Personality

 

And the cameras will slow pan across my face and I will try to think of something cool to say
— The persona.

If there's one thing Kyungwon knows, it's how to put on a persona. Charming and cheerful, she has practice in pretending to be someone she's not. Mostly, she's used that gift to adapt to her surroundings. To fit in enough that no one questions what she's actually like - keeping who she is close to her chest has been her main goal all her life. The vulnerability of someone knowing her isn't something she's allowed herself in a long time. More recently, her talent for charmign adaptablitiy has been used to get people to reveal information to her, that they might have otherwise kept to themselves.

Along with charm, a sweet sort of innocence is a pillar of her idol persona. Slightly ditzy, Kyungwon portrays someone, who is well-suited to the kpop world: kind, funny and unassuming. Enough stage presence to earn a couple of fancams, fun enough to geat an average amount of screentime during variety shows. Too sweet and silly to be a threat or to understand the more scandalous aspects that might be going on behind the scenes.

Her persona is very much the average kpop idol. Nice, beautiful, a good role model, entertaining. Maybe she's a little on the quiet and thoughtful side, maybe a little on the analytical side, but she know how to let loose when she needs to. Cameras like her well enough, group members get along with her well enough.

The main unusual thing about her idol persona is, that it doesn't come off when the cameras stop rolling.

 

We'll be as we are when all those fools who doubt us fade away
— Behind the mask.

(+) calculating, observant, smart, assertive, adaptable, curious

... but you were always gold to me
— What she doesn't know.

History

 

Kyungwon grew up in a cramped apartment and third-hand clothes. By age 10, she knew the basics of how to paint over water damage and in elementary school, she practiced her numbers by finding the cheapest items while grocery shopping. She was raised to make due with what she could afford, but she was raised happily. Her parents were careful to spend time with her and to help her succeed in school as much as they could. And although her parents tried to hide it, she noticed that they seemed to feel some level of guilt and fear, worrying that she would be bullied for her families financial status someday.
With that in mind, Kyungwon was determined to be friends with everyone and to do well. So she spent most of her elementary school years studying and watching the people around her. She had a few friends and that number only grew as she learned how to adapt and blend in. In her mind, as long as she behaved in ways the other children would tolerate, maybe even like, she would be okay - poor or not.

And that worked for a while. Entering high school she still had a couple friends in her class, others were new people. Studying with fervor, Kyungwon did very well academically and had a group of friends that at least tolerated her presence. She was expected to adhere to the rules of the friendgroup and although she was occasionally made fun of for her financial status and other things, it wasn't half as bad, as it could have been. Kyungwon had made sure she was inoffensively in the background of her group, there but not noticable enough to be a target. Less lucky was another girl, who was from a similar background as Kyungwon, but either hadn't been able to adapt as well or hadn't been as ready to compromise her personality for the sake of fitting in. As a result, the girl was completely outcast, though Kyungwon didn't shun her quite as much as she was supposed to. Though she also never found herself brave enough to actually stand alongside the outcast publically, for fear of suffering the same fate.

One day, they both left school a bit late, having taken a little longer on homework. Because no one was around, they walked together. As they stepped out of the building, they both noticed something. The boyfriend of one of Kyungwon's more popular friends was making out with a stranger. Kyungwon remembers sharing a confused look with the outcast, both too shocked to really react. Figuring that it was none of her business, the outcast went home, Kyungwon lingering for a moment longer, before leaving as well.
 

Was she supposed to tell her friend? It would upset her to hear, but it was better in the long run, right? On the other hand, she could end up kicked out of her social circle for spreading hurtful lies, if she wasn't believed or if her friend would be ashamed to be cheated on and would rather keep up appearances with her boyfriend. The whole situation felt like a social minefield and for all her practice with those, Kyungwon felt out of her depth. So she went to the one person whe also knew about the whole situation: she asked the outcast, what she should do. If your friend, who you mostly follow around to not be bullied is cheated on, do you tell them?

