Let's Work Out Together Later
"Thanks for the meal!"
"Eat up."
"Okay!"
She scooped up a generous spoonful of rice and ate with such gusto. She was the kind of person who knew how to eat in a way that made the cook feel proud.
Watching her enjoy the food, I started eating again too. Having just one extra person at the table made the meal taste so much better.
At first, sitting down to eat with women had felt a little awkward. It hadn't even been a full day, though, before I'd started feeling the absence if they weren't there.
Maybe I'd been lonely all along. The long stretch of days I'd spent living alone ever since my grandparents passed. It had been ages since I'd last seen a friend in person, and once even the ones I used to keep in touch with over text had faded away, a quiet hollowness had settled in without my noticing.
Just one person to share a meal with, and suddenly the food tasted good again.
"By the way, Sehee, aren't you busy? Everyone else said they were swamped and they'd eat later."
"Even if I'm busy, I have to eat first or I won't have any energy. How am I supposed to function with no fuel in the tank?"
"Those other ladies, though..."
"Come on. The unnies have plenty of fuel stored up already."
Fair enough. Every last one of them was on the plump side — chubby, bordering on outright fat.
Seeing her up close, Kim Sehee was on the skinny side. Not skin and bones, but she could definitely use a little more meat on her. If she did some strength training and put on even a bit of muscle, she'd have a healthy body in no time.
"Do you work out?"
"The unnies?"
"No. You."
"I just walk, mostly? I always make time to walk for at least an hour a day."
"That's all? Just walking?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"I was thinking it might be good to add a little strength training on the side."
"Like going to the gym? The way Yeram unnie did yesterday?"
Kim Sehee's expression stiffened slightly. Choi Yeram, looking half-dead after yesterday's workout, was probably flashing before her eyes.
"That would be great, but it'd be pretty tough, right?"
"Ugh. I could never."
Kim Sehee shook her head with a look of pure disgust. Choi Yeram had suffered so dramatically, after all. Anyone who'd witnessed that would naturally think working out was brutally hard. Recommend the same routine to someone with that image burned into their brain, and of course they'd refuse.
In cases like this, you just had to start them off with the easy stuff, one step at a time.
"Then just try push-ups, squats, and pull-ups. Don't overdo it — only as many as you can handle."
"Just those three?"
"Yep. Just those three. As many reps as you can manage, three sets each."
"That much... I think I could do that..."
A spark of interest lit in Kim Sehee's eyes as she started turning it over. Compared to what Choi Yeram had gone through yesterday, those numbers were nothing. And since they were exercises everyone had heard of, the resistance was lower — that was working in my favor.
"Just give it a try. Even a month of it and your body will change."
"Hmm... I wonder if I'll have the time?"
Almost there. Just a little more persuasion and I could pull her into the world of weight training. The fact that she already set aside time to walk meant she cared about her body. Strength training was only hard to start. Once you got going, you were guaranteed to fall down the rabbit hole.
"If you're short on time, just cut the walking down to thirty minutes and use the other thirty for this."
"Oh! That would work."
Got her. I shoveled a spoonful of rice into my mouth to hide the grin tugging at the corners of my lips.
Choi Heejeong, who'd told me to drop by the gym anytime. Choi Yeram, currently being force-fed the joys of working out. And now Kim Sehee, just taking her first step into strength training. The number of people I could work out with was growing.
This was great. Two is better than one. Three is better than two. Spotting each other, checking form, helping out when the weight got heavy. Just imagining it made me happy.
I asked Kim Sehee,
"Got a lot of work today?"
"Me? Um... I think I'll be done in an hour or two?"
"I'm heading to the gym later. Think you could come with? I'd like to show you the proper form."
"Huh? Sure! I'm in charge of filming you anyway, so I can go even if my other work isn't done."
"Oh. Nice."
Perfect. I'd use every bit of knowledge I had to teach her thoroughly. Wouldn't want her getting hurt working out on her own.
"What time are you going?"
"Around three? Just give me your number. I'll text you before I head out."
"Oh. Okay."
I handed over my phone and got Kim Sehee's number. A Helin-i's number. Now this was a rare treasure. I was absolutely going to turn her into a Hellchang.
"Let's eat."
"Okay."
We'd talked so much we hadn't even finished half our food. We went back to eating and enjoyed a delicious lunch.
After we finished, I stopped Kim Sehee from doing the dishes. I couldn't put our precious Helin-i through that.
"I can do it, though..."
"You've got work to do. I'll take care of it."
"Thank you. It was delicious."
"Yeah. See you later."
"Okay. Oppa."
Kim Sehee walked off looking apologetic. I smiled to let her know it was fine, and she answered with a crinkle-eyed smile of her own.
Aigoo. What a cute Helin-i. That eagerness to work out was so adorable I could die. She even looked cute, like a little puppy. Normally I wouldn't have been able to talk to someone like her. Seriously.
