‘Still, I guess they keep filming the show somehow.’
Well, wasting that face was practically a loss for all humanity. Even if the acting was terrible……
That damn acting. She bit her lip tightly without even realizing it.
‘Why didn’t you just get better at acting, Chae Min? Then I wouldn’t have had to quit being a fan….’
No, no. Even before she started acting, Yoo Chae Min had been getting constant hate.
Just for being good-looking enough, she drew intense jealousy from the malicious personal fans of the other members.
Usually, fandoms try to keep those toxic personal fans — the so-called “malicious fans” — in check, at least on the surface.
But “Pump Up,” the flopped group, was so small that their fandom couldn’t even cleanse itself.
‘The named malicious fans kept acting up so much that they spread hate against the members like breathing, and the fandom atmosphere totally tanked.’
Unfortunately, Yoo Chae Min was the main target of those named malicious fans’ antics.
They subtly tore her down.
“A flower without fragrance,” “Just a face,” “Lacking in singing and dancing,” “A useless member who wouldn’t have debuted if it weren’t for her looks.”
Even so, she held on somehow, clutching Yoo Chae Min as her ultimate bias.
If only Yoo Chae Min hadn’t received that infamous criticism for her atrocious acting after starting to act, she might still be fangirling to this day.
‘But she had to go into acting.’
She vaguely remembered that Yoo Chae Min was actually pretty good at songwriting — maybe it would have been different if she had pursued that.
She knew well enough that it was inevitable.
In idol groups, it’s natural and common for the handsome members to try acting, no matter which agency they’re from.
But once Yoo Chae Min was branded as a terrible actor, the fandom openly started criticizing her.
Fans were disappointed, said they lost interest after seeing her act, and disguised their position with seemingly reasonable excuses.
When even the fans started voicing such complaints, external criticism grew even harsher, saying “Even her supporters have turned their backs because of her acting.”
The general public, who barely knew Yoo Chae Min, took those stories as truth, and so the image of actor Yoo Chae Min was firmly cemented.
‘She went through a lot back then…’
She still vividly remembered crying after fighting with trolls in the middle of the night.
But since she’d quit being a fan due to how exhausting it was, there was no point in saying more.
After the brief memory, the woman shook her head. It was all in the past anyway.
Since quitting the fandom, she’d been doing fairly well. She’d luckily succeeded in her job search and was living what they call a “godly life.”
No need to waste emotions over someone who didn’t even know she existed. How nice that was.
‘Still, the kid was really kind.’
At least, Yoo Chae Min in those memories was.
Some clueless people spread rumors saying Yoo Chae Min was rude or looked down on other members just because of her face.
Well, claiming to know a celebrity’s personality was laughable in itself.
Still, the woman’s gaze stayed fixed on the screen.
“…….”
‘Has her acting… improved?’
She let out a bitter laugh and rubbed her eyes at the sudden thought. She couldn’t believe it even herself.
Maybe the alcohol from last night’s company dinner hadn’t fully worn off.
Even back when she was a fan, Yoo Chae Min’s acting was so pitiful that no one could say she was good even as an empty compliment.
Unfortunately, Yoo Chae Min really lacked talent in acting.
‘No, but honestly… it’s kind of… okay?’
Is this the famous power of editing? No, that can’t be it. Her previous dramas hadn’t looked like this.
No matter how much they spliced scenes, her terrible acting was obvious even in the short teasers — she was called the “transparent glass bead.”
The VCR had already switched over to the teaser for the next drama.
The woman’s eyes stayed glued to the TV, but her mind kept replaying Yoo Chae Min’s scenes from a moment ago.
She tilted her head, let out a soft “hmm,” then finally grabbed her phone.
After hesitating several times, she logged onto an online community for the first time in ages.
The drama tab was lively with discussions about the upcoming awards ceremony, and unsurprisingly, the posts she expected were there.
[ original fan, damn this is depressing]
I saw the teaser video by chance, and
it’s just so confusing lol
The cinematography’s great, the vibe’s great,
even the rookie male lead whose first drama this is looks okay, but
why
why
why!!!
Why does the male lead have to be a terrible actor!!! Seriously!!!
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh
This is so, so depressing, honestly
- So the casting wasn’t changed and filming is already done? Poor everyone except that one person lol
└ Isn’t it the same? They say she was cast because she got paid
└ Damn, I don’t know about other stuff but let’s not listen to the stupid rumors these days. Every time something happens, it’s always those rumors
└ I don’t know about those rumors but her agency isn’t like that… nope, they aren’t
└ It’s because of those rumors that she keeps getting roles. Every time there’s casting news about her, those stories come up lol
└ Rumors or not, it’s just that 20-30-something male leads with looks like that don’t sell ^^
└ The casting kept falling through until it ended up with her. And she took it without shame.
- Wow, still no improvement in acting. She’s really something. No wonder she’s called the transparent glass bead?
└ Transparent glass bead lol
└ I wish she’d just retire already. Stop with the ridiculous greed and live off modeling. Why does she insist on acting?
