Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Rustic House Variety Chaos
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An old detached house that felt steeped in years of history.
A neatly tended vegetable garden filled the yard with fresh produce, and bundles of meju hung dangling from the wooden porch.
Along with countless cameras, the people I knew were huddled together on the porch, looking utterly deflated.
Everyone except one.
Only Senior Yoon Mi-jeong, dressed in comfortably casual clothes that anyone could see were relaxed, greeted us first as she inspected our bags again.
"Junior! Come here quick. These guys have lost their minds."
"Yes! Just a moment!"
I shouted back loudly and glanced around cautiously. PD Park Shin-woo, who made eye contact with me, bowed his head politely.
I'd met him the day before shooting to discuss the concept and direction, so I recognized him immediately.
"You've got the full schedule down, right?"
"Yes. I've got it memorized."
I answered the staff's question confidently.
The goal today was to film everyday scenes with the first project family while gradually weaving in stories from the set.
"All done. Nothing confiscatable except the phones. Here's your bag."
"Is that so? Thanks for the trouble."
I took the bag back from the staff.
Then put on the mic.
I scooped up the sulky Yu-na to soothe her and headed to where everyone was gathered.
"Why do you all look like you're at a funeral?"
"They took my phone...."
"The ramen...."
"The food ingredients I brought...."
Each had their own reason for slumping their shoulders. Senior Kang Su-ho was always active online, so it was no surprise he was drained without it.
But Dong-hyun? That didn't make sense. It was just ramen, wasn't it?
'By the way, even the food ingredients Senior Seol-hwa brought got confiscated?'
I hadn't expected them to take ingredients too. Then.... what about the snacks Yu-na brought?
I glanced at Yu-na's bag. The cute rabbit design was so stylized it was hard to tell at first glance, and they hadn't checked it.
If they took that too....
I could picture Yu-na bursting into tears at full volume.
'I have no choice but to protect it.'
Yu-na, perched on my back, let out a quiet sigh too.
"Haa...."
She looked so adorable, shocked over losing her ZingZing. Senior Yoon Mi-jeong, watching from the side, asked.
"Why is our Yu-na sighing?"
I answered on behalf of the deflated Yu-na.
"It's because they took the ZingZing 5 she worked so hard to bring."
"...ZingZing 5?"
Right. They wouldn't know what ZingZing is.
I shrugged and corrected myself right away.
"The electric car."
"Ah!"
That was when PD Park Shin-woo spoke up.
We all turned to face him.
"Is everyone here now? Then, Jun-seo, change into casual clothes, and let's all make lunch together."
As soon as the PD finished speaking, everyone stood up at once. Of course, I got up too, with Yu-na.
"Shall we unpack first? We'll use this room, and the big one for the guys."
We nodded at Senior Yoon Mi-jeong's words and went inside to unpack our lighter bags.
While everyone unpacked.
I went to Yu-na and whispered softly in her ear.
"If snacks pop out while unpacking, they might take them. Don't open it. Got it?"
Yu-na's face turned serious.
She hugged her bag tight to her chest and rolled her eyes around.
Meanwhile, I pulled out some comfy clothes. Had Dong-hyun and senior finished unpacking?
"I snore pretty bad.... What should I do? Should I sleep last?"
"I do too. It's fine."
"Daddy snores bad too! It's okay!"
Yu-na was chiming in between them. And her bag was nowhere in sight.
Where did she hide it?
I glanced around, and there it was, plain as day.
Under the clothes rack full of hanging clothes. The rabbit ears poked out.
"Jun-seo. Hurry and change into comfy clothes. We're gonna be late."
"Yes! Yu-na. Let's change quick."
'I got delayed looking for my hat.'
I quickly sent Yu-na outside and hurriedly took off my top. I was just about to put on a fresh white T-shirt.
I felt an intense gaze.
"...What?"
The two guys had their arms crossed, staring at my shirtless self.
"Oh! You've bulked up since last time. You started working out too, junior?"
"Yeah."
"First time I saw you, your arms looked soft. Now they look solid. How long have you been at it to change like this?"
Ah, they were surprised by the muscles.
"It was tough."
"I'm working out too. Wanna hit the gym with me next time?"
While chatting with senior.
Shin Dong-hyun was....
"Do I need to build muscle to get more options? If so.... what should I start with...."
Here we go again.
I let out a quiet sigh.
Then quickly changed into the T-shirt I was holding.
"All changed? Let's head out."
"Yeah. Don't wanna be late."
We headed straight outside and divvied up tasks.
Me and Dong-hyun: walk to the village's only store and buy meat.
Senior Yoon Mi-jeong and Yu-na: harvest just enough fresh veggies to eat.
The other two seniors: cooking.
"Everyone ready to move? If we drag our feet, we'll be eating lunch at dinnertime."
"Yeah. If we're late, Yu-na might hold it in and cry like last time."
Senior Kang Su-ho naturally brought up a fun incident from set.
True to the variety show's intent, everyone laughed and chimed in.
"That was so cute back then. Remember when this big sis gave you the kimbap she was gonna snack on, Yu-na?"
"Yeah! It was so yummy.... But when do we eat? Yu-na's hungry."
Yu-na's voice got noticeably quieter.
