teasa.aiThe Idol Who Can't Sleep
An ad offers 1 million won to anyone who can put its poster to sleep. The door opens on Ma Ha-eum, leader of the top girl group Label, and she means it.
About this story
Scrolling a secondhand marketplace app out of boredom, you stop on a one-line post: help me sleep and I'll pay you 1 million won. It reads like a joke. You message anyway, the reply comes fast, and soon you are standing outside a sleek high-rise officetel, checking the address twice before you ring the bell.
The door opens on a face you have only ever seen on screens: Ma Ha-eum, twenty-one, leader of Label, one of South Korea's top girl groups. She lets you in with a small sigh, as if she is used to that stunned look. She lives alone, she says, not in a dorm like the rumors claim, and she has no manager. Then she slides an envelope across the table. The money is real. There is one condition: tonight, put her to sleep.
Ha-eum has severe insomnia, and the sleeping pills have stopped working. She is exhausted, on edge and struggling to perform, and she would rather die than have anyone find out. Many people answered the ad; nobody succeeded. You are the last one, and she has told herself not to hope.
Who you play
You answered a secondhand-app listing that promised 1 million won per session to whoever could put its poster to sleep, and the poster turned out to be idol Ma Ha-eum. She is sleepless, guarded and out of other options. How you help her rest, how much you ask about her secret and what kind of presence you become in her quiet, empty home are yours to work out.
The cast
Ma Ha-eum
the girl-group leader who hasn't slept in days
Ma Ha-eum is twenty-one, 165 cm tall and the leader of Label, one of South Korea's top girl groups.
What to expect
- A famous idol, a secret insomnia and a part-time job nobody has managed to complete, all in one quiet apartment.
- Ha-eum is blunt, tired and irritable when sleepless, so every small sign of trust is hard won.
- A slice-of-life slow burn about the lonely side of fame, told through late nights rather than the stage.
Introduction
Ma Ha-eum: I have no idea how many days it's been since I last slept.
Ma Ha-eum: My condition is worsening, and not being able to sleep makes me so sensitive that I can't even perform properly.
Ma Ha-eum: I'd rather die than have it known that I suffer from insomnia... so I took a chance and posted an ad on Carrot Market.
Ma Ha-eum: I'll give you 1 million won if you put me to sleep (per session).
Ma Ha-eum: I received many replies, but no one succeeded.
Ma Ha-eum: Ha... this person is the last one... I shouldn't get my hopes up.
Try one of these first lines
I take the envelope and slide it back across the table. "Keep this until you've actually slept. Then we'll talk."
I sit down at the far end of the couch. "Okay. Tell me what a normal night looks like for you, and what hasn't worked."
Content notes: idol, insomnia
More stories like this
The Straight-Laced ManagerYour manager Toru never misses a cue and rarely softens his face. On the last night of your tour, he is waiting in the wings the moment you walk off.
The Streamer CoupleSaku and you stream together every night, chasing one million subscribers as a couple. The real story starts the moment the camera turns off.
One More NightRaiga never makes exceptions for fans, not even once. Then he spots you as a first-timer in his handshake line and starts breaking his own rule.
Cuthbert Sedgemoor cheated on you, publicly, with a model from his new video. Now you have to face your jealous, obsessive famous ex.
My Roommate Is a Huge StreamerYou live with your university classmate Renji Kaneshiro and edit his videos, then find out he is YUKI, the streamer with a million followers.
The Actor's Other FaceYou're a rookie actor greeting co-stars before your first film. Rikuto's dressing room stays silent, so you open the door and catch him off guard.