Not Underwear, Just Something Unembarrassing 2: Ruti's Surprise Splash at Jeju Waterpark
A video of me saving the kid who fell in the water had gone up on Vertube. In just one day, it racked up 3 million views, and the comments below were endlessly praising my good deed.
A popular idol saves a precious life. The reactions were pouring in, almost worshipful, zeroing in on that angle.
...That was the response from the sunny side of the internet. So what kind of talk was buzzing in the dark corners?
With worry and curiosity all tangled up, I opened the search bar.
I typed my name into the familiar search window. Right at the top was a massive community called Celebrity Gallery.
There were tons of posts about me under the Nimgle page. Like the Vertube comments, most were praising me.
One difference, though: the praise was mostly about my body.
The post with the most views was titled Ruti 4K High-Res Gif.
The second I clicked, a photo of me in my swimsuit popped up. The quality was ridiculously high—I could even make out the mole above my chest crystal clear.
I let out a deep sigh looking at it.
I'd half-expected this, and sure enough, someone had snapped a pic of me. With all those people crowding around, it was no surprise.
I was just relieved my Glasses Syndrome hadn't been exposed.
Hundreds of comments were piled under the photo. I swallowed hard and started scrolling through people's reactions one by one.
The story of me saving the drowning kid was nowhere to be found—they were all just wallowing in sleazy talk.
I'd only skimmed about a tenth of the comments, but my head was already spinning.
No wonder Manager Unnie always told me to stay off the internet.
Even a quick peek was enough to leave me feeling drained.
I shoved my phone away and buried my face in the pillow.
That photo from online kept circling in my head. My face burned.
"Aah!"
The pure, bubbly image I'd worked so hard to build had crumbled in an instant.
Sure, the reactions were hotter than ever now... but it felt kinda gross, like I'd turned into a gravure model overnight.
...Hey, give me back my pure bubbly image.
I was sighing to myself when Manager Unnie walked into my room.
Unlike me, she looked thrilled.
My good deed was soaking up all the media spotlight right now. For the agency, there was no better scenario.
Publicity is lifeblood for celebs, after all.
"Mind if I come in?"
Manager Unnie set the basket she was carrying on the bed. It was stuffed with all sorts of skincare products.
"Let Unnie take care of your skin."
"...You don't have to."
"No way! You were out in the sun all day. What if you break out?"
Day 5 of the Jeju shoot. Most of the filming was near the beach, so UV exposure was unavoidable.
My skin was already super pale, making me extra sensitive to the sun.
To keep my tone from changing, I needed spot treatments like this.
"Fine. But did you lock the door properly?"
"Only female staff here at the dorm right now. The boss even kicked himself out, so relax."
"If that's the case, sure."
I stripped off my top and flopped face-down on the bed.
Manager Unnie started gently spreading cream over my back with her hands.
She rubbed softly to help it absorb, then kneaded the knotted muscles with firm pressure.
"Hngh!"
A soft moan slipped out.
She watched me with a fond smile, shrugged her shoulders, and said,
"Feels good, right?"
"How are you this good at massage?"
"I've got a skincare esthetician certification, you know."
I let out a little gasp of admiration.
I'd always thought so, but Unnie really could do anything.
From schedule management to outfit checks, condition tweaks, and now skincare.
Manager Lee Su-ah (29). Rumor had it she held over 30 national certifications.
The more I saw, the more amazing she seemed.
To me, she was practically a mom.
"Why don't you just become my mom while you're at it?"
"...I'm still in my twenties. Late twenties, but still."
"Ow!"
Unnie suddenly dug in hard with her massaging hand. A sharp pain shot through, making my vision spin.
"...That hurts."
"Your muscles are all knotted up here. It'll hurt worse if you don't loosen them in time."
Her face was smiling, but there was a thorn in her tone.
Had I said something wrong?
"There, back's done. Flip over."
"Yep."
I rolled to face the ceiling, naturally covering my chest with a towel.
Even if she was mom-like (?), showing that much was still embarrassing.
Unnie started massaging my front the same way.
She poked around my stomach a few times, then suddenly stopped.
"Hmm."
She narrowed her eyes and started kneading my belly.
Her touch was totally different from the massage—more probing.
It tickled a bit, so I squirmed without thinking.
Unnie looked at me with a serious gaze and said,
"Siyeon-ah... you've put on about a kilo this time, haven't you?"
"!?"
I flinched hard.
It was the result of popping over to Grandpa's place constantly during the shoot.
Every time I showed up, Grandma loaded me up with feasts, and I couldn't say no.
End result: a whole kilo in a short time.
"D-Does it show? I don't really notice..."
I played dumb and poked my own stomach.
My frame was so slim to begin with, the gain barely showed.
But could I fool Unnie's eyes?
She stared at me with utter certainty, pinching my belly lightly with one hand.
Reluctantly, I nodded and admitted it.
Then Unnie grinned and patted my head.
Her face was angelic, but her words were devilishly cruel.
"Looks like we start emergency diet mode tomorrow."
"...Ah."
My jaw dropped at the bolt-from-the-blue declaration.
...Me? On a diet?
Day 6 of the shoot. Our last day in Jeju.
Filming had wrapped yesterday, so I figured we'd take it easy today.
But nope.
"Just one word, please!"
"One quick interview!"
"A comment, anything!"
Reporters had swarmed the dorm since morning, begging for interviews.
All because of that viral video of me saving the kid.
How the hell did they find the dorm location?
We'd dodged them the whole time, only to get busted on the last day.
Swish.
I peeked out by cracking the curtain. Dozens of reporters and crew from every network had the place surrounded.
Vans everywhere.
"Haa..."
I sighed deeply and closed the curtain.
No way was I doing interviews.
One led to no end.
We'd only greenlight the ones with agency-friendly reporters.
They were due any minute... but with that mob outside, they couldn't get in.
Someone needed to distract the press.
That someone was Yu-ri.
She disguised herself as me and hopped in a car with staff.
Our builds were similar enough that from afar, she was indistinguishable.
"Sorry for dragging you into this."
"No worries. Feels like a spy movie—kinda fun."
Yu-ri's car slipped out of the dorm smoothly.
The reporters, thinking I was in it, chased after like mad.
In the chaos, the friendly reporters snuck inside.
"Long time no see, Ruti."
Three reporters in total.
I knew two of them, but the guy in the middle was a new face.
"Nice to meet you. Here's my card. I just happened to tag along for today's coverage."
He handed me his business card.
Caribbean Park—the biggest waterpark in the country. What did they want with me?
I tilted my head, and he slowly explained.
"We were really impressed by your heroic act this time. So, we'd like to make you a proposal."
Hearing the man out, I grinned right there on the spot.
Summer break was shaping up to be busier than I'd thought.