Little Sister
After school let out, I came home and prepared a cup of ramen along with a triangle kimbap on the table. It was that sacred time of day when I wrapped everything up by watching Yuni's stream. Today's game was League of Legends. Since she sat in the upper-mid Master tier, queue times were pretty long. She usually filled the wait with casual talk.
I kept opening and closing the lid on my steaming cup of ramen, checking if it had finished cooking. My ears, however, stayed locked on Yuni's voice.
Her voice through the speakers had this soothing quality to it. She wasn't even saying anything special, yet it felt like ASMR on its own. No wonder the Uniz were always begging her to do ASMR segments.
She brushed off the ridiculous donation and kept the bit going.
She really was a master at collecting hooks. Under the endless barrage of question marks, Yuni quickly backpedaled.
Yuni had an older brother? She barely ever talked about her family on stream, so this was news to me.
Yuni let out a small laugh, seemingly stunned by the flood of replies.
Food that guys like... As a guy myself, I'd never really thought about it.
Oh. It was done. I peeled back the lid of the cup ramen, letting the spicy aroma rise, and slurped down a big mouthful. Maybe the person beside you matters more than the food. If I were eating with Yuni, I was confident I could even enjoy mud cookies.
But I only learned the truth after the stream ended. The true identity of that "older brother."
Yuna... Was your older brother me this whole time?
It looked like I'd somehow gained a little sister without even realizing it.
The dinner plans with Yuna didn't take long to arrange. Maybe she was naturally proactive. Or maybe she just wanted to pay off her debt quickly. I couldn't read her exact feelings, but we set a date within the same week.
"...Did I come too early?"
Caught up in anticipation, I'd shown up twenty minutes ahead of time. I flipped my phone to selfie mode and checked my appearance, making sure nothing looked off. I didn't usually put this much effort into meeting people, but today I wanted to look clean. I didn't want to show my favorite streamer an ugly side of me.
The Japanese restaurant near campus was supposed to have good value and a nice atmosphere. The sunlight was a little harsh, so I stood under the eaves checking my phone when—
"What are you doing? Why are you here so early?"
Yuna was suddenly standing right beside me. Whoa. She really needed to announce her presence somehow. I checked the time on my phone. Ten minutes before we were supposed to meet.
"It just kind of happened?"
"Ah. I was planning to come early and wait for you."
Was she being diligent, or was this her competitive side? Why did she have to win at everything, even this?
"Should we head inside?"
"Yes."
The interior was exactly what you'd expect from a Japanese restaurant—lots of wood. Cherry blossom decorations on the ceiling and a display shelf full of Japanese tableware gave the place a strong Japanese vibe. The space was wide and the tables were nicely spaced out, perfect for conversation. Successful places really were on another level. I looked around, impressed.
"Where do you want to sit?"
There were so many seats that choosing was hard. As I glanced around hesitantly, Yuna pointed to one side.
"How about over there?"
A corner seat far from the entrance. Exactly the kind of spot I would have picked. Introverts instinctively seek out corners. That sense of security you get from sitting with your back to a wall—you have to experience it to understand.
"Yeah, that's fine."
We walked to the corner table and sat down. The menu was already on the table; I opened it and placed it in the middle.
"They say the mazesoba here is really famous."
"Oh, is that so?"
What was mazesoba? Soba was soba, but the name wasn't familiar to someone who mostly stayed in and watched streams. Looking at the menu, there weren't that many options. A few rice bowls, a few soba dishes, plus sushi and ramen.
"Since I'm treating, order the most expensive thing you want."
"...Is that really okay?"
It felt weird, like I was taking money from my favorite streamer. When I thought about how some of that money probably came from my own donations, the feeling grew even more complicated.
"I'm buying because I feel bad, so don't pick something cheap. Get whatever you want."
"Alright."
"But in return, you can't go around telling people about me, okay?"
"I wasn't planning to do that in the first place."
It seemed like Yuna thought she could buy my silence with one meal. But that was a big misunderstanding. I had never intended to tell anyone. In a way, this was a memory that belonged only to me and Yuni. I didn't want to spread it around carelessly.
"I'll have the gyudon."
"Then I'll get the mazesoba. I've been wanting to try it."
We called the server over and finished ordering.
"Since we're eating together... should we drop the formal speech? Isn't it uncomfortable?"
Yuna seemed bothered by the fact that I kept using polite language. I was older than her, after all. Honestly, it didn't matter to me. Hearing her use polite speech felt familiar because that's how she talked on stream.
"It's fine either way. If it's uncomfortable for you, should I speak casually?"
"Yes. Then... what should I call you? We're in the same year, so 'senior' sounds weird. Woohyuk... oppa?"
Urk. She called me oppa. Yuni just called me oppa. I'm losing it. I'm actually losing it. Seeing the way Yuna looked at me when she said "oppa" made my mind go blank. I never knew hearing someone call me oppa could feel this good.
I got to hear the word that usually cost those rich donors hundreds of thousands of won. And I was hearing it while she bought me a meal. I couldn't speak, so I just nodded blankly.
"Just call me Yuna. I'm younger, after all."
"Okay. Y-Yuna."
My voice accidentally came out shaky. It was embarrassing.
The food came faster than expected. While we ate, Yuna and I kept up small talk. Mostly about college.
"Oppa, are you in that class? Wait, I'm in Professor Lee Gook-hwan's class too?"
"No way... the Wednesday class from twelve to three?"
"Yeah, that's the one. But how did we not know about each other?"
"It's a huge lecture with like eighty people, so it's hard to notice anyone specific."
"Ah, true."
Yuna and I shared one class. Since it was a massive lecture hall, it made sense that we hadn't noticed each other. Besides, we hadn't known each other before that anyway. Even if we'd seen each other, we probably wouldn't have paid any attention.
"But that professor is insanely boring, isn't he? It's impossible to stay awake."
"I agree. If I stay up all night before and go to class, I'm guaranteed to be asleep within five minutes."
"Hehe. That's why it's so frustrating."
After bonding over badmouthing the professor, we eventually ended up talking about the thing all basement-dwelling gamers eventually talk about.
"Oppa, do you play games?"
"Yeah. Quite a lot, actually."
"Ooh. I love games too. What do you play, oppa?"
"Mostly League of Legends and Steam games?"
"Really? Our tastes are exactly the same?"
Of course they were the same.
...Because I played every single game she played.
Obviously I couldn't say that to her face.