Ep. 2) #1. I Want to Dream
He had wanted to dream. Of himself as an actor, of the sight of countless people watching his performance.
But it was a dream too shameless even for him to consider. Even if he walked the path of a supporting actor known for his acting skills, could he receive love from the public with such an unlikable face? That was an absurd notion.
But his face had changed!
'It's not just that my acne disappeared!'
It wasn't a drastic change as if he'd had plastic surgery, but there was definitely a difference. The bridge of his nose rose slightly higher, and his eyes, which had bulged out grotesquely, had settled back in. His gaze had become deep; his eyes were ones overflowing with handsomeness!
'Even the proportions of my facial features seem different!'
It was definitely his own face, but somehow different. And above all else.
'I'm handsome!'
It wasn't a subjective thought—he was handsome 'objectively.' It wasn't an exaggeration. At this level... he might even be in the top tier among pretty-boy male idols, right?
But why on earth had this happened to him?
Once the intense joy passed, doubts sprang forth.
“……?”
No matter how much he thought about it, this was something incomprehensible by common sense. This was nothing more than luck fallen straight from the heavens.
'Could this be what they call a god?'
He had been an atheist, but he couldn't think of any other plausible reason. Yeonho clasped his hands and prayed to that being whose whereabouts he knew not.
'Mister, thank you. Thank you so much for giving me this fortune.'
* * *
The next day, morning.
Yeonho put on his summer uniform and set off for school.
The spiky hair that always shot toward the sky had been tidied overnight, and his face had become handsome too.
And one more thing! His eyesight had improved! To think the world was this clear without wearing glasses!
With his extreme nearsightedness, wearing glasses had always turned his eyes into narrow slits, but now he didn't need them anymore. Subjectively, he felt his vision had improved to around 0.8.
'Could my eyesight and appearance keep getting better gradually? They said the max level is 9, and my current dazzling bare face is level 7. If my level goes up, then even more...?'
Pleasant imaginings made a hum naturally flow from his lips.
'No. I shouldn't be too greedy. Even this much is more than I deserve.'
Having lived a life without so much as a scrap of luck, he naturally warned himself against greed.
The moment he passed through the school gates, Yeonho could feel his change. Countless gazes glancing at him.
He had received plenty of attention in the past too. So many people had frowned and glared at him. But the attention he was receiving now was not of that sort.
This was a spotlight!
Instinctively realizing this, his always-hunched shoulders straightened on their own. His strides widened, and vitality surged through his whole body.
“Y-you! Are you Doyeonho?”
Ganghun, his best bud, sidled up to him.
“Hun, why do you look like that?”
“The fact that you recognize me means you are Doyeonho, but...”
His gaze moved up and down.
“What the. People change this much just from losing weight?”
At that reaction, Yeonho heaved a sigh of relief internally. Afraid his mother would notice the sudden change in his appearance, he had slept with the blanket covering his face. After waking, he dashed out without running into her.
Yeona was an 8-year-old child, so he could somehow get past her. But deceiving his mother would be as difficult as scoring a perfect 100 in every subject. And deceiving the acquaintances he met at school, too.
But seeing Ganghun's reaction, he seemed to think that Yeonho's looks had naturally improved while losing weight. Relieved that he could use dieting as an excuse for becoming handsome, Yeonho relaxed.
“Hey, but how the hell did you get rid of your acne? Your hair? Did you do something to your hair? Now that I look at it, your eyes seem less bulging too? Ah, did they go back in because you got better?”
Scratching the back of his neck, Yeonho darted his eyes left and right.
“Ah, well, here's what happened. I got rid of the acne by going to a dermatologist. My hair, well, the barber somehow managed it... And the hospital said my thyroid condition is almost cured. They said the eye bulging would heal on its own over time. Seems like it already went back in.”
Considering plausibility and realism, Yeonho worked hard to make excuses.
“Ugh, your skin is like a celebrity's!”
The more excited people get, the louder their voices become; with Ganghun carrying on like this, the surrounding attention poured even more toward Doyeonho.
Helplessly, Yeonho raised his elbow and tapped his friend's arm. Then he spoke in a low voice.
“Talk a little quieter. Everyone's staring.”
“Dude, do you think they wouldn't stare even if I talked quietly? Ah, fuck. It's funny even as I'm saying this. You got crazy handsome right now! Even if you just stood still, girls would stare at you!”
“Calm down.”
“Ah, I don't know! I just wanna curse like crazy! Fuck! You're fucking handsome!”
Ganghun's fussing didn't stop until they reached the classroom. Thanks to that, Yeonho's ears were ringing.
But it wasn't just Hun who was surprised. The students in the same class hurled the exact same questions at him. Even the homeroom teacher, whose eyes met his while taking attendance, froze for a moment and couldn't call the roll properly.
