Chapter 138
Chapter 138
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: Overwork and Teenage Rebellion
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My heart sank. Apparently, because the camera filmed from various angles, the inside of my sleeve had been glimpsed briefly.
If this sparked a big controversy, it'd be a problem. I hurriedly scrolled down. That's when the comment reactions caught my eye.
[But what's this with Ssong!Ooyaan on ?]
(A blurry screenshot showing what looks like bandages peeking from the sleeve)
Isn't that a bandage?
→Nah, just a shadow.
→→A shadow?? Look closer;;
→→→Yeah, looks like a shadow to me? Stop denying it and open your eyes wide.
→What bandage lol
→No it's not~
→Song Wooyeonn must really be trending these days. Every kind of troll bait popping up.
Phew. I patted my chest in relief. Fortunately, no one seemed to be taking it seriously.
Even the person who raised the question tucked tail and fled once they saw the uniform reactions in the comments.
Looks like this won't blow up.
Overall, the reactions were mostly positive. Internet slang was flying around, making some parts hard to parse here and there, but the vibe was generally friendly.
'I don't get why they twist people's names into such weird shapes...'
Song Wooyeonn, Song Shuga, Song Chef. I'd gotten used to those, but they didn't stop there—they were mangling them into all sorts of variants.
'Probably to dodge searches so the celebs themselves don't spot it? Makes chatting easier.'
I'd heard celebrities often search their own names. Thinking of it that way, it made rough sense.
'...But how does this guy know all these?'
I shot Baek Jaeha a fresh look of bewilderment. After all, wasn't he the one who'd tunneled through all those bizarre distortions to bring these posts straight to me?
'Does he usually scour stuff like this?'
I stared at him pointedly, channeling my curiosity. Misreading my gaze or something, Baek Jaeha went, "Oh right," and snatched the phone back.
He tapped a couple more times, then showed me a new post.
"The grill talk is over here."
I hadn't been looking for that specifically, but now curiosity piqued, I grabbed the phone again.
The post on screen came from a slightly different age group now. The writing style was much more mature.
[Hey folks~~ Did you catch this week's Jungle Survival?^^]
Song Wooyeonn the chef was on making all these tasty dishes~ Got me hungry at midnight and I got an earful lol
But that chicken grilling setup was so cool. Is that something Song Wooyeonn sells? Hubby saw it and started hunting online, saying it'd be perfect for camping~
Couldn't find anything like it though~~... Anyone know where to get it? Drop a comment!!!~~~
→His hands look so deft lol Seeing him more often these days is great
→Lost his parents young, so he's got real survival chops. Hope my boy finds a thrifty girl like that to marry~~ Kids these days got no grit lol
→I want that meat grill too. Got a BBQ in the yard but it's such a hassle to use T_T Anyone know, DM me~
→→Me too!!~~
→→Line up for DMs...
→→DM please
→→Anyone know??
→→There are similar overseas ones but they're pricey and need personal customs codes ;_; Too complicated
→My hubby's eyes lit up watching the show too lol Seems like everyone's the same
There it is.
Several more posts followed, all asking about where to buy it. Turns out, people with that itch started calling The Song directly one by one.
"So that's how it went down."
"The BBQ segment spiked the ratings big time. They called it a legendary mukbang."
"It was delicious."
The visuals turned out mouthwatering too. And with everyone scarfing it down, barely any talking.
Like how cup ramen tastes like heaven after swimming, BBQ after rolling around in the jungle hits different—unmatched.
"Now that I know the full story, that frustration's easing up. Thanks, Jaeha."
"No biggie. What're friends for? Oh, got a new experimental menu item in the works. Swing by next time?"
"Again? Aren't you working too hard?"
No, hard work's great for the company, of course. But isn't this straight-up workaholism?
The test store's only been open a couple months, and this is already the fourth time he's whipped up a new menu for me to check.
'Once every two weeks? Isn't that overkill?'
Sure, every visit delivered solid results. Baek Jaeha was unleashing all that pent-up genius.
Even for a test store, menu changes that frequent aren't ideal—I'd suggested renewing once every few months.
Plus, the Oreo Churros were flying off shelves right now, enough for a whole separate franchise setup.
