First Day at the Host Bar
Kim Namhu finished eating the beef and pulled his younger brother aside.
His brother, who had smoked, had apparently come out thinking it was time for a smoke break after dinner.
The two of them headed to a convenience store a little ways from the shop.
There, they sipped coffee together and began talking.
“What’s up, hyung?”
Kim Namhu handed his younger brother an envelope.
Inside were three million won in cash.
His brother checked the contents, then asked in surprise.
“What is this? Where did you borrow it from?”
It was highly unlikely that a university student brother would suddenly obtain such a large amount of money in a normal way.
If his brother thought about it, without using a loan shark with suspiciously high interest rates, there was no way to come up with this kind of money.
“I can’t keep going with part-time jobs and attending university. Dad’s hospital bills will keep coming too. But I didn’t borrow it.”
“So you earned it? Where did all this sudden big money even come from?”
“I decided to become a host.”
“A host? Pouring drinks for women?”
His brother reacted similarly to what most people would.
A negative reaction.
Working in the nightlife industry brought nothing but disapproving glances, whether male or female.
Kim Namhu had no intention of talking about the job with his brother for long.
So he lied.
“Don’t worry. Life is long. Just a few years of hard work and I’ll be out. And hosts aren’t like prostitutes—you won’t get arrested by the police.”
“Still, hyung…”
“Then you’ll pay for Dad’s hospital bills? Can you even pay them? Right now, with the money from this restaurant?”
The family finances were in the red every month.
After paying the hospital bills first, the remaining money for living costs was always short.
“First, you should put a little bit of shop money in the envelope each month. Enough that Mom won’t notice. That way, we stop the debt from growing. The interest on any bank loans will keep coming steadily. I can only trust you. Got it?”
His brother felt guilty about his hyung earning money like this by sacrificing himself.
But he knew, as his hyung said, that the situation left no choice.
“I understand. Hyung. But once things with the family improve, I stop, right? It’s a bit of a weird job anyway.”
His brother knew nothing about the host world.
He just had a negative impression based on the image he saw.
‘The host rolling around on the bottom is one thing, but the top-tier host doesn’t know that being a man is the best job.’
Kim Namhu said without expressing his thoughts aloud.
“I understand.”
Then Kim Namhu smiled at his brother.
Only then did his brother smile and crack a joke.
“If you can do it, maybe I’ll try too? My face isn’t bad anywhere.”
Kim Namhu gave his brother a light tap on the head.
“With that face, you’d be a complete flop.”
**
Kim Namhu had set everything up in advance at the shop he knew and started his first shift.
Combined with all the previous lives he had lived, this had been an absurdly busy first day.
But even the first day felt exciting.
Kim Namhu pushed his emotions aside and tried to guess what might happen today.
‘Doing things normally would probably be best, right?’
Kim Namhu liked the idea of being a host, but he didn’t deny that the host bar attracted all kinds of scum.
In reality, more bad men than good men existed in this industry.
Back in school, he had been a school bully. If his face was decent, that was good enough to become a host.
If things went south, the thugs who would throw punches first were not few in number.
To survive among such people, being skilled alone wasn’t enough.
Jealous thugs who were skilled could still resort to violence.
‘In the end, along with skill, one also needs a certain amount of respect.’
In his last life, he had avoided socializing with other hosts to prevent pointless suffering.
Only later did he realize the importance of it and began associating with decent people, receiving unexpected help as well.
‘This place is just like any other. Nothing wrong with sticking together.’
Kim Namhu started greeting every person he saw upon entering the host bar.
Good manners at work got half the social life covered.
And in a host bar full of thugs, good manners could cover a few mistakes.
“Hello. I’m Kim Namhu, starting my first day today.”
And most people ignored his greeting or just nodded without much acknowledgment.
Polite etiquette was hard to find here.
Then Lee Sang-soo, who managed the host rush, opened the door and came in.
The moment he entered, he told all the hosts.
“Everyone gather.”
Even though it was the host industry where thugs gathered, there was still discipline.
It was like morning assembly in a regular company—announcing matters to be shared with the members and checking for any issues.
The store staff continued with their own work, while only the hosts lined up around Lee Sang-soo.
