A Night Soaked With You - Chapter 13
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Beep, beep, beep.
“5,300 won, please.”
“……Haven’t I seen you somewhere before?”
The customer, who had been closely examining Yeong-won’s face, asked her. Yeong-won smiled brightly and made a vague excuse.
“I often get told I have a common face.”
The customer tilted his head, still puzzled, as if he felt he had seen her somewhere, but Yeong-won handed him his items, prompting him to leave reluctantly.
Once he was gone, Yeong-won let out a small sigh and sat down in her chair.
She had started working at the convenience store while looking for a weekend part-time job, but it was uncomfortable having people occasionally recognize her like that.
Checking the time, she noted it was almost time for the night shift employee to arrive.
Yeong-won settled her cash register and wrapped up her tasks. Before long, the night shift worker arrived.
The fresh-faced, cute girl, who was a college freshman, came in with her boyfriend, who had dyed his hair bright yellow.
“Oh, I’m sorry for being late, unni!”
Yeong-won glanced at the clock again. She was ten minutes late.
Since it was a common occurrence, Yeong-won smiled and reassured her that it was okay as she handed over the responsibilities.
Yeong-won was about to go grab her bag when the part-timer’s boyfriend, with his yellow hair, stopped her.
“Hey, you’re a celebrity, right?”
Yeong-won’s steps came to a sudden halt. The part-timer, seemingly curious as well, looked at her with sparkling eyes.
“Uh-huh.”
Yeong-won awkwardly smiled and nodded. The remnants of her past clung to her ankles, unable to let go completely.
If only she could say something like, “Not anymore, that was in the past. I’m not doing that now.” it would have been easier.
However, Yeong-won was still an actress. An unknown actress that people didn’t recognize.
The yellow-haired guy looked at her with eyes full of curiosity, like a monkey at the zoo.
“Wow, you’re a real celebrity! Why are you working in a place like this?”
“Exactly! I thought you were super pretty when I first saw you,”
Seemingly seizing the opportunity, the two began to chatter excitedly with Yeong-won. She felt the weight of their attention but smiled and responded anyway.
At that moment, the yellow-haired guy came up to her with a friendly demeanor, holding out his phone.
“Hey, could you take a picture for me? I want to post it on Insegramu.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t think I can take a picture.”
Yeong-won immediately declined. She didn’t feel embarrassed about working at a convenience store.
Sure, there were moments when she felt a bit small, but she figured that as long as she was confident in herself, it didn’t matter.
What worried her was the possibility that word of her working here might get to the media and affect Director Choi Bong’s film.
An actress struggling to make ends meet as a supporting female lead. It was easy to predict how people would judge the movie.
While people might not care at all, it still nagged at her that there was a slight chance they might.
“Why not?”
The yellow-haired guy frowned, seemingly taken aback by the rejection.
“Just. I didn’t put on any makeup today, so it feels a bit off to take a picture.”
Yeong-won scratched her forehead, trying to decline indirectly. Still, the yellow-haired guy pouted and insisted.
“What about tomorrow? Can you take a picture for me tomorrow?”
As he became more persistent, Yeong-won’s smile stiffened.
The yellow-haired guy had a blunt tone and attitude, as if he was used to having his requests fulfilled.
“I’m not going to take a picture. Sorry.”
As Yeong-won continued to refuse, he grew even more sulky.
“Why not? Are you embarrassed to work here?”
His extremely rude tone startled the part-timer, who pulled on her boyfriend’s arm in surprise.
“Why are you acting like that?!” She tried to intervene, but he shrugged her off and kept pressing Yeong-won.
“Is that the case? If it’s not, then why won’t you take a picture? What’s so hard about taking just one picture?”
Yeong-won felt like it wasn’t worth her time anymore. She bit her lip and headed to the storage room to grab her bag.
“Are you crazy? Why are you talking like that? You scared her!”
“Why did you bring me to meet someone like this, thinking she’s a celebrity? I came all the way here because I listened to you. Does she think she’s some top-tier actress or something? What’s so difficult about taking one picture? I was going to post it on ‘YuuTuBu,’ but that’s out of the question now.”
The yellow-haired guy raised his voice, as if he wanted Yeong-won to hear every word.
“Are you out of your mind?! Was that your goal?”
Yeong-won left the arguing couple behind as she exited the convenience store.
The store was located near a university, and the streets were brightly lit even late at night.
Groups of friends walked by, laughing and enjoying themselves, completely oblivious to Yeong-won as they passed her.
She walked on with a blank expression, her legs moving steadily without even a blink.
It wasn’t until she reached a place where people were almost nonexistent that she came to a sudden stop.
At that moment, the tears she had been holding back began to flow freely.