Turns out, that was never going to be Kyungwon's problem either way. She never lasted long enough to find out. For all that she had been careful to be the perfect mixture of outgoing and wallflower, the perfect combination of popular-adjacent and non-threatening, this was the moment she slipped up. In her confusion about the cheating situation, she forgot to make sure that her and the outcast were really alone, when they talked. She was seen associating with them publically - and for a longer conversation at that. Before she knew it, Kyungwon was just as shunned.

So she figured, that had answered the main question, that had been on her mind. Her final hail mary would be to tell her friend about the cheating - if everything went well, she'd be accepted back into the group, her social faux-pas forgiven, considering the circumstances. Unfortunately, she wasn't believed. Her friend shut her down, saying she should stop spreading rumors in order to get her old position back.

In the following weeks, Kyungwon experienced the full force of bullying and shunning that she'd sucessfully avoided so far. Maybe it would have hurt less, if she hadn't spent years trying to avoid this very thing, holding back her own needs and personality in the process. Instead, all her efforts had been in vain. And it wasn't even her fault. She had only been unfortunate enough to be the witness to someone else's -up. So in her desperation, she did the first thing that came to mind. She stalked her friend's boyfriend until she saw him make out with the stranger once again. Snapped a few pictures. Now she had proof.

And with that proof, she did... nothing. The descision didn't come easily, but it did come quickly. First of all, the fact that she owned those pictures, was probably  pretty illegal. Secondly, by the time she had the pictures, it felt like it had been an insane amount of effort to maybe repair a friendship that she hadn't actually been that emotionally attatched to. And even so, would she even be accepted back? Since that group relied strongly on their image, would her old friend just view it as an attempt to humiliate her, rather than an effort to prove a point?
 

The last few years of school remained a slog of day-in-day-out bullying and studying. Kyungwon spent the time distancing herself from the people she used to call friends and - probably less healthy - collecting blackmail material on them. Sneaking after people and taking pictures of their darker moments soon became routine. What exactly she was going to do with all of those photos and all that information, wasn't exactly clear to Kyungwon either. She had just grown paranoid that she might need to defend herself against enemies so much stronger than her someday - proof would be all she had.

As their daughter grew bitter, jaded and slightly obsessed with her own misfortune, her parents didn't respond in ways she would have needed. Instead of ever really asking her what was wrong, or prompting her to talk about it, the subject was ignored. Maybe they were mostly mistakenly convinced that their poverty status had finally caused Kyungwon significant problems and weren't comfortable having a conversation about that. Maybe they just couldn't quite stomach difficult topics like this one would surely be. Either way, conversations were kept light and although they were comfortable distraction from all that was going wrong in her life, Kyungwon would always be disapointed, that her parents weren't more directly suppostive when she was going through a hard time. As much as she loved them, their relationship had suffered and Kyungwon had grown to see her own parents as people she liked and enjoyed spending time with, but not people she could or wanted to confide in or turn to.

Unfortunately, all this resentment and struggle reflected in her grades. Academically, she was sinking and although she never fell far beyond average, dreams of making it into fancy universities were all but dashed by the time graduation rolled around. No longer believing in herself and angry at the world, Kyungwon all but gave up on the idea of making something highly respected and elegant out of herself and set out on her own path.

No longer feeling like she belonged with her parents, Kyungwon moved out after graduation. Found a cheap apartment somewhere in the outskirts of Seoul, water stains along two walls in the kitchen and always dusty stairways. Walls thin enough, that - at the best of times - she coud harmonize with her neighbor practicing the guitar from two rooms over. Doors that could be opened with the twist of a credit card unless they were double-locked. Not that Kyungwon could afford anything worth stealing.

