Chapter 7

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 7

Chapter Title: First Comment

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Bzzz— bzzz— bzzz— bzzz—

“Ugh… what’s going on… why’s my phone blowing up like this?”

Grumbling, I rubbed my eyes and barely managed to sit up, unlocking my phone. It was already 7 a.m.

For someone like me who’d slept in until around 11 every day throughout vacation, this was absolute torture.

“Yaaawn… what the hell? Who’s hitting me up this early in the morning…”

I was already wiped out from staying up late last night, jerking off to the tit pic Ye-jin had sent me. And now being dragged awake at 7 a.m.? I felt like I was dying.

Of course, there was only one person on the planet who’d spam KakaoTalk at the crack of dawn to a loser like me.

“Ugh… what’s her deal again. Didn’t I calm her down yesterday…”

I groused as I picked up my phone and opened the chat.

[What’s up so early in the morning]

Ye-jin fired back almost instantly, like she’d been waiting.

[Do I really have to check it now;;;]

[I’m sleepy]

[Yes]

Ye-jin’s sharp reply left me with no energy to argue. I let out a deep sigh and tapped the link she’d sent yesterday.

‘What, did a ton of people flock to it overnight or something…?’

Half worried, half hopeful, I waited anxiously for the page to load.

And finally, there it was—our video, with views, likes, and the comments list below. I stared wide-eyed.

“Pfft… what? Only like 30 views…? She’s making a huge fuss over this?”

I grumbled in disappointment when more texts from Ye-jin popped up.

[Eh, not bad]

I yawned hugely and typed back lazily. Ye-jin went quiet for a bit, then bombarded me all at once.

“Huh… what’s got her so worked up… probably nothing big, she’s overreacting…”

Muttering complaints, I did as she said and opened the comments. Sure enough, the empty section from yesterday now had one short, punchy comment.

Being an overseas platform, the comment was in English. I suck at languages, so I turned on the translate feature.

Now I could see what this foreign dude meant.

[Handjob]

The translated version hit me like a truck—I choked and coughed hard a few times.

“Wha… ugh… kinda hard to get used to… straight to handjob on our first video? Foreign pervs really are on another level…”

Ye-jin had already liked the sleazy comment.

Hell, she’d even dropped a reply in the meantime.

I awkwardly liked it too, then stared blankly out the window at the predawn sky.

It felt profoundly weird.

Our first comment ever. Sure, it was one of the crudest two-word phrases possible, but a comment was a comment.

It was like being a shop owner on opening day. Uploading the video finally felt real, and I was shaking with nerves.

‘From here on, views could skyrocket or flatline depending on what we do… damn, making money off people’s attention is way more thrilling than I thought…’

Tension building, I rubbed my face dry over and over to calm down, then suddenly chuckled to myself.

‘Just a few days ago, I never dreamed I’d be stressing over this… life really is unpredictable.’

With that, I stretched long and headed to the bathroom for a shower.

Under the water, I scrubbed my cock extra thoroughly with soap, getting every nook and cranny.

Ye-jin sniffing it yesterday had me paranoid.

‘Probably stank a bit since I didn’t clean properly… who could’ve predicted that? Gotta make sure it’s fresh today…’

Then I flashed back to yesterday—her slender hands gripping my cock, stroking me off. I flinched, freezing mid-scrub.

‘…Damn, thinking about it’s got me hard again… can’t get dressed like this, big problem…’

No choice—I had to bail from the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bathroom to get dressed. Using Ye-jin’s pic from yesterday as fap fuel, of course.

Got so carried away I overshot shower time big time. Panicking late, I rushed out, threw on clothes, and prepped to head out.

Right on the dot at one hour later, Ye-jin messaged sharp as ever.

A chill shot down my spine. I scrambled to get ready and bolted to the cafe.

Ye-jin sat in the same spot as yesterday, eyes cast down, sipping her iced Americano.

I gave an awkward smile and shuffled over sheepishly.

“S-sorry, I’m late, right? You waited long…?”

“Yeah, don’t worry—only 24 minutes.”

Her narrowed eyes and curt tone had sweat pouring as I wilted with a sorry look.

“S-sorry…”

“...No time to waste—straight to business. We planned to film a new video at 4 p.m. yesterday. Bumped it up to 10 a.m. today.”

“Huh…? When did that get decided…?”

“Just now.”

Her icy tone brooked no complaints. I groaned and hung my head.

‘...Got a game sesh with friends around lunch… but mentioning it’ll just get me chewed out again. Damn…’

I waved my hands awkwardly with a forced smile.

“Hey, do we really need to rush that much? Wouldn’t people watch if we take it slow…? There’s that saying—haste makes waste…”

“Idiot, this isn’t the time for easygoing crap. There are three big reasons we need to upload ASAP.”

She thrust three fingers right in my face. I flinched, eyes bulging.

“One: No-name newbies like us get forgotten fast. Even that commenter probably already forgot who we are. So we hit ‘em with the next video quick, before they do—lure ‘em to number two. Got it?”

“Y-yeah…”

“Two: People watch porn at night, not midday. Yesterday’s stats? 85% American viewers. Our 10 a.m. is their midnight. Upload timing has to match.”

“Hmm… makes sense…”

“Three—and this is the worst. We’ve got a new rival. Another couple just dropped their first video.”

“Whaaat!? No way—others are doing this too?”

I yelped in disbelief. Ye-jin frowned, scanning me up and down.

“...What did you think this scene was? You think others would sit idle if we jumped in? Check these guys out.”

She pulled up something on her phone and shoved it at me. On screen: a Japanese couple, sitting cheek-to-cheek in the exact same intro concept as ours.

But the auto-translated English subs? Hilarious.

Longtime couple, vlogs and daily life coming up, recommend content in comments… Mirror image of our script.

I snatched the phone, voice pitching up in shock.

“...Hey! They totally ripped ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠our video! How in one day? This can’t be real!”

“No point getting mad—we can’t sue someone overseas. Copying ideas is rampant here anyway. What matters is their views. Look close.”

I frantically scrolled down. Their first video, up just 3 hours—already 300 views. Likes over 20, 10 comments.

“Gasp…! What!? How? It’s nothing special…”

Basic intro vid, and honestly, they looked average. Mid-to-late 30s at least.

No clue why they were crushing us.

Ye-jin crossed her arms, eyes closed, calm.

“Probably the Japanese angle. Platform’s got tons of Japanese users. Barely any Koreans, so we’re fighting uphill from birth.”

“Ugh… what now? Any bright ideas?”

I asked, edgy like Ye-jin last night. She sighed softly, then glared hard.

“What bright idea? Only play is sheer volume. That’s why I’m saying—film the new one now. Get it?”

“Y-yeah…! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Got it! Let’s go film right now!”

Friends and games? Forgotten. I nodded vigorously. Ye-jin raised a finger.

“Hold up. One thing first.”

“What now?”

I asked cautiously, tense. She stared, face reddening, then spoke slowly.

“...I’m broke for motels now. You pay, or we film at your place.”

“Wha…! Th-that’s…”

I flushed, stammering, then scratched my head.

“...Wanna come to my place? Saves money…”

“...Fine. No time to waste—let’s go.”

She grabbed her bag and stood. I jumped up after, mumbling.

“Y-yeah, okay.”

And just like that, I ended up bringing Ye-jin to my studio apartment.

The whole walk, she stared at her phone screen, silent.

‘What’s she glued to…? Something fun?’

Later, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I sneaked a peek. Her screen: a dense checklist of things she wanted to do.

She checked off ‘Visit Su-hyuk’s place,’ smiling to herself secretly.