Chapter 67: Unintended Gathering

I am lying still, staring at the ceiling.

I am simply lying on the bed, blinking my eyes absentmindedly.

Without even holding my phone, I rest my body on the electric blanket, maintaining a dazed state.

I feel like my body is slowly melting.

Like a marshmallow roasted on a fire, sticky and thick, slowly.

Thinking about this makes me want to eat marshmallows.

Recently, I’ve been craving sweets all of a sudden.

“…tt.”

Thinking about that, I struggled to roll my body to the side.

Sweat beads formed on my back and slid down.

My body temperature is high, causing me to sweat, and then the sweat cools, only for the cooled sweat to warm up again in an endless loop.

But it can’t be helped.

If I turn off the electric blanket, it’ll be too cold.

It would be nice to take a shower or at least wipe off the sweat and lie back down, but I don’t even have the energy for that.

Yes, I caught a cold.

It wasn’t exactly sudden without any warning, though.

Actually, I had an inkling about it. But the reason was so absurd that it was hard to believe.

“How can I catch a cold just from eating cold noodles… Is this even a human body?”

It’s a surprisingly weak body.

I wonder how the previous owner lived.

To catch a cold just from eating cold noodles, and not even a light cold, but a severe one that makes it hard to even move. Or maybe it’s just a light cold, but my body couldn’t even handle that.

• I should have noticed when my throat started to feel scratchy after drinking the cold noodle broth.

Honestly, other than my slightly attractive face, I don’t like my body.

“Ah… I need to do a broadcast.”

That’s all.

I just feel a sense of regret.

It’s not because I’m going crazy wanting to see the viewers, or because I’ll feel uneasy if I don’t broadcast.

I’m not that dedicated of a broadcaster, and it’s not for such wholesome reasons, though it’s not for unhealthy reasons either.

So the reason I wanted to broadcast was…

“I had picked out the game I wanted to play…”

The newly created game recommendation board at the cafe was really useful.

When I had nothing to do, I’d roll around and look through it, and each time, I’d discover new games like, “Oh, this game exists!” or “Oh, this one too…” and it made me feel the vastness of the world.

In short, it was fun because I found out there were so many different kinds of games.

It felt like exploring an unknown cave.

Through the game recommendation board, I found a game that seemed fun.

I was going to play that game today.

Cough.

As you can see, my body was in this state.

The viewers who were watching the broadcast heard my cough and started making a fuss, telling me to turn off the broadcast, rest quickly, and asking if I had gone to the hospital.

People who usually just complained started acting differently.

Lately, it seems like something has changed.

I remembered Jiyeon’s comment about how the chat in her sister’s broadcast felt uncomfortable for a different reason than before.

Yeah, I feel the same way.

Since the company dinner broadcast, I’ve noticed more people acting like this.

Many viewers, whose usernames I recognized, suddenly became sweet.

Just imagining my face based on stories from fellow streamers…

Do they want to pretend they’re in a relationship with me?

The truth is, to me, they’re always just the same.

After ending the broadcast because I was sick, I’ve been in this state ever since.

I crawled into bed like a pile of kimchi, turned on the electric blanket, and felt like the world was mine, and I was the world, with the ceiling spinning and things feeling sticky.

I felt uncomfortable, cold, and hot at the same time.

My eyes were slowly getting heavy, like I might fall asleep, but then again, maybe not.

Uuung…!

“ot.”

I struggled to hold on to my fading consciousness and reached out to grab my phone.

I thought it was a vibration, but it was a text message.

[Editor Lee Siyoung]

• Boss, are you okay? I saw the broadcast. Should I come visit?

What am I supposed to say to that?

Siyoung really is surprisingly over-the-top for someone who doesn’t look like that.

I tried to send a message saying there was nothing to worry about.

• I’m fine, just a cold. You don’t have to worry about it.

“Ah.”

I must have been sweating because my hand slipped, and I accidentally typed an error. The message sent with the mistake.

But the meaning must have come across. A visit? That’s too much. It’s just a cold, not something serious, just a common cold.

[Editor Lee Siyoung]

• I’ll come right away.

Why is she coming?

It’s just a typo, after all. I’m really fine.

Apparently, my message didn’t get across.

