The pub that Lee Yena marked on the map and sent over felt open and spacious. Although the lighting was somewhat dim, there were no partitions to demarcate separate spaces.
What was she thinking?
In such a bustling area, if two women, including Lee Yena, were drinking at a pub like this… How many people would approach them per hour, asking for their numbers or to join their table? Ark found it difficult to even estimate.
Lee Yena never seemed like someone who enjoyed such attention. Perhaps she was simply unaware of the impact her appearance had.
“She’s only 21. If she’d been to an all-girls’ school in a strict household… no, it still doesn’t make sense.”
In the past, Ark would have thought it was impossible and harbored various misunderstandings. But not anymore. Spending time with Lee Yena revealed that she genuinely had no clue about how she appeared to those around her.
As someone who could almost call himself an expert on Lee Yena, Ark found this aspect particularly worrying.
-Jingle.
With the light sound of a small bell, a dark brown-tinted door opened gently.
Finding Lee Yena was no trouble for Ark. As soon as the door opened, she could see her radiating an odd aura even from a distance.
Standing awkwardly beside her was a man.
“Oh?”
Ark’s heart sank. Of course. Hits on… or was it just someone asking for her number?
Either way, worry was inevitable.
Thankfully, the situation resolved rather quickly.
What had she said? The man, who appeared flustered for a moment, eventually hung his head low, sighed, and trudged back to his seat.
“Oh. You’re here.”
Lee Yena turned her head slightly and waved slowly with an expressionless face.
-Ha, ha.
Trying to catch her breath after running, causing her footsteps to echo sharply, Ark sat down across from her as naturally as she could.
“Did you wait long?”
“No. I was watching your broadcast, Ark-nim.”
“Huh…? But I didn’t see you in the manager list…”
“These days, alternate accounts seem to be the norm. I decided to join the trend.”
Saying this, Lee Yena slowly rose from her seat.
“Let’s get a drink. You have to order at the counter. Oh, they have house wine… Would you like some wine?”
Suddenly, Ark remembered the café where she first met Lee Yena and had an Irish coffee. She had effortlessly gone to order booze then, too. And—
“… You mentioned you liked wine back then.”
Was she detail-oriented after all? Or did she just have a good memory? She wondered if she should jokingly ask why she remembered such trivial things, but somehow the words didn’t come out easily.
When Ark approached the bar stocked with all sorts of draft beers and ordered the beer recommended by Lee Yena, a soft silence enveloped them until she returned to her seat. Whose fault was it?
Perhaps it was because of the glances from people around the pub. Normally, she would have inwardly hoped they recognized her.
But at that moment, it felt strangely uncomfortable. What if someone who recognized her ended up revealing Lee Yena’s identity? What if someone was secretly filming? And if, by any chance, the person was one of Ark’s self-proclaimed fans… How could she face Lee Yena in the future?
As these various anxious thoughts piled up in her chest, Lee Yena, as always, drank her beer with an indifferent expression.
“Yena-nim.”
“Yes.”
“Come to think of it, I have a question. What did you say to that guy right before I arrived that made him leave in such a hurry?”
It was a mischievous question thrown in hoping she would find her usual indifference somewhat flustered.
“Oh. Sorry, I told him I liked women.”
“What? What?”
“I haven’t thought much about it recently, so it might be a lie… but I used to, so I figured it’s not something I couldn’t say.”
The one left in a daze was Ark, as Lee Yena casually answered with a faint smile.
“Oh, uh… Well, thanks for trusting me and… I’ll keep it a secret—”
—Hehe.
A soft laugh echoed as if to soothe her panicked, rambling words.
By the time she came to her senses, Lee Yena, who was sitting in front of her, was slightly tilting her head back and glancing at the ceiling with a smile.
Was it the lighting?
‘A cigarette suits her so well—no, that’s too rude. Please, get a grip.’
“Shall we make a toast?”
Pushing aside her complicated thoughts, Ark clinked her glass as naturally as she could manage.
***
About two hours later.
“So then, huh? Tell me that too. Why do you like rogues so much? It’s beyond just being your favorite character….”
“I love rogues. It’s written even on the watermelon map.”
“Don’t joke around! I mean, seriously… Tell me the real reason.”
Many words had been exchanged, and even more drinks.
Ark again realized that she was more intoxicated than ever before. A feeling of déjà vu washed over her.
She had surely had this exact thought just an hour earlier—her meager remnants of consciousness screamed at her, but the message didn’t quite get through.
No one had ever forced Ark to drink, yet here she was, downing beer, wine, and now even a highball.
“How did this happen?”
Initially, there had been a time for some counseling.
Though she could hardly remember, it was something like… How should she handle it when viewers crossed the line? There were too many people crossing the line. The person who crossed the smallest, forgivable line felt the most sorry, and she was pondering what might be the most entertaining.
She clearly remembered that the end of the question had sounded a bit odd.
Of course, there had been many pieces of advice here and there. Stories about things she had felt living as a broadcaster, and judgments she would make differently if she could go back.
