Collaboration Proposal – As the Talks Blossom, Tteokbokki's Rich Aroma Teases the Nose
As the conversation about the collaboration proposal heated up, the thick, spicy scent of tteokbokki wafted past my nose. The great start on day one had me in high spirits. If it had been the original Lee Haru—well, me—I probably would've topped out at 70 or 80 points at best.
Lost in thought, I absentmindedly cut the fried goodies from the couple's set into bite-sized pieces with scissors. That's when Jisu piped up.
"But Haru, you were grinning at your phone after the exam earlier. What good news you got there?"
"Huh? Oh... no... just some funny video that popped up."
I blew on the steaming fish cake from the couple's set to cool it down, dodging Jisu's gaze. Telling her I'd hit monetization eligibility felt kinda braggy. She'd already discovered my 'HALU' channel last time, so spilling this would be straight-up embarrassing.
Even without the Prank's Function upload, the older songs would've gotten me there eventually with time. But that one track sped up unlocking monetization big time.
"Funny video? Lemme see!"
Jisu leaned over with her chopsticks in hand, poking her head into my space. I shoved my phone into my pocket at lightspeed, right before she got too close. She was always touchy, but lately it felt way over the top.
"No way! It's... kinda embarrassing. I'll show you later."
"Ugh, you're no fun."
Jisu shot me a suspicious side-eye, like my reaction was weird, but soon scooped some perfectly cooked tteokbokki onto my side plate.
"Fine, whatever. You aced the test, so I'll let it slide. Tomorrow's Korean and math, right? Keep it up like today, nail the performance assessments, and first grade's in the bag?"
"First grade, huh... Think I can pull it off?"
I chewed my tteokbokki, mentally crunching the numbers. This method had a solid shot for first-year high school.
The big hurdle was performance assessments, but honestly, they were just extensions of the exams. As long as our group projects didn't tank spectacularly, it seemed doable.
But as grades went up, even with my guy's memories, the problems got tougher and more discriminating.
Still... if I snag first grade in most subjects as a first-year, a good college is within reach.
Not that I was sure about college yet, but hey, more the merrier, right? Process matters no matter what you do. As we finished eating and went to pay, Jisu beat me to it with her card.
"My treat today. I missed last week 'cause of tutoring."
"Cool. Then I'm buying tomorrow."
"Deal."
Stepping out, the crisp spring breeze cooled our overheated bodies a bit. Tasty enough to crave again sometime. Plus, extra points for being way cleaner than your average snack bar.
On the walk home after splitting with Jisu, I pulled out my phone to check NewTube comments. Most were like, "Great voice—why use a Vocaloid Program?" or "Loved it!"
My direct vocal on Prank's Function must've been the spark; views on all the songs shot up across the board.
"Haa... body of a girl, but why so many things I wanna do..."
Muttering to myself at the front door, I dumped my bag and sprawled starfish-style on the bed.
I wanted to pass out right there. But mountains of stuff to do. Had to convince Dad for monetization, plus final cramming for tomorrow's Korean and math.
Dad's work hours were erratic, so study first, then him. Last night's cram session covered solo study per subject, so this was just keeping problem-solving fresh.
Maybe that's why genius life sucks—too much to juggle. Coexisting as the next J-pop titan (for real) and an IQ-200 super-genius idol girl? Exhausting.
Keep slacking like this, and I'd end up announcing "This is HALU... channel on indefinite hiatus." Future me, visible.
Best to give my all while I could. I twirled my pen idly, then started scribbling formulas on my practice sheet. Since it was all already in my head, it flowed easy. Korean? Nothing left—geared up passages memorized. Math it was.
Math formulas and methods memorized too, so endless reps of similar problems to avoid dumb mistakes.
The guy's memories had me acing math like an engineering major. Original Haru hated it, total opposite.
Wrapped study quick, booted the computer. Yesterday's heavy lifting plus perfect scores today? Reward time.
Not gaming—didn't suit me. Fired up NewTube Studio to analyze channel stats.
Phone's fine, but desktop shows more detail for management.
"Hmm... Hit the HYPE rankings."
Not like I was a pro NewTuber from the guy's memories—or even one at all. No real insights, but it felt cool.
"Been a while—check the inbox?"
I'd publicized the channel email. MRs on Drive meant it was out there anyway; might as well strike first.
Most were junk. Probably all spam to the end, but who knew? Kept reading. Even small-fry 'HALU' had those three bangers—tracks that laughed at 10 million views back home.
-Streeetch.
Pulled my cheek to check if real; sharp pain confirmed. Sure, Departure and Declaration of Farewell had free Vocaloid Program limits—stiff reviews. But a major agency's offer?
"Hmm... How to reply?"
Truth: total noob on contracts and cash. No clue.