Chapter 215
I analyzed what form would be most suitable for me based on universal beauty standards.
As a result, I dyed my hair pink.
I took off my glasses and put on red circle lenses.
The effect was good.
People’s reactions changed dramatically compared to my previous self, which had tried to blend in with the background behind me.
Thanks to that, I received a casting offer. It was from an agency called Flower Entertainment.
I was a bit worried that it was a declining agency, but the offer to become a trainee without an audition seemed appealing. The system and investment scale looked decent enough.
It seemed like a good stepping stone to raise my value and jump to a better place later.
If my commercial value increases, I could choose the agency I want to go to.
If that happens…
…what was I just thinking?
*
Not long after joining Flower Entertainment, I was asked to change my name.
It seemed that my superiors weren’t particularly fond of the name Oh Chun-ja.
I thought I could just use a stage name, but it didn’t seem like a big hassle, so I accepted without argument.
Thus, I was renamed Oh Yoori.
Trainee activities were not as difficult as I expected.
Honestly, I had never had trouble learning and following, so I didn’t foresee any issues with singing or dancing.
The problem was that so many annoying people emerged who insisted on communication.
It was easier dealing with superiors who just spoke the proper flattery and tried to be reasonably pleasant, but fellow trainees had incredibly high expectations.
They kept trying to engage me, insisting I join their clique, but I ignored them all.
So I naturally became a loner.
Honestly, I felt good about being left alone.
But then, someone kept bothering me.
It was a senior trainee, surprisingly named Seo Eunbyeol.
She shared a name with Han Eunbyeol, the one who had hit someone with a fire extinguisher, and they both had the awkwardness down pat.
Is the name Eunbyeol reserved for people with some mental issues?
I could have pushed her away, but it felt unnecessary, so I didn’t stop her from approaching me.
Thus, I ended up spending quite a bit of time with Seo Eunbyeol.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad.
*
It was decided that I would participate in a show called Girl 100.
It was decided.
Inside the Flower agency, it seemed that being quite highly regarded while also being the youngest played a significant role.
It wasn’t bad. After all, that program was seen as a decent platform for promoting Oh Yoori, a product known as an idol.
It clearly seemed worth investing effort, so while checking the list of contacts, I stumbled upon a familiar name.
Seon Taeyang.
It was a name I recognized.
*
The first recording day had arrived.
It was also the first day when all the stakeholders gathered.
In the midst of it all, my companion, Manager Seo Ji-tae, seemed eager to greet others, so I decided to follow him. The other manager, Ban Seong-cheol, said that since we were facing stakeholders and not artists, there was no need for that, but Ji-tae insisted he wanted to be proactive.
Then Seong-cheol, with his characteristic crude laugh, said,
“Cough cough, Oh Yoori, it’s good that you’re quick-witted. Unlike some snobs who wonder if they even need to greet the crew, right? Life isn’t solved just by talent; a good attitude goes a long way.”
“….”
I wasn’t really thinking about those things, but since he seemed to take it positively, I thought I didn’t need to correct him.
While wandering around the filming set greeting people, I spotted Seon Taeyang.
It seemed he had noticed us, as his gaze turned our way.
And just like that, our eyes met.
It had been two years.
…Nothing came to mind.
I couldn’t remember what I wanted to say or what kind of impression I wanted to give.
This was my first time experiencing something like this. It felt really strange. Very, very strange.
While I was frozen, Ji-tae greeted him and introduced me.
Seon Taeyang smiled calmly in return, exchanged business cards, and we parted ways.
It was just for a moment.
…Was that it?
Since this was a business encounter, I wondered if he ignored me, but reflecting on the expression I read, it seemed closer to him not remembering me at all.
Given that reading expressions was the most familiar task throughout my life, the chance of being wrong was very low.
Moreover, based on that guy’s personality, it didn’t seem likely he would completely disregard someone.
It was simply that Seon Taeyang didn’t recognize me.
…
That could definitely happen.
For one, my appearance had changed quite a lot, and the experiences from the previous setting and the current one were quite disconnected. It wouldn’t be easy to connect the dots.
