Chapter 7
Chapter 7
Translator: Penny
Chapter 7
Did a few months pass since the CF shoot?
Or was it because I hadn't seen the finished CF beforehand?
"Everyone stumbles sometimes, and feels overwhelmed by the trials they face."
My first CF, which I encountered for the first time through the TV in the living room, felt a little...
No, a lot different than I had imagined.
It's not that Director Kang Eun-tae edited it completely differently from the CF concept he told me about.
It means that facing myself on the TV screen, rather than in a small hand mirror, required more courage than I had thought.
Thanks to that, I had my first sleepless night.
Unfortunately, the day after the CF aired was my first day of kindergarten, so I couldn't even take a nap, let alone sleep in.
"Ha-eun~. You can't be late on your first day of kindergarten~."
"...Okay..."
I barely lifted my eyelids, which felt heavier than children's dumbbells in the morning, and started getting ready.
It took 10 minutes to create a look suitable for a kindergartener.
However, the entrance ceremony for the kindergarten I would be attending had already ended half a year ago.
My mother, who is a little more enthusiastic than average when it comes to her child's education, searched and searched for a kindergarten that I could attend, and before I knew it, it was autumn.
"Everyone might feel awkward on the first day, Ha-eun. But if you be brave and talk to them first, you'll make friends quickly."
I was in a position where I had to somehow squeeze in between children who were already somewhat close.
Like a high school detective from a neighboring country, my body had become younger, but my mind remained the same, so I didn't think I would be too upset if I couldn't make friends with children who were 6 years old in body, mind, and soul.
But if news that I was not fitting in with my peers reached my mother or father, they would probably worry about me.
"Is it... good to have as many friends as possible?"
"Of course. If you get along well with your friends, you'll have fun too, Ha-eun."
For now, I decided to try to make as many friends as possible, as my mother wished.
I also felt bad about ruining the efforts of the person who had tried to provide me with the most optimal environment by comparing or contrasting various kindergartens over the past six months.
And so, I finally arrived at a private kindergarten located a little far from home.
"You can do it, honey!"
"...You can do it."
I lightly clenched one fist towards my mother, who clenched both fists in a gesture of encouragement.
It was after that that I was led to a classroom called Dal-nim Class by a teacher who had been contacted in advance and was waiting.
"Okay, everyone. We have a new friend in our class today."
At the teacher's gentle voice, the children's gazes turned to me all at once.
It felt a little strange to have at least twenty pairs of bright eyes staring intently at me.
'Hmm... There are more than I thought.'
Going to kindergarten was a first for me in both my past and present lives, so I even felt a little amazed.
When I think about it, I missed more days than I attended elementary school, middle school, and high school.
It wouldn't be a lie to say that this was my first time experiencing school life.
But now I won't have to go to the hospital instead of school anymore.
I thought it would be okay to blend in with the green children to some extent.
I'll have to think a little about what kind of expression I should make to approach the children well.
"Our new friend's name is Lee, Ha-eun. She will be with us from now on, so shall we clap once to welcome Ha-eun?"
—Clap clap...—!
The sound of the children's applause echoed in the classroom.
It was exactly 3 seconds later that one of the children raised his hand.
"Teacher! I think I've seen her somewhere!"
"Really? Where did you see her, Si-woo?"
"Um... I don't remember. But I think I've seen her somewhere."
It seemed that the CF that aired yesterday was faintly remembered.
But I felt a little embarrassed to say that I appeared in the CF myself.
I decided to play dumb for now.
I couldn't help but feel that if I went around bragging that I was on TV, I would look like someone with celebrity disease.
"Okay, shall we go to Ha-eun's seat now? You can sit in the empty seat by the window over there."
And so, I trudged along, following the teacher's index finger pointing over there.
I tried to talk to as many children as possible during playtime, which started soon after.
Perhaps because of the difference in mental age, I couldn't immediately understand what the children meant or what kind of interest they were showing me.
"Um, Ha-eun. Do you want to... play hospital with me?"
"Okay."
