- The author wrote it while he was a little out of his mind.
- Even the author doesn't know what he's writing.
- The author doesn't even know why he wrote it.
- It's a bunch of clichés.
- Please read it lightly... It's a mess of a piece of writing with little to no plausibility...
- I intentionally left the part where the heroine's original name appears blank. Readers can just insert their own names and read on...
-TRIGGER WARNING! This story is based on an internet novel popular in the early 2010s, so it may contain scenes reminiscent of school violence.
-TRIGGER WARNING! Bloodshed
How to Survive as an Extra
: One day, I became an extra in a novel.
W. Gpeum
"Hey, Yeonju,"
"huh?"
“Did you… fight with Seokjin?”
Since time immemorial, the female protagonists of online novels have typically displayed various traits of a fraudulent character. However, since it's boring if a person is perfect in every way, writers often create one or two flaws in their perfect female protagonists. For example, money, or another example... personality? In any case, this novel's female protagonist, Kim Yeo-ju, clearly has her share of flaws.
"Oh, hello Yeonhee!"
… Yes, as you can see, Kim Yeo-ju’s flaw is that she is very, very lacking in tact.
Anyway, that's what I wanted to say. If Kim Yeo-joo, who greeted Kwon Yeon-hee, who was glaring at me with such a keen eye that I thought it would be fortunate if I could even keep my wits about me, was asking me questions about my relationship with Kim Seok-jin, then I was worried about how other people would see our relationship. I meant that I was worried that they would say things like, "Even if you fought with your parents' enemy and made up, it wouldn't be this awkward!" Kim Yeo-joo, whose greeting was so badly ignored by Kwon Yeon-hee, opened her eyes wide and looked at me, so I rolled my eyes and eventually gave an unsatisfactory answer.
"We didn't fight."
"…really?"
"really."
"……."
"……."
"……."
“…We’ve reconciled now.”
It was just a little awkward… I swallowed my words and slowly avoided Kim Yeo-ju's gaze. Kim Yeo-ju, who had been staring at me with wide eyes, nodded as if she understood and began chatting with Lee Yu-jin again, and only then was I able to breathe a sigh of relief and look straight in the eye. Somehow, Kim Yeo-ju was giving off the impression that she knew everything, but I'll let it slide just this once, sending goosebumps up my arms.
Let me make some excuses. Ultimately, the excuse I gave to Kim Yeo-ju wasn't a lie. It wasn't a fight; Kim Seok-jin just got angry unilaterally... Isn't that what a fight was? ... No, it wasn't. Anyway, it was more of a verbal argument than a fight, and in the end, Jeon Jung-kook and Park Jimin relayed the words I couldn't bring myself to say to Kim Seok-jin, so he misunderstood and apologized, and I told him it was okay, so it wasn't a lie to say we made up. However-,
“So I…, oh, sorry.”
"are you okay."
"Oh, okay-,"
Kim Seokjin's answer, which was like a cold wind blowing, made me scratch the back of my head awkwardly. Just as human relationships can't be defined solely by the dichotomous relationship of "close" and "not close," it was inevitable that a subtle awkwardness would remain between us, who had gone from "close friends" to "friends who argued and then made up." That was what he meant. Even my mom and I would act awkwardly for two or three days after a huge fight, so what difference would it make between friends? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that an invisible, thin wall had been built. Park Jimin approached me quietly as I let out a soft sigh.
"What was that conversation just now? Are you two still awkward with each other?"
"……."
"Wow-, this is really gross, gross."
"……."
"It's been a week since we fought and you're still here?!,"
Damn, everything that came out of Park Jimin's mouth was so true that I couldn't even refute it. I frowned, listening to Park Jimin's words like "You should make up now" and "You're so old that you're awkward about this kind of thing" in one ear and letting them go out the other. My ears hurt. I thought I was being too harsh and dismissive of the words of a friend who was thinking of me, but I swear, Park Jimin keeps saying things like that because it's funny. Whether Kim Seokjin and I are awkward or not, whether we're best friends like we used to be, he's just busy teasing me and saying those things. Look at him, his lips twitching out of control. You can tell he's holding back laughter. I let out a deep sigh.
“It’s getting colder and colder, and I don’t want to say it a hundred times….”
"Right? Somehow, I thought you guys were even more awkward than before."
"Yeah, I may be shameless, but I'm not brazen."
“Well, I understand what you’re saying… but I guess it’s not that I don’t completely understand why Seokjin Kim acts like that, right?”
