episode_0146

On the usual way home, at the same time as yesterday.

Kim Dae-yoon was walking along the main road. Normally, he would be with his friend Kim Ji-hwan, who would be going home at the same time, but today, did he have something to do first?

So, walking home alone for the first time in a while, Kim Dae-yoon felt a bit unfamiliar.

Feeling bored just walking, he took out his earphones from his bag and plugged them into both ears. Then he took out his phone, opened the Twiji app, and searched for any interesting broadcasts, but soon lost interest and switched to NewTube.

He familiarly went into his own channel and started watching the video. Although it was not a video entirely created by himself, just a video edited by combining the broadcast footage of a YouTuber and adding subtitles, Kim Dae-yoon still felt proud that he had a hand in it.

The first thing he checked was the comments on the video he uploaded yesterday. To his surprise, there were many compliments in the comments.

Especially when he saw comments like “I should watch the broadcast to know the charm of the YouTuber through your video,” he couldn’t help but feel a sense of fulfillment rising from deep within.

Laughing and walking briskly like a crazy person.

-Tap Tap

“Why are you watching it so intently?”

“Ah!”

With a tap on his shoulder and a sudden voice from the side, Kim Dae-yoon was startled and turned to look beside him. And then, he was startled again and shouted.

“Ah!”

“What’s wrong, don’t be scared. Why are you so surprised to see a person?”

Sure enough, the person who suddenly spoke to him was none other than Jung Da-young.

What’s going on? Why do I keep running into her since yesterday? Of course, today she was the one who recognized him first and spoke to him.

“Oh, no. I didn’t hear anything because the noise was being canceled out.”

Saying that, Kim Dae-yoon took out his earphones from his ears.

“Hehe. Sorry. I was just happy to see a familiar face on the street.”

Seeing her face with a hint of aegyo (at least to a guy), Kim Dae-yoon felt a sense of anger that had disappeared.

“Oh, okay. Uh…”

Honestly, he thought that face was fake, but he couldn’t help but feel weak.

“By the way, what were you watching? It looked like a moving cartoon character. Do seniors like animations?”

Kim Dae-yoon vehemently denied her question that sounded like ‘Do you watch that kind of thing?’

“Oh, no. It’s definitely not that.”

“Hmph. It’s either yes or no. What’s wrong with that? Everyone has their own preferences.”

“Oh, no. It’s not like that. I was just watching internet broadcasts.”

Recently, even insiders don’t feel special about internet broadcasts, so he thought it might be better treatment than watching animations.

“What kind of internet broadcasts were you watching? Mainland broadcasts? Or Twiji?”

“T-Twiji.”

“Oh! I see! You watch YouTubers?”

She, who is known as the insider of insiders at school, how did she know about YouTubers? But secretly, a proud feeling arose in a corner of his heart that even insiders like her knew about YouTubers.

But being careless is forbidden. If he acts like he knows too much and says something like ‘Wow! You know about YouTubers!’ and gets treated like an otaku, it could lead to rumors at school tomorrow.

Of course, even though I’m a high school senior with less than half a year left before graduation, it doesn’t hurt to be careful.

“Well, I… I saw something about algorithms and got curious.”

“Huh? You watch Twitch but don’t know about YouTubers? It’s popular even in other countries these days. YouTubers.”

Kim Dae-yoon felt a bit pathetic inside. If he knew more about YouTubers, then how much more would someone like her know?

“So, do you… like that kind of stuff?”

A timid retort. He couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride in his heart for boldly asking, “Do you watch that kind of stuff?”

“Yes. I like this kind of stuff. But, why have you been subtly looking down on me for it since earlier?”

Her voice lowered a tone.

Oh, did she get mad because of his retort? Or maybe she also likes YouTubers but felt offended by his teasing?

Either way, a sense of guilt for making someone else angry rushed over him, and Kim Dae-yoon hurriedly apologized.

“Oh, it’s not that…”

“If it’s not that, then what is it? There’s no competition in hobbies, and whatever someone likes is their own business. It’s not a bad thing to openly express what you like, you know?”

“Oh, no.”

“What’s wrong then? You’ve been talking like that since earlier.”

Oh no. This is awkward. How long has it been since he had a conversation with a girl for this long? It’s an unfamiliar situation, and on top of that, he made the other person angry. It’s truly the worst situation.

