Chapter 12 : Didn’t you say we were just friends? (2)

“What is it? Hey, where are you dragging me to?”

She pulled me out of the clubroom and dragged me to a quiet corner of the hallway.

Only when we were in a place with no one around did she look around quickly and sigh in relief.

“So, what did you want to talk to me about? Is it something related to Kim Yeji?”

At my question, Chaeryeong took a deep breath and spoke calmly.

“Yoon Taeo. What do we do? We’ve been found out.”

“What?”

“Yeji said she saw our YouTube. She didn’t say it directly, but I think she watched all the videos.”

“Already?”

“Yeah. I was surprised too. I didn’t think it would blow up this quickly. I never expected it to come to this…”

From the way she was talking, it sounded like even Chaeryeong hadn’t been fully confident the YouTube channel would go well.

“But you told me it would definitely be a hit.”

“Well, I had to say that. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have agreed to do it…”

Yeah, true.

Even if she thought it would succeed, she probably didn’t think it would go this well, this fast.

The results we achieved in just a few weeks were honestly kind of amazing.

“Okay, fine. But hey, does that mean we’re famous now? Like, famous YouTubers in the department? Influencers or something?”

“…This isn’t something to be happy about right now, you know.”

As I joked around, Chaeryeong sighed and said,

“What’s the problem, then? So what if Kim Yeji knows? Or even the rest of the department?”

“Telling the others would be kind of awkward too. I mean, this is all a concept, right? We’re not actually dating.”

“…Ah.”

Yeah, that is a bit of a problem.

Things were complicated already, and trying to explain everything would only make it weirder.

Chaeryeong’s next concern made even more sense.

“If we tell them it’s all acting and then it somehow spreads on community sites or wherever, it could be a big mess. Our YouTube channel just took off—we could lose everything right away.”

“…You’re right. We’ll need to keep people quiet about it. Definitely.”

Now that the channel was doing well, it was hard not to feel attached to it.

Even I wouldn’t be happy if it all went down the drain now.

It was the result of all the effort Chaeryeong and I had put in.

At the very least, only we should know that the couple vlog is all acting.

People don’t come to watch fake couples—they’d just watch dramas or movies instead.

No one’s going to look for a couple vlog unless they think it’s real.

“…And there’s also a more personal issue about Yeji. Um.”

She glanced at me hesitantly, as if unsure whether to bring it up.

But I didn’t hesitate—I figured if it was Chaeryeong’s problem, it was mine too.

“What is it? When have we ever hidden stuff from each other? Just tell me so I can help.”

It was clearly something related to filming.

She was probably still debating whether to tell me.

Of course, even if it weren’t related, if it was something bothering her, I’d care.

After a moment’s hesitation, she finally spoke.

“You know, right? Kim Yeji likes you.”

That was a tough one.

It might sound conceited, but I had enough experience with girls liking me to have picked up on it.

“Well, kind of. It was obvious. But why bring that up now?”

Yeji wasn’t the type to hide her feelings very well.

She’d shown interest in me a few times, so I had noticed.

But since she didn’t try to rush anything, I hadn’t drawn any lines either.

“So, back at the beginning of the semester, I told Yeji that we were just friends, right?”

“And?”

“Well, you know how it is. When a guy gets involved, things between girls can get… complicated…”

“So you’re saying it’s what I think it is?”

I didn’t want to get good at reading signals, but…

Being next to a pretty girl like Chaeryeong naturally teaches you a thing or two.

Especially about the kind of subtle power plays between girls.

“Yeah. I told her not to worry, that we were just friends, and now we’re posting couple vlogs together. From her point of view, I’m kind of a terrible person… right?”

“So that weird atmosphere in the clubroom earlier…”

“Yeah… we were talking about that…”

From Kim Yeji’s point of view, it might look like Chaeryeong lied about being just friends with me, made her let her guard down, and then swooped in and ‘stole’ me.

Even if she didn’t think of it as sneaky, they seemed to be close enough that it might feel like a betrayal.

Girls who are close don’t usually go after someone the other likes.

That’s the unspoken rule.

“…So, I was thinking. Could we just tell Yeji? That it’s all acting?”

“You want to tell her?”

“Yeji doesn’t seem like a bad person. And I don’t want to lose a friend over this kind of thing…”

I looked at Chaeryeong’s slightly downcast face.

She probably asked because the channel wasn’t just her issue anymore.

Telling Yeji would be a risk, after all.

The fact she brought it up at all showed she was serious.

And yeah, they did seem to get along really well.

