Ch.98Kim Donghu was a man.

The morning after making plans with Sujin.

“You’re already out here?”

“Yeah, it’s faster to meet on the first floor.”

Sujin was waiting in front of her house.

I had planned to say hello to her parents after so long.

‘Well, I can greet them anytime.’

Thinking that, I glanced at Sujin’s hairband.

“Did you always wear a hairband?”

“I don’t like getting sweaty, so… I can wear one if I want!”

I noticed she kept fussing with her bangs while speaking oddly.

Come to think of it, I remember hearing that girls are really conscious about their bangs.

‘They even hold their bangs while running, right?’

With that image in mind, I headed straight to the playground near the apartment.

Being early morning, there was nobody around,

and the track was empty, so we could run comfortably.

“Are you really going to do this every day?”

“Huh? Do what?”

“I mean, are you really going to practice with me like this often?”

I nodded at Sujin’s question as if it were obvious.

“Of course, right? Actually, you should have been running consistently for at least six months, but this is better than nothing.”

The way to become a good runner was very simple and easy.

Just run consistently.

Of course, there were limits,

but at a general level, anyone could achieve “running well.”

‘Though a week isn’t enough for even that.’

Still, it’s enough time to make the act of running itself feel less awkward.

“First, we absolutely must stretch, or you’ll get hurt.”

“Really? How do we do it?”

“Just follow what I do.”

Stretching wasn’t actually difficult.

It’s just like the New Millennium Exercise we used to do in elementary school.

A privilege only teenagers could enjoy.

“I used to slack off when we did this at school, this is weird.”

“Well… it’s all fine except for a few strange movements.”

The running session that followed went smoothly without any issues.

It would have been strange if there were any obstacles to running, really.

‘3km in 15 minutes is pretty good.’

That’s a Grade 3 in military fitness standards.

She definitely had good physical fitness, probably from her acting career.

“Huff… huff…”

At the end of our first running course,

Sujin was gasping for breath and desperately looking for water.

“Drink slowly, slowly.”

I had anticipated this and pulled out water from the bag I’d brought.

Gulp, gulp.

As Sujin was drinking, she unconsciously felt uncomfortable with her hairband,

Whoosh.

She took off her hairband for comfort.

At the same time, her bangs lifted, and I saw on Sujin’s forehead.

“Oh, a pimple.”

I spotted her acne.

“Huh, what?! WHAT?!”

Facing Sujin who was genuinely shocked for some reason.

“Sujin, they say you shouldn’t press on areas with pimples with things like hairbands…!”

I immediately advised, and

“I don’t care! I hate you! I’m not talking to you anymore!”

I was hated.

“…?”

Sujin disappeared without even looking up after saying that.

And so our first running session ended after about 30 minutes, and

>No meeting until the shoot, even at school!

A contact ban was issued.

‘Why on earth?’

Could it really be because of the pimple?

++++++

Rushman MC Yoo Jiseok usually carefully reviewed

guest information before they arrived.

But as with most things in life,

there were rarely any special cases except for an extremely small number.

However.

“PD Yujin, is this for real?”

“Pardon?”

“About this child actor Kim Donghu who’s appearing today.”

“Yes, yes.”

“Looking at his profile, his career is impressive, almost unbelievably so?”

“Right? Doesn’t that make him more credible?”

Kim Donghu was so unusual he didn’t even fit into the category of special cases.

Sometimes agencies create concepts to play tricks, but

this could potentially cause serious problems if mishandled.

‘Well, I’m sure the PD had reasons for casting him.’

Deciding not to question further, Jiseok immediately began preparing for the shoot.

He was worried about having two children on the show, but

at the same time, there was something reassuring.

‘They said the two are close.’

From what he heard, they’d known each other since “Hehe Doctor!”

That would make them childhood friends of at least 10 years.

However.

As if deliberately trampling on Jiseok’s expectations.

“Hi Sujin.”

“Don’t talk to me until the shooting starts.”

Just as he was about to welcome the two child actors who arrived early,

he accidentally overheard their conversation.

‘Weren’t you two supposed to be close?’

Childhood friends,

who had even worked on two projects together.

But what was with this coldness?

‘Did they fight?’