Even considering the fact, that she had spent the last few years of school shunned, she had a shocking number of zero friends left. Even the outcast, with whom she had struck up an uncomfortable alliance (always overshadowed by the fact, that Kyungwon had publically stood by their bullying when it benefited her), had moved on. She had gone to university, made friends that actually cared for her even with other options, and ultimately Kyungwon only reminded her of the worst times she had had. And so, Kyungwon, freshly 18 and emancipated, had no one.

Of course, she had to do something. Humans can't survive on air and regret and so Kyungwon buckled down and got to work. Invested in a medium-quality camera and did the one thing she had become good at. Since the job of private investigators were illegal in South Korea, she worked as a background checker, doing somewhat similar work. In the employ of businesses, she scoured social media for details on potential new hires. A few more typical PI-style jobs were done under the table. Compromising her ideals in order to get by was one of the only ways of life Kyungwon had ever known, so she took whatever offer payed the bills.

Be careful with this one, love, [s]he will do what it takes to survive.

Somewhere along the line, she was recruited as a freelance photographer for various tabloids. After all, blackmail material was something she had practice at aquiring, although this was more high-scale and far less personal. She wasn't exactly happy working - however peripherally - in an industry that exploited random peoples' slip-ups or perfectly consentual relationships for profit. Kyungwon could not give less of a , if kpop idol A was dating kpop idol B, especially if there was no cheating or any other less than savory business involved. But tabloids payed well, so she stuck around. Worked freelance for most, even filled in at dispatch if they had particularely slow months. After a few months, she was sort of unofficially half-hired at various magazines. Her contacts would tip her off to where she might find something they would consider worth reporting on. Kyungwon's job was to sneak in, find whatever dirt was there, take pictures and report back. If there was nothing to find, she was payed for the hours she worked, if she did turn something up, she got a bonus.

Then rumors of the produce scandal began floating through the tabloid world and everyone went into overdrive. Eventually, Kyungwon was sent to investigate if Circle Media were involved in any way. The tabloid that sent her had probably been covertly payed by some competitor to try and harm CM's already slightly shaky reputation. Not that Kyungwon cared why exactly she was hired. Money was money and, more importantly, food was food and her fridge was close to empty. Although she knew that CM treated their idols decently and so she felt a little conflicted about essentially contributing to cancelling them. But really, it was none of her business. After all, all CM had to do, was not be involved in the Produce Scandal.

So she went in and snooped around. Snuck into one of the CEOs offices, checked documents here and there. And didn't find much of anything. Having just left the building, Kyungwon experienced some sort of Deja-vu. Stepping outside the doors of some public building and running into view of people kissing. She vaguely recognized the woman as one of CMs idols, so she backed up behind a tree and snapped a picture. Not what she had come here for and probably not important to anyone, but it might prove useful if push came to shove.

Once again getting ready to leave, Kyungwon didn't get much further than the sidewalk infront of CMs premises. Pausing to put her camera away, she had just zipped up her bag and turned to glance back at the company building. "Hi!", a voice ripped her out of  her thoughts. A young man was striding towards her. Cap, sunglasses, easy confidence - idol, probably. Having worked for tabloids, Kyungwon recognized the type. Not the actual person, though. Just because she was well versed in the kpop world, didn't mean she actually knew who most people were. "Hi," she greeted back, quickly slapping on a happy but slightly nervous persona. Most celebreties were less suspicious if she seemed a little starstruck. And hey, if he was just a wildly confident trainee, maybe he'd just think she'd be nervous around a hot guy.

"Are you here to audition?", he asked and oh, that made sense. She had wondered how she'd been able to sort of just walz in to a company building without anyone questioning the strange young woman. There were probably a whole bunch of strange young women in there right now. Now, Kyungwon had learned a long time ago, that when presented with an excuse, you take the excuse. The golden rule of improv was 'yes, and', which held surprisingly true for investigating. So she smiled and answered "Do you take walk-ins?"

