Three Times the Pay
I stood there clutching the microphone, my face burning crimson. Oh Serin and Jina cheered as they filmed me with their phones.
“Ugh… ughhh…”
“You sing so well! So cute! The best!”
“Woooooo!”
A wave of shame surged through me, threatening to blur my vision, but I didn’t get the mercy of fainting. To understand why I was hunting for that tiny sparkling star in the karaoke room, I had to go back a little further.
“Wow, it’s been ages since I’ve been to an arcade.”
“Same here. I used to come all the time when I was a student.”
“If you’re talking about when you were a student, that’s basically the old-school arcade era, right? Ack!”
“You’re not wrong.”
“Then why’d you hit me…?”
“Because it was a hittable remark.”
Chatting like that, we stepped into the arcade. The moment we entered, the loud music from the game machines forced our voices louder.
“So how are we keeping score? Most of these games are one-on-one matches.”
“Even in one-on-one matches, scores come up. We can just compete with those.”
Even cooperative games displayed individual scores. We could rank ourselves with those. Now, what game should we start with?
I looked around. There were so many games I hadn’t seen in years—Puyo Puyo, Tetris, Metal Slug, 1945, and more. Classic titles lined up on their screens, waiting to be played. I hadn’t used joysticks much, so it might feel awkward, but these were games I’d played on PC before. I was reasonably confident.
“Alright, let’s start with Metal Slug—”
“Hey now, we finally came out, so we can’t just play finger-tapping games again.”
“…Then what do you want to play?”
“Obviously this.”
Oh Serin pointed behind her. A basketball shooting machine was blaring upbeat music. I gave both her and Jina a flat stare, my eyes narrowing.
“I’m sensing some massive discrimination against me. Is that just my imagination?”
“We wouldn’t go all out against an elementary school kid~”
“Exactly. Basketball’s good for growing taller. If anything, it’s a thoughtful choice for our tiny little editor.”
“You two really talk like streamers.”
I was suspicious, but now I was certain—they were genuinely trying to beat me. Dirty adults going all out against an elementary schooler…! But just you wait. I’d rack up a high score and crush their smug noses.
“…Bring it on. I’ll crush you both.”
After inserting coins, basketballs tumbled down from the chute. I grabbed the one rolling toward me, assumed perfect form, and lifted it.
Even so, I got an A on my high school basketball performance test!
Height wasn’t the issue. What mattered was the wrist. I bounced on my knees and extended my arm holding the ball. My left hand was just there for support. That’s right—I was Seo Sua. A raccoon who never gave up.
Swish—
Ding—
Three points.
. . . . . .
“Hah… hah. Hngh! Cough… huff!”
Ding—
The final ball swished through the net. The buzzer sounded, and time ran out.
“Hah, whew. See…? Every single ball, huff, went in…!”
Every shot I took traced a perfect arc straight into the hoop. A perfect game! Oh Serin and Jina clapped and cheered beside me, though their expressions looked oddly awkward.
“W-wow~ You’re really good at basketball…”
“Yeah, every shot went in. That’s all, though…”
“Sua, are you okay? You look like you’re about to die.”
“I’m fine, whew… ow.”
I was not fine. I felt like I was dying! At first, I’d confidently grabbed every ball that came down and sunk them. But once I passed ten shots, I started getting winded. My stamina plummeted, and from the middle onward, just lifting the ball took everything I had.
Still, they all went in, so that’s 78 points…!
Three points each meant I’d made twenty-six shots. Most people struggled to get even ten. That was pretty respectable.
“Hoo… Your turn now.”
“Alright, I’ll go first.”
Oh Serin shrugged off her jacket, rolled up her blouse sleeves, and stood confidently in front of the hoop. She dropped in coins and hit start immediately.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
Balls launched at high speed. Her accuracy wasn’t great—about a three-to-one ratio—but the sheer speed made up for it. Points piled up regardless.
Ding— 12 points.
Ding— 27 points.
Ding— 42 points.
Ding— 63 points.
And 96 points.
“Huh??”
Time still remained. Her breathing grew slightly rough, but her pace never slowed. Finally, the timer hit zero. The final score was…
“Whoa, 183 points! That might be my personal best!”
“You’re good. Did you play sports?”
“I was on the volleyball team until high school~ I stopped after college, but I guess the athletic sense stuck around.”
Oh Serin flashed a V-sign, looking proud. My heart grew uneasy.
N-no. Jina’s still left…
I clung to a sliver of hope. It didn’t last long.
Ding— Ding— Ding— Ding— Ding— Ding— Ding…
Ding…
……
….
.
Someone once said basketball was a sport entirely decided by height.
“Ooh, 207 points.”
Jina was the tallest among us. And she’d been on the basketball team in school…
“That’s cheating…”
I’d witnessed the shameless side of adults today.
*
“Do you people have no conscience?”
After tallying all the scores and ending up dead last, I protested the moment we arrived at the karaoke place. These shameless, despicable adults. I could grudgingly accept the basketball game, but the ones that followed were just as bad.
BB gun shooting. I had to stand on a footstool because I was too short, but even shouldering the gun, I couldn’t see the sights. No way I could hit anything.
Taiko no Tatsujin. My stamina was already drained from basketball, so just gripping the drumsticks was exhausting. Plus, the giant drum hid the notes. How was I supposed to play that?