Just as he was worrying whether this might affect the shooting,

“…Is it better now? I’m sorry about that time… I shouldn’t have been so inconsiderate about your pimp…”

“If you mention the p-pimple one more time! I’ll never see you again!”

“But it’s all gone now…”

“Still! Still! I can’t forgive you! You ruined everything that day! You know that, right?!”

“…Y-yeah, I know.”

“Anyway! That’s how it is! Don’t talk to me until the shoot! If you do, I really won’t look at you then!”

Jiseok heard an adorably cute conversation that made him smile.

‘Ah, they’re so innocent it’s killing me.’

Yoo Jiseok is a famous “Will You Marry Me?” romantic.

And now they’re giving such rich material to someone like him?

‘This is like dangling a fish in front of a cat.’

Or was it the other way around? Well, that wasn’t important right now.

What was certain was that he was really looking forward to today’s shoot.

+++++

Is being insensitive a sin?

There’s been much debate about this.

No matter how hard you try to develop it, sensitivity can’t be forced.

In some situations, insensitivity can actually be helpful,

so in a way, isn’t sensitivity just an illusion? Some would argue.

But.

Kim Sujin had firmly concluded exactly one week ago

that being insensitive was definitely a sin.

The cause, of course, was Kim Donghu.

‘Total idiot! Dummy!’

In comics, characters would say embarrassing things but

even kiss pimples.

‘Of course I know that’s unrealistic and just allowed in comics, I know that!’

But couldn’t he have done something similar?

How could he respond like that?

‘What kind of boy points out someone’s pimple?!’

Though she had no memory of talking with other boys,

so she wasn’t sure how other males would react.

But she knew for certain that Kim Donghu had given the wrong answer.

She was so embarrassed she couldn’t even leave her bed that day.

Anyway, she hadn’t contacted him once until the day of the shoot.

But funnily enough, when she ran into Kim Donghu right before filming,

she felt her anger subsiding somewhat.

But she didn’t want to seem too eager, so.

‘I’ll be cold to him now, then talk to him first after the shoot, and we can eat together.’

A perfect plan.

Even she thought it was impressively devious.

With this mindset.

“Now today! The new faces who will be joining Rushman! Kim Donghu! Kim Sujin!”

The Rushman shoot began.

‘Wow, this is amazing.’

Kim Sujin was entranced by the Rushman shoot she’d dreamed of.

It was her first variety show since “Hehe Doctor!” which made it even more special.

Moreover.

‘He looks surprised too.’

Kim Donghu seemed the same, his mouth hanging open in awe.

The boy who was like a stone wall when acting looked so clueless now.

Finding it cute, Kim Sujin couldn’t help but chuckle.

Jiseok, who had been waiting for just this moment, quickly spoke up.

“Ah, as expected! The two of you, having worked together for so long, just seeing each other’s faces makes you laugh.”

At his sly tone, the other cast members immediately joined in.

“Hyung, what are you talking about? Working together for a long time? Aren’t they meeting for the first time?”

“Hey now, you know nothing? I did my research for this exact situation!”

The usual Rushman opening.

The members bantering to lighten the mood,

a kind of step-up to naturally transition into the main broadcast.

But as the conversation continued, Kim Sujin couldn’t hide her increasingly flushed face.

‘If this airs as is, does that mean the whole world will know Donghu and I are childhood friends?’

Then would it mean they could go on dates anywhere without issues,

since they were originally friends?

Even if a scandal broke, could it be covered with “They were friends originally, a friendship that continued since Hehe Doctor!”?

‘Is such a convenient thing happening to me right now?!’

At times like this, she should just keep quiet and stay still!

With that determination, Kim Sujin tried her best to suppress her smile and manage her expression.

But there was no way she could hide it from national MC Yoo Jiseok.

‘Hmm, they don’t mind teasing each other like this.’

Confirming they were actually enjoying it,

Jiseok immediately targeted Kim Donghu.

“It must be nice having such a pretty and cute childhood friend?! Isn’t that right?!”

“Come on, hyung, why ask that? He’s going through puberty, you know! It’s a sensitive age.”

Everyone was laughing and chatting.

“Yes, it’s nice. Sujin is cute and pretty.”

Kim Donghu was a man.

“Hiyat?!”

Sujin’s cat-like yelp was just a bonus.