LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 88
When the web promotion for Dream Future first came out, honestly, the reaction was pretty lukewarm.
Since it was going to be broadcast on the internet, that made the situation even more mundane.
But then.
“Wait, isn’t that Ma Yeon-woo from Just X?”
“Really? No way.”
The power of idol fandom is no joke.
Especially if we’re talking about an idol as hot as Just X.
The news that Just X’s Ma Yeon-woo was going to appear caught people’s attention, and gradually, word began to spread about how the web promotion would unfold.
“I heard it’s actors versus idols?”
“An idol from the idol team and an actor from the actor team. It’s something like that, I guess.”
“So the competition will be in acting and singing?”
“Yep, and dancing too!”
At Yeonhwa High School, where Seo-yeon was, similar conversations were happening.
“Should we talk to her?”
“You do it.”
The girls exchanged glances.
Always the quiet girl in class, Joo Seo-yeon.
She had been hard to approach even before she started acting, but now it was even more difficult. A few had gotten a little closer after the festival, but…
Then.
“Se-Seo-yeon.”
A brave girl spoke up.
“……”
Seo-yeon slowly raised her gaze.
To clarify, they were all classmates but had never spoken a single word properly.
They froze as they looked at Seo-yeon.
‘Wow, she’s ridiculously pretty.’
An actress is an actress.
Just sitting there with perfect posture exudes an aura that made it hard to approach.
Plus, she normally had a blank expression.
Sure enough, Seo-yeon was also frozen in place.
‘Why?’
Why are they suddenly trying to talk to me?
Even though Seo-yeon had shot variety shows and movies, this was a totally new situation.
“Oh, um, are you really appearing in a show with Just X’s Yeon-woo oppa?”
But courage begets reward, as they say.
At that girl’s question, Seo-yeon slowly nodded.
“Yeah.”
“Then, can we get your autograph? Just one, please!!”
The girl’s request seemed trivial to Seo-yeon.
“Sure.”
“Really?”
The girl’s face lit up at Seo-yeon’s succinct answer.
Then.
‘Huh?’
Suddenly, girls began lining up in front of Seo-yeon.
All of them wanting an autograph from Just X.
‘Was I really this popular?’
In that moment, doubt flickered through her mind.
Just X.
An idol group predicted to explode in popularity within a year.
She’d only remembered them as that, but their recognition was evidently more substantial than she thought.
‘Even Jung-woo oppa wasn’t like this.’
True, actors have fans, but the fanaticism among idols is different.
At least in Korea.
So, Seo-yeon ended up receiving countless requests to sign various items.
Regular notebooks and clothes, among others.
“……Is something happening?”
When they arrived at the filming set, Ma Yeon-woo politely inquired.
Taken aback by his demeanor, Seo-yeon tilted her head.
“Um, I actually have a favor to ask. Is that okay?”
“A favor?”
“Yeah.”
Seo-yeon said that and thud! dropped her bag.
Seeing that, Ma Yeon-woo was momentarily at a loss for words.
Did she really bring this all the way to the filming set?!
He swallowed hard.
Surely, he hadn’t actually lost to her in arm wrestling.
“I have a few things I’d like you to sign. Of course, it’s okay if you refuse.”
“Ah, I see.”
He could refuse?
Ma Yeon-woo glanced at the items.
Truthfully, there weren’t that many.
‘Oh, it’s not as much as I thought.’
It just looked heavy because there were various random items mixed together.
Though, it wasn’t something a high school girl would bring to a filming set either.
But in his usual way, Ma Yeon-woo would have declined.
‘If I sign too many, I lose my status.’
That was his mindset.
He felt that if his signature became too common, the brand would diminish.
So usually, he tended to refuse signing requests.
“Uh, is that not possible?”
“……”
At Seo-yeon’s matter-of-fact question, Ma Yeon-woo couldn’t bring himself to say no.
Every time he heard her voice, pain shot through his right arm.
‘Am I being a nuisance?’
Seo-yeon reflected on that.
In her excitement about receiving requests from her friends for the first time, she had brought along things from other classes.
She intended to quietly take them back if he refused.
But.
“Of course, I’ll do it.”
Ma Yeon-woo nodded, not so enthusiastically but still approvingly.
It wasn’t because of the pain in his arm.
Truly.
‘Cough, since we’ll be in the same team moving forward, this much is nothing.’
Just X.
He felt pride in that group.
And as an idol, he also had self-esteem, and honestly, he didn’t want to lose.
There would inevitably be acting required in a drama focused on idols.
He knew that dancing and singing were equally vital.
To lose there?
He’d probably lose sleep over it from the embarrassment.
And it wasn’t just Ma Yeon-woo who felt that way; Cha Na-hee felt the same.
‘Joo Seo-yeon.’
