Chapter 138

Behind Ha Eun were neatly wrapped gift boxes stacked up.

In front of Ha Eun was a white table with a pretty birthday cake on it.

A few steps away from Ha Eun, Ju Jung-yun and several other staff members were setting up for Ha Eun’s birthday broadcast.

Once they finished adjusting the detailed camera angles, Ju Jung-yun’s voice could be heard.

“Don’t be too nervous. Just think of it as a video call.”

“Ah, yes…”

To be honest, Ha Eun wasn’t particularly nervous.

After all, she had been broadcasting as a Virtual YouTuber for over six months.

She thought that doing a broadcast as actor Lee Ha-eun wouldn’t be much different.

If anything, this wasn’t her first time doing an Instagram live broadcast.

Of course, the unrealistic viewer count of 44,000 still didn’t feel quite real.

How much broadcasting would Diah need to do to reach 44,000 viewers?

‘…This feels strange.’

Just then, Ju Jung-yun asked if they were ready to start the broadcast.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

The broadcast started right after that.

As Ha Eun’s image appeared on the vertical broadcast screen, the speed of the chat exploded.

‘I… can’t read this.’

The overwhelming speed of the chat, which was nothing compared to Diah’s, made Ha Eun’s eyes dart around.

It wasn’t just Korean; she could also see parts in English, Chinese, and Japanese, which didn’t seem to be a mistake.

She felt a little flustered for a moment.

After all, her past Instagram live broadcasts had never been like this.

‘…What’s different about the birthday broadcast?’

Thinking back, her previous Instagram live broadcasts had been spontaneous without any notice.

But this birthday broadcast had been officially announced by her agency in advance.

It was bound to be different from the brief broadcasts she had done whenever she found a moment.

Anyway, since she had to carry on with the broadcast now.

“Hello, this is Lee Ha-eun.”

She waved lightly at the camera and greeted the viewers on the other side of the screen.

Almost simultaneously, the reactions that appeared were a bit different from Diah’s broadcasts.

– Hello

– Wow

– Wow

– I love you, unnie 💗💗

– Ohhhh

– Hi

– So cute ㅠㅠㅠ

Ha Eun felt that the atmosphere of the Instagram live chat was definitely different from Diah’s broadcasts.

While Diah’s broadcasts had a friend-like vibe, the Instagram live felt more akin to a fan signing event.

“Ah, the cake? It’s a custom cake ordered by the fans. Look, it even has my initials.”

– Ohhh

– The photo cake looks great

– Happy birthday, Ha Eun!!!

– You’re pretty, unnie

– Birthday??

The chat atmosphere, which was mostly filled with exclamations, didn’t change at all.

Even when she stuck the number-shaped candles onto the cake and lit them, the chat felt like it was filled with Ha Eun’s fans.

However, when she requested them to sing the birthday song along with her, the chat was flooded with the birthday song lyrics.

Right after that, when Ha Eun blew out the birthday candles, the chat was filled with applause emojis and “clap clap clap clap.”

“Now I’m really 19. Time sure flies.”

– Then you’ll be an adult next year, lol

– What wish did you make when you blew out the candles?

– You dressed so cutely

– Unnie, you look so pretty today, what happened?

– How long will you be live today??

Afterward, she spent a little time chatting with the viewers.

The speed of the chat was still incredibly fast, but Ju Jung-yun and the other staff helped pinpoint questions for Ha Eun to answer.

“They’re asking who among your friends wished you a happy 19th birthday first.”

“Hmm, give me a moment.”

Ha Eun then took out her phone.

After checking through her messages with acquaintances, she found the very first birthday message and then spoke again.

[Min Da-yeon] – Happy birthday

[Min Da-yeon] – Min Da-yeon has sent you a gift and message.

[Min Da-yeon] – (image of an expensive gift card)

“Da-yeon was the first to congratulate me. Next was Director Kwon Jae-hyuk, and the third was a school friend.”

– As expected, best friends

– Did you put something on your lips?

– Is Da-yeon referring to Min Da-yeon?

– Oh, today is Lee Ha-eun’s birthday!!!

After answering the questions that Ju Jung-yun and the Luna Entertainment staff provided with sincerity,

She felt it was a signal to transition to the next part, and she briefly reached down.

She then picked up a pristine white cake knife.

Not long after, she carefully cut the birthday cake and took a small piece to taste slowly.

“Hmm… It’s delicious. How did they know my taste perfectly and send this?”

She moved the cake knife once more to create another piece.

A slice of Ha Eun’s birthday cake was then raised right in front of the camera.

“It’s really moist inside. The whipped cream on the outside is super sweet.”

– I want cake too ㅠㅠㅠ

– This feels like a mukbang YouTuber, lol

– I’m a big fan of you 😊😊😊😊

– There’s whipped cream on your upper lip

A moment later, it was time for a capture moment.

Holding the cake in one hand and making a heart sign with the other, she paused silently.

“Did you all take the photo…? Ah, you want me to do another pose?”

After taking about two or three poses as requested by the viewers, the capture moment was finally over.

She then lifted her broadcasting phone to show the numerous gift boxes behind her on screen.

“You all sent me so many presents. They’re wrapped so beautifully that it feels a bit sad to unwrap them.”