Huh?
Come to think of it, I hadn't stammered even once. This was the first time I'd ever talked to a girl I wasn't close with without a single hitch. What was going on? I hadn't even thought about reservist training. Had hanging around women for a single day changed my personality?
I wondered if a person could really change overnight, then dismissed the thought just as quickly. People could change overnight. It happened. And since it wasn't a bad change, I didn't dwell on it any further. What mattered was teaching Kim Sehee the joy of working out.
I washed the dishes, letting a happy little laugh slip out.
After cleaning up, I was relaxing in my room. I pulled up some MLB highlights and occasionally mimicked the pitching motions.
I wanted to play baseball. I missed playing catch with my friends. Back in high school I'd even joined the baseball club and played in actual games. I hadn't touched a ball since graduation. I'd enlisted right after, and then I'd just been busy with one thing after another. I'd thought about joining a rec league, but with how painfully shy I used to be, that hadn't been easy either.
Lost in high school memories, I was shadow-pitching in my room when my eyes met the camera.
Ah. We were filming...
The instant I realized everything was being recorded, a wave of embarrassment crashed over me. I'd gotten so used to this space that I kept forgetting the cameras were there. I'd flashed my underwear this morning and I still kept forgetting. How? This was why people said familiarity was a dangerous thing.
I opened the window and let the breeze cool my burning face. The thought of everyone watching the footage later and laughing at me didn't make it any easier to calm down.
I was still trying to settle my racing heart when a knock came at the door.
Knock, knock.
"Yeah!"
The door opened slowly, and Choi Yeram stood there.
"Getting some air?"
"Yeah. It was a little warm."
"You can turn on the AC if you're hot."
"It's not that bad. Thanks for looking out for me, though."
"Don't mention it."
Choi Yeram stepped inside, looking around the room.
"Your stuff is pretty sparse, huh?"
"Is it?"
"Yeah. Other guy streamers pack like they're moving in, even for a one-night stay."
Packed to the gills? I pictured a guy dragging a suitcase behind him. All kinds of clothes spilling out of it, a curling iron, a hair dryer, an arsenal of cosmetics. A guy sitting at a desk primping himself. Not a particularly pleasant mental image.
Choi Yeram pointed at the desk.
"Some of them fill this whole thing with cosmetics and makeup."
I looked at the desk. It was a fairly large one, about a meter across and a little shallower than that. A guy filling this entire thing with grooming products? I couldn't even picture it. My brow furrowed on its own.
This was insane. And guys like that were normal here, weren't they. Grooming a little was one thing, but a guy wearing makeup? Just thinking about it made me recoil. I was never going to get along with the men in this world.
"I'm not really into that kind of stuff."
"Oooh. Look at that confidence. So you're saying you're handsome enough without it?"
"I'm not exactly ugly."
"That's true."
We nodded at the same time.
"So why'd you come by?"
"Ah! I've got an appointment, so I have to head out. Just wanted to let you know."
A million-subscriber YouTuber, through and through. Unlike me, sitting around with nothing to do, she actually had places to be.
"You're going to the gym later, right?"
"Yeah. I'm going with Sehee."
The air went ice-cold in an instant. Choi Yeram's head swiveled toward me with a creak, and she glared at me with sharp, bristling eyes. What was this all of a sudden. She looked like a cat that had been denied its dinner. Was she sulking because I wasn't going to the gym with her?
"Sehee?"
"Yeah. Kim Sehee. She said she has to come along since she's in charge of filming me?"
"Oho. Is that so."
Choi Yeram swallowed, then continued.
"You've gotten pretty close, huh? First-name basis already?"
"We decided to drop the formalities over lunch. We're not that close yet."
"Ah, not yet?"
"Yeah, not yet. She seemed interested in working out, so I offered to teach her. Figured we'd get closer once we start training together."
"Mmm. Maybe..."
Choi Yeram nodded awkwardly. She seemed uncomfortable about something. Was she worried I'd be too busy with Kim Sehee to help her with her own workouts?
"You didn't forget we're working out together tomorrow, right?"
When I asked her, she jumped.
"Huh? Y-yeah. R-right."
"I'll just be showing Sehee the form. You and I are going the whole way together, so don't worry."
"W-who said I was worried. I gotta go. See you later."
"Yeah. See you."
Choi Yeram fled the room like she was running from something. The fact that she'd left without another word probably meant the misunderstanding was cleared up. As if I'd ever neglect someone who'd just started going to the gym.
I was looking forward to working out with Kim Sehee later, and looking forward to working out with Choi Yeram tomorrow. Working out really was better with other people.
Even I had days when working out felt hard, or I just didn't want to. But once you tasted what it felt like to get healthier, you did it anyway — even when you didn't want to, even when it was hard. I wanted everyone to taste that.
"Can't wait."
Collabing had been the right call.