Double Date: Stamina Struggles and Songbird Surprises
Seo Joo-hwan arrived at Anyang Station and spotted Lee Jeong-hoon sitting on a bench. He raised his hand in greeting.
"Jeong-hoon hyung!"
"Huh? Joo-hwan! Man, it's been a while!"
Lee Jeong-hoon waved back enthusiastically, his face lighting up.
"Whoa, hyung, why's your hair so long?"
It was hard to believe he'd been out of the army for just a month—his hair was grown out like he'd been dodging officers the whole time.
"Dude, you doing okay?"
"I'm good, of course. But you? Those dark circles are no joke."
Lee Jeong-hoon looked like he'd pulled all-nighters for days, laughing with the weary grin of a corporate drone despite only being discharged a month ago.
"Heh. Got slammed with work right after discharge."
"Work?"
"Remember I told you about making games with my buddies? We started slow before enlistment, but these jerks are ruthless. They held off until my discharge day and then piled it on. I'm the planner."
"Oh yeah? So you're the director? I figured you'd be coding."
"I do that too. You're in Publishing Content, right? Small publishers make you wear multiple hats. It's like that."
"Ah, got it."
Seo Joo-hwan nodded immediately. Jeong-hoon had a knack for tailored explanations, just like at the club.
"You said you started making games in high school, right?"
"Yeah. Kicked it off back then, started a club in college, and now we've got a full team."
"Club to team? That's badass. But no graduation?"
"Took a few leaves for game dev, so yeah. Back next semester. Oh, wait—you transferred back in too, didn't you?"
"Yeah, but I'm basically a freshman. Enrolled at twenty, took a leave right away, so I'm starting year one semester one."
"Pfft, haha! You're a weirdo case too."
Lee Jeong-hoon burst into his signature cheerful laugh, though exhaustion still shadowed his face. Can we even have fun today like this? Seo Joo-hwan clicked his tongue softly and slipped a hand into his pocket.
"Hyung, drink this."
"Huh? What's that?"
Pretending to pull it from his pocket, Seo Joo-hwan handed over a Fatigue Recovery Agent item—the same one he'd given Jeong So-ra before.
"Pocari S? Dude, I get queasy just looking at it. Drank too many."
"Still, chug it. Better than nothing."
"Ugh, I'm sick of it..."
Lee Jeong-hoon grimaced but took the drink anyway. Hard to keep turning down a close dongsaeng. Moments later, his eyes widened in shock after downing it.
"Whoa, what is this? My head's clearing up instantly!"
"Guess the meds are hitting good today."
Seo Joo-hwan chuckled. The deep fatigue lines on his face had visibly softened.
Lee Jeong-hoon grinned, his expression brighter.
"Feeling human again. Honestly, I've been wiped out lately."
"Work? How bad is it?"
"...Work's part of it, but the real killer's something else."
Lee Jeong-hoon smiled awkwardly, then sighed and spilled the truth.
"I think I'm getting old, Joo-hwan."
"What? You're only twenty-six."
"No, seriously. Used to be fine, but lately it's tough."
"Tough how?"
Lee Jeong-hoon glanced around before confessing the source of his fatigue.
"You know Seol-gi?"
"Duh. Meeting up today. Your girlfriend."
"...Seol-gi's sex drive is insane."
"What?"
"On leave, twice a day was fine. But post-discharge? It's brutal. I've been dodging with 'overtime' excuses lately."
"Pfft, haha. That's it?"
Seo Joo-hwan laughed in disbelief. He'd braced for some major issue, but this?
Lee Jeong-hoon got serious.
"Dude, not funny. Used to handle twice a day easy, now every other day is a struggle. Game dev's killing me already—adding sex? It's straight-up labor now."
"Kukuku. Seol-gi must really love you."
"Urgh. Grateful, yeah. I love her too, but..."
Seo Joo-hwan cracked up at his conflicted face—it was like listening to a married guy in his thirties. But the laughter faded as he recalled his pre-regression days.
Fuck, I had erectile dysfunction.
Misassigned karma or not, waking up without morning wood was a nightmare memory. Lately, with zero stamina issues, he'd almost forgotten tadpole duty.
Suddenly, manly empathy surged for Lee Jeong-hoon. Empathy wasn't just a woman's trait...
"...Hyung, I'll hook you up with something good later."
"Huh? What?"
"Stamina boosters."
"...For real?"
Lee Jeong-hoon's eyes sparkled.
As they swapped updates, the other two arrived. Yoon Seol-gi came sprinting and flung herself into Lee Jeong-hoon's arms.
