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The day after filming late at night.

“Uh…”

Waking up, my head feels heavy.

My body is shivering, and the blanket is soaked in sweat.

What could this symptom be?

Ah… right.

“Ah-choo!”

It’s a cold. A cold from that damn fake blood for props.

I never thought it would hit me so quickly the very next day.

“Mom, I caught a cold.”

“Put on a mask first.”

I immediately told Mrs. Jang and went to the hospital.

“Yes, it’s a cold. You’re quite badly affected.”

“Ah.”

And there I received confirmation that it was indeed a cold.

I had a fairly high fever and came back with an injection and some medicine.

“Don’t move around too much, just stay quietly in your room.”

Back at home, I heard those words from Mrs. Jang, and I’m currently dying in my room.

“Ah, ah…”

The only saving grace is that my throat feels fine?

Of course, with a fever, I might not be able to do the broadcast properly.

Should I cancel it today?

If I don’t get better, the cancellation might last quite a while.

“Sniff.”

I almost forgot, but Kim Soo-hyun isn’t exactly the sturdy type.

I usually hole up in my room, totally out of shape, so there’s no way I’m in good health.

Maybe this cold hit me like a dam bursting.

[You caught a cold?]

“Yes…”

I first called my manager to inform them about my cold.

[Did you go to the hospital? Is it serious?]

“Ah yes… but, is this Manager T?”

[Yes? That’s right, but just rest for now.]

“Ah… so doing a broadcast is out of the question?”

That was the purpose of my call.

Can I even do the broadcast like this?

Honestly, if I turn it on, I won’t have much to do, so I could just casually chat…

[Absolutely not.]

“Uh…”

[You’ve worked hard until now, so rest well.]

“But I didn’t even do a broadcast yesterday…”

[It’s fine, I’ll post the announcement.]

“Yes.”

Just like that, I was forced to take a break.

“Hmm.”

After the call ended, I flopped onto the bed.

The sheets I had been using were all wet, so Mrs. Jang replaced them with a new blanket.

I closed my eyes, feeling the fluffy texture of the new blanket.

I was told to rest, so I should rest as much as I can.

I lay still, but….

“Ugh.”

I couldn’t fall asleep, so I got up again.

Should I play some games?

I might get scolded later for playing games during my break, but I’m so bored.

I sat down in front of the computer to turn on a game, but when I actually started, I wasn’t really into it and turned it off.

I’ve gotten used to streaming, so single-player games feel a bit dull.

The dizziness in my head doesn’t help.

So, I returned to bed and tossed and turned in misery.

I could visit the broadcasts of the other members, stir up some drama, catch up on overdue webtoons, or watch some YouTube videos, and so on.

Time passed and it was around late evening.

Unable to sleep, I looked at my phone to curb my boredom and noticed the Instagram app I had downloaded beforehand.

…Should I give it a try?

I had wanted to try it out for a while, so I impulsively opened the app and created an account.

I skipped contact synchronization and checked the newly created account.

0 followers, 0 following.

Not a single photo uploaded— a completely fresh account.

Since I made the account, should I upload a photo too?

I thought about posting a picture of Bok-sil, but it was too late to take one now.

I didn’t really have any pictures on hand, and while pondering…

The mirror in the room caught my eye.

I sneaked over, fixed my hair a bit, and took a picture.

Click.

“Oo…”

I look a bit like a chic, cold beauty, huh?

My eyes have quite the edge to them.

If I sulk a little, my expression turns really cold.

Click, click.

I took several pictures, changing angles.

Hmm… is this what they call a front-facing pretty girl?

Maybe it’s because I’m sick, but I’m really vibing.

Honestly, this is kind of fun.

Now I understand why girls take selfies.

With just a flick on my phone, I can have decent pictures produced in no time and feel the urge to keep snapping.

I chose the best photo I took and uploaded it with my eyes tightly closed.

…Hmm.

And I waited, but even after a few minutes, there was no response.

Well, I just created the account and uploaded a photo, so that makes sense.

I closed the app without any lingering thoughts and lay down.

I hoped to recover from my cold by tomorrow.

***

A few days later.

I stepped outside, fully recovered from my cold.

The cold I thought would cling to me longer surprisingly went away quickly.

The power of modern medicine…

Eat, take medicine, and sleep— and I got better.

Feeling grateful for my healthier state, I took public transportation to my destination, which was Hyeon-su’s Workshop.

It’s been a while since I came here too.

Not that it’s special; Ah-young had invited me over.

I also had some questions to ask, so I decided to meet up.

I naturally walked into the basement, and upon opening the door, I could see people inside.

“Hey, Soo-hyun!”

“It’s been a while since you came.”

“Hi hi.”

I set down the drinks I brought on the floor and walked further in.

“Where’s Hyeon-su?”

“That guy? He’s in the back recording.”

“Oh, he said he was working on an album.”

“He’s been at it for a while now.”