After that, she carefully examined the gift boxes of various sizes and lengths, thanking her fans one by one.

Gradually realizing that it was time to wrap up the broadcast, she returned the broadcasting phone to its original position.

Then, she made her farewells.

“Thank you for celebrating my 19th birthday. See you next time~.”

With that, *tap*.

Ha Eun’s index finger slowly pressed the end button for the Instagram live broadcast.

A slightly surprised voice from Ju Jung-yun could be heard right after.

“Ha Eun, you did really well on the broadcast.”

You could have done it alone.

Upon hearing Ju Jung-yun praise Ha Eun’s adept hosting that surpassed her expectations, Ha Eun simply revealed a sheepish expression.

After all, she had already been doing her broadcasts alone for over half a year.

Of course, she had no intention of revealing the truth.

And that was why she silently helped Ju Jung-yun gather Ha Eun’s birthday gifts.

However, as she had anticipated before starting the broadcast, it was impossible to carry all of Ha Eun’s many birthday gifts at once.

Thus, she decided to set aside the gifts that wouldn’t fit in Ju Jung-yun’s van for later.

Afterward, they headed straight to Ha Eun’s home to bring the birthday gifts into her room.

However, Ha Eun’s schedule was not over yet.

In a few hours, she would have to get back into Ju Jung-yun’s van for the filming of *The Sunshine*.

As time passed,

As usual, she was waiting while dressed in Kim Jeong-hyun’s beautiful hanbok.

– *knock knock*.

Someone knocked from beyond Ha Eun’s waiting room.

The person who appeared was actor Baek Jin-hyuk, who played the supporting role of “Hwang Tae-sung” in *The Sunshine*.

“Ha Eun, could you follow me for a moment?”

Ha Eun’s face showed a puzzled expression at Baek Jin-hyuk’s sudden request.

Still, she followed him out of the waiting room because there was no good reason to refuse his request.

After walking alongside Baek Jin-hyuk for about five minutes,

“Ha Eun has arrived~!”

For some unknown reason, they reached a filming location gathered with familiar faces.

From a few steps away, someone came walking toward them.

“Happy birthday to you~. Happy birthday to you~.”

The unexpected singing was from the writer responsible for Ha Eun’s role in *The Sunshine*.

The sound of rhythmic applause followed.

All the staff around them were celebrating Ha Eun’s birthday, without exception.

Baek Jin-hyuk, who had brought her there, was also among those congratulating her.

“Okay, blow out the candles before the wind blows them out. Oh, don’t forget to make a wish.”

So, as Baek Jin-hyuk directed, when she blew out the candles once more, the area filled with applause.

A quiet smile that had surfaced on Ha Eun’s face for some time.

“Thank you all…”

She didn’t feel the need to mention that she had already had a birthday party that morning.

There was no rule stating that a birthday party needed to be held just once.

Thus, the surprise birthday party for Ha Eun, which would later appear in the making film of *The Sunshine*, went off without a hitch.

Not long after, the filming of *The Sunshine* began.

“Alright, then. Let’s get started. …Action!”

Today’s filming scene was the reunion between Kim Jeong-hyun and her long-time friend, Hwang Tae-sung.

The timing of their reunion was just under a week after Park Ju-ho left to assist the righteous army on Kim Jeong-hyun’s request.

“I rushed over after hearing that you were recovering. Are you feeling any better?”

However, since Hwang Tae-sung was not only a dear friend of Kim Jeong-hyun but also her betrothed,

The emotions felt upon encountering Hwang Tae-sung after several years were bound to be complicated.

Nevertheless, as if pleasant childhood memories suddenly resurfaced,

– *sniff*.

“It’s been a while.”

They exchanged gentle smiles as their eyes met.

Ha Eun’s expression, radiating joy, was hidden beneath her soft demeanor toward Hwang Tae-sung.

“I was worried since I hadn’t heard from you, but I’m glad to see you’re okay.”

For a brief moment, Baek Jin-hyuk found himself momentarily speechless at Ha Eun’s calm greeting.

After all, she appeared to be different from the Ha Eun he usually knew.

“Since it’s still cold outside, shall we go in and continue our conversation?”

Ha Eun turned away from Baek Jin-hyuk and began to walk, emanating an indescribable deep aura.

Though the current scene was just an ordinary daily moment, the weight of the emotions was substantial.

It expressed Kim Jeong-hyun’s friendship towards Hwang Tae-sung.

Simultaneously, a vague affection towards another man that was not Hwang Tae-sung.

“…You seem to have changed a lot in my absence.”

Hwang Tae-sung’s words were layered with many meanings.

For someone who had cherished Kim Jeong-hyun since childhood, the emotions he felt were stronger than he had anticipated.

It was as if the depth of those feelings had suddenly intensified.

In many ways, something felt different.

At least, today was definitely different.

“Why are you just standing there? Your feet aren’t frozen, are they?”

At the same time, Kim Jeong-hyun flashed a charming smile toward Hwang Tae-sung.

Yet, the thick aura still made it impossible to distinguish between acting and genuine sentiment.

Little did they know that this unusual turn of events began with a surprise birthday party.

Ha Eun herself was just excited, completely unaware of the fact.

She also didn’t realize that Diah’s emotional lines had intertwined with her acting.

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