Lee Sang-soo quickly confirmed that all the players had come for the first shift.
As always, he said the usual sales pitch.
“I know sales are down because it’s weekdays and there are fewer customers. But if we sell a lot of drinks now, you all know how nice the weekends will be. Let’s give it our all.”
When sales were low, they cheered for them to be low.
When they were good, they cheered for new records.
Every day, no matter what excuse, the Main’s job was to say “fighting” or “let’s do it.”
Kim Namhu, who knew this, almost laughed but held it in.
And when Lee Sang-soo saw Kim Namhu, he said.
“Now, and from today, the newest member Kim Namhu. Twenty-one years old. Don’t treat me like a kid just because I’m older—do well.”
In society, twenty-one was still just a kid, but in the host industry, being a little older made you a fresh-faced rookie.
Most hosts jumped into the business right after high school, and some even lied about their age.
“Now, introduce yourself.”
Kim Namhu stood beside Lee Sang-soo and bowed to everyone.
“Hello. I’m Kim Namhu. I’ll work hard. Please give me lots of guidance.”
It was a normal introduction with nothing special and no rough edges.
It looked like some people had already forgotten who Kim Namhu was.
Lee Sang-soo spoke again.
“Now, everyone has had their first time. You’ve learned a lot from your seniors. For the time being, Cha Ji-hoon will be teaching Kim Namhu.”
Cha Ji-hoon had been the one teaching Kim Namhu everything since the first day.
A little older than Kim Namhu, and Lee Sang-soo had picked him as the sasaeng based on that.
“Now, let’s give it our all today too.”
Lee Sang-soo ended the meeting with those words.
In response, the hosts grouped up by their factions and started chatting, strengthening bonds.
Then Jang Hyo-woon approached Kim Namhu together with Cha Ji-hoon.
‘Now that I think about it, Cha Ji-hoon was in Jang Hyo-woon’s faction.’
Kim Namhu remembered even which nail polish the women customers had worn, but he didn’t remember much about the men.
It was only when he saw Jang Hyo-woon’s actions that his memory came back faintly.
Jang Hyo-woon placed his hand on Cha Ji-hoon’s shoulder in front of Kim Namhu and said.
“Cha Ji-hoon has grown a lot? Now he’s even teaching newbies.”
“I’ve also earned some gray hair. Haha.”
Jang Hyo-woon told Kim Namhu.
“Since I’m older, it’s okay to call me by my first name, right?”
“Yes.”
“You can call me hyung too. And do you smoke? Before we start training, how about a quick smoke.”
Kim Namhu recalled that in his last life, he hadn’t become close with Jang Hyo-woon this quickly.
Back then, he still had to earn money but retained the pride of being a university student.
He had avoided socializing with other hosts and had even ignored them in some ways.
“I don’t smoke. But can I have coffee instead?”
“Good idea.”
Hosts worked at night, so many liked coffee.
The three stepped outside for a moment.
They smoked or drank coffee in the alley.
Jang Hyo-woon examined Kim Namhu closely and asked.
“Is this your first time doing the host job?”
“Yes.”
“But even setting aside the clothes, your hair and makeup—where did you do them?”
The first thing new hosts learned was how to dress and where to get their appearance made up at the shop.
But Kim Namhu had nothing left to teach—he was already perfect.
“At a shop I know. I’ve been interested in appearances.”
“Just in case, are you by any chance gay?”
Even in Korea now, there were men who wore makeup, called grooming guys.
But their number was tiny, and most men didn’t.
Even applying BB cream put you in the top ten percent.
If a man other than an idol or host wore makeup, it was natural to assume he was gay.
“No. I like women. If I liked men, I’d go to a gay bar. They even say the earnings there are good.”
“Is that so? Hmm. Anyway, it’s better not to lie. This world is narrow.”
“Yes.”
Jang Hyo-woon had simply created this conversation to build rapport with the Kim Namhu who had joined his faction.
And what he had imagined was an older senior warmly approaching a clueless newbie.
But reality had turned completely opposite.
When Kim Namhu ignored Choi Moon-ho’s one word, he had felt refreshed inside.
But the moment he was in that situation, he himself was strangely dragging things along.
‘Eh? This isn’t right?’