Chapter 96

Chapter 96

My vision was hazy, but I recognized the face peering down at me.

“Big Sejin?”

“You’re burning up.”

I couldn’t be sure, but Big Sejin seemed shocked at the state he’d found me in. I tried not to cough as I said, “Uh... yeah. I took medicine.”

“I don’t think that’s going to be enough... You should go see a doctor. Should I call the agency for you?”

“Hey, it’s nothing that serious... just a little fatigue...”

Big Sejin worried his lip. “Why just endure being sick when you can do something to feel better more quickly? Just get a shot or something, and some strong prescription medicine.”

I didn’t want to move from my bed, but I liked the idea of getting some kind of treatment if I was honest.

The agency will pay for it, surely. Our company worked under a massive parent corporation, so they would probably cover bills for stuff like this. Then the reality of my situation hit me.

“Oh... but the managers are off today.”

“We can call a taxi. Get dressed, okay?”

I hadn’t even considered taking a taxi. I watched Big Sejin make a phone call, finally managing to string together a sensible question only after he’d hung up.

“Why are you here?”

“I had to visit the agency to pick something up, so I dropped by on the way. It’s near my place.”

What had he been picking up?

“What?”

“That doesn’t matter right now. Just get changed. The taxi will be here soon.”

“Okay...” I got up slowly, tossing aside my sweaty T-shirt and pulling on a hooded sweatshirt. I felt cold, so the hoodie didn’t feel too warm.

“Do you need help?”

“I’m good.”

The clean hoodie was good enough as far as getting dressed went. I just need to find a face mask now...

“Here, put this on.”

How had he known? Putting the mask on, I said to him, “Thanks.”

“You should be thankful. Be nice to me from now on.” He nodded cheekily at me and then checked his phone. “The taxi’s nearby. Let’s head down.”

“Yeah. Will it come to the front entrance?”

“Yep. Come with me.” It seemed as though he intended to go with me.

“I can go by myself. It’ll be quick.”

“Think about the kinds of articles we’ll be seeing tomorrow if you end up passing out in the taxi.”

I had to admit he had a point.

“Let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

I said no more, following him downstairs and getting in the taxi. Sitting in the backseat, trying not to be sick, we soon arrived at the hospital.

***

“Feeling better, huh?”

“Yes,” I agreed easily. Whatever they’d put in the IV fluid, the two differently colored packets had improved my condition immediately.

Now I just feel a little tired. The hospital was large, and given its location, a lot of celebrities seemed to make use of its services. I liked that they’d handled things so quietly.

“Now you can eat something and take your medicine. You’re so lucky to have a friend like me, eh?”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” Big Sejin shrugged as he opened the door to our dorm.

We were greeted by a large pile of packages. They weren’t just deliveries that had been sent to our dormitory. Each one was a different size, was wrapped in ivory wrapping paper, and was decorated with dark green ribbons.

“Oh, they moved them already,” he commented casually.

I asked him quietly, “Is it your birthday?”

“Huh? Oh, you must have seen my date of birth on the internet!” He grinned at me. “Yeah. The day after tomorrow. August 1st.”

He must have been on his way to the agency to pick them up.

I assumed he was the sort of guy who’d make a fuss over his birthday a week in advance. But instead, he’d made no mention of it at all. If I hadn’t seen something about it on social media a few days ago, I would have just assumed the gifts were for our debut or something. Be that as he may, the birthday boy was being pretty chill about things.

“Since my birthday is in the middle of our leave, I thought I’d take a photo in advance. The fans will appreciate a post on the day itself.”

“Yeah, I guess... Anyway, happy birthday.”

“Thanks! Send me a gift voucher and a heartfelt message later. I’ll be happy with some chicken.”

I grinned. “Yeah, you deserve some chicken after today.”

“Oh! Sounds like I might get away with asking for two boxes instead of one, then!”

“What?”

He smirked and went into the kitchen, lifting up a pot. “I brought braised ribs.”

“Ribs?”

Where did that come from?

“Listen. Your magnanimous friend was worried about you being alone in the dorm, so I brought you some ribs from my birthday feast!”

I stared, surprised.

“I know, you’re very touched, right? Big Sejin took time out of his vacation to bring his teammate some ribs... Man! Be sure to talk about it in public. You’re speechless, huh? It’s fine. I understand.” He waved at me and headed for the door. “I’ll be off. You focus on getting better for the next few days. And be sure to heat up the ribs and eat them.”

“You want me to take a photo of the gifts?”

“Haha, no thanks. You’re not feeling well, so take it easy. I already took some at the agency.” Big Sejin warned me to make sure I went back to the hospital if I felt sick again and vanished.

What an odd experience. I’d seldom spent time with anyone when I was sick, and there were usually too many bothersome things I would have to attend to alone. Having someone take care of me was pretty novel.

It’s nice to have someone around to help me out. I’d have to make sure I sent Big Sejin a chicken voucher on his birthday. It was more than worth it since I’d now get to actually enjoy the rest of my holiday. Now back to seeing what the internet has to say, after I take my medicine—

My phone buzzed. It was a text message.

[Seon Ahyeon: Moondae, have you been resting? I just finished my first therapy session. The therapist seems like a very nice person and I’m going to really give it my best this time around. I wanted to thank you [...] (Show more)]

Ahyeon hadn’t changed. I was grateful he hadn’t uploaded all of that to our group chat, at least.