Or maybe, due to his personality, he had probably met dozens more people like me and I might have faded into the shadows of his memory.
If I had to guess, given that man’s personality, he must have met dozens of people like me, so I might have faded into his memory.
My own lingering memories could very well be one-sided.
It was indeed possible. I wasn’t bothered at all.
After all, I was born with a disability that prevented me from caring about these things. Naturally, I wasn’t bothered.
“Yuri, shall we go now? The next place we need to stop at is… um, are you okay? Do you feel unwell? Your expression looks a bit off.”
… I really wasn’t bothered at all.
*
I saw him again.
This time I was with Ban Seong-cheol, greeting the cast.
“Hello! I’m Oh Yoori, the bright and bubbly person who wants to be everyone’s vitamin!”
I wondered if the previous failure to recognize me was due to not hearing my voice, so I made a point to speak up.
But again, he didn’t recognize me.
While Ban Seong-cheol finished introducing himself and chatted with Seon Taeyang, I wondered if the difference in hairstyle from before had thrown him off, so I let my twin tails down and even took out my circle lenses for a moment in the bathroom. I considered whether it was my height difference and tried taking off my heeled shoes.
I was astonishingly uninterested.
Instead, his gaze remained fixed solely on Ban Seong-cheol’s manager.
“….”
What? Is he gay?
*
I realized there were some rather strange hands involved around my usual nerdy older sister, Seo Eunbyeol.
It was a story that had nothing to do with me.
It was obvious I’d be a nuisance if I interjected.
If there was someone suffering, there was bound to be someone benefitting.
And I was clearly one of those benefitting, so if I kept my mouth shut and focused on my own business, I could enjoy all the perks.
So, my task was clear.
What I, as a person, did best was ignoring things.
“…”
At that moment, I was spoken to.
Familiar faces echoed annoyingly in my mind.
‘Monster of a girl.’
…Mother. Unfortunately, I admit, based on some standards, I can see how you might think that.
‘Chunja, you could never □□.’
…Han Eunbyeol, even if you didn’t say it, I already know.
‘Don’t dare to become someone like me.’
….
When I came to, I was plunging into the center of the incident.
I really thought I was going crazy.
No, I was already crazy, but it felt like I was going around in circles and getting crazier.
In my opinion, the cause of this was that quack doctor.
Or maybe it was the medicine he gave me.
*
I realized that moving alone wouldn’t create enough chaos as I had planned.
I needed an ally. And that face popped up in my mind quickly.
Once again, it was Seon Taeyang.
After pondering for a moment, I decided to just go for it and negotiate since he wouldn’t recognize me.
I already knew his personality, so I could imagine a way to get his help.
I prepared a script. And I also prepared my role.
The role I had to play was that of a naive girl caught up in the agency’s dirty schemes.
A really dumb kid who ended up in a crisis while attempting to threaten others.
He was the type of person who wouldn’t be able to resist and would jump right in.
During the performance, I exaggerated a bit, thinking that if I showed too much calculation, he might remember me from before, but anyway, I acted like an ordinary, common, dumb girl.
“Team Leader Seon, you just asked, ‘Wouldn’t it be better to approach someone more capable and influential than me?’ right?”
“…Right.”
“I’ll make a bold statement. Among the associates of Girl 100, I’m not sure about their influence, but when it comes to ability alone, there’s absolutely no one more capable than Team Leader Seon. No one would even come close to doing something like this.”
“….”
“Other people may not know, but I do.”
While I tried to sound profound, in reality, it was just a straightforward statement.
Surely, there would be quite a few people who knew about Seon Taeyang’s abilities.
After all, if you had a certain degree of judgment and your eyes were open, you would definitely be keeping track of that guy’s movements.
It was a very rational and obvious judgment.
Therefore, this was the kind of remark a common girl may say while confusing herself into thinking she was special.
However, the way Seon Taeyang looked at me while I was acting like a very ordinary person was somehow strange.
As always, I analyzed his expression. Since emotional understanding was impossible, this statistical judgment process was essential for me.
That judgment came quickly.
Right now, the way he looked at me was like someone who had just run into a stalker.
“….”
…Why is he looking at me like that?
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