Chapter 53
Chapter 53
You’re Nothing Special, Huh?
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You’re nothing special, huh?
“Son! Sun-woo!”
Park Seon-woo’s mother, Yu Seon-yeong, the woman who held a firm grip on Juseong’s fashion and beauty divisions, threw open her son’s door. Park Seon-woo, who had been reviewing an edited clip a friend sent him, shot up in surprise.
“Oh, Mom.”
“What is this!”
The screen Yu Seon-yeong held out showed Park Seon-woo’s MyTube channel. And right at the very top was the video he had filmed with Yu Yeon-seo.
Park Seon-woo had kept his MyTube activities a secret from his family, but since he was riding his cousin’s fame, he had been somewhat prepared to be found out.
“Well, uh… I’ve been doing it for a while.”
“You….”
But facing his mother directly, the words wouldn’t come. As Park Seon-woo mumbled an excuse, Yu Seon-yeong raised her voice.
“How could you hang out with Yeon-seo without me!”
“Huh? What?”
Park Seon-woo just stood there, his mouth agape.
“I want to go shopping with Yeon-seo, too!”
Ah, so me doing MyTube wasn’t the important issue, Mom?
Hearing the commotion, Park Seon-woo’s older sister, Park Yu-jeong, peeked her head in and looked around his room.
‘Well, it’s good that she’s not scolding me, but….’
It felt strange.
Park Seon-woo rummaged around and pulled out the paper bags and boxes he had hidden in his closet, spreading them out in front of her.
“Still, when we filmed that, Yeon-seo bought a gift for you, Mom… and there’s one for you too, sis.”
He had hidden them away, just in case he got caught.
“I wanted to go shopping with him, not get something like this!”
“Yeon-seo oppa? For me?”
Despite her words, Yu Seon-yeong sat down in front of the gifts and started unwrapping them. Park Yu-jeong plopped down beside her.
“That oppa has changed a lot. Was he always the type to think of me?”
Though she spoke bluntly, her cheeks were flushed, a clear sign she was pleased.
It went without saying that Yu Yeon-seo’s grandfather and parents adored him, but so did his aunt, uncle, and cousins. The main issue had been that Yu Yeon-seo himself had put up a wall, keeping them at a distance.
“Ah, this is a new design. The new collection must be out.”
“Oh… Mom, what do you think of this? As expected of a celebrity, he’s got good taste.”
“It’s pretty. It looks good on you, my daughter.”
Forgetting all about scolding Park Seon-woo, they were now engrossed in unwrapping the gifts Yu Yeon-seo had sent.
“Next time you do something like this, make sure to call me too. Got it, son?”
“Uh, yeah….”
“Hey, call me too. Let me show off my handsome cousin.”
It felt as if his mother and sister didn’t even see the bewildered son and brother standing right in front of them.
They took the gifts and went out to the living room, leaving behind empty paper bags and boxes. Cleaning up was Park Seon-woo’s job.
‘I guess this counts as getting permission… right?’
Park Seon-woo let out a hollow laugh.
His mom didn’t seem to have given it much thought, which was a relief, but it still felt incredibly strange. I’ve been left out….
‘Ah, right. I should have filmed that scene.’
The fact that he was having such thoughts in the middle of all this proved that, just as Yu Yeon-seo had thought, Park Seon-woo was becoming a truly excellent MyTuber.
Yu Yeon-seo had a rather busy vacation. He did additional recording for White Tiger and shot pictorials and commercials. In his spare time, he stayed home or occasionally went for a drive.
‘It was a bit of a boring break.’
His original self didn’t really have anyone he’d call a friend. The closest were the members of One Seven, whom he talked to frequently these days, but they were busy preparing for their comeback. He heard they were working like slaves because of their leader’s impending military service, to which Yeon-seo had made their blood boil by saying, ‘But I’ve already done my service.’
‘Maybe I should go on a trip next vacation.’
In truth, just being on the ground, under a clear sky, felt pretty good in itself.
“Hey, hyung.”
“Oh, hey.”
Yu Yeon-seo gave a cursory greeting to the person who had been his group project leader last semester and fixed his gaze back on his phone.
“Sunbae-nim! I’m a fan!”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Lately, the number of people who recognized him, asked for pictures, or requested autographs had increased significantly. I need to graduate quickly. Yu Yeon-seo posed for what felt like the hundredth photo that day and quickly walked away.
