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– This is quite heart-wrenching. But on the other hand, I feel relieved that the two of them ended up together.

– Hah Yoon-seong is great, but the child acting is absolutely phenomenal.

– Whether it’s the past Han Yoo-hwa or the present Han Yoo-hwa, they’re definitely the same actress, but why does it feel like someone different?

– Maybe because they were a couple who had already experienced a loss. There’s something more poignant about it compared to other dramas.

As soon as episode 5 aired, numerous comments flooded the broadcasting station’s bulletin board.

There were so many that every time I refreshed the site, a new page would pop up.

Of course, there were sites with more raw opinions.

But for Min Da-yeon, who was still an elementary student, the UBS station’s bulletin board was the only site where she could check the drama’s public opinion.

Click.

Click, click.

I continued to glance at the broadcasting station’s bulletin board, reading countless posts one by one.

To be precise, this was something Min Da-yeon would never do on a normal day.

However, with her mind feeling more tangled than ever right now.

Even reading the opinions of people whose names and faces she didn’t know seemed like it would help her sort out her thoughts.

It wasn’t until about 20 minutes later that something close to a conclusion formed in Min Da-yeon’s mind.

And almost simultaneously, Hah Eun, who had just finished showering, entered Da-yeon’s room, her hair still damp.

There stood a familiar face, just like always.

To be fair, the slightly damp hair and slightly flushed cheeks were not too familiar.

But generally speaking, it was a look she had seen on Hah Eun for the past four years.

“What were you watching?”

“…I wasn’t watching anything.”

However, despite Hah Eun’s straightforward question, Da-yeon’s response was unusually blunt.

And she even turned off the monitor, hiding the fact that she had been watching “You from the Stars” until just before Hah Eun entered.

‘To be honest, I’ve always wanted to sleep over at a friend’s house.’
‘Isn’t that too common for a wish? What’s special about that?’
‘It used to be special. Once, I even asked Santa Claus to let me sleep over at a friend’s house instead of getting presents.’
‘What’s that? How childish.’

A few days ago, at a cafe near the elementary school, all the words Hah Eun had said haunted her, making them feel like excuses.

Whether today was Hah Eun’s birthday or her wish to spend the night at a friend’s house, she believed there had to be a real reason why Hah Eun was sharing a room with Min Da-yeon now.

For example, perhaps she wanted to brag about winning the role of young Han Yoo-hwa over Da-yeon once again.

More precisely, she probably wanted to show Da-yeon the scenes she could film because she had captured the role of young Han Yoo-hwa instead of Da-yeon.

“…With this sinful body, I dare to ask you, noble one. Please… be well.”

Among those, she thought the scene that left the greatest impression was one where she wanted to see the surprise on Min Da-yeon’s face through Hah Eun’s own eyes.

“Hey, Lee Hah Eun. Honestly, tell me. Is your birthday just an excuse?”

“…I’m really having my birthday today.”

“No, what I mean is… what’s the real reason you asked to sleep over?”

After that, she kept making eye contact with Hah Eun, not giving her any space to escape from her gaze.

As if she was determined to hear the dark secrets Hah Eun had been hiding until this moment.

However, no matter how much she stared into Hah Eun’s eyes, all they contained were big and small question marks.

And then Hah Eun finally broke the slight tension with her curious voice.

“Um, Da-yeon… are you trying to have a staring contest with me or something?”

Min Da-yeon, who was trying her best to keep a serious expression, had her efforts reduced to a puff of laughter.

Eventually, she asked again in a voice less firm than before.

“Lee Hah Eun, you wanted me to feel insecure, right? You wanted to make sure I’d never want to compete with you in acting again…”

In the end, Min Da-yeon admitted one thing—that no matter what happened, she could never surpass Hah Eun’s performance.

The heavy and bitter conclusion Min Da-yeon had drawn when she was alone in her room while Hah Eun was taking a bath began to seep through to Hah Eun.

“I know you’re a great actress. I can tell just how frustratingly good you are. But why do you keep….”

Her breath, which had been trembling, slowly filled with water, and her vision blurred a little.

The gears of logic had begun to grind since she had locked eyes with Hah Eun.

Thus, Min Da-yeon could no longer hide the feelings she had skillfully concealed for the past four years.

“Even when Kim Ji-a failed the screen test, and when Han Yoo-hwa didn’t get the audition, people said it was out of their hands. They said I was just unlucky, and someday I’d get my chance…”

She knew that those words were merely meant to console a heartbroken Min Da-yeon.

And she was more aware than anyone that she had never competed without doing her best.

Still, she couldn’t endure it anymore.

The Min Da-yeon who had once thought of Hah Eun as a rival felt foolish.

“Do you know, Lee Hah Eun? People say you’re amazing. They’ve never seen acting like yours before, and it really hits them…!”

“…Da-yeon.”

“Do I have to say you’re amazing too? Should I just stand there and applaud instead of trying to compete?”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she was swept away by this futile inferiority complex.

To be precise, the only thing Hah Eun had done wrong was simply being in front of Min Da-yeon at this moment.

“Why do I always have to lose? Why do I always have to be overshadowed by you? Why, just why…”

It felt like that was all there was.

The misery, emptiness, and all the bitter feelings Min Da-yeon was experiencing at that moment felt like it was all Hah Eun’s fault.

“I want to win too. I want to hear that I’m better than you…”

The true feelings that Min Da-yeon had never shown to anyone, but wanted to express, burst forth with a shaky breath and tear-filled eyes.