Cha Na-hee honestly couldn’t comprehend Seo-yeon.
Far from merely thinking, “Shall we settle this with a face-off?” she harbored doubts about the very setup of this role.
‘Why was I cast as Song So-ha?’
During auditions, those auditioning earlier would wait and observe.
Cha Na-hee subtly probed the idol who was the next in line after Seo-yeon about the auditions, and she said:
“There was a general vibe that everyone wanted Seo-yeon for Song So-ha.”
There was simply no comparison in acting skill.
The gap between actors and idols was that significant.
But was it that they couldn’t sing or dance?
“Her singing was decent, but her dancing was practically flying.”
Considering Na-hee had some acquaintance with the idol, this was likely honest feedback.
Even from an idol’s perspective, Seo-yeon’s dancing was impressive enough to merit the term “flying.”
She wasn’t lacking in singing, either, nearing a satisfactory level, so it wouldn’t be strange if she was chosen as Song So-ha.
‘It could be because of her recognition…’
Currently, Seo-yeon’s activities were limited to a play, a variety show, and commercials.
She wasn’t unknown, but she was still somewhat unfamiliar to the public.
For the public, Seo-yeon mostly had past fame to rely on.
But then, did that mean that Cha Na-hee had overwhelming recognition? Certainly not.
‘Why did I give way?’
Thus, Cha Na-hee had no choice but to think that Joo Seo-yeon must have given up the role of Song So-ha.
As Ma Yeon-woo and Cha Na-hee’s gazes bore into her, Seo-yeon felt slightly flustered.
‘Why is everyone looking at me?’
The place where Seo-yeon was located was the filming set.
In other words, this was the set for the “team idol” segment of the “variety show promotion.”
The team leader for the idol group was Ma Yeon-woo, and its members were Cha Na-hee and Joo Seo-yeon.
In truth, calling it a team felt a tad grand given the small number of people.
After all, there were only six main roles in total.
‘One actor in the idol team, one idol in the actor team.’
It made sense that Park Jung-woo was the leader of the actor team.
Likewise, it was only fitting that Ma Yeon-woo lead the idol team due to his recognition… even aside from his personality.
‘Since Park Min-yul, the role Yeon-woo is playing, and my own character, Joo Ha-rin, have vague importance, we inserted Cha Na-hee, the heroine, into the mix.’
Seo-yeon cast a glance at the corner of the filming set.
The current situation was being captured by cameras.
For context, today was recording day.
Starting from the duel, it would be streamed live.
“Anyway!”
Ma Yeon-woo clapped his hands.
Being the leader, he needed to take charge of the situation.
“First, we are Team Idol, right? We need to win in singing and dancing.”
They each had their specialties where they had to prevail.
In this competition, there wouldn’t be a stalemate; it would either be a clean 2:0 victory.
“Seo-yeon, how’s your singing?”
At Ma Yeon-woo’s question, Seo-yeon stared at him for a moment.
“You can be casual with me.”
“Yeah?”
Did he just say that all of a sudden?
Then why on earth was my right arm in pain yesterday?
“It’s only for the show.”
“……”
Seo-yeon spoke in a quiet voice so it wouldn’t be captured on camera.
‘This isn’t working; exchanging formalities isn’t cutting it for my character.’
To keep things entertaining and natural, one had to ensure authenticity in such a variety show.
It seemed that Ma Yeon-woo wasn’t used to being formal to someone younger.
It was curious why that hadn’t become a problem before, but there was a need to give some leeway.
‘But wait, what…’
Ma Yeon-woo wanted to argue.
Given his character, it wouldn’t have been strange for him to sarcastically retort and storm out.
Yet, the throbbing in his arm made it challenging to act on that impulse.
“Uh, right.”
“Okay! Let’s start with acting first.”
Seo-yeon said, full of enthusiasm.
After all, it was a competition.
Seo-yeon didn’t want her team to lose.
Even if that meant competing against a familiar face like Park Jung-woo!
‘……Isn’t the leader supposed to be me?’
Ma Yeon-woo questioned that internally.
Why was the idol team allowing an actor to lead the conversation first?
He felt uneasy for interrupting since she took control so effortlessly.
“Anyway, since this is for promotion, it’s going to show some scenes from the drama.”
And those scenes…
Seo-yeon glanced over the scenes assigned as missions to see what was on her script.
Each of them had a list of those scenes in their scripts.
“……”
“………”
Everyone scrutinized the scenes in silence.
Even Seo-yeon, who had initially been eager to review the script, felt a bit flustered.
Was it due to the romantic scenes?
Heaven forbid.
If that were the case, it might only be slightly awkward.
This was an entirely different matter.
‘Ah, Dream Future was such a drama, huh.’
She was genuinely wondering how this kind of concept managed to pull off ratings over 20 percent.