"Why? You said the new menu dev team was the company's future, piling on the pressure. Gotta hustle harder to meet expectations."
Something felt off in that beaming smile of his. Come to think of it, the flashy styling had hidden it well.
Grab.
I seized Baek Jaeha's cheeks and yanked his face forward.
"？！"
His upper body pitched forward like he was toppling, barely catching himself on the desk in a panic. His face was right in front of mine now.
Our eyes locked, then he rolled his wide and looked away.
"...W-what are you doing?"
"Called it."
My hunch was spot on.
I put on a stern face.
"How many hours are you sleeping? Dark circles under your eyes like that."
"...."
"Answer me."
"...About six... hours."
"Six a night?"
"...Five maybe."
"Fiiiive?"
"...."
He kept dodging my gaze, so I pressed again.
"Spit it out straight. Before I check the CCTV right now."
"I slept four hours. Promise."
"Haa. For real."
I let go of his face. Knew it. Four hours a night? Insane.
He doesn't even have other ties in Seoul. Commutes between home, office, gym at most. Four hours sleep means he's spending nearly every waking hour working—unless he's some exercise maniac.
"The head chef you work with has set shifts, right?"
"Yeah, but after that I'd stay behind alone and keep experimenting."
"Practically living there?"
"You could say that."
I couldn't hold back the sigh. I let it out deep, and felt him sneaking peeks at my expression.
"...Why? Working hard's good, isn't it? You praised every new menu I made."
"Jaeha. Keep this up, I'll get busted for labor law violations."
Dead serious.
What was the weekly hour cap again? Whatever it was, grinding non-stop weekdays and weekends minus four hours a day couldn't be legal.
"I won't report you."
"It's not about that... Everything's gotta have limits."
I love tinkering with recipes too. Back in my youth, I'd pull all-nighters without thinking. Ah, pre-regression, that is.
But without balance between work and life, both crumble.
"I'm fine. Work's fun. Paradise compared to my old gig."
"Not about that."
"You said you needed me."
There was a hint of desperation in Baek Jaeha's voice as he said it.
"Don't you? Not anymore?"
"...."
Now I got the source of that weird dissonance. Baek Jaeha at this stage was way more unstable than I'd figured.
'Before, he'd escaped that island on his own. But this time, I dragged him out way earlier.'
In a Seoul with no one else he knew, I was his only lifeline.
He might've stabilized more naturally rubbing elbows with folks at The Song office.
'My mistake.'
I'd expected too much from a kid barely twenty. Pulled him from hell and basically said, "Figure it out."
Obviously, to Baek Jaeha fresh out of his well, I was the whole world—the hand that pulled him free.
'That's why he's clinging to being useful, diving headfirst into work.'
Thinks I brought him for his skills. Prove it or get discarded anytime. Hence the anxiety.
Tricky spot.
I'm no good at this stuff either. Leave him be, he might collapse from overwork. Gotta intervene somehow.
For starters...
"Jaeha."
"Yeah?"
"Wanna go to college? Academy's fine too."
"...."
"I'll cover tuition."
Make friends, date. Naturally, that'll flesh out Baek Jaeha the person.
He's plenty genius already, but refining wouldn't hurt.
"Why? ...My new menus not good enough yet?"
"Nah. Having a college name on the resume never hurts. Means you don't gotta prove yourself everywhere. Plus, your age, most go."
"You didn't go either."
"Ugh. That's 'cause I..."
Couldn't.
Too busy scraping by for living expenses to afford tuition.
But say that, he'll mope and tiptoe around me. I rephrased carefully.
"Just for the life experience, y'know. If you hate it, drop out."
Maybe proxy satisfaction on my part. From snatching him from there to pushing college.
"...."
Baek Jaeha looked a bit sulky but didn't flat-out refuse. Probably intimidated to outright defy his direct boss—me.
"Your grades were solid, right? How about taking the entrance exam this year? The test store's set with your current new menus anyway."
He stared at me quietly after my pitch, then whipped around.
Slam!
The door shut with a bang.
"...."
I sat there dumbfounded, words failing me.
Wait. Did he just... rebel? That was pure sensitive teen moodiness, no question.
"...Hah."
Puberty?