Chapter 91 : Honest Conversation

From the very first day, the pension trip had been eventful, and time flew by in a blur.

On the second day, we all had fun at the indoor pool, then spent the rest of the day hanging out in other facilities like the karaoke room.

I got a little annoyed when Curry stared at Rine like he was entranced while she sang, but I let it slide.

After that, Curry, me, and Ji-hye took turns singing—and to my surprise, Curry turned out to be really good.

Since he had never sung on stream before, and always rejected song requests, I’d just assumed he must be terrible at singing.

But even with Rine—an actual singer—scheduled right after him, he sang so naturally that I couldn’t help but see him in a new light.

As for me, well… I obviously couldn’t sing to save my life,

but I didn’t feel embarrassed at all—

because Ji-hye, who I thought might be good, was absolutely tone-deaf.

She handles everything else like a pro—housework, managing, editing—so I figured, maybe she’d have a nice singing voice too.

But instead of being disappointed, seeing her mess up so hard made her feel more… human.

Looking back, the whole trip ended up going in a completely different direction than planned.

The original idea was simple:

Break Curry’s spirit.

But in the end, the whole trip just felt like a healing getaway instead.

Even just seeing the dumb look on Curry’s face as he stared at Rine in a swimsuit made it clear how off-course things had gone.

For a second, I even wondered if bringing Rine along was a mistake—but it didn’t bother me that much.

The plan may have changed, but I still had fun. That’s what mattered.

Back in the day, I only found joy in tormenting Curry, pushing him right to the edge and watching him suffer.

But somewhere along the line, that changed.

Now, just doing things with him is enough to be fun.

It’s ironic, really.

I know something inside me has shifted.

But I’m not afraid of it.

If it’s fun, then who cares?

As I was reflecting on all this, a very drunk Ji-hye popped her head into view.

Looking around, I saw the table was a total mess, and Rine was passed out cold, still clutching a bottle.

“Hic… unnie… why do you have three faces…?”

“She’s completely gone.”

I let out a small sigh as I looked at Ji-hye, wobbling on her feet. Then, I stood up.

The plan for our last night at the pension had been to end things with a bit of outdoor camping—majority vote.

And this, this disaster zone of scattered liquor bottles and a trashed campsite, was the result.

I looked around at the mess with a headache forming, then went ahead and ended the stream.

With not one but two people completely out of commission, there was no way I could keep the broadcast going.

“Ugh… when am I gonna clean all this up…”

I shook Ji-hye off me and started looking for Curry, who was currently MIA.

He said he was going to the bathroom like ten minutes ago, and he still wasn’t back.

That left only two possibilities:

Either he was taking a massive dump…

or something had happened.

…Though, odds were, it was the former.

Still, I figured I’d deal with Ji-hye first and began supporting her weight as we stumbled back inside the pension.

I’d had a bit to drink too, so the alcohol was starting to kick in, and my vision swayed a little.

I tried to stay focused as I aimed for Ji-hye’s room—

but her room was on the second floor, and there was no way I was getting up there like this.

So I headed to my room instead.

“Mmm-hmm-hmm… unnie… this one tastes good too…”

She was totally out of it, mumbling drunken nonsense.

After getting Ji-hye to lie down in bed, I stepped back outside.

Rine was out cold too, her face buried in the table.

I shook her awake and half-dragged her along.

She didn’t even have the energy to speak—just hung her head and let me carry her.

Thankfully, both Ji-hye and Rine were light, so it wasn’t that bad. Still, I was panting by the time I was done.

“Ughhh…”

I dumped Rine unceremoniously next to the already-sprawled Ji-hye, then collapsed into a chair.

I meant to just sit and catch my breath…

but my eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, and I could tell I was right on the verge of passing out.

As tempting as it was to just fall asleep right there, I still hadn’t found Curry yet.

So I forced myself back up and headed for the campsite.

There was a chance he’d come back from the bathroom and was waiting for us there.

But when I got back to the outdoor BBQ spot—

no one was there.

I checked the time.

It had already been 20 minutes since Curry disappeared.

He usually only took like five minutes tops when he went to the bathroom during streams.

Even drunk, this was way too long.

I started tidying up the wreckage of the campsite while keeping an eye out for him—

but Curry never came back.

At this point, I couldn’t help but start to worry.

So I made up my mind.

I was going to go look for him.

I began by searching the area around the campsite.

The campsite was really small—

but that made sense, since it was reserved exclusively for people who had booked the pension.

With Lunar New Year just around the corner, there weren’t many other guests around.

Back when we first arrived, I remember seeing a few other people wandering around the campsite…

but now? Not a single soul in sight.

The place gave off an oddly eerie vibe, and I found myself thinking, Let’s just find Curry and get back inside.

With that, I headed straight for the bathroom.

