Chapter 54
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Thanks for Indulging My Whining
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“...Ow.”
I rubbed my reddened forehead and glanced at Chaewon, who was lounging next to me, thoroughly enjoying the sauna like it was the most comfortable thing in the world.
“Haaah, this feels so good.”
Her face looked utterly refreshed as she pressed a towel—brought in ahead of time—against the fluffy beads of sweat rising on her skin.
“What do I do? I love the sauna way too much. Thinking about hitting up the other rooms soon has me in such a great mood. I could do this every day.”
“Then build one at home.”
“Should I?”
Is this what they call flexing your wealth?
It suddenly hit me that the person sitting in front of me was Han Chaewon, the epitome of young, rich, and pretty from Ever.
“Ugh, in a bit, I gotta chug two banana milks~.”
Watching her in that yellow clay sauna outfit, grumbling like some middle-aged uncle, she was back to being my childhood friend Chaewon.
“Random question, but have you ever come to a place like this with the members?”
“The members? Once, back when we went to Finland for a shoot. Finland's famous for dry saunas, right?”
“The birthplace of saunas.”
“It was so fun, but that was years ago already. We said we'd all go together sometime—maybe during this tour.”
“Finland's on the itinerary this time?”
“Nah, I meant Japan. We're heading to Japan, then Southeast Asia, and there's a gap in between, so I'm planning to crash at May's place and hit the hot springs together.”
Chaewon chatted leisurely, savoring the sauna at her own pace.
Five minutes might be short in normal terms, but could you really call it short in a space pushing over 100 degrees?
Yeah. I was hitting my limit. My face was burning up, and now I was starting to feel short of breath.
I stuck out my tongue in amazement at Chaewon, who was still trying to soak it all in, and stood up. She noticed and turned toward me...
“Wanna hug?”
“You need to get out too. Are you insane?”
Who did she plan to kill?
“Fight heat with heat. If you push through, you'll come out stronger.”
“I'll pass out before that.”
“Don't worry. I'll do CPR and mouth-to-mouth.”
“How long?”
“The mouth-to-mouth?”
“No, how long are you gonna keep talking nonsense?”
“...Hey, aren't you being a bit harsh?”
The bratty one pouted her lips and furrowed her brows at my firm response.
I couldn't tell if her sulky expression was genuine or an act, but seeing my girlfriend like that stirred some guilt as her boyfriend.
Of course, the bigger thought was making sure there'd be no backlash later, but still.
“Don't actually get upset. What are you, a kid?”
“Yeah, I am. Happy?”
“...How do I make it up to you?”
“Hug, like I said? Nothing more, nothing less—just five seconds.”
Judging by her tone, she wasn't sulking at all.
Ah. Fooled again.
“What if I refuse?”
“Then I'm not leaving.”
“Your loss, then?”
“...I could collapse, you know. Wouldn't that hurt you too?”
What? Why was she getting genuinely upset this time?
Setting aside how unpredictable she was, I forced a smile in my urgency and scooted a bit closer.
“That'd be a global tragedy. I'd lose a precious friend, her family a beloved daughter and cousin and whatnot, and the fans a versatile artist. Then people seeing all those depressed folks would get depressed too, spreading worldwide...”
“You pass.”
“...Five seconds. Exactly five.”
I let out a sigh of relief and shook my head slightly.
Ah, I really should've stuck to the friend concept here. Even I think I'm someone with guts but no tears. Sigh, I'm not usually like this.
She ought to know how much I like her, worrying over a single word like that.
With that thought—maybe I should read a dating advice book later—I closed the distance again.
My girlfriend waited with arms spread wide right in front of me (devil in disguise)...
Man, I really don't wanna hug her.
“My arms are getting tired.”
“If you don't toughen up, you'll pay the price later.”
Gritting my teeth, I leaned forward and hugged her.
The moment we did, I could feel our sweat soaking through the sauna suits... Honestly, whose was whose, I couldn't tell—just sticky and gross.
But I was doing it. Seriously, if this isn't true love, what is?
Just as I hoped this bratty one would recognize my love,
Angle away from the camera. No separate audio mic. And—
*Smack.*
“Thanks for indulging my whining.”
The soft touch on my cheek.
No need to say it—it was her lips.
“...”
“Yumin, you must be super hot. Your face is so red.”
She pulled away from the hug and shamelessly put on a worried face.
But the subtle twitch at the corner of her mouth clearly showed Chaewon—my sly girlfriend—was barely holding back a laugh.
“Shall we head out?”
I nodded silently.
The ice room and the perfect-temperature cypress room for dozing off.
We alternated between those two for about five minutes and fifteen minutes each, repeating it a couple of times.
Chaewon, who had been singing the banana milk song, suddenly wanted parfait and manga while munching away, so we headed straight to the manga room.
Like the sauna, the manga cafe was a popular spot for all ages, but on a weekday afternoon just past 1 p.m., how many people could there be?
“Wooow.”
Chaewon settled into her seat with a sigh of admiration, taking it easy.
Next to the banana milk she'd brought were five manga volumes she'd picked out in advance, lined up neatly.
For the record, I'd grabbed the ones Chaewon recommended.
“Isn't that the popular anime right now?”
“Yeah. It's got two seasons animated, but I'm dying to know what happens next, so I'm just gonna read it. No way I can wait for season three next year.”
It was a super famous action fantasy manga—I knew the gist, but I'd never actually read it.
Meanwhile, the one in my hands was a modern sports manga with some romance mixed in.
