[Yonhap]
[Yonhap]

Actor Kim Sung-ryung has shared a memorable story from her childhood involving an accidental run-in with a young street vendor on a bus.

A video titled "Sisters' old stories feel so relatable! You too? Oh, me too! (feat. Kim Sung-ryung & Choi Jung-won)" was uploaded Thursday to the YouTube channel "Neighbor Couple Seo Hyun-chul Jeong Jae-eun." The clip featured Kim and fellow actor Choi Jung-won — both currently appearing in the play "The Glass Menagerie," with Kim in the role of Amanda — swapping stories from their pasts.

When host Jeong Jae-eun asked whether they had any childhood memories they could never forget, Kim recalled an incident from her middle school years. She said she had been sitting in the back row of a bus when children selling goods came aboard. "Back then there were kids selling things — pens, whatever. They'd have a note that said something like, 'I lost my parents and am having a hard time,'" she said.

She then described how the vendor distributed gum and slips of paper to passengers but ran out of paper before reaching her at the back. "He just put the gum on my lap. Since I didn't get the paper, I just thought, 'Ugh, what's this,'" she said.

She got off the bus with the gum — without paying for it.

She had not given it a second thought until a friend's reaction made her realize what had happened.

"My friend said, 'Did you just take that?' I said, 'Why?' and she told me, 'That was one of those kids,'" Kim said, referring to child street vendors who solicit money from passengers. "I said, 'Oh my, I had no idea,' and burst out laughing." She then split the gum with her friend, sharing half each.

But the story did not end there. "Suddenly from behind I heard, 'Hey, you little thief!'" Kim said. "The kid had gotten off at the next stop and came sprinting after me. If I had gone straight home, he never would have caught me."

She said the boy's face had gone pale. "Those kids can't come up short on their count — every piece has to be accounted for," she explained.

"It's a funny-sad story now, but back then I was so scared I cried my eyes out," she added.

Kim made her debut in the entertainment industry after being named Jin (top prize) at the 32nd Miss Korea pageant in 1988. She has since worked consistently across drama series, films and theater.


min3654@heraldcorp.com