I'm an Unknown Actress, But Everyone Knows Me

The fan of Yun Hyeonjo was dying to hear how it all turned out. She was curious about the story between the reckless bulldozer and the calm sunbae.

—I said that, and sunbae smiled and shook his head. And just like that, our third meeting ended. After that, I left messages for him regularly. Our relationship never really progressed. I just became an oppa who treated me to meals. The kind of oppa who got me old exam papers, told me which lectures were easy As, and recommended good restaurants near campus.

A dragged-out, stagnant kind of romance, not the kind where you suddenly start flirting and become a couple overnight. It made her mouth water.

—I’d never once gone on a blind date or a group date, and then, just like when I first met him, I became a third-year student. And on the day sunbae was discharged from the military, the first person to go see him was me.

Music began to play. Like a spoiler for a happy ending.

‘It’s coming... it’s coming....’

The fan of Yun Hyeonjo knew instinctively.

—Is the bet still valid?

As if he had no intention of betraying that expectation, Yun Hyeonjo asked in a voice that sounded slightly nervous.

“This is it!”

The volume of the background music gently increased.

—I nodded my head like crazy. Then sunbae smiled brightly.

—Is CC still okay?

—I won, right? You like me too, sunbae, right?

There was a brief pause. But the swelling melody filled the gap perfectly, leaving just enough space for listeners to imagine the scene.

—Yeah. I like you too.

The fan of Yun Hyeonjo covered her face with one hand. Whenever emotions swelled up like that, she couldn’t keep her hands still.

—And that’s how we started dating. After a full two years. Finally, his Acebook, where he’d always shown up as “a friend’s friend,” now displayed that he was in a relationship with me! After we started dating, sunbae finally confessed his true feelings.

Oh. This couldn’t be... The fan of Yun Hyeonjo pressed her lips tightly inward. She had a strong premonition that a cliché line was coming. And sure enough—

—Actually, I liked you from the moment I first saw you.

At last, Yun Hyeonjo’s shy-sounding confession came out.

—What? Then why did you keep pushing me away like that?!

—You were twenty.

—Sunbae said he didn’t want me, barely twenty years old, to end up waiting for him like a faithful rubber shoe. And he was afraid that if we became a CC couple before I’d even properly started college, I wouldn’t get to have any freshman memories. So he pushed me away as hard as he could.

He was a proper sunbae. The fan of Yun Hyeonjo wanted this character even more. If he’d just take on a role like this once—just once—she felt like she’d have no more wishes left.

—What if I’d actually gotten a boyfriend?

—I thought I could like you for longer than anyone else.

Her toes curled with tension. The music, which had gradually built up, softened and flowed gently.

—Then my boyfriend said this.

—I can just keep having a crush on you until we break up.

Only then did the fan of Yun Hyeonjo finally exhale. Come to think of it, she’d been holding her breath for a while.

—And so, after six years, we’re getting married this year. From classmates, to ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) sunbae and hoobae, from boyfriend to husband! I want to say thank you to the person who stayed by my side the whole time.

The first story ended. As the DJs announced they would play some music and go to commercials, she picked up her phone.

“What was Han Yeoreum in again?”

As she flipped through Yun Hyeonjo’s past filmography, a strong urge rose up to go through Han Yeoreum’s works alongside it.

After searching Han Yeoreum’s name on a portal site, the fan of Yun Hyeonjo froze for a moment.

“Huh...?”

Every project except the one-episode drama was already familiar to her.

, which opened a new horizon for web dramas, , which surpassed ten million viewers, and , a full-blown phenomenon that practically no drama nerd had missed.

“This... Han Yeoreum...”

The fan of Yun Hyeonjo looked back on her past life of stanning actors. The moment she realized she’d been unconsciously sinking into Han Yeoreum, she let out a groan.

“If this keeps up, she might become a ‘trust-and-watch’ actor.”

A title only given like a certificate to actors whose acting skills and script judgment had both been thoroughly verified.

* * *

Inside the MBS radio booth, the writers exchanged quiet words of admiration as they watched Han Yeoreum through the transparent glass wall. If they had to sum her up in one word—

“She’s good.”

She really was good. As if she were someone who listened to radio all the time, she knew the medium’s unique rhythm and flavor. She had a talent for making the same lines sound more entertaining. Her timing—jumping in and pulling back—was artful.

