Today's Chicken Mukbang W 19 - Hyacinth in Bloom

#19

Pushing aside his puzzled reaction, Hajun clicked on the thumbnail. After a few seconds, classical-style background music played as Imun appeared sitting on a sofa. Perhaps due to the perfectly tailored luxury suit he wore, he exuded a mature, masculine charm.

Was the concept a vampire? Imun’s fangs were particularly sharp as he smiled softly. While examining the medieval-era-inspired set in the generally dark video, the beat gradually intensified.

As if the main story was beginning, Imun rose and moved to the side. There was an unconscious woman lying near the sofa. Hajun swallowed nervously as he stared at Imun’s face being gradually zoomed in.

The moment Imun, with his cold expression, carefully lifted the woman’s nape, the music suddenly became sultry, creating a sensual atmosphere.

The camera work, lingering unusually long on certain body parts, seemed very suspicious. Just before he was about to sink his teeth into the woman’s neck, Hajun instinctively hammered the spacebar.

This is too… suggestive! Imun’s smile in the music video lingered in his eyes as if imprinted there. He seemed like a completely different person from the Imun he’d faced during their video call.

As he tried to clear his mind of Imun’s sensual image and cool his heated face, he belatedly noticed the viewers’ chat.

“Huh, wait, this is rated 19+?! Ah… aaah… so it is. I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I’ll take this out for now.”

– Did you do that on purpose?ㅋㅋ How did you know we like this?ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Gangha’s face is burning upㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– What’s wrong with you, hyung??ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

He finally understood why everyone had reacted strangely as soon as he played the music video. Discovering the adults-only mark prominently displayed on one side of the video, he hung his head low.

Once startled, his heart wouldn’t easily calm down. As he kept gulping down cold water for no reason, viewers informed him there was also an all-ages version of the music video.

“Ah, that’s good. I was curious about the rest of it anyway.”

With a pretended calm expression, he finished watching the music video and quickly played the next video.

The choreography and melody performed by Imun and the three other members were always impressive. Just as he was thinking he should personally review it again after the broadcast, a donation caught his attention.

[10,000 won donation! It’s a reaction broadcast but there’s no reaction ㅋㅋㅋ]

He had been so distracted watching Imun that comments hadn’t even registered. “This part is cool.” “The visuals here are good.” After belatedly and consciously offering generic positive remarks, Hajun closed his mouth again.

– What’s with this hyperfocus whenever Seo Imun appears ㅋㅋ

– Tell us what you think about Imun’s parts too!

– Not enough!! More!! Say more!!!

Imun’s fans were thirsting for his opinions, to a degree that made him wonder if there could be people more passionate than this. Though he tried his best feeling the sense of crisis, it seemed his awkward speaking skills wouldn’t satisfy their expectations.

‘Nothing makes a fan happier than converting a non-fan.’

Is this the only way? Ending his momentary dilemma, he laid bare his true feelings with a sense of complete surrender.

“…Seo Imun, whom you all love, I really like him too. He’s a really close friend, and I want to become even closer with him. I think Imun is really… cool! Cute! Sexy! A born-to-be idol who shines brightly! …that’s what I think.”

His masterful move was as effective as it was embarrassing. The chat went wild for a while with screams of ‘Kyaaaa!’ and laughter. Excited that his prediction had hit the mark, he continued babbling for quite some time.

– Saying he likes his friend and calling him cute; I’m not the only one seeing something here, right? ㅎㅎㅎ

– Is the MoonGang coin going public? ㅎㅎㅎㅎ

What’s this now? Comments shipping him and Imun as a couple were becoming visible here and there. Losing control of his expression, Hajun sat blankly before bursting into laughter.

– This hyung really hates that stuff so please chill;;;

– Everyone’s going too far, openly saying what’s usually kept secret even on the forums ㅋㅋㅋ

– If you want to say that kind of thing, go to Twitter ㅋㅋㅋ

The regular viewers were shutting down the couple comments so thoroughly that he didn’t need to add anything. Thanks to them, nothing too cringe-worthy seemed likely to happen, but the overheated chat showed no signs of cooling down.

A gaming broadcast would probably be difficult now. Just as he was quietly sighing while checking the time, which had already reached the middle of the broadcast, Imun’s fans began sending donations one after another.

‘Sorry that the delulus are being a nuisance ㅠㅠ’, ‘Not all Haneuls are like this ㅠㅠ’ The apologies coming in with military precision were so desperate it was embarrassing even to watch.

