Become a Star

On the day when the final results of the bar exam was announced, Chae Woo-Jin’s name was on the list of examinees that had passed. Now that the uncertainty turned into reality, people were curious to know the actor’s future course of action more than ever.

Surprisingly, they didn’t have to wait long before finding out Woo-Jin’s intentions. People were able to find out Woo-Jin’s intentions that very same evening through the broadcast of Life Depicted.

The ending scene from episode one was aired again, but this time with the part which had been previously edited out.

—What do you plan on doing if you pass the final round of the bar exam?

—I will…

Chae Woo-Jin could not readily answer the director’s question. But after a moment of self reflection, he faced the camera with determination and steadily spoke his intentions.

—It was my mother’s long-standing wish that I take the bar exam and become a judicial officer. But that isn’t my wish. As you know, I’ve always wanted to become an actor.

Chae Woo-Jin answered as he scratched his cheek in embarrassment. Although mother and son had different opinions, fortunately there was no conflict between them.

—But to be honest, there was a time when I resolved to give up my dream for a stable job instead. If I hadn’t coincidentally gotten the role in Death Hill, there’s a good chance I would’ve actually quit the entertainment industry.

After he left TM, Woo-Jin once thought that it might be better to settle down realistically than to pursue a dream.

—Back then. I thought that I could live a moderately happy life if I gave up on certain things. This time too, I briefly considered whether I should enter the Judicial Research and Training Institute[1] if I passed the bar exam.

Chae Woo-Jin paused and stared into space, organizing his thoughts.

Woo-Jin always pondered a lot about the future. He had a single destination, but there were many paths he could take to get there. Some time ago, Woo-Jin had even told himself that it wouldn’t hurt to take a break at some point before continuing on.

At one point in time, Woo-Jin even had a fleeting thought that he might gain the public’s attention by passing the bar exam on his first try. Since he was still an unknown actor back then, he wanted to cling onto any form of hope.

Recently, he had seriously considered joining the JRTI if it would help him to fulfill his dream.

It was not uncommon for celebrities to have unexpected jobs and qualifications alongside their careers in the entertainment world. Woo-Jin wondered if anything would change if he became one of them.

Some celebrities paused their careers for a few years to focus on their other jobs. Similarly, Woo-Jin also considered pausing his career as an actor to enter the JRTI, as long as the time he spent there would help him grow.

—But just because a flower has bloomed doesn’t mean that spring has arrived.

All four seasons were beautiful, each with different hues of colors, but spring gave off a truly cozy and happy sensation. There was no need to read between the lines when someone said they wanted to live in a spring full of flowers.

—Speaking of flowers, it reminds me of the path of flowers idiom[2].

Woo-Jin nodded at the director’s words.

—The path of flowers I wish to walk down isn’t located over there[3], so I have no choice but to give up on it.

Chae Woo-Jin’s words were metaphorical, but the determination behind his words was clear.

—Don’t you find it a bit regrettable, though?

Although they didn’t know the results of the bar exam yet, the director asked the question based on the premise that Woo-Jin had passed.

In fact, even if Woo-Jin wasn’t appointed to an office, spending two years to obtain a lawyer’s license seemed worthwhile, even at the expense of taking a break as an actor.

—I assure you that I will never regret my decision. My goal has always been firm and unchanging. But whenever I affirm my determination like this, I always end up admiring my mother.

—Your mother?

—No matter what happened, I just couldn’t let go of my dream. But my mother decided to abandon her own dream in return for my happiness.

The hope in her heart to see her son happy had given birth to the dream to see him successful. But since the wish originated from hope and not ambition, Woo-Jin wasn’t burdened by it and only felt his mother’s love from it.

—No parent can win against their child.

The director commented. But Woo-Jin quickly corrected the statement.

—There’s no winning or losing between family. I simply think of it as my mother understanding and accepting me for who I am. That, or she just gave up on me a long time ago.

Woo-Jin chuckled, saying that the last part may actually be the truth.

Rather than being greedy, Woo-Jin planned on achieving the things he wanted to do one at a time. Woo-Jin wanted to do many things, but there wasn’t enough time for everything. He just couldn’t give up on two years of his life for a single lawyer’s license.

