You Look Like a Man, Member – 3

Garam was unwrapping the chicken packaging on the desk when I returned with the beer.

The mouthwatering smell stimulated my sense of smell.

With my intense workout schedule, I couldn’t resist the smell of greasy food.

“You’ve come at just the right time.”

Garam returned after throwing away the radish water.

I sat down at the perfectly set table and handed her a can of beer.

“Thank you for the food.”

She thanked me again and picked up a piece of chicken with her chopsticks.

I momentarily doubted if she was the Garam I knew, considering she was eating fried food, but seeing the part she was eating now, it seemed like she was indeed the Garam I knew.

“Om nom nom nom.”

She made determined sounds as she ate the fried chicken breast.

There were many other delicious parts, but I didn’t understand why she was eating that first.

“Aren’t you going to have a wing or a drumstick?”

Surely she wasn’t doing that because of her diet?

At my question, Garam, who was crunching on the batter, moved the chicken away from her mouth and said,

“Ah, I’ll have one wing. Inho Boss, you can have all the drumsticks. You paid for it.”

Garam must be an angel.

“No take-backs?”

“I have no intention of taking it back.”

After confirming again, I picked up a seasoned drumstick.

As I took a big bite of the glossy drumstick, the meat juices burst and danced in my mouth.

Ah, this is the taste.

“Garam, but,”

“Yes?”

I was too engrossed in the drumstick to say it right away, but there was something strange, so I spoke up.

“Why do you call me Boss? Weren’t you supposed to call me ‘member’?”

“Ah, we’re not working out right now. I only call you ‘member’ when we’re working out.”

Hmm, she seems to have her own rules.

“Want to have a beer too?”

Raising the beer can, she struck a refreshing pose like a female celebrity advertising soju.

Was this the same her who was crying so sadly just a moment ago? Well, it’s better to be cheerful. There’s no need to mention it.

-Fizz

The sound of carbonation escaping and the lid popping open was heard.

“Shall we cheers?”

She put the can to her cheek and said cutely.

Her freshness was so cute that I chuckled without realizing it.

“Okay, let’s cheers.”

-Clink

The quiet center. Cans clinked against each other.

She sipped her beer, and I tilted my head back and gulped down the beer to quench my thirst.

-Gulp gulp

The stinging carbonation of the beer stimulated my throat.

“Wow…”

She looked at me with admiration, perhaps because it was the first time she had seen someone chug beer like that.

Feeling a bit awkward, I put down the beer can and turned my gaze elsewhere.

For a while, we focused on eating.

Perhaps because my stomach had shrunk from dieting, I felt full after eating about half.

“I have some debt.”

As she picked up a radish with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth, Garam hesitated and opened her mouth.

Ah, she must be ready to talk about her personal life now.

But I didn’t exactly ask her to tell me.

To summarize, it was a debt passed down from her parents’ generation.

This fitness center – formerly known as Garam Gym – was like an inheritance her father left her.

The problem was that the inheritance came with debt.

Due to her father’s sudden death, she faced the storms of society head-on.

She was of age, but could she really be called an adult when she hadn’t experienced proper social life?

It would be more accurate to see her as just a big kid.

You know how it is?

When you live alone for the first time, there are more things to take care of than you think, and there are so many areas you don’t know about.

As a result, there were debts accumulated because she couldn’t do the right thing at the right time, and the operation of the center gradually deteriorated.

“What should I do?”

Garam said calmly, pouring the last of the beer into her mouth.

“Hmm…”

I’m not that old in my original age either, but I’m at least older than her.

And with my personality, I’ve seen more unpleasant things than others.

In a way, I might be able to give her appropriate advice.

It’s a bit of a shame there’s no more beer. We have a lot to talk about in the future.

I said, trying to cross my chubby legs.

“First of all, Garam, you have the best opportunity.”

“Yes?”

“The center’s maintenance costs have been greatly reduced, right? You don’t have to pay rent for the time being.”

“Ah, I’m really grateful for that part…”

As she tried to bow politely, I waved my hand.

“No, no, I’m not saying this to get thanks. Let’s first understand Garam’s current situation.”

I cleared my throat and got to the point.

“Ahem, Garam, you have debt, right? Bank debt?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t have any from second or third-tier lenders, do you?”

“No. It’s only in one place.”

“It’s fortunate in a way. It would have been a headache if you had borrowed money from loan sharks.”

“You have to pay money every month, but Garam, you don’t want to close the center, do you?”

“Yes, I want to maintain the center at all costs.”

Perhaps she thought I was going to tell her to close the center, she looked at me desperately.

“First of all, you can’t abandon the center. This is the only place you can get money. How can you abandon it?”

“Ah… I guess so.”

Her face brightened a little.

“Interest is interest, but eventually, you have to finish paying off the principal to escape this cycle. So what needs to happen?”

“Um… the center has to thrive?”

“That’s right. But it’ll be difficult, right? In the current state?”

“Yes…”

“The long-term goal is for the center to do well. But it can’t make money right away. So we need a side income. Reviving the center is something for later.”

“I guess so. Should I take some time off and get a part-time job?”

“No, you can’t break this cycle with that kind of money. If you work part-time, you won’t be able to run the center anyway.”

At my criticism, her shoulders drooped.

“Hmph… it’s difficult. Well, if it were easy, I would have paid it off quickly.”

“So what Garam can choose now is to find a side income that you can do at the center.”

“Is there such a thing?”

At the question, I paused for a moment and looked at her intently.

Hair that had almost completely lost its color, shabby sweatsuit.

She had no charm as a woman.

To put it directly, the Broadcasting Jockeys of Oceania TV are prettier and more charming.

But I saw some potential.

“Garam, you can close the center on Sundays, right?”

“Yes. Well… there are no people anyway…”

“Let’s go somewhere.”

“Where?”

Hmm…

“First, to the hair salon.”

I should get a haircut too.