"In what way?"
"If you just think about Kwon Yeon-hee's behavior these days, don't you get the answer?"
It was obvious what Park Jimin was talking about without even needing to explain. If I had to elaborate, it would be that Kim Seokjin's greatest fear had become reality: bullying. Speaking of which, the first thing that comes to mind is the scene at a daycare center where Cheolsu, the newbie class member, caught an earthworm and shoved it in front of his eyes. Naturally, that bullying was on a different level than Kwon Yeonhee's. No, they couldn't even be compared. Kwon Yeonhee's bullying went far beyond what could be considered school violence, reaching a level that made one exclaim, "Isn't this a crime?!" It meant it wasn't just simple ostracism or gossip. Of course, that wouldn't have worked.
"At first, I let it slide because I knew your name, OOO, but don't you think that Kwon Yeon-hee has already gone too far to let it slide for that reason?"
"So what, let's deal with it first and think about it later?"
“…That’s one way to say it, isn’t it?”
"Okay, so that's true, but what are you going to do about it? Maybe kidnap him?"
“…Isn’t it okay?”
“I was a fool to believe you guys who were sending a helicopter just because I got lost in the mountains….”
“No, things are different now!”
"Shut up… and think before you speak. Kwon Yeon-hee, what kind of company daughter are you?"
Yeah, I should've realized it from the beginning, when she did something that would be considered a crime in modern times and went unpunished. Kwon Yeon-hee was also a daughter of a fairly well-to-do family in this world. So, that's why she can hold her head up and go to school even after pushing someone off a mountain. Oh, while we're at it, let me list a few of the bullies Kwon Yeon-hee has inflicted on me and the rest of the group. Small things like ripping my gym uniform to shreds (it's a common cliche, so I figured that was to be expected. Park Jimin, who's rich, even bought it back for me...). And, if there's anything that would make you wonder, "Are you crazy?", there was the time she shoved me in a crosswalk. Oh, don't worry! Luckily, I slammed my face into the concrete and almost got run over by a car, but Jeon Jung-kook pulled me out and I was safe. Of course, remembering Kwon Yeon-hee's response to our question about pushing someone afterwards makes my teeth grind.
'I didn't fall, so it's okay, right?'
What a real piece of shit… , no matter how much I think about it, I don’t think there’s anyone I’ve ever known in modern times who has been so sleazy and sloppy. How on earth does Kwon Yeon-hee know me?
"There are more than one or two, and they're getting worse these days. I'm worried something might happen if this continues."
“Uh… I’ve been thinking that I should do something about it, but I can’t think of a good way to do it.”
"So what? Let's just do something first and see. Kidnapping or whatever, he did something to you, and that's it…"
"I agree too-,"
In an instant, my body lurched backwards and was dragged. Park Jimin, who was pushed, also lost his balance and staggered. Water fell with a “whoosh-” sound where Park Jimin and I had been standing. Along with it, a metal bucket made an unpleasant noise, “clank-.” My feet and legs were soaking wet. Unable to completely dodge, a few drops of water splashed onto my legs and feet. A musty smell wafted out. Hmm, did they mix rotten milk with the mop water this time? I raised my head. I saw Jeon Jungkook, who was firmly supporting my body, and above him, the silhouette of a female student leisurely walking away from the windowsill. It was, without a doubt, Kwon Yeonhee.
"It's already been three times since I poured water on your head. Now, isn't it time for you to pounce?"
Jeon Jungkook spoke nonchalantly. I pulled myself out of his embrace and removed my stinking socks. I saw Kim Yeo-joo and Lee Yu-jin, who had been running ahead of us, running towards me in surprise.
Ugh, the smell… . Even a few drops of water gave off a stench so bad it made my nose rot. I crumpled my face and threw my socks in the trash. It seemed I wasn't the only one who'd thrown away socks. Park Jimin also frowned and took off his own. I put my bare feet into my slippers and opened my mouth, wondering if I had any spare stockings left in my bag.
“Well… I’ve never had a life-threatening situation, and nothing has been that dangerous, so I guess I’ll just take my time and think about it from now on.”
"Hey, hey, I understand why Kim Seokjin would react like that. I guess you forgot about almost getting your head smashed at the crosswalk? If it weren't for Jeon Jungkook, Kim Seokjin would have been really pissed when he got hit by a car and got his head smashed."
“The car stopped in surprise, so there was no chance of getting hit…, …Why is Kim Seok-jin so upset?”