Wondering why she'd given me this, I snuck a peek at what she was reading...
—What the hell? Why is it so grotesque?
I couldn't understand why she'd like something like that, so I shot her a blank look.
“What? Wanna read it too?”
“Nah, no. Keep reading.”
I glanced at her engrossed face, then opened my own book.
For a while, we both dove into our manga.
No wonder it sold well—the quality was top-notch regardless of genre, so the pages flew by.
The low jazz playing in the manga cafe mixed with the rustle of turning pages for some time. Once we'd finished our volumes, we got up to grab the next ones.
In the short time it took me to shelve and return, this bratty one had invaded my seat, reading in the most comfy position imaginable.
“Hey. Move over?”
“I need a backrest. Perfect timing.”
I sighed at Chaewon wiggling her fingers for me to hurry up and sat down where she pointed.
No matter how empty it was, this was still a public space.
To avoid making a scene, I obediently sat...
“This works nice.”
Chaewon, using my shoulder and the wall as backrests, shifted around before settling with a satisfied look and picking up her book again.
“It's good, right?”
“No surprise it's got a full anime adaptation.”
“Want me to recommend more after?”
“What's next genre-wise?”
“Was gonna say watch this one I'm reading now?”
“...Oh. That one?”
“Why, hate it?”
“...Isn't it brutal?”
“Tough it out. Then you get to the fun parts.”
I chuckled and nodded at her sincere side-eye.
Gotta take it slow.
With that thought, as I lifted my manga,
Tap tap. Chaewon lightly patted my thigh.
“Gimme iced tea.”
“...You possessed or something?”
“I want some. Just one sip.”
Seeing her mouth open, ready to receive, left me dumbfounded.
I hadn't even agreed—what gives?
I was about to scold her when I noticed people starting to trickle in, forcing a wry smile.
As I tried to play dumb and brush it off,
“Honey.”
The endearing term whispered right in my ear. It was the sweet call of affection.
“Honey, come on, give it already?”
Chaewon shook a little, throwing a playful tantrum.
It would've startled past-me, but now we were at a stage where 'honey' fit perfectly.
Plus, 'honey' was a cutesy nickname you could use jokingly with close friends, so even on camera, it wasn't awkward.
“Only when you need something, huh, honey?”
As long as I played along naturally, no one would suspect a thing.
“I'm thirsty, I said.”
“Iced tea won't quench that.”
“Dude. What's the harm in sharing?”
“No such thing as free in this world.”
“Do some aegyo and maybe.”
“I didn't use the straw. You can.”
I quickly set down my manga and handed her the iced tea from inside.
At my overly accommodating refusal of her aegyo, she shot me a sharp glare, looking baffled...
“My arms are gonna fall off, honey. Let's drink?”
“...Y-Yeah. Can't let my honey's arms fall off.”
She instantly grinned at the nickname, anger melting away.
Smiling, she slurped away at the iced tea. Wait—didn't expect her to drink that much.
“Thanks, honey?”
I stared blankly between the half-gone iced tea and the glutton's face, and glutton Han winked quick, laughing it off.
“...”
I stayed stone-faced.
“...Love you?”
“...”
“Sorry.”
“Didn't I say I wouldn't let it slide twice?”
“I'll make it up with aegyo.”
“But I'll let it go. I'm generous.”
“...You keep dodging my aegyo?”
How'd the tables turn like this?
“Oh! Our honey parfait from earlier...!”
The pager buzzed right on cue, and I jumped up fast.
I bolted to the counter and planned to dawdle back with distractions, but unfortunately, the timing didn't allow it.
“Kang Yumin, for you, I'll do the aegyo three-set...?”
Chaewon, the aegyo master, cheeks puffed full, face screaming 'I'm about to do aegyo.'
“Got a mission card.”
But flashing the mission card with the parfait deflated her cheeks like a balloon.
I handed her the parfait and sat down.
“Mission?”
“Wanna read it this time?”
I passed it to her, already guessing the gist.
Chaewon took a bite of parfait, chewing as she opened the mission sheet.
“The undisputed stage charisma queen puhhf...! Hold up. I have to read this? Even I'm not shameless enough to say this out loud.”
I took over for Chaewon, who cracked up immediately.
“The undisputed stage charisma queen. Ever's genius leader Han Chaewon captivates Forever with overwhelming performances. ...Whew. Even I cringe reading this.”
“Why? It's all true. Keep going.”
I glanced ahead, expecting 'why what why,' and read on reluctantly.
“...But to her bestie Yumin, she's just this era's playful brat. Not the fave idol—just an incorrigible kid.”
“Wait. Is that really in there?”
“Watch concert footage with Yumin, who's never been to an Ever concert, and share idol stories he's never experienced.”
I flipped the card to show the skeptical bratty one, who pursed her lips and smiled oddly.
“So that's why you brought the tablet.”
“You're my friend and an idol, but I know zilch about your world. We've never talked about it, so I wanted to know what your life's like.”
“What, Kang Yumin? Getting all mature, curious about other people's lives now?”
“What does that even mean?”
“Still, I'm happy. Back in high school, you barely texted. I waited for 'great stage' messages, but you sent them like, super rarely.”
“You know I had zero interest till you told me you were an idol. First music show I watched was 'cause of you, right?”
“...Yeah, fair.”
“You're Ever, my best friend, so I made real time to watch hard. How much you think I watched to know the chor—”
“...You know the choreo too?”
“Stage vid first?”
“Gonna make you try it later.”
Ah, shouldn't have said that.