Chapter 106: A Favor
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 106: A Favor
[Wow! It’s the world-famous Luka!]
I logged into the Voicecord game chat for the first time in a while.
As soon as I joined, the unnies greeted me with a huge fuss.
[Luka. You’re doing so well these days, huh? Your viewer count was insane.]
[A gorgeous boyfriend and a popular streamer… Wow, life must be fun. For real.]
[Ah… seriously, you guys, stop it. If you keep this up, I’ll be too embarrassed to come back.]
The compliments, tinged with envy, felt good, but they were also genuinely overwhelming.
It felt a little strange, like people who used to be close were now treating me as someone distant.
[So how have you been? Super busy?]
The one who had basically set me and Taemin Oppa up, Hanbit unnie, asked with a giggle.
[You have no idea. I’ve got so much work I just want to run away.]
[Hey, but you’re earning just as much, right, Luka-tan? When was it? Christmas, I think? I saw the donos just pouring in.]
It was true that day had been a huge success, but it was misleading to judge my income based on that one stream.
After all, the number of days that had been better than that one could be counted on one hand.
[Come on, I haven’t even been paid yet, so I don’t know either.]
Manager unnie had given me a rough idea, but there was no reason to reveal the specific amount here.
Still, it was definitely an excessive amount of money for a 21-year-old college student to handle.
[How’s the relationship? Is your boyfriend treating you well?]
As soon as I finished my brief update, the conversation turned to my love life.
I’d expected it, of course, but I instantly felt like a fish on a cutting board.
[Ah… well… we’re doing fine…]
The problem was, I couldn’t exactly tell them not to ask, since I’d listened to plenty of their stories.
It felt wrong to enjoy hearing all about their boyfriends only to clam up when it was my turn, so I decided to answer as honestly as I could.
[What did you do for Christmas?]
The question was dripping with insinuation.
Still, this was one I could answer with a clear conscience.
[I streamed until late, so we just met up for a bit in the early morning.]
[And that’s it?]
[That day, we just exchanged gifts and that was it. Heh.]
[Huh? Exchanged? You didn’t get anything?]
Hanbit unnie’s sharp observation stung.
Ugh… why is she so perceptive about things like this?
[We never said anything about getting gifts, so I was the only one who prepared a surprise.]
As I answered hesitantly, a silence fell over the chat.
[…Break up with him.]
[I agree.]
[What’s with that guy?]
A flood of reactions criticizing Taemin Oppa poured in.
[No! Luka-tan! What did you get him? You didn’t buy him something expensive again, did you?]
The more I tried to explain, the deeper I seemed to sink into a pit.
I felt like disconnecting right then and there.
[It was… just something small.]
[Just tell us. What was it?]
I had hoped they would just let it go.
But in the end, the unnies relentlessly pressed me until they got an answer.
When I even confessed the model of the VR headset, their reactions grew even more intense.
[Wow… this isn’t right.]
[You’re not getting ripped off by some handsome freeloader, are you?]
[Luka… seriously, looks aren’t everything.]
[That’s not it!]
Unable to listen anymore, I raised my voice, a rare occurrence for me.
[I got it for him because I wanted to! And Oppa treats me really well…!]
I couldn’t hold it in and ended up shouting.
The silence that followed was excruciating.
It was somewhere between embarrassment and self-loathing.
[Pfft.]
Starting with Hanbit unnie’s laugh, the unnies all began to openly laugh at me.
[Wow, Luka’s all grown up, huh? Back in high school, you couldn’t say a single word back to me.]
[Love is a disease. A disease.]
[We’re just saying all this because we’re worried about you.]
Hanbit unnie tried to smooth things over with a chuckle, but my cheeks were already puffed out in a pout.
[Ah, so. Aren’t you guys going on a trip or something? It’s your break, Luka.]
[Actually, we were planning on going to a ski resort soon.]
[Ooh, a ski resort, nice! Wait. Then on that day, Luka… Aaaah!]
A loud scream echoed through my earphones.
[Oh my god! Oh my god!]
[Wow. Doah’s finally doing it! She held on for a long time, didn’t she?]
[Make sure you pack condoms. Seeing how your boyfriend is, he probably won’t bring any.]
I’m not a baby.
I’m an adult now, too!
