The Second Melody
Season 1, Episode 3: The Second Chance
SCENE START
EXT. PARK - DAY (2013)
The air is crisp, and the sun is shining. HYUN-WOO is walking home from school, his mind buzzing. He's feeling a lightness he hasn't experienced in years, a sense of hope that his second chance is real. He decides to take a shortcut through a neighborhood park he hasn't been to in years.
He stops dead in his tracks. A few feet away, a woman is laughing. Her voice is a melody from a life he'd thought was gone forever. It is his mother, KIM MI-SOO. She's sitting on a bench, a radiant smile on her face. Next to her is a man he recognizes from a few painful, blurry memories. He is her new husband.
The two of them are playing with a little boy, no older than five. The boy giggles as Kim Mi-soo twirls him around. The man comes up behind her and wraps his arms around her waist. They are the picture of a perfect, happy family.
Hyun-woo watches, frozen. He remembers being that little boy, his mother's face a blur of tears and sadness. He thinks of the divorce papers and the coldness that followed. Now, she is the picture of a doting, joyful mother, her face radiant with a warmth he hasn't seen in over a decade.
The little boy, Hyun-woo's half-brother, trips and starts to cry. Kim Mi-soo immediately kneels down and hugs him tightly, comforting him with a level of tenderness that makes Hyun-woo's heart ache.
He turns and runs, not caring where he is going, just needing to get away from the painful sight.
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SCENE START
INT. ARCADE - NIGHT (2013)
Hyun-woo is sitting in a brightly lit arcade, the sounds of arcade machines buzzing all around him. He feels numb. He's trying to shake the image of his mother's smiling face and her new family. He plays one game, then another, his hands moving on instinct. He's good, too good. He wins every game and earns a high score on a rhythm game.
A familiar voice breaks through his daze.
Hyun-woo turns around. It's KIM JAE-MIN, his future best friend. He's a geeky, kind boy with glasses and a friendly face.
Hyun-woo just stares at him. He remembers Jae-min from the future, the only one who didn't betray him, the only one who stood by him. He was a lifeline in his isolated world.
Jae-min holds out a hand. Hyun-woo hesitates, then takes it. It's a simple, genuine gesture of friendship. A feeling he had missed so much.
Jae-min's smile fades, replaced by a look of concern. He doesn't push it. He just nods and offers a small, kind smile.
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SCENE START
INT. HYUN-WOO'S GRANDPARENTS' HOUSE - NIGHT (2013)
Hyun-woo is sitting in his room, the TV on low. The news is on, and a reporter is talking about the music industry. Hyun-woo turns up the volume, and he sees a headline about his former group, A-Star, and the upcoming scandal of 2025. It feels surreal, like a morbid prophecy. He looks away from the screen, his eyes landing on his old acoustic guitar in the corner of the room.
He thinks about the perfect life he saw in the park. He thinks about the fake friendships and the fake smiles that came with fame. He realizes what he wants now. He wants to have a normal life, a happy life, one with real friends.
He picks up his guitar and strums a chord. It's simple and pure. He starts to play a melody, the one that came to him in his mind.
He closes his eyes and starts to play, a new determination in his heart.
FADE TO BLACK.
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