Behind Ha-eun, neatly wrapped gift boxes were stacked up.
In front of her, a beautiful birthday cake was placed on a white table.
A few steps away from Ha-eun, Ju Jung-yoon and several other staff members were setting up for Ha-eun's birthday broadcast.
Once they finished adjusting the camera angles, Ju Jung-yoonâs voice finally rang out.
"Donât be too nervous. Just think of it like a video call."
"Ah, okay..."
To be honest, Ha-eun wasnât particularly nervous.
After all, she had been streaming as a VTuber for over half a year.
She didnât think there would be much difference doing a broadcast as the actress Lee Ha-eun instead of Diah.
In fact, this wasnât her first Instagram live broadcast either.
Of course, the unrealistically high viewership of 44,000 still didnât quite sink in.
How many broadcasts would Diah have to do to reach 44,000 viewers?
â...This feels strange.â
As she was caught in this ambiguous feeling, Ju Jung-yoon asked if she was ready to begin the broadcast.
"Ready?"
"Yes."
And just like that, the broadcast started.
As Ha-eunâs image appeared on the vertical screen, the chat speed surged dramatically.
â...I canât read this.â
The chat was scrolling so fast that Ha-eunâs eyes were spinning.
It wasnât just in Korean; English, Chinese, and Japanese were mixed in, confirming that she wasnât seeing things.
For a brief moment, she was flustered.
After all, her previous Instagram live broadcasts werenât like this.
â...Whatâs so different about a birthday stream?â
Looking back, her previous Instagram live streams had been spontaneous and unannounced.
But this birthday stream was an official broadcast with a prior announcement from the agency.
This was bound to be different from the casual streams she did on her own time.
In any case, she had to focus on the broadcast now.
"Hello, this is Lee Ha-eun."
She waved lightly at the camera and greeted the viewers beyond the screen.
Almost immediately, she was met with reactions that felt somewhat different from Diahâs broadcasts.
Hello
Wow
wow
Love you, unnie ðð
Ohhhhh
hi
Aww, so cuteã ã ã
As she had felt during her first Instagram live stream, the vibe in the Instagram live chat was certainly different from Diahâs broadcasts.
While Diahâs broadcasts felt more like a conversation with friends, the Instagram live stream had the atmosphere of a fan meeting.
"Oh, the cake? A fan ordered it custom-made for me. Look, my initials are even on it."
Oh
The photo cake turned out really nice
Happy Birthday, Ha-eun!!!
Unnie, youâre beautiful
Birthday??
The chat was mostly filled with exclamations of admiration, and the atmosphere remained unchanged.
Even when Ha-eun placed the number-shaped candles on the cake and lit them, the chat was filled with comments from fans.
However, when Ha-eun asked them to sing Happy Birthday with her, the chat became completely filled with the lyrics of the song.
Right after Ha-eun blew out the candles, the chat exploded with clapping emojis and "Clap clap clap clap."
"Now Iâm really 19. Time flies so fast."
Then next year, youâll be an adult, haha
What did you wish for when you blew out the candles?
You look cute in that outfit
Unnie, you look so beautiful today, whatâs going on?
How long will the live stream go on today??
Afterward, Ha-eun spent some time chatting with the viewers.
The chat speed was still incredibly fast, but Ju Jung-yoon and the other staff members pointed out questions that Ha-eun should answer.
"Someoneâs asking who wished you a happy 19th birthday first among your friends."
"Hm, hold on a second."
She quickly pulled out her phone.
She scrolled through the messages from her friends and found the first birthday wish, then spoke again.
[Min Da-yeon] - Happy Birthday
[Min Da-yeon] - Min Da-yeon sent a gift and message.
[Min Da-yeon] - (image of an expensive gift coupon)
"Da-yeon wished me first. Then it was Director Kwon Jae-hyeop. The third was a friend from school."
As expected, best friend
What did you put on your lips?
Is Da-yeon referring to Min Da-yeon?
Oh, itâs Ha-eunâs birthday today!!!
Ha-eun continued answering the questions provided by Ju Jung-yoon and the staff, responding earnestly.
When she received the signal that it was time to move on, she slowly lowered her hand.
She reached for the white cake knife.
After a moment, Ha-eun carefully cut her birthday cake, then took a small bite to savor it.
"Mmm... Itâs delicious. How did they know exactly what I like?"
She moved the knife again and cut another piece of cake.
The piece of cake was raised in front of the camera.
"Itâs so moist inside. The whipped cream on the outside is really sweet too."
I want some cake tooã ã ã
Now you look like an eating YouTuber, haha
I'm a big fan of you ðððð
Thereâs whipped cream on your upper lip
Shortly after, it was time for a capture.
One hand holding the cake, the other making a heart with her fingers, Ha-eun paused without saying a word.
"Got it⦠Oh, you want me to do a different pose?"
After doing two or three different poses as requested by the viewers, the capture time was finally over.
Only then did Ha-eun lift her phone to show the many gift boxes behind her on the broadcast screen.
"You really sent so many presents. They even wrapped them beautifully, so it feels a shame to open them."
