Another Chance Encounter

As always, the stream opened with Eve's voice ringing pleasantly against the eardrums.

The low chat that always kicked things off was like a warm-up exercise — for Eve right after going live, and for us Adami settling in. Through it, Eve confirmed we were here, and we gradually slipped into the Eve who was streaming.

Eve's announcement split the Adami into two camps — the ones defending Kiri and the ones seething with envy.

For the record, I couldn't pick a side... and the reason hardly needs saying.

Evemook. A portmanteau of Eve and simook — dejected.

One I'd sent her before.

One I'd sent!

One I'd sent!!!

It was from a donation of mine that Eve had liked so much she used it all the time.

...A donation I'd sent!!!

I hadn't noticed before, but Eve seemed to have a habit of looking away when she lied. Knowing full well who she was meeting, I could see the tell clear as day.

Ah, damn. I'd been about to send a silver coin myself.

Exactly. It was all because we loved Eve.

Every last Adami was a tsundere, after all.

And just like that, Eve's stream went dark.

Normally, if the next day was a holiday, she'd stream until four in the morning — but with her plans with Kiri tomorrow, she'd kept it relatively short. Maybe that was why a little disappointment lingered. Then again, it always did.

Still — a date with Kiri. I hoped I'd get to hear some fun stories tomorrow...

No. Wait. That was a date I'd be watching in person!

"I'm starting to lose track of what's real and what's virtual... Is this the price of dating a VTuber girlfriend?"

"Sudden chuuni attack?"

"It happens sometimes."

Kiri — no, Wa Sol — had already finished her own stream long ago and come into my room to watch Eve's with me.

For some reason, when she saw me watching Eve, she'd pinched my cheek hard. I still didn't know why.

"But Eve ruined everything... I wanted to surprise you."

"Eh, I already knew from the start."

"...Really?"

"Yeah."

"How?"

I smiled at Wa Sol tilting her head in confusion.

"If we're talking about people Wa Sol is close with, outside of Yun-a sunbae, it's only Utopia."

Maybe I'd gotten too close to her. I lobbed a completely tactless fastball straight at her — and it became a dead ball.

"Iii... you—!"

"Gah! Ow!"

Furious at my dead ball, Wa Sol tackled me and bit down on my shoulder.

Ever since the hickey she'd left on my neck last time, Wa Sol had mostly taken to marking places that clothes could hide.

"Hoo. Today's marking goes here. Any complaints?"

"None at all... I'm sorry."

"Hmph. Fine then — lie down already. I'm tired."

Even if she'd streamed less than Eve, Kiri's broadcast today had still run over seven hours. Of course she was exhausted.

I could have just gotten into bed first... but saying that out loud would probably earn me a matching mark on the other shoulder, so I quietly lay down with her.

Wa Sol, as a matter of course, used my arm as a pillow and nestled into my chest. I gently stroked her hair.

"You worked hard today too."

"...Do it more."

Ah — for the record, that aegyo mode I'd seen before still came out from time to time. Like now, when she was worn out after a stream.

"Aaaah, nice. I want to do it too."

"Wa Sol does?"

"Yeah. You studied hard today, so unnie will praise you."

"Haha, so now you want me to call you unnie again?"

"Hmm... sometimes?"

Come on. If being called by my name felt good and being called unnie also felt good, which one was I supposed to pick?

"But normally, I like being called by my name better."

"Then I'll only call you unnie sometimes."

"Mm, that's my Gachi. You know unnie's heart so well. Good boy, good boy."

Huh. Why was she scratching under my chin instead of my head? This felt a little like being treated as a pet.

"This feels less like a little brother and more like a cat."

"Yeah. I just felt like it. Hehe."

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"...Then I'll treat you like a cat too."

"Kyaaah! Not the stomach! I've put on weight lately!"

Where, exactly?

Wa Sol, you can't just say things like that... A person so skinny that her ribs stick out in fitted clothes saying she's gained weight is how you get yelled at by people who are actually chubby...

"Ugh, maybe I should diet..."

"Absolutely not. Lose any more and you'll blow away in the wind."

"And if that happens, Gachi will catch me?"

"Obviously."

"Then I will."

"No."

I'd let my guard down. I never expected her to steer the conversation like that. People who work with their voices really are different.

"Ah, right. I'm heading to campus for a bit tomorrow. Professor Yu Eun-yeong said she wants to see me."

"...Because of the midterm grades?"

"No way..."

Honestly, I thought it was possible. After watching Wa Sol study through the midterm period that had just ended this week, I'd reached a firm conclusion.

Wa Sol was right to work as a VTuber.

Not that VTubers were inherently bad at studying — just that if you had this little interest or passion for academics, a different path was the correct one.

"Wa Sol should be grateful to Yun-a sunbae for the rest of her life."

"Why?"

"Because Yun-a sunbae is the one who suggested she audition for Utopia."

"...And bringing that up right now means I'm a total airhead, does it~?"

"I understa—"

"Hmph."

"Ow... sorry."

Lately she'd gotten really into pinching my cheeks.

Well, I liked touching Wa Sol's cheeks too, so fair enough.

"Mwah. Whatever. I'm sleeping."

"Mwah. Okay. Let's sleep."

After trading kisses on each other's cheeks, we fell asleep with tomorrow's expectations held close to our chests.

The morning of the day I was meeting Eve.

Wa Sol got up first, summoned by Professor Yu Eun-yeong, and headed to campus.

"...What do I do with the time left?"

Come to think of it, I didn't even know Eve's face, so until Wa Sol came back I had no choice but to sit around at home. And there wasn't much to do at home either.

Right after watching Eve's streams, I'd gone through a lot of the anime she recommended — but lately I'd already seen almost everything interesting. Nothing left to watch.

