Chapter 67: Source (1)
Kang Ra-Eun received a call from Han Ga-Ae and headed to a cafe where they decided to meet. Ga-Ae, who had arrived at the cafe first, waved at Ra-Eun.
“Over here, Ra-Eun.”
Ga-Ae was the only customer, probably because the cafe was located in an alleyway. The lack of customers was good for Ra-Eun.
She asked Ga-Ae, who was wearing nothing to hide her face, while taking off her sunglasses, “You should at least wear a mask. I’m sure people would recognize you.”
“It’s okay. Not many people recognize me even when I leave my face uncovered like this.”
Not only was Nefti not a popular girl group, but people recognized Ga-Ae even less since she was simply a stooge member. Hence, Ga-Ae had no need to conceal her face. Not even the cafe manager who was at the counter seemed to recognize her, despite the Nefti song that was playing inside.
Ra-Eun smiled bitterly. She honestly did not know much about the pain of being unknown. She had not been a celebrity in her past life, and she had risen to stardom almost instantly after her debut in her current life thanks to her stunning beauty and figure. She had no idea how Ga-Ae was feeling right now.
“You wanted to tell me something?” Ra-Eun asked.
“Yeah.”
Ra-Eun had an inkling of what Ga-Ae wanted to say. It was probably about...
“I’m going to leave my group,” Ga-Ae stated.
Her expectation was right on the mark. She had actually been told by Rita that Ga-Ae was probably going to leave her group and her agency before Ga-Ae had called her. She had already been spoiled, so it was not a big surprise.
“I see,” Ra-Eun responded calmly.
Ga-Ae had become the surprised one because of Ra-Eun’s calm response.
“Did you know I was going to say that?”
“Somewhat.”
“How?”
“I could tell that you weren’t enjoying your singing career at all whenever I saw you on TV programs. Also, I could see signs of you being ostracized by your group members.”
“Oh... It was that obvious, huh?”
No matter how different a person was on and off camera, signs were bound to show as long as they were human. Quick-witted people were probably aware of the trouble within Nefti like Ra-Eun. The group was like a ticking time bomb; the scandals were bound to blow up sooner or later, so it was probably better for the group to disband sooner before the problem became even bigger than it currently was.
“You made the right choice. Rita sunbae said the same thing, right?” Ra-Eun asked.
“Yeah. Oh, right. I decided to transfer to GNF, the same agency as you...” Ga-Ae slurred the end of her sentence and suddenly said, “Thanks, Ra-Eun.”
“...?”
Ra-Eun had never thought she would receive words of gratitude from Ga-Ae.
“Why me?”
She thought that Ga-Ae was thanking the wrong person, since Rita was the one who had helped her make the final decision to leave her group. Also, she should be thanking the GNF executives instead, who had taken her in to become her second home. However, Ga-Ae knew something that Ra-Eun had not realized.
“I heard you were the one who helped me transfer to GNF.”
Ga-Ae was able to transfer to GNF easily because Ra-Eun had worked hard to appeal to Chief Jung, which she did not tell Ga-Ae on purpose. However, there was no such thing as an everlasting secret. Ga-Ae had found out that Ra-Eun had pulled some strings in the shadows for her, which she was thankful for.
Ra-Eun said with an awkward smile, “It’s nothing, really.”
“It wasn’t nothing to me. But Ra-Eun, how did you know that I was going to leave my agency in advance? Did Rita sunbae tell you?”
“Huh? Uhh... yeah.”
Ra-Eun decided to just get her story straight with Rita’s. She had not just helped, but had actually been the one who set the whole stage for Ga-Ae to transfer to GNF. However, she did not want to let that be revealed since she had no idea what to say if Ga-Ae asked how she knew so much about her.
‘Thank God I could use Rita sunbae to make an excuse.’
She knew asking help from Rita was the right decision.
***
The article of Ga-Ae’s withdrawal from Nefti was published, but it did not become big news as expected. It was probably better for it to be kept low-profile like this.
‘Leaving a group is not a good thing, after all.’
Nefti let Ga-Ae go all too easily because they did not have much expectations for her. However, they would greatly regret it in the future since they had practically handed a golden goose over to someone else for absolutely nothing in return.
‘Well, it's their fault for not recognizing talent.’
They had no one else to blame but their own incompetence for not recognizing someone who would rise to become a top star.
Ra-Eun’s foresight was far superior to anyone since everything that would happen from now on was stored in her brain. Rita, Han Ga-Ae, Je-Woon, et cetera; she was gradually securing solid connections in the entertainment industry.
‘I’m sure I’ll face that son of a bitch Kim Chi-Yeol in some shape or form since he’s in the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.’
