It might have been because I had a late-night conversation with Ha Eun, or perhaps it was because I had finally let out some thoughts that I had kept in my heart for a long time.
“Da-yeon, Da-yeon… Wake up… Breakfast is ready…”
“Umm… Just 10 more minutes…”
As usual, Ha Eun had been up early in the morning, but no matter how much she tried to wake Da-yeon, Da-yeon showed no sign of getting up.
On a normal day, Ha Eun would have made every effort to wake her up. However, because of the heartfelt confession Da-yeon had made toward Ha Eun yesterday, she found herself being more cautious about waking her than usual.
‘…I don’t think I’d wake up like this even if I ate ramen.’
Ultimately, instead of waking Da-yeon, whose eyes were incredibly puffy, she gently covered her with a soft blanket and hesitantly expressed to Da-yeon’s parents that it might be better to let her sleep a little longer.
It was after this that breakfast for the Da-yeon family, minus Da-yeon herself, began. While it was true that sitting at the same table with someone else’s parents felt somewhat burdensome, it was also known that skipping breakfast was unhealthy.
In the grand scheme of things, feeling burdened was nothing compared to the prospect of harming one’s health.
Thus, as always, she started picking at healthy foods on the table.
“Hmm, Ha Eun really doesn’t have any food preferences… Ha Eun’s mom must be excited to cook.”
The muttered words of Da-yeon’s mother, Jeong Go-eun, who had been gazing at Ha Eun, reached her ears. Following that, Da-yeon’s father, Min Jeong-woon, expressed a brief wish directed at Da-yeon.
“I hope at least her living habits can be learned from Ha Eun.”
‘…I’m glad I didn’t wake her up.’
For Da-yeon, who was already feeling stressed from being compared to Ha Eun, if even her small habits were compared, she would surely explode. It was fortunate that Da-yeon had not checked out of dreamland.
However, for some reason, the gazes of Jeong Go-eun and Min Jeong-woon, which were continually fixed on Ha Eun, made her feel as if she were sitting on needles, even though she knew well that there were no malicious feelings behind those gazes.
‘I feel like I might choke…’
It was only after about 15 minutes that breakfast finally came to an end.
Just then, a message from Ju Jung-yun arrived, saying that she would soon be arriving in front of Da-yeon’s house, so it was time to start preparing to leave.
However, Da-yeon was still in a state of slumber. As such, she was left with no choice but to say goodbye only to Da-yeon’s parents.
“I’m grateful for all the hospitality today.”
“No… You don’t have to say that. Please come over often in the future.”
Completing a polite bow, as she stepped out of Da-yeon’s house…
“Han Yu-hwa! I missed you~!”
‘…There was no mention of coming with my mom.’
For some reason, Na-yeon, who was accompanying Ju Jung-yun, rushed toward Ha Eun and gave her a vigorous hug.
Almost simultaneously, Na-yeon’s remarks about the fifth episode of “You from the Star” poured into Ha Eun’s ears.
“Do you know how much my mom cried after seeing our daughter yesterday? Although I don’t know about everyone else, my mom should have been informed in advance that Han Yu-hwa would be dying!”
‘It’s… suffocating…’
Even after boarding Ju Jung-yun’s van, time continued to pass while Na-yeon’s heartfelt praises were heard until they finally arrived at the acting academy instead of home.
Upon reaching the academy, Ha Eun was met with unexpected attention.
“The director says there’s nothing more to teach, so Ha Eun can take her leave for now.”
“…But I just got here.”
The director of the acting academy, who had a remarkable long mustache, as well as other child actors who usually kept their distance from Ha Eun, were treating her with somewhat different eyes and attitudes than before.
As a result, the confusion that had started from Da-yeon’s heartfelt confession last night had now stretched over a period of more than 12 hours.
It was indeed true that the fifth episode aired last night was the part where Ha Eun had put in the most effort during filming.
However, was it truly natural for the reactions of those around her to change so drastically?
‘…They’re not secretly recording me, right?’
Without being able to be sure of anything, she felt awkward in this slowly passing day. After the acting class had officially ended, she stopped by the vacant lot, as she always did, to train her stamina, and before she knew it, it was evening.
Finally, when she arrived home, she was greeted with a dining table that had several times more dishes than usual by Na-yeon, who once again called her “So-ja!”
“…This is too much…”
“Think of it as a replacement for the birthday table I couldn’t set up yesterday.”
After finishing an overdue birthday party with the cake Na-yeon had prepared in advance, she made her way to the bathtub where warm water had already been drawn and lay down, more exhausted than ever, reflecting on the conversation she had with Da-yeon last night.
“It’s already been two hours, Ha Eun~. You’re alive, right~?”