What to do...

"Maybe I'll go for a walk."

I could lie around and browse café reviews, or open YouTube and watch Utopia clips — both fine options.

But the weather outside was just too nice.

Today, for some reason, I felt like going out.

I washed up quickly, left the apartment, and wandered the neighborhood, soaking in weather that had finally turned fully warm.

"The weather really is nice... Ah. I'm starting to get a little shaky."

Truth be told, sitting still indoors had become hard. Up until yesterday, I'd been able to keep my cool by telling myself Eve was Eve and the person inside was separate.

But the moment I thought about actually meeting my oshi in person, the nerves hit.

"Hoo. Calm down. Just think of her as Wa Sol's close little sister. Wait — but does she know that I know she's Eve...?"

Judging by Wa Sol's attitude so far, she seemed to be operating under the assumption that I didn't know. Did that mean I had to pretend not to know to her face...?

Ah, whatever.

I'd ask Wa Sol when she got back.

"Still, time is crawling... It's only eleven."

What time would Wa Sol be done? I'd told her to message me the moment the consultation finished, so she was probably still in it... or, knowing her, she might just be chatting happily with Professor Yu Eun-yeong...

No... she was probably having a serious consultation in a serious atmosphere.

Surely she wasn't sitting there talking about her love life... I chose to believe that.

"But I've only been apart from Wa Sol for a few minutes and already she's all I can think about. I'm completely gone, aren't I."

The only other time my head had been this occupied by a single person was with Eve. Well — after watching Eve's practice streams, I'd thought about nothing but Eve for a long stretch...

Looking back now — Eve, smiling and talking alone against that bare background.

Eve, the only light in a room like a cave, the one who'd made it possible for me to step outside.

Today, I was going to meet that Eve.

"...It'd be weirder not to be nervous."

What was I supposed to say?

I'm a fan? I've wanted to meet you? Your voice is really beautiful?

...

Do you remember me...?

No. Scratch that. Just... move on.

"And what does she even look like. She is actually a girl, right... If she's one of those net-kama types... Ah, seriously. This is exactly why I tried not to care about the personal stuff!"

I clutched my head and muttered to myself in the middle of the street. Naturally, passersby gave me strange looks — but fretting over that would be amateur hour.

"Maybe keeping some distance is better after all. Yeah — see her just this once, and then try not to meet again if possible... That sounds way too cold, though. Haa."

Problem this way, problem that way.

Fussing over a future that hadn't even happened yet, I took a path I didn't usually walk, trying to sort out the mess in my head.

"...What's that?"

I saw a woman who looked like she was in trouble.

Anyone who doesn't pay much attention to their surroundings while walking will understand — sometimes a friend can pass right by and you don't even notice.

And yet there are people your eyes go to anyway.

For not-great reasons, sometimes — your gaze just catches without you meaning it to.

Same for me. On a normal day, even if someone nearby was struggling, I'd often walk right past without registering them at all.

But she drew my eyes without my meaning to. Not because of the soft features you could make out even from a distance.

Because she was in a wheelchair.

And more than that—

"...Can she not speak?"

She would move into someone's field of view, trying to get their attention, then hold up a brand-new tablet. There seemed to be writing on it.

"Oh. They're just walking off."

But the people who looked at the tablet shook their heads and left her behind. Apparently she'd asked for something hard to help with.

In the end she started looking for someone else. Fortunately it was a powered wheelchair, so getting around looked easy enough. Then someone called out to her.

She flinched.

Even from a distance, the startle was obvious. An old man passing by had spoken up, trying to help the woman in distress — but she covered her face with the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠tablet and shook her head sideways, almost as if fleeing.

So having someone approach her first was hard for her.

Eventually the old man scratched his head and walked away. She let out a breath that looked like relief, then set off in the wheelchair again, searching for someone else.

...How to put it.

If I hadn't seen her, fine.

But I had. So...

A whim took hold — I wanted to help.

If she refused, that would be that, but it was worth saying something at least once.

If I spoke first, though, I'd probably just scare her the way the old man had... What method... Ah.

What do I do.

I'd wanted to wait at the meeting spot early and surprise Wa Sol unnie.

But it had been so long since I'd been out for this extended a stretch that I'd forgotten to charge my phone... I'd memorized the area to some degree, but there were so many alleys I couldn't find the café unnie had mentioned.

Haa... Fine. I'll ask for help... The me I am now can do this!

Of course, not being able to speak outside would make it a bit of a struggle... but that was my own doing, so what could I say...

Once I'd decided, all that was left was to act!

So I tried asking people for directions as they passed — but for some reason, the moment I showed them my tablet, they apologized and just walked off. Had I asked wrong...?

I read the text on the tablet over to myself.

Could you help me a little? ...The spelling looks fine.

At least one person should have been willing to help... Honestly, what a cold, hard world.

Should I find a public phone and call unnie? That wouldn't surprise her — it'd just make her worry... I didn't want that.

What do I do... Huh?

A large man was coming toward me.

I couldn't see his face, but the way my body started trembling on its own told me it was a man.

I lowered my head and waited for him to pass.

He stopped in front of me.

...What?

I lifted my head a little and looked at him.

...And felt a flicker of confusion.

Because the man was holding up his phone toward me with an expression that said Is this right?, and on the screen were the words:

What? Did he think I can't hear either?

His approach was a little puzzling, and yet...

Somehow... he doesn't seem like a bad person.

Bigger than me, and probably older too — the man in front of me kept a careful distance, and instead of speaking out loud, he'd asked me in writing.

A stranger I'd never met before, and yet that consideration, that sense of space...

It put me a little at ease.