Chapter 64 : A thrilling cohabitation

After that, the chicken arrived, and the real drinking mukbang began.

We shared drinks while talking about various topics, and before I knew it, the alcohol had gone to our heads.

Maybe that was why Curry, who had been acting awkward until recently, suddenly perked up.

“That time when the Chairwoman was standing right at the entrance on the first floor… My brain just froze. Seriously…”

“What was your first impression of me? That was the first time we actually met in person, right?”

Curry, now completely drunk, let out a small laugh and stood up from his seat.

“For moments like these, there’s something absolutely necessary! Hang on a second…”

He walked over to a corner of the room and started rummaging through a drawer.

I could hear him muttering, “It’s gotta be here somewhere…”

Before long, Curry returned to the table, holding a familiar object.

“Never thought I’d be using this again.”

“Is that the lie detector you bought last time?”

“Yep. This damned machine that’s only ever created embarrassing memories…”

If he hated it so much, I had no idea why he even bothered to bring it out.

Curry placed the lie detector on the table and pressed a button.

Then, putting his hand on it, he spoke in a low voice.

“My first impression of Barcode… Honestly, you were kind of scary.”

Beep!

A single tone rang out, and judging by Curry’s unchanged expression, what he said was true.

I had my doubts about how accurate this lie detector was, but that didn’t matter right now.

What mattered was that his first impression of me was “scary.”

“You thought I was scary? Why?”

“Well… how do I put this… uh… the vibe? Barcode, you have this unique vibe, and it was really intimidating.”

[What’s this guy even saying lololol]

[Unique vibe, my a** lolol]

[This dude is definitely drunk]

[Sorry everyone, our streamer’s drunk again]

[Please be kind to him… He’s a good kid…]

[A woman like her coming on strong, and you’re scared? This f*cking moron]

[Curry’s drunken nonsense is making me want to punch him lol]

I thought I’d been handling things well enough, but “scary”?

I could understand it logically, but emotionally, I just couldn’t relate.

“Huh… I see. So, is that why you thought I was that person…”

“Ahhhh! Barcode! What was your first impression of me? I pride myself on looking pretty decent, you know!”

Curry quickly cut me off and changed the topic, asking about my first impression of him.

It was an obvious attempt to steer the conversation away, but I decided to play along.

I wanted to drag this situation out for a bit longer.

Thinking about how to answer, I placed my hand on the lie detector and spoke.

“When I first met Curry in person… you gave off a vibe like a mischievous kid. Your drunken self is kind of cute, though.”

Beep!

Since I spoke my honest feelings, the lie detector confirmed it as truth.

Could it be that this machine was more accurate than I gave it credit for?

Just as I was considering this, Curry suddenly buried his face in his hands and lowered his head.

“Ugh… Barcode, when you say stuff like that…”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

Did I say something bad?

Why does he look so dejected?

Curious, I turned my attention to the monitor.

When the chatroom came into view, my questions were immediately answered.

[Just date already, you bastards!]

[Ah, this is so sweet, lolol.]

[Doesn’t this count as permission at this point?]

[I hope all these couple idiots drop dead, seriously.]

[Hey, hey, lol.]

[That seductive vixen, give us back our pure Curry.]

[Apologize with a real relationship.]

[This level of sweetness, and they haven’t even started fake-dating yet? Lol.]

[Barcode, take responsibility for Curry forever.]

The chatroom was in chaos over what I’d just said.

Words like “fake relationship” and “real relationship” stood out in particular.

It felt odd that such comments were sparked by a simple statement about Curry being cute.

All I did was mention one of the many charms of a streamer I liked as a fan. But the viewers had already taken it and run wild with their imaginations, leaving me feeling conflicted.

I liked “Curry,” the streamer—not the real person, Park Gwontae.

After all, I used to be a man myself. Even before my change, I became a fan of Curry because he was fun to watch.

“Pfft…”

Lost in thought, I let out a small laugh.

I had promised myself that, as a woman, I wouldn’t dwell on my past anymore.

Yet here I was, complicating things unnecessarily with these thoughts.

I needed to simplify things.

For whatever reason, I had become a woman. I was no longer a man.

If I couldn’t accept this fact, I’d end up being the kind of person who loses something important while clinging to the past.

Honestly, I’d rather embrace my identity as a woman than be treated like some pathetic eunuch.

To be frank, I didn’t mind the idea of doing a “fake couple” content stream with Curry.

Just looking at Curry, who still had his head down next to me, was enough to amuse me.

Of course, that didn’t mean I had any intention of pursuing a real relationship with him.

It wasn’t because it was Curry; I simply wasn’t interested in romance at all.

Having reached this conclusion, I glanced at Curry, who still hadn’t lifted his head.

It seemed like it was about time for him to raise his head, so why wasn’t he doing it?

I observed him closely and noticed that he was nodding off.

“Curry, are you drunk?”

“Nooo! I’m totally not drunk yet!”

When I put a hand on his shoulder and shook him, Curry reacted dramatically.

His cheeks were already flushed bright red, making it obvious to anyone that he was indeed drunk.

“You’re drunk.”

“Nooo… I swear, I’m not drunk.”

“You’re drunk.”

Curry was so intoxicated that it was questionable whether he could even continue the stream.

Still, the “stream until you drop” rule meant the broadcast had to stay on no matter what.

“Well… maybe I am? My head feels all dizzy…”[They’re going to devour our Curry.]

[Is this late-night stream going to be a Curry feast?]

[TETE.]

Still holding onto a sliver of awareness, Curry stared intently at the chat messages flooding the screen.

“What Curry feast, you b*stard! Managers, please ban anyone crossing the line…”

As if pouring out all the energy he had left, Curry forced the words out before collapsing onto the desk.

