I'm an Unknown Actress, But Everyone Knows Me

* * *

Seo Eden let out a sigh as he sat down in front of his laptop.

Input: Recruiting new club members...

The cheer squad had completely fallen apart. All the official members, except Seo Eden, had disappeared.

Because of the rumors spreading across social media, it was obvious that it would be of no help to their résumés whatsoever.

Trying to rebuild the goals of his now-collapsed college life, Seo Eden’s eyes were more moist than ever.

Input: Burn your youth passionately!

“If you date within the club... I’m not letting any of you off....”

As he typed, Seo Eden muttered with pent-up frustration.

Input: *Planning & Operations, PR Media Team Members Welcome

With a sharp gaze, Seo Eden pressed the print button.

Ziiing— ziiing— ziiing—.

As if hinting that a new stage for youth would unfold, the club recruitment flyers began to print out.

* * *

Where in the world could be more lively than a campus at the start of a new semester? Club flyers fluttered everywhere.

“Are you guys joining a club?”

“I don’t know. If you do, I will!”

Freshmen whose hair still hadn’t grown out at the roots giggled brightly.

Everyone walked around in pairs or groups of three, soaked in the joy of becoming college freshmen.

But even among them, there were those who walked alone—Na Yuna, Jeong Heejeong, and Go Yungyo.

Na Yuna barely got off a bus packed with people and brushed off her clothes. Jeong Heejeong, who lived near the campus, stepped out of the elevator today as well, dressed beautifully. And Go Yungyo gripped the steering wheel of her foreign car and pressed the accelerator.

Click. Click. Click.

Seo Eden used a stapler to pin the recruitment flyers onto the campus bulletin board. As he turned to head elsewhere, other students passed by in front of it.

Some hurried along. Some walked with their arms crossed. Some talked on the phone.

Clang—.

At that moment, the stapler in Seo Eden’s hand fell to the floor, echoing loudly through the hallway.

“Here.”

A cream-colored fleece sleeve appeared in front of him. It was Jeong Heejeong who had picked up the stapler.

“Ah, thank—”

Before he could finish thanking her, she had already gone on her way. Sad music flowed from the wireless earphones in her ears. Jeong Heejeong gazed around with a distant look.

Intube

[If you were in a desert and I was a glass of water, you wouldn’t have thrown me away like this, playlist] 2:40:22

Views 1,334,551

For a moment, the screen of the phone in her hand was visible.

Jeong Heejeong still seemed unable to escape the memories of her ex-boyfriend. There were simply too many memories on this campus. Even the club recruitment flyers posted on the board only became triggers for sadness.

Seo Eden, now holding the stapler again, shook his head a couple of times and walked forward to continue posting the flyers.

Then he saw Go Yungyo passing by near the bulletin board closest to the main gate.

-You’re not going to act like this just because you took one leave, right? Hm? Drinking and singing like that is absolutely not okay. Even if you have fun, keep your dignity. Act like a proper woman.

Go Yungyo was on the phone, her expression full of irritation. The moment she returned to school, her mother’s nagging—trying to control her—always made her blood boil.

“Does your son stay home quietly then? That bastard lives right near home but you got him an officetel, and you don’t even care whether he stays out overnight!”

-Is he the same as you?

It was something she heard every time, but she could never get used to it.

Yungyo stopped in place and looked up at the sky. As she lifted her gaze upward, her eyes turned sharp and piercing.

-In this day and age, you don’t understand how parents feel. Your father was already saying we shouldn’t send you back to Seoul...

Trying hard to suppress her anger, Yungyo’s gaze landed on a club flyer.

The screen shifted, and someone’s phone appeared.

Youstagram

[Cheer squad after-party ( •́ㅿ•̀ ) Now I’m totally a granny~ Being a freshman was so fun, such memories T_T]

Likes 354 Comments 88

-lol what granny T_T

-you got prettier LOL let’s drink

-sunbae thank you so much.. ♥︎ let’s get closer, haha

Contrary to what she had told Go Yungyo, Na Yuna actually checked social media often. And wearing a faded khaki shirt, she was using a different account—not the one she had given Yungyo.