“Park Seon-woo. What are you doing?”
“Oh, hyung!”
Park Seon-woo, who was holding his phone at a distance and talking into it, turned his head.
“I’m live-streaming right now. Say hi.”
“Hello.”
As Yu Yeon-seo gave a slight nod, the chat window began scrolling at a frightening speed.
Park Seon-woo laughed, remarking that the reaction was different from when it was just him.
“They’re asking why we filmed that video together.”
“Because he asked me to.”
“That’s right. We get along really well.”
As word spread that Yu Yeon-seo had appeared, more and more viewers flocked to the stream.
“What do you even do on these broadcasts?”
“We just chat.”
“And people actually watch this?”
It was a question born of genuine curiosity, but the chat’s reaction was different.
- (Do people watch) your broadcasts?
- LOL Not everyone is like you.
- If it were Yu Yeon-seo, he’d get a million viewers even if he didn’t say a word.
- He’s so damn handsome.
That’s not what I meant. Park Seon-woo, who was starting to get a feel for Yu Yeon-seo’s way of speaking, chuckled softly.
“My subscriber count exploded after I filmed that video with you.”
“Really?”
“You should try it too, hyung. Your fans would love it.”
In the chat, Yu Yeon-seo’s fans, who had come after hearing the news, were practically begging him to do it.
“By the way, did your aunt say anything about this? You said you’d be dead if she found out.”
“She didn’t say much. I think she basically gave me permission. Oh, right.”
Park Seon-woo grinned.
“My mom said to include her next time we film something like this.”
“What?”
“She was nagging me about how I hung out with you without her. Anyone would think you were her son. But I’m the real son….”
- ?
- ??
Everyone in the chat expressed their confusion.
“Even after getting your gift, she was complaining, saying she wanted to go shopping with you herself instead.”
“...Is that so?”
While the public was somewhat familiar with the images of Yu Yeon-seo the celebrity and Yu Eun-ho, a non-celebrity who nonetheless had his own fandom, the rest of the family was different.
The image of the Juseong Group family portrayed in the media was not a very friendly one.
They were seen as cold-hearted business people, and bringing up Lee Hui-seo’s case only reinforced the image of them being strict and solemn.
Yu Min-jeong and Yu Seon-yeong, who followed in the footsteps of Park Geum-ju—a woman still delivering results even past retirement age—had similar reputations.
“My other aunt heard my mom bragging and asked why she was left out.”
“That explains why my older aunt called me.”
“What did she say?”
“She said to go with her, not my younger aunt.”
The thought of such people engaging in the kind of doting behavior you’d expect from someone like Yu Geon-min didn’t seem to compute for most people.
Park Seon-woo burst out laughing, and Yu Yeon-seo sighed. I’m still a long way from understanding this family.
Im Seung-hyeon was just leaving after taking care of some school-related matters for Yu Yeon-seo when a slick-looking man called out to him.
“Im Seung-hyeon? It is Im Seung-hyeon.”
“...Who are you?”
When Im Seung-hyeon asked back, genuinely not knowing, the other man’s brow furrowed in displeasure.
“I’m your classmate. Park Jeong-hu. I’m in grad school.”
“Ah.”
He still didn’t remember, but he pretended to.
“What are you doing here?”
“I had some business to attend to.”
“I see you’re still trailing after Yu Yeon-seo.”
Im Seung-hyeon sighed. He knew the question was loaded.
Back in school, he had been a top student who never missed the top spot. On top of that, his athletic background gave him a good physique and a favorable impression, making him instantly popular. Consequently, there were quite a few people who were jealous of him.
“Like a very loyal dog.”
Provocations like this were a common occurrence.
‘Now that I hear the name, I think I remember.’
This was the guy who had spread malicious rumors about him behind his back and had even taken a leave of absence after getting caught.
It was laughable that he was now striking up a conversation so shamelessly. Ah, I guess you have to be shameless to spread rumors like that in the first place.
“So, why did you call me over?”
Im Seung-hyeon raised his wrist to check the time. It was a gesture meant to say, talking to you is a waste of my time, but to Park Jeong-hu, it looked like he was showing off his expensive watch.
[Take this.]
[This is too expensive a gift for me to accept.]
