Chapter 240
Chapter 240
Keun Se-jin seemed a bit flustered, but he quickly changed his expression and gave a wide grin.
“Oh, are you looking for something?”
“No. I swapped rooms with Bae Se-jin hyung.”
“…The rooms?”
“Yeah, just for today.”
I sat down on the edge of the bed opposite him—Bae Se-jin’s bed.
“Let’s talk.”
“…….”
A brief moment of tension flickered through Keun Se-jin’s movements.
However, his words came out smoothly enough.
“…Um, talk about what?”
The words ‘Your attitude lately, you punk’ surged up to my throat, but I managed to hold them back.
‘If I’m not trying to start a fight, I shouldn’t say it like that.’
Instead, I sat with my fingers interlaced and started with the words I calmly needed to say first.
“First of all… thanks.”
“……!”
“I heard you went through a lot while I was unconscious. Dealing with both the company and the hospital.”
I continued matter-of-factly.
“I don’t think I’ve had the chance to say it properly… so I thought it was only right to say it now. Thanks for looking out for me.”
“…….”
The guy looked like he’d been struck across the face.
“And thanks for worrying about me… Wait, are you crying?”
“Huh? Oh, no… well, yeah.”
With his eyes turning red, Keun Se-jin shouted shamelessly.
“It’s because I’m moved~!”
…It looked more like relief than being moved, though.
‘This isn’t… the reaction I expected.’
It seemed this guy had been suffering in his own way over the past few days.
Whether it was because he felt embarrassed or because the tension had finally snapped, he let out a laugh that sounded a bit less formal.
“Ah~ this is kind of embarrassing.”
Well, I’m glad he’s feeling a bit better. I crossed my arms.
“Nothing to be embarrassed about. Anyway….”
Now it was my turn to hear what I needed to hear.
“Are you pissed at me for something?”
“…What?”
“It feels like it’s been a while since I’ve heard anything from you other than ‘You’re absolutely right~’ whenever I say something.”
“…….”
I tapped my finger against the edge of the bed.
Seeing the tension snap back onto his face made me feel a bit uneasy, but it was better to clear the air now than to let it fester and explode later.
“Let’s get this off our chests while we have the chance. If you felt it was unfair that the situation ended with me just giving a one-sided apology during the concert discussion….”
“Do you really think I’d find that unfair?”
“……!”
“……No, back then, I… I think I was being too short-sighted. I think I was just trying to be careful with my words~”
I don’t think so.
Just now, he had lashed out with an aggressively sharp tone before quickly reining it back in.
I said exactly what I was thinking.
“I don’t think that’s it.”
“……!”
“I know you just want to move past it smoothly, but it’s not good if you’re the only one holding back and not giving your opinion in the long run.”
I suppressed a sigh.
“So, about me planning a solo concert out of the blue without a word when the team was in a bad spot, I apolo—”
“I told you, it’s not that.”
Keun Se-jin's jaw tightened. Finally unable to hold back, his expression turned dead serious.
“Park Moon-dae, do you think I’m some kind of sociopath?”
“……!”
“Do you think I’m pissed because you’re doing a solo concert? Because it’ll cause problems for the team?”
“…….”
……Is that not it?
Keun Se-jin took a few deep breaths as if trying to swallow his anger, then steadied his voice.
“Did it never occur to you… that I was worried a guy who was just in a coma might be overdoing it?”
“…I did think that might be part of the reason.”
“You thought about it, but you still assumed I was just annoyed because it might cause trouble for the team. Right?”
“…….”
I don’t think I’ve ever heard this guy speak so bluntly.
Gaining momentum, Keun Se-jin was now practically pouring his heart out.
“You’re always like that. Every time you get hurt or there’s a controversy. It’s true I’ve staked my life on this job. Yeah, I want to do well. But I… I worry about my friends too.”
“…….”
“Aren’t we friends? You… Honestly, I don’t know. I truly thought that even if I couldn’t promote with you anymore, it would be fine as long as you just woke up.”
“……!”
“But then, you finally wake up, and I ended up saying something unnecessary again…. Especially since right before that, I….”
Keun Se-jin stopped, his voice thick with emotion. It was only after listening to him in silence that I realized why he had been acting that way.
The guy was simply scared.
His close friend had almost died, and on top of that, they had fought right before it happened, so he was just trying to be extra careful.
‘He was taking his own slip of the tongue… way more seriously than it actually was.’
