Chapter 28

“Cut! That’s a wrap~.”

It was the one take that had been heard of only in words.

The various staff members on set, of course.

‘No wonder it felt different from the other child actors from the beginning.’

Even Ha Yoon-seong, who had just been adjusting to Ha Eun before, completely revised his evaluation of her.

No matter how talented the child who had won an award for their debut film, the effects of the hiatus wouldn’t fade away so quickly.

Nevertheless, in front of the numerous cameras on set, she transformed into a young Han Yu-hwa without feeling intimidated at all.

She finished the shoot without making a single common line mistake.

Even considering aspects outside her lines, there was nothing particularly criticized.

The performance of Ha Eun that Yoon-seong had faced moments ago was similar to the acting that Yu Seong-a had showcased in front of him just a few hours prior.

Ha Eun’s Han Yu-hwa convincingly made the viewers believe that she would grow into Yu Seong-a’s Han Yu-hwa in the future.

The confidence that lingered on her beautiful face was also a familiar kind to Yoon-seong.

While he had seen child actors imitating adult actors’ expressions, gestures, and voices, this was the first time he had seen a child actor mimic even the inner emotions to such a degree that it felt nostalgic.

‘Now that I think about it, she said she spent her hiatus solely learning acting.’

Thus, a few days ago, Yoon-seong recalled the brief Q&A he had during Ha Eun’s audition for the role of young Han Yu-hwa.

“Hey, Ha Eun. Since your first shoot went well, how about we take a photo together for a celebration—”

Ha Eun, a genius who showed effort.

After considering her to be someone who could potentially become part of Yoon-seong’s network.

He wanted to take a photo with her for SNS purposes, but…

“…Huh? What? Where did she go?”

In that brief moment of looking away, Ha Eun had literally disappeared, leaving Yoon-seong blinking in confusion.

He would learn of Ha Eun’s whereabouts from a staff member he accidentally encountered about 30 minutes later.

“Ha Eun? I saw her heading to the parking lot with her manager earlier.”

“Why so early? Does she have another schedule after this?”

“It’s almost 9 o’clock, Yoon-seong. The adults might not know, but kids like Ha Eun are starting to get sleepy around this time.”

“…Are you dissing me for being old?”

“Not at all. If you’re old, then I’m already a ghost with just bones left.”

In the end, posting the photo of Ha Eun on Yoon-seong’s SNS had to be deferred to a few days later.

However, contrary to the assumption that Yoon-seong and the staff had already headed home, Ha Eun was currently.

“Order anything you want. I have enough money for that.”

“…Isn’t that something you usually don’t say in a café?”

“Ah, anyway. Think of it as a reward for accepting the interview request.”

She was sitting at a table with Heo Ju-eun and Ju Jung-yun at a café located near the filming site of “You Who Came from the Stars.”

The interview with the child actress Lee Ha-eun, whom Heo Ju-eun had long desired, began shortly after.

However, for some reason.

“Since you haven’t had any significant work after ‘The Uncle Next Door’, what have you been doing to spend your time?”

“I went to school.”

“Anything else?”

“Exercise? Or maybe for an academy?”

“Did you have any special events like a family trip abroad?”

“Not particularly…”

Most of Ha Eun’s answers were.

“I know that there was Min Da-yeon among the child actors who competed for the role of young Han Yu-hwa. What aspects of your acting do you think surpassed Min Da-yeon’s?”

“Hmm, Da-yeon… No, I think Min Da-yeon’s acting was also quite wonderful. I don’t think there was anything particularly noteworthy that I excelled at.”

With answers slightly distant from what Heo Ju-eun had been hoping for.

“How do you feel about participating in the filming of ‘You Who Came from the Stars’?”

“I will do my best.”

“…Is that it?”

“Yes.”

To put it nicely, they were ordinary answers typical of a child her age.

To put it poorly, they were bland answers with no trace of Ha Eun’s unique qualities.

‘…Where did the person go who could silence reporters with a smooth tongue?’

Heo Ju-eun’s excitement deflated like a deflated balloon.

However, knowing to some extent what Heo Ju-eun expected from her.

“Um, Miss Reporter. I would like to have another interview in a few months, is that okay?”

“What’s there to worry about? If Ha Eun is fine with it, we can interview whenever.”

Although it wasn’t at that moment.

She promised that when the scene Ha Eun was putting the most effort into aired on TV, she would satisfy Heo Ju-eun’s expectations.

Of course, Heo Ju-eun couldn’t have known what scene Ha Eun was referring to.

For now, she just thought of it as having saved one entertainment article ahead of time.

A few months later.