“…Are you asking because you don’t know?”
"Oh, I hope you're not dead!"
Kim Yeo-ju and Lee Yu-jin, who had already approached me, began to fuss again. It was an overreaction considering only a few splashes of water, but the stench from those few drops was so intense that I had no choice but to walk side by side with Park Jimin to the faucet. Throughout the short distance, Park Jimin continued to nag, and I ended up bearing the brunt of the swearing.
"It's fortunate that no accident occurred, but isn't it because you keep brushing it off like that that Kim Seokjin is even angrier?"
“…After that incident at the crosswalk, Kim Seokjin became even colder….”
"Why?"
“Surely you think I just let it slide because I thought I was taking my death lightly or something?”
“You who realized it now are really you….”
“I’m going crazy…, I don’t know, what’s the misunderstanding? We can just clear it up now….”
"Now, even Kwon Yeon-hee seems to have gone beyond the point of just letting it go..." I muttered, and Park Jimin looked as if he was overcome with emotion. "That's it," he said, and while he was making such a fuss, the water from the faucet splashed everywhere.
“Go and find out right now…”
"No, that's not it. From now on, I'll just wait with the mindset that I'll just try to get something. For now, if I get something big, then…."
“…What did you mean by what I just said…?”
Whether Park Jimin's eyebrows furrowed or not, that's what I was thinking. If I'm going to do it, I'll do it with certainty. I don't know what kind of resentment Kwon Yeon-hee has toward me to do this, but judging by the fact that she's trying to kill me in the first place, it wasn't something to be taken lightly. So I had to be more thorough and firm in my approach. That's what I thought.
And the day that I broke that thought was just two days later.
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I don't think anyone wants to hear about the school life of similar high school students over and over again, so I'll boldly skip over the two days I mentioned earlier. If anyone's curious, I'll keep it short: B... the male leads are still incredibly popular, Kim Yeo-joo is still oblivious, and I still felt burdened by the excessive attention. If you're curious, you might as well search for "internet novels" online and read them in order of popularity. I guarantee you'll find those novels more interesting than the two days I spent there.
Of course, Kwon Yeon-hee's childish harassment of me continued during those two boring days. But the series of events was so trivial that I found it more irritating than I'd expected. The reason was that my plan, which wasn't really a plan at all, was to gather evidence of Kwon Yeon-hee's actions, which could easily be categorized as "criminals," and then, with Park Ji-min's help, deal with her. I had to gather evidence first, so I could imprison Kwon Yeon-hee in an emergency. Even if Kwon Yeon-hee was the scion of a successful conglomerate, the main characters in this novel were ultimately Kim Yeo-ju and the four male leads. Compared to the four male leads, Kwon Yeon-hee's background, while not insignificant, was far from surpassing them. That's why it was possible. But when I actually started gathering evidence,
"Oh, sorry, it was a mistake-,"
"……."
"Oops! Another mistake!"
Since all I do is throw eraser dung at my head, there's no point in gathering evidence or anything. It's so childish... Anyway, two days passed like that.
It wasn't until the third day that I finally decided to confront Kwon Yeon-hee and have a "conversation." The reason was simple, if simple, and serious, if serious. So, as expected, the beginning of this incident stemmed from Kwon Yeon-hee's foolish behavior. Just like all the other incidents he'd committed, big and small, up until then. The only difference was this:
“…! Kim Yeo-ju!!”
The only thing that Kwon Yeon-hee was after was not me, but Kim Yeo-ju.
There was a dull thud. Kim Yeo-ju's knees buckled and her body plummeted to the floor, seemingly in slow motion. The pieces of the flowerpot that had fallen to the floor shattered with a clanking sound. I raised my head. The flowerpot couldn't have flung itself out the window, so someone must have dropped it. I thought I'd raised my head quickly, but it felt like an eternity before I met eyes with the person looking down, my chin resting on the window. It was slow. Slowly. Park Jimin, who was hurriedly passing me, the speed with which I raised my head, everything. Until my eyes met Kwon Yeon-hee's.
That is, until my eyes met with Kwon Yeon-hee, who was looking down at me with an elegant demeanor, her chin resting on one hand and her jet-black hair fluttering in the wind.
