Chapter 12: Achoo!
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 12: Achoo!
[Oppa. You went through so much trouble because of me this time ㅠㅠ Starting next week, I’ll really participate with everything I’ve got, so you can count on me.]
[I couldn’t explain it properly, but I really did have something important and personal come up.]
[This isn’t much, but I got it for you to snack on while you work...]
“Hehe... heheheh...”
Had I lost my mind?
A silly laugh kept escaping my lips.
As I stared at the private message window, I could feel the muscles in my face twitching with delight.
A gift.
I’d received a gift.
Sure, if you added up all the money I’d donated to Luka, it would easily exceed 500,000 won, but I had never imagined a day would come when I’d receive something from her.
This was no time to be dazed.
I had to reply quickly...
Something not too cold, but not too overbearing either.
I didn’t want to send a blunt, one-word reply like I used to.
Especially not today, when I’d even received a gift.
[Oh. I'll enjoy it. Thanks. ^^]
Hmm...
Does this sound too much like an old man?
Honestly, I was of the opinion that once you finish your military service, you’re basically an old man anyway.
I mashed the backspace key and moved my thumb once more.
[No, no. It's fine. It wasn't as much work as you'd think. There wasn't anything that urgent to take care of...]
This one seemed a bit too long-winded, like I was rambling...
After much deliberation, I decided to send a single, concise sentence.
[Did you get your urgent business taken care of?]
I figured that was about right.
It didn't seem rude, and it showed that I was concerned.
[Yes! Thanks to you, I took care of it without any problems.]
Then you have to pass! Luka-tan!
You have to pass and make a triumphant return!
But that was just a silent scream in my head.
I sent a single thumbs-up emoji and closed the messenger window.
“Phew...”
I kept thinking about Luka’s stream from a little while ago.
My favorite streamer, giggling and trading jokes with her viewers.
And now, I was exchanging private messages with her.
Is this for real? Seriously.
“Heheheh.”
Ah, I was so glad I was home alone.
I wouldn’t want anyone to see this idiotic expression on my face.
I still had some work left to do on the presentation, but I felt a surge of energy.
A little secret between her and me, one that Doah knew nothing about.
That secret became the driving force that would get me through this long night.
Beep-beep-beep. Beep-beep-beep.
I fumbled for my phone to turn off the alarm, my eyes still half-closed as I gripped the device.
“Nothing...”
Nothing again.
There was nothing yesterday, nothing the day before, and still nothing this morning.
Luka’s channel was devoid of her warmth.
And I wasn’t the only member of the Pink Army searching for any trace of her.
[Luka... please just post an announcement.]
[Luka-tan, I'm so cold...]
[But isn't this YM's fault, those bastards? I mean, what are we supposed to do if they don't announce the acceptance date?]
[I'm sorry... I won't call you Fuckdol anymore... come back...]
An announcement had been made that the final round for the virtual idol group CLOSER would be held privately.
They said it was private because it would cover real-life issues to determine if the candidates could genuinely commit to their activities, but I thought it was too much that the announcement date for the results was unconfirmed.
I had hoped Luka would post at least a brief update on her life, but now, on the Wednesday a week after her last stream, a cold wind was all that blew through the announcement page.
“...Kim Doah.”
I let out a deep breath from the pit of my stomach, murmuring Luka’s real name as I checked the conversation from yesterday in our group chat.
[We got this confirmed by the professor yesterday, okay? Doah, make sure you read through all of it and participate today.]
[Ah. Yes, yes. I’ll read it all before I come.]
[So, did you get your personal matters sorted out?]
[Yes. Thank you all so, so much. ㅠㅠ]
[You’re buying coffee today, Kim Doah.]
[OK OK sry sry ㅠ]
It seemed Minji and Junseok, despite all their hard work, were being understanding.
Ah, but I had a feeling Junseok would really let her have it if something like this happened again...
It was a natural reaction, since people who cared about their grades always prepared for projects with sincerity.
Could she even manage the schedule once the actual filming began?
If Luka went on hiatus because of some stupid assignment...
It seemed like it would be better for me to pretend I had something scheduled on the days Luka planned to stream.
No, wait. Why is she so quick to reply in the group chat but won't write a single announcement?
Why won’t you write one! Luka-tan!
Can’t you see the Pink Army shivering out here?
It was a strange dynamic.
