Second Half Chapter 13

All throughout the meal, there wasn’t so much as the sound of an ant moving, aside from the clinking of cutlery. Was it a stroke of luck that the meal ended faster than usual because I shoveled the food in so combatively? Jerim, finishing his dinner, returned to his room one step ahead of Aaron and tossed the luggage Aaron had left behind into the hallway.

“Are you going to take responsibility if I get robbed?”

“Like I give a damn?”

I replied half-heartedly to Aaron, who was muttering in disbelief at seeing his luggage thrown into the hallway, and slammed the door hard for him to see. It was revenge for the bathroom door earlier. Finally alone, Jerim washed up comfortably and sat on the sofa. He wanted to lie down immediately, but he couldn’t until he had digested his food.

Chewing on his solitude while staring at the ceiling, the surroundings were so quiet that stray thoughts came rushing in. They were mostly about his past with Aaron. Not wanting to dwell on them any further, he turned on the TV. Boisterous noise echoed through the room, scattering his ruminations. The fact that the voices coming from any channel he flipped to were Korean soothed his stifled heart.

Jerim watched a variety show blankly for a while before falling fast asleep right there on the sofa in a sitting position.

“You didn’t even have to take a flight, so why did you go to bed so early?”

At William’s question, which flew at him as soon as he entered the banquet hall early in the morning, Jerim awkwardly felt around his mouth. He was certain he had fallen asleep before 9:00 PM, but when he woke up, the sun was shining brightly, which had flustered him as well. Feeling guilty about sleeping without properly digesting, he had just returned from a jog as soon as he woke up.

‘This is all because of that damn bastard….’

Jerim gnashed his teeth while looking at Aaron, who was sipping coffee with a sleek, polished face. The reason he had conked out so early like a “child of the new nation” at this age was likely because his exhausted mind had declared an early strike due to the constant psychological warfare.

Even so, he couldn’t exactly blame Aaron for the act of falling asleep without digesting his food. However, Jerim’s eyes were currently equipped with something similar to the filter in William’s earholes. A filter where every bit of misfortune looked like it was Aaron Reyes’s fault. He was starting to trust the fortune-telling more and more—the one that said his past ill-fated relationship would drag him down.

Sleeping right after eating is so bad for the body. Since he had maintained the habit of doing aerobic exercise after dinner before sleeping for over a decade, yesterday’s lapse felt even more painful. He blamed the innocent Aaron even for the ruin of his strict lifestyle habits as he dissected an omelet with his knife. Even the fact that the breakfast menu was Western felt like a misfortune brought on by Aaron.

“Koreans live on the strength of rice, but….”

It would be nice if there were some scorched rice water, but there was no way British chefs could make something like that. As a side note, for bodies that require mandatory dietary management, a hotel buffet was a pipe dream; they were filling their stomachs with healthy meals prepared by club chefs who had followed them all the way to Korea.

When Jerim grumbled to himself, the colleagues around him each tossed out a word.

“What have you been babbling about in Korean since earlier?”

“It’s just something. You guys wouldn’t know even if I told you.”

“His condition has been a bit strange since yesterday, hasn’t it?”

“Right. Are you in a bad mood? Do you want to go out and have fun after open training this evening? I’m a bit curious about what Korean clubs are like.”

Edson, an energetic winger who even owned his own massive mobile speaker, suggested it with an excited face. Jerim threw his knife down and flared up.

“I’ll kill you if you go. Stay tucked away in the hotel until the Korea tour is over!”

“So stiff.”

Watching Edson pout, Jerim suppressed his anger. When they first arrived, they were all looking miserable because they hadn’t won the Big Ear, and now these guys…. Jerim’s insides burned because they had perfectly adapted in just one day and were talking nonsense about going to a club. William pushed a glass of cold water toward him and asked.

“Jeri, you said you’re filming a YouTube talk show at lunch today, right?”

“Yeah. What about you?”

“I’m doing a fan service event with Liam and Craig.”

“You’re going to have a hard time.”