I didn't push away the children who approached me because they wanted to do something with me or were curious about me.
Seeing the children approaching me first like this, it seemed that my flawless appearance, which is a characteristic and merit of reincarnation, was also effective for kindergarten children.
After that, the time passed peacefully without any particular problems, but there was only one unexpected thing.
"Doctor. How long will I live?"
"Oh."
"Oh, five years?"
"Oh, four, three, two, one, zero, you're dead."
'...Is this a morning drama?'
The children were much more ruthless than I had thought.
Within a few seconds, the hospital play had turned into a funeral play.
"Aish, Ha-eun. How can a dead person open their eyes!"
"...Sorry."
It wasn't easy to follow the children's stream of consciousness.
Unlike when filming the CF, it was impromptu acting without even a script, which made it even more difficult.
"What brings you to call me first? Is something wrong?"
"What's wrong? I just missed you and called you out."
Kang Eun-tae, with his high school classmate Lee Jun's arm around his shoulder, reluctantly moved to the Korean beef restaurant right in front of them.
The seats they were led to by the staff were in a room-like space with partitions on all sides.
There was only one reason why Kang Eun-tae and Lee Jun's meeting was hidden in a room.
It was because Lee Jun was a successful hip-hop singer and a regular member of a public broadcasting entertainment program.
"If people recognize me, I'll get indigestion and won't be able to eat the meat."
"Hmm, so that belly fat could get indigestion."
Similar light jokes were exchanged, and the atmosphere gradually relaxed.
Once they had filled their stomachs a little with the glossy Korean beef.
"The commercial you shot this time, Eun-tae, was atmospheric and good."
The story of Kang Eun-tae's CF, which had received a lot of attention from many people as a new attempt in the advertising industry, began.
The story of the new music video of Lee Jun's hip-hop crew, "Deobeulli," was also brought up little by little.
Strictly speaking, CFs and music videos have different sensibilities.
But in a way, a music video could also be said to be a kind of CF that introduces a product called music to consumers.
"I have a storyboard right now, can you take a look at it for a second?"
"I don't see why not. Give it to me."
It was only natural that Lee Jun wanted to hear advice from Kang Eun-tae, who is a fairly skilled CF director.
And so, he received about ten pages of storyboard from Lee Jun.
He began to carefully examine the things related to Deobeulli's new song "Match."
"This one has a good concept too?"
"Really?"
"Yeah. There's a reason why you're doing so well."
Kang Eun-tae felt that the music video storyboard that Lee Jun had given him didn't need any revisions.
In other words, there would be no particular problems even if they started filming the music video as is.
However, at Lee Jun's request to be sure to look at the last page.
With some suspicion, he finished a rough review of the last page of the storyboard.
It was right after that that he discovered that the space for the actress in charge of the match girl, which could be said to be the core of this "Match" music video, was blank.
'...Could it be.'
Soon, Kang Eun-tae's gaze, which had gradually moved away from the storyboard, turned to Lee Jun across the table, and as expected.
"The girl in your commercial, was her name Lee Ha-eun?"
-Smirk.
"Give me Ha-eun's contact information, Eun-tae. I'll pay for everything today instead."
With a natural smile, he told him the real reason he had called Kang Eun-tae out.
Oh my, he said he just missed me after all this time.
"You've become a scary person since you've been on TV, Jun."
"Please. I kept looking and looking with Geon-yeol, but I couldn't find anyone more suitable for our music video than Ha-eun."
Soon, Kang Eun-tae was met with Lee Jun's earnest eyes.
Lee Jun was the kind of person who didn't compromise on anything related to music.
"Then, shall we order more meat?"
He could easily sense that Lee Jun was feeling the same conviction that Kang Eun-tae had felt when he first saw Ha-eun in the past.
"Yeah, order whatever you want to eat. I'm still far from full."
Not long after, thick chuck flap tails were placed on the hot grill.
Like the meat that gradually turned brown, the butterfly effect that Kang Eun-tae had brought Ha-eun into the world of the screen was also becoming clearer little by little.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny