Become a Star

Woo-Hee put on her shoes and was about to leave the house when their family helper asked, “Where are you going? You’re not watching the awards ceremony?”

“I made plans with a friend.”

“That’s a pity. You should leave after watching your brother receive the award if you can.”

Woo-Hee smiled awkwardly, avoiding any eye contact with the lady. It seemed there were no doubts in her mind that Red Enemy would receive the award.

“Well…there’s been no confirmation yet as to whether or not it will receive the award.”

“What! Everyone is saying that Red Enemy will be getting the award, though?”

Their helper wasn’t the only one who assumed Red Enemy would win the award –– a lot of people seemed to act as though it was a given that Red Enemy would get it. Woo-Hee found their attitudes towards the award ceremony interesting but also worrisome at the same time.

The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, had always garnered public attention, and that was particularly true this year. Unlike the previous ceremonies, even those who were typically uninterested in the event watched it live this time around. Perhaps, it was because a Korean movie was nominated.

Just being nominated in and of itself piqued the public’s interest, which in turn became anticipation. And gradually, the anticipation turned into conviction. Presently, the public was watching the awards ceremony with pride –– just like how they felt when the Korean national team won an international competition.

That was the result of a combination of various factors: the pride they had for Red Enemy, a movie that enjoyed unprecedented success in Korea, as well as their faith in Actor Chae Woo-Jin. This was piled on top of the already-existing anticipation the public had. Additionally, thanks to the media blindly singing praises for it, people took it as a given that Red Enemy would be getting the award. While Woo-Hee understood their feelings, nobody could accurately predict the outcome of the awards ceremony.

“Auntie[1], please don’t get your hopes up. It would be nice if Red Enemy won the award, but I heard that the other movies nominated this year are equally outstanding, so the competition is very fierce.”

“Still, I heard it was a hit in America.”

“The award isn’t given to movies just because they’re a box office hit.”

One of the films that had been nominated was directed by a two-time Oscar winner. As such, it was proof that his style was in line with what the Academy was looking for, so nobody could truly say who the winner would be in the end.

“And I can’t watch it because I’d be constantly nervous until they announced the winner of their category.”

Even if that weren’t the case, Woo-Hee would’ve been waiting in anticipation as well, so she couldn’t watch other countries’ award ceremonies as leisurely as she had previously. Although he hadn’t been nominated for an individual award, if a movie that Woo-Jin starred in won an award at a famous film festival, it would be meaningful in more ways than one.

While he had won several awards domestically and internationally, it would be his first time winning an award at a world-famous film festival, so it was nerve-wracking even for the people watching it. There was no other reason for Woo-Hee to intentionally make plans with a friend at this time of the day. Perhaps the helper understood how Woo-Hee felt as she smiled gently at her and told her to have a good time with her friend.

Honk honk!

Woo-Hee was a short distance away from her house when she heard the sound of a klaxon horn[2] from a car parked on the roadside, causing her to stop momentarily. However, the white luxury sedan and its license plate seemed unfamiliar. As soon as she looked away and started walking, the driver of the car honked urgently at her.

Woo-Hee eventually stood still after hearing the unusually loud sound in the quiet residential street. The car she just walked past then rolled forward and stopped next to her. Woo-Hee was wary of this unknown car, and she took a few steps back. As she did this, the rear window rolled down.

“You know who I am, right?” A girl looked out of the car and asked. She was wearing a pair of sunglasses that were so huge they covered a third of her face.

For some reason, she looked familiar, but Woo-Hee couldn’t seem to put her finger on who exactly the girl was, so she became even more guarded.

“Who are you?”

“You don’t know who I am?”

It was clear that Woo-Hee had asked who the girl was because she didn’t recognize her, but the girl took off her sunglasses and stared at Woo-Hee, as though she was dumbfounded by that question.

After seeing the girl’s small and pretty face, Woo-Hee finally recognized her.

“Ah, Chae Woo-Ra?” Woo-Hee had only seen Chae Woo-Ra on TV, so she looked somewhat unfamiliar in person. However, she was still recognizable without her sunglasses.

Woo-Hee nodded indifferently, which caused Chae Woo-Ra to frown and pout. Their encounter was entirely different from what she had imagined; it was so dull that Chae Woo-Ra felt disappointed.

