Debuting by Riding the Returnee’s Bus Chapter 35

‘How on earth are there already GIFs?’

 

“Unha.”

 

‘And how did they edit them so fast? Where did all these sparkly effects even come from?’

 

It hadn’t been long since I turned off the live stream. No, it had been almost immediate. I couldn’t understand how these clips were already being uploaded. They’d even edited them and added effects in that short amount of time. Is that even physically possible? I wondered.

 

Of course, I knew that among dedicated fans there were plenty of monsters and superhumans with all kinds of skills, but still…

 

‘This… this is a bit too impressive.’

 

Whoever had made them, I couldn’t help feeling grateful. Everything was proceeding exactly as I had intended.

 

[Anonymous: Joo Wooyoung × Lee Unha Livestream Chemistry GIF Collection]

 

As I scrolled, GIFs and short videos began auto-playing.

 

[Joo Wooyoung looking at Lee Unha like he’s looking at a younger brother]

[Lee Unha laughing while playfully hitting Joo Wooyoung’s forearm]

[Joo Wooyoung opening the red ginseng for Lee Unha, and Lee Unha taking it]

 

Seeing people squeeze so much out of these moments made me wonder whether I hadn’t needed to force things after all, but then…

 

[Joo Wooyoung leaning in close and staring intently into Lee Unha’s eyes]

 

Watching this clip, I had zero regrets. Joo Wooyoung, framed by a soft-glow filter, leaning in to stare into my eyes, looked like much more than just a friendly senior.

 

My only concern was the way his gaze suddenly changed. Joo Wooyoung, who had been smiling silly until that moment, suddenly hardened his expression as he moved his face closer. The atmosphere had shifted so drastically that it was clear he wasn’t just trying to blow dust out of my eye or inspect it. 

 

There was a strange, unexplainable tension.

 

Setting everything else aside, I liked that we looked close. There was a sense of a tight bond, and it felt like our mutual respect and care for one another were being clearly broadcasted. Watching myself on screen with Joo Wooyoung like that, I felt the corners of my own mouth twitch upward.

 

Even the comments were positive.

 

 [Anonymous] This reminds me of that post from a few days ago. The ones saying Lee Unha feels off or that they’re worried about Joo Wooyoung being tied to himㅋㅋㅋㅋ I wonder what they thought after today’s livestream

 ↳ [Anonymous] When was there a post like that? ㅋㅋㅋㅋWeren’t people just saying they didn’t like fans forcing a story between them?]

 ↳ [Anonymous] It pops up immediately if you search for it;; I thought it was ridiculous too. They’re close and they like each other, but people here were acting like psychics, claiming things felt off or that they shouldn’t be friends ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 ↳ [Anonymous] The voting hasn’t even started yet, so stop trying to pit them against each other. They have different positions anyway, so the votes won’t even split… What’s everyone’s problem? I’ve thought this for a while now, but this board always has way more to say about Unha than anyone else. Honestly, the reason Idol Classism is popular and the other trainees are getting this much trickle-down interest is all thanks to Unha.

 ↳ [Anonymous] You psychos, please stop trying to drive a wedge between Joo Wooyoung and Lee Unha.

 [Anonymous] Their visual chemistry is insane T_T T_T I missed the live, what did they even do today?

 ↳ [Anonymous] They did a review of the Nobility dormsㅋㅋㅋNo lies, Unha literally asked if he could move inㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋJoo Wooyoung was flustered… anyway, watch the full version when it’s up, time flies.

 

 [Anonymous] I know this might be a weird time to bring it up, but… wasn’t Lee Unha using his own account for the livestream… kind of intentional?

 ↳ [Anonymous] Read the room. He already posted a notice asking people to follow Joo Wooyoung.

 ↳ [Anonymous] Did Unha do something to offend you? Seriously, what’s your problem?

 

‘This is good. This is really good.’

 

I didn’t know when the troublemakers would try to stir things up again, but at least right now they couldn’t. Any small negative post would be immediately suppressed. In this community, the anti- fan sentiment was effectively extinct.

 

Sure, there were probably people lurking in the shadows waiting for another opportunity, but the public mood had become so overwhelmingly one-sided that they’d probably be better off causing trouble somewhere else. The pro-Unha forces, who had been enduring a tough time being attacked with the nonsensical creepy label, were now running wild. They were even digging up old posts and starting a witch hunt of their own.

 

‘There’s no need to keep reading here.’

 

In fact, I felt like I didn’t need to check the reactions on other sites either. This anonymous community was one of the most hostile toward me, so I assumed others would be even more positive.

 

Just to be safe, I decided to check a more unfiltered anonymous community… and sure enough….

 

 [Anon 1] Am I the only one… who felt that… after watching today’s broadcast?

 ↳ [Anon 2] Jjoo definitely kissed Gong the second they confirmed the stream ended ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 

“*Pffft!*”

 

‘Wait….’

 

“Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough!”

 

“Unha, are you okay?”

 

“Ah! Cough! Yes. Wooyoung hyung. I’m fine.”

 

The completely unexpected escalation made me choke. I had been worried things were a bit too mild, but I was wrong. The reaction was so hot I felt like I was getting burned.

 

‘Where exactly is this community? Are people really allowed to talk like this here?’

 

[Anon1]: Unha was totally like a fox wagging its tail today. It seriously looked like he was begging to be devoured.

