Karaoke, Drinks, and a Surprise Stream
I was the one who should’ve called. Around lunchtime the next day, I woke up to the sensation of someone shaking me.
“Mmmgh…?”
“Wake up, hurry! You said we were going to karaoke!”
“Ah… yeah… just a sec… I need to wash up first…”
“Okay! I’ll wait!”
After saying that, Soyun plopped down right in the middle of my room.
“Um… I need to change clothes.”
“Huh? Oh, ahaha… sorry… I’ll wait in my room. Knock when you’re done!”
I watched her retreating back as she headed to her own room, then stripped off my clothes. Confirming no one was in the living room, I grabbed a fresh set of clothes, hugged them to my chest, and dashed into the bathroom.
“Huuu…”
I tucked the clothes safely into the cabinet so they wouldn’t get wet, then grabbed the shower head. Showering somewhere that wasn’t my own place felt strangely unfamiliar and unsettling.
“Huu.”
Warm water ran down my hair, neck, collarbones, chest, hips, and all the way to my toes.
“Haaaa…”
I let myself melt into the warmth and started washing properly. I didn’t even glance at the mirror the entire time—just shampooed my hair and scrubbed my body clean.
By the time I stepped out, over an hour had passed.
“Took you long enough…”
I chuckled at the time and knocked on Soyun’s door.
“I’m done washing up.”
A loud crash came from inside, and Soyun burst out, panting.
“…What on earth were you doing in there?”
“Haa… huu… I was looking for this!”
What she held out was the notebook she’d used back when she debuted.
“…Why this?”
“I wrote down a ton of stuff in here! Tons of singing-related tips too!” “The president said it was fine to show you, so it’ll definitely help!”
“…Then let’s go.”
“Hehe, okay!”
When we arrived at the karaoke place, Soyun immediately logged into the kiosk and picked a room, stuffing fifty songs into the queue. When I asked if she could really sing that many, she said we could save whatever was left, so I just went along with it. We grabbed two mic covers and headed into room 10.
“So… what’s written in that notebook?”
“Ah, here! Take a look!”
I took the notebook from her and flipped it open. It was packed with neatly organized notes: things you should never say on stream, phrases to be careful with even if you don’t fully understand them, how to recover from slip-ups, wordplay viewers love, and even tips on how to sing certain songs. Some sections looked like they’d been written recently and then left unfinished.
“…This is impressive.”
“Heh, right? I work really hard, you know!”
“Then why is your gaming skill…”
“…That’s! It’s just that my body won’t keep up! My brain understands it!”
“…Sure, let’s go with that.”
I ignored Soyun yelling from behind that she was an intelligence-type player and looked at the song list instead. There were quite a few songs I knew, but nothing that really grabbed me, so I set the notebook down and picked up the remote. I went into the popular charts, chose a Japanese song I’d heard before, and hit play.
“Huh? You picked one?”
“…Just let me try singing it once.”
An hour later, I watched Soyun belting her heart out into the mic.
“Um… I still need to pick a song.”
Once the song ended, she looked at me like she’d just remembered.
“…Honestly, you just got bored, didn’t you?”
“N-no! I was just listening to you sing and before I knew it…”
“Haa… Fine, I’ll sing one last song.”
“Okay!”
I picked a song from the popular rankings that I’d been curious about but didn’t know well. As it started, a deep bass filled the room. I followed the lyrics on screen as best I could.
“Ooh…”
Soyun clapped along to the beat, looking impressed. The moment the song ended, she shouted like she’d been waiting for it.
“Eunseo! You have to sing this one!”
“…Huh?” “I messed up some of the lyrics because I didn’t know them well.”
“Still! You have to sing this! Seriously!”
“Uh… Well, we do have practice time, so… okay.”
“Hehe, then I’ll pick the next one! Let’s sing together!”
“What? Weren’t we heading home—”
Before I could finish, Soyun had already selected another song. I really just wanted to go home. Left with no choice, I took the mic she offered and sang along. Another hour passed before we finally left after finishing all fifty songs.
“…It’s already past lunchtime.”
“Mmm, let’s eat outside before going back! I know a good place!”
“Yeah… Before that, I should tell the president which song I picked.”
“Okay!”
Following behind Soyun, I opened Mico.
Since there was no immediate reply, she must’ve been busy, so I slipped my phone back into my pocket and walked side by side with Soyun.
“What did the president say?”