“Aren’t you being a little too unenthusiastic?”

“What kind of reaction were you hoping to get from me?”

“I was expecting you to look shocked or grab me by the hair. Something like that.”

“You’ve watched too many makjang dramas.”

“People always talk about makjang dramas when they have nothing to say.”

After hearing Chae Woo-Ra’s cold reply, Woo-Hee simply agreed and nodded. If one were to think about it, incidents wilder than those in makjang dramas were rather common in real life. Right now, this moment between the two girls could indeed create a stimulating scene in a drama. For one to start talking about dramas while in a terrible situation was nothing but an absurd way to avoid the situation.

“By the way, are you saying you came here to grab me by the hair?”

“Don’t talk to me like that. You’re so crude.”

Woo-Hee was speechless after seeing Chae Woo-Ra cover her mouth, looking appalled. She shook her head and wondered who was the one who spoke to the other person first. More importantly, Woo-Hee didn’t like how she was standing outside the car talking as the other party sat inside. It felt as though they were in a historical film, where Chae Woo-Ra was a lady in a palanquin, and she herself was a servant following next to her.

“Sure. ‘Crude’ me has plans, so I’ll get going. Run along now, and be on your way.”

“Wait! Let’s talk.”

“What’s there for us to talk about?”

“We have a lot to talk about.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

While Chae Woo-Ra was feeling flustered because of Woo-Hee’s extremely clear-cut answer, Woo-Hee checked the time and walked off. As soon as she did that, the car inched forward slowly and matched her pace. Chae Woo-Ra’s head remained stuck out of the car’s window as she continued talking.

“How can you be so cold? Since I took the initiative to look for you, shouldn’t you show some sincerity too!”

“Sincerity? What kind of sincerity are you talking about?”

“Look at what you’re doing! Even when you’re talking, you disregard the other person and simply look ahead as you walk. You have no manners, you’re crude, and you have no common sense.”

As they were conversing, Woo-Hee came to the realization that the tone of Chae Woo-Ra’s voice was different from others. She felt as though she was dealing with the young lady from the noble family that chastised Hyangdan[3].

“If you want to talk to me that much, you can always get out of the car and walk. Like I’ve said, I made plans, so I’m busy.”

“Why don’t you get in the car instead? I’ll take you to your destination.” Chae Woo-Ra showed Woo-Hee the stilettos she was wearing and suggested that she get in the car instead.

Woo-Hee stopped in her tracks and subtly scanned her surroundings. It was a relatively empty street with hardly anybody around in the first place, but a few people passed by occasionally. And most of them recognized Woo-Hee as Chae Woo-Jin’s younger sister who lived in the area.

She was concerned about how the current situation looked –– a car matching the speed she was walking at, coupled with Chae Woo-Ra’s presence. If other people caught Woo-Hee together with Chae Woo-Ra, it would lead to a massive scandal and gossip like no other. Additionally, Chae Woo-Ra was currently sticking her head out of the window. Others might not recognize her if she were still wearing her sunglasses, but right now, she was practically begging for people to notice her identity.

Woo-Hee didn’t see the need to contemplate any further, so she told the driver where she was headed and quickly got into the car. Chae Woo-Ra was certain that Woo-Hee would put up a fight about getting into the car, so she seemed very surprised. Yet, as soon as Woo-Hee sat down, the first thing she did was text someone else first. It made Chae Woo-Ra feel as though she was being disregarded, which caused her to grow upset once again.

“I’m telling my friend that I’m going to be late because I’m meeting with you.” As though she had read her mind, as soon as Woo-Hee immediately gave her an explanation, Chae Woo-Ra quickly relaxed her sullen face.

“Oh, is that so?”

As soon as she sent the text, Woo-Hee lifted her head and looked at Chae Woo-Ra. She had just sent a text to her friend to inform her that she was currently with Chae Woo-Ra, in case of an emergency. So if anything were to happen, Chae Woo-Ra would become the prime suspect. By telling Chae Woo-Ra about it, she was giving her a hint as a way of warning her, but unfortunately, it flew right over her head.

“But if you’re late, so be it. Do you have to tell your friend about every little detail? Aren’t you going above and beyond to be considerate to them?”