Beside it sat a flowerpot. It was as if it had hit the floor, shattered into pieces and lay scattered. I stared intently at Kwon Yeon-hee, who had placed two spare flowerpots beside her as if nothing had happened. Her eyes met mine, as if she had hurt someone without a shred of guilt. Ah, what should I say? Even when my life hung in the balance, I'd never felt this way. I lowered my gaze from Kwon Yeon-hee to see Kim Yeo-ju collapsed on the floor. Red blood was dripping down Kim Yeo-ju's chin. Drop, drop. Countless circles were drawn on the floor. Kim Tae-hyung embraced her. Her tightly closed eyes wouldn't open. I lifted my head again, watching Kim Tae-hyung run away after embracing her. In the empty classroom, with only white curtains fluttering, there were only two flowerpots lined up side by side.
"…ah…,"
Are you angry? Well, I don't know. If you're angry, who? At Kwon Yeon-hee, who hurt Kim Yeo-ju? Why? Isn't Kim Yeo-ju just... a protagonist in a novel? Surely, until recently, Kim Yeo-ju was just... a bothersome protagonist in a novel to me? Or wasn't she? Could it be that she wasn't?
Park Jimin grabbed my shoulder. "Hey, are you okay?" his voice, asking, seemed distant and unclear. I looked down at the incongruous dark stains on the floor, where green and white blocks intersected, and took a step forward.
"Hey-, no, Kim Yeon-ju! Where are you going!"
Well, I mean, at that time, there was only one thought in my head.
"I have to meet Kwon Yeon-hee."
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If I overlooked one thing, it was that, no matter how things played out, I was still a student at Galaxy High School. And to fulfill my student obligations, I had to turn back to Kwon Yeon-hee the moment the bell rang to start class. Well, even without that, it would have been impossible to talk to Kwon Yeon-hee, who had already left school early and then fled in that short time.
Because my friend was more important than wrapping things up with Kwon Yeon-hee, as soon as school ended, I headed to the hospital where Kim Yeo-ju was admitted, along with Park Jimin and Jeon Jung-kook. Kim Seok-jin, who had arrived earlier, opened the door to the hospital room with a pale face.
"What about the heroine?"
"I just had surgery and I'm sleeping now. Kim Taehyung is watching over me, so I'm sure everything will be fine."
"Let's go in first and take a look at our faces…"
"Before that, I have something to tell you."
Kim Seok-jin spoke as he closed the hospital room door. He pointed to the emergency exit as if telling me to follow him and started walking.
It was the hospital rooftop. A small, lightly decorated rooftop garden where patients could get some fresh air. Kim Seokjin licked his lips as he sat us down on a bench in the corner. He ran a hand over his pale face a few times before finally crouching down in front of the bench. He gestured for us to make room and sit there, but he waved his hand away, covering his face for a moment. Only after a moment did he finally speak.
“The heroine… doesn’t remember getting hit by the flower pot.”
I stared at Kim Seokjin, dumbfounded, wondering what he was talking about. Perhaps that was why his face was so pale and drained of all its color. I felt like I had a rough idea of why. Kim Seokjin continued.
"The same goes for Kim Taehyung. Neither of them know that Kim Yeo-ju collapsed after being hit by a flower pot thrown by Kwon Yeon-hee. Kim Yeo-ju just thinks she collapsed because she wasn't feeling well."
“…Does that make sense?”
"It's possible. Kim Yeo-ju and Kim Tae-hyung aren't possessed like us."
"What happened has now become something that never happened? Even if the novel flows differently, is that even possible?..."
It's been quite some time since the novel's plot deviated from what we knew. Even my becoming Kim Yeo-ju's friend was a case in point. However, acting as if the "plot had been altered in advance" was entirely different from having the "plot of the novel" overlayed on events that had already occurred. I've considered the possibility that the author might be revising the novel, but that was always based on the assumption that the author was writing from outside the novel itself. So, what if we overturned this premise?
Kim Seok-jin added a brief comment about Kim Yeo-ju's condition. He explained that Kim Yeo-ju had collapsed due to anemia, and that she remembered the surgery she'd just had as a minor procedure. When we returned to the hospital room, Kim Tae-hyung, who had the urgent expression he'd had when he'd carried Kim Yeo-ju, who was bleeding from her head, was gone. Only he was there, greeting us casually with a much more relaxed expression. We remained silent as we looked down at Kim Yeo-ju, who was breathing heavily and falling asleep. Kim Yeo-ju had been hit by a flower pot and collapsed. That now existed only in our memories.