“I’m fine, you don’t need to apologize that much. Ah, and you don’t need to give so many donations either… it gets weird when I receive money. Instead, if you have some good photos of Imun, could you share a few?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the chat went quiet for a moment, then donations poured in at a rate incomparable to before. The photos and videos they sent seemed high quality at a glance. They were undoubtedly precious items he could never find with his meager searching skills.

– This one’s famous as a stan attractor video ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Wow these are Imun’s legendary photos ㅋㅋㅋㅋ This is legitimately good stuff ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Watching them evaluate each other’s materials made him think that true fans really were different. Regretting that he had been satisfied with YouTube videos, he spent several minutes exploring this new world unfolding before him, then smiled shyly at the camera.

“Thank you so much for the donations. I’d like to see the photos and videos you sent in higher resolution… if it’s okay, could you please send them separately to my email?”

Right after the live broadcast ended, Hajun’s email was spread like coordinates in the On The Sky community with a post saying ‘Gangha desperately asking for Imun’s photos.’

It was a few days later that a dedicated folder for Imun appeared on Hajun’s D drive without Imun’s knowledge.

His phone buzzed continuously at his bedside. Rubbing his sleep-filled eyes and checking the time, Hajun let out a deflated laugh.

4:03 AM. The only person who would contact him at this hour was Imun. Sure enough, it’s Imun. While drowsily staring at the bright phone screen, sleep suddenly vanished at the unexpected message.

[I’m sorry, hyung…]

[My fans caused too much trouble]

What’s this about so early in the morning? Although there had been some minor incidents, afterward they had all united in their love for Imun and spent the entire broadcast laughing and chatting with his fans. Guessing the reason for Imun’s apology, Hajun awkwardly moved his fingers.

[It’s fine ㅎㅎ nothing serious happened]

[By the way, you’re not done with work yet?;;]

[Even if you’re going to work now it’s still early… anyway, you must be tired ㅠㅠ]

The seemingly depressed messages really bothered him. While wondering if there was any way to boost his spirits beyond verbal encouragement, a call suddenly came through. After quickly clearing his throat, he greeted casually.

“Hey, Imun.”

“Were you already awake?”

“…Looks like it. I was thinking about doing some early morning running for a change.”

“Ah, I see. I just got back to the dorm. I saw tons of posts about your broadcast on the fan community. I’m sorry…”

As suspected, he was quite down. What kind of posts went up to make him like this? He thought about the broadcast once more but couldn’t remember anything that would concern Imun this much.

“What are you apologizing for? Today’s broadcast went well. I’ve never had a broadcast where I didn’t play games at all, but today was so fun talking with your fans-“

“I’m really sorry.”

“No, it was fun, really. I got to see lots of great videos and photos…”

“Still… It’s your broadcast, but our fans rushed in, causing trouble, and other-“

“Why so serious? What trouble, between us.”

He blurted it out without thinking and immediately regretted it. It was an embarrassingly intimate thing to say, even coming from his own mouth.

While punishing his treacherous mouth that seemed to lose its filter whenever he talked with Imun, a soft murmur tickled his ear.

“You’re right. Between us.”

“Between us.” Imun repeated the same words again and laughed comfortably. His voice sounded much lighter, suggesting he was feeling better now. Relaxing his furrowed brow, Hajun yawned silently. As the tension eased, drowsiness crept in.

“I’m keeping someone who’s been working all night. Go wash up and sleep.”

“But I want to talk more…”

“No need, you don’t have to force yourself to make time for me. You should get some more sleep.”

“…It’s not forced, but okay…”

“I’ll contact you again.” After firmly sending away Imun, who lingered as if wanting to be held back, Hajun closed his eyes. Perhaps because he’d woken at an odd hour, he felt tired but his mind was wide awake. After tossing and turning for a while, remembering Imun’s tired voice, he gave up on sleeping.

Maybe I really should go for a run. Outside the window, it was still dim. After gazing outside with bleary eyes, he threw back the covers and got up.

***

Heavy raindrops beat fiercely against the car window. He couldn’t open his eyes against the intense headlights pouring in from the front.

‘…Hajun, you have to live strongly, steadfastly. You can do that, right?’

The woman smiled painfully before her body convulsed violently. Dark red liquid gushed from her mouth as she coughed. The smell of blood filled the car thickly. After coughing up blood a few more times, her head dropped abruptly.

“…Ah… Aah!”