SRP 22

Chapter 22

Gogeon squeezed the hand he was holding. It seemed that some warmth had returned.
“Hold me.”
“…Aren’t you the one who’s supposed to be comforted? You’re the victim.”
“Then I’ll hold you.”
“No. Let’s keep some distance.”

Gogeon’s lips curved downward.
“…Fine, it’s all my fault. The problem is that I’m too good.”

Had I rejected him too bluntly?
In this situation, should I hug him? That would be weirder.
Am I overthinking? Am I the only one taking this seriously?
She kept the thoughts inside, unable to speak them aloud.

“Are you sulking?”
“I don’t care if you’re angry or sulking. I told you not to contact me until 9 a.m., and you followed that perfectly—not even a single text.”

Even though she had told him to do that.
If he were sulking, at least he could have let go of her hand—but he kept holding it.

“If you act like this, who’s going to see us as a real couple? You have to act normally most of the time so that it looks natural when we’re performing. We’ll be filming a variety show soon, too.”
“Ah… the variety show.”

Hearing about the variety show, Bom let out a sigh.
There was a time when she had wished to appear on music shows—or even variety shows—but not anymore.
Now, being the subject in front of a camera felt awkward.
She knew too well how reporters would tear apart anyone who had fallen from grace, stripping away any illusions she had once held.

Gogeon leaned his head against the seat and smiled charmingly.
“I’m looking forward to it.”

Even giving her a playful wink.
Bom’s palms itched, and she pulled her hand away from his.

At that moment, Giwoong was peeking from the elevator, hesitating about whether it was okay to approach.
“Giwoong’s here. Take care.”
“See you on the weekend.”

Bom received the convenience store bag of beer from Giwoong and went upstairs.
The living room was empty.
She put the beer in the fridge and went into her room, opening her laptop.
She connected a mini keyboard, which she used only to extract melodies, and poured her current mood into it.
Her fingers bounced lightly on the keys, just like her fluttering heart.

Thursday, daytime, before Gogeon’s drama aired

At lunchtime, she went down to the first floor with the management and PR teams, along with Ilju.
After the banner incident, she had started living at Ilju’s house, commuting with him, and they also went out to lunch together.
Even though the management CEO probably had external appointments and lunch schedules, he adjusted his time so that he could stay next to Bom.

Meanwhile, Namhoon happily left work on time.
He spent evenings enjoying things he couldn’t before, like theater dates or going to cozy bars with Ilju and Bom.
As a result, dark circles appeared from staying up late working in his study.
Still, he told Bom to stay with him, saying he liked it.
For the sake of the two of them, he planned to return home the following week.

“Coming up at 6 today, right? What time is this assistant’s date tomorrow?”

As they headed toward the restaurant, the conversation among the employees accompanying them went silent at Bom’s question.
Ilju prohibited discussions of Bom’s private life at work, so coworkers didn’t ask how the date went.
Bom seemed to ask without noticing, probably because it was a video of Gogeon dating her, but her face wasn’t visible.

“I don’t know.”
“You haven’t seen the edited version?”
“He said I didn’t need to see it. If I saw it, I’d probably tell him not to post it.”
“Still, shouldn’t you check your own video? It could be edited badly.”
“…Could it be worse than this?”
“Ah… ah…”

Thinking about the time on Monday when Gogeon’s superfan terrorized him with a banner, Boram didn’t ask further questions.

Exiting the lobby, Bom noticed a woman.
When Bom stopped, Ilju came to her side, checking her expression.
“Bom?”
“That person…”

Following Bom’s gaze, Ilju saw her too.
It was the woman in the black hoodie who had been standing near the building that day.
“That’s the person who was near the building that day.”
“Oh, I saw it on the CCTV.”

They had obtained the CCTV footage showing the early hours of that day with some help.
They couldn’t pinpoint the real culprit from the post, but the person in the black hoodie had lingered around the building, so they suspected it might be them.
Criminals are said to return to the scene to relive the thrill of the crime.