Maybe that's why?
No one heard her.
They were all busy sharing set stories from back then.
"I can still hear the growl from Yu-na's tummy so vividly."
"What? Dong-hyun, really? My schedule didn't overlap that much. We only met twice until the final shoot."
"And that time...."
Yu-na's face slowly darkened. She really was hungry.
No helping it.
I cleared my throat to get their attention.
"Ahem! Hey, Dong-hyun and I are heading down to the store now."
"Huh? Oh, yeah."
"Were we talking too much? Look at Yu-na's face. She looks ready to cry."
Thanks to Yoo Seol-hwa, everyone realized Yu-na wasn't looking good.
"We better hurry and prep something for Yu-na to eat. Seol-hwa, let's go quick."
"Ah, yeah!"
While everyone bustled about, I grabbed a basket hanging on the porch wall. Just as Dong-hyun and I were heading out.
"Jun-seo!"
Senior Kang Su-ho called me back.
"Come back quick. Or else.... you know that thing from set?"
"That thing? What.... Ah!"
Cold sweat poured down.
It felt like he was talking about the incident I'd vowed to keep secret forever.
'If he says that, Yu-na...!'
I glanced at Yu-na, who'd taken the spot next to Senior Kang Su-ho.
She blinked innocently, unaware her pants accident might go public.
"Ah! That's what you mean! Is it okay to say it? We said we'd keep it secret forever."
Shin Dong-hyun and Senior Yoon Mi-jeong right next to her tilted their heads at Yoo Seol-hwa's question.
Right, those two weren't there.
"What happened?"
"What is it? Something fun? Why are you all laughing but us?"
Then Yoo Seol-hwa whispered to Yu-na, who didn't get it.
Her face flushed beet red—she'd figured it out.
"Daddy! Fighting!"
To cover Yu-na's embarrassing history.
I'd have to hurry back.
I forced an awkward smile.
"Y-Yeah. Just trust Daddy. Be right back!"
I turned and bolted, leaving Dong-hyun behind.
Park Shin-woo racked his brain after Lee Jun-seo left.
Things were going as planned.
But an unexpected gem had popped up.
Lee Jun-seo desperately trying to cover something, and Yu-na blushing in embarrassment.
He'd heard a few mishaps from Kang Su-ho beforehand. But nothing matched their behavior.
So....
He'd have to dig it out and use it.
"Su-ho, what were you about to say? Another fun set episode?"
Yu-na blushed again and hopped in place.
Screaming too.
"Eeeeek! Ah! Aaaah!"
"Haha! If Jun-seo takes too long, I'll spill. Yu-na, keep screaming like that and I'll tell now?"
"......"
"Haha! That's right. Stay like that."
Park Shin-woo approached Kang Su-ho, avoiding the now-quiet Yu-na's eyes, and carefully asked what he'd been about to say.
It turned out to be a hilarious incident they'd kept secret.
'An accident in his pants, huh.'
An episode like that was better left buried.
It'd stick with her until she grew up if it aired.
'Can't use this one.'
Park Shin-woo returned to his spot and watched everyone.
"Pfft! Still funny thinking about it."
Kang Su-ho kept bursting into laughter.
Yoon Mi-jeong, watching quietly from the side, murmured softly.
"He's got a playful side."
A far cry from Kang Su-ho's usual image. He was typically gruff, the self-centered type who handled everything alone.
He shrugged lightly.
"This is my real personality. I like kids."
"R-Really?"
She'd heard it all.
Embarrassed, Yoon Mi-jeong jumped up and went to Yu-na, who was eyeing Kang Su-ho warily.
"Yu-na, wanna go to the garden with sis?"
"Huh? Th-That...."
Yu-na's eyes kept darting sideways. She must've thought Kang Su-ho might spill the secret while she was gone.
Quick-witted Kang Su-ho chuckled and waved her off.
"Sigh, I won't say it. Go on."
"Really? Really really?"
"Yeah. Really."
"Pinky promise then!"
Kang Su-ho's lips curved up.
"Hehehe. Promised!"
"Now we're good?"
"Sis! Let's go!"
The tiny hand grabbed hers as she dashed over.
Yoon Mi-jeong wiggled her fingers slightly on the way to the garden.
"......"
Were kids' hands always this soft? She'd lived single her whole life, never held a child's hand.
They reached the garden in a few steps.
Garlic, green onions, and all sorts of fresh veggies grew lushly.
"What do I do now, Yu-na?"
She felt reluctant to let go of the soft hand.
So she wiggled her fingers a bit faster.
"Sis? It tickles."
"Oh, sorry."
"Hehe. Sis! What do we do?"
Yu-na's innocent question.
Snapping to, she smiled warmly and moved her lips.
"We harvest beans, perilla leaves, green onions, and garlic—just enough to eat."
"B-Bees?"
Yoon Mi-jeong couldn't help laughing at her changing expressions and handed Yu-na a perilla leaf ready to eat.
"Wanna try this? It's yummy."
Even if she'd spent far less time with Yu-na than the juniors.
'We'll get close starting today.'
That's what she thought.
But she didn't know.
A caterpillar Yu-na hated with a passion was stuck to that perilla leaf.