Mattress Mayhem and Million-View Madness
It was around dusk, the evening growing dim. A massive truck slid smoothly into the narrow alley in front of our rundown house. "Tilt it a bit more. Ah, it's hitting the doorframe!" The delivery guys in work clothes were sweating bullets as they shoved the cargo through the front door. It was a thick, heavy imported mattress that filled our tiny living room in one go.
Han Sea, watching the scene with her head tilted, murmured, "What the heck? I definitely told them at the store to go for the smallest sizes."
"Hey, Han Sea. What if they actually charge it?" I gaped at the mattress jammed in the doorway. "And how the hell is that small?"
"No, it's way thinner than the one in our storage room, so I bought it." One of the delivery guys wiped sweat from his forehead and checked the delivery slip. "Queen size for the big room and single for the small one, right?"
Sea nodded, and my sister, who'd been peeking from the side, jumped in with a start. "Wait, the big room is mine? My bed's fine—why replace it?"
"Sis, since we're changing them anyway, let's all upgrade to something nice."
Sister snatched the delivery slip from the guy's hand in a panic. "Sir, how much was this? What's the total?"
"Two premium mattresses come to twelve million won. Payment's already processed."
Sister's eyes bulged. "T-Ten... twelve million? For beds?"
"Yep. Alright, queen size to the big room—careful!"
Sister pointed shakily at the slip and Sea. "S-Sea, honey. Cancel this now. I'm scared of anything this pricey—I won't sleep a wink."
"Aw, sis. Dojin's bed broke last night."
Sea casually jabbed a finger at me. "It's partly my fault, so this is the least I can do."
At that, sister's gaze slowly turned to me. "The bed broke?"
"……."
"That huge metallic screech last night that went crack."
Her eyes narrowed coldly. "So that's what that was? The bed breaking?"
I clutched my throbbing nape. "What the hell did you two do to wreck the bed?"
"No, sis, it's not like that at all…."
"I get you're young and full of vigor, but don't trash the house—control yourselves."
Sister sighed deeply and headed to the fridge. She pulled out two pouches of precious eel extract—the kind she drinks before long flights—and shoved them into my hands. "Bet you burned a ton of energy. Drink this and recharge."
"Whoa, why the sudden acceleration? It's seriously not what you think!"
"Quiet. Look at you sweating—you're half the man you were a few days ago. Sea must be worried sick."
Face burning with shame, I tried to hand the pouches back, but Sea snatched them first. "Thanks, sis. I'll make sure he takes them every night."
"Good. You're doing a lot for us, Sea."
"Nah, Dojin's the one putting in all the work."
In their warm? exchange, I was the only one tearing my hair out.
Night deepens. I sprawl starfish-style on the new plush mattress, staring at the ceiling. The door opens, and Sea slips in fresh from her shower, towel-drying her damp hair. I speak first. "Hey. It's weird coming from the guy benefiting, but…."
"What."
"If you're buying anyway, why not get a bigger one for my room?"
"Your room's tiny."
"Tiny or not, clear the junk and a double or super single would've fit."
Sea hangs the towel on the chair and approaches the bed's edge. "Queen for sis's room, but single for ours?"
"We gotta sleep tight."
"Doesn't it get uncomfortable with two?"
"New couples don't need a huge bed. Sis would think it's weird."
Her brazen response leaves me speechless. "That... kinda makes sense? But still feels off…."
"……."
"Whatever, it's not my money. Fine."
I nod vaguely, and Sea drags the laptop over. She clicks the mouse a few times, then her hand freezes mid-air. "Wait. What the? A glitch?"
The word "bug" snaps my head around. "What?"
I prop up and peer over her shoulder. YouTube Studio's open on a black background. The central stats graph shoots straight up vertically—unnaturally so.
"Site must be broken. Why's the chart like this?"
Sea points shakily at the corner. Today's views glow bright:
One million views in a day. The video we uploaded yesterday had exploded impossibly. It was like 4K or 6K last I checked.
"YouTube server error?" I grab the mouse, hammering refresh. The numbers flicker and climb by thousands in seconds.
"Whoa. This is insane!"
Sea pounds my shoulder, jumping around. I scroll dazedly—thousands of comments packed below the video.
└ Nah, just a gimmick. Why would a chaebol do YouTube ffs.
Watching comments flood in real-time, I'm speechless. "Hey. You okay with this?"
"With what."
"People might figure out you're really from Hanul."
Sea shrugs nonchalantly. "No faces shown. They think it's just bait for clicks."
She's right—they're loving our dynamic. Pure audio banter got algorithm-picked.
"What the hell happened?"
"See? Told you my gut was right."
Sea hums happily, linking arms with me. "This is nuts. We're gonna make bank now, right?"
She pumps her fist in the air. "First thing—buy a house!"
I shove her forehead lightly, exasperated. "One mil-view vid won't buy a house. Maybe a hundred grand tops? Your card limit's a hundred times that."
"R-Really? Well, not a house then—but this is my money from my effort! If it keeps blowing up, I can go independent!"
Her glee over YouTube cash despite her fortune is absurdly cute. "Hey, strike while the iron's hot. Shoot the sequel tomorrow."
"What."
"Minecraft part two, duh."
"More Mark?"
"It exploded—milk it till it dries."
Sea smacks my thigh slyly. "Punishment this time, no mercy."
"Like what."
"Every zombie hit in-game? Smack the other's bare thigh."
"You're crazy. Why smack a living person's thigh? No faces—how's that broadcastable?"
Imagining it nearly chokes me. "Just the raw slap friction sound. Viewers'll go wild imagining what two peeps are up to in a dark room."
"Views blinded you. Channel ban waiting to happen?"
"What? For this?"
"Dunno, but probably not."
"YouTube sucks."
"Don't jinx it. Just play natural like before and upload."
We chatter YouTube till sleep claims us.
Next morning, I wake gasping—pinned tight to Sea on the cramped single. Her cheek brushes my shoulder. I twist carefully, fumbling for my phone without waking her. YouTube app loads.
"……Holy shit."
A soft gasp escapes. Overnight, 1M+ views hit 3 million.
"Chairman. Looks like the two shared a pretty deep kiss last night."
"A kiss?"
"Yes. Data shows Yoon Dojin was way more aggressive."
"You bug the room with cameras?"
"No. Estimated from heart rate and temp spikes via the smartwatch we placed earlier."
Ahn Siljang's report earns a thoughtful nod from Han Hyun-soo, chin in hand. "Just watch for now."
"No intervention?"
"If it's my daughter, she'll handle it herself."
Siljang swipes his tablet. "One more report for reference."
"What."
"Sea young miss's YouTube video just topped 3 million views."
"Sea started YouTube?"
"Yes. Minecraft gameplay with Yoon Dojin."
Han Hyun-soo's flipping papers stops dead. "Hold up. 3 million?"
"Yes, sir."
"Marketing's been whining YouTube ads don't work anymore."
He tosses his pen down. "Slap our ads on her video now."
"Pardon? But you said no meddling in her affairs for a while…."
"Ahn Siljang."
"Yes."
"How many mouths do I feed here? Blow off a golden chance to 'educate' my daughter?"
"Uh, yes... sir."
Siljang trails off, stunned by the flip. Hyun-soo leans back. "Hanul heiress hits 3M views—we ignore it, we look washed up. Plaster those ads."
"Understood. On it."
"Got it? Boost views to 10M clean—viral engines full throttle."
"Yes. Report soon."
Siljang bows deeply and hustles out. Alone, Hyun-soo gazes out the window, murmuring low. "Yoon Dojin... My instincts were spot on."