Chapter 43: Stepping Stone (2)
Chapter 43: Stepping Stone (2)
Pyo Ji-woo was Min Seo-ho’s active stalker.
Driven by the sole obsession of getting close to him, she spent a year preparing to become an actress. Not only did she successfully debut, but she eventually managed to land a role in the same play as him.
As a talented rookie, she successfully integrated herself into Min Seo-ho’s team for the play Close Your Eyes.
And that wasn't all. Through her aggressive advances, she finally managed to snag the position of his girlfriend.
It was, quite literally, a stalker’s tear-jerking success story.
The problem, however, came afterward.
It arose when Min Seo-ho’s complicated relationships with women were revealed.
'The number of women Min Seo-ho is currently dating is five.'
Calling him a player was an understatement. At that rate, he practically had a different girlfriend for every day of the week.
On top of that, he spent almost all his free time with friends at clubs.
Pyo Ji-woo knew he frequented clubs, but she never imagined he was juggling five different women at once.
The result was exactly as mentioned before: it concluded with a Swordmaster Ending.
"……You’re here?"
"Y-yeah."
In any case, he had it coming, but it was still a fact that Pyo Ji-woo had essentially "taken care" of someone. Naturally, I couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy.
I subtly scanned Pyo Ji-woo from head to toe. I was worried she might have brought a weapon.
'Fortunately, nothing looks suspicious.'
Come to think of it, Pyo Ji-woo didn't even carry a bag. She mostly wore jeans and a plain shirt. Her fashion was more masculine than feminine.
"Why are you… why are you in a school uniform?"
"I came straight after school."
What a strange thing to ask. I’m a high school student, so of course I’m wearing a uniform.
'……Aside from that, my clothing options at home are limited.'
My mother’s hobby is grooming my appearance. Aside from the basic beauty maintenance, she is extremely particular about my outfits. Consequently, my closet is filled with bright, flashy clothes I didn't choose myself. Because of that, the most low-key thing I can wear is my school uniform.
Ju Seo-yeon, 17 years old—an age where she still wears clothes her parents pick out for her….
"I’ve been wondering about something."
"Yes."
"Do you… do you know you’re looking at me with a very uncomfortable expression?"
"You’re imagining things."
Regardless, I maintained a distance of about one meter from Pyo Ji-woo as we walked. It was a distance that allowed me to react to anything that might happen.
At my words, Pyo Ji-woo scanned her surroundings with that characteristically gloomy expression of hers.
"And why here, of all places? ……You don't look like the type of kid who belongs in a place like this…."
"That’s because—"
I considered explaining further but shook my head. It would be better to just show her. If I tried to explain it in words, she might accuse me of slander and attack me.
"Let’s just go."
Our current location was an entertainment district in Gangnam. It was a place our lead actor, Mr. Min Seo-ho, frequented.
*
Pyo Ji-woo frowned as she watched Seo-yeon’s back as she walked ahead.
Long, jet-black hair. An incredibly beautiful, doll-like face with almost no change in expression.
'I can't believe she came here in a school uniform.'
As Seo-yeon strode through the Gangnam entertainment district at this hour, she naturally drew everyone's attention. It was 10:30 PM. A high school girl wandering around a nightlife district at this time was bound to stand out.
Her looks hovered between girlhood and womanhood. Men’s eyes instinctively followed Seo-yeon’s indifferent stride, captivated by her beauty.
A natural aura. Was this what it meant to be a "born actress"?
Pyo Ji-woo wasn't lacking in the looks department either. That’s why she was able to work as an actress. While there was a demand for actors with unique appearances, in the end, being attractive was always an advantage. Ugliness could be covered with makeup, but the reverse was usually impossible.
In that sense, Seo-yeon was someone Pyo Ji-woo found deeply unsettling. She triggered Ji-woo's inferiority complex.
Seo-yeon herself seemed to find Ji-woo uncomfortable, but Ji-woo didn't feel particularly at ease with her either. That was why she was curious as to why Seo-yeon had called her here.
'I have a bad feeling about this.'
With an uneasy heart, Pyo Ji-woo followed behind Seo-yeon.