“Dunno. No reply, so probably busy.”
“Aha, guess she’s streaming right now.”
“Ah…”
Come to think of it, Iseo’s username had been similar to Soyun’s. Streaming wouldn’t be weird for her either.
“Ah, it’s over there!”
The place Soyun pointed to was a samgyeopsal restaurant.
“Samgyeopsal?”
“Yeah! I went with some other people before—it’s really good!”
“Mmm… Let’s go, I’m hungry.”
“Okay!”
We crossed the crosswalk and stepped inside. The smell of grilling meat hit me immediately and made my mouth water. We sat at an empty table and looked at the kiosk on the wall to order.
“Mmm, two servings of samgyeopsal first… Are you eating rice?”
“Yeah.”
Before finalizing the order, I went to the drinks tab and added a bottle of beer.
“…You’re drinking?”
“Yeah, want to drink together?”
“Mmm… Sure!”
“Don’t need any other drinks?”
“Just one cola!”
I added another beer and a can of cola, then placed the order.
“Two beers and one cola, coming right up.”
“Thank youuu!”
The drinks came out before the meat. I handed the cola to Soyun, picked up a beer, and grabbed the bottle opener.
“Hehe.”
I poured her a glass and handed it over.
“Oh, thanks.”
When she picked up her glass, Soyun held hers out toward me.
“Cheers.”
“Cheers!”
Clink—
We lightly tapped glasses and took a sip. If I chugged it all at once I’d get drunk fast, so just half.
“Phew…”
“Kyah…!”
“By the way, I was a little surprised earlier.”
“Huh? About what?”
“That notebook. I didn’t know you worked so hard on it.”
“Hehe, probably not many people do what I do.” “Not even my fellow trainees or anyone in your group.”
“How about trying that with games too?”
“Huh? Hey! That doesn’t work the same way!”
“Hehe, just kidding.”
While we chatted about nothing in particular, the meat arrived. The staff added charcoal and laid the meat on top.
“Ooh…”
“Hehe, it’s seriously delicious, so look forward to it.”
“It looks good.”
I emptied my glass using the side dishes as snacks, then picked up a piece once the meat was cooked.
“Mmm…!”
“Heh, this place is always good no matter when you come.”
“Yeah, it’s really tasty.”
“Right?”
We ate meat and drank. Before I knew it, we’d finished both bottles of beer.
“Heheh… Eunseo’s so cuteee…”
This girl was already drunk. I ordered a bottle of soju through the kiosk and waited. The part-timer quickly brought it over along with two glasses.
“Ah, just one glass, please.”
“Okay.”
“Thank youuu.”
“Ehh? Why are you drinking aloneee!”
“Because you’re drunk. Stop drinking.”
“Hng…”
I left Soyun nodding off and filled my own glass.
“Hehe, mm…”
Humming to myself, I downed the soju.
“Kgh…”
Using the remaining meat and sides as snacks, I finished the bottle, then stood up.
“We’re done eating, let’s go.”
“Mmm… Let’s gooo!”
I grabbed Soyun’s arm and pulled her along, paid, and headed home.
“Hehe, aaah… I still have to stream though…”
“You can do it at home.”
“But I drank…”
“It’s fine as long as you don’t slip up.”
“Huu… You’ll help me, right?”
“Mmm… Only if the president allows it.”
“Okayyy! Then let’s go!”
Still holding Soyun’s arm, I pulled out my phone with my free hand.
Mmm, well… since I got permission, it should be fine.
“The president said yes.”
“Reallyyy? Let’s hurry!”
“We’re already at the front door.”
“Oh… right.”
I opened the door, stepped inside, dropped our stuff, and guided Soyun to her room. She immediately sat in front of the computer, turned it on, and started humming while swaying her body. I pulled up a chair and sat beside her.
“What song is it?”
“My debut song.”
“It’s good.”
“Hehe, right? I’m glad people like it…”
Once the computer booted up, Soyun skillfully set up the stream. The moment she went live, she shouted.
“Guysss! I’m hereee!”
“I’ve got a friend with meee!”
Huh? Me?
Soyun tugged on my sleeve and started whining for me to say something.
“Um, hello.”
“No, I just had something to do nearby and she suddenly asked to meet…” “We went to eat and she got drunk. This girl.”
“Hehe, two menheras…”
You guys might find it fun, but I’m the one suffering here, you idiots.