"Not usually, but I'm sure there's an exeption for you, if you ask nicely," and he had grinned, introduced himself as Im Dohyun (she had gasped and said his voice had sounded familiar) and he had personally walked her into the building and up to reception. Pointed at her face, prompted her to introduce herself, pointed at her face again (she was starting to question if she should be insulted by being reduced to being just a pretty face) and waited until the receptionist had rolled their eyes and handed Kyungwon an audition number.

Confused and out of excuses, Kyungwon sat down and waited to audition. Dohyun stayed with her for a little while, asking her about herself and telling her about what training at CM was like. She gave him evasive and unclear answers in a way that he didn't realize she was dodging questions. She was a practiced professional after all. Eventually, someone came along to exasperatedly collect Dohyun for training and a little while later, Kyungwon herself was collected for her audition. Surprisingly, it seemed to go well. Having practice putting on a sweet and unassuming persona did a lot for her - and all that passive-agressive harmonizing with the neighbor's guitar had apparently payed off as well.

Since she was already there, she snooped around a little more after her audition, made some good impressions on the people who were hanging out in the building. And found more of absolutely nothing about the Produce scandal (and later found out, she should have been looking in the VPs office instead).

A litte disapointed and very confused by the day she had had, she reported back to her current employer. Told them that she might have something completely unrelated to produce. Soeun, her contact at dispatch, whom she had actually befriended, reached out to her a few days later, asking if the unrelated something might be something they would be interested in. Kyungwon refused to hand over the picture of what a quick scroll through the list of CM idols had revealed to be Miyeon kissing someone. Morally, it always felt gross to out peoples' relationships to the public, as long as they were just going about their business without hurting anyone.

For a while, nothing happened. Someone else found the info on CMs involvement with the Produce scandal and Kyungwon cursed herself for looking in the wrong places. Her microwave had broken down and as a result money had unexpectedly become very tight that month. Already living paycheck to paycheck, she was now looking at a few weeks with at best one meal a day. So she called up Soeun and asked how much she would get for a picture of Miyeon making out with someone. No one would get all that hurt and Kyungwon would be able to eat like a normal person. After all, CM would just claim the picture was fake and everyone would move on.

Not two days later, Kyungwon got the call that she was accepted as a trainee.

Under the assumption, that Miyeon's scandal would blow over with little consequence, Kyungwon started as a trainee. After all, here was a chance to do something artistic with her life - something that didn't involve airing other people's dirty laundry for profit. A dream she hadn't let herself dream since her school days was suddenly in reach.

More than that, she actually enjoyed herself. Rapping was quickly eliminated from the list of things she would train in. Dance proved to be alright, although she would have to put in a fair few extra hours of practice. But Kyungwon showed promise as a singer. Language lessons built on things she had learned in school and things like ettiquette came pretty naturally to her. After all, Kyungwon had spent her entire life making sure she adapted and was well liked without standing out.

And so she quit her tabloid jobs, although she never completely severed her connections. Just in case. Which turned out to be a good idea. A few months into training, Miyeon's scandal finally escalated. Instead of blowing over, Miyeon told the truth, sparked a social-media wide debate about dating in the kpop industry and everything went to .

Kyungwon had a bit of a breakdown herself that night. All those dreams that she had finally allowed herself to indulge in, where slipping out of reach. Permanently, this time. Still, she steeled herself and slinked into the CEO's office the next morning. And confessed her involvement in Miyeon's scandal. Kyungwon had seen and had her hand in enough kpop scandals to know, that things only get way worse when they are revealed by 3rd parties. Sungwon discussed with Yongsun and Kyungwon ended up in an expected limbo. Suspended, but sure she was going to be fired, the only relief was that they had assured her she would be in no debt from her contract breaking, if (when) she were to be fired. After all, someone who sold a scandal in order to survive the coming weeks, wouldn't have much money to give, broken contract or no.

And so she had a few days of horrible uncertainty. Suspended and officiylla "on sick leave", she picked up contact with the tabloids and background-checking clients she had worked for again. And yet, she felt no excitment and a fair bit of unhappiness at the prospect of essentially spying on people for a living for the rest of her life, if she had even the slightest chance of making it as an artist instead.

