Season 2: Chapter 95. My Job (1)
Kimchi Warrior, SharpSphere, and Water Dumpling finally arrived at Almond's fan meeting.
"This... what is this?" they witnessed a bewildering scene.
"Is this guy normal?" SharpSphere asked with a grimace.
Kimchi Warrior, who came to recruit Almond, began to question his decision.
"Uh... he used to be... normal?"
Kimchi Warrior couldn't be certain because he didn’t regularly watch Almond's streams.
"He was definitely normal! This guy!" Kimchi Warrior gestured emphatically while raising his voice.
All their attention went to Almond, who was causing a stir because he was being photographed while sucking on a pacifier.
"Wow, so cute!" Water Dumpling merrily laughed unlike Kimchi Warrior and SharpSphere making serious expressions.
"It's Al baby," she said.
"...?"
Kimchi Warrior looked puzzled.
"Do you know Almond?"
"No, no. I just saw it in the forums, the forums."
Water Dumpling denied knowing Almond, so how did she know about his fan memes without ever watching his stream?
Kimchi Warrior recalled how eager she was to meet Almond despite being notoriously lazy.
Even though Cookie had ordered them, Water Dumpling's enthusiasm had been too excessive. Now, the puzzle pieces suddenly fit.
"Anyway, this guy is super popular, right?!" Water Dumpling quickly changed the subject.
"Yeah, I guess so," they agreed and grew distracted from the previous conversation.
They felt awestruck by the crowd gathered at Almond’s fan meeting.
"He didn't seem that famous... but this is quite impressive."
"He must have a lot of loyal fans like Water Dumpling," they concluded.
Water Dumpling's face turned beet red.
"Who, who's a fan!? I just got curious and watched yesterday!" Water Dumpling protested, but her companions became distracted by another woman with a striking aura who passed by.
"Wow..."
The woman with a model-like figure wore fashionable attire and had long pink hair. She exuded an undeniable presence.
"She's definitely someone special," Kimchi Warrior suspected that he knew her.
"Miho?"
Despite her disguise, her unique presence made her easily recognizable.
"Miho? Who's that?"
SharpSphere, usually disinterested in worldly matters, had no clue.
"She’s a model who’s even in commercials. You'd know if you saw."
SharpSphere finally acknowledged her after Kimchi Warrior showed him a game commercial.
"Wow... I’m glad we came. Why is she here?"
"Did she come for the fan meeting?"
"Nah, Miho is way more famous, isn't she?" Kimchi Warrior shook his head, unaware of the connection between Miho and Almond.
The last time he had watched Miho’s stream was nearly six months ago.
"Is she heading... there?"
Indeed, Miho confidently headed toward Almond's fan meeting.
"I can't believe this."
Kimchi Warrior and SharpSphere looked visibly shocked.
"Should we really recruit this Almond... this ultimate garbage guy?!"
"Bro, you're the one who came here to recruit him! Calm down! She hasn't gone inside yet!"
Water Dumpling tried to calm them down, but her voice betrayed her unease.
Miho, with her sunglasses on, had only taken a brief look around the vicinity of the chicken and beer place. She didn’t enter, but her mere presence was enough to steal the attention of onlookers. It was unmistakably Miho even though she was wearing a disguise.
"Miho is here."
"Wow."
"What? Is she a guest?"
Suddenly, someone rushed out from the chicken and beer place.
"Miho?"
It was Ju-Hyeok, who happened to be on his way to the restroom when he noticed the commotion outside.
"What brings you here...?"
"Oh, I was just passing by and my manager said Almond was having a fan meeting here."
The man beside Miho chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, yeah, I told you. Since you two are acquainted... I was just curious..."
"Ah, you had a schedule nearby?" Ju-Hyeok tried to brush it off with a laugh and scratched his head.
‘It might be difficult for Sang-Hyeon to come out right now. What should we do?’
Ju-Hyeok wanted to prioritize the fans and couldn't just rush out because someone he knew arrived.
'Especially if the visitor is of the opposite sex.'
Miho's presence could easily lead to unwanted rumors.
"Oh, no need to come out. Really, I was just passing by to look. Haha."
Miho seemed content and brushed it off with a smile.
"However~~"
She and her manager presented something. It looked like a rather heavy box.
"...?"
"We couldn't come empty-handed, so we brought this! We just bought it from the department store behind over there."
The huge cookie set seemed to be enough for a hundred people.
"This, all of this...?"
"Have it as a dessert. Haha. Oh, and I found a manager. This is him..."
"Ah, yes."
Ju-Hyeok and Miho's new manager exchanged awkward smiles.
The new manager was a big guy with a gentle look. He didn’t look like Ju-Hyeok at all, but somehow gave off a similar vibe.
'I remember. She asked me to be her manager.'
Ju-Hyeok felt a twinge of regret. He would have accepted without a second thought if he was in a position to start a company. However, his current situation and the burden of managing Sang-Hyeon alone already overwhelmed him.
'Miho could’ve opened many doors. She’s a lucrative streamer who’s active in various fields.'
"Wow... What's that?" Miho suddenly pointed to the chicken and beer restaurant’s advertising screen featuring Almond.
Almond was now free from the pacifier and bib. Then, he wore a power suit and shouted, “Jensen!” while taking pictures.
"Jensen?"
