Ordinary school life.
It was one of Ha-eun’s wishes.
Therefore, anyone who disrupted Ha-eun’s ordinary school life was considered her enemy.
Isn’t it true that someone who prevents a person’s wishes from being fulfilled is an enemy?
In that sense, the first-year students became excessively noisy every time they encountered Ha-eun.
In other words, the new students of Narae Arts High School were clear enemies of Ha-eun.
“But I can’t deal with them.”
“You shouldn’t. Is there anything worth making the news out of it?”
Da-yeon said this while gulping down strawberry milk she bought from the vending machine.
Her cold demeanor showed no interest in Ha-eun’s complaints.
Even though Da-yeon also received attention from the first-year students, she showed no signs of discomfort.
Perhaps it was because she didn’t obsess over ordinary school life like Ha-eun did.
“They’re asking for photos. They come to me every break, disrupting my study flow.”
“Then just ignore them. You don’t even have to acknowledge them.”
“How can I ignore those who come to see me? They are all my fans.”
“…So what am I supposed to do?”
Da-yeon had a slightly incredulous expression.
Seeing Da-yeon’s disbelief at her words, Ha-eun finally slumped over her desk.
Because Ha-eun also thought her statements were nonsensical.
‘Maybe it will get better over time.’
At least while <The Sunshine> was airing, she would inevitably continue to be the center of attention.
Not being noticed would be even stranger.
Thus, she reached a conclusion.
“Da-yeon, I want to go to the vending machine.”
“Go on your own.”
“Let’s go together.”
“I already went.”
“Still. When I’m with you, I don’t get approached.”
“…?”
Whenever there was a need to go to places like the vending machine or the restroom, she always went with Da-yeon.
It was because the first-year students found it difficult to approach Da-yeon due to her unique prickly personality.
Even just standing still, her aura was palpable.
Every moment she radiated a sharp gaze.
To be fair, Ha-eun’s impression was quite sharp as well.
However, since Kim Jeong-hyun from <The Sunshine> had a soft image, it naturally balanced things out.
‘Come to think of it, during <The Moon Through the Clouds>…’
When Yeom Wol from <The Moon Through the Clouds> was only revealing his strong aspect as a guard, there was no considerable commotion at school.
Instead, they seemed a bit cautious around Ha-eun.
When the interest in Ha-eun rose again, it was due to the kiss scene between Lee Hyun and Yeom Wol.
In other words, it was at that point that Yeom Wol’s image gained a poignant aspect of a woman.
To put it differently, Ha-eun realized that how the surrounding reactions changed depended on the role she played.
‘Will things quiet down after <The Veterans> is released?’
After the announcement of her first villain role as Lee Yeo-seo, it seemed she would be able to enjoy a quieter school life.
Of course, that was still a long way off.
In any case, for now, she had no choice but to rely on Da-yeon.
Thus, she tried to find a way to go to the vending machine with Da-yeon.
What Ha-eun overlooked was a single fact.
That what Da-yeon loved most in this world was playing pranks on Ha-eun.
“Lee Ha-eun!! Are you going to eat strawberry sandwiches??”
“!?!?”
The reason Da-yeon shouted so loudly as she just entered the vending machine was precisely that.
Naturally, everyone’s attention shifted toward them.
As expected, the murmuring that started a little later was mostly about Ha-eun.
Due to the loudness of Da-yeon’s voice, even students outside the vending machine realized Ha-eun’s presence.
“Th-That Da-yeon, everyone’s looking because of you…!”
“I just called your name!”
“Ugh.”
Thinking back, there was another significant enemy.
While not directly tied to Ha-eun’s school life.
A horrifying enemy closely associated with Ha-eun’s other name, Diah.
‘…I chose the wrong person to trust.’
Standing right before Ha-eun, Diah was playfully sticking out her tongue.
Still, she bought what she needed.
She even bought two strawberry sandwiches that Da-yeon had mentioned earlier.
Supplementation was essential for smoother studying.
After returning to class, the moments continued to unfold just like the past few days, without any distinction.
It wasn’t until another week passed that a warning notice prohibiting entry into the 3rd-year floor of Narae Arts High School was posted.
However, the impact of <The Sunshine> wasn’t limited to Ha-eun’s school life.
“…a cosmetics advertisement?”
“Yes.”
As Kim Jeong-hyun gained attention for her beauty, several CF proposals came in.
The one from the well-known brand of cosmetics mentioned by Ju Jung-yun earlier was among them.
Since in cosmetics CFs, looks are of utmost importance, Ju Jung-yun was secretly pleased.
In Ju Jung-yun’s view, the scene from episode 6 of <The Sunshine> really looked like a painting.
After all, cosmetics CFs are a matter of pride for female entertainers like Ha-eun.