How can the relationship between a boss and an employee be so off-sync?

Even though I kept sending messages saying I was fine, Siyoung wouldn’t listen.

[Younger Sister Jiyeon]

• Sis, are you okay? Should I come visit? It’s not too serious, right? Okay, I’ll come.

Jiyeon chimed in, answering her own question.

What’s with everyone? It’s just a cold, why are they acting like it’s something big?

Sure, I feel really sick right now, but I can only manage to send a text, not much else.

It will be fine after I get some rest.

I called Jiyeon to tell her not to come.

“Jiyeon, I’m fine, you don’t have to come.”

“Are you sure? Your voice doesn’t sound right. I’m worried, I’ll come.”

“I already told Siyoung I’m fine. You don’t have to come either.”

Suddenly, I heard a deep breath, followed by a brief silence.

“…Ah, the person you mentioned last time? Then I guess I have to come. I’ll tidy up the house before I go since there will be guests.”

“Well, no, I mean…”

“Your house isn’t cleaned up, right?”

“Uh…”

I felt like I couldn’t refuse any further, so I reluctantly said yes.

Well, whether one person comes or two, it’s the same.

It wouldn’t be bad to introduce Siyoung to Jiyeon.

She’s been curious about who the editor is and what kind of person they are.

I put my phone down and was about to rest again.

Uuung!

[Streamer Ryu Ah]

• Jiyeon, are you feeling better? I saw the broadcast. I had to come to Seoul for work. I know a place that makes good abalone porridge. Want me to bring some?

What now?

[Jiwooning♥]

• Okay.

“Huh?”

Ryu Ah unconsciously let out a high-pitched voice.

She anxiously stared at her phone for a few minutes, unsure whether to send a reply, unsure whether she would even be allowed to.

She was aware that it seemed a bit sudden.

Out of nowhere, saying she was worried after watching the broadcast and offering to come visit.

Anyone might think we’re really close, but in reality, we’d only met once at a company dinner.

It was only because we were the same age that she started talking to me. And that was due to Ryu Ah’s drunken rambling.

Thinking back on that day, I only blushed out of embarrassment, but talking to Jiyeon was really the best decision I made.

She nodded to herself as she thought that.

The reason she hesitated over whether to send the message and eventually pressed send was probably the same reason.

To want to get closer, a simple yet complex reason.

When she saw this friend of the same age, no, even before that.

To be exact, it was when she first watched her stream, that Ryu Ah had fallen completely for the person behind the stream, Molru.

Her feelings only deepened when she met Jiyeon in person at the company dinner.

Friendship, affection, admiration… Unbeknownst to herself, emotions were mixing together.

She wasn’t exactly an outgoing person, but it puzzled her how confusing it felt to be around Jiyeon.

Had she always been someone who struggled with relationships?

She had always lived a life where she’d say what needed to be said and if not, let things flow, not forcing herself to get close to anyone.

But to want to get close to someone like this… She never expected it.

“Is this the place?”

There was a woman wandering around with a famous porridge brand bag in one hand and a phone in the other.

Looking at the address Jiyeon sent, Ryu Ah frowned but then looked pleased as if she had found something.

“I found it!”

Jiyeon, worried Ryu Ah might not find the place even with the address, had kindly written down the names of nearby buildings.

It seemed like Jiyeon didn’t mind her coming after all.

Ryu Ah was secretly anxious, wondering if she had put too much pressure on Jiyeon, or if Jiyeon might have wanted to refuse but couldn’t.

But now that she had come this far, such worries no longer mattered.

If you don’t take action, nothing changes.

Ryu Ah had taken bold steps to deepen their relationship, and now it was time to face the consequences.

Sigh…

The building where Molru lived, Ryu Ah walked out with a determined heart.

She checked her outfit, tidied up her hair, and even fixed her makeup before entering the building corridor, where a woman was standing.

The first thought that crossed her mind was that this woman was tall.

The woman, like Ryu Ah, was waiting for the elevator, holding a well-packed bag in one hand.

It seemed like the bag had something hot inside, possibly porridge.

The elevator doors opened, and Ryu Ah followed the woman inside, thinking to herself:

Could this person be visiting someone too?

See you in the next chapter!