Rena Moon

Dambi came out of the dressing room looking beautiful as ever. Of course the female lead would look the prettiest. The makeup artist made sure she looked like the typical female lead emphasizing her features to look bright, innocent and pure. If I was truly the villainess, I would be feeling jealous right now. I noticed that the other female supporting roles were glaring at her in jealousy. I made sure that I wasn’t a part of that category. I put a huge grin on my face and gave the female lead a thumbs up.

Dambi looked at me like there was something wrong with my brain. She rolled her eyes and glared at me after determining that I was stupid as usual. That’s the expression she made. I didn’t expect the female lead to outright show her hatred towards me. Wasn’t the female lead supposed to be all loving and sweet? Was the female lead swapped out? Maybe she just didn’t like Seoyoung because she was constantly trying to sabotage her.

I ignored Dambi’s glare and walked into the classroom where the first scene should be. She got into her seat and so did Dambi. The extras were also in their seats. I prepared myself for the scene and waited for the director to indicate the start of filming. A few moments later after everyone got into place, the director shouted through the megaphone, “Everyone get into position! Ok! Lights! Camera! Action!” I heard the sound of the clapperboard clapping loudly indicating the start of acting.


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Seoyoung’s instantly switched to a gloomy expression. Her eyes were covered by her bangs and she stared lifelessly in front of her. The director and everyone that was watching could instantly sense that this character had a deep background. The director was shocked beyond belief. Since when did Seoyoung know how to act like this? In stark contrast to everyone else, her acting made her stand out from the crowd.

It became quiet when the teacher walked into the room with a tall student trailing behind her. All eyes were glued to the new student including Min Chaerin’s. Dambi’s eyes grew big when she noticed the male lead walking in. It was the typical look female leads make when they first fall in love with the male lead. Everyone knew Dambi was good at acting. There was a reason why she was chosen as the female lead, but when they saw Seoyoung’s expression, they were shocked.

Dambi had the normal reaction to falling in love, but Seoyoung’s acting added depth. There was no way to explain it, but her expression didn’t just say I fell in love, it told a different story. It was like they could hear the inner thoughts of the character. It was like Min Chaerin’s character had come to life. Her expression told everyone that the man in front of her was the only light in her life and that in that moment she knew what she would live her life for. Her desperate love was seen just by her one expression.

Although Dambi was beautiful and her acting was great, it was hard to gain attention from the crowd when her character was typical. It was only because Seoyoung was acting that the character had come to life. If the original Seoyoung acted this out, it wouldn’t have left such an impression. The director and everyone watched in silence as it all played out. It seemed like time had stopped for Min Chaerin until she turned and saw Jiyeon’s expression.

The director expected Seoyoung to show an angry and jealous expression, but Seoyoung surprised everyone when her expression showed how hurt she was after noticing that her one and only friend also seemed to have feelings for him at that moment. Her expression gradually changed to one that expressed her determination. It seemed as though the character Min Chaerin had made up her mind that she wouldn’t give up on him just because her friend liked him as well. It was out of desperation from being depressed for so long. She had found her light and no one would take that from her. They could sense the sadness and desperation from the character, Min Chaerin.

The director didn’t realize how in depth the character Min Chaerin was, but by watching her expressions, they could relate to her personally. In contrast to Min Chaerin, Jiyeon’s expression remained unchanged. It was the typical ‘I fell in love at first sight expression’. The scene continued and the teacher announced, “Everyone, we have a new student.” The teacher told the student, “Introduce yourself to everyone briefly.”

The male lead smiled charmingly, “Hello everyone. My name is Seo Minkyu. I hope to get along with everyone.” One student blurted out, “Do you have a girlfriend?” The classroom roared with cheers and hoots. The teacher glared at the student and shouted, “Quiet down! That’s inappropriate!” The male lead was naturally friendly and outgoing, “It’s okay teacher. I don’t mind the question.” He answered the student without any problems, “I don’t have a girlfriend at the moment.” The classroom erupted with cheers when they found out he was single. The cheers mainly came from the girls.