“…With my sinful body, I dare to beseech the noble one. Please… may you stay tranquil.”

A scene featuring Ha Eun became the decisive moment when the ratings of “You Who Came from the Stars” began to rise sharply.

“No way, interviewing a 12-year-old is like picking stars from the sky!”

“Uh, uh, Reporter Heo. Is there no more source about Ha Eun?”

At that moment in the café, she belatedly realized how much value the promise Ha Eun made held.

***

“Just asking out of curiosity, Seong-a. Do you have a daughter hidden away from your brother?”

“Um, I’m pretty sure I didn’t until a few days ago? But it seems I’ve got one recently.”

It was a brief conversation, nothing more than a light joke.

Yet, both Yu Seong-a and her manager couldn’t take their eyes off Ha Eun over there, because Ha Eun’s acting resembled Yu Seong-a’s too closely.

Of course, it wasn’t to say that she looked exactly like Yu Seong-a’s childhood.

It was impossible for Ha Eun to be Yu Seong-a’s biological daughter.

However, in every other regard, it felt as if a younger Yu Seong-a was directly portraying young Han Yu-hwa.

From her expressions and speech to fleeting gestures.

Even the underlying emotions she unveiled were strikingly similar to what Yu Seong-a had shown in front of the camera so far.

Naturally, it was impossible for Yu Seong-a not to recognize these similarities.

As she had mentioned to Director Hwang Min-soo during the audition for the role of young Han Yu-hwa, the one who knows Yu Seong-a’s acting best can only be Yu Seong-a herself.

“Manager oppa knows. Mom doesn’t need just a daughter Han Yu-hwa; she needs a daughter Han Yu-hwa who brings in money.”

‘It turns out that what they say about kids being scary these days isn’t just nonsense.’

Until this moment, the character Han Yu-hwa that Yu Seong-a had revealed in front of the camera was, in a word, a person living for her own pride.

Her self-esteem and pride soared to the sky, and her nose wouldn’t break for a slight inconvenience.

However, behind that shining exterior was an unhappy family environment.

She shows a tendency to lean on no one, including those related by blood.

This story would also apply to young Han Yu-hwa, who had not yet escaped her parents’ shadows.

Thus, Yu Seong-a found it even more challenging not to see the image of her own acting overlapped with the portrayal of young Han Yu-hwa performed by Ha Eun.

Of course, normally, comparing the acting of a child actor to that of a top star like Yu Seong-a would be a harsh comparison.

After all, a child actor may be immature compared to an adult, regardless of their role.

The child actors, compared to adult actors, inevitably receive large and small considerations in acting.

Especially in cases where child actors have to portray the childhood of adult actors, some degree of compromise and consideration is almost essential.

In most cases, it’s unreasonable to demand child actors to resemble adult actors with no margin for error at all.

In unavoidable situations, sometimes they can just get by looking somewhat similar to the adult actor.

In such cases, although the blame would usually be directed not to the child actor but to the production crew for making poor judgments.

‘Well, that kid wouldn’t be like that.’

The acting that Yu Seong-a had seen from Ha Eun was of a type that required “no consideration.”

Without the need to consider that she was a child actor, her performance could be seen purely in terms of capturing the essence of young Han Yu-hwa on camera.

“…If I had known it would turn out like this, I might as well have been born in an orphanage.”

The lamentation stemming from her parents, who only demanded help from Han Yu-hwa instead of providing any, only added to the bitterness of how she was forced to put on an expression in front of a full-length mirror.

No matter who looked at it, before them was a depiction of young Han Yu-hwa.

Already aware of her star quality, she was frustrated by the existence of parents who saw Yu-hwa only as a source of income and made her want to break free.

“Ha… even a monkey at the zoo would be better off than me.”

A girl who shines brighter than anyone yet is lonelier than anyone else.

The portrayal of Han Yu-hwa that Yu Seong-a interpreted was being performed now by Ha Eun.

“Cut! That’s good, Ha Eun. Just keep going like this in the future.”

“Ah, yes… Thank you.”

Thus, today’s filming also ended smoothly within the planned time without any notable issues.

Just as she was about to head toward her manager as usual, Yu Seong-a blocked Ha Eun.

“Ha Eun. Do you have a moment?”

With her unique impressive aura, she asked if she could talk for a moment about the upcoming filming.

For a brief moment, Ha Eun wondered what would happen if she cut her off by saying she didn’t have the time.

However, given Yu Seong-a’s status and debut date, she was essentially a senior to Ha Eun.

‘…I should use the story of meeting Seong-a later when I’m on a show.’

Having come this far, Ha Eun decided to add her encounter with Yu Seong-a to her list of stories.

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