[…It’s not my first time.]
As their dismissive comments continued, I let that slip out, and the atmosphere instantly flipped once again.
[Kyaaaaaaaaa!]
And just like that, I was held captive for another hour.
“Ugh… I’m exhausted…”
Turning off Voicecord and taking off my earphones, I dragged my limp body back to my bed.
Blanket… I need my blanket, stat…
I unplugged my phone from the charger and saw a missed call notification.
[Manager unnie]
What could it be this time?
I considered calling her back but decided I didn’t have the energy to talk. Instead, I opened my messenger and sent her a text.
[Sorry, I was busy with something. Was there something you needed?]
She must have been looking at her phone.
A reply came back immediately.
[Ah! Luka-ssi! By any chance, have you spoken with your classmate?]
[Yes.]
So it wasn’t about me, but about Taemin Oppa.
[Did he say anything in particular?]
[Um… he said he’d think about it, but that he wasn’t sure.]
I told her the truth.
It was a fact that he’d said he wasn’t sure.
[Is that so? Luka-ssi, could you possibly ask him if he’d be willing to have one last phone call with me?]
The “read” receipt had appeared, but I had no desire to reply.
I thought her persistence was going a bit too far.
And I wanted to stop pressuring Oppa about this.
As if reading my mind, she sent another line.
[Please tell him that if he says no after this one call, we’ll drop it completely on our end. I mean it.]
When all was said and done, Manager unnie was someone who had helped me a lot.
I rubbed my dry face once and reluctantly sent a reply saying I would.
But I made sure to set a clear condition.
That after this, she would never bring up the casting offer to me or Oppa again.
With a sigh, I opened my chat with Oppa.
[Oppa… you know…]
He’s definitely not going to like this…
*
I’m pissed.
When you think about it, that manager, or whatever she is, was nothing short of a traffic accident in my life.
I was just walking down the street, minding my own business, when a car came and slammed into me.
I couldn’t understand why she was ramming a car into me and then trying to frame it as some great stroke of luck.
And the fact that she was pushing this on Doah instead of me was doubly infuriating.
[Don’t worry. I’ll handle it.]
I didn’t say anything harsh to Doah.
The person I needed to be harsh with was someone else.
I took my wallet out of my coat pocket and pulled out the business card.
Without hesitation, I dialed the number.
[Hello?]
[Ah, this is Han Taemin. I was told to contact you through Doah.]
[Ah, yes! I haven’t been able to reach you.]
She greeted me with an overly cheerful voice.
[Thank you so much for getting in touch, even like this!]
[Would you perhaps be willing to have one last proper discussion with us?]
[No.]
It might have sounded incredibly rude, but I didn’t care.
We were strangers.
[Don’t say that. How about you at least hear our offer first?]
[Someone like you, Taemin-ssi, could get a contract with terms that would make anyone envious.]
A nasty retort almost slipped out in my anger, but I barely managed to hold it back by picturing Doah’s face.
[I appreciate the offer, but I’m still a student and have absolutely no interest in entering that industry.]
Surely that would be enough for her to back off gracefully.
[Ah… I see…]
As I gave her no room for compromise, it seemed the manager was finally about to give up.
[That’s a shame. If you had decided to work with us, Taemin-ssi, it would have been a great help to Luka-ssi, too.]
My hand, which had been moving toward the end call button, froze at the name Luka.
[…Luka?]
[If we could say that we were able to bring in a new talent like you through Luka-ssi’s introduction, the company would naturally be very pleased. It would also make them see Luka-ssi in an even better light.]
The moment she mentioned it was a chance for Doah to look good to the company, my resolve began to weaken.
Did the manager notice in that split second that this was my weak spot?
Or had she actually prepared this line in advance?
[Later on, we could even set up something like an interview with a virtual idol. Wouldn’t that be great? It would generate a lot of buzz.]
[How about this? We’ll come to you. You don’t have to sign a contract, just talk with us.]
I don’t really remember what was said after that.
There were some additional explanations, but I don’t think any of it was particularly important.
[Then we’ll see you on Friday afternoon! Thank you!]
The red screen signaled the end of the call.
On my phone’s wallpaper, Doah’s brightly smiling face came into view.
…Can even someone like me be of help to you?