First In-Person Collab (3)
I hadn't been trying to force any We Got Married vibe. This wasn't a live stream anyway, and there was no reason to jump straight into character the moment we met. We'd have to act it out eventually for the Naty shoot, but this was simply my honest reaction. I was just genuinely amazed. It was the same kind of awe you'd feel meeting a celebrity you'd only ever seen on TV in real life. Wow, her face is tiny. Wow, her skin is actually that pale. How can her features be so perfectly defined? Why is her jawline so delicate? Is she actually a fairy? Are we even the same species? As an ordinary person, those thoughts were bound to spill out. That's how unreal Arine's beauty was.
It finally made sense why a major agency had cast her as an idol. Even why every bit of attention had focused on her appearance rather than her talent. That must have been the incident that wounded her, but the moment I saw her in person, I understood the reason completely.
“What is this? Are you already getting into character for the shoot? Or warming up your lines? Why are you acting like this the second we meet... it's so awkward...”
“Ah, sorry. It just slipped out. It's that thing, you know? The typical reaction an ordinary person has when they meet a celebrity in real life. Don't overthink it.”
“Then at least start with a proper greeting... What am I supposed to do if you come at me like that from our very first meeting... How are we supposed to fix this atmosphere... ugh.”
Arine's face burned bright red. Watching her press her cheek against the car window, genuinely mortified, I felt bad but also couldn't help thinking how cute she was. Even the way she breathed was adorable. The little flutter of her hands, the way her eyes darted around helplessly. It was as if her appearance applied a filter to every single moment. It was clearly reality, yet it didn't feel real at all. Like watching a documentary or drama about idols.
“Anyway, just get in. Oppa. We need to talk on the way since we're short on time.”
“Ah, right.”
We couldn't afford to linger if we wanted to arrive on schedule for the shoot. Traffic would probably be heavy since it overlapped with rush hour. She scooted back to make room, and I pulled open the van door and climbed inside.
So this was what a van felt like. It was genuinely fascinating. A vehicle I'd probably never have ridden in my entire life. The novelty of experiencing something I'd only seen on TV hit me fresh. Even the plush texture of the seats felt astonishing.
And Arine sitting right beside me was adding the most surreal element to an already surreal situation.
“Um, should we start with greetings?”
“Yeah... we probably should... What should I even say? Hello, Miss Arine?”
“Yes. Hello, Mr. Do Doyun... God, this is insanely awkward... Why are we suddenly being so formal... haaa.”
Our first real-life greeting was an awkward handshake where neither of us could even make eye contact, both squirming in discomfort.
Damn, this is awkward. What are we going to do about this atmosphere? For real.
Arine kept stealing glances at Doyun, who sat a careful distance away in the seat beside hers. He seemed too embarrassed to even look at her, refusing to turn his gaze in her direction. He just alternated between staring at his phone and the scenery passing by the window. The more he did that, the stronger her own awkwardness grew.
“.....Ahem. Nice weather we're having.”
A line that popped out because he had nothing else to say. Only Doyun's clumsy voice echoed through the van.
They couldn't stay like this, so Arine decided to ease the mood by introducing her team members to him.
“I'll introduce my team first, oppa.”
“Ah. Yeah. We should at least do that. We're going to be filming together for the next few days anyway.”
“The unnie in the passenger seat is my dedicated manager that Next Stage assigned to me. Seona unnie. Say hello. This is Do Doyun, who we'll be filming with today.”
Thanks to Arine's introduction, the two exchanged an awkward greeting.
“Ah, hello. I'm Naty streamer Do Doyun.”
“Hello. I'm Moon Seona, Arine's manager at Next Stage.”
“And the friend driving is the youngest member of our Naty team. Mr. Ijin. He'll be helping with today's shoot as well.”
“Hello?”
“Yes. I'm Park Ijin from Arine's editing team. Nice to meet you.”
A refreshingly bright male voice rang out. Arine and Doyun were in the very back row of the van, while the others sat in the front passenger and driver's seats, so the distance between them was considerable. They were essentially greeting each other without even properly seeing one another's faces, relying on voices alone.
And the moment the introductions ended, silence descended on the van once more. The manager in the passenger seat let out a small chuckle at the quiet.
“This part would actually be pretty funny if it makes it into the video, wouldn't it, Arine?”
The manager pointed to the small camera mounted on the front of the vehicle as she spoke. It was positioned in the center of the front seats to avoid filming the manager and editor, capturing only those of us in the back.
Doyun glanced over at it.
