There’s a term called “pseudo-relationship.”
In reality, such a thing doesn’t exist, but it means having a romantic relationship in your imagination with someone you have affection for.
It’s about acting like you’re a lover with someone that has a 0% chance of actually dating.
Fans often engage in this pseudo-relationship with idols. When a rumor of a romance surfaces, they feel as if they’ve been betrayed, as if they were the actual lover. Some even go as far as stalking.
And this pseudo-relationship isn’t just found among fans; it has subtly spread into the world of online streaming.
The streaming community is primarily male-dominated. Therefore, the targets are often female streamers.
Not just the female streamers who show their faces and dance, but even the no-cam streamers aren’t exempt from being subjects of this pseudo-relationship.
It’s quite surprising, really. After all, it’s only their voice. What can you uncover about a complete stranger whose face you don’t even know?
The internet knows no spatial constraints. It allows people to gather infinitely, and with lots of people come those with questionable intentions.
So, it’s not that strange that those who pry into streamers’ private lives started to take an interest in Kayak, who had become a hot topic in the Twitch community.
Kayak’s team dinner was held a bit later than others. There had already been a mishap during an online drinking party before the dinner.
Given the incident where she accidentally revealed herself on cam, many thought Kayak wouldn’t attend the dinner, but news broke that she indeed was there.
Kayak draws a considerable number of viewers. She’s a streamer shrouded in mystery, despite her massively growing fanbase.
Her age, profession, and what she originally did are still unknown. All that viewers know is that she’s a woman with a large chest who’s good at Abyss.
However, this dinner would indirectly reveal some information about her through her team members who dined with her.
That’s why people eagerly awaited the follow-up broadcast of Kayak’s team.
*
“Ugh….”
In the late afternoon, Riri and Dahee groggily got up, gripping their heads as if they were about to crack.
Feeling nauseous, they arose with a zombie-like appearance and drank warm water. They desperately longed for the honey water their mom used to make, but that was a distant memory now. It had been half a year since she had moved out under the guise of streaming.
Living alone isn’t all bad. There might not be anyone to make honey water, but at least there’s no mom nagging about how much alcohol they’ve been consuming.
It wasn’t. There was no mother to mix honey water for her, but there also wasn’t a mother to nag her about how much alcohol she had consumed.
Riri laid back on the sofa with a relaxed mind and picked up her phone.
It was a sort of routine. In the unpredictable world of internet broadcasting, she had to check if a giant event occurred while she was asleep.
It was a risky behavior that could easily lead to getting wrapped up in community drama, but it was unavoidable. As a streamer making a living in the internet world, she couldn’t just ignore the community.
First, she checked the official bulletin board discussing her broadcast.
There were only cute posts saying things like “Please turn on the stream quickly” and “I’ll hold my breath until the stream starts.”
It meant there was no big issue.
She left a notice saying she would start the broadcast in a few hours and moved on.
The streamer gallery was the best place to check the buzzing rumors and ongoing discussions.
Someone was currently streaming.
[LimeTack’s eye rolls say everything ㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[Can’t you just say they’re pretty without overthinking it? Hmm….]
[If even simple-minded LimeTack is reacting that much, Kayak must be either super pretty or really ugly.]
Just skimming through a few comments gave her the gist of the situation. It looked like LimeTack was streaming.
Riri hadn’t been drinking little herself, but LimeTack probably wasn’t drinking less either.
But wow, they were already live. What incredible stamina.
Riri started boiling ramen for a hangover cure and logged into LimeTack’s stream.
[So how do they look? So how do they look? So how do they look?]
[Like Yeonnu? Like Yeonnu? Like Yeonnu? Like Yeonnu? Like Yeonnu?]
[Riri real life Kayak real life Riri real life Kayak real life Riri real life Kayak real life]
[Riri does cam shows all the time, so what’s with the ‘real life’ talk?]
[Shut the hell up, let me listen to what they’re saying.]
[What time is it, and they’re just starting? Hurry up, don’t be slow.]
[LimeTack started first ㅋㅋ this guy is pretty lazy too.]
“Wow….”
While stirring her ramen, Riri let out a small exclamation. She could guess from the number 8,000, which she hadn’t seen before on LimeTack’s stream, but the chat’s energy was something else.