I pressed “Show more.” His message went on to invite me over during our vacation.

No thanks. I congratulated him on starting therapy. I also told him that I was feeling unwell and needed to rest. After tossing my phone on the sofa, I went to take my medicine.

By the time I returned, I’d gotten five more long texts from Ahyeon. In addition, the group chat was exploding with messages. It seemed Big Sejin had told everyone about what had happened.

[Cha Eugene: Stay healthy, Moondae! (Crying default emoji)]

[Ryu Cheongwoo: All the nonstop work must have gotten to you. Give me a call if you need anything.]

[Kim Raebin: My grandfather gave me some red ginseng. Should I bring some back with me? (Hazy photo of a container full of liquid)]

[Big Sejin: Hey, give some to me too (tears of joy emoji)]

There were dozens more similar messages. I sighed.

It feels like they’re right next door and never really left. Still, I guess it was nice of them. Contacting them during their time off could have been really annoying, but even Lee Sejin had sent me a handful of texts, though not in the group chat.

[Lee Sejin A: Hey, are you all right?]

I answered the messages slowly in the order they’d arrived. First, I assured Ahyeon that I was getting better and that I didn’t think it was tactless of him to ask me over. Then I told Lee Sejin that I was doing all right.

I sent roughly the same thing to the group chat.

[I’ve already seen a doctor, and I’m all right now. Have a nice vacation, everyone.]

The chat was inundated with okay emojis in response. I found it pretty nice, being the focus of such bright, cheerful energy.

I should eat. With a shrug, I heated up the ribs and some instant rice. They were quite tasty.

***

While Park Moondae was recovering and enjoying his quiet vacation, the TeSTAR fans were ecstatic to see the members posting about their vacations on social media.

- Ahyeon LOL. He’s started to crochet a scrubber! That is so dang cute! (Photo of half-finished scrubber)

- Raebin today: I had super sweet corn with my grandfather...

I wish I could sit him down in front of the air conditioner and let him eat his fill of sweet corn and peaches

- Does anybody know the location in Chungwoo’s photos? It seems to be a mountain of some sort. Chungwoo, did you go hiking in the summer? And during your vacation, too? T_T

Big Sejin, in particular, uploaded a variety of photos and videos leading up to and after his birthday. The most popular post was a short video of the members lip-syncing along to a music show performance of “Hi-five” that was playing on TV.

The members, who were all sitting around the living room drinking water, or reading a book, just going about their business, would suddenly start vibing to the song. All of them took turns singing each other’s parts. The video went viral with over ten thousand shares.

- Why do they look like even better friends here than they did on the reality show? LOL

- I didn’t think actor Sejin would join in, too... And doing Cha Eugene’s rap, of all things! Haha

- They seem to have grown a lot more comfortable around each other. It’s so heartwarming T_T. TeSTAR, don’t ever retire!

The final episode of the reality show trip aired as well, and fans were celebrating a successful end to the debut promotion cycle with mixed feelings. For the members of one particular fan, however, it wasn’t over just yet.

Park Moondae’s fans were about to watch the Meet and Greet episode he was featured on.

- Today is the day

- Moondae is on a variety show T_T The entire episode has him in it T_T

- Guys, I have to confess I wasn’t able to sleep last night, I was too tense

- The trailer mentioned a scary story and something about a murderer on the loose. I can already picture cute Moondae pretending not to be scared but following Cheongryeo around everywhere. I took a day off today so I could watch the episode with a clear head

└ LMAO the excitement is next level

Met with the fans’ eager anticipation, the episode of Meet and Greet began to air. The first segment involved the two of them acting out a scenario that involved them meeting in a cabin on a snowy mountain.

[“I wasn’t expecting a snowstorm. Good thing I found this cabin.”]

[“I see. I also fled here after noticing the weather.”]

Neither of them was a particularly competent actor, unfortunately, and the fans found this hilarious. The comments sections across various community sites that were excited about the show exploded with amusement.

- ROFL

- They seem like they’re in a business meeting, not lost in a snowstorm

- Questionable meeting room vibes

- The charismatic Cheongryeo’s been replaced with Jaehyeon. What is this, a seminar?

- Moondae, it’s supposed to be winter. I can tell you were about to take off the jacket because you were so hot!

The way they shared hot coffee and the self-heating meals also made people laugh.

- Moondae just pretended not to notice the pack of chicken feet!

- He’s supposed to have packed that food himself, but he’s rummaging through it like he’s never seen any of it before in his life!

- I know Cheongryeo always drinks his coffee hot, but he seriously offered hot coffee to Moondae in this blistering summer heat? (At a loss for words)

- The food must’ve been bad. They suddenly aren’t talking anymore haha

The questionable computer-generated snowstorm visible through the window only made the scene more hilarious.

[※There is※]

[※a sudden rumble!※]

The captions aided in this, also.

[※A powerful booming shakes the cabin※]

[※Survivor 1: Is that thunder? (Calm)※]

[※Survivor 2: I’ll call the police. (Calm)※]

- They are trapped inside but feel no fear. They have a sponsored device that produces endless amounts of hot coffee.

└ LOL this is nuts

- They’re basically carbon copies of one another haha

└ They probably think they’re really immersed in their roles right now, though...

The skit continued like this until Cheongryeo decided to tell a scary story.