└ She’s shameless;; if it were me, getting hated this much I’d either train hard or just quit thinking I’m untalented;; doesn’t seem like she gets paid much anyway
└ Nope, she’s apparently revealing a lot of money and actually getting paid well
- Look at that fierce gaze. As time goes on, it’s showing in her face lol. You can’t hide your personality, huh?
└ Yep, she’s got greed all over her.
‘That figures.’
The post was filled with vicious slander and insults aimed at Yoo Chae Min. No one defended or sided with her.
The handful of remaining fans had probably either left from exhaustion or were too afraid to speak up.
Being a fan of a celebrity who can’t do their main job was like that.
‘But these idiots are still here, spreading rumors.’
Having been a fan before, she could recognize certain patterns. Like unconfirmed stories about appearance fees, for example.
- Heard through the grapevine that the actor playing Lee Hyuk is a newbie. Yoo Chae Min supposedly threw a huge tantrum acting like a senior, so they didn’t get along and the filming atmosphere was a mess.
Things like that.
‘You actually believe this? Really?’
It was absurd, but the replies were nothing but “I expected this” or “I’m surprised.”
There was no critical comment that usually comes with such “hearsay” rumors. Apparently, no one felt the need.
Yoo Chae Min was famous for bad acting anyway, so what did it matter if one more reason was added for hating her?
From the public’s perspective, it was just another little thing to chew on for fun.
Honestly, such rumors wouldn’t surface unless someone deliberately spread them.
She sighed quietly at the malice she hadn’t faced in a long time and furrowed her brow as she scrolled down.
Even though she knew it wouldn’t bring the reaction she wanted.
‘Is it habit, or just stubbornness?’
- Hey, but if you mute the sound, the visuals actually look decent? The video quality is nice too, lol
└ 2222 seriously lol They say Yoo Chae Min’s bad acting can’t be covered and that’s why she’s the transparent glass bead, but she doesn’t look bad? Though yeah, hearing the lines does kinda ruin it… lol
└ Original fan here, gotta admit the visuals are solid. Probably the best cast among webtoon adaptations I’ve seen so far.
- Guys, is it just my eyes? Why does it seem better than I expected?
└ Me too……
└ 3333333
└ Haha I’m not the only one! I was surprised too, didn’t expect it to be this decent lol
└ 4444 Personally, it’s my first time seeing Yoo Chae Min’s acting, and it’s not as bad as people say?
Her eyes widened as she skimmed through the comments half-closed.
‘I’m not the only one who feels this way?’
Swear to God, this was the first time she’d seen such reactions to Yoo Chae Min’s acting.
She always heard it was the worst, or “bad as expected,” but this was different……
‘Is the director a god of editing? Or do they fix acting with post-production these days?’
She definitely needed to watch it again properly.
With a determined expression, she searched for the drama teaser on “Mitube.”
She ignored the faintly fluttering feeling in her chest, unsure if it was anticipation or excitement.
After finishing the drama shoot, the school uniform she put on later felt a bit tight.
It was the winter uniform she wore during filming, kept carefully, so the size hadn’t changed.
‘The muscles have definitely grown.’
She had started some home training around the end of filming the movie. She wasn’t aiming to bulk up, but she was concerned about Yoo Chae Min’s body being too skinny.
So far, she’d only played fragile-looking roles, so it hadn’t mattered, but staying like that would limit her image too much.
Of course, she was only training enough to avoid it showing too much. She also got tired more easily than expected, which was annoying.
“Oh? Chae Min, you’ve got some muscles now?”
As expected, the stylist immediately noticed the change. She smiled shyly and nodded lightly.
“It looks much better. You looked good when you had more muscle, but you had to lose it quickly because the manager said something.”
‘…Oh?’
Yoo Chae Min hadn’t done nothing after all. The manager hadn’t just done one thing either.
“Chae Min’s looks wouldn’t suffer from muscle, not at all. They really don’t know anything.”
She muttered quietly while checking her makeup carefully.
“Perfect again today! Your photos will come out great.”
After thanking the proud stylist, she sat down on the waiting room sofa.
Today was the press conference for and a list of pre-submitted questions lay on the table.
“Hyung!”
“Chae Min oppa!”
Before she could even flip through the paper, the waiting room door burst open.
Lee Choi and Seo Sang Woo appeared, also dressed in winter uniforms like her.
Lee Choi had cut her long hair into a straight, blunt bob, and Seo Sang Woo dyed his previously black hair a light brown.
“You’re here?”
“Yep! You came early again today, hyung?”
“I’m just diligent, seriously.”
They seemed to have come together again today……. She swallowed the words that didn’t need saying and greeted them with a smile.
“Hyung, hyung. You wrapped up filming the movie well, right? I really regret not going to support you at least once.”
“Hmph, just support? That seemed to be more trouble than the movie itself……”
“Lee Choi, can you be quiet?”
As usual, the two were already bickering over her.