Ra-Eun simply had to gnaw at Chi-Yeol little by little after casting a wide net. After she was done with Chi-Yeol, her next target would be Congressman Kim Han-Gyo.
‘The main dish is most delicious when left for last.’
Ra-Eun was gradually collecting pieces of the puzzle that was her revenge inside her head.
She went up the hill that led to her house past Starlight Road.
‘That aside, why is it so damn hot today?’
Ra-Eun was sweating already. She, Seo Yi-Seo, Na Gyu-Rin and Choi Ro-Mi had decided to hold a study gathering at her house later. She had been planning on cleaning up before then, but...
‘It’s way too hot.’
She turned on the fan in the living room as soon as she got home, and then lifted up her uniform skirt. The cool air blew over Ra-Eun’s flawless thighs and calves.
‘Much better.’
This was one of the good points of a skirt in Ra-Eun’s perspective. But of course, it was also something that should never be done in front of others.
Kang Ra-Hyuk, who had taken out an ice cream from the fridge, scowled as he witnessed Ra-Eun cooling herself down.
“A grown lady shouldn’t expose her panties in the living room.”
“Shut up. My friends will be here soon, so make sure you stay quiet in your room. Understood?”
“Your friends? What time are they coming?”
“Yi-Seo will be here first, and the other two in around thirty minutes. They’re gonna be here after they change clothes.”
“Are they eating dinner here?”
“Yup.”
“Delivery?”
“Probably.”
Ra-Eun did not want to cook in such scorching hot weather. There were tons of delicious foods available for delivery, and it was easy to clean up after as well.
‘It should be way easier to order food when smartphones and delivery apps are introduced.’
She could only hope for that day to arrive soon.
***
Gyu-Rin and Ro-Mi arrived after Ra-Eun showered and was in the middle of studying with Yi-Seo in her room.
Ro-Mi asked in surprise as she entered her room, “Ra-Eun, is that your dearest brother?”
Ra-Eun was dumbfounded by Ro-Mi’s choice of words.
“I guess so,” she answered.
“Wow! He’s so handsome!”
Ro-Mi couldn’t keep herself together whenever she saw handsome men or pretty women.
‘I guess he really is handsome if a lookist like Ro-Mi acknowledges it.’
Ra-Eun did not want to acknowledge that Ra-Hyuk was handsome, probably because he was her older brother, or because she had seen all sorts of unsightly sides to him at home.
Gyu-Rin mentioned as she compared Ra-Hyuk, whom she just saw, and Ra-Eun, “Genes sure are amazing. Your father must be super handsome.”
“Not really. I think we take after our mother.”
There were multiple pictures of Ra-Eun’s mother in her room. Her friends were astonished as they looked at pictures of her mother back in Ra-Eun’s childhood years.
“She’s so beautiful.”
Beauty became something that could be modified through the advancement of medical science, but that still did not prevent people from being envious of natural beauties. Korea was not yet very open-minded about plastic surgery, so Ra-Eun felt blessed that she was born with a beautiful face.
Yi-Seo asked Ra-Eun before resuming their study session, “Come to think of it, Ra-Eun, are you not gonna participate in that event?”
“What event?”
“The summer festival sponsored by the government. I heard famous celebrities gather to speak, perform, and other stuff.”
Ra-Eun’s expression changed as soon as she heard that it was sponsored by the government. It was the cultural festival project that Kim Chi-Yeol led. She of course knew about it, but had absolutely no intention of participating even if she received an invitation, because she did not want to see Chi-Yeol.
“I heard the overseer of the event was working really hard for it.”
“Congressman Kim Han-Gyo’s son, right? The person who got married recently.”
“Yeah. People think very highly of him because he holds cultural events like this often. I’ve seen people comment online that he’s one of the few people who actually do good work in the government.”
Ra-Eun could not focus at all as her friends complimented Chi-Yeol.
‘One of the few people who do good work, huh...?’
It was an outrageous statement. Ra-Eun was flooded with anguish. Her stomach started to hurt as she heard that Chi-Yeol’s reputation was rising. She couldn’t stand to see certain individuals do well.
‘Especially when it comes to Kim Han-Gyo and Kim Chi-Yeol. I cannot let it slide.’
She used to just let it slide whenever she heard that Chi-Yeol was doing well for himself since she could just plunge him into hell in one go through her revenge, but she did not feel like it today. It could possibly be because of the stress she was feeling from the scorching hot summer weather, but she felt like raining on Chi-Yeol’s parade.
‘Summer of 2011. What could I use to screw over Kim Chi-Yeol at this time?’
She was staring at the workbook, but her mind was completely elsewhere.
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