Chapter 145: The Day the First Snow Falls
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 145: The Day the First Snow Falls
“Oh? Yeseul, what are you doing here?”
“I tried calling Miju because I had something to discuss, but she just wouldn't pick up. I came looking for her because I was worried something might have happened, but…”
Yeseul glared at Miju.
“I didn't expect to find her here with Jae-ho Sunbae.”
“Ahem~.”
Miju avoided Yeseul’s gaze.
“What do you mean? You were avoiding her calls?”
“I—I just couldn't pick up because I was working out. I had it on silent.”
Seeing how she couldn't meet my eyes, it was clearly a lie.
“You didn't pick up just now, either. I was wondering where you went without a word, but to think you were with Jae-ho Sunbae… that’s foul play.”
Yeseul’s eyes burned.
A sense of betrayal and jealousy was written all over her face. Looking at her, it seemed she didn't even know Miju had become a trainer at my gym yet.
If she finds that out, she’s going to be furious, isn't she?
“Why did you do it?”
“Well, that’s…”
Miju hesitated, unable to answer, before finally forcing the words out.
“It… it was my first time working with him, and I wanted to go home together and spend just a little more time with him…”
“You wanted Sunbae all to yourself?”
Miju nodded silently.
“I just wanted it to be like that, even if it was only while we were leaving work.”
Miju’s voice trembled as she spoke. She was looking at me.
“That’s why I ignored Yeseul’s calls and just talked to you.”
Seeing her eyes welling up with tears, even Yeseul, who had been speaking sharply until a moment ago, lost her momentum.
“Do you two want to walk for a bit?”
“Right now? It’s pretty dark.”
It was well past 10 PM. Aside from a few people heading home late, the streets were empty. I needed to calm them both down.
“Actually, walking under the streetlights is quite atmospheric. Let’s have a beer at the park before it gets any colder.”
We wouldn't be able to stay long because of the cold, but I believed that walking through the park would help them both settle down.
“Okay.”
They followed me. I grabbed four cans of beer and some beef jerky from a convenience store, and we walked through the park near Miju’s house.
As we walked, Yeseul expressed her disappointment to Miju.
“You should have at least picked up. I was worried something happened to you. Since you weren't answering, I thought you’d collapsed or something.”
“I’m sorry… I let my greed get the better of me.”
Miju offered a sincere apology. Perhaps the cold air had cleared their heads; the two reconciled much more easily than I expected.
‘That ended faster than I thought.’
They had made up before we even cracked open the beers.
“Aren't you two reconciling a bit too fast? I came all the way to the park specifically to make you two play nice.”
I thought we’d have to drink some beer and pour our hearts out, but it was over already.
“It’s thanks to you, Sunbae. You’re the one who suggested the walk.”
“Now that I think about it, I was the one in the wrong…”
“Jae-ho Sunbae is the best!”
Yeseul gave me two thumbs up, her shoulders bouncing as if she were doing a little dance.
“Your reactions have really improved since you started broadcasting.”
“Really? Did I look like a professional streamer just now? Hehe.”
“Do you have a subscription reaction or something?”
“Not yet. Right now, Starstagram Live and Nutube are everything.”
“You don't do Bwitch?”
“No, hehe.”
“Then how about, ‘Please like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell~’? Do you do that?”
“I do, but…”
“Show me.”
“N-No way!”
Yeseul waved her hands in refusal.
“Oppa, you’ll probably die laughing if you see it,” Miju chimed in from the side.
“Really?”
“Of course. I laughed so hard when I saw that video last time. She looked really cute.”
“Argh! Noooo!!!”
If it was that funny, there was no way I could miss it. I opened the Nutube app.
“If you don't want me to watch it, show me yourself.”
“That… that’s…”
“Otherwise, I’m going to dig up your embarrassing past.”
“Ugh…”
At my threat to watch the video, Yeseul bit her lip hard and raised both hands above her head, like rabbit ears.
What is she doing?
Just as I wondered, she tilted her hands on her head and crouched down, hopping like a rabbit.
“P-Please… subscribe… and like.”
She performed her reaction. Seeing her look like a cute little rabbit, I turned my head away. I couldn't help it; I was about to burst out laughing.
Watching her finish the reaction despite her embarrassment, and seeing her shyly gauge our response, was quite entertaining.
“Pfft!”
Ah, I couldn't hold it in.
“I—I knew you’d laugh.”
“No, I laughed because you were cute.”
You know that fresh, youthful feeling of a twenty-year-old? That soft, bubbly atmosphere radiated from her as she did the reaction.
“R-Really?”
Yeseul, who had crouched down in embarrassment, asked again.
“Of course. Right, Miju?”
“Definitely! You were really cute just now.”
Only then did Yeseul calm down and sit back on the bench.
“But is that really your subscription greeting?”
“Yes, I did it after receiving a 300,000 won donation… and now I use it for my opening.”
“Oho, so I just saw a 300,000 won reaction.”
And a live one at that.
“That’s right. I don't just do that for anyone, you know?”
After speaking, Yeseul took a gulp of beer.
“Yeseul, you’re a weak drinker.”
“It’s okay. I can pace myself.”
I was worried because I knew she couldn't handle her alcohol.
“Oppa, I’m here too.”
Miju took a drink as well.
“Let’s have a toast.”
We clinked our beer cans together. In the chilly early winter night at the park, I drank beer with Yeseul and Miju. The beer I hadn't had in a while felt refreshing.
