In This Life, I Want an Oscar, Not a Husband - Chapter 97

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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This life, I choose The Oscars over a husband.
Chapter 97

Maeng Hye-seung approached Ha Eun-rae with wide eyes, moving quickly.
“You really came to film the phone scene?”
“Yes.”
Ha Eun-rae whispered softly.
“Wouldn’t it be better if I was here?”
At those words, Maeng Hye-seung’s eyes widened further.
‘Could it be….’
She really came to help me?
Did lead actors ever go this far to look after supporting actors?
I had assumed that my participation in Seo Eun-sul’s drama was entirely thanks to being with the same talent agency as Ha Eun-rae.
So while I was grateful in my heart, I was careful not to show it—saying something like “thanks for casting me” felt awkward….
‘To go this far for me.’
In an industry where actors were too busy fighting for survival, to meet someone like this….
‘A rare creature.’
That was all Maeng Hye-seung thought.
Until her own scene was about to begin.

“Action!”
At the director’s call, Maeng Hye-seung walked down the hallway.
This scene was where Manager Min-young’s secret to Kim Yi-an would be exposed.
The fact that the OST project Kim Yi-an had agreed to participate in belonged to Byun Eun-seok, an actor she absolutely despised.
“Who am I? If it’s that writer’s work, the buzz alone will be incredible. That’s why I convinced Kim Yi-an to do it, you know? The OST is going to turn out beautifully, so don’t worry.”
“Really, Manager Min-young?”
Staff Member 1 looked worried.
And rightfully so.
Kim Yi-an was a stickler for principles when it came to work.
Even for an OST, she was the type to meticulously review everything from the script to the cast.
But Min-young spoke with confidence.
“Of course! Kim Yi-an just melts whenever I say something….”
That’s when her phone rang.
Min-young quickly grabbed her phone and hurried to a corner of the hallway to answer it.
“Yeah~ Kim Yi-an~”
Her tone had completely shifted from confident to obsequious, and I could see the staff members shaking their heads behind her.
PD Kang-ji smiled faintly at the sight.
‘This is entertaining.’
For a newcomer actress, this was passing grade work.
And that was the moment.
Ha Eun-rae, standing behind the camera, delivered her line.
“Cha Min-young.”
Her voice was ice-cold.
The instant I heard that voice, Min-young—no, Maeng Hye-seung—felt her hair stand on end.
She nearly missed her cue—
“…Huh?”
She barely pulled herself together.
To deliver this much emotion in just a phone scene.
In reality, for scenes where only shoulders appear, staff members often substitute for actors, and for newcomers like Maeng Hye-seung, it’s common for co-actors not to deliver their lines at all during dialogue scenes.
Director Jang Hee-ja had even specially warned her: ‘If they even half-heartedly give you something to work with, consider yourself lucky, so keep your wits about you.’
But Ha Eun-rae wasn’t half-hearted at all—she was giving 100%—no, 120% emotional intensity.
If you can’t receive this, you shouldn’t be doing drama, Maeng Hye-seung.
She told herself.
“You knew Byun Eun-seok was in this drama.”
“No, I… that is….”
Her voice cracked with uncertainty.
The carefully prepared acting tone she’d been working on transformed slightly when it met Ha Eun-rae’s performance.
But that actually—
‘felt more natural.’
Maeng Hye-seung felt it too.
I could see the staff members’ shoulders trembling with barely suppressed laughter.
“Ahem, ahem.”
Min-young, as the Manager, cleared her throat to maintain her dignity—
“I’m not doing it.”
“But…!”
At Kim Yi-an’s razor-sharp tone, Min-young abandoned all pretense of composure.
“Do you know how much the penalty clause is?!”
“Do you know how much I make from concerts?”
South Korea’s unrivaled number one female vocalist.
Kim Yi-an knew exactly where she stood.
That single sentence revealed Kim Yi-an’s character.
And in that same moment, I could feel Min-young’s emotions—the result of all the time she’d spent nurturing her.
She wanted to elevate Kim Yi-an further.
To push her toward even greater heights.
That was who Min-young truly was.
Then, alongside that emotion, another surged through me.
I! Am the Manager! Of this company!
“Kim Yi-an! If you break promises like this, your reputation will…!”
“You lied.”
“What?”
“Byun Eun-seok… you didn’t say he was appearing. I’m not doing it. So make note of that.”
In that moment, a subtle sadness seeped through Kim Yi-an’s voice.
Min-young was taken aback by it.
Maeng Hye-seung was startled too.
When we’d read the script, Kim Yi-an was simply angry, but in Ha Eun-rae’s performance, I sensed something entirely different.