“I’ll eat separately from Bom.”
“Oh, I was hoping the company card would cover it!”
“I’ll buy you coffee later.”

The employees left first, and Bom remained standing with Ilju.
The woman in the black hoodie turned to face them.
She approached quickly, and Ilju shielded Bom behind him.
“Hello.”

She had her short hair tied tightly. She looked young, maybe a student or newly adult. Her expression was sulky, but she didn’t seem like someone plotting anything sinister.

Ilju cautiously asked,
“I don’t recognize you. Do you work in this building?”

The woman frowned, stretching her philtrum, and alternately looked at Ilju and Bom.
No answer came.

Tension rose. Ilju quickly scanned the surroundings, ready to call for help if needed. Luckily, it was lunchtime, so there were many people around.
“I came to meet Bom.”

Ilju grabbed Bom’s wrist, but Bom stepped forward.
This is her matter.
“Was it you?”
“Yes, I did it.”

The blunt, shameless answer was shocking.
“I reported to Gogeon. I’m a ‘Gogeon Love Black Rabbit’.”

The woman in the black hoodie showed her phone screen—it was the SNS account that had sent the DM.
She also had tiny rabbit ears on her hoodie.

“I wanted Bom to know that not all of Gogeon’s fans are strange like that.”
“Uh?”
“I know that just because you’re dating, it doesn’t mean you’re marrying Gogeon. Most of Gogeon’s fans are decent and reasonable. Don’t lump everyone together and criticize them.”

It was unusual to even come to someone else’s company to say that.

“Why are all of Gogeon’s fans like… this?”

Bom nudged Ilju’s side and greeted the girl.
“Ah, thank you. Thanks to you, things were sorted quickly.”
“…If you’re thankful, can you buy me a meal?”

She grinned, naturally, as if it were nothing.
“I got fired from my part-time job, so I can’t eat meat for a while.”

When Bom offered to treat her out of gratitude, she said she wanted samgyeopsal.

Her name was Jin Gukhee, a responsible fan.
She was on a leave of absence, working part-time to save tuition.
Her mother had an affair and her parents divorced. She had no contact with her mother, and her father lived in a provincial city, so she lived alone in a goshiwon.
Her father only paid the registration and first semester fees, so she took a leave in her first year to save money.

Even without being asked, she spoke freely, saying she hadn’t had samgyeopsal in a long time. Bom and Ilju just listened.

Gukhee preferred thin slices of samgyeopsal, so they would cook faster and she could eat more.

“Don’t worry. There aren’t many fans like me among Gogeon’s fans.”

At first, she was cautious while eating.
When Ilju told her to eat as much as she wanted, and that they would order more if necessary, she immediately picked up speed.

Sizzle.

The thin slices of samgyeopsal touched the grill, changing color and curling.
As soon as the redness disappeared, Gukhee scooped it up with chopsticks, dipping it in the sauce.
She said she’d eat fried rice later, so they didn’t order it.
Ilju also ordered a drink, worried she might overeat.

“I regret that Gogeon didn’t debut as an idol. If he had, there would’ve been photo books, season greetings, concerts, photocards… so many things to buy.”

Eating seemed to relax her, and she talked nonstop.
“When Gogeon asked if I wanted anything, I really wanted to satisfy my personal fan desires. Get an autograph, take photos, a private fan meeting, ah, it would’ve been amazing.”

Gukhee shivered as she chewed the meat.
Whether she was happy just eating the meat or imagining a private fan meeting with Gogeon wasn’t clear, but it seemed she was happy either way.

“I’m loyal and know the rules. I’ve been fair as a ‘Zero’ fan, restraining myself. I even refused when asked to meet him.”
“What a waste… it was a great opportunity, yet you refused everything.”

Still, she thought Gogeon’s personality would’ve made him do something nice for her. Strange.

Bom said, and Gukhee smiled slyly.
It was the expression of someone hiding something.
“I didn’t say I refused everything.”