I'm an Unknown Actress, But Everyone Knows Me

“13.6? I didn’t mishear that, right?”

“Sunbae, you heard that right.”

“My heart’s beating way too fast, what do I do? What rank was I on today’s Oha Asa again?”

“Please calm down.”

Shin Seojin pressed both hands to his chest, trying desperately to calm the wildly pounding heart beneath them. Did the junior in front of him really not understand what it meant for a genre drama to break 10% ratings by only Episode 3, or had she simply expected this much all along?

“I guess I really am that cute....”

The junior in front of him was brightly smiling while monitoring the reactions.

[Drama/Movie/Actor TALK / Up until the casting first dropped, I thought Han Yeoreum looked way too cute to fit a sociopath, but what is happening;;;]

[Drama/Movie/Actor TALK / Mother, Baby Melon Bread is too good, my heart is swelling]

[Drama/Movie/Actor TALK / Han Yeoreum absolutely needs to be chained to genre dramas. Prosecutor, lawyer, doctor, judge, just let her do every professional role holy shit, we are NEVER letting her go]

[Drama/Movie/Actor TALK / I only just saw Seohae’s actress’s line count and I got chills LOLOL]

The moment Episode 3 finished airing yesterday, SBC’s New Media Web Content Department had separately edited and uploaded a “Lee Seohae line count” video.

The result: 300,000 views the moment it went up.

The clip was currently circulating across every kind of community and drawing explosive attention.

“But what are you doing? Why are your hands so busy?”

“I’m screenshotting all of this.”

“All of it...?”

“Of course. Every single thing. What do we do when today’s episode airs? At this rate, won’t I need to buy another phone because I’m running out of storage?”

Shin Seojin erased the thought he had just been having.

It wasn’t that she didn’t understand what 10% ratings meant for a genre drama, nor was it that she had naturally expected this.

‘She’s confident, isn’t she.’

It simply felt like she was looking forward to tomorrow more than today, and the day after even more than tomorrow.

That unique mindset only someone who had prepared fiercely could possess.

Shin Seojin could see it clearly in Han Yeoreum.

‘Then again, next episode definitely....’

Even though it had only been a rough cut, Shin Seojin had already seen Han Yeoreum’s belt action scene.

That alone made this kind of attitude easy to understand.

Han Yeoreum was still deeply absorbed in monitoring.

There was so much attention pouring in that it was hard just to keep up with the posts and comments.

Even the comments under the Intube video had already easily passed several hundred.

-Shin Seojin and Han Yeoreum’s chemistry, what even is this..T_T Ah, fuck, I know this shouldn’t happen, but please arrange a Kiss. as soon as possible.

Shin Seojin suddenly asked Han Yeoreum,

“Come to think of it, haven’t you never filmed a kiss scene before?”

“No, I did. Back in 〈Strange Tales〉. The ending scene.”

“Ahhh, with Kwon Junhyeok? Why didn’t I see it? I watched ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) the live broadcast.”

“We only released it in the Blu-ray version.”

“Right, I remember the article about that too.... But your filmography is really unusual. It’s a type that’s extremely rare to see.”

Shin Seojin thought back on Han Yeoreum’s filmography.

Completely different from a typical actress’s career path—if you only looked at the lineup, it almost resembled someone aiming to become a film-industry lead.

Then, sounding perhaps a little too much like an old-fashioned senior, he decided to offer some advice.

At some point, this junior had become someone whose potential he could no longer predict, and he found himself wanting a sincere reaction from her.

“Have you ever thought about trying melodrama? Or rom-com?”

“If the script’s good, sure. Rom-com definitely has stronger mainstream appeal.”

“But you really have to choose your partner carefully. If you’re not careful, you get confused by the fluttering during the kiss scene and end up dating for real, you know?”

Just as he was about to begin lecturing her on the hazards of kiss scenes based on everything he had seen and learned in the entertainment industry—

“Then if you break up, even if there’s a great project later, you’ll flinch the moment you hear the other actor’s name. Directors and writers also tend not to use actors who dated and broke up. Bad blood ruins the shot composition....”