Riri felt strangely connected to that scene. Thinking about it, it wasn’t someone else’s situation. In just a few hours, her broadcast could end up in that same state. For some reason, her appetite dwindled, but Riri forced the ramen broth down her throat.
I felt like my appetite was gone, but Riri forced herself to gulp down the ramen broth.
The chaotic chat calmed down only after they enabled the follower-only chat, where only those who usually watched LimeTack’s broadcasts could type.
“Wait, I said to hold on! If you keep acting like this, I’ll have no choice but to respond decisively, okay? I’ll go full gangster on you.”
[Free eye candy cut!]
[Hey~ got rid of the troublemakers~]
[Are you mad? LOL Are you mad? LOL Are you mad? LOL]
[Suddenly a one-month subscription hits out of nowhere ㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[It’s useless since it’s tied with follower chat anyway, are you dumb?]
“Don’t tease too much, what was I talking about… Oh right, Kayak. When did Kayak arrive?”
At that point, Riri ended LimeTack’s broadcast and started to clean up.
It wouldn’t be long before it was her turn.
*
“Thahutah, nice to meet you. It’s Riri in the late afternoon broadcast!”
The post-company dinner broadcast was carried out in a relay format.
It was something they had agreed on from the beginning. Being pro streamers, they anticipated that people’s interest would surely shift after this dinner.
They would each take turns, share stories, and collect donations casually.
That was the conclusion from the dinner the previous day.
“I was not the first to arrive, but the second. I hurried, but Han Kang was already there. By the way, did everyone hear that Han Kang made the restaurant reservation?”
Riri progressed her story while showing pictures of the food from the restaurant they visited.
[Oh, here]
[Looks amazing;; as expected from Millionaire Han Kang]
[I wanna eat there too ㅠㅠ]
The people’s reactions were not bad. However, Riri could tell that what the viewers were truly curious about was something else. The current chat was only a result of some kind subscribers in the follower-only chat like LimeTack.
“I wore this outfit when I went out. Pretty alright, right? I was thinking about it all day yesterday. It doesn’t look overly dressed. Casual chic. Right? You get it. Just that vibe?”
Riri began to share her story slowly as thoughts came to her. She skillfully avoided touching on the key points. Even though it wasn’t intentional, viewers felt a teasing urge.
I felt it.
[Riri, your explanation is too long!]
[Can you speed it up a bit? Haha!]
[The host is so cute, why?]
[Looks like everyone here is from Kayak’s room. Lol, everyone wants to hear about Kayak!]
[KayakLoveGuy donated 10,000 won!]
-So, what was our teacher like? Who does she resemble among celebrities? Did you talk a lot with Riri?
Riri felt that the moment had finally come but didn’t show it at all. She continued speaking with a calm face.
“Ah, Kayak? Hehe. Kayak is pretty, right? Did we talk a lot? Of course! We got super close. We’re like best buddies now. She sat next to me, we talked a lot, and she even fed me snacks. I went a bit overboard drinking yesterday, and it was Kayak who took care of me.”
[Did the host finally escape the ‘friendzone’?]
[What, what, what? She fed you snacks?]
[Polar bears and whatever….]
[So if you’re friends, are you two the same age?]
“Ah, age-wise, the teacher is actually younger than me. She seems so mature that I thought she was older, but turns out she’s my younger sister. We decided to just be friends. The age difference isn’t too much, and I’m not the type to fuss over a year or two. So how much is the age gap? Kayak is two years younger than me.”
In the follow chat window, there was no particular reaction. Just a “Oh, she’s younger than I thought” kind of response. Because of this, Riri remained oblivious.
Kayak hadn’t revealed her age on the broadcast either. Those who had been secretly gathering information about her didn’t miss Riri’s comment about Kayak’s age.
[Riri, how old are you, then? So Kayak is 21? ]
[No way, this person has been around for years and just turned 21? ]
[A high school student, Kayak? Wow.... ]
Thus, another piece of gossip began to form, something Riri never expected.
[If Kayak is 21, what does that make the post she made three years ago? That was when she posted a notice about the closure and a photo of herself drinking soju, right? ]
[Huh?]
[What, what, what, what? So the main poster was a juvenile delinquent? They were drinking soju and posting about it since high school? ]
[A high school girl drinking? Hmmm.... ]
[These days, even elementary students drink. Haha! ]
[So annoying. ]
[She better clarify, right? ]
The snowball had started rolling.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