A throwaway account where even accidentally pressing “like” wouldn’t cause trouble. Followers 0, Following 0.

Na Yuna cleared her search history again. The clean, notification-free social media somehow felt lonely.

The three of them headed toward the same classroom. An OST played in sync with their individual steps.

It was the very song they had performed together at the Han River outdoor stage.

As the title appeared, the preview for Episode 2 of began to play.

A scene of So Dami falling in love with Seo Eden at first sight, followed by Seo Eden and Jeong Heejeong working together on a group project, then scenes of Go Yungyo and Na Yuna briefly flashing by, and finally the moment they resolved to join a club.

As scenes of each of them preparing for auditions with their own goals appeared, viewers’ anticipation soared.

[ MBS youth drama finally reveals itself... Episode 1 rating 5.6%]

[Han Yeoreum, Choo Gaeul, So Dami trio show different shades of youth... “Already fun” praised]

[Rising star Han Yeoreum proves her acting through ... becoming the next “youth drama icon”?]

Just as the production team had expected, it was an excellent start.

* * *

Aetami struck her chest with a fist, overwhelmed. She didn’t even feel the pain.

“This... this is youth....”

It had been a long time since she had seen a proper campus drama. On top of that, all the lead actors were close in age, so no one stood out awkwardly in terms of visuals.

“Take away those campus dramas that cast middle-aged men and pretend they’re seniors....”

Aetami had long grown sick of those outdated productions where everyone looked like a homeroom teacher in a school uniform.

Not just Aetami—drama fans everywhere were cheering for , which captured that raw freshness.

Ppongdang @pppongdang___e

(Youth Disqualified Go Yungyo Na Yuna smoking clip.mp4)

Is it okay for smoking to look this fragrant

Retweets 3,331 Likes 5,234

0percentttt

It’s been so long since we got real college students... I’m so emotional there are no “teachers” here

Retweets 1,212 Likes 1,664

Even though only Episode 1 had aired, discussions about were already everywhere. Every community was buzzing, and even humor boards reacted positively.

Because viewers had already seen both short and long vlog content, they had already grown attached to the show.

Click—, click—.

Aetami moved quickly, capturing all the clips uploaded /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ that day. She had originally planned to make GIFs only of Han Yeoreum, but after a brief moment of thought, she smiled.

“Let’s just do all three.”

Having already grown fond of Choo Gaeul and So Dami as well, Aetami uploaded high-quality edited GIFs to the gallery.

“Come to think of it, who made this gallery? They’re fast....”

Her post quickly climbed to the top with rising recommendations.

Whoever the admin was, they were managing the gallery exceptionally well.

* * *

Creeeak....

A somewhat chilling metallic sound echoed.

“Ugh... it’s so bright.... The sun... is this hot....”

“Get it together...! That’s a fluorescent light!”

“Coffee... I’m going to stop drinking coffee....”

“This time, I’m really... definitely quitting my job....”

It was the sound of a door opening. Even with dark circles reaching their chins, they still rejoiced at their “release” while wearing their exhausted human forms.

The only one left inside was Gam Dajeong, the main PD of .

“Hehehe.... Hehehehe....”

The vlog had surpassed 2 million views on its final episode. The comments had reached 14,000. That alone ignited Gam Dajeong’s competitive spirit.

“Everyone....”

She muttered while sipping a mysterious energy drink. The large tumbler she held was filled with a level of caffeine that was terrifying to even calculate.

“Tomorrow night....”

Once today—when Episode 2 aired—passed, would take over this momentum and begin full-scale promotion.

“Look forward to 10 PM....”

* * *

Geum Bitgang pressed the doorbell. Even after pressing it once, there was no response, so impatient as ever, she pressed it again with force.

Ding-dong—.

“Ugh, pressing it once is enough! Your temper.”