She spent some time looking at the various gift boxes of different sizes and shapes, expressing her thanks to her fans.
As the time to end the broadcast drew near, she returned the phone to its original position.
After the farewell, Ha-eun said,
"Thank you for celebrating my 19th birthday. See you next time~."
With that, beep.
Ha-eunâs finger slowly pressed the Instagram live broadcastâs end button.
Ju Jung-yoonâs surprised voice was heard immediately after.
"Ha-eun, you did such a great job with the broadcast."
"You could have done it on your own."
Ha-eun gave a shy smile in response to Ju Jung-yoonâs compliment on how skillfully she had hosted the broadcast.
After all, she had been doing solo broadcasts for over half a year now.
Of course, she had no intention of telling the truth.
That was why she silently helped Ju Jung-yoon gather her birthday presents.
As expected, as predicted before the broadcast,
It was impossible to carry all of Ha-eunâs birthday presents at once.
So, the presents that couldnât fit in Ju Jung-yoonâs van were saved for later.
They were then transported to Ha-eunâs room after heading to her house.
However, Ha-eunâs schedule wasnât over yet.
In a few hours, she had to board Ju Jung-yoonâs van again for the filming of The Sunshine.
Time passed, and as usual, Ha-eun changed into her beautiful hanbok, waiting.
-Knock knock.
A knock echoed from beyond Ha-eunâs waiting room.
The person who entered was actor Ba Jin-hyeok, who played the supporting role of "Hwang Tae-seong" in The Sunshine.
"Ha-eun, could you follow me for a moment?"
Ha-eun gave a puzzled look at Ba Jin-hyeokâs sudden request, but since there was no reason to refuse, she followed him out of the waiting room.
After walking side by side with Ba Jin-hyeok for about five minutes,
"Ha-eun, weâve arrived~!"
They arrived at a familiar set where a few familiar faces were gathered.
Someone walked out from a few steps away.
"Happy birthday to you~. Happy birthday to you~."
The unexpected singing voice came from the writer of The Sunshine, who was in charge of Ha-eunâs character.
A round of rhythmic applause followed.
All the staff gathered around were celebrating Ha-eunâs birthday.
Even Ba Jin-hyeok, who had brought Ha-eun here, was celebrating her birthday.
"Now, blow out the candle before the wind blows, Ha-eun. Oh, donât forget to make a wish."
As Ba Jin-hyeok said, Ha-eun blew out the candle again, and the area was filled with applause.
A quiet smile appeared on Ha-eunâs face, which had been there since the beginning.
"Everyone... thank you."
She didnât mention the birthday party sheâd already had earlier in the morning.
After all, there was no rule that she could only have one birthday party.
So, Ha-eunâs surprise birthday party, which would later be featured in The Sunshineâs making film, ended smoothly without any issues.
Not long after, the filming of The Sunshine began.
"Alright, letâs begin. â¦Action!"
The scene to be filmed today was the reunion between Ha-eunâs character, Kim Jung-hyun, and her old friend, Hwang Tae-seong.
The reunion took place less than a week after Kim Jung-hyun had left to help the righteous army at the request of Park Joo-ho.@@novelbin@@
Upon hearing that he was recovering, I hurried over. Are you feeling better?
However, Hwang Tae-seong wasnât just Kim Jung-hyunâs old friend; he was also her betrothed.
So, meeting him after several years, emotions were naturally mixed.
But ultimately, happy memories from childhood resurfaced.
Long time no see.
With a gentle smile, they exchanged a steady gaze.
Underneath the soft expression directed at Hwang Tae-seong, there was a sense of joy.
I was worried because I hadnât heard from you, but Iâm relieved to see youâre alright.
For a brief moment, Ba Jin-hyeok was at a loss for words after hearing Ha-eunâs calm voice.
It was a side of Ha-eun that he wasnât used to seeing.
Itâs still cold outside, so letâs talk inside, shall we?
As Ha-eun turned away from Ba Jin-hyeok and started walking, a deep, indescribable aura radiated from her.
Even though the scene they were filming was a simple everyday moment, the intensity of the emotions wasnât light.
The friendship between Kim Jung-hyun and Hwang Tae-seong was palpable.
At the same time, there was a vague affection directed toward someone other than Hwang Tae-seong.
Youâve changed a lot in the time Iâve been away.
Hwang Tae-seongâs words were full of meaning.
He had cherished Kim Jung-hyun since childhood, and now, his feelings were stronger than he had anticipated.
It felt like the depth of his emotions had suddenly intensified.
Everything felt different.
At least, today, it certainly felt different.
Why are you standing still? Your feet havenât frozen, have they?
At that moment, Kim Jung-hyun flashed a small smile toward Hwang Tae-seong.
Yet, the intense aura surrounding her made it hard to distinguish between acting and reality.
However, Ha-eun didnât know that this unexpected change started with her surprise birthday party.
At this moment, Ha-eun was simply enjoying herself.
What Ha-eun herself didnât know was that her acting had begun to reflect Diahâs emotional lines.