But when I reached the door, I froze.

Was it really okay for me to go into the men’s bathroom?

Maybe it was because I’d completely adjusted to my changed body, but that question actually crossed my mind.

Before… I wouldn’t have thought twice about it.

Still, finding Curry came first.

So I pushed aside the hesitation and stepped inside.

The bathroom was empty—

but a few of the stall doors were closed.

Just in case someone else was inside, I gently knocked.

Knock knock.

“Curry? Are you in there?”

No response.

I waited a little longer, then opened the door—

but the stall was empty.

I checked the other closed stalls one by one,

but they were all empty, too.

Realizing that, I quickly left the bathroom.

It would be a mess if someone walked in while I was just standing around in there.

“…Where the hell did you go?”

I wandered the area, checking corners, bushes, paths—anywhere Curry could’ve gone—

but he was nowhere to be found.

Maybe… maybe he already went back to the pension while I was out here?

With that thought, I picked up the pace and headed back.

But just as I was about to leave the campsite—

“Barcode.”

I froze.

The voice had come from behind me.

I turned around.

There stood Curry, staring right at me.

His eyes were filled with emotions I couldn’t quite place—

like a tangle of things he couldn’t say.

He was looking straight at me.

I wanted to ask where the hell he’d been this whole time.

I really did.

But…

The cheerful, joking tone he had earlier was nowhere to be found.

He was quiet.

Heavy.

Brooding.

The sudden change in mood made it impossible for me to say anything.

“Wanna… go for a walk?”

The sudden offer caught me off guard—

but I gave a small nod in agreement.

Normally, in this state, I would’ve refused without hesitation.

My body was tired, and the alcohol wasn’t helping.

But looking at Curry now…

He seemed fragile.

Like he’d collapse if someone so much as brushed past him.

I couldn’t say for sure, but—

that’s how he looked to me.

So that’s how I ended up walking through the cold night with Curry by my side,

letting the chilly breeze snap me back to my senses.

He was definitely drunk.

And he didn’t seem fully in his right mind.

If I lost my grip too, who knows what would happen?

We walked in silence.

I kept glancing at him, wondering if I should say something—

anything to break the quiet.

But then he spoke first.

“Barcode, you look kind of worn out. Want to take a seat over there?”

“…I’m fine.”

“Ah-ah, no need to be stubborn now.”

“…Alright.”

With no real choice, I followed Curry to a bench in a small roadside rest area.

The wind kept my head clear, which I was grateful for—

but my body had started to feel the chill creeping in.

I wouldn’t last much longer out here.

That’s when Curry spoke again, this time with a strange seriousness in his tone.

“There’s… something I’ve been meaning to ask.”

The heaviness in his voice kept my fading consciousness anchored—

but just barely.

His words began to echo faintly in my ears, blurred by the alcohol.

“Barcode… I… why… the reason…”

“I was really… struggling… but why did you…”

His voice was there.

But the words weren’t fully coming through.

It was like chunks of the sentence had been swallowed by the night.

I could hear his voice—

but I couldn’t understand what he was trying to say.

If I were in a normal state, I would’ve bitten my lip and forced myself to stay conscious, curious about what Curry was saying.

But my body, having reached its limit, refused to obey, and my eyes began to close involuntarily.

“….?….!”

Curry said something urgently, but…

Sorry, I couldn’t hear what you were saying.

With that unspoken apology to Curry, my consciousness completely faded.

“Sorry… really…”

As Barcode lost consciousness after uttering those words, Curry stood frozen, staring down at her like a broken machine.

Though he was flustered by the sudden turn of events, Curry quickly checked her condition and cursed inwardly.

Her body was burning hot, far from normal.

The thought of using this opportunity to have an honest conversation with her and untangle their twisted relationship

had long vanished from his mind.

Should I call an ambulance?

It could just be a simple fever, right?

How far is it to the pension from here?

Could I carry her all the way there?

What if things get worse along the way…

Various thoughts crossed his mind.

After quickly weighing his options, Curry decided to call an ambulance.

As he anxiously waited for the ambulance, Curry noticed her shivering in the cold.

It didn’t matter whether she was the malicious sniper who had tormented him for years,

the chairman he had worked with for a long time, or a fellow streamer.

Curry took off his coat and draped it over her, enduring the biting cold of winter as he waited endlessly.

Just as he began to wonder if he might freeze to death himself,

Wiiiiiing—

The sound of an ambulance siren echoed in the distance.

Curry felt a sense of relief but stayed alert until the very end.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine… Please take care of her first…”

When the paramedic asked about Curry’s condition,

he pointed to the unconscious Barcode and spoke with difficulty.

Other paramedics who arrived later loaded her into the ambulance.

And so, the final night of the pension trip came to an end.