“You... are you Doyeonho?”
* * *
The moment the school schedule ended, Yeonho ran frantically.
'Starting today, I'll practice drama hard!'
He hadn't been able to participate in drama club practice during the vacation under the pretext of dieting. Though he had practiced personally every day, the problem was that he hadn't been able to match timing with the other club members.
Climbing to the third floor of the annex building, his heart pounded for no reason. Calming his heart, which was racing of its own accord, he opened the door to the room at the very end of the hallway.
Creak.
What he saw the moment he entered was a familiar sight. Shoe lockers and lockers lined against one wall. A full-length mirror on the opposite wall.
And a girl sitting on the window frame, reading a script.
Without realizing it, he spaced out.
Her beauty was fatal to the point of making him do that.
Her skin was white, almost pale, and her long straight hair was the epitome of pure innocence. Her distinct facial features were reminiscent of a doll at a glance, yet her own personality and atmosphere breathed life into her.
That atmosphere was an elegance hard to express in words, yet when she slightly raised one corner of her lips like now, she was also innocent.
“Oh? It's been a while, hasn't it?”
Folding the script she was reading and placing it on the windowsill, she crossed her legs, revealing slender limbs.
“It's been a while?”
I Ryeonga, the queen of Daehan High School... or something like that?
She was both a member of this drama club and not.
Because she was already active as a celebrity, she couldn't often participate in drama club activities. She had filmed two dramas as a child actor. And thanks to that fame, she had done commercial shoots, apparently.
Yeonho waved with an awkward smile, just as he had before.
Perhaps because he had grown accustomed to everyone making a huge fuss about how much he'd changed, asking why he'd suddenly become a handsome guy? Seeing that Ryeonga didn't show the slightest flicker of expression upon seeing him felt somewhat strange.
'She's not surprised at all.'
At that moment, she let out a slight “pfft” and showed a cool smile as she got down from the window frame. A subtle scent carried by the wind—there was always such a sweet fragrance coming from her body.
“Were you thinking of quitting the drama club? You didn't show up all vacation.”
“Ah! It's not that I was thinking of quitting. I just wanted to focus on dieting...”
“What?”
Her eyes and mouth widened for a moment.
Then, as if bursting out, she grabbed her stomach and giggled.
If a person is this pretty, even a blank expression is pretty, but when she smiled, she was even prettier.
“You can't focus on dieting if you practice drama?”
“I can't focus on acting if I don't eat chocolate.”
Pfft—she burst into even louder laughter.
“So you distanced yourself from acting just to avoid eating chocolate?”
“You could say that... Since I decided to diet, it's no use if I don't do it properly.”
He had never had a conversation alone with her, just the two of them.
Wanting to talk more, his brain was in overdrive, but his mind simply felt heavy and sluggish, refusing to work properly.
“There's no practice today. Didn't you get a text from Teacher Shin?”
“Huh?”
Hastily, he pulled his phone from his pants pocket.
“Ah, I got a text too. Just saw it. So there's no practice today.”
She swiftly turned around, her long hair swaying. But the problem was that she was gradually approaching his direction while doing so.
For a moment, countless thoughts exploded like fireworks.
'Could it be because my face changed...'
He wondered if she had suddenly developed feelings for him, but his fleeting delusion was soon shattered.
She approached close and sent her signature smile with only one corner of her lips raised, then passed right by him. In other words, she had only come near his body because she was on her way out of the drama club room.
“Bye, Doyeonho.”
With her back turned, Ryeonga waved her hand coolly.
“Uh...”
Since there was nothing much to do staying alone in the empty club room, Yeonho went outside too.
He could see Ryeonga's back as she walked down the hallway. Even her back was like a painting, a child like a statue. So frail she seemed like she would fly away if the wind blew.
“Hmm.”
Yeonho thought.
Could it be that she looks in the mirror every morning and sees such a beautiful face that she doesn't react much even when seeing a handsome face? Or has her eye become discerning from frequently seeing actors with outstanding looks?
Before long, Ryeonga's figure disappeared down the stairs after turning the corner, and Yeonho's gaze, left with nowhere to go, wandered in the air.
'What kind of guy does someone like her even like?'
Such curiosity arose anew.
And one more additional thought.
If she's this pretty, she'll be on another level entirely even as an adult, and a very outstanding guy will stand by her side.
'Could I become such a man too?'
Thinking that, he somehow felt distant.
What was this bitter feeling he couldn't quite name?
To soothe bitterness, spicy food was the best—the snack bar in front of the school suddenly came to mind. Soon, Yeonho's steps actually reached the snack bar.
“Ma'am, one cup of tteokbokki.”
He ordered the moment he opened the door and entered the shop.
But a strange phenomenon occurred. Inside the small shop, all gazes gathered on him at once.