“Is it filming right now too?”
“Yeah. This is part of my daily life, and we need footage like this to fill our screen time.”
Arine answered Doyun first without hesitation, then turned to the manager.
“Manager, what's so funny about it? It's not funny at all. I'm more awkward right now than I was during my very first external shoot.”
“Pfft. Oh my god, seriously. Do you realize your face is bright red right now, Arine? I've never seen you like this. This embarrassed.”
“I'm originally the shy type, you know? I just act outgoing for the sake of broadcasting.”
When Arine grumbled, the manager burst into laughter and looked at her with fond amusement. They'd been working together for years now. Even though they maintained polite speech, they were close enough that jokes like this came easily. Arine was honestly grateful for her efforts to lighten the awkward atmosphere. If they kept going like this, they wouldn't get a single usable shot.
Fortunately, Seona unnie was quick-witted and understood internet broadcasting well. She guided the mood as if she knew exactly what needed to be said.
“Still, you hear comments like that all the time, Arine. Everyone who meets you for the first time gets surprised and calls you pretty.”
“...Well, yeah?”
“But your reaction today is especially cute. I've never seen you this flustered before. Do you two actually have something going on?”
“We don't, okay? It's just... the way oppa was talking was weird, that's all... Anyway, it's not like that.”
“Ah, yeees, of course. Whatever you say.”
She answered defensively without meaning to. It was because the comment had struck right at the truth. Arine had heard that she was pretty more times than she could count. She heard it endlessly on stream, during her idol trainee days, and even just walking down the street. She was used to people complimenting her appearance or reacting with awe. It shouldn't have been enough to make her this awkward or embarrassed. Normally, if it had been anyone but Doyun, she would have brushed it off smoothly and eased the tension.
But she couldn't even manage that.
......Why?
Because they already knew each other? She had a feeling it wasn't just that, but Arine decided to leave it at that. The fact that Doyun, whom she'd already met several times on stream, and who had never seemed particularly interested in women before, had taken one look at her and said she was pretty with such genuine sincerity, as if truly enchanted. She couldn't admit that it had pierced her heart like a direct strike.
....Ugh.
He never usually said things like that. The only times he made such direct comments were when the cameras were rolling for their virtual marriage concept. But today wasn't one of those times, so it had felt like his real feelings, which was why Arine had gotten so flustered.
But apparently sensing an opening in the conversation, Doyun, who had been quietly listening beside her, jumped in.
“Aw~ so that's what it was? Our Arine can't pull herself together just because I said she was pretty once?”
That annoying smirk on his face as he spoke to her was irritating. But she didn't get angry. Arine had already sensed it. Unlike the earlier “pretty” comment, this wasn't coming from his heart. His eyes and the entire atmosphere were different. It was like he'd switched modes. This was his broadcasting energy. He must have become conscious of the camera rolling and decided the shoot had already begun. In that case, Arine couldn't take it to heart either. She had to maintain the natural mood they always had during their virtual marriage content.
“What are you even saying? You're the one who got mesmerized by my real face and started muttering your inner thoughts out loud.”
“Hey, when something's pretty, you call it pretty. What else am I supposed to say? Sure, you've got that kind of face so you've probably met tons of people who say that, but for an ordinary guy like me, it's really rare to come across someone like you, you know?”
“Pfft. Wow, it's Arine. This is so fascinating. She's so pretty~ Pfft.”
“Hey, hey, hey. Stop that. Can't I compliment my own girlfriend a little?”
“Okay, fine. That's fair. You look pretty handsome yourself today, Doyun? Did you dress up for this?”
From here on, it was all acting. She raised an eyebrow and turned to look at him. At that sly gaze, Doyun grinned back and answered boldly.
“Of course~ I got up early and put in so much effort. I wanted to hear you say I'm handsome.”
“Handsome. Handsome. Handsome. There. I said it three times. Happy?”
“Hmm. Keep going a little more. Compliments feel nice, Arine.”
“Nope, that's it. You're getting cocky again.”
“Aw~ why~ come on, just a little more. Don't be so stingy. How often does a guy like me get compliments from a pretty girl in his life!”
Finally, the atmosphere began to loosen up. The people in the car chuckled at the exchange between the two streamers. But even as she played along, Arine thought to herself: after only ever seeing him in baggy short sleeves and sloppy outfits on camera, seeing the real Doyun all properly dressed and groomed like this... She hadn't thought he was unattractive before, but today he really did look quite handsome. She let out a small, private laugh at the thought.