The one who opened the door while grumbling was Noh Jeongyeon. Geum Bitgang held out a shopping bag containing olive oil.

“Take a spoonful on an empty stomach.”

“Oh my? A gift?”

“Tch. You’ve gotten so old you’re practically a skeleton.”

“Hey. Bitgang. This is dieting.”

Even at a glance, Noh Jeongyeon had clearly lost weight. A few months ago, she had to go under surgery.

[In , Noh Jeongyeon shows unprecedented charisma... health warning signs]

[Noh Jeongyeon: “It’s a simple surgery, I’ll finish filming”]

[Noh Jeongyeon transforms into a Myeongdong moneylender, a scene-stealer in ]

Noh Jeongyeon had appeared in . She played a powerful moneylender in Myeongdong who created tension between Taeseok and Taejin.

Her acting, sharp like a finely honed blade, deepened the historical drama even further.

But immediately after filming ended, she had to undergo surgery, and unfortunately, her overseas expansion fell through.

Watching the Critics’ Choice awards from a hospital room TV, Noh Jeongyeon had remained silent for a long time.

“Here, walnuts—and this. Bellflower root sweets. Eat.”

“At this hour?”

“It’s good. Just eat it!”

Noh Jeongyeon set out simple snacks on the table in front of the sofa. The TV was playing commercials before the drama started.

“Bitgang, you should take care of your health too. At our age, it’s strange if your body feels fine.”

After being moved by Episode 1 of , Noh Jeongyeon had immediately called Geum Bitgang. Unable to refuse her insistence on watching Episode 2 together, Geum Bitgang came over.

As Episode 2 began with a heart-fluttering campus scene, Noh Jeongyeon watched with a distant gaze.

“It reminds me of when we were young. Right?”

“You remember the most useless things.”

“I still dream about those days sometimes.”

Noh Jeongyeon smiled like a girl. Her smile was so fresh that her slightly gaunt cheeks didn’t even stand out.

“When I said I’d go to Hollywood, what did you say?”

“Why bring that up again!”

“I couldn’t even beat myself, so how would you?”

Imitating Geum Bitgang’s embarrassing past, Noh Jeongyeon bent over laughing. Her face flushed red, Geum Bitgang smacked her back.

“In the end, neither of us won it, but a chick did.”

“...Well. It’s a global era now.”

On screen, So Dami appeared, falling in love with Seo Eden at first sight. A sweet OST played, coloring viewers’ hearts pink.

“Oh my. She’s good, really good. Dami improved a lot.”

“She’s still got a long way to go.”

Noh Jeongyeon watched the youths running across campus. Her gaze seemed to have let go of something, just a little.

“How long do you think we have left to live?”

“People like you live long. I’ll be the one to go in one shot.”

“If I just suddenly die like this... what will be left of my acting career....”

“Did you call me here just to say something unlucky?” 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Noh Jeongyeon leaned softly against Geum Bitgang’s shoulder.

“So? How is it, raising her?”

“Raising? I just throw her out there and she survives on her own.”

“Feels rewarding, doesn’t it? Watching her grow day by day must overwhelm you.”

At that moment, Yeoreum appeared on screen.

Han Yeoreum, who could convey all of Na Yuna’s emotions with just a side profile, staring at a club recruitment notice.

“Even if it’s not you, the acting you taught will remain in that girl and travel far someday...”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

Geum Bitgang cut her off firmly.

“You go. To Hollywood.”

Noh Jeongyeon let out a small laugh. On screen, Han Yeoreum and So Dami awkwardly greeted each other as they became teammates for a group project.

Having watched their twenty-year-old selves up close, Noh Jeongyeon suddenly thought of someone.

“Ah, right. Did you know?”

“What.”

The name that still came up first whenever people talked about the brightest class of DaeYeJong—the one who had made countless headlines upon entering.

“Gyeoul. She’s properly studying acting now.”

News of Do Gyeoul taking on a major role in , which would soon begin filming in Korea, had reached Noh Jeongyeon as well.

“She must’ve clenched her teeth for this.”