Ha-eun, who wasn’t particularly interested in such matters, simply didn’t actively think about it.
In any case, when the tide of attention towards Kim Jeong-hyun rose, they had to row the boat of cosmetics CFs.
Thus, Ju Jung-yun was very much in favor of this cosmetics CF.
However, for Ha-eun…
“But I don’t really know about cosmetics. I can barely handle the basics…”
“You can learn.”
“…it’s not good for skin health.”
“Not all of them are like that.”
Ha-eun had only gone out with a very basic level of makeup, except for makeup for filming.
She was uncertain if she could do well in a cosmetics CF.
Because, in the end, cosmetics CFs were still acting.
She thought it would be necessary to understand well what kind of products she would be promoting and their strengths.
Crucially, she held a preconceived notion that cosmetics themselves were detrimental to skin health.
So, she planned to consider the cosmetics CF proposal thoroughly before accepting it.
“First of all, it’s a one-year exclusive contract. The model fee is estimated to be around 400 to 500 million, but there’s room for negotiation…”
“I’ll do it!”
There was no business in front of money.
The contract amount proposed by the famous French brand Rêve was beyond imagination.
Ha-eun anticipated that Rêve’s Korean branch had its eyes on Kim Jeong-hyun.
In fact, Rêve was paying more attention to the impact of Ha-eun’s Sear’s advertisement but, whatever the reason…
The advertising negotiations went very positively.
Though she hadn’t signed the contract yet, it was practically finalized that Ha-eun would be doing Rêve’s cosmetics CF.
However, due to the recent news of Ha-eun being cast in <The Veterans>…
“If she’s the daughter of a chaebol, will she have a classy image?”
Several questions were brought up about Lee Yeo-seo from <The Veterans>.
In general, the CF models starring in movies or dramas tend to influence the CFs themselves.
What was particularly important was the role she played.
If an actor who appeared in a road safety public service advertisement played a hit-and-run driver in a film, it would seem odd on multiple levels; likewise for Ha-eun.
“I understood she’s a charismatic villain. Is that right?”
“Ah, charismatic… yes, that’s correct.”
It was essential to avoid the image of the cosmetics CF model deteriorating in a negative way.
Surprisingly, Rêve was not worried about Ha-eun’s villain role; instead, they were looking forward to it.
“It’s hard to find an impression as strong as that of a villain, so we are looking forward to it.”
Their expression showed no sign of concern whatsoever.
Even if Ha-eun thought, ‘Isn’t being a villain not good for the CF?’ it didn’t change the fact that Rêve had taken everything into account, approving the CF proposal.
The problem was that there was no guarantee that Rêve’s attitude would remain unchanged.
If Ha-eun’s image as Lee Yeo-seo was worse than Rêve expected, the possibility of canceling the advertisement contract was certainly there.
Of course, the image of the actress Lee Ha-eun would not be fixed solely by the three characters of Yeo-seo.
Though the only image known at this moment was not Lee Yeo-seo but rather that of Kim Jeong-hyun, a beautiful lady.
‘Hmm…’
Since Ha-eun’s acting in <The Veterans> would be somewhat different from what it had been so far, the repercussions shouldn’t be taken lightly either.
Wasn’t it necessary to establish an image that was non-threatening by perhaps appearing in some light entertainment or similar?
Thus, while she was caught up in thoughts regarding her first cosmetics CF for a while, unexpectedly, the solution came from an entirely unthought-of direction.
“Let’s release an album while we’re in high school. Do you know how precious the title of being a high school student is?”
“It’s just a mini-album, it’s not that hard! All you need to do is record exactly 5 songs!”
The solo album proposal from Daulby, who didn’t want to waste Ha-eun’s voice – even though Ha-eun was using it quite fully as Diah – was followed by a tired voice saying that she felt like she had recently hit a slump.
“At times like this, you should make songs for others and take a breather.”
“…Can’t you just relax instead?”
“I can’t even take a break as I please. If the work is stagnant, it’s so stressful.”
So, just once.
Just like when they first met a long time ago, Ha-eun’s two hands were suddenly held by Lee Geon-yeol’s.
For some reason, hearing Lee Geon-yeol’s words of ‘just once’ didn’t feel like it was the first time, but…
For the sake of managing her image as a cosmetics CF model, and to move towards her goal of becoming a superstar…
“…Are we filming something like a music video?”
“Eh, I don’t want to go that far with a music video.”
“No, I want to try shooting a music video….”
“…Huh?”
It seemed there would be no harm in utilizing the name Pinocchio.
Ha-eun still had no idea how her first solo album would perform.
“Well, for now, it feels like it’s about the challenge itself?”
“…So the ones who have done dome concerts, what do they become in the face of challenges?”