Chae Woo-Ra had never been considerate towards anyone; she couldn’t understand Woo-Hee’s actions. To be precise, it was more like she had no friends to text in the first place.

“If you put yourself in their shoes, would that make you happy?”

“Unreasonable? What kind of unreasonable demands did I make?”[4]

After hearing the nonsensical question, Woo-Hee shot a glance at Chae Woo-Ra and asked what she was talking about. She wanted to know how ‘putting yourself in other people’s shoes’ turned into ‘making an unreasonable demand,’ but Chae Woo-Ra didn’t give her a chance to do so and continued speaking.

“There’s no need to say much. I’ll start by telling you why I came to look for you first. My parents are getting a divorce.”

“And?”

“And?! How can you be so indifferent towards our dad?”

It would be a different story if Chae Woo-Ra were talking about her mother, but since they shared the same father, Chae Woo-Ra felt it was Woo-Hee’s duty to be concerned about this piece of news. Woo-Hee laughed mockingly in response.

“He’s your father, not mine.”

Chae Woo-Ra instantly flinched the moment she heard Woo-Hee’s cold reply, but she quickly agreed with her; she didn’t want to share her father with Chae Woo-Hee either. If she had to share her cold-hearted father, the man that never said a kind word to her, she wondered what she would even have left.

“As someone whose parents divorced previously, the only advice I can give you is that there’s nothing we can do. It’s their lives, and getting a divorce isn’t always the worst thing ever.”

“So they can just get married and divorce as they please? They should take responsibility if they have a child, no?!”

Chae Woo-Ra had benefited the most from her father’s previous two divorces. Her words were full of contradictions.

“Don’t tell me you’re still expecting your father to be someone who takes responsibility for his children after seeing what happened to my brother and me?” Woo-Hee pointed to herself and asked. Chae Woo-Ra kept her mouth shut.

“And your parents are the ones getting a divorce –– why did you come looking for me? What do your family matters have to do with me?”

“I…”

In truth, Chae Woo-Ra didn’t want to drop by to see Woo-Hee like she had done earlier today either. More importantly, it hurt her pride so profoundly that she wanted to cry, but she was holding back her tears right now. It was very unlike her to act like this.

“Can you help me tell Woo-Jin oppa to do me a favor? Tell him to tell my dad not to get a divorce. He will listen to what you say, right?”

She bit her lip as she hesitated with a flushed face. It clearly revealed how disgraceful she thought this current situation was.

“Why should I do that? We have no obligation or right to interfere with your family matters. Don’t you think this favor of yours is too absurd?”

“Then what should I do! At this rate, what do I do if my mom and dad really get a divorce!”

“Our parents got divorced when we were at a much younger age, and we turned out fine.”

“Do you think you and I are the same?” Chae Woo-Ra’s insensitive words almost made Woo-Hee lose her patience, but she took a deep breath and calmed herself down.

“I understand how you feel and why you’re grasping at straws, but there’s no reason for me to put up with your tantrums.”

“Hey, it’s too much of you to equate me with straws. Don’t you have any self-respect?”

Woo-Hee sensed something amiss this time around as well, so she stared at Chae Woo-Ra. She couldn’t tell if Chae Woo-Ra said that as a joke or if it was her unique interpretation of a common idiom.

“I’m not talking about actual straws…ah, you know what? It’s fine. Just take care of your family matters, and don’t come to us with unreasonable requests.”

“Do you think I’m doing this because I want to! If I don’t, my mom.…”

Chae Woo-Ra tried to make a rebuttal, but she decided to keep her mouth shut instead. As soon as she pouted, the quick-witted Woo-Hee had a rough idea of why she asked them for help.

“Did your mom tell you to plead with us for help?”

“...”

Even though she didn’t answer the question verbally, Woo-Hee could gather the truth based on how Chae Woo-Ra bit her lips.

“Tell her our answer is ‘no.’ She already used her child like this fourteen years ago. What else does she want? That’s what I want to say to her.”

It was difficult for Woo-Hee to understand the mind of someone who had their daughter request such a thing from her half-sister when they didn’t have a good relationship or any form of sibling love between them.

“Do you think she won’t use her child a second time after using her once?”

“What’s with this honesty?”