It was when she was offered good pay to spill on CM - suspiciously good pay, in fact -  that she had the idea. And so she marched into Yongsun's office with a full powerpoint presentation about how exactly she would be an asset to any girl group they might make. After all: She was getting good at singing, she had heard whispers of how people thought she was pretty and she could portray the persona of someone more ditzy and innocent showbiz-type - she had fooled them well enough until now.

More importantly, she had contacts in the gossip world, who would be kinder towards her and her assoicates. She had contacts that were offering her a lot of money to spill CMs secrets (this point doubled as a veiled threat). As such, she had leads and good investigative capabilities to help figure out who exactly hadit out for CM. Her direct contacts were neutral on most entertainment companies and because Kyungwon had only ever been half-employed (usually under the table, at that), no one who might be bribing or encouraging tabloids to smear CM's name, would have heard of her.
 

That slightly crazy maneuver seemed to have worked: a couple of days later, Kyungwon was un-suspended. Under the condition, that she would indeed keep an eye out for potential sabotage, papparazzi and things that seemed like they might grow into scandals. As mixed as Yongsun's feelings towards her were, she had kind of become a confidante to Yongsun.

Either way, Kyungwon went back to training. It was a bit of an open secret among the trainees that she had done something wrong or had something to do with something, although no one knew anything specific. Just in case Kyungwon would be added to a future group - groupmates would have to trust her enough to be at least somewhat close to her.

 

The Idol:
Talent Twin: Namjoo (APINK)

When she was told she would debut, Kyungwon was about as worried as she was excited. Still, she worked on her plan with Yongsun, Sungwon and Minji. The idea was that she would blend into the background, just like she always had. To be liked well enough, but not to leave too strong an imperssion. To use a semi-fake persona to be one of those idols, who - in terms of popularity - are kinda just there.

The assumption is, that that will be easy, since the star and the outsider (who is undeniably talented and as somepne who stumbled into this profession, Kyungwon can't fault someone for being new to the company) will draw a lot of attention.

If the cameras mostly stay on other members, she has the time to look around and keep her eyes open for sabotage. She's probably the only person in Coterie, who is actively aiming for mediocraty. So she crafts her persona with the help of Minji's etiquette lessons, Sara's presence and Sungwon's mentoring.

This is going to work just as planned.
 

Instead people really like her. They love her. And for all her adaptability, Kyungwon isn't prepared for this. It scares her and rationally, the bigger the limelight, the harder for her to sneak away and investigate. On the other hand, it is intoxicating that people care for and respect her despite living from paycheck to paycheck and her etiquette not being the world's best, however good she is at personas.

She coasts on charisma and... her persona isn't not her (even though she thinks it mostly is). Really she's amplified parts of her that she's had to hide away out of fear of getting hurt. For the first time in her life, she's being asked to be vulnerable and beautiful, her quick wit is praised as smart and funny. When she gets overwhelmed od "distracted" (paying attention to her surroundings to see if anything worth investigating happens), people defend her as shy. She gains a reputation as charismatic, which also helps her get information.

Unfortunately she's convinced  that this is all just a fake persona and that reality is much uglier. That she's the worst version of herself. She believes this to the point where those self-worth issues are unadressed because she doesn't even know she has them. She's convinced she's selfish and manipulative. But at least she's useful and that's really all she'll allow herself to aim for.

She's seen and been involved in many a kpop scandal, she knows how this goes. She knows this will crash and burn and with the amount of she's gotten in life and the choices she's made, she assumes she'll loose all this sooner rather than later.

So she forms a new plan: she'll help Coterie gain popularity, elevate the other members. Either find out who's trying to sabotage CM or at least make significant headway in those investigations and when (in her  mind not if, but when) she has to part ways with Coterie, she'll publicly state no one at CM had any idea and ... And she'll have to go back to crappy apartments and she'll apply for a PI liscence, since those are legal now and she'll have to find a way of being okay. And she'll cheer Coterie on from afar - not publicly of course, wouldn't want to hurt their reputation any further.

