Chapter 92: See You Then.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 92: See You Then.
I could have understood if he’d just said he fell back asleep.
It would have been a simple matter of thinking, ‘He must have been tired after drinking,’ and moving on.
But to run into Lucario again…
[Lucario: nonononononononono]
I was about to curse.
No. Why is he here?
First of all, I was annoyed that he hadn't contacted me at all after I woke up.
If something like that happened with your girlfriend, shouldn't you at least leave a message first?
Fine. Giving him the absolute benefit of the doubt, maybe he didn't want to bother me while I was streaming.
Then he should have just watched my stream and contacted me after it ended!
I muttered to myself without thinking.
"A devoted fan… said I was the only one for him…"
Seething with indignation, I immediately sent him a text.
[Why are you there?]
He was a man who didn't even deserve polite speech.
A moment later, my phone rang.
When I swiped to answer, I heard the voice of the fake Pink Army member.
My boyfriend, Han Taemin.
[Hello?]
I could tell he was being cautious.
Seriously. If you're going to watch, at least do it openly.
What's with this attitude?
[I think Leah is still streaming. Is it okay for you to take this call?]
I asked coolly, my voice dripping with unconcealable sarcasm.
[Ah, of course! What does Leah’s stream have to do with me?]
[And yet, there you are, watching Leah’s stream instead of Luka’s.]
[That’s…]
He trailed off.
It felt like he was trying to come up with an excuse before giving up, and a wave of irritation washed over me.
[Oppa. You remember everything, right? You know what you said to me before you fell asleep, don't you?]
No way.
If he didn't even remember that…
I bit my lip again, the same worry I’d had before starting the stream returning.
[Yeah… I remember…]
I let out a sigh of relief, thinking I had at least avoided the worst-case scenario.
[Oppa. Do you normally watch Leah’s streams? I thought you said you don’t really watch the other members.]
[I don’t.]
[Then why were you there today?]
Of all days, why today?
If I hadn't been streaming, or if the little incident from last night hadn't happened, I might have been able to let it go. But today, I just couldn't.
[...cause.]
A mumble came through, so faint it sounded like he was holding the mic far away.
[What? I can’t hear you.]
[I just kept thinking about it…]
My boyfriend kept giving me vague answers.
Unable to stand the frustration, I asked one last time, my voice laced with annoyance.
[Oppa. What exactly did you keep thinking about?]
Surely, if I was this direct, he would give me a clear answer.
But the reply that came back was something I hadn't expected at all.
[No matter what Luka said.]
[I kept remembering what we did before we fell asleep.]
[I just couldn't focus at all, so I tuned into Leah’s stream for a bit. I’m sorry.]
His unexpected answer made my face flush.
[You… you kept thinking about that?]
[Yeah. I thought I was going to lose my mind.]
His calm confession sent another wave of indescribable emotions through me.
I mean, "what we did" could refer to a lot of things.
The kiss.
Or what we almost did right after.
I was still annoyed, but the reason was… kind of nice, and also embarrassing. I opened my mouth.
[Maybe you won’t think about it so much once you get used to it?]
I was the one more surprised by the words that tumbled out of my mouth, wondering what I should tell him to do from now on.
Wait a minute. Kim Doah.
Hey. That makes it sound like I’m the one who wants it…!
As that thought hit me, my brain short-circuited, and I frantically mashed the end call button.
"Ah, I’m so…"
I groaned, having hung up without even hearing his reply.
I really was an idiot.
*
The end of the semester meant Christmas was just around the corner.
That dreadful alarm clock no longer had any reason to torment me.
For about three months, I could indulge in the drug-like bliss of waking up whenever I wanted.
Winter break was the sweetest honey.
But in reality, my body was still conditioned to wake up around 10 AM.
On the morning of Christmas Eve, I woke up feeling slightly cheated.
Wrapped snugly in a scarf, I stood in front of my building, waiting for Doah.
Puffs of white breath escaped from my scarf.
"Oppa!"
