Chapter 302
“I’m going to die!”
“We’re going to fail at A University… Oops!”
“Don’t say such things carelessly outside!”
After Seo Moon-gyeol’s recovery, Ok Do-yoon’s routine somehow started rolling smoothly again.
I appeared on music shows and chatted discreetly with the Music Pang Pang PD, who was also the PD of the Idol Sports Competition. I also attended fan sign events, came home and collapsed into sleep, then went back to work at the shop early in the morning…
Although Seo Moon-gyeol’s injury had healed completely, the fatigue from the Idol Sports Competition lingered for days. It particularly affected Ban Yo-han, who was one of the weaker members, and it also troubled me, who had begun to cherish my stamina stat as if it were precious.
Ban Yo-han, catching my gaze, lazily waved his hand with an unlucky grin.
“No, that’s not it. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t equate my stamina with yours.”
This guy.
Without responding, I suddenly pounced on him.
“You’ve gotten taller and gained some weight, but why are you weaker than a year ago?”
Ban Yo-han easily blocked me and clicked his tongue.
“You need to work out more. The trainer told me to drag you along even if I have to force you. Let’s go together next time. Don’t even think about skipping.”
“…”
The fact that Ban Yo-han was pretending to worry about me just to annoy me was infuriating.
Even though my strength stat had increased to nearly five times what it was initially, indicating that Ban Yo-han had been working out and had become stronger, I decided not to compliment him.
“Ban Yo-han, stop bothering the youngest and let’s choose our rooms.”
“Bothering? I was just teasing a bit. Do you think On Raon, who’s taller than you, looks like your pet So-bak?”
As the leader, Kang Ji-woo had the duty to manage the situation and endured Ban Yo-han’s provocation that targeted his weak spots.
“Choosing rooms?”
A staff member, familiar with us, asked out of curiosity upon hearing our conversation.
“Yes, we moved.”
“Wow, did you move to a bigger place after winning first place on the music show?”
While Young-min and I exchanged subtle glances, Kang Ji-woo answered on our behalf.
“Something like that.”
“Good for you. Congratulations.”
“Haha, thank you.”
The problem with our dorm, which had been ambiguous and unresolved for a while, was finally settled recently.
We completely cleared out the old dorm, which had been intruded upon by sasaeng fans.
The temporary house owned by Seo Moon-gyeol’s father was deemed too extravagant for us, so we chose a more suitable place and moved again.
It was both impressive and amusing that Seo Moon-gyeol’s father also owned the new place.
In fact, Seo Moon-gyeol’s father had suggested the place when he heard we were leaving, so it wasn’t just a coincidence.
However, this time, instead of staying for free, the company made a formal contract and paid rent, which was a significant difference from before.
‘That’s probably why we declined the excessively expensive temporary place and moved to a more reasonable one.’
I heard that Seo Moon-gyeol’s father insisted on favorable conditions for us.
The company, which needed to tighten its belt, didn’t refuse such goodwill.
According to Seo Moon-gyeol, his father had been trying hard to win his mother’s favor after she casually asked about divorce over dinner following the Seo Joo-won incident.
Now, his generosity towards us seemed to be part of his efforts to reconcile.
‘He should’ve done well from the start…’
Well, it wasn’t bad for us, and their family affairs were their business.
Anyway, because of this, we were scheduled to head to the new dorm after work today.
From what Gwak Sang-hyun, who had already seen the new dorm, told us, three members could have single rooms, and two had to share a double room.
This was why we were all sitting around with such serious expressions.
“Just in case, does anyone want to share a double room?”
“…”
No one answered Kang Ji-woo’s question.
Everyone wanted a single room.
Even Seo Moon-gyeol, who usually would speak up, remained silent on this matter…
As Teacher Muk Hye-sung had said, securing personal space while engaging in group activities was crucial.
“Then let’s decide by rock-paper-scissors.”
“Alright. The winners will drop out, and the last two losers will share the double room.”
Rock-paper-scissors to decide our living arrangements for the next two years.
“…”
A solemn atmosphere pervaded.
“Rock-paper-scissors!”
Then, after just two rounds, Ban Yo-han and Seo Moon-gyeol managed to claim solo victories, escaping the clutches of the double room.
“This is unbelievable…”
“Ugh… why did I choose rock? You idiot.”
“We shouldn’t have decided this with rock-paper-scissors…”
Faced with the harsh reality that two out of the three remaining members would have to share a double room, we couldn’t proceed to the third round of rock-paper-scissors immediately.
We had been living luxuriously in single rooms each with its own bathroom, so the abrupt transition to a double room felt even harsher.