[I bought way too many watches, so I’ve probably never even worn that one. If I tell you to take it, just take it.]
And indeed, the watch Im Seung-hyeon was wearing was one Yu Yeon-seo had given him, saying he had spares lying around at home. He had tossed it over as if it were something he had just picked up off the street.
When he later found out its exact price and tried to return it, he was simply told not to be a bother.
‘This is what I was hoping for when I volunteered to be his executive assistant, but….’
It was true that he had attached himself to Yu Yeon-seo, thinking that if he stuck close to the family’s favorite, something good might fall his way. At first.
But somewhere along the line, he had lost his initial intentions and was now giving it his all. It wasn’t that he was worried because of the amnesia. Who worries about a third-generation chaebol? That would be like a beggar worrying about a prince.
‘I can see why he’s the family favorite.’
It wasn’t just because he was the executive assistant; there was an air of vulnerability about him that made you feel like you had to take care of him. And seeing the changes in Yu Yeon-seo’s personality and his acting skills, he had become quite curious to see how far he would go.
“Our classmates were so jealous when they heard you got into Juseong….”
“...”
“But is your job just being Yu Yeon-seo’s lackey?”
Taking Im Seung-hyeon’s thoughtful silence as a sign of intimidation, Park Jeong-hu smirked unpleasantly.
He’d never liked the guy, so this was perfect. Having found an opening, he mocked Im Seung-hyeon to his heart’s content.
“What, did you lose some corporate power struggle? You’ve really fallen, Im Seung-hyeon, if you can’t even handle something like that.”
Pulled from his thoughts, Im Seung-hyeon looked up at the sky, utterly fed up. Honestly, it was too much trouble to even respond.
“Im Seung-hyeon, you’re nothing special, huh?”
But it wouldn’t be right to back down from a fight that was brought to him. How should I crush this guy? As Im Seung-hyeon was briefly contemplating his options, Yu Yeon-seo, with Lee Tae-gyeom in tow, called out to him.
“Mr. Im Seung-hyeon.”
“Young Master.”
“Did you take care of everything?”
“Yes.”
Im Seung-hyeon quickly changed his posture and stood behind Yu Yeon-seo.
“Is this someone you know?”
“Yes, he was a classmate from university.”
“Oh. Hello.”
When Yu Yeon-seo smiled and greeted him, Park Jeong-hu wiped the mocking expression from his face and smoothly claimed to be a fan.
“Mr. Im here doesn’t seem to remember you very well. Is it okay if I take him with me?”
“...Pardon?”
“But you weren’t saying he’s nothing special just because he’s my assistant, were you? Am I that low-class?”
“Uh….”
“Shouldn’t you know your place?”
Park Jeong-hu, who never expected to be called out so directly, froze, his mouth hanging open. Yu Yeon-seo smiled brightly and said.
“You should be on your way. Mr. ‘Nothing Special’ Im Seung-hyeon has a dinner appointment with my grandfather today.”
Yu Yeon-seo gestured with his chin toward Park Jeong-hu, who was scurrying away as if to flee.
“Why did you just stand there and listen to all that?”
“Yeah, hyung-nim.”
“I was actually just thinking about how to deal with him.”
“Aah… I guess I interfered for nothing.”
Seeing how he handled Oh Beom-su, I thought he’d be good at it, but I guess that was just to build up momentum. Yu Yeon-seo lamented missing out on an interesting spectacle.
“Still, using the Chairman as an excuse was quite amusing.”
“It’s true, though.”
“What?”
Im Seung-hyeon’s eyes widened.
“My grandfather asked us to have dinner together.”
Yu Yeon-seo then turned to look at Lee Tae-gyeom.
“Lee Tae-gyeom, you too.”
“Me?”
Lee Tae-gyeom pointed at himself in disbelief, his voice loud. His flailing hands were a chaotic sight.
“Me?”
“Yeah, you.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know either.”
He genuinely didn’t know. He had suddenly received a call, and his grandfather had simply said, ‘Your assistant and manager have been working hard, so bring them with you,’ before hanging up.
“Can’t I just not go?”
“You’re refusing my grandfather’s invitation? You’ve got some nerve.”
Lee Tae-gyeom’s shoulders slumped.
“Digestive medicine… I need to buy some digestive medicine.”