My girlfriend appeared, her hands tucked into mittens.
Doah was also perfectly bundled up for the cold weather.
"You're here."
I naturally held out my hand, and Doah offered a fluffy mitten instead of her small hand.
"I'm sorry."
The first thing she said was an apology.
But I honestly didn't mind.
"No, what are you sorry for?"
Most couples would probably go somewhere special or to a fancy restaurant for Christmas.
Unfortunately, for a popular VTuber like her, those options didn't exist.
If it were her personal channel, she could have just announced a day off and gone out, but she was a streamer under contract with a company.
After already going through the wringer once over the naming controversy, there was no way she could skip a stream.
And I had no intention of pushing her.
"Ah… I wanted to have fun during the day, at least…"
Seeing her crestfallen face, I patted her head reassuringly.
"It's okay. We can just have more fun on another day."
"But it's our first Christmas together."
Doah lamented her disappointment for the entire walk to the studio.
"Even if you're streaming, we're still technically together."
As Luka and a member of the Pink Army, that is.
"But we're not alone."
She had a point.
"But even if you weren't my girlfriend, I'd probably be watching it all day anyway."
It wasn't a joke to make her feel better; it was the truth.
How could I possibly miss Luka's special Christmas stream?!
She was even going to have a special avatar and sing Christmas carols!
Why would I wander around in this cold weather spending money?
I'd rather just send a dono.
But I couldn't bring myself to say that sending a dono was a better deal, not in front of her.
I’d already been scolded enough for that.
As soon as Doah opened the studio door, she repeatedly pressed the heater button.
"Why does it feel colder in here than outside?"
"It'll warm up in a bit."
The inside was definitely filled with a chill.
I plopped down on the sofa in the corner, and Doah booted up the computer before coming to sit next to me.
"Are you really okay with that for lunch?"
"It's delivery anyway. No need to order something expensive for delivery."
Doah took off her scarf, pouted, and then sat right on my lap.
"Where should we order from?"
"Do you have a place in mind?"
Today's lunch menu was Chinese food.
I wanted to take her somewhere nice for lunch, but the circumstances just didn't allow for it.
She had something like a rehearsal with the other members before their collab stream in the afternoon, and right now, she had to install the necessary programs and sort out other things.
We had agreed to just order lunch to the studio, and we decided to treat ourselves a little.
"...Are you sure? I'm going to order the Kkanpunggi, then."
"Yeah. If we can't finish it, we'll just have leftovers."
Even if we splurged, it would only cost around 50,000 won.
After ordering the food, Doah went back to the computer and clicked the mouse, while I watched her quietly from the sofa.
-Knock, knock, knock.
Hearing the knock, I went to get the food and started setting it up.
There were so many dishes that I had to make two trips.
"The space is a little awkward."
"I know, right?"
This place was never designed for two people.
Everything was set up for Doah to use alone, so eating a meal together required a fair bit of inconvenience.
The table was just big enough for one person.
"How about we just put the main dishes on the table and eat the jajangmyeon holding the bowls?"
It seemed like the best option, but when I asked Doah, she stood up with her bowl of noodles, a very sad look on her face.
"I can't."
"Huh? What can't you do?"
"Oppa."
I paused, my hand on the plastic wrap of the pickled radish.
"What is it?"
"Can you wait for me later?"
"Later when?"
I tilted my head at her sudden request.
"Tonight."
"But you have your stream tonight."
As far as I knew, she was streaming from 8 PM until well after midnight.
"I mean after all of that is over."
"In the middle of the night?"
I blinked as if to ask if she was serious, and Doah nodded.
"...If you're okay with it, Oppa."
"Well, yeah. But we can't really go anywhere that late at night."
Meeting up seemed possible, but it was true there wouldn't be anywhere to go.
"Just tell me if it's possible or not."
"Uh… I think so? Probably?"
Tomorrow was a holiday anyway, so I had nothing planned.
"Then, after everything's done."
Doah broke into a gentle smile.
"See you then, Oppa."