“We should have just taken the nice house when we had the chance!”
“That’s what I’m saying!”
“If we pack up and move back now…!”
“No way.”
Gwak Sang-hyun, who had been watching us with his arms crossed, shattered our fantasies.
“Right…”
“Yeah, that’s not going to happen…”
“You guys seem to have lost touch with reality after living in such a lavish house for a while, but the new place we’re moving to is also really nice. Even if you share a double room, it’ll be better than most idol dorms, so let’s just decide quickly.”
“Yes.”
“And managers like me and Dae-hyun have to share one room, regardless of whether there are two or three of us, so don’t complain too much.”
I heard that the managers were also going to have a room in the new dorm.
“Right. We’re sorry…”
[Due to the trait ‘Inborn Pitiful’, Gwak Sang-hyun feels like he has committed a grave sin against you.]
“No, you don’t have to apologize that much!”
“Why are you being so mean to our kid, Sang-hyun hyung?”
At that moment, Gyun Seong-ha seemed to have made a decision and pulled me to one side of the waiting room.
“What’s up?”
“Come here.”
“What for?”
“Just come here.”
“Guys, strategizing about what to choose is cheating!”
“We’re not!”
Behind us, I heard Kang Ji-woo’s sad shout accusing us of plotting, but Gyun Seong-ha paid no attention.
“Hey.”
“Are we really going to plan what to choose?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
“Let’s share a room.”
“Huh?”
Gyun Seong-ha glanced at Kang Ji-woo and started speaking rapidly.
“When you weren’t around before, I shared a room with Ji-woo hyung. He snores really loudly and nags a lot when you’re with him! I don’t want to share a room with him…”
Gyun Seong-ha continued to explain why sharing a room with Kang Ji-woo would be terrible.
Having shared a room with Kang Ji-woo along with Ban Yo-han, I could relate to some of his points, but not all.
“Sharing a room with two people is different from sharing with three.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, completely.”
Besides, this guy seemed sure that Kang Ji-woo wouldn’t win the rock-paper-scissors game.
Gyun Seong-ha, who didn’t seem confident about the upcoming rock-paper-scissors game, wanted to avoid the worst-case scenario of sharing a room with Kang Ji-woo by rooming with me instead.
“No. If I win rock-paper-scissors, why would I share a room with you on purpose?”
Then Gyun Seong-ha started listing reasons why being his roommate would be good, as if he had prepared in advance.
“I don’t snore, I keep the room reasonably clean and messy, we can ask for the biggest room, and if we use bunk beds, the room won’t feel cramped…”
Glancing at Kang Ji-woo again, Gyun Seong-ha continued.
“Also, it’s been hard to avoid Ji-woo hyung’s eyes and play games late at night, but if we share a room, it’ll be much easier to game together.”
“!”
“I’ll let you have the bottom bunk. Deal?”
“Add one more thing.”
“I’ll clean up after our delivery food sessions. Ten times.”
This guy really didn’t want to share a room with Kang Ji-woo.
This was definitely Kang Ji-woo’s fault.
“Twenty times.”
“Alright, twenty times.”
“Deal.”
Having struck a bargain, we returned to the rest of the members.
“We decided to share a room out of consideration for Ji-woo hyung, our leader and eldest.”
“Guys…!”
Kang Ji-woo was so touched that he covered his mouth.
‘…I’ll keep what Gyun Seong-ha said a secret.’
“In return, please give us the biggest room.”
“Of course.”
“But guys, you didn’t decide to share a room just so you could play games late at night, right?”
“…”
Kang Ji-woo, sharp as ever in these matters, began to lecture us on the various problems that could arise from gaming late at night.
Later that day, I finally got in touch with Larry, or rather, Lee Young-min.
Though the system still showed him as unavailable, I had been trying to contact him via his phone for several days, and he finally called back. His connection was still terrible, hinting at whatever he was involved in.
“Did you know the cost of the grace?”
“Yeah. Surely, you didn’t not know?”
If he knew, it was insubordination; if he didn’t, it was negligence.
– Of course. I know everything about you.
If he knew what I was thinking right now, he wouldn’t spout such nonsense…
– Haha, don’t be so harsh. I saved the stat points for when you needed them, didn’t I? Isn’t that sensible management?
“If you had invested them in stamina beforehand, this wouldn’t have happened…”
– You’re the type who doesn’t understand unless you experience it firsthand. Regardless of your intelligence, you consistently make foolish decisions… I thought it wouldn’t be bad for you to experience it once.
“You bastard.”
I definitely need to beat him up the next time we meet.