“I’ve already been exposed, so I don’t want to continue acting out of character. I’ve cried and screamed and even tried playing the part of a filial daughter for the sake of fulfilling my goal.”

The melancholic ambiance disappeared once Chae Woo-Ra dropped any pretense she’d previously held and removed her proverbial mask. She looked despondent just a while ago, but she currently had a brazen and arrogant look on her face. This sudden change stunned Woo-Hee. For a person to change their attitude so drastically was quite a talent. Indeed, not everyone had what it took to be an actor.

“You’ll do well even as an actress.”

“I’ve heard that several times before, but I don’t want to be an actress because it’s too much work.”

To be precise, she had to give up being an actress because she couldn’t memorize the script, but there was no need for her to elaborate on that.

“Frankly, I don’t like that my mom and dad are getting a divorce, but does it make any sense for me to beg you just because of that?”

In Chae Woo-Ra’s opinion, it didn’t matter if Woo-Hee fulfilled her request. Above anything else, she hated that she was forced into a position where she had to plead with Woo-Hee. If she were Woo-Hee, she would never help them, and she’d simply gloat over their misfortune instead.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t like it either. But why are your parents getting a divorce? Did your father cheat again?”

It was one thing for Chae Woo-Ra to suddenly show up and plead with Woo-Hee to stop her parents’ divorce, but Woo-Hee felt they wouldn’t be getting a divorce out of the blue, so she asked Chae Woo-Ra for an explanation. Almost immediately, Chae Woo-Ra smirked.

“My dad’s never single –– he’s always seeing someone. And also, the person asking for a divorce now is my dad, not my mom.”

“That’s why I’m asking if he’s trying to kick out his wife again to make room for the new woman.”

Chae Woo-Ra gazed at the disgusted look in Woo-Hee’s eyes and calmly responded, “My dad isn’t the type of person who can love someone enough to kick his wife out just because of her.”

Instead, he was someone who didn’t have what it took to make an effort or have the sincerity to hold onto his wife as she divorced him.

Woo-Hee barely had any memories of her father, apart from those pertaining to her childhood. However, unlike Woo-Hee, Chae Woo-Ra had lived with her father for a long time, so her assessment of her father was accurate. In truth, even Chae Woo-Ra didn’t know the exact reason behind their divorce this time around. One day, things in their house just started to break, and her mother kept screaming every day.

“I worked so hard to get here, and now you’re abandoning me! I gave up my youth and dreams because of you, and I’ve done so much for you!”

Her father responded to her mother’s screams in an elegant voice, void of all emotions.

“I took it as begging, but it seems like you've comforted yourself by thinking of them as sacrifices.”

Even though Chae Woo-Ra didn’t like her father and found him difficult, she had always admired him. She envied his elegance, intellect, as well as his natural confidence, and she wanted to model herself after him. Hence, she intentionally imitated him and acted arrogantly; she even tried to mimic his movements.

Yet, the moment she saw her father’s attitude toward her mother and heard the tone he used to speak to her, she realized she could never be like him. She was constantly haunted by an inferiority complex from being an illegitimate child, and even when she put this aside, she learned that she could never be like her father.

There were things she simply couldn’t imitate even if she tried. She didn’t like how her mother obsessed over everything and was constantly temperamental, but she came to understand her a little more that day. If anyone had to deal with a person like her father, they had to act in the same way he did. Unfortunately, her mother couldn’t become like her father either. His natural disposition and arrogance were impossible to recreate and difficult to imitate. Thus, there was no way of resisting a person like that apart from yelling and screaming.

1. ’Auntie’ here is used as a polite term to refer to a middle-aged woman –– not that she is related to Woo-Hee. ☜

2. It’s an old horn used in older vehicles that makes a ‘honk' sound rather than a ‘beep’ sound that modern vehicles make. ☜

3. This is a reference to Chunhyangjeon, one of the most well-known love stories and folk tales. There are film adaptations of it. ☜

4. This conversation doesn’t sound as natural in English, but in Korean, 역지사지 means putting yourself in other people’s shoes, which was the phrase Woo-Hee used. The word 억지 itself could mean force(d), or in this case, 억지를 부렸다 means making an unreasonable demand. Being an entitled airhead, Chae Woo-Ra most likely didn’t understand what 역지사지 meant or had never heard of it. ☜