And he considered himself that close to Park Moon-dae.
“…….”
It hit me anew.
Lee Se-jin is still in his early twenties. Usually, that’s an age where people are messing around in college.
Because he usually provided such great backup, I had unconsciously judged him more strictly than the others. As if he were a professional colleague my own age.
I kept trying to analyze his actions solely through the lens of career and profit.
‘This… was my mistake.’
It had been a bit cruel of me.
After a moment’s hesitation, I nodded.
Then, I spoke sincerely.
“I get it. You were trying to be considerate, but I was so worried that I took it the wrong way. I’m sorry.”
“…No, it’s fine.”
“It’s not fine. And… you are my friend. I’ve never thought otherwise.”
“……!”
I thought of the status window and all the unresolved mysteries still lingering.
“It’s just that I… I was so overwhelmed that I was just desperate for immediate results.”
“…….”
“I’m sorry. I’m not talking about the solo concert; I mean I’m sorry for making you feel hurt.”
Keun Se-jin nodded without a word. However, I could see tears dripping onto the duvet.
Still, the air felt much lighter.
“……Whew.”
I sprawled out on Bae Se-jin’s bed. The owner of the bed would probably freak out if he saw this.
And I thought to myself.
‘This is like something out of a manga….’
I never imagined I’d be having a tearful ‘proof of friendship’ moment with this guy like some adventure story. I guess if you live long enough, you see everything.
It was cringeworthy. But it wasn’t meaningless.
“…….”
Though it was a bit awkward, we stayed silent for a while in the much more comfortable atmosphere of the room.
A moment later, as if he had finally calmed down, Keun Se-jin spoke up again in an intentionally cheerful voice.
“Ah~ now I’m really embarrassed.”
“I’m the one who should be embarrassed, doing this in someone else’s room.”
“Hey, forget it. I was the only one crying!”
Keun Se-jin grinned. He was the living definition of the saying about growing horns on your butt for laughing right after crying.
“But Moon-dae-moon-dae.”
“What.”
“…Why are you so desperate?”
“…….”
“I’m not one to talk, but we’re past the point where we need to worry about results. Can’t we take it a bit slower? …We’re going to be in this group five years from now, too.”
“…I want to be.”
I could admit it easily now.
But at the same time, I thought of reality.
“But you never know what will happen. Just because I want to now doesn’t mean I’ll be able to then. There are… too many variables in the world.”
“…….”
“So, I’m trying to do everything I can now, so that we can still be doing this five years later.”
…Excluding the details plastered with unrealistic elements, it was the plain truth.
I heard Keun Se-jin let out a short sigh and a hollow laugh.
…A hollow laugh?
“Moon-dae-moon-dae, are you actually in the NIS?”
“……??”
“No, it’s just that you sound so much like an agent~”
Why is he bringing up that stale joke again?
When I looked at him with an incredulous expression, Keun Se-jin chuckled.
“You say you have amnesia, but do you know you sometimes talk about the past in great detail?”
“……!”
“But the years… they’re strangely off?”
“…!!”
…Come to think of it, I’d forgotten because no one had specifically asked about ‘Park Moon-dae’s’ past for the last two and a half years.
So this meant… I must have occasionally let my guard down and spoken based on ‘Ryu Gun-woo.’
A cold sweat broke out.
‘Shit.’
However, Keun Se-jin didn’t pry further. Instead, he flopped back onto his own bed.
“Whoops~ Well, everyone has their secrets.”
“…….”
“Still… tell me if you feel like it. Se-jin’s lips are very tight, you know? Opportunities to have a friend like this are rare~”
I looked at the guy lying on the opposite bed.
With his personality, he probably couldn’t even imagine things like status windows or restarts. At most, he probably thought I was lying about my real age.
‘Even so….’
Even so, for some reason, I felt a bit more at ease.
I let out a small smirk.
“Fine.”
“……!”
“I’ll tell you when I’m able to.”
Once the status abnormalities are all over, maybe a day will come when we can sit down and talk for three days and two nights over drinks.
…And maybe it’ll actually make sense to him.
I added, like a joke.
“…Go easy on me until then. I’m asking for your cooperation.”
“…….”
Keun Se-jin fell silent for a moment, as if lost in complex thoughts.
Then, he answered slowly.
“With your NIS duties?”
“Hey.”