Looking around, it feels like there’s never a moment when work isn’t being done here.

I pride myself on being busy, but this place feels like a factory.

“By the way, how long has it been? What have you been up to?”

“Me? Just the usual.”

Responding to Ah-young’s cheerful inquiry, I settled onto the sofa.

This is my first visit since the year-end party.

“What have you been doing lately that we haven’t heard from you?”

Now that I think about it, it was only recently that I reached out.

We’re both busy people, so we don’t talk often.

“Ugh… I’ve been busy.”

“Really?”

“Oh, right. I started an Instagram account.”

I suddenly remembered the account I created a few days prior, so I told her about it.

“Really? When did you start?”

“A few days ago.”

“What’s your ID?”

“Hehe.”

In the past, I wouldn’t have been able to answer that without claiming I don’t do Instagram, but now I can proudly share my ID.

“Wow… what’s up with your photos?”

Ah-young exclaimed in surprise when she saw the photos I posted on my Instagram account.

“Pretty, right?”

“Is that really you?? I hardly recognize you!”

“Hehe.”

“…When you smile like that, it feels off.”

“Haha…”

Only that one photo from when I took it in my room is uploaded.

A moody picture with a serious expression.

“By the way, you have no followers?”

“I just uploaded a photo and left it be.”

It’s been a few days, but there’s been no reaction at all.

Considering it’s a brand new account, it wouldn’t show up on anyone’s feed anyway.

“I just followed you! You follow me back.”

“Guess you’re my first mutual follow.”

“Oh… that’s true?”

After mutual following with Ah-young, I also followed the other band members.

Seems like everyone here has a decent number of followers.

I guess being a popular band is expected.

“What’s everyone up to?”

Just then, Hyeon-su came out from the back, probably finishing the recording.

“Hey Hyeon-su, Soo-hyun just started an Instagram account.”

“Instagram? I thought you’d never do it.”

Hyeon-su said that while walking over.

“Let me see.”

“Here, this account has a whopping 4 followers.”

I had just mutual followed the band members, and my followers increased by 4.

And they were all somewhat popular individuals.

“Just a second, the ID is… oh, I did it too.”

Hyeon-su tapped on his phone and followed me, showing a new addition on my follower list.

“Ah, I’ll follow you back… oh….”

I started following Hyeon-su back while he checked out my Instagram, noticing the overwhelming number of followers he had.

“Wow, you really are popular, huh?”

He chuckled, seeing that his follower count was overwhelmingly higher than the combined counts of the other members.

“My account is also the official Slim Gold account. Usually, Ah-young noona manages it.”

Ah, now that you mention it, I remember hearing about them posting videos on Instagram before; that must be this account.

Upon checking, I indeed found that there were more group videos than personal photos.

“Honestly, it’s a bit embarrassing to keep watching that.”

“Didn’t you post it for them to watch?”

As I browsed through the videos, Hyeon-su looked completely unembarrassed.

He used to have that cute, innocent vibe back in school, but now he’s all grown up.

Isn’t Hyeon-su 21 now? It’s been about 2 years since I met him when he was 19.

“Do you know the title of the most recent track?”

“…”

“I won’t tell you; I watch your YouTube channel.”

Hyeon-su said this while tapping on his phone a few times and went to my YouTube channel.

His subscription was clearly visible.

“Wow, I haven’t even subscribed to that channel.”

“…Is this supposed to be impressive?”

Moreover, the subscriber count has really skyrocketed.

At this rate, I might actually get a gold button later on.

“By the way, have you eaten?”

“Dinner? I haven’t eaten yet.”

“We are going to order food, do you want to join?”

“Oh, that sounds great.”

We ordered food and settled down on the sofa, comfortably chatting away.

“Oh right, Hyeon-su.”

“Yes?”

Then, I started to remember what I meant to ask today.

“Do you still write your own lyrics?”

“Of course.”

When it comes to people I know who write lyrics well, Hyeon-su is the first that comes to mind.

The lyrics to that emotional Wonderland he had written down in his notebook during our first meeting still linger in my mind.

“Lately, I’ve been trying to write, but I can’t get a grip on it.”

I had planned to give the composer just a basic vibe, but things were not going well, so I thought to ask Hyeon-su for advice.

“Do you write lyrics too?”

“I’m participating in a drama OST this time, and I’m working with Kang Woo-hyeon, the composer.”

“A drama?”

Now that I think about it, I might not have mentioned this at the last year-end party?

…All I remember is drinking wine.

“I’m shooting something this time, and that’ll be the track that goes with it.”

With that said, the surrounding atmosphere grew silent for a brief moment.

As I sensed the tension, Hyeon-su broke the silence with a quiet word.

“…You’ve become an actor, haven’t you?”

“…”

I tried to deny it, but I had no words, so I kept my mouth shut.

The food that arrived afterward was delicious, and we all enjoyed it.

 

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