Meanwhile, the streamer Haryeong, whose real name is indeed Haryeong, sat in a café nervously biting her nails.
At the same time, she pulled her cap down lower to hide her face. She felt like people were staring at her for some reason.
Haryeong had rarely been out and about lately. Was it an inexplicable sense of depression? The feeling of helplessness where she didn’t want to do anything lingered on, and even when she wasn’t broadcasting, she spent her days peeking into communities in her darkened room.
The reason she found herself in a crowded café after a long time was clear.
“I didn’t think she’d suddenly ask to meet…”
It was because of Kayak’s message. After that meaningless broadcast where Kayak had randomly barged in, she had openly shown interest in Haryeong.
What did she do when she wasn’t broadcasting? Isn’t today’s weather nice? What’s your favorite food? And so on.
It was a conversation with no clear purpose. She had had her share of such interactions before.
But those were mainly just guys approaching her based on her appearance. It wouldn’t be the case for Kayak—a woman like Haryeong.
“Come to think of it, I heard she likes women; could it be…?”
Haryeong briefly entertained the possibility before shaking her head. Putting gender aside, that was surely just a rumor.
Most of the mentions of Kayak in Haryeong’s broadcasts came from nonsense made up by viewers. Their words were lacking in credibility.
“So what reason could she have to meet me…?”
In the past, she would’ve figured out a reason for herself. Maybe she wanted to build camaraderie with a fellow female streamer, or had something she wanted to propose for a broadcast, or perhaps she was a fan who genuinely found Haryeong’s streams entertaining.
However, after everything she had been through, Haryeong’s self-esteem had plummeted.
It had sunk so low that a hierarchy was ingrained in her mind as common sense. The very assumption that the clearly superior Kayak would be a fan of Haryeong was unthinkable.
The very premise of being a fan was nonsensical.
It was hard to expect such thoughts in a situation where she was being gaslighted by a multitude of malicious viewers through chat.
Instead, she began to spiral deeper into negative imaginings.
‘What if she tells me to quit the broadcast…? What if she gets mad at me and says not to imitate her…?’
From a common-sense perspective, it was utterly ridiculous.
Was Kayak really going to suddenly summon her and cuss her out? Unless Kayak was a psychopath, that was just not happening.
This meant Haryeong was mentally overwhelmed, imagining such nonsensical things and shaking in anxiety.
It was then that the café door opened, and someone walked in.
‘They’re here!’
Haryeong, who had deliberately sat in a spot where the entrance was visible, quickly lowered her head after confirming the face of the newcomer.
It was Kayak. Kayak had really come to meet her.
Despite facing her in real life, there was no humiliating impression at all; instead, it was a strikingly impressive look that quickly drew the attention of several people in the café.
To Haryeong, who had been compared countless times, it was a face she could never forget.
Seeing Kayak’s face made Haryeong suddenly feel incredibly small and unable to lift her head. Even though they had made plans, she couldn’t raise her hand to signal and say “I’m here.”
Still, it was as if Kayak knew where she was, and she walked straight over to the table where Haryeong was sitting.
Soon, she heard the sound of a chair being pulled out across from her.
Someone plopped down right in front of her.
Instinctively, she knew—the person sitting in front of her was Kayak.
‘Wow, she’s here. She’s really here. What should I do? What should I say—?’
Like a frog caught in front of a snake, Haryeong froze, her mind going blank as she mumbled.
“Ah, I’m so late. I got a little lost on the way.”
“It’s, it’s okay—.”
Then a pale hand reached out in front of Haryeong.
“I’m a fan, Haryeong-nim.”
“…Huh?”
With that, words poured out from Kayak that Haryeong had never expected to hear.
“Please show me your face, okay? I came here today super excited.”
“Wait, wait a minute. What do you mean I’m your fan…?”
“I never showed it, but I’ve been watching consistently! I enjoyed the 48-hour no-break stream you did back in December, and I saw the night broadcast in Hongdae, and….”
Unbelievable stories poured out of Kayak’s mouth. They were as absurd as what viewers usually say during a broadcast.
However, the voice resonated with such excitement that Haryeong found it incredibly genuine.
Before she realized it, she lifted her previously lowered head and faced the person directly in front of her.
“Ah! If you suddenly make eye contact like this! I wasn’t prepared yet! But still, it’s great, you’re super pretty!”
“Puhut….”
All the negative thoughts she had before meeting Kayak vanished. In their place were positive feelings.
It made her wonder why she had been so scared for so long; Kayak was a genuinely good person.
Even now, looking a bit haggard, Kayak still complimented her beauty. Here was someone with a perfect appearance that even Haryeong couldn’t compare herself to.
Determined to muster a little more courage for her self-proclaimed fan, Haryeong asked, “Since when have you been my fan?”
*
Honestly, it felt a bit exaggerated.
It was true that I was pretending to be a fan of Haryeong, and yes, I had just become a fan as of yesterday while studying, but I didn’t feel the need to get this excited about it.
I thought I’d just pretend to be an appropriate level of fan and build up some rapport to suggest a collaboration.
But facing her, that thought changed.
Even though she wore a cap, her exhausted eyes and the visible signs of wear on her nails told a story of someone who was pushing themselves too hard.
I was forcing myself to act all hyped up and pretend to be an obsessive fan.
In fact, I was a fan, so it wasn’t a complete act. I probably would have reacted with a simple “You’re pretty,” but instead, I went with a “You’re so pretty!” at a level 10.
I raised my voice, waved my arms around, and made my reactions larger than life. Honestly, it wasn’t easy since my usual personality isn’t this warm and energetic.
I stifled the urge to sigh a few times and kept the conversation going. How do extroverted people maintain such high energy while talking?
She continued on. How do extroverted people maintain such high energy while conversing?
“So that’s how my first broadcast started. Back then, I had no idea I would become a full-time streamer…”
Yet, seeing the results of my hard work manifest like this, how could I possibly quit?
Haryeong had noticeably perked up since earlier. It’s nice to see a beautiful woman regain her spirits. It was a rewarding sight for me as well.
As I watched her blissfully for a moment, Haryeong timidly asked, “… I’ve been talking about myself too much, haven’t I? I’m sorry…”
“No way! Just listening to you is great. Hearing about you, Haryeong, is healing for me.”
She seemed to pick up on my words, looking a bit uneasy; it seemed her mental state wasn’t as good as I had anticipated.
It looked like she was severely stressed, and she definitely needed continuous care.
“Well, I bet my story wasn’t even that interesting…”
“Excuse me? Just looking at your face is entertaining!”
I deliberately showered her with compliments. It wasn’t completely wrong, either.
Haryeong’s appearance perfectly matched my original type. Even her slightly worn-out look had its own charm that I was savoring.
At that, Haryeong let out a small cough and turned her head, her ears turning red in embarrassment. Is her pretty face what makes that look so cute?
“…That’s cheating. Saying things like that. Honestly, Kayak is much prettier than me.”
“I think you’re the prettier one, Haryeong.”
“Eek…”
This time, she collapsed onto the table, making some strange noises. I couldn’t quite understand the meaning, but I figured it was a good sign.
As I gently patted Haryeong, spending some time with her…
“By the way, is there a specific reason you wanted to meet today…?”
Finally, it was time to get to the main point. This was essentially the main event. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say all the buildup had been for this very moment.
With genuine intent, I grabbed Haryeong’s hand and said, “Please collab with me!”
She responded a beat late, “C-collab?”
She swallowed hard and questioned back.
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