—But if you receive a question about this during your interview… No, if this scene airs on TV, won’t it affect your chances of passing the exam?

The director asked. No one knew if the show would have an influence on Woo-Jin’s results.

But the director indirectly asked Chae Woo-Jin about his intentions while calculating the schedule for the broadcast in his mind. Woo-Jin reacted with indifference when he was asked whether he cared if this scene was aired.

—Since it was once a job I wanted to entrust my dreams to, it’s only natural that I want to do my best and pass the exam. But I will not lie to myself or to anyone else.

Woo-Jin could avoid a tricky situation by saying he hasn’t decided on which career to pursue yet. In fact, his maternal grandfather and those around Woo-Jin had advised him to do so.

But Woo-Jin didn’t want to go that far just to pass the exam. Although no one could say for sure if his words would affect the results, he didn’t want to lie to himself and behave in such an ugly manner.

Maybe it was just bravado and vanity since he had given up on that path already.

Nevertheless, Chae Woo-Jin ended up passing the exam just like he wished. At the end of the newest episode of Life Depicted, there was an interview with Woo-Jin that the crew had hurriedly filmed on the very same day.

—How do you feel now that you’ve passed?

—Pretty good. I’m happy about it.

—Do you really not regret your decision?

It was only natural for the director to ask the question again. Obviously, he had imagined what he would’ve done in Chae Woo-Jin’s place.

Although he was satisfied with his current work, the director would definitely be flustered and probably resign or take a leave of absence to earn a lawyer’s license.

—My mother cried when she heard the news that I passed.

Chae Woo-Jin paused for a moment. Everything that had happened so far flashed through his mind like a slideshow. His mother was crying because she was happy, but also because she was sorry for making her son go through such hardships by studying for the exam despite knowing it would end up being meaningless.

—She was happy but apologized to me and… told me to follow my own path from now on. My mother clearly acknowledged my work as an actor for the first time!

Woo-Jin was far happier about his mother’s recognition than his exam results.

He already knew long ago that his mother supported his career and tried her best to tolerate it. And these days, she even felt affection towards his fans and had seen several times how her son enjoyed the fame.

She had told him to work hard and that she supported him, but it had never cheered Woo-Jin up. Perhaps he had sensed the regrets and lingering feelings remaining deeply inside his mother’s heart.

But finally, his mother had completely relieved the burden and sorrow in Woo-Jin’s heart.

‘Now go down your own path. Don’t look back or worry about us. We won’t look back either. We’ll support you so that your dreams can become reality.’

Needless to say, that was the first time Chae Woo-Jin had smiled so joyfully on the show.

***

The happy Chae Woo-Jin turned into a gloomy Chae Woo-Jin the very next day.

The actor was at a loss for words as he stared at the four hundred photobooks piled up before him.

Their original plan was to print and sell two hundred copies. However, there were more than twice as many copies as initially planned. Woo-Jin coughed for a moment and glared at Hyun-Min.

“You’re going to have to explain yourself.”

“Didn’t we decide to manufacture the photobooks so that there’s a net gain of two thousand won per copy?”

“We did.”

“But while designing, I got greedier and greedier about the quality of the cover and the paper used. So obviously, the materials cost increased. But we’re in a situation where we cannot sell the photobooks at a high price. The printing company is a place I frequent so they went easy on the fees, but we still needed to print four hundred copies to hit our initial estimated gains.”

No matter how blinded he was to get higher grades for the assignment, Hyun-Min’s pride wouldn’t allow him to produce and sell half-baked, low-quality products.

Moreover, his friend's reputation was on the line, so Hyun-Min ended up increasing the quality of the photobooks, which in turn increased the production costs.

“How are we supposed to sell all this?!” Woo-Jin exclaimed

“They’re photobooks of the one and only Chae Woo-Jin! Do you seriously think people won’t buy them?”

“Still, four hundred is too much!”

Woo-Jin started worrying about how they were supposed to sell all the copies by themselves.

“We can also pressure acquaintances into buying them,” Hyun-Min said.