“I, I mean… I’m sorry. I, I also know about YouTubers. I like them too. But, I feel a bit embarrassed about it.”

“Heh! I know. You like YouTubers.”

Kim Dae-yoon widened his eyes in surprise at her words.

What did she say?

“That thing you were watching just now. Was it Jorang-i? I also like Jorang-i.”

What? Then why did she say that when she already knew?

Feeling like she was teasing him while knowing everything, Kim Dae-yoon’s anger flared up. If she’s popular, why is she playing with me like this? Feeling annoyed, he was about to say something in that moment.

“But why can’t you just say you like what you like? What, is watching YouTubers a bad thing?”

His words that were about to burst out suddenly got stuck in his throat.

What? Is it a bad thing?

It’s not that, but… how others perceive it, societal norms…

“If you like it, just like it. What I think is important, not how others see it.”

“Oh, okay.”

“And…”

She approached him and looked him in the eyes.

“Are you embarrassed about liking Jorang-i?”

-Whack!

Kim Dae-yoon’s face instantly turned red.

Could it be that she…?!

“You, you!”

She also seemed surprised and looked Kim Dae-yoon in the eyes.

“Oh, no. I mean… well…”

Now feeling like he was wrong, Jung Da-young closed his eyes tightly.

“So you’re a Jorang-i fan too! Right?”

Relieved by his reaction, Jung Da-young let out a deep sigh. For some reason, she felt a mix of refreshing and regretful emotions. But soon, she smiled.

“That’s right. I also like Jorang-i. Haha.”

Kim Dae-yoon’s expression visibly brightened at her response. Wow. Why would such a pretty girl watch internet broadcasts? On the one hand, he felt proud that such a pretty girl shared the same hobby as him.

“Wow, how did you start watching broadcasts?”

“Me? Oh… I… um, yes! Clipper! Jorang-i Tteokguk? I got into it because of that person’s video.”

And that Jorang-i Tteokguk was none other than Kim Dae-yoon himself.

“Wow, you know about Jorang-i Tteokguk!”

Ah, he couldn’t resist talking about himself.

“Of course. It’s one of the most famous Jorang-i-related clips.”

Although Jo Raeng-i himself was not a mainstream streamer, he was a figure on the outskirts of a large company, so there were quite a few related clippers. Among them, the most famous figure was none other than Kim Dae-yoon himself.

Having someone recognize him like this made him feel that his long-time hobby was not in vain.

“Oh, I see. You know me.”

“Haha, why do you look so moved? Is this the first time you’ve seen Jo Raeng-i in real life?”

“Oh. Actually, my friend who introduced me to Jo Raeng-i is a bird-like friend who watches all kinds of broadcasts everywhere. He only saw me as a proper Jo Raeng-i.”

“Oh, really?”

Then she suddenly reached out her hand.

“Then let’s be friends from now on. I’ve only seen Jo Raeng-i in real life… um… for the second time? Haha.”

The second time? Then who was the first? Even though he felt jealous for no reason, he quickly calmed himself down, realizing there was nothing to be jealous of.

“Before, my younger brother’s friend came over to play, and it turned out he was Jo Raeng-i. Other than that, you’re the first senior. Haha.”

As they continued to talk about Jo Raeng-i, they soon arrived at the apartment building. And so they entered the apartment building.

-Ring.

Jung Da-yeong’s phone rang.

“Yes, Mom. What? I’m late? How late? Oh, you said I can’t be late today. We had plans! Ugh, so when should I arrive?”

Jung Da-yeong answered the phone and quickly became annoyed. It seems like the person on the other end was her mother (when did she change from ajumma to mother?).

“Okay, I got it. I’ll take care of it for now. You have to come as soon as possible, okay?”

She hung up the phone.

“Sorry. I have something to talk to my mom about.”

“No, it’s okay. What’s there to apologize for.”

As they were talking, the elevator arrived.

“Did you have plans with your mother today?”

“Oh, yes. Um…”

Feeling like she was avoiding the conversation for some reason, Kim Tae-yoon became awkward, thinking he had done something wrong.

-Ding dong! 15th floor. The door is opening.

“Um, then I’ll go now!”

In the end, Kim Tae-yoon had to part ways with her with a uneasy heart, not knowing the reason for her sudden change in attitude.