For now, she's an idol and an investigator and a team member and works hard to do her part. She'll give her all, waiting for the day this will all be taken away.

 

— Because of the whole "staying in the background"-thing, Kyungwon doesn't have a lot of future inspirations. In an ideal world, where she was in this for the same reasons everyone else is... in an ideal world, where she was a normal idol, she would love to try acting. She's already good at personas and it would be lovely (and probably healthy) to act just for the sake of it.

— Sure, the reasons for her being a major camera nerd, might not be the purest. But she really loves photography, so doing her own photoshoots would be a dream come true. Or maybe some directing for music videos? That she would even be able to do without drawing a ton of attention to herself, since the people in front of the camera will be in focus.

 

— Her parents:
Moving out was one of the best things Kyungwon could have done for the relationship with her parents. They love each other, but in her late school years, it was established, that her parents are never going to be a support system for her. So they're a bit distant when it comes to deeper topics, but do spend time together when their schedules align.

 

— Bae Soeun (24, dispatch reporter):
Soeun is her contact at dispatch. An enthusiastic reporter and a compassionate person, Soeun is one of the few people Kyungwon can call a friend pre-Coterie. Although their morals don't always align when it comes to what should be published, they can usually talk it out. Soeun is interested in finding out what Kyungwon might discover about who is trying to sabotage CM.

 

— Nam Yongsun:
Since Yongsun is the one whose judgement Singwon trusts, she was the one Kyungwon had to convince that she was worthy to stay at CM, when Miyeon's scandal broke. Ever since, Yongsun has viewed her as an asset, a secret weapon - and they both understand the importance of making sure Kyungwon has the space and position she needs to work effectively. While Yongsun probably doesn't fully trust Kyungwon, Kyungwon knows it's imperative that she reports back to her regularely.

 

— Park Woojin:
Woojin suffered when Miyeon left CM and has suffered ever since. Relegated to errand boy along with his usual job, he has a lot on his plate. Unbeknownst to him, Kyungwon shares some of the guilt for Miyeon's scandal. And because of that guilt, she goes out of her way to help him out. Help with the errands, be a supportive presence in his life, whatever seems like it might be helpful. She feels terrible when she sees the way he's treated.

In part because she spends a fair amount of time around him, they become friends. They're actually on similar wavelengths personality-wise: calm, reliable and they both have some sort of sadness in their past, that still hangs over them.

Of course, the reveal that Kyungwon played a major part in Miyeon's scandal will throw a wrench into whatever relationship they're building. Even though she sold the picture for a good reason back then, its ripple effect has lasted far longer than she would have ever anticipated.

 

— Oh Eunhye (collab with unqua19):
Eunhye's apparent lack of negative emotion will be quite suspicious to Kyungwon. Even pretending to be some kind of model idol, she has slip-ups and bad days. Eunhye seems to coast on clouds at all times and so Kyungwon will probably try to figure out what her deal is. Unlike her professional investigations, she'll be gentler about this one, of course.

Whenever she does find out about Eunhye's past meltdown, she'll try to be supportive wherever she can be. She views it as bull that a meltdown was considered "unprofessional" rather than pointing the spotlight on the working environment of an actual child. Though, phrasing it that way towards Eunhye, who is still in denial about how bad her mother and the acting carreer was/is, might not be the best idea... so even if they're on the same side, the fact that Kyungwon has had years to recognize, be angry about and ultimately come to terms with the moments where her parents failed her... could lead to the two of them clashing, because Kyungwon might shoot too far too fast.

Neither of them have really had friends for the right reasons before, so getting along so well might come as a bit of a shock. Kyungwon isn't aware that her softer side exists - and when it shows itsself around Eunhye, it scares her. She doesn't know what's happening to her and worries that she might be unwell.