“Ahhh, but would something like that really bother me that much.... Huh?”

Han Yeoreum’s phone, which she had been using for monitoring, vibrated.

A preview message appeared at the top.

[Yeoreum, filming must be hard, right? The 〈Strange Tales〉 team was going to send support too haha.. but apparently the schedules overlap. If you have specific filming dates, let me know separately >///<]

“Kwon Junhyeok...?”

“Ahhh, our 〈Strange Tales〉 team is basically family! Every time one of us starts filming, we send snack trucks to each other. But what does this mean? The schedules overlap? Gaeul already sent one last time, and Sunbae Joo Junseo already sent one too.... There’s no one left who could send another.”

Just as Han Yeoreum was about to reply, a commotion rose from behind them.

It seemed the meal truck had arrived.

“What’s that? What is that?”

Han Yeoreum, who had remained perfectly calm even at the 13.6% rating, dropped her phone.

[♥︎Thief! A rice thief♥︎]

[Cheering on the 〈Unfair Trade〉 team, who’ll arrest this meal deliciously]

Han Yeoreum’s face was printed right across the meal truck banner.

“Sunbae, sunbae, is that maybe my meal truck? Or no? Is it? Isn’t it? Is that what Kwon Junhyeok was talking about? Wait, no way, seriously?”

Without even waiting for an answer, Han Yeoreum sprinted toward the truck.

Before her mind could even process it, her body had already disappeared in that direction.

* * *

“Wow....”

So a day like this really does come if you live long enough.

“My meal truck....”

I hovered around the meal truck while it was still being set up.

“But is it really...? Mine...?”

Honestly, it might not even be mine.

It could belong to Sunbae Seojin instead.

Sometimes they put up two banners in a row, so maybe his would just be the bigger one.

‘Come to think of it, that actually sounds more realistic, doesn’t it?’

Looking closer, it didn’t say it was cheering for Han Yeoreum—it said it was cheering for the 〈Unfair Trade〉 team.

Maybe instead of the banner on top, there’d be giant standing boards of Gam Seonghwan on both sides.

The thought suddenly made me a little embarrassed.

‘Did I get too excited for a second....’

Mine might just be a snack truck or a coffee truck.

“Excuse us—please step aside for a second. We need to place the signboards.”

“Ah, yes.”

But then it happened.

What they placed on both sides of the meal truck were standing boards with my face on them.

I wasn’t seeing things.

Even after looking again, it was still my face.

[Today, the IQ 160 genius Lee Seohae is paying!]

“Oh—. A meal truck.”

“It smells amazing!”

“Yeoreum, we’ll enjoy the food!”

The passing staff each tossed me a word or two.

I was still staring at the standing board.

Twice. Three times.

No matter how many times I looked, it was definitely my face.

Not Sunbae Seojin’s.

Han Yeoreum’s face.

So that meant—

[Lee Seohae, we love you♥︎ Summer Days]

Sent by my fans.

“It’s mine....”

How strange.

There are actually people worrying about whether I’ve eaten or not....

“Yeoreum!”

Manager Choi approached me as I stood there staring blankly at the board.

“Unnie, what is this?”

“What do you mean what? It’s your meal truck!”

Foldable tables were set up quickly, and menu items began lining up one by one across the top.

The buffet-style stainless steel trays gleamed silver under the lights.

“Oh right. They asked me to pass this along when the support came in. Write it when you have time and give it back to me.”

Manager Choi handed me a stack of papers.

[Han Yeoreum Questionnaire]

“Unnie. Is there only one of these?”

“Hm? No. They gave two just in case.”

“Then I want the other one.”

“That one? Why?”

I had done plenty of interviews by now.

I could even stay fairly calm during magazine shoots and talk shows.

But this was the first time I’d ever experienced something like this.

“I just... want to know what they’re curious about when it comes to me.”

I turned the first page.

If you have your own personal healing method during a busy schedule, what is it?

Please recommend a song you especially want people to hear.

What has made you happiest lately?

What was the happiest day since you started acting? And why?

What was the hardest part about analyzing Lee Seohae?

What percentage sync rate do you think you have with Lee Seohae?