*
Initially, Dream Future sparked buzz for featuring Just X’s Ma Yeon-woo.
However, that attention didn’t last long.
After all, it was a modest team competition of 3-on-3.
Moreover, given that it was a pre-promotion for a youth drama, it was inevitable that interest would dwindle quickly.
– “Still, I’ll watch it.”
– “Joo Seo-yeon’s so busy, movie, then straight to a drama?”
Even within the relatively small fan community of Seo-yeon, which had less than 300 members, some comments appeared.
Of course, no one had particularly high expectations.
Just a crowd curious about the character “Joo Seo-yeon” that had become popular in variety shows.
Their anticipation for the drama was basically nonexistent.
And then, the first episode of the web variety show began.
– “Is it boring already?”
– “How long is this meeting going to last?”
As for the actors’ team, led by Park Jung-woo, their strategy was to emerge victorious in “acting skills,” as reflective of his personality.
Though they also did some singing and dancing, they weren’t remarkable by any means.
And now for the idol team.
– “Who’s that? Get rid of her.”
– “Can we fast-forward through the parts where she speaks, please ㅠㅠㅠ”
This side of things was the opposite; they were mainly there because Seo-yeon had shown up first.
They mostly consisted of fans there to see Ma Yeon-woo.
Nonetheless, as practice commenced formally, the viewership numbers started to rise gradually.
More and more chats began rolling in on the published internet broadcasting channel.
– “Ohㅋㅋㅋ Park Jung-woo can actually sing.”
– “Why’s Ma Yeon-woo acting so polite? Usually, he’s flashy and boisterous.”
In the midst of this, the most talked-about person was, of course, Seo-yeon.
– “Wait, what? Joo Seo-yeon came from being an idol?”
– “Wow, her dancing is impressive.”
– “What’s up with her singing though? Is that even proper?”
– “My little sister sings exactly like that.”
Seo-yeon didn’t actually sing poorly.
She was simply being compared to the big dance numbers.
After their practice wrapped up.
– “Hmm…”
– “For an advertising variety show, this is kinda lackluster…”
The content of the pre-recorded first episode, primarily centered around the members’ rehearsals, received lackluster reviews.
Most comments echoed sentiments of boredom, and just when it seemed like the show would wrap up…
– “Wait, what? It’s still not over?”
The concluding scene shifted sharply, showing them practicing the script’s scenes.
In this contest, they would film two scenes.
And those two scenes would be evaluated based on who performed better in acting and singing.
「I don’t think I can do this.」
Seo-yeon appeared.
No, it was Joo Ha-rin, the character Seo-yeon was playing.
「No matter how much I practice, my singing doesn’t get better. If it stays like this, it’s just not going to work.」
That part showcased Ha-rin’s basic character traits.
Though she was adept at dancing, Ha-rin lacked in singing skills.
In many ways, it was a role that fit Seo-yeon perfectly.
However, the character’s unrequited love interest, Kim Si-hwan, was a well-rounded idol.
All aspects—looks, singing, dancing—he had the talent of a top idol.
While Ha-rin desperately chased after him, she found herself unable to close the distance.
「Ha-rin!」
At that moment, a guy came up to her, seemingly troubled.
Park Min-yul.
Like how Kim Si-hwan was the object of Ha-rin’s affection, he secretly had feelings for her.
He just didn’t reveal them, fearing it might be burdensome.
「You’re doing great. I’m here for you!」
That cliché line slid out.
Then of course, the responses in the chat weren’t positively received.
– “LOL, this is so predictable.”
– “Is this going to turn into a self-help lecture where she overcomes her trauma?”
Suddenly,
「Look at me, Ha-rin!」
Park Min-yul burst into dance and started moving.
– “Huh?”
– “Wait, why is he dancing out of nowhere?”
「Look at me, Ha-rin! I couldn’t dance before, but look how far I’ve come!」
– “Stop it, please.”
– “Couldn’t you just say it without dancing?”
The chat sped up tremendously.
But the dancing didn’t cease.
Park Min-yul shouted.
「So you can do it too! You can sing!」
– “Oh no.”
But contrary to the chat, the scene continued uninterrupted.
With Park Min-yul’s encouragement, Ha-rin lifted her head and smiled slightly.
– “Oh no, don’t.”
Then, as Park Min-yul danced, Joo Ha-rin opened her mouth.
「Yeah, you’re right.」
– “Wait a sec.”
– “Oh no.”
– “Huh?”
Suddenly, an exciting rhythm filled the air.
Then, Ha-rin’s voice rang out.
A serene, beautiful melody pierced through the space.
As she rode the rhythm, Park Min-yul’s dance grew fiercer.
– “We messed up… Please, stop…”
Naturally, neither the song nor the dance slowed down.
The chat exploded, as expected.