"Shh."
Seo-yeon raised a hand, signaling her to wait.
"Come this way."
Seo-yeon led her to an alleyway near a certain club. Seeing the long line of people waiting to enter, it seemed to be a fairly famous spot.
'Why a place like this?'
Despite her doubts, she waited in silence, her heart thumping ominously.
And then.
As if to justify her anxiety, a group appeared.
Two men and three women. They seemed to know the staff guarding the club entrance, even raising their hands in greeting.
At first, she didn't recognize him. His outfit wasn't what he usually wore, and he was wearing a black mask.
"……!!"
But the moment the man lowered his mask to show the staff at the entrance, Pyo Ji-woo covered her mouth with both hands.
It was none other than Min Seo-ho.
He was laughing with his arm wrapped around one woman’s waist. Another woman was practically clinging to him. It was a scene that, by any standard, did not look like a normal relationship.
Click.
The small sound of a camera shutter snapped Pyo Ji-woo out of her daze. Turning her head, she saw Seo-yeon taking a photo of Min Seo-ho.
"You… you, you, you…. D-did you know?"
"Yes."
"H-how?"
Pyo Ji-woo knew almost everything about Min Seo-ho’s daily routine. How could Seo-yeon know about Min Seo-ho’s secret private life that even she was unaware of?
"Hmm, a coincidence?"
I couldn't exactly say I knew because of my past life. How could I tell her that this was the very club Min Seo-ho frequented, and the very place where Pyo Ji-woo had eventually gone on a rampage?
"Y-y-youuuu!!!"
After a moment of stunned silence, Pyo Ji-woo lunged out of the alley. Or rather, she tried to.
She would have, if Seo-yeon hadn't grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back.
'What kind of s-strength is this!'
She had felt it before, but no matter how much she struggled to break free, Seo-yeon didn't budge an inch. Finally giving up, Pyo Ji-woo screamed.
"W-why did you have to show me this!! Why, why are you doing this to me!"
It would have been better if she had never known. Tears began to flow uncontrollably. She watched Min Seo-ho disappear into the club. She wanted to direct her rage at Seo-yeon… but given the strength holding her waist, she couldn't bring herself to say anything. It felt like if Seo-yeon gave her a toss, she’d go flying through the air.
So, Pyo Ji-woo could only manage a defiant, "W-why are you doing this to me?"
She felt the tears streaming down her face again. As she sobbed, watching Min Seo-ho enter the club, Seo-yeon let out a low sigh.
"……Your goal was actor Min Seo-ho, wasn't it?"
"S-so what’s wrong with that?"
"There’s nothing wrong with it, but do you still feel that way after seeing that?"
"……."
Seo-yeon was essentially saying: If things had worked out and you found out about this later, do you think you would have just let it go?
Besides, the only reason Pyo Ji-woo had started acting was because of Min Seo-ho. If she didn't know the truth, she would continue to waste her time in vain. At the very least, Min Seo-ho shouldn't be the purpose of her acting.
'And then there’s that incident.'
Honestly, if it weren't for the Swordmaster incident, I wouldn't have gone this far. This wasn't for Min Seo-ho’s sake. It was strictly for the sake of a talented actress, Pyo Ji-woo.
"Waaaaah!"
As Pyo Ji-woo wailed, a man who looked quite large approached the two of them.
"Hey."
He looked back and forth between the crying Pyo Ji-woo and Seo-yeon, who was holding her smartphone.
"Student, what were you filming just now? I saw everything. Let me see your phone for a second."
At the man’s words, Seo-yeon quickly scanned the area. No one was paying much attention yet. It seemed a club guard had been stationed nearby because such incidents were frequent.
"Ji-woo Unnie."
"H-huh??"
"Run when I give the signal."
Signal? What did she mean by that?
Just as she was wondering, the man, who appeared to be a club guard, strode closer. Upon seeing Seo-yeon’s face up close, his eyes widened.
'Is she a celebrity?'
She was beautiful enough to make him think that. If she hadn't been wearing a school uniform, he might have even invited her to enter for free. However, regardless of that, it was clear she had just taken a photo of the entrance, so he needed to check.