“Haha! Okay~”
He was joking around with a sly grin, but I could tell he wanted to wrap things up without making the atmosphere awkward.
“Ah, Moon-dae-moon-dae, it’s already midnight~ We have to sleep early to practice tomorrow!”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I shook my head and stood up to turn off the light.
“Oh~ are you taking the initiative to turn off the light? What a cool one-day roommate~”
“Just go to sleep.”
“Yes, sir.”
The lights went out in the room of the roommates with the same name.
We spent the rest of the night quietly without another word, but I knew that from the next day, things would return to feeling natural with this guy.
The only side effect was that Bae Se-jin returned to the living room the next morning with a remarkably lonely expression.
…I should consider swapping with him occasionally.
“The costumes are out~!”
“Whoa.”
“Is… is this kind of thing okay?”
“Considering our experience so far, I’m sure they’ll love it!”
“Right~”
In any case, the concert preparations proceeded steadily without a hitch, and before long, the broadcast time was just around the corner.
The day of the talk concert <As the Heart Leads>, hosted by Park Moon-dae with TeSTAR as guests.
The graduate student sat in front of her desktop at home, having skipped the lab for the first time in a long while.
It was a much-needed endorphin boost for her, as she had been struggling with her career path and the cynical saying that ‘While there are Know-it-all Doctors, there are no Know-it-all Masters.’
“Ah… I love this so much.”
It felt like it had been forever since she could watch Moon-dae with a peaceful mind.
After those hellish 18 days, seeing a recovered Park Moon-dae had made her so emotional that it was hard to function, but she felt better now.
She was simply excited.
‘Since it’s a talk concert, he probably won’t be overexerting himself!’
Above all, she loved the atmosphere where everyone was excited and looking forward to it!
‘Moon-dae must be looking forward to it too, right?’
The graduate student giggled as she exchanged a few fluttering messages with her fansite master friend, then logged into the platform where the concert would be streamed.
‘I have to sign up to leave real-time comments!’
It was a platform that was a bit unfamiliar to her… less mainstream, but the layout was user-friendly and they seemed to do a lot of good work, so she had no qualms about joining.
No, even if she did, she absolutely wanted to leave a comment for this concert.
‘He won’t see it, but I still want to cheer him out…!’
She wanted to say how relieved she was that Moon-dae had recovered and how thankful she was that he had returned healthy.
‘Wow, I’ve really become a full-blown fangirl!’
Saying things that would make her fansite master friend shake her head, the graduate student placed her hands on the keyboard and waited for the concert to begin.
Before long, rainbow lines appeared on the black screen, and the countdown began.
-3333
-TeSTAR I love you ㅠㅠ
-LOL there are so many people
-I love charity concerts~
-3!
-Ahhhh I see Cheong-woo!!
The comments flew by in an instant, and soon the screen flickered on with a somewhat upbeat classical accompaniment.
A stage with seven chairs.
It was the exact same scene as the poster.
In other words, TeSTAR wasn’t there yet.
-Ooh
-Where’s TeSTAR?
-Not out yet?
‘Are they coming out now? It’ll be Moon-dae first, right? Since he’s the host??’
It was the moment the graduate student leaned into the screen, excitedly slapping her knees.
Suddenly, a voice was heard.
[Welcome to the audience-participation talk concert.]
“……!”
It was Park Moon-dae.
-It’s Moon-dae-moon-dae
-Only his voice?
-Where will he appear from?
“Heol, I guess he really is coming out first!”
The graduate student was quickly typing ‘Moon-dae is the best!’ in the comments.
[Before we begin the performance, we need your choice for a smooth proceeding.]
Text appeared on the electronic display behind the stage.
[TeSTAR is]
“…??”
The graduate student’s eyes turned into dots as she stared at the screen.
‘What… is this?’
While the real-time comment section was also filling up with question marks and laughter.
Park Moon-dae’s voice, still peaceful, continued.
[If you post the number in the real-time comments combined with the # button on your keyboard, the number you chose will be counted on the display.]
[Please choose <As the Heart Leads>.]
Hearing that, several people quickly typed the combination into the comment section.
-#1
-#2
The moment those were posted as comments.
Numbers began to appear next to the text on the actual screen’s display.
[TeSTAR is]
It was reflected in real-time.
-Heol!
-Wow, I can’t believe they’re using this for a concert LOL
And so, the 21st-century non-face-to-face talk concert began.