I left first, leaving the four of us to observe Kim Yeo-ju's condition a little longer. When Park Jimin asked if I had anything else to do, I offered an excuse: "I'm trying to figure out what to do tomorrow." No one stopped me as I left the hospital room, leaving only a brief greeting. As I rode down the hospital's slow elevator, I pulled out my phone. I opened a message from someone, checked it, then turned it off and put it in my pocket. My pace quickened.
Kwon Yeon-hee
Would you like to meet up and talk?
Come to the downtown park
alone
I was thinking of going to meet Kwon Yeon-hee.
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"Did you get rid of the trash?"
Sitting on the bench in front of the fountain, I saw her smiling brightly, and I couldn't help but frown. "What's so good about smiling?" I thought, feeling like spitting in her leisurely smile. I quickly swallowed the saliva that had gathered in my mouth and asked, "You idiots?"
"Why, your princes. They were so devoted-,"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Hey-, I never thought they'd call a helicopter just because you were missing."
Ah, that incident… Just thinking about the helicopter incident makes me frown. It was hell back then…
"I told you to separate them because I didn't know what they would do to you since they were so mean to you. But it looks like you managed to separate them well."
“…Why did you tell me to come alone? Are you going to push me up the mountain like last time?”
"Huh? What? What if a bunch of people come and harm me for no reason? What makes you think you can all come together?"
"……."
... I felt a little uneasy. Harmful... , ... Could everything you've done to me so far have been harmful? It was hard to control my expression because I was losing my composure. Without bothering to hide my trembling expression, I continued. Oh, right... ,
"Anyway..., ...okay. While we're here, let's ask a question. What are you so dissatisfied with?"
“What are you dissatisfied with?”
“Yeah. What on earth are you complaining about that you throw eraser dung at my head every chance you get….”
And that wasn't all, she tried to pour the water she had washed on the mop, tripped over someone for no reason, ripped a perfectly good gym uniform, and pushed someone on the crosswalk... Even though I tried to ignore it, I wasn't completely free of the irritation I felt about all the things that had happened to me, so all the stories of Kwon Yeon-hee's actions came pouring out of my mouth like a flood. Of course, Kwon Yeon-hee always responded indifferently to my words. If she was the kind of person who would feel guilty about things like this in the first place, she wouldn't have acted like this. I swallowed the words that were about to come out and asked.
"And I wonder how you know my name."
"Your name? Isn't it weird not knowing your classmate's name? Your name is Kim Yeon-ju."
If I hadn't been talking to Kwon Yeon-hee, I would have readily agreed. Of course, classmates know each other's names, so what's so strange about that? But the "name" I was asking about wasn't Kim Yeon-ju, a freshman in Class 3 at Eunhabyeol High School.
"No, OOO."
"……."
"You know? My name,"
OOO. My real name. Look at that face, distorted so horribly, as if possessed by a demon. If you were going to pretend not to know, you should have been shameless and gone all the way. Kwon Yeon-hee, who seemed to lose her composure at the mere mention of my name, simply screamed. "How could I not know you!!" she said, a line that sounded like something a male lead in a drama might say. I couldn't help but look dumbfounded again. Especially when Kwon Yeon-hee blurted out, "If I know you, you should know me too!" like a child throwing a tantrum.
Just by looking at his reaction, it was almost certain that Kwon Yeon-hee knew OOO. The problem, if anything, was that Kwon Yeon-hee didn't exist in my head. But as I said before, no matter how much I thought about it, I'd never known anyone around me who was so arrogant and gullible. At this point, I was purely curious. Who the hell are you? Why on earth do you harbor such ill feelings toward me?
"OOO, how do you not know me!!"
"...Your original name is Kwon Yeon-hee, too? No, there wasn't anyone like that around me."
"There it is!! XX High School!!"
My alma mater? I recalled again. It's true I went to XX High School, but...
"XX High School!! Class 4, Year 1!!"
"…!"
"Number 4 Kwon Yeon-hee! Why don't you know me!"
Oh, right. I think the name of the kid I was close with when I was 17 was Kwon Yeon-hee. I frowned and rolled my eyes as I recalled. Yes, I definitely felt like there was a kid named "Kwon Yeon-hee." But…
“…You’re that Kwon Yeon-hee?”
"Okay!!"
I covered my mouth with my right hand as I watched Kwon Yeon-hee, her face flushed red and her face grunting in front of me. Now I remember. Kwon Yeon-hee, Class 4, Year 1, XX High School. I opened my mouth, recalling the girl's face vividly in my memory.
“…No? Don’t lie.”
"What?!"
They look so different…! I thought.
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