Why did it bother me to see her putting more effort into her real life, which should have been a good thing?
I didn’t know anymore. I just wished she would turn on her stream.
I was also dying of curiosity about the audition results.
So what happened?
Did you pass or did you fail?
What did the company say?
All sorts of questions popped into my head, but they weren't things I could ask her to her face.
I’ll just have to ask in the chat when she finally streams again.
I got out of bed, quickly washed my face, and finished my shower.
Clothes...
Normally, I’d just grab whatever and head to school, but the thought of seeing Luka made me... something.
I found myself staring into my closet.
Hmm. Not much to see here.
The truth was, my main expenses were games and donations to internet streamers.
I figured there was no reason to buy expensive clothes when I was cooped up at home all the time.
I’d rarely ever dressed up to impress anyone.
The rarest item in my closet was a neat, semi-formal outfit I only wore for presentations.
After a moment of thought, I decided to wear a jean jacket over a black t-shirt.
For pants, just a pair of black slacks you could find anywhere.
Standing in front of the mirror, I even tried to fix my hair for no reason.
I think I look okay...
Ah, whatever.
A wave of patheticness washed over me as I realized how much I was caring about this when I had no intentions of trying anything with Doah.
As I stepped out the front door, a pleasant autumn breeze blew past.
Heh. A perfect day to open the windows and watch a stream.
A nice, crisp six-hour stream would be just perfect.
Arriving at the classroom door, I swallowed hard.
Every class with Doah was no different from a fan meeting for me.
“Taemin Oppa!”
Minji, who was sitting alone—it seemed Junseok and Doah hadn’t arrived yet—spotted me and waved.
“Oh. Hey.”
“You worked so hard last week!”
“Nah, it was nothing.”
“You were so diligent, I was actually a little surprised. You were really passionate, weren’t you?”
Well... it’s because Luka has to debut...
I had no desire for good grades, but I was desperate for Luka’s success. I just nodded with an awkward expression.
Just as I was thinking that talking more with Minji would be a bit much...
“Oh? Doah, hi!”
I followed Minji’s gaze and saw Doah standing there, dressed in a beige trench coat.
“Oh. Hi. Hello.”
Doah bowed her head politely in my direction.
I gave a slight nod back to acknowledge her greeting.
Minji to my left, Doah to my right.
Normally, I would have been so uncomfortable around girls that I’d have desperately wanted to sit alone in a corner.
It seemed Luka was making me a stronger person in many ways.
“Oh. What’s this? Everyone’s here?”
Junseok, the last to arrive, dropped his bag on the desk.
“Hey. You brought the laptop, right?”
“Of course. I carry this thing everywhere.”
From the very first day of class, Junseok had always been in charge of the laptop.
We hadn’t pushed it on him; he had volunteered, so I didn’t bother bringing mine either.
“Let’s begin the class.”
Soon, the professor entered, and just like last week, we had our project reviewed.
“This...”
The professor stroked his chin as he carefully looked over our advertisement proposal again.
“I mentioned this during my last feedback, but the topic you’ve brought is not an easy area to approach.”
“The Metaverse. VR. I know it’s a hot new field, but it won’t be easy to create an advertising strategy that actually reflects it.”
“Is there any student here who has actually done something in VR, or whose hobby is playing on a VR device?”
My eyes instinctively darted toward Doah.
Doah, on the other hand, seemed to want to feign ignorance and looked away toward some distant point.
“If you manage to create a real final product with this, it could be truly innovative. But if you do it sloppily, there’s a high chance it will end up being neither here nor there.”
In short, if we did it well, it would be a huge success.
“I believe we can do something truly innovative! We’ll do our best!”
Junseok’s ambition for a good grade burned in his eyes.
“If you say so, I won’t stop you from trying.”
“However, you’ll need to study more about VR itself, conduct an in-depth analysis of your target audience, and it would probably be meaningful to go to a VR experience center and try it out for yourselves.”
“In any case, I expect to see a more in-depth analysis next week. If you have any hands-on experience, it would be good to bring that in as well.”
“Yes, sir!”
As the professor moved on to the next group, Junseok spoke up.
“Guys.”
“Yeah?”
“Everyone, clear your schedules.”
His eyes were blazing with academic fervor.
“We’re going to a VR experience center.”
“Achoo!”
A cute sneeze, identical to the one from her streams, escaped Doah’s lips.