"Right, just hand over the phone nicely—"
Seeing Seo-yeon reach out, he naturally assumed she was handing him the phone. But in that instant, he felt Seo-yeon’s palm touch his chest.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, the world tilted. The guard realized a moment too late that he had been shoved backward.
Seo-yeon had pushed him hard with her palm. With just that single motion, a man nearly 190cm tall had been sent stumbling back several meters. Even if he had been caught off guard, it was a strength impossible for a young girl. It felt as if he had been shoved by a man of his own weight class.
"Now."
Seo-yeon immediately grabbed Pyo Ji-woo’s hand and ran. In reality, Pyo Ji-woo was practically being dragged along. By the time the flustered guard managed to pick himself up, Seo-yeon and Pyo Ji-woo had already disappeared into the distance.
"Huff, huff."
Pyo Ji-woo, who had ended up breaking a sweat while crying, sat on a nearby bench, panting. Seeing Seo-yeon, who hadn't even broken a sweat, Pyo Ji-woo was utterly bewildered.
'What is she?'
Are all high school girls like this these days? Surely not.
She wanted to say something about what had just happened, but her mind was blank. She was just numb.
"What… what do I do now?"
Even if her intentions were impure, she had sacrificed a year of her life to acting. She had never been good at much, but she had started to think that maybe she actually had a talent for acting. She thought that if things went well with Min Seo-ho, she might even enjoy continuing this career.
But now, all that motivation was gone.
"Why did you show me this?"
She asked again. Why she had gone out of her way to tell her the truth about Min Seo-ho.
Seo-yeon glanced at the vacant-looking Pyo Ji-woo. Her original intention was to prevent Pyo Ji-woo from repeating the same mistake as in the past. And the reason she felt that way was…
"……It’s a waste."
"Huh?"
"You said you’ve been doing this for a year, right?"
Pyo Ji-woo was an incredibly talented actress. The time she spent to perform in a play with Min Seo-ho was one year. Yes, only one year.
"I think you have incredible talent. So…."
Amazingly, it had only taken her a year to get cast in a movie. She was an actress with that much potential.
"I thought it would be a waste to quit over something like this."
"……."
"And, well… I didn't want anything bad to happen because of someone like him."
At Seo-yeon’s words, Pyo Ji-woo looked at her silently. Seo-yeon’s face looked a bit awkward. If you looked closely, she seemed almost embarrassed to be saying such things. Because she was usually so expressionless and stoic, those small traces of emotion stood out even more.
"That’s all."
With those final words, Seo-yeon walked away. Pyo Ji-woo could only watch her back until she disappeared.
Silently.
*
"And then?"
Lee Ji-yeon asked me with an intrigued expression. "So what happened to actor Min Seo-ho?"
"He stepped down."
Of course, Seo-yeon hadn't reported him to the police. A few days later, when Seo-yeon received the call that she had passed the audition, she had subtly brought up the incident during a meeting with Jo Do-yul.
"……Is this photo real?"
"Yes. An unnie I know took it and showed it to me."
"Sigh…."
Jo Do-yul shook his head as if he had a massive headache. Generally, plays have two or three actors for the same role. Since there are usually two to three performances a day, it’s impossible for the same actor to perform them all.
The same was true for Close Your Eyes; there were three actors for the role of 'Bae Seong-hak.' For the record, this audition was to find the 'Hong Jeong-hee' for the team where Min Seo-ho was the lead. The other two teams were composed of returning members from the premiere. Since they were short one team, they had placed Min Seo-ho, who had previously played Bae Seong-hak, as the lead and were auditioning for the rest of the cast.
"I guess we’ll have to find a new Bae Seong-hak too…."
A sigh escaped him. Generally, he didn't interfere much in an actor’s private life, but the play was about to open. Getting caught up in a scandal at a time like this could be a major problem. Especially since he was caught with two women at once….
'And why did he have to get caught by this kid?'
Ju Seo-yeon. The weight of her name was by no means light. Jo Do-yul could only sigh as his head began to throb.