Even when she paused to build anticipation, she never let dead air form.

—So, I’m telling you, this is seriously, sss— haaah....

—People are going to think you’re secretly eating something, listeners.

—No, I’m not eating anything! Seriously, everyone! Don’t misunderstand me. Again, again.

Yun Hyeonjo, who usually maintained a perfectly measured distance, was putting on an unusually friendly image today.

“How does she have such good diction?”

One writer muttered in amazement. The others nodded in agreement.

Perhaps because of Han Yeoreum’s skill, far more messages were coming in than usual today. That was rare when a special DJ was hosting.

The sub-writer’s hands moved busily as she quickly filtered through the incoming messages, selecting the funny and interesting ones.

—User 1111 says they know Han Yeoreum is secretly eating tteokbokki... No, everyone, is this really okay on her first day? User 7979 says don’t eat alone, share some with sunbae too.... Ah! Sunbae, please do the “ssseup—ha” once.

—She ate it all, so what am I supposed to do....

Despite it being her first day, the atmosphere felt like she’d already become friends with the listeners.

—No, not right now— the commercials are barging in without any mercy. Yes, we’ll be right back after a short ad break.

Messages kept pouring in at the sound of Han Yeoreum’s voice, which seemed to be laughing in disbelief.

‘Han Yeoreum being young is the real hook....’

At twenty-two, she was younger than most radio listeners. And since this was her first time ever serving as a special DJ, many people found her endearing.

‘They even booked the guest perfectly.’

Yun Hyeonjo was famous for keeping his private life tightly sealed and having a razor-sharp personality. Naturally, when word spread that someone like him was appearing as a guest, his fans—starved for content—came running.

‘And most of Yun Hyeonjo’s fans already know Han Yeoreum!’

Recognized as “Influencer 1” from , Han Yeoreum felt all the more familiar. It was a great combination.

Even the cameraman from , diligently capturing every moment, had already fallen for Han Yeoreum’s radio show.

The main writer and the sub-writer exchanged a glance.

‘When the next movie comes out, should we invite them again? As guests—along with Kwak Cheolsik.’

‘Of course.’

It seemed wise to secure a verbal promise early. Watching Han Yeoreum smiling into the microphone as she read the next story, they could tell.

‘Booking her is going to get competitive.’

With every new project, more places would be fighting to lock Han Yeoreum down.

* * *

This was Ilsan. MBS Variety Division. Sitting in the director’s office, the head of the MBS Drama Center took a sip of his coffee. His mouth tasted bitter. No—sweet? Or was it bitter after all? Even he couldn’t tell how he felt.

‘Our network’s enemy, Yeon Huijae....’

The head of the MBS Drama Center thought of Han Yeoreum, the station’s public enemy for the past two years.

The ratings disasters she’d caused over those two years were painful—but at the same time, the buzz she generated couldn’t be ignored.

‘Just look at the radio clips.’

All she did was read listener stories, yet she drew in not just listeners, but viewers as well. The view counts climbed steeply, rivaling episodes where top stars had appeared as guests.

As if proving his instincts right—

‘We have to pull her into a drama, no matter what!’

MBS had already sent over several scripts, but all of them had been rejected. Even though the only works she’d done since were .

‘To think she’d grow to a point where she can just pick and choose scripts.’

Her momentum was extraordinary. He suspected that once finished airing, the number of scripts flooding Han Yeoreum’s way would be impossible to count on two hands.

For the record, the head of the MBS Drama Center had good instincts.

‘A script that really suits Han Yeoreum.’

As he mentally scanned through the list of scripts, he finally vented his frustration by calling a friend.

“Hey, how was it?”

“How was what? Stop killing time over there and get back to your office already.”

“The kids are tormenting me to death. They’re treating the center head like a neighborhood punching bag.”

With a sigh, the drama center head got to the point.

“Did you watch ? I absolutely refused to let Gam Dajeong into the editing room. Said an old guy like me wouldn’t get it. You watched it, right?”

The head of the Variety Division leaned back in his chair and grinned mischievously, making no effort to hide his amusement.

“Of course I did.”

“So? How was it?”

The drama center head stared at him intently.

“How was it?”

The Variety Division head’s smile grew even more playful.