↳ [Anon2]: Damn ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

↳ [Anon3]: When he said he wanted to live there… that was so suggestive. And the atmosphere at the end was weird too. Honestly, after seeing Joo Wooyoung’s expression, I couldn’t even keep watching because I thought something was about to happenㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

↳ [Anon4]: No doubt about it. He definitely kissed himㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 

In this mysterious, unidentified community, they were listing every little detail, dissecting them, and enjoying the show. It felt like they refused to let even the smallest crumb of content escape. Seeing them mentioning even the most trivial things, I felt like I needed to be even more careful with my actions.

 

I was being analyzed down to the nanosecond. 

 

Gaze direction, hand placement, the way I touched Joo Wooyoung while laughing… It had only been a short livestream, yet somehow it had generated an unbelievable amount of discussion.

 

The one relief was….

 

‘It doesn’t seem like they think I’m forcing the friendship.’

 

Fortunately, I couldn’t find anyone saying the interaction felt awkward or uncomfortable. Both this community and others were equally fired up. The site where those mysterious fanfics were circulating seemed to be burning even brighter. It seemed the short live stream had set fire to their creative desires.

 

I didn’t quite understand what was going on, but the signals were definitely positive. I didn’t know much about the ecology of community users, but I assumed most didn’t stick to just one site. Some people probably wandered from site to site just to see how others were reacting, while there were surely dedicated heavy uploaders as well.

 

If I had a positive impact on one community, it would naturally bleed into others. Sure enough, the chemistry GIFs that first appeared in the initial community were now appearing on specific SNS platforms and were being shared in real-time.

 

‘So this is how it snowballs.’

 

I’d expected it to have some effect, but the results seemed even better than I’d imagine. It wasn’t just about becoming famous; the narrative between Joo Wooyoung and Lee Unha was becoming tighter. 

 

Of course, looking tight on the outside was meaningless. Actually becoming close was what mattered.

 

‘Right, Wooyoung hyung?’

 

“Cough! Cough!”

 

“Should I get you some water?”

 

“Ah, yes. I’d appreciate that.”

 

Joo Wooyoung, who had been cautiously watching me, spoke up.

 

“Did the reactions turn out badly?”

 

“Huh? Oh, no.”

 

“Ah, that’s a relief. You suddenly started coughing while looking at your phone, so I thought something happened.”

 

“I just choked for a second. The reactions seem really good. You saw how fast the chat was moving too.”

 

“No, I was so overwhelmed that I couldn’t pay attention to the chat at all.”

 

‘With your kinetic vision?’ I thought to myself.

 

“I don’t think I could ever do a livestream by myself… You were reading the chat and keeping things moving at the same time. You seemed so composed.”

 

“I was just pretending to be composed. I couldn’t really see the chat well either. I just checked whatever caught my eye every now and then.”

 

“Oh… really?”

 

“Yeah. It was my first live too, where would I get ‘composure’ from? I don’t even know how the time passed. I didn’t even notice the staff. I think I was only able to work hard without panicking because you were by my side, hyung.”

 

It was the perfect answer. I’d just told him that I trusted him as a teammate I could rely on, someone I could overcome difficult situations with. It was such a perfect line that I almost felt like I’d earned a promotion to official party member status right there and then.

 

As expected, a smile bloomed on Joo Wooyoung’s face. His gaze was filled with warmth toward Lee Unha.

 

But that gaze didn’t last long. A sudden change flickered in Joo Wooyoung’s eyes.

 

I knew the reason, of course. It was probably….

 

‘Because of the Succubus Eyes, right?’

 

His gaze became incredibly serious.

 

“Unha.”

 

Maybe it was because of the post I had just read… but useless scenes started playing in my head. Of course, there was no chance of that. Joo Wooyoung’s expression was as serious as it could be. He likely wanted to talk about the Succubus Eyes.

 

“Can I… ask you something?”

 

“Yes, hyung.”

 

“Have you ever felt anything strange in your eyes… or… felt something… becoming weird? Anything like that?”

 

“Huh? Why are you asking all of a sudden?”

 

“No, just answer the question.”

 

“…I haven’t really felt anything like that.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

“Yes. Ah… come to think of it….”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Sometimes my eyes do get tired.”

 

“I see….”

 

“And sometimes when that happens, it’s not just my eyes that are tired… it feels like my whole body loses its strength….”

 

“Ah….”

 

“I fainted once before, remember? Actually, that was because I suddenly got exhausted. It’s happened occasionally since I was a kid, so I thought there was a problem with my body and went to the hospital, but they said I was just born with a weak constitution. There were no issues when I went to the hospital with PD Ahn this time either.”

 

“I see….”

 

“It doesn’t seem like a big deal.”

 

“Do you know exactly when it happens?”

 

“Well… I’m not sure… it seems to happen at random times….”

 

Joo Wooyoung’s expression grew extremely grim. I was certain he was cycling through various possibilities. Lee Unha, a 17-year-old boy who wasn’t a demon but was unknowingly using a supernatural power like Succubus Eyes. I could almost feel that image taking shape inside Joo Wooyoung’s mind.

 

‘Yeah. That’s right, Wooyoung. I can’t control the power inside me right now.’

 

It was right then that Joo Wooyoung suddenly placed a hand on my head.

 

“Wooyoung hyung?”

 

Immediately after….

 

“Unchiora.”

 

“Huh?”

 

My consciousness began to blur, and then everything went pitch black.