Rebirth: King to Superstar

Waking up the next day and eating a quick bowl of cereal, Joon-won grabbed the bag beside the couch and made his way out. This time he didn't forget to take the huge trash cover he kept aside after cleaning the whole place yesterday out. They needed to throw the trash in the huge bins in the alleyway next to the building.

Closing the door, Joon-won took the huge black trash bag down the stairs and out the building. Before turning to the side and going into the alleyway. He noticed the huge garbage dumpster and threw it inside. Completing the work, he finally patted his hands once and then started walking towards university.

Even though he was a very old man on the inside, he couldn't help but smile at the thought of going to university. He never went to any kind of educational institute in his previous life, as he mostly had to work to fill his stomach daily. But now he could go to a proper university and it was mainly for something he loved, acting.

Following the memories, he stopped in front of a huge gate with students going in from all directions. He could see the enormous sign hanging on top of the gate, 'Arios Drama University'. He slowly recollected the memories about the campus and the way to his class from old Joon-won, before stepping into the campus.

But as he did, he felt a sharp pain from his back, making him hiss while he heard a woman's voice by the side, "Joon-won, why are you walking like this is your first day at the university. Come on, it's time for class. Let's go, quick." urging him.

He finally turned to the side and saw a young girl with a smile on her face. Dark brown, straight hair which flowed until her waist, with big black eyes which looked very cute. Her overall appearance gave out a cheerful and cozy vibe, making people comfortable. Her name was Cheo Jung-hwa.

Luckily he searched up most of the memories about the old Joon-won's university life and could quickly recognize the cheerful girl who slapped his back suddenly. The old Joon-won knew this girl pretty well and were on friendly terms. That was because both of them came from the same town and were also in the same high school. But both never talked to each other until recognizing each other in the university.

Cheo Jung-hwa was the complete opposite of the old Kim Joon-won. After going through the memories, he knew what kind of girl she was and had a good first impression of her. Unlike the old Kim Joon-won, she did not change after coming into the big city and continued to work towards the reason she came to the university and that was to get better at acting.

"Jung-hwa, I was on my way to class. Why hit so hard?" trying to act as closely as the old Joo-won. He did not want to raise any doubts by acting weirdly.

Jung-hwa stopped when she heard him and looked at him up and down, while slowly rubbing her chin as if she was wondering about something very important.

"Something is really weird about you today. I can't seem to put a finger on what that is."

He could only rub the back of his head, feeling worried inside at this woman's crazy instincts, and could only reply, "It's all in your head. Don't think too much about unnecessary stuff. How was your weekend?" changing the subject.

Luckily it was very easy to distract her as she replied while they continued to walk towards their block in the enormous campus," Yeah, the weekend was nice. I was in the dorm the whole day, trying to get some extra sleep and relaxation. What did you do?"

Jung-hwa stayed in the university dorms unlike Joon-won, who took a room outside So that she could save some extra money for her parents. Joon-won could only sigh at the past before replying, "I did little as well. I saw a few movies online, then went to a theatre for a movie as well. It was nice to relax a little. I also practiced for the exam coming this weekend."

Hearing his last sentence, she became a bit shocked as she once again looked up and down before murmuring, "Something is really odd about you today, Joon-won. Do you even practice on the weekend? That is rather really surprising. Even regularly I have to be behind you like a tail to make you practice at least a little."

"Come on, don't be like that. It's the final exams and doesn't the score really matter for the next year's placements? So, of course, I need to practice at least in the final stretch of the year." he shrugged at her suspicion. If he tried to hide it more, it would only make her more suspicious, so being more open was a better route for him to take.

"Well, what you say is true. Based on these results, some people might get shifted to the 'Star Batch' next year. Just imagine, the 'Star Batch' is much better than the one we are in now."

"Transfer?" he felt confused because he couldn't remember much about this so-called transfer.

"Did you not listen to what the teacher said last month when he told us about our final exam? He specifically said that we are going to be strictly evaluated on our performance and if anyone does well, we might get the chance to replace anyone from the star batch. Come on, Joon-won, this is an important matter. You should pay more attention to the classes."

"The Star Batch ha. Looks like you want to get into that batch." he simply stated the obvious.