re working out when it can be cleared, but the guild keeps saying they can’t do it right now.”
“I see…”
Wooju sighed, and Groo nodded gravely.
The manager, who had been listening to the kids talk, forced a smile.
Tough situation, indeed… but no, the real issue wasn’t the challenge. It was adult politics.
“Actually, our Hunters are on vacation right now. To clear it, we’d need to hire outsiders, which isn’t cheap. You know how expensive Hunters are. So unless we get paid more, we can’t just rush in. I’m sure you understand how these things work.”
It was one of the classic ways to squeeze money out of people in a pinch.
With so much at stake for the shoot, they were leveraging the need for the dungeon to be cleared, demanding unreasonable fees.
Especially with a large-scale shoot, time was money—extras, filming equipment, location rental fees, and more. Inevitably, the production would have to pay what the guild wanted.
This negotiation was taking even longer than usual because of the film’s popularity.
Being a sequel to a blockbuster, the guild wanted even more than the standard rate.
‘Shameless bastards.’