‘This is nice too.’
It was as much of a treat as drinking wine in an expensive restaurant. Perhaps it was because I had beauties on both sides of me.
“So refreshing.”
“It’s really delicious.”
“It’s because the people I’m drinking with are great. Hehe.”
We sipped our beer while looking at each other.
“Yeseul.”
“Yes?”
“Do you want to work on a project with me?”
“What kind of work?”
“I’m running a gym, you know.”
“I know that.”
“Miju is working as a trainer at our gym.”
“Ah, so that’s why you two…”
Yeseul looked at Miju and me with a slightly jealous gaze.
“So, I need some promotion.”
“Promotion?”
“Can you promote our gym and the Medic Care services on your internet broadcasts and Nutube?”
“Uh… I’d have to talk to my agency about that.”
“If you promote us this time, I’ll give you an advertising fee and free one-on-one PT.”
“Really? One-on-one?”
“If you want, we can even do it in a private space.”
Yeseul pondered for a moment before nodding at those words. I felt Miju’s gaze on me, but I could just give her the same treatment later.
“Okay. It’s not like taking an ad is a bad thing. In exchange, Sunbae, you have to appear on my broadcast one more time.”
“Deal.”
There was nothing I couldn't do. It was all for the sake of promotion.
“Great! Then, cheers!”
Unlike Yeseul, who drank her beer happily, Miju looked a bit dejected.
“I can promote it too…”
I leaned in and whispered into Miju’s ear.
“Your role is important too, Miju. You’re the main face of our gym that the members see when they sign up. I’ll keep giving you one-on-one PT and workouts, so don't be too disappointed.”
“Keep that promise.”
Whether it was because of the beer or not, Miju’s face was slightly flushed.
When the cans were about half empty…
“Oh? It’s snowing.”
Pure white snow was falling through the dark night air.
“Isn't this the first snow?”
“Is it the first time it’s fallen?”
“There was no mention of the first snow coming today.”
Almost simultaneously, we looked up at the snow falling from the sky.
“It’s pretty.”
Just as they said, the first snow falling through the glow of the streetlights was beautiful. It wasn't a heavy snowfall that covered the sky, but there was enough to create the perfect atmosphere for the first snow.
The fluttering snowflakes touched the tips of my fingers.
“Sunbae! Let’s take a picture together! The three of us catching the first snow together! This doesn't happen often!”
An excited Yeseul pulled out her phone. A flashy case caught my eye. Switching to selfie mode, Yeseul handed the phone to me.
“Hmm?”
“You take it, Oppa. You’re not going to put our faces in the very front, are you?”
“Got it.”
I held up the phone and pressed the shutter.
Click!
The falling first snow, the yellow streetlights illuminating the night air, two college freshmen who had a bit of beer, and me. A photo full of winter sentiment was captured.
“Let’s take one more!”
The two, who had stepped back slightly for the selfie, kept wanting me to take more photos like a director.
Click! Click!
Sure, I’ll take as many as you want. We kept taking photos, completely immersed in the scenery of the night.
“This time, let’s take one like this.”
Miju pressed her face close to mine first.
“We look like a happy couple this way.”
Miju giggled.
“Me too!”
Yeseul hurriedly pressed her face against mine as well. The three of us took photos with our faces and bodies pressed tightly together.
And just as I was about to take the shot…
Smooch.
My right cheek felt warm. Startled, I looked to the side to see Yeseul had kissed my cheek.
And then again.
Smooch.
“Huh?”
This time it was Miju. My left cheek felt hot.
“I—Isn't a cheek kiss possible between close friends?”
Then, the two of them kissed my cheeks at the same time. The whole process was captured in the photos.
“It came out well.”
Miju spoke after looking at the photos.
“Oppa, do you know what they say?”
“What?”
“They say that if you watch the first snow with someone, your love will come true.”
Miju’s face was full of excitement, as if she were telling me a great secret.
Ah, right. They were both still twenty. A time when that fresh sentimentality still remains. It was the age to talk about love while watching the first snow.
They looked up at the first snow falling from the sky with sentimental eyes. Their pupils sparkled like stars in the night sky.
“The three of us watched it together, so does that love come true too?”
When I asked while looking at them, they glanced at each other for a moment and then nodded.
“If everyone is okay with it, wouldn't it?”
Miju nodded at Yeseul’s words.
“I think I’d be okay with it too.”
Wait, what?
“Brrr, it’s cold. Oppa, don't you think so? Yeseul?”
Her tone was awkward, as if she were acting in a play. Yeseul nodded at Miju’s words.
“Yeah. Why is it so cold? Is it because we got hit by the snow?”
It wasn't even snowing enough to be called cold. They even had half their beers left.
“You’re cold already?”
“It’s especially cold today. I think it’s because we drank beer. Oppa…”
Miju slid her body closer to mine.
“Do you want to come to my place and warm up before you go?”
“Let’s warm up together.”
The two women grabbed my arms simultaneously from both sides.
This…
I’m being targeted, aren't I?
I had suspected it since they kissed my cheeks—no, even before that.
“Sunbae, you saw my 300,000 won reaction today; you’re not just going to leave for free, are you?”
“Oppa, I haven't properly learned how to exercise yet.”
Oops, looks like there’s no way out.
“It is a bit chilly.”
I pulled them into my arms.
“Should we stop by Miju’s place for a bit?”