I need to write this carefully.

I need to press every letter firmly into the answer boxes.

That was what I was thinking when—

“Setup complete!”

Han Yeoreum’s meal truck setup was finished.

Manager Choi smiled and raised her phone.

“First, Yeoreum, go stand over there.”

Turning on the camera, she said,

“The main character needs to leave behind photos.”

Before I knew it, all the gathered staff around us were looking at me.

“That’s right! Yeoreum, hurry, let’s take pictures!”

“I’ll take one too! Stand in the middle—”

“It’s your first meal truck, right? Should we buy cake later or something? It’s basically an anniversary.”

Little by little, more things were becoming mine.

My chair on set.

My role written in the script.

And....

“Of course! Please take tons of photos! Hurry, everyone, get your phones out! Where did the lighting director go? Shine a light on my face!”

My fans.

Will they keep being curious about me?

Will they keep liking me?

Will they keep wanting to see me?

For now, I decided to bury all those countless questions.

Because I could just make it happen that way.

* * *

The 〈Unfair Trade〉 set was overflowing with energy.

Director Park looked over at Han Yeoreum, who had eaten two full meals and was now dozing off from the blood sugar spike.

“Isn’t it amazing, Director?”

“Mm. Thanks, Seojin.”

Shin Seojin, who had handed Director Park a coffee, also kept his eyes fixed on Han Yeoreum.

“How does she act as Lee Seohae after being like that?”

“Exactly....”

The two sipped coffee and looked toward the set, which was being reset.

The staff seemed to have forgotten all their fatigue, electrified by the thrill that they might be rewriting the history of genre dramas.

“Did you hear the news from the 〈See You That Day〉 set?”

“You heard too, Seojin? Yeah. They’re definitely in trouble over there.”

“But 〈See You That Day〉 is so strong by nature....”

“Mm. Don’t worry.”

Park Jaeyoung patted Shin Seojin’s broad shoulder.

“This week ends with the regret arc, and next week they’ll probably go into the kiss scene.... It just so happens that overlaps with our scene.”

“Our scene?”

“Lee Seohae’s action scene.”

This week would be the last time they lost.

Park Jaeyoung was certain.

Anyone overhearing him would probably dismiss it as nonsense.

The very idea of a genre drama beating a rom-com—and a late starter at that, actually catching up in ratings—was absurd on its face.

“The previews are going to go head-to-head.... And then it’s obvious which side viewers will be more curious about.”

At Director Park’s words, Shin Seojin seemed visibly relieved and drew a deep breath.

“You’re right, Director. I worried for nothing.”

Putting his entire career on the line, Park Jaeyoung could confidently say he had never had a better filming environment than the current 〈Unfair Trade〉 set.

A first lead willing to sacrifice the spotlight for the sake of the work’s quality.

A second lead who accepted that spotlight transfer insanely well.

A solid original story.

A music director who knew how to heighten anxiety.

A cinematographer who perfectly reflected the razor-edge danger of the psychology.

Direction that felt as if it had been waiting for this exact day.

And Park Jaeyoung himself.

“Mm. That attitude is great. Right, if you’re first lead, that’s exactly how you should be. This scene is really important.... Seojin, make sure it’s done safely. An actor’s body is an asset.”

And finally—

The next episode of 〈Unfair Trade〉 was set against the backdrop of the 2002 World Cup.

Using an era that had once shaken all of Korea as its stage, the level of public attention would naturally be different.

Catching the criminal who had escaped that day, more than ten years later, no matter what.

The thought of delivering a thrill and catharsis no rom-com could ever offer made Director Park smile.

This was the section where Lee Seohae’s character and Gam Seonghwan’s character would truly begin to intertwine.

“Of course. The action scene has to land perfectly.”

But there was one problem.

“What do we do?!”

“Seojin, are you okay? Seojin!”

“What are you doing? Get the car ready right now! We need to go to the hospital!”

“What about Yeoreum? Is she hurt too?”

“Move. First, let me roll the sleeve up....”

No matter how big or small, accidents always happened on set.

The lead actor who had to carry the action scene had been injured.

The shoot came to a complete halt in an instant.