I brought her home, but now what should I do?
Bringing someone home isn’t something I’m used to, so nothing really came to mind.
First, I thought I should treat my guest nicely, which is why I pulled out a beer can that was rolling around in the fridge.
Originally, I bought it to drink quietly by myself, but hey, it’s not like I can’t share it with Riri. It’s New Year’s, and drinks are meant to be enjoyed with someone else anyway.
There’s still plenty of time before the sunrise Riri wanted to see. Nothing better than this to warm up our chilly bodies quickly.
“Peanut coffee…?”
“I saw it was decent last time. Do you have any nut allergies or something? I should’ve bought some snacks when I brought you in. I could run to the convenience store downstairs right now-.”
“No! I like peanuts too. Let’s just eat this.”
Fortunately, Riri didn’t refuse either. Back when I used to drink and caused some trouble during broadcasts, I would’ve been subtly controlled in my drinking. But maybe time has changed that; her cautiousness seems to have disappeared.
I’ve been holding back since then, but well… today is a good day. It’s the New Year. It’s fine since it’s a holiday. If I don’t drink on a day like today, when will I?
“Alright, cheers.”
“Cheers….”
I clinked the cold beer can and took a sip, letting out a pleased sound. The temperature is everything!
At the same time, I glanced at Riri to find her slightly hesitant, holding her beer can.
Thinking from her perspective, it makes sense to hesitate. The person who dragged her to their home suddenly hands her a drink. If the genders were reversed… she might’ve called the cops immediately. But if that were the case, would I have even brought her home or gotten to know her? It’s all pointless speculation.
But from my point of view, I dare say there’s no better activity than drinking to spend time together.
It’s not like we have a crowd; it’s just the two of us. Even if I showed her around the house, there’s really nothing much to see. It’s just the living room and a bedroom—showing that makes it awkward as the host.
I only have one computer, so we can’t play games together. Plus, like many young people these days, I don’t even have a TV at home. I can get all the news and social updates online anyway.
I don’t even have a TV at home, just like the young folks these days. I can easily catch up on social news like the news online.
So in a situation like this, there’s really nothing to do but drink together and shoot the breeze.
The benefits of drinking are countless, but the most classic one has to be ice-breaking.
It’s all about breaking that awkward atmosphere, making it easy to loosen up and chat.
Right now, the vibe is definitely awkward compared to earlier. It’s all due to the guest, Riri’s, behavior. She was so chatty outside, but once we got home, her words started dwindling.
Now, she’s just fidgeting with her fingers, and it’s making me uncomfortable. I’m not really the talkative type, so it was nice to have Riri around to fill in the audio with some chatter.
Maybe sensing my discomfort, Riri suddenly raised a beer can with a resolute look on her face.
Without any snacks, she started downing it in one go, making it look so refreshing it could invigorate anyone watching.
And then, with her face all flushed, she slammed the empty beer can down and opened her mouth.
What she said was surprisingly awkward given that she had just kept quiet.
“Should we drop the formalities…?”
I was hoping she’d say something else, but isn’t this a bit too forward?
Holding the empty beer can, she looked at me, waiting for a response.
I bit into a peanut and answered slowly.
“Yeah, Dahee.”
I had no particular reason to refuse.
*
From Riri and Dahee’s perspective, today’s meeting was nothing short of dramatic.
First off, they never thought the meeting would even happen. Yet, despite being a bit hastily arranged, it seemed like they had already made some progress, and before they knew it, Riri had invaded Dahee’s personal space.
Seeing how far they had come, Dahee thought it looked like Kayak had opened her heart to her.
For Dahee, this was incredibly pleasing and a historic day.
So it wasn’t surprising that she ran with an overtly enthusiastic pace and ended up tipsy from drinking a bit more than usual.
“So the broadcast started when you were in college…?”
“And living alone?”
“Living alone… I moved to Seoul for college, and it’s been like that ever since… But why am I the only one talking?”