Just before he fell completely, I quickly slid the keyboard out of the way and let out a small sigh.

“Curry, get up and lie down on the bed.”

“Yesss…”

I helped Curry up and guided him to the bed right behind us.

Once he was lying down, he seemed unable to fight it anymore and closed his eyes. Breathing softly, Curry fell sound asleep, and I returned to my seat.

“Curry’s passed out, so unfortunately, the drinking stream has to end here.”

As I delivered the closing remarks on his behalf, the chatroom filled with messages of disappointment.

I would’ve liked to continue as well, but with the host out of commission, there wasn’t much I could do.

After tidying up the area, I moved the chair aside to give the viewers a better view of Curry sleeping peacefully.

[What’s with this attention to detail?]

[Hnnng… thoughtful queen…]

[Is this love?]

[A woman who’s stolen tens of thousands of hearts.]

[40,000 viewers for Curry’s sleep stream, are you serious?]

[Let’s be real, who came here for Curry? We’re all here for Barcode, lol.]

[lmao.]

“I’ll head to bed now, too. See you all tomorrow.”

Wrapping up the first day of the collab without any major issues, I headed to the guest room.

The dead of night, when everyone else was asleep.

The stream now featured nothing but a peacefully sleeping Curry.

Only the “true fans” remained, chatting and bantering amongst themselves, much like they used to in Yellow City.

Nostalgic for the good old days, the veteran viewers filled the chat with vibrant conversation.

As expected, most of it revolved around reminiscing about Yellow City’s golden era.

[Season 3 of Yellow City was the peak.]

[What are you talking about? Season 4 was the best.]

[Do you even know what Curry was like back then?]

[Ugh, the chat reeks of boomers.]

[? Anyone else hear something?]

[Only Curry’s breathing, nothing else.]

[Wait, isn’t that the sound of footsteps?]

Amid the peaceful chatter, a few viewers noticed a shift in the stream.

Faint, but unmistakable sounds were picked up by the microphone. The viewers speculated that it was someone walking.

Creaaak–

Step, step–

The sound of the door opening echoed as someone entered the room.

Viewers, who had been speculating whether a thief had broken in, were quickly proven wrong when the person responsible for the footsteps appeared on the cam.

Upon seeing them, everyone flooded the chat with “hook” emojis.

“Shh…”

Seeing the flood of hooks, I placed my index finger over my lips.

It might have been a meaningless gesture in a chat, but who knows—someone might use a donation to wake up Curry.

I moved carefully to avoid making any noise and opened the desk drawer.

I took out the marker I had prepared earlier, closed the drawer, and smiled faintly.

I planned to draw on Curry’s face, just like everyone did when they were kids.

[No way?]

[Ah, haha, haha]

[Drawing on a drunk person’s face is a classic move]

[Barcode! Barcode! Barcode! Barcode!]

[The classic drawing rules: cat whiskers and a puppy nose, right?]

Holding the marker, I approached the soundly sleeping Curry.

It was uncomfortable to draw while standing, so I knelt on the floor to start my work.

Following a viewer’s suggestion, I drew cat whiskers and a puppy nose.

Thanks to the monitor’s light, I could see Curry’s face even in the dark room. The drawn face looked unexpectedly cute in a ridiculous way.

Many viewers were curious about how Curry looked with the drawings, but unfortunately, I couldn’t show them.

After successfully drawing, I left the room.

I had planned the doodles just to pass the time in the quiet early morning.

Delaying my immediate enjoyment until morning, I smiled with satisfaction and went back to bed.

“Ugh…”

Curry woke up with a groan.

“Water…”

His throat felt like it was coated in alcohol, and his body ached.

Wanting to get rid of that feeling immediately, Curry stood up.

He looked around, but there was no water or drink in sight.

Only the remnants of the previous night’s drinking broadcast remained.

‘Wait, the drinking broadcast?’

It was only then that Curry realized the stream was still live, and he sat down in front of the computer.

[haha, haha, haha, haha]

[haha, haha, haha, haha, haha]

[Haha, haha, haha, haha]

[Everyone, wake up]

[Curry-shi, you’re so cute today, haha]

[Is this a dog or a puppy look?]

[haha, haha, haha]

“What’s up? Why are you laughing?”

Confused by the chat filled with ‘hahas,’ Curry switched the stream to the waiting screen.

“Guys, I’ll just grab some water and take a shower.”

He played some music and got up from his seat, heading out of the room.

He was eager to wash away the alcohol in his system and get rid of the lingering feeling.

Curry got some water from the purifier next to the fridge before heading to the bathroom.

Though the bathroom door was closed, he didn’t hesitate to open it.

Fwoosh—

As soon as he opened the door, a thick mist greeted his eyes.

The sound of a shower followed, and beyond the white steam, Curry saw someone’s silhouette.

“Huh?” “Huh?”

The silhouette turned to look at Curry, and for a moment, his brain froze, and he made a dumb noise.

There was a brief silence, and only after regaining his senses did Curry quickly close the door.

He had hurriedly shut the door, but it was already far too late.

Standing in front of the bathroom door, Curry reviewed what had just happened.

Barcode had been taking a shower in the bathroom.

He had opened the door, and in the brief moment, he had seen Barcode showering.

Though it was just a silhouette, it didn’t matter.

He had just committed a huge violation—he had spied on his boss taking a shower.

If Barcode finished showering and went into the room, saying into the microphone, “Curry watched me shower,” it would be game over.

“I’m screwed…”

Maybe it would be better to end it all here.

Curry seriously began contemplating his fate.

To be continued…

“Yeah. You’re drunk, Curry.”

[Are they sleeping together?]

[Will they actually sleep together, lol?]