Normally, training is standard in the morning, but the midsummer weather in Korea held them back. The open training and match schedules were all pushed to the evening, so until then, they scattered for youth training, fan service, variety filming for club content, or talk show appearances.

Jerim snickered at the thought of his colleagues having to stand like mannequins at an event venue crowded with people on this hot day. Compared to them, his life was easy since he and Lehmann just had to go on a channel run by a YouTuber he was friendly with and talk. However, William comforted Jerim with a look that was actually pitiful.

“Can it be as bad as your situation?”

“Why would I have a hard time?”

“…You didn’t hear because you went to bed early yesterday.”

Along with a hand patting his back, words like a bolt from the blue followed.

“Lehmann came down with indigestion and is bedridden… so your partner changed. To Reyes.”

…Dear God. Jerim buried his face deep in his palms. His brain finally came up with a rational judgment in the face of this massive misfortune—at this point, it was more appropriate to resent God than Aaron.

✲✲✲

The talk show filming location was a seminar room in the hotel where they were currently staying. As soon as Jerim finished breakfast, he put all his heart and soul into grooming himself. He was going to wear casual private clothes, so he didn’t want it to feel too labored, but just enough to look significantly better than the guy who would be caught on camera with him.

However, no matter how much he tried to groom himself alone, the most he could do—as someone who had never applied makeup himself in his life—was shave diligently and wax his hair back, so the result didn’t quite satisfy him. Normally, the club provides a stylist, but it seemed they didn’t follow for this tour. Instead, he dressed as carefully as possible and headed to the seminar room.

In the seminar room, the YouTuber Hansung, one translator, a few staff members, and Aaron, wearing a tracksuit, were already seated. Everyone except Aaron was in comfortable attire. It was the moment Jerim, dressed up like a male peacock, became the fool. As soon as Hansung saw Jerim, he jumped up and ran over.

“Hyung! Why are you so dressed up today? Are you shooting a pictorial or something?”

“…I didn’t dress up.”

“Liar. Look at your hair. Aigoo, it’s so stiff. How much did these shoes cost?”

Hansung, who had a sharp eye, teased him by touching the ends of his hair, which Jerim had struggled to set for a “natural yet groomed” look. He immediately pointed out that Jerim had even decorated his feet—which wouldn’t even be in the shot—with limited edition sneakers. Embarrassed for nothing, Jerim just shook his head vigorously.

“Aish, I dressed up to give you some face. Happy?”

“As expected of my hyung! …But seeing Reyes in person, he’s really scary. His aura is no joke.”

Hansung whispered softly while glancing at Aaron. Jerim also stole a look at Aaron and agreed.

“Do you have to see him in person to know that? His mug is terrible to begin with.”

“Ey, honestly, his face is similar to yours, hyung. His physique is better than yours, though….”

“You, don’t ever make videos with me from now on. If I see you in my sight, I’ll sue.”

“Hyung-nim! Just for making a little joke! Sit, sit.”

Hansung pushed Jerim’s back and asked in an even smaller voice than before.

“But hyung, do you really not get along with Reyes?”

“…Even you’re saying that? I’m seriously sick of it….”

“No, I had the whole script written assuming I’d be filming with Fritz, but it changed so suddenly…. It’s a total rush job script now. I already wrote it in a hurry, so I can’t afford to step on a landmine.”

Jerim thought Hansung was asking purely to satisfy his own curiosity like everyone else, but unexpectedly, a valid concern followed. Though he seemed infinitely light, he appeared to have deep thoughts in this regard as someone who makes a living through personal broadcasting. To that, Jerim commanded seriously with a face stripped of laughter.

“Edit it to make us look as friendly as possible.”

In short, it was true they didn’t get along, but he didn’t want to show that on the broadcast. Hansung, who had no trouble grasping the hidden meaning, nodded his chin.

“Okay. But then you have to play along to some extent, hyung. I’ve minimized the interview and changed the format to games. We’re going with a pleasant atmosphere, okay?”

“Yeah, I trust you.”