 

— Alyson Ahyeon (collab with unqua19):
Alyson and Kyungwon are from opposite worlds and their differences will probably rear their ugly head from the very beginning. Frivolous spending isn't in Kyungwon's vocabulary and although clearly well-intentioned, Alyson's clueless rich girl will get on her last nerve.

Kyungwon's kpop persona will also be in the biggest danger of slip-ups around her. There's only so happy-go-lucky you can play when that's not who you are and someone seems obliviously determined to test your patience at every turn. So her gruffness is likely shine through around Alyson every once in a while.

Unfortunately, she's bffs with Dohyun. Who sometimes uses that friendship as an excuse to ask about or hang out with Kyungwon - whose kpop persona has no excuses as to why she shouldn't want to spend time with them. Ironically, it's really Kyungwon's first impressions of the two friends that creates such different attitudes towards them even though their behavior is similar. This could help Kyungwon see some of Alyson's better qualities, since they mirror her to-be-crushes' - Dohyun, meanwhile, might notice the cracks in Kyungwon's persona and reailze that there's also more going on underneath that mask.
(Kyungwon is also half-convinced they're dating and will flip-flop between "good for him" and "maybe I'm misreading things and they're just friends?")

Once Alyson becomes more self-aware and Kyungwon drops her kpop persona around Coterie, they actually have the chance to grow to like each other for the first time. Kyungwon being able to help with practical budgeting advice and Alyson actually asking for that help seems like it might even lead to some kind of friendship down the line. later

 

— Yang Hyeonyi (collab with Luigi-a):
These two have some similarity in that they are both good at what they do and they know it, even if what they do is fairly different things. They are also both similarely self-centered in very different ways and for very different reasons.
Kyungwon is likely to initially view Hyeonyi as someone who will draw the spotlight, which would help her plan. And then that doesn't happen. So the objective becomes to try to help Hyeonyi re-gain her confidence so that the center can become the center once again.

There might also be some misplaced guilt here. While Kyungwon worked with tabloids rather than riling up netizens, she's spent enough time on the other side of kpop drama. And now she's seeing first hand just how badly the court of public opinion can tear people down.

Since they're both a little emotionally repressed in different ways, it might ve difficult for them to actually help each other. But if those barriers begin to crack, they could help each other grow.

Dohyun was the first person from CM that Kyungwon ever officially met. Much like the old clichee that he goes to the bathroom and comes back knowing a new person, he was the one that got her to audition in the first place. Accidentially offering her a viable excuse for why she was hanging out near the employee entrance of the company, he basically scouted her on the street. Technically. He might have already thought she was there to audition, but he was the one that was convinced they'd give her a chance as a walk-in (due to her visuals). There was some mutual attraction there fromt he beginning - or at least acknowledgement that the other person was objectively pretty.

They are quite different as people, though. Where Kyungwon is passive and observant, Dohyun throws himself headfirst into every social interaction - the end result is the same: they both get to know a fair bit about a person. Dohyun trusts easily, befriends easily, loves easily. Kyungwon isn't sure she's ever let anyone close enough to really know her - to the point, that she's not entirely in the know about all the nuances of who she is herself. At the end of the day, they are both helpful and kind people, who care deeply about the people they've taken a shine to.

Being the person that scouted her, Dohyun has gotten it in his head, that Kyungwon is his protegee. He stops by regularely, checking in how she's doing, giving tips on how to train effectively without burning yourself out. She appreciates his concern and finds him quite easy to talk to. She doesn't exactly let down her guard around him, but it's less exhausting to keep the guard up, since she doesn't have to fear malicious intent from him. He's an open book and however hypocritical, she really respects that.