"Jeong-hoon oppa!"
"Whoa, our Seol-gi's here?"
"Heehee. Missed me, right?"
"Of course. Missed you tons."
Lee Jeong-hoon stroked her hair like his earlier complaints were a lie, even pecking her forehead. Yoon Seol-gi beamed and kissed his cheek.
Seo Joo-hwan smirked at the PDA. Whining about it, but he loves it.
Then someone tugged his sleeve lightly.
"Joo-hwan oppa, I'm here too."
"Ah, Ga-hee."
Distracted by the couple, a blue-haired woman had snuck up—the one-night stand that turned serious, S-rank composing talent holder Min Ga-hee. She greeted shyly with her signature dopey smile.
"Long time no see, oppa."
They'd met just two weeks ago, but she grinned nonstop like it was ages.
"Yeah, been a bit, Ga-hee."
Her swaying blue locks made him chuckle involuntarily.
*
Seo Joo-hwan led the group to a restaurant for lunch. As they ate and chatted, Lee Jeong-hoon and Yoon Seol-gi slipped into their own world. Min Ga-hee stared, then pouted.
"Tch. Why even double date if they're like this? Right, oppa?"
"Totally. Sparks flying everywhere."
"Let's have fun too. What've you been up to, oppa?"
Min Ga-hee leaned forward eagerly, her F-cup breasts resting on the table.
"Ahem."
Seo Joo-hwan cleared his throat awkwardly. They were impossible to ignore—his eyes kept drifting despite trying not to.
"Just writing. Finals in a few weeks, so some studying. You too, right?"
"Ours are mostly practicals."
"Makes sense for arts."
"But I've got worries. Thinking of switching majors."
"Major? To composing?"
"Yeah. Tried self-studying after your advice—it's way more fun than I thought. Feels like my fit. But..."
Her cheerful face darkened. He waited patiently.
She continued glumly.
"Not sure if I should switch. Singing and piano were fun at first too. Picked it up quick."
In short, she feared composing would fizzle like the others.
"Hm."
Seo Joo-hwan chose his words carefully. He could see her status window, confirming her talent. But she couldn't.
Fun and aptitude now didn't guarantee forever—not with her past flops.
It's incredibly hard for people without a system to find their true talents properly. Some never do in their lifetime.
Lucy's words: Talents varied wildly in type and limits. Sometimes growth speed didn't match potential rank.
A B-rank might grow lightning-fast to its cap, earning genius labels—until stagnation hit.
An S-rank might grow slower but surpass all post-plateau. Late-bloomer genius.
Seo Joo-hwan looked at her seriously.
"Ga-hee, your followers blew up recently, right?"
Random question—she tilted her head, blinking, but nodded.
"Yeah. You promoted my track in your novel. Followers exploded! Thanks so much, oppa."
She'd sent a song inspired by his novel—perfectly matched the scenes he'd written. He smiled gratefully.
"I'm the thankful one. Readers loved it. Said immersion skyrocketed."
"Ehehe, really?"
"Totally. Didn't check comments? Look."
No exaggeration—pure truth. He pulled up the site, showing comments. Her eyes went wide.
Universal praise. Hundreds of comments, not just a few. Plenty on YouTube too.
"Even old chapters got rereads. Must've spread on communities."
Her BGM was from chapters ago, but readers happily revisited.
"That chapter's views spiked. Your StarTalk got comments too, right?"
"Yeah... but I avoided them. Scared."
Min Ga-hee was stunned. She'd ignored recent comments, only hearing good vibes from bestie Yoon Seol-gi. Never expected pure praise.
Fears of hate killing her newfound hope seemed silly now.
"You dummy. I told you it was good."
"Your music rocks. That quality for Joo-hwan? I'd beg for our game BGM."
Yoon Seol-gi and Lee Jeong-hoon chimed in—they'd paused PDA to watch.
Seo Joo-hwan grinned.
"Novel comments, my YouTube—nothing but praise. Wanted to buy it outright for official BGM. Why can't webnovels embed music like webtoons...? So I just linked it."
He sighed dramatically, gesturing regret. Partly to boost her, partly true—webnovels lagged webtoons on embeds, forcing YouTube workarounds.
Min Ga-hee ducked her head, fidgeting bashfully, then flashed her dopey grin, cheeks red.
"Ehehe. You liked it? I nailed that track?"
Confidence restored. Seo Joo-hwan nodded vigorously.
"Obviously. Memorized the melody and all."
She beamed.
"Then it's yours. Want more tracks?"
Sudden offer—Seo Joo-hwan blinked.
"...Huh?"