The teacher rolled her eyes and said, “That’s enough! Go back to your seat.” Minkyu walked down the row of desks and noticed that there were two seats available. One next to Chaerin and the other was next to Jiyeon. Min Chaerin looked at Minkyu expectantly, wanting him to sit next to her. Jiyeon on the other hand wasn’t paying attention. Minkyu showed interest in Jiyeon and sat next to her. When Chaerin saw this, her expression became dark and gloomy. Her hurt expression left an impression on the audience. For some reason, it felt relatable. Everyone experienced unrequited love once in their life.

The scene changed to a close up of Jiyeon and Minkyu. Once the camera zoomed in on them, the director yelled, “CUT!”


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The next scene didn’t really need everyone there. It was a close up of Jiyeon and Minkyu flirting. So the rest of the actors/actresses were free to rest while the two main leads acted out the rest. I got up from the seat and grabbed a bottle of water and chugged it. I was surprised that Youngwoo was pretty good at acting. No wonder he got the role. The director rushed over to me and praised, “You did such a great job! I was surprised you were able to capture Min Chaerin’s character so well.” I bowed, “Thanks director.”

The crew members and everybody joined in on the praises, “We were surprised with how good you are at acting! I couldn’t believe that Min Chaerin was this type of character. It was so relatable!” I kept thanking everyone and watched Dambi’s expression carefully just to see if she was the real Dambi. She wasn’t acting like the real Dambi. I noticed that Dambi’s expression wasn’t right. It almost looked like she was jealous right now. The director didn’t give her much praise. I wonder if she transmigrated like I did. Dambi was clearly upset. She walked away annoyed that I was getting praises from the director and the crew members were also praising me.

Luckily for me, Min Chaerin’s scenes were minimal. That was all the acting I needed to do for the day. After getting praises from the director and crew, I left the set. I was a bit disappointed to find out that I wasn’t famous enough to even have a minivan. Even the extras in the crew had a minivan to pick them up. I was the only one stuck there. Although Yongju was her agent, they still didn’t have the budget to afford a minivan. Yongju pulled up in a white jeep wrangler and honked her horn at me. I saw her waving at me, without a hint of embarrassment. I covered my face in shame and ran over to the jeep.

I glared daggers at her, “OY! Aren’t you embarrassed to be driving this old thing around? How old is this car anyway?” She laughed, “She may be old, but she works fine. At least she can get you from point A to point B.” I snorted, “That’s what the poor say.” Yongju poked me in the forehead, “You were poor not too long ago! Don’t judge me!” I wanted to yell at her and say I used to be a millionaire singer/idol that owned multiple penthouses and mansions, but I knew well that it was only possible in my past life. I was rich in this world, but it wasn’t my money.

I didn’t respond to her because I knew she was right. Yongju laughed, “Stop being a brat and get in.” I got into the back seat and slammed the door in protest. Yongju shouted, “OY! Don’t slam the door. My baby can’t handle it!” I rolled my eyes at her, “Can you just drive? The extras are staring. It’s embarrassing. I should’ve called a cab instead.” Yongju said, “No need to waste money. Just hitch a ride from your agent.” I frowned, “Fine, but can we go to the mall instead of going back home?” Yongju raised an eyebrow, “Shopping? Weren’t you afraid of your husband dumping you for spending too much of his money?”

I wondered, does that mean, the original Seoyoung didn’t spend her husband’s money? If she didn’t spend his money, who’s money did she spend? In the novel Seoyoung was an extra that despised the female lead for stealing the female lead role and she was known to be poor initially but was backed by her villain husband. She later divorces him and becomes rich. If Seoyoung wasn’t spending her husband’s money, then who’s money was she spending?

I checked my phone and opened up the original’s bank account. I almost dropped my phone when I noticed how much she had in her bank account. How many zeros were there? Was Seoyoung normally this rich? Seoyoung was known as an orphan with no parents and the only thing she had going for her was the rich husband and her nonexistent acting career. What am I missing?