“Who are we going to pressure? We’re being openly filmed for a show, so it’s not like we can lie to the professor or anything.”

“Hey! Those cameras are here because of you so don’t get mad at me. And what’s so bad about forcing people into buying these? The filming crew here could just buy a couple of copies for us. We’re all in this together, aren’t we?”

Hyun-Min clenched his fist with a bright smile while turning to the production crew for Life Depicted. Unfortunately, his fist looked more like a show of intimidation than to inspire unity.

Hyun-Min wondered how many copies he could get rid of by making these people buy some. He then turned to Hwang Yi-Young as a last resort.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” She asked skeptically.

“If we can’t sell them all, please advertise these for us.”

“Me? How?”

“If you leak the information to Woo-Jin’s fancafe, I’m sure selling four hundred copies will be a piece of cake.”

Hwang Yi-Young thought it was a good idea and agreed to Hyun-Min's pragmatic request.

It would be a shame if Woo-Jin’s fans missed this great opportunity to buy their idol’s photobooks.

“How could we use the fans just to get some extra points?!”

But Woo-Jin objected. Although he didn’t mind making a photobook with his own pictures, he couldn’t bother his fans and be a nuisance to them just to get sales.

“You already became a horrible celebrity ever since you agreed to sell your pictures for mere school grades! How much worse can this be?”

Woo-Jin grabbed his chest in pain at Hyun-Min’s comeback. Hwang Yi-Young consoled him, saying that his fans would love buying the photobooks instead of feeling burdened.

“You’re the one who came up with the photobook idea first!” Woo-Jin desperately cried.

“This is why it’s common knowledge that you should find a good partner to come up with a business plan.. Don’t worry too much. We’ll only do that if we don’t sell out this weekend. If you don’t want to get your fans involved, get in the suit.”

Hyun-Min spoke firmly as he handed Woo-Jin the bear mask. Woo-Jin had no choice but to somehow sell all four hundred copies throughout the weekend.

Woo-Jin wasn’t allowed to show his face during the sales, so he had to wear the bear costume and promote the products just like when he sold the soap bars.

In the past, Hyun-Min felt sorry for Woo-Jin whenever the latter had to wear the costume.

But now, no such emotion could be seen in Hyun-Min’s eyes. There was only the will and determination to sell all four hundred photobooks. Otherwise, they would be in the red.

“But on the bright side. If we manage to sell all these, we’ll be getting 400 thousand won each. According to my investigations, that should get us around the top of the class in terms of earnings. Let’s not waste time and only think about our grades!”

Hyun-Min patted his friend on the shoulder and asked Woo-Jin if he didn’t plan on getting a scholarship this time around. The prospect of getting a scholarship greatly inspired Woo-Jin and he finally began showing some enthusiasm. The master knew all too well the methods to manipulate his bear.

“By the way, do the books have an ISBN[4]?”

“Yeah, our club president registered a one-man publishing house. I got it through there. I’ve paid all the proper taxes to make and sell these photobooks, you know.”

There was no reason to go so far for a simple university assignment. However, unlike the soap bars, these photobooks used Woo-Jin’s face and name.

If his anti-fans tried to make a fuss about the photobooks, they would have no excuses. So Hyun-Min received an ISBN through the publishing house to avoid that scenario.

Kang Ho-Soo hadn’t even considered that possibility, so he gave Hyun-Min a thumbs-up and praised him.

“He’s good at everything except for trading stocks.”

Woo-Jin said so in order to praise his friend, but the stock-incompetent’s face grew cold at the actor’s words.

Woo-Jin quickly put on the bear mask to protect himself just in case a fist came flying in his direction. He was very quick-witted when it came to such things.

1. Abbreviated as JRTI. ☜

2. Path of flowers/flower road (꽃길) is an expression that signifies success. So when you say you want someone to walk down a path of flowers, you want them to be successful. It is similar to a red carpet in concept. ☜

3. Over at the legal-judicial industry, in case it wasn’t clear in context. ☜

4. The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a numeric commercial book identifier that is intended to be unique. Publishers purchase ISBNs from an affiliate of the International ISBN Agency. ☜