Drip.

The call had dropped in the meantime.
Min-young called out to Kim Yi-an urgently.
“Kim Yi-an? Kim Yi-an…?!”
Up to this point, it had all been rehearsed acting.
But at the same time, another emotion welled up inside me.
Remorse.
Because I knew what Byun Eun-seok meant to Kim Yi-an.
So Min-young leaned against the wall with disheveled hair and a sorrowful expression.
“It’s all ruined…”
It was ad-libbed.
Not in the script, yet Min-young’s face brimming with such poignant regret was utterly captivating.
Everyone’s eyes widened at how brilliantly Min-young’s character was portrayed—that sense of reverting to those early days in entertainment whenever meeting Kim Yi-an, as if stepping back from being a company manager to a novice in the industry.
“Cut!”
And naturally, PD Kang-ji’s decision was—
“Okay!”
Okay.
“Wow, Min-young was fantastic! Let’s shoot this from another angle. Get a close-up.”
The moment PD Kang-ji finished speaking, the Assistant Director, who had shown no interest in Maeng Hye-seung before filming, rushed over to her.
To let her monitor the take.
Seeing that, Maeng Hye-seung let out a hollow laugh and looked at Ha Eun-rae.
Ha Eun-rae was beaming at her.
‘Insane…’
For a moment, Maeng Hye-seung could have sworn she saw angel wings materializing behind Ha Eun-rae’s back.
Just as Min-young devoted herself to Kim Yi-an, I wanted to devote myself to Ha Eun-rae like that…!
‘Eun-rae.’
Let’s stay together forever.
She thought this while gazing at Ha Eun-rae’s radiant smile.
Of course—

[Loving Wiki being updated…]
[Would you like to search the updated Wiki for Loving?]

Awards: Asia Content Awards Best Supporting Actress (Maeng Hye-seung)

Trivia: Ha Eun-rae’s aloof acting combined with Maeng Hye-seung’s seasoning performance highlighted the chemistry between Kim Yi-an and Min-young. During her acceptance speech, Maeng Hye-seung mentioned that Ha Eun-rae had greatly helped draw out her performance on set.

Ha Eun-rae was simply smiling as she looked at the Wiki page.

* * *

Eun-Gureum (Oh Ji-young) had been completely immersed in her fandom lately.
‘Our Eun-rae is such a filial daughter…!’
Usually actors have long breaks, and fans say they die of starvation waiting for content, but our Eun-rae-
‘has no break time~’
In fact, there was no shortage of things to obsess over, even without new projects.
The Bellassimo photoshoots kept dropping, The Apartment was breaking independent film records, and every time I woke up, there was new news about Eun-rae.
Recently, Seo Kyung-bin even appeared on the variety show What’s What and spilled plenty of stories about Eun-rae.

【That… uh… The… clos… est….】

Seo Kyung-bin had an unusual character.
I’d noticed it since the GV, but his distinctive way of speaking—always trailing off—was quite hilarious.
An actor who was this introverted.
On What’s What, he sweated so much that the host even brought him tissues.

【We… watch… vol… un… teer… often….】

He also mentioned that our Eun-rae does volunteer work.

【Fellow… actors… she… takes… care… of….】

Even heartwarming stories about our Eun-rae!
And in the midst of all this, Eun-rae had just started a new drama.
Moreover, it was Seo Eun-sul’s drama.
And it was on terrestrial broadcasting!
With terrestrial broadcasting drama, the promotional push would be intense, so a flood of content was coming our way.
It was while Eun-Gureum was basking in that happiness.
Something caught her eye on her SNS timeline.

[I am a staff member at a filming location, and the actress who is popular these days is really niceㅠㅠㅠ I was impressed that I memorized the names of all the staff members from the first day, but there was a new actor filming today? But even though it wasn’t his scene, he came and put it all together ㅠㅠ It was just his voice, but he came 3 hours early;;; Seriously, this is my first time seeing an actor like this.]

And if it was a drama that just started filming recently-

[Isn’t this about HRL the actress?]
[HRL is known for being good to staff anyway]

It was Loving!

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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