Celebrity Research Club
'Just ten more minutes of sleep.' I really meant to close my eyes for exactly ten. I'd woken up earlier than usual, so I figured it was fine. I let myself relax and shut my eyes for a bit—then opened them again.
The moment I sat up, something felt off. My body felt way too refreshed for such a short nap. And sunlight was pouring in through the curtains, bright and cheerful. With a sinking feeling, I grabbed my phone.
Sure enough, my gut had been right. AM 08:15. The world stopped. Or rather, I stopped.
Our school might be lenient with attendance, but skipping or showing up late without permission gets you in just as much trouble as anywhere else. Especially for a repeat offender like me.
'One more unexcused tardy, and it's bathroom cleaning duty.' That was the teacher's final warning to me.
Bathroom cleaning for an idol? No way. I bolted out of bed like lightning and dashed to the sink. From here on, it was a battle against myself.
I brushed my teeth with one hand while combing my messy hair with the other. After a frantic wash-up, I changed clothes at light speed—faster than a new recruit swapping uniforms.
Current time: AM 08:25. If I grabbed a taxi right now, I might—just might—make it without being late.
Spotting a taxi parked by the roadside, I jumped in. "Haneul Arts High School, please! As fast as you can!"
Twenty minutes until the bell. The drive to school normally took ten. Relief washed over me—I could make it.
"Phew."
But I'd overlooked one crucial detail: rush hour.
Traffic was worse than expected, and it took a full twenty minutes to reach school.
"Keep the change!" I tossed cash at the driver and sprinted toward the gate. Classes were starting, and the front gate was slowly closing.
I ran at full speed and slipped inside just in time.
...Safe.
As I caught my breath in relief, a gruff voice beside me declared, "Tardy."
I turned to see a third-year guy standing there, with a disciplinary committee badge on his necktie.
"T-Tardy!? But I made it before the gate closed!"
"Check the time."
I pulled out my phone. AM 08:51. Barely a minute late. Honestly, not even that—the gate was still closing when I got in, so maybe ten or twenty seconds at most.
"Come on, I was right before it shut. Can't you let it slide just this once?" I clasped my hands together, pleading desperately.
The student affairs teacher wasn't around, and if this senior overlooked it, I'd be off the hook. Ten seconds was forgivable, right?
But the third-year was merciless. "Ten seconds is still tardy. Cut the excuses and write your name and class here." He handed me the logbook.
He was disciplinary committee and a senior—kinda intimidating. No choice but to comply. I scribbled my info and handed it back. I was late, after all.
Thanks to that, I got dragged to the staff room for another scolding.
"You rascal, tardy again!" The teacher gently pinched my cheeks with both hands. My soft, glutinous-rice-cake cheeks stretched sideways under her fingers.
"...S-sorry, ma'am."
As I stood there letting her pinch away, Ga-young burst in from the staff room, waving the attendance book, and stopped her in a panic.
"N-No, don't!"
With a super serious face, she shielded me. Anyone would think I was being tortured. It was just playful pinching, not even hard.
The teacher and I both stared at her, dumbfounded. Ga-young cleared her throat awkwardly.
"Ahem! I think pinching faces is wrong. Faces are... precious."
Our usually obedient class president was scolding the teacher for the first time. The teacher scratched the back of her head sheepishly.
"Huh... yeah, you're right. Okay, I'll be careful next time. But tardiness is still wrong. That's seven times this month already."
I rubbed my cheek dejectedly. Anything but bathroom duty.
The teacher stared at my face for a moment, then sighed in resignation. "You did try not to be late, so no bathroom cleaning."
Instead, library cleaning. Compared to bathrooms, it was heaven. Separate AC, too.
**
"Hm♪" I mop the library floor clean, mop in hand. It was already spotless, so there wasn't much for me to do.
"That's enough on the floor. Can you shelve the books from the return bin?"
"Yes, got it."
"I'll step out for a bit, so finish that and head back."
The librarian left me alone. I emptied the return bin into a basket. More books than expected, all sorts of genres. Now to put them back... but I'd never even organized books before, let alone been in here much.
...Where did what go?
I was stumped from the start, racking my brain solo—when a familiar face entered the library.
"Huh, what're you doing here?" It was after school; Yu-ri had come to borrow a book.
"Library cleaning as punishment. You?"
"Grabbing a book real quick."
"Ah, cool."
"What's with this stack?"
"Returns. Gotta shelve 'em, but I don't know where."
"If that's it..."
Yu-ri went to the computer in the corner, checked the shelving map, then sorted the entire basket by genre in seconds.
She memorized all that at once? Insane memory.
I was in awe of her unbelievable recall. Actors memorize lines daily, so it must be from that life.
"This'll make it easier. I'll help—split 'em half and half."
"For real? Thanks a ton."
With her help, we finished in no time. I bowed gratefully. "You're always saving me."
She'd been approaching me first lately, offering help. I had no idea why, but I wanted to repay her—not just as Ruti, but as Kim Siyeon too. She didn't know they were the same.
...Though I was repaying her now, but only as Ruti.
"Anything else I can help with?"
"Help?"
She crossed her arms, thinking, then snapped her fingers. "Then come to the clubroom with me?"
"Club?"
"There's one I wanna join, but going alone feels awkward."
...I'd already joined dance club. But for a trial visit? Should be fine. I agreed readily. "Sure, let's go."
We headed to the fourth floor, where clubrooms lined the long hallway. The one Yu-ri went to was———
CELEBRITY RESEARCH CLUB
That was unexpected. I'd figured something like drama club.
"This is the one you wanna join...?"
"Yeah. Stumbled on it through fan cafe stuff. Let's check it out."
Excited, she opened the door and went in. I followed naturally.
First thing I saw———
"Huh?"
A big poster of my face was on the wall. Plus photos, article clippings, magazines scattered on desks.
Celebrity Research Club—yeah, I vaguely guessed they'd stan celebs. But me as the target? Never saw that coming.
Awkward. But the real shock was elsewhere.
"Students hoping to join? Wait... you...?"
The third-year guy in the room did a double-take at me. It was the disciplinary senior from the gate this morning.
"What, you're a Ruti fan too?"
"Uh, well..."
Swept up in the moment, I said yes. Claiming to be my own fan? Felt narcissistic.
He scratched his head sheepishly. "Shoulda let you slide if I'd known... But don't hate me too much. I was just doing my job."
"No hard feelings. It was my fault for being late."
I said that, but some petty part of me was still miffed.
"Sit down first." He poured us coffee each, then stacked some magazines on the desk—all with me on the cover.
"First time girls wanna join, so I'm a bit nervous. Ahem! I'm Jin Do-yoon, president of the Celebrity Research Club. One of Ruti's biggest fans." He introduced himself shyly, hand trembling on his cup.
It felt kinda bad saying this to a fan—but...
...I felt a little bummed.