“Since college, I’ve been up in Seoul… But why am I the only one talking?”
With a silent “pik,” she chuckled. Seriously, this again? Dahee chewed on the peanuts with a pouty face.
“So… no, how has Mun Ah been before the broadcast?”
“What do you mean? I just slept with the Abyss, okay? And you can just call me Kayak. The name feels a bit weird for me too.”
“What’s weird about it? It’s pretty! Mun Ah. Mun Ah. Mun Ah…”
Honestly, it was a bit awkward. Maybe it was just the name being so unique. The first time I heard it, I had to repeatedly ask for clarification because of the booze.
But now… it felt like a name that suited Kayak. Isn’t it oddly distinctive? If you tried to find someone with that name in the whole country, you’d be hard-pressed to find even ten. So, for Dahee, it had to be Kayak.
As a guest, her curiosity about the owner naturally increased. Especially in a place like this.
Even just chatting about the furniture around the house was interesting. Why was the computer over there? Was that cute little blanket and pillow really her style? Did she often chill in that rocking chair?
The owner answered all Dahee’s questions but also seemed to avoid some parts. It felt like she was indirectly hiding certain facts.
After all, a little mystery is a staple in relationships. Even between the closest friends or family, there were things left unspoken.
But Dahee couldn’t shake the feeling of disappointment, and she ended up gulping down her beer, slightly pouting. It was a disappointment she couldn’t quite place, maybe due to the alcohol.
“Alright, fine. I won’t ask what you did before. Let’s talk about something else. Something else… what could it be, hmm…”
One can, two cans. The empty beer cans piled up on the table. Dahee, who wanted to watch the sunrise, seemed to have completely forgotten about it.
This was an unexpected turn for the owner. Mun Ah also didn’t expect Dahee to be this proactive. As she kept popping open cans, she was inevitably pulled into Dahee’s pace.
She had no idea. As she kept popping open cans, she found herself caught up in her face before she knew it.
So, that meant they had run out of the alcohol they had stocked up.
The coffee peanuts they had been snacking on had long since revealed the bottom of the container. The tipsiness made them forget their awkwardness, so they continued to drink, using their conversation as their side dish.
At this point, Mun Ah couldn’t hold back her intoxication either. As Dahee’s cheeks flushed, hers turned red as well. Perhaps due to her fair skin, her cheeks looked redder than Dahee’s.
She looked fine, but the oddly loose gaze proved that she was indeed drunk. However, while Dahee was oblivious to the fact that her own eyes were even more glazed over, she was focused on Mun Ah’s expression.
The fact that both of them were drunk sometimes comes with risks. There was no one around to hit the brakes for them.
“Should we mix beer and soju? We can just snack on some chips… Mun Ah, you’re not picking?”
“People are asking to turn on the broadcast…”
“Huh?”
That’s when Kayak suddenly brought it up while shoving her phone at them. It happened when they stopped by the convenience store in front of their house to buy more alcohol.
A familiar screen popped up on Mun Ah’s phone. Abyss Gallery. It was a community that Dahee had once frequently searched her name on, so she recognized it but hadn’t visited in a while.
Even on New Year’s, restless spirits had still lost their way and were desperately calling for Kayak. Dahee was able to confirm multiple posts like that through the phone Kayak handed her.
Finally, as they were arriving back at Kayak’s house, she cryptically suggested something.
“Should we turn on the broadcast and drink together?”
Normally, that would have been a statement Riri would reject outright. After all, she never did drinking broadcasts for fear of what might happen. There was a reason she was a streamer with considerable experience and no controversies.
However, what was present now was much closer to the human Dahee than the streamer Riri.
Showing a side much closer to her true nature, she was more honest and reckless at that moment.
“Sounds great! We can all watch the sunrise together if we turn on the broadcast!”
She ended up taking it a step further than Kayak.
At 3 AM, that was how Kayak’s broadcast unexpectedly started.
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