‘…Time seems to go faster only at moments like this.’
Eventually, at the sound of Na-yeon continuously asking about Ha Eun’s well-being through the bathroom door, she reluctantly pushed her sleepy body up.
After thoroughly drying her damp hair and changing into pajamas adorned with a bear pattern, she logged onto New World TV and started watching Da Ramji’s broadcast.
“Now that we’ve picked the thief and the police, we’ll start the chase in 10 minutes~.”
Today’s content for Da Ramji’s broadcast was cops and robbers. The thieves would win if even one of them escaped with a gem, while the police had to capture all the thieves.
At first glance, it seemed that the police were at a huge disadvantage. However, many special abilities not granted to the thieves were provided to the police, creating a proper balance.
For a while, only the sight of Da Ramji escaping from the police showed on the broadcast screen.
Then, just as the avatars of the members in police roles began to come into view.
“Oh, noble Kang Jeong! Please be at peace!!”
‘…Huh?’
Da Ramji, who had taken on the role of bait for another thief and loudly declared that a thief was here, was captured on the broadcast screen.
However, what startled Ha Eun the most was that the line Da Ramji had just delivered had sounded eerily familiar.
Moreover, thanks to Da Ramji’s sacrifice, “Kang Jeong,” who had been able to escape from the police, also responded with a line she had heard before.
“No matter when it is, I will never forget you, So-ja of Da Ramji!”
Ha Eun’s focus on the broadcast spiked in that moment.
Shortly after, she spotted Da Ramji and saw the police members firing arrows at her.
In less than a few seconds, Da Ramji’s avatar transformed into what looked like a hedgehog and was instantly taken down.
– “That sounds just like Han Yu-hwa lol.”
– “In reality, Han Yu-hwa hasn’t taken that many hits.”
– “Seems like someone is impersonating Han Yu-hwa, and they shot her right away without giving her a chance.”
“Still, don’t you think there’s a slight resemblance? Does she really not resemble her at all?”
– “Yeah, kinda.”
– “In the first place, the real Han Yu-hwa doesn’t make weird sounds.”
– “Kang Jeong is also not exactly Park Do-jun, right?”
“Is there anything wrong with our Jeong? I think it’s a bit ridiculous to think that way, even by my standards.”
– “Wow.”
– “That was an unintentional outburst of honesty.”
– “Kang Jeong looks like she’s about to get upset… 10 seconds to sulk, 9 seconds to sulk, 8 seconds to sulk…”
– “We should compare people who need to be compared, Ram Ji. In the first place, our Yun-seong oppa could never compete with Kang Jeong’s type of pumpkin—(this message has been deleted).”
– “Anyhow, it seems they succeeded in stealing the gem, so it’s a happy ending.”
Continuing to have conversations about “You from the Star,” Da Ramji and the viewers displayed an enjoyable rapport. It wasn’t too surprising that “You from the Star” was receiving tremendous popularity nationwide, but it was still a strange sight to see so many people she didn’t even know praising Ha Eun’s performance.
It was only then that the confusion that had lingered around Ha Eun, who had been by Da-yeon’s side all day, completely settled, and that empty space was filled with a pleasant and ticklish feeling.
Ha Eun’s smile, reflected in the small hand mirror beside her monitor, was also gradually rising.
The feeling was so good that it momentarily pushed away any lingering thoughts.
– “Ugh…”
– “Ugh… click*.”
“Hello?”
[Ah, Manager Ju. This is Lee Geon-yeol.]
“Oh, yes. Geon-yeol. What’s going on?”
[Well, there’s something I’d like to discuss with Ha Eun. What’s she doing right now?]
At this inquiry about Ha Eun’s current situation, Ju Jung-yun turned her head for a moment and looked at a nearby table.
Eventually, what caught her eye was Ha Eun, engaging in an interview with Heo Ju-eun, who was holding a piece of what looked like a delicious slice of cake.
However, unlike the first interview, where not a single photo had been taken, this one had some additional people present to take pictures, and the small café resonated with clicks of the camera now and then.
“They’re in the middle of the interview. It seems like there’s still about 30 minutes left. Is it something urgent?”
[Ah, no. It’s not that urgent. I’ll contact you again a bit later.]
With that, the call with Lee Geon-yeol ended with a soft sound, followed almost simultaneously by another click of the camera, making Ju Jung-yun realize.
‘…I never really thought I would become a star manager.’
The fact that she, who had no prior experience as a manager, had now become the manager for a star like Ha Eun struck her deeply.
Today, there had been a flood of inquiries related to Ha Eun appearing as missed calls, making the realization even more profound.
‘Should I ask for a raise…?’