"Ah... Well, it's a long story. Yeah," Ju-Hyeok hesitated since the history between Almond and Jensen would be too much to explain in one go.
"It looks like it."
Miho glanced once more at the awkward photo of Almond in the power suit and bowed her head.
"I'll be going now! Take care!"
She quickly said her farewells and vanished as if she was fleeing.
Ju-Hyeok watched her climb into a van on the side of the road and they simply drove off.
"... She really left."
He finally relaxed after Miho left and felt relieved that no strange rumors would start. Fortunately, her visit was too brief to cause any such issue. The fact that she had come would barely be remembered, except by some unexpected individuals.
"Wow, shit... Ju-Hyeok, is that you?"
They were Ju-Hyeok's former colleagues.
"Did you just talk to that lady? Huh?"
"Wow, Deputy Kim. I mean, Ju-Hyeok. Are you acquainted with Miho? Wow..."
Ju-Hyeok's face turned awkward at the unexpected encounter. Even amid his discomfort, he checked the screen displaying Almond.
'Thankfully, he's not wearing the pacifier or power suit anymore...'
Almond was now eating soy sauce-marinated almonds that a fan brought and looked perfectly normal.
Their former colleagues from Ah-Sung couldn't help but stare at Almond on the screen.
"Is that really Sang-Hyeon?"
"Wow, it's really him. I've only heard stories. This is the first time seeing him in person. He's incredibly popular..."
"He truly had talent elsewhere."
As they murmured among themselves, whispers from the surrounding crowd reached their ears.
"Those people, aren't they employees from Ah-Sung? Friends of Almond, I guess."
"Wow, really?"
"But..."
One fan's murmur caught Ju-Hyeok's attention.
"Those guys weren't on good terms, right?"
It wasn’t loud, but those words sharply caught Ju-Hyeok's attention.
'Oh no...'
Ju-Hyeok panicked and quickly suggested that they move elsewhere.
"Let's... go somewhere else for now."
He led them away from the crowd.
***
"Phew. It's quieter here."
Ju-Hyeok took a moment of respite away from the crowd.
'Now that I've brought them here, what should I say?'
He only moved them away from that spot and had nothing to say.
"Didn't you hear from Team 1?" Ju-Hyeok casually asked them.
Team 1 was where Sang-Hyeon originally belonged. These colleagues were from Team 3, where Ju-Hyeok had spent the most time. It was possible that they hadn’t heard.
"I heard something about him becoming a streamer," the manager scratched his chin.
"But what are you doing here? Did you change jobs? Why haven't you contacted us?"
Ju-Hyeok was caught off guard.
'Oh no...'
He hadn't considered this. He was only focused on getting away and momentarily forgot to think up an excuse so these colleagues wouldn't misunderstand.
'Oh right, they'll definitely ask.'
His former colleagues would surely inquire about his current situation.
"By the way, where did you transfer to Ju-Hyeok? I've been thinking about changing jobs myself..."
"Hey, watch what you say in front of your boss."
"Ahaha! That's how all office workers are, right?"
"Ah, Deputy Kim was quite close with Sang-Hyeon. You must be off today."
"Woah... Networking with acquaintances? I'm jealous~"
They obviously had no idea what Ju-Hyeok was doing there.
Ju-Hyeok suddenly froze. He had deliberately avoided talking about his current situation to his former colleagues, fearing it would reach his father's ears.
'It's not just about that.'
No, he had to stop using his father as an excuse. It wasn't just about his father's views.
'It's how they would see it too.'
What would his former colleagues think if they knew he was working as a manager now? He was working specifically as Sang-Hyeon’s manager, who they viewed as a troublesome employee. Ju-Hyeok could already visualize their reactions.
The elite golden boy they classified as a top employee was suddenly managing someone like Sang-Hyeon.
He could almost hear what they would say already, so he chose not to tell them until he could establish himself and set up his own company. He didn't want to talk about it until then.
'Darn it.'
People often said one had high self-esteem if they didn’t care about others' opinions. Ju-Hyeok knew he wasn't that type of person. He had never lived in such a world.
'Even if I try not to care, they will. And I'll end up caring.'
Humans couldn’t be free from the gaze of others. Ju-Hyeok accepted this truth long ago. That was why he felt embarrassed now.
The frustrating part was that he had no complaints about the job itself. He didn't mind introducing himself as a manager anywhere. He just didn’t want these colleagues to know.
'If only they weren't here! I should have stayed inside. I knew this could happen, didn't I? That's why I stayed in.'
Now, he blamed himself for things that weren't his fault.
Ju-Hyeok massaged his throbbing forehead. Unnecessary thoughts cluttered his mind.
"Wow, I should have gotten closer to Sang-Hyeon too."
"This isn't some event anyone can just enter, right? Were you that close to Sang-Hyeon?"
"I can't believe I knew him... Ju-Hyeok, did you come here just for Sang-Hyeon?"
They had no idea about Ju-Hyeok's current predicament.
Ju-Hyeok felt numb. He had avoided discussing his life with his former colleagues for fear of his father's reaction.
‘Am I really going to tell them that I’m Sang-Hyeon’s manager?’
The manager from Ah-Sung asked again as if to mock him, “Hey, Ju-Hyeok! What kind of work are you doing now? And who was that girl earlier?”