Among girls, once a group dynamic is ruined, it can cause a lot of problems.

Especially during the semester, when you’re seeing each other every day—it can make school life miserable.

“…Considering what you said earlier, I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“But if it’s just one person, wouldn’t it be okay?”

“You know how meaningless ‘just between us’ is in school, right? Even stuff like who confessed to who spreads to the whole school in a day.”

“…Yeah, you’re not wrong about that.”

Chaeryeong’s eyebrows twitch uncomfortably.

She must understand what I’m saying.

She probably thinks the same way I do.

That’s why she brought this to me instead of telling Yeji right away.

It’s just that she thinks there’s no other way to resolve this uncomfortable situation.

“I don’t think  Kim Yeji is a bad person either. But she’s not exactly super close to us, is she?”

To me, she’s just a classmate from our department.

To Chaeryeong, she’s probably just a school friend she gets along with.

“…Yeah, that’s true.”

“If she finds out about our secret, there’s a chance she might let something slip without meaning to. People even spill important family secrets sometimes.”

“…”

“And right now, our YouTube channel isn’t that big, but what if it grows?”

“…”

“Even if we don’t say anything now, when the channel gets bigger later, what if she demands something from us in return? There’s no guarantee she won’t say anything about our secret.”

It’s a terrible thought, but people are like that.

I’m not saying humans are inherently evil, but when given the opportunity, they’ll often try to satisfy their own desires or greed.

“You watch a lot of YouTube too, so you know, right? There are plenty of channels that get ruined because of whistleblowers or acquaintances.”

Scandals about someone’s personality.

Or stuff from the past, like using a certain controversial site.

Celebrities and influencers are always exposed to those kinds of attacks.

There are nasty people out there who actually enjoy bringing influencers down.

“You don’t want to stop here, right? You want to keep growing the channel, don’t you?”

“…Yeah. It’s been my dream since I was little.”

“Then it’s better not to let a spark like this start in the first place. Don’t you agree?”

“…Yeah. But then what should we do…?”

Even though she agreed with me, it didn’t change the fact that she was in a difficult position.

In the end, I thought there was only one solution.

“Let’s just tell her we’re dating. Tell Kim Yeji.”

“Huh?”

“Sooner or later, more people are going to find out about our YouTube channel. Especially at school.”

Our channel already has momentum.

Once growth starts, it’s not going to stop for a while.

Besides, our department is Media and Visual Arts—there’s no way students here aren’t interested in YouTube, the biggest video platform in the country.

So the chances of people finding out were high and probably unavoidable.

The fact that a classmate already knows about a channel with fewer than 20,000 subscribers says it all.

“We can’t keep explaining things every time. And we can’t say it’s just a concept either.”

“…Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Yeah. So let’s treat this as an opportunity. Let’s tell Yeji we’re dating. That way, it’ll be easier for both of us.”

Even if it’s uncomfortable right now.

It’d be better for people at school to just know we’re dating.

Because this is something we need to do if we want to keep running the YouTube channel.

Chaeryeong, who had been listening quietly, finally nodded.

She must’ve realized that my logic wasn’t wrong.

Since she’s more serious about the channel than I am, of course she’d know what the right move is.

It’s just emotionally hard to accept.

“Okay. I’ll go tell Yeji. I’ll apologize and say the truth—that we’re actually dating.”

With those words, she made up her mind.

But her face still showed how uncomfortable she was.

As she looked resigned and started to head back to the department lounge, I gently held her shoulder.

“No. You stay here. I’ll go.”

“You’ll go…?”

A question mark seemed to appear above her head.

But I didn’t want to send her off, looking like she was walking into battle.

“You feel awkward facing Kim Yeji right now, don’t you? It’s hard to tell her we’re dating.”

“…Yeah, but still. What are you going to do? Go and say what?”

Chaeryeong looked unconvinced.

Well, it’s not like Kim Yeji and I are close or anything.

And since Yeji likes me, she probably won’t take it well hearing from me that the two of us are dating.

I’m not even directly involved, so I get why Chaeryeong is worried.

But—

“I’ve got a plan. I’ll make things less awkward between you two. Just leave it to me.”

I smiled boldly at her.

Because I was confident.

Even if I couldn’t stop Kim Yeji from getting hurt, if I handled it, I could at least make things go smoothly.

“Hey! Wait! Yoon Taeo! What do you mean, a plan?! Tell me before you go!”

Jeez, so noisy.

Just sit tight and wait.

Ignoring her words, I pushed open the door to the department lounge with a bang.