Angel Smile

She had just woken up from a fitful sleep, and the noisy ringing of her phone was making her even more annoyed.

She glanced at the caller ID.

[Han], the text simply flashed. It was her mother"s parents.

Yeo Ri frowned as she glanced at the time: 8.05 a.m.

Yeo Ri had slept in for another hour after the exhausting day she had. It was not easy for her to fall asleep even with the sleeping pills" help, and because Gun was worried, she hadn"t taken more than what she was prescribed. It was only at around 5 a.m. did she manage to fall asleep, so being woken up merely three hours after was not quite welcoming.

She unplugged her phone from the charger before turning it off in annoyance, refusing to pick up the call. She had been ignoring them for some time; they had previously tried calling her three times the night before, presumably to discuss about lunch... and the adoption.

She was not thrilled to talk about either of the topics, so she pretended that she was busy. It was not a full lie, though, seeing as she had, indeed, plenty of things to do lately.

Yeo Ri left her phone switched off for the entirety of the morning.

Without the distracting piece of technology making noise by her side, she was able to concentrate on her ch.o.r.es properly, completing them at around the same time she would usually be done on any other day.

Feeling satisfied that her efficiency had gone up, Yeo Ri hummed happily as she made breakfast.

There were barely any food left in the house, so she made a simple breakfast of toast, ham, and eggs. They would have to stock up on the groceries later, she thought absentmindedly. Luckily, technology made everything more convenient so all she needed to do was go online and order her groceries, and the store would deliver it to their doorsteps. It saved her the ha.s.sle of going out in public, she thought.

"Oppa is going now," Gun announced, picking up a piece of toast on his way. He was wearing a formal suit with a black tie, looking more handsome with his hair smartly swept back.

"Mm," Yeo Ri nodded. Although Gun had just barely recovered from his sickness, Yeo Ri could not bear to tell him to take another day off. He seemed to have an important presentation for a cla.s.s, and it would apparently contribute a lot to his grades. She could only see him off with a stern "take care of your health," warning. Yeo Ri had also made him bring all the nutritious things that Ha Jun had bought for him to school, in fear that he might start feeling bad again while he was there.

Yeo Ri saw him off at the entrance, and with a worried heart, she kissed his cheek goodbye.

Now alone, Yeo Ri finished up the leftovers of her breakfast before going back to her phone. She barely lasted a few hours before she began feeling the withdrawal symptoms of not using the small and sophisticated gadget.

Switching her phone back on, she was suddenly bombarded with several missed calls and texts.

[Han - 3 missed calls]

[Auntie Soo Yeon - 1 missed call]

[Meddler - 2 missed call]

Ignoring the calls from her mother"s parents, Yeo Ri skipped directly to Mrs. Choi. She had also sent a follow-up text, telling her to call her back as soon as possible.

Instead of calling the woman immediately, Yeo Ri tapped on the messages that Heo Woo Seung—aptly saved as "Meddler" in her contacts list—had sent.

"I heard about what happened. Should I send more people to protect you?" The message said.

"It seems like they were part of a gang. My sources found that they"re taking orders from someone in prison. I"ll try to find out who, but it might take a while," Heo Woo Seung sent, merely five minutes after the first text.

"Please pick up my calls. I"m worried about you."

"Please."

Yeo Ri glanced at the messages briefly before chucking her phone onto her bed. She picked up her towel from the clothes rack, intending to take a shower before dealing with the adults.

After refreshing herself and changing into a fresh set of clothes, Yeo Ri finally returned Mrs. Choi"s call.

"Ah, Yeo Ri!" The woman greeted jovially. Even though her text made it seem as if she wanted to speak to her urgently, the tone she used to speak was rather light and happy.

"Auntie, did something happen? Did you need something from me?" Yeo Ri asked.

"Ah, yeah," the woman paused. The sound of rustling paper could be heard on her end as she leafed through some doc.u.ments.

"It"s nothing much. I was just calling you to see if you were free tomorrow. There"s a gig I was hoping you"d accept."

"A gig?"

"Yes," she chuckled. "An acting gig."

"It"s nothing major; just a small role with very few lines. My husband is looking for a replacement since the actress who was supposed to play the role is currently overseas. Her flight got delayed so she wouldn"t be able to make it on time for the shooting."

"Why me?"

"Since it was just a small role, he said anyone would do. Of course, I recommended you. The character you"ll be playing is a girl who is terminally ill and hospitalised, and I chose you since you"ve had experience being hospitalised for a long period of time," she explained. Yeo Ri could imagine the woman shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly as she spoke. "My husband had no objections. If you"re okay with it, I"ll send the script immediately and you can practice your lines."

Actually, Park Soo Yeon was taking advantage of the opportunity to gauge Yeo Ri"s talent in acting. She had a feeling that the girl was special; even looking at the recent commercial she had partic.i.p.ated in, it was clear that the girl was meant to be idolised and loved by the world. There was just something about her that attracted people. It would be a pity if she simply left the diamond hidden in the rough.

"...Well." Yeo Ri pondered. This was the first time she had a chance to act; just the thought made her feel daunted yet thrilled. It would be a lie to say that her heart did not flutter at the thought.

"Acting, huh...?" She murmured.

She could not help but think about her mother, who had left her family to pursue her dreams. Though, in the end, she left her dreams to pursue a man.

Yeo Ri rubbed her fingers absentmindedly, staring at nothing in particular.

She wondered if she could understand her mother more if she took up Mrs. Choi"s offer. She wanted to know, was it so simple for her mother to leave that world that she loved so much? How did it feel?

After thinking for some time, Yeo Ri finally answered.

"Sure, why not?" She replied, smiling slightly.

Yeo Ri thought of it as a last hurrah. The contract she had with Hope Entertainment was about to expire; she might as well take up the offer since she had the time. When else would she have the chance to do something like this again? Since the fanciful dream was about to end, she might as well take advantage of it and do all she could.

"Great!" Park Soo Yeon"s happy voice transmitted through the phone. "I"ll send you the script for the scene. It"s only one scene, so there"s not really a lot of lines you need to remember."

Several seconds later, Yeo Ri received a notification from her email. Park Soo Yeon had sent her the digital copy of the scenario.

"I"ll pick you up at 7 a.m. tomorrow. Might as well show you around the set while we"re at it, yeah?" Mrs. Choi chuckled happily before she hung up.

Yeo Ri stared at her phone for some time, thinking whether she had made the right choice.