Lee Yena had responded by cautiously asking more questions, which Ark had answered heartily, perhaps due to the alcohol-
“When did it all turn around?”
At what point had she begun asking the questions instead? No matter how hard she tried to recall, the memory eluded her.
As Ark’s mind tirelessly searched through her immediate past, her focus returned to the person in front of her.
Lee Yena’s brows were slightly furrowed. She seemed to be pondering something, or maybe she was merely struggling with discomfort…
“No matter what expression she makes, it’s like a painting…”
The dimly lit bar, under the soft, blurry lighting, caused Ark to unknowingly lean forward. Perhaps, it was just her drunken state causing her to lose her balance.
Just as she was about to say it was okay and that she didn’t need to talk if it was difficult-
“Right. Why would that be? By now, it feels like… a dream…”
“No matter what, saying a game character is a dream is a bit…”
Barely holding back a reflexive comment, Ark praised herself silently for exercising restraint, nodding gently with a soft smile to encourage Lee Yena to continue.
“Have you ever had such a vivid dream? So vivid that, even after waking up, it just feels like something that actually happened…”
“Ah, you mean literal dreams while sleeping? Yes, I’ve had those…”
“But if a dream feels that vividly real for a whole year, is it really a dream? That’s what I’m thinking.”
Saying that, Lee Yena began to spin her finger around the rim of a soju glass.
“When did the soju glass get there…”
The increasingly intense motion seemed somewhat precarious, not for the person but the glass.
“If it topples over right now, inside there, that-”
Feeling a bit urgent, Ark retorted,
“What, what kind of dream was it? … Can you tell me?”
“A dream… It’s too long to tell it all. Ah, you asked about rogues. So… in the dream, a rogue was a top-tier character, and in every pro match, rogues would appear… Yes, it was that kind of dream.”
Ark was about to grumble about it not being the right time for joking, but then she saw Lee Yena’s eyes and fell silent once again.
The lighting flickered more brightly than it had a moment ago.
It was a look that didn’t quite suit the Lee Yena she knew. Unless, perhaps, she was starting to ramble senselessly about how that was how things should be in reality if it was a properly appointed world- ideas that were too preposterous to predict where they would even begin.
A moment of silence passed by.
What on earth should be said?
“…… It’s a doomed game.”
– Hh.
Lee Yena, who downed a glass filled to the brim with soju in one go, chuckled and wore a smile that seemed genuine. Her eyes still drooped lazily.
“It really was a doomed game. You couldn’t even begin to imagine how doomed it was, Jinhee. Anyway…that was how it was. Once I woke up, I realized the rogue character was trash, a character nobody played, and if you did play it, you’d be criticized endlessly…really. The only difference between the dream and reality was that. Actually, there were more differences than similarities…”
Lee Yena filled her soju glass again and took another gulp. As she muttered in a low voice, “even the people were different”, Ark couldn’t quite grasp the meaning – but it wasn’t fair to blame Ark for that.
“However, there was nothing I could do about those differences. I thought maybe if even this resembled the dream, it would give me a little bit of breathing room. I guess that’s what I thought. Yes.”
Was it forlorn – or was it relieved? Lee Yena let out a soft sigh and leaned back onto her seat with a content smile.
Was it the effect of the alcohol?
Ark oddly felt that Lee Yena might just sink and disappear altogether.
“Wow, KoK appears in your dreams too? I must admit, your love for KoK is unparalleled. I used to think I was a big fan of KoK, but after seeing you, Yena, I can’t even proclaim that anymore! It’s intimidating.”
“Is that so. Hm. Well, I do like KoK…but whether dreaming of it means I love it…hmm.”
Trailing off, Lee Yena set down her glass and looked at Ark with a gaze that was impossible to interpret.
Meeting that gaze was tough, but looking away was even harder. Hence, Ark ended up locking eyes with Lee Yena under the dim lights.
And as eternal seconds seemed to pass by –
Lee Yena’s eyes curved softly.
Eyes that reflected the star-like twinkle of the lighting, as clear as mirrors.
– Hh.
“No, it couldn’t be. Jinhee… I never told you my name, right? Ark, you were in that dream too. Yes.”
What was she saying now? As Ark felt the drunkenness gradually leave her body, she unconsciously asked back.
“…… Me?”
“Yes. I’ve watched your streams…not frequently, just a few times. So…after waking up, I felt a strange sense of familiarity. It would probably just confuse you since you didn’t have the same dream, but still…”
There was definitely more to be said. However, after that, Lee Yena turned her gaze away from Ark.
She continued to roll the soju bottle back and forth, her fingers playing with the neck of the bottle.
“…… Me?”
A faint question escaped her lips, barely making it to her lungs.
But there was no answer.
Lee Yena kept rolling the two bottles back and forth with one finger on each, until they almost toppled over. It was like a suspenseful circus act that demanded attention –
Such a sight.
For sure, that’s why Ark couldn’t look away.
For sure, that’s why.