Pump It Up. Two former athletes versus one thirteen-year-old. The rest was obvious.
These devils! Every game required physical effort, so after nonstop protesting about the unfairness, we finally switched to seated games…
These people play games all day for a living…
Even then, I couldn’t win. The bet had been rigged from the start. Poor thirteen-year-old Seo Sua had fallen for the adults’ wicked scheme. I would have my revenge. I’d wipe that smug grin off Oh Serin’s face and replace it with shock!
“Wow, a children’s song from an actual elementary schooler. That’s rare.”
“Send it to me later too.”
“Turn on AirDrop.”
“What’s AirDrop?”
“Ah.”
“Delete it right now!”
Oh Serin replayed the video of me singing, teasing me about how well it came out. I tried my best to snatch the phone, but my hands only swiped uselessly through the air. After several failed attempts, I gave up. My lips jutted out in a pout—I couldn’t help it.
“Little Editor, don’t be so mad. The food here’s delicious, so eat up.”
“…I’m not mad. Pass me the cola.”
“Here.”
I took the cola from Jina, filled my glass to the brim, and downed it in one go. The cold sensation sliding down my throat, followed by the sting of carbonation—I swallowed my anger along with it.
We were at a restaurant near the karaoke place. Once our time ran out, we’d come straight here. The two of them claimed they’d burned a lot of calories belting out songs at full volume and immediately started dinner.
“Here’s your food~”
While we chatted, the server brought our meal. Sizzling chicken barbecue in red sauce on a hot plate, topped with melting white cheese.
“Alright, let’s toast first. Everyone, raise your glasses. To Serin’s success—cheers!”
“Cheers~”
I clinked my cola glass along with their beer mugs. They gulped down their drinks. Oh Serin set her glass down, foam clinging to her lips. It had been a 500cc glass, and half of it was already gone.
“Kyah, it’s been a while since I drank.”
“You handle it well. We should do a drinking stream sometime.”
“Hmm, maybe? Okay, I’ll think about it.”
Whether it was an occupational hazard or not, they tried to tie everything back to streaming. Well, I was the same—I was already thinking about how I’d edit it.
They raised their glasses and started chatting about this and that, mostly about broadcasting. I just picked up my fork, speared a piece of chicken barbecue, and brought it over. It was a bit big for one bite. I blew on the steaming meat to cool it, then stuffed as much as I could into my mouth and bit down. I chewed thoroughly and swallowed…
“Hiss…”
Fire. A massive blaze had erupted in my mouth.
Spicy!!!
The heat was so intense my head spun. Combined with the actual temperature of the food, it created a devastating synergy that tormented my tongue. I frantically reached for the water in front of me, but it did nothing. Only after chugging the cola did my mouth finally calm down.
“Haa, hoo…”
“That spicy?”
“N-no… It’s deliciously spicy…”
“You’re sweating buckets for something that’s ‘deliciously spicy.’”
“It’s medium, but I should’ve ordered mild.”
“No? It’s good, I’m telling you! Look!”
I popped the remaining piece from my plate into my mouth and swallowed. Then, forcing a casual expression, I declared:
“S-see? Look at that! Hiss! I told you I can handle it!”
“Where exactly does that look like you can handle it?”
I couldn’t accept this. I could admit my body had gotten weaker and my stamina had dropped since becoming a child, but this? Me, unable to handle spice? I used to eat fire chicken every day! I refused to accept it. I immediately speared another piece and shoved it into my mouth.
As I chewed the massive chunk with labored breaths…
“Ughhh…”
Seeing me sway from sudden dizziness, Oh Serin and Jina confiscated the chicken barbecue and ordered salt-grilled meat instead. That settled the incident.
Salt-grilled meat. Nom. Tasty…
“Why are you being so stubborn…? It’s fine if you can’t eat spicy food.”
“No, it’s not that… No… Yeah…”
For the first time, I resented this body. Damn it. Swallowing my tears, I diligently shoveled in the salt-grilled meat. At this point, I wanted to eat everything, but my stomach—proportional to my small frame—wouldn’t allow it. After just four pieces, I felt full and set my fork down in resignation.
“Unni, Sua’s making a weirdly Buddha-like face.”
“Please don’t mind me and fill your stomachs.”
“Unni! Sua’s acting strange!”
Oh Serin grabbed my shoulders and shook me wildly. Stop. I’m so full I might throw up.
Time passed, and the food was about halfway gone. Both of them had drunk enough beer that their faces were slightly flushed. Jina, her voice a little excited from the buzz, looked at me and asked:
“Little Editor, how long does editing take you? Serin said you’re incredibly fast.”
“Hmm… I’ve never timed myself, but I can usually finish two or three videos a day.”
“That’s impressive.”
Of course, videos that needed more care could take up to two days, but the rest came together quickly. Being able to edit fast was something I took a little pride in.
“Well then, Little Editor, I have a proposal for you.”
“What is it?”
Jina glanced at Oh Serin, then curled her lips into a smirk.
“Want to be my editor?”
“Huh?”
“Unni?!”
She held up three fingers.
“I’ll pay you three times what she does.”
“Unni?!!”
Jina giggled, clearly amused.