Even the shaking shoulders and tears that streamed down shortly after were left for Hah Eun to handle alone.

In front of the completely fallen Da-yeon, Hah Eun thought hard about what would be best to say.

“Then, let’s play rock-paper-scissors…”

“What?”

In such cases, action seemed better than words, so she forced Da-yeon to get up and initiated the chant for rock-paper-scissors where the loser loses their turn.

Unexpectedly, Da-yeon raised her fist.

The problem was, Hah Eun’s hand was a completely flat palm.

Immediately, Hah Eun was taken aback and literally didn’t know what to do, so she chanted rock-paper-scissors again.

Thus, after about four or five rounds of chants from Hah Eun, it finally ended.

“…I finally lost.”

Da-yeon had chosen scissors, and Hah Eun had chosen paper.

Yet, Da-yeon was still glaring at Hah Eun.

Considering the circumstances, it was completely understandable.

She had abruptly asked Da-yeon to get up and had continued the game until Da-yeon won.

“What are you trying to do right now?”

From Da-yeon’s perspective, Hah Eun seemed to be joking with her.

However, Hah Eun’s usual calm voice soon followed.

“You just have to keep playing until you win. Whether it’s rock-paper-scissors or acting.”

There was no hint of playfulness in her tone.

“You know I can’t just lose on purpose in rock-paper-scissors or acting. Even if I did lose on purpose, you wouldn’t recognize it.”

Min Da-yeon, who had been trying to retort Hah Eun’s words, ultimately couldn’t interrupt her.

“Still, someday you’ll win. That’s just how life is.”

“…You really talk just like my grandpa, you know?”

“Oh, um, actually, I heard that from my grandpa.”

After that, Hah Eun continued to comfort and coax Da-yeon.

To be precise, it didn’t help that much, but seeing someone she had always looked up to struggling to lighten her mood felt a little…

“…Pff.”

No, it was a lot different and funny.

Overcome by this, Da-yeon let out a laugh, and the serious atmosphere was completely lifted.

At almost the same moment, Hah Eun opened her mouth again.

“Um, Da-yeon. I have something to ask…”

This was yet another effort by Hah Eun to change the subject.

However, from Da-yeon’s perspective, it was a silly question that didn’t even need asking.

“Do you really think you can have a normal school life?”

“…So I have to keep getting filmed by the other kids?”

“As long as they’re just filming, that’s fine. I know someone whose textbooks and things were all stolen by other kids, and they had to transfer to another school.”

She concluded that Hah Eun couldn’t have the ordinary school life she longed for.

The moment she questioned Hah Eun about why she wanted a normal school life happened right after that.

“…Lee Hah Eun, I’ve noticed you’re fixated on normalcy. Why are you so attached to being normal? What’s so great about being ordinary?”

It was just a simple question she blurted out out of genuine curiosity, devoid of any intentions.

Having watched Hah Eun cling to normalcy for four years straight, she was a bit tired of it.

Yet, the familiar gaze she met in Hah Eun’s eyes was.

For some reason, even though it didn’t seem like she was acting, she looked a bit sad.

“I don’t know, it just feels disappointing. I wanted to experience things like field trips and school outings too.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say you can’t go at all… it’s just that you need to be a bit more careful than other kids.”

As a result, Min Da-yeon ended up comforting Hah Eun instead.

Whether it was even something that needed comforting was uncertain.

However, seeing Hah Eun, who would occasionally show strange sides of herself, was simply perplexing to Da-yeon.

If it was about the happy family she had seen before, it wasn’t like Hah Eun had any secret stories.

‘…What is this, really.’

The more time passed, the more she felt that she knew less about Hah Eun.

*

“Yes, well. It’s about time to appear on reality shows.”

“Right, that’s what Director Hwang thinks too, right? In that case, why not film an entire episode with a ‘You from the Stars’ theme? It would garner some great promotion.”

After that, Director Choi Su-hyuk continued enthusiastically explaining the promotional benefits the cast of “You from the Stars” would gain by appearing on [Don't Stop People].

However, “You from the Stars” was already achieving staggering viewership ratings without any need for promotion.

‘Makeup messed up. Body got worn out. Image damaged. The drawbacks far outweigh the benefits.’

Even if Hah Yoon-seong was into sports, it was clear that Yoo Sung-ah, who had been avoiding reality shows, would never appear on [Don't Stop People].

Up until this moment, Director Choi Su-hyuk was still energetically presenting his case to PD Hwang Min-soo, contemplating how to send him back.

However, one fact that neither Hwang Min-soo nor Choi Su-hyuk remembered.

That long ago, in the music video of one of the fixed members of “Don’t Stop People,” Lee Geon-yeol.

To be specific, Hah Eun had appeared in the music video “Matches” by Double Lee.

Moreover, given that Hah Eun and Double Lee were still quite close even now…

Among the cast of “You from the Stars,” Hah Eun was the one most likely to appear on [Don't Stop People].

“Geon-yeol, why don’t you talk to her? Just don’t pressure her to do it.”

“Of course. If she says no, I’ll just end the conversation there. I won’t cling like someone who lives nearby.”

“…What a past reference.”

One of the other fixed members of “Don’t Stop People,” not PD Choi Su-hyuk, but Lee Geon-yeol himself, recommended Hah Eun about appearing on [Don't Stop People].