As their relationship deepens they'll encounter a couple problems from how different their approaches to relationships with other people are. Kyungwon will have trouble recognizing that Dohyun likes her in a different way from the way in which he likes absolutely everyone he's ever met. Since she's prone to assuming that no one likes her all that much, especially not as much as she likes them, it will be especially hard for her to realize that a social butterfly like Dohyun likes her as more than an aquantance - let alone that he likes her romantically.
On the other hand, Dohyun is used to people opening up to him fairly easily. He's outgoing, sweet, a mood maker and trustworthy. He's funny and out there, but there's a softness to him, that people usually take as invitation to get to know him and to let him get to know them. Kyungwon's evasiveness when it comes to letting people get close to her, maybe even morphing into fear the closer he gets, are reactions he can't quite parse. Is she rejecting him? Should he back off? Or is she just like that?

Added to that, he only really knows her kpop persona so far. As time goes on and Kyungwon learns to open up, not just to Dohyun, but to Coterie as well, he'll get to know the parts of her, that hide behind the kpop persona. And as a biased party, that already likes her, he'll probably be quicker to see the wonderful person that hides beneath all the hurt - quicker even, than Kyungwon herself.

Ending: I'd like for them to be dating, but if they end up just friends that's also fine! Either way, I want them to have a healthy relationship where they support each other and talk things out when they have problems. Once they get past the ways they confuse each other, I imagine they'd actually balance each other out pretty well. She's calm and thought through, where he's enthusiastic and spontaneous. He's a social butterfly, where she watches from the sidelines.

Note: I've suggested Dohyun as a LI, because I do think there's a decent amount of potential there. Also I'm always a er for a "the sad one is soft for the sunshine one"-trope xD and in het ships, it's a bit unusual for the sad one to be the woman and the sunshine one to be the man, so I thought that might be interesting.

Woojin could be an interesting option for a LI, because there's a lot of conflict potential, but they're also on the same wavelength and working through the conflicts could strengthen a relationship. Though I also think that would be just as interesting as a friendship.

Finally, this is just a suggestion. Feel free to matchmake with whoever the story steers you towards, regardless of gender!

Details

 

Age: 23 (20-07-97)

Birthplace: Seoul
Hometown: Seoul
Nation.: korean

FC: Jung Jinsol
(Kim Seolhyun, Son Naeun, Chungha)

Trivia

 

— Her natural hair falls in loose waves (see above pic). The stylists tend to straighten her hair most of the time, which she finds disappointing. She likes her waves and worries about heat damage on top of the damage from bleaching her hair to blonde.

— Watches curly girl method videos by people with similar and slightly curlier hair to hers on youtube. Both to relax and to add onto the small list of haircare products she would like to try, if she could ever afford them. (Or convince the stylists to get for her.)

— Most of her friendships so far have been out of convenience. Her school era friends were people she had to follow around and hide who she was, just so she wouldn't be alone. Her few friends since have been a couple of contacts in the tabloid world, that she met through work. Generally, Kyungwon hasn't had a lot of - if any - experience with friendship for friendship's sake. As such, she feels ill equipped to be friends with the girls of Coterie. Her self-confidence when it comes to being a good friend, needs some work.

— Kyungwon is a major photography and camera nerd.

— Having lived in crappy apartments all her life, she has a good grip on how to fix things around the house. Things like cleaning and cooking also come easily to her. Generally she's well versed in all things living alone.

— Budgeting is another one of those things she has a lot of practical experience with, that Coterie could undoubtably benefit from.

Final Thoughts

 

 

— Did I only just realize that her name is similar to the CEO's? Totally. I am so sorry.

— I might add more to the relationships and trivia, etc tomorrow. It's the middle of the night here and I really need to sleep xD
If I add anything, I'll shoot you a DM about it.

— I really hope you like Kyungwon and that the whole Private Investigator thing isn't too out there. For some reason I've been obsessed with the idea of an ex-PI kpop idol for the longest time and since Coterie is based around a company full of scandal, it seemed fitting! Besides, I've kind of handed you a plot-device to help reveal info on who might be sabotaging CM! I'm hoping that makes up for how out there the whole idea is ^^