Chapter 8 : Date (1) Fixed*

The first day of dance class was a disaster, and there was no miracle turnaround on the second day.

Singing.

At least I'm not tone-deaf.

In fact, despite having no training, I've been praised for my good voice.

However, the harsh criticism that followed threatened my mental state.

'What kind of teacher casually says such harsh things to kids?'

Teachers, who should be adults, casually cursed at trainees who were only 17 or 18 years old.

Hearing such words from a young age would likely destroy their self-esteem.

Woo-yeon surprisingly told me that what I heard was actually mild.

"Oh, let's not think about it."

What good is dwelling on being scolded? With a date coming up, there's no need to taint my mind with useless thoughts.

"Are you really going out?"

It's been two days since I joined the debut team.

It's a critical time to decide who will debut soon.

This should be the time to work the hardest, and you're going on a date with a girl? Woo-yeon was shocked and tried to stop me.

"It's okay, it's okay."

This guy says meeting a girl improves his skills more than practicing.

"If the manager finds out, you'll get a serious scolding from the manager."

"We have self-practice time until 4 PM after lunch. It's just for a moment, what could go wrong?"

"Ugh. Okay, I'll do my best to cover for you."

"Haha! Thank you."

"Just this once. Next time, you have to practice hard with me, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah."

What a good kid! I'll definitely repay you!

Deciding to trust Woo-yeon's support, I sneaked out of the agency. I had to move carefully to avoid being caught by the manager or staff.

'Success!'

I successfully left the agency without being noticed by anyone. Joo-ah, who had been given more time to consider terminating her trainee contract, was already waiting at the agreed-upon location.

"Ah! You're here."

Her face was flushed with excitement.

"Have you been waiting long?"

"No! I just arrived."

'She's so pretty.'

As I approached, an incredibly pleasant scent filled the air. I had smelled this scent when I first met her.

'She's wearing makeup.'

Yesterday at the company, she had a plain, makeup-free look.

Even then, her beauty shone through, but with makeup on top of that, she was dazzling. It was astonishing that such a woman was leaving her trainee contract.

"You haven't had lunch yet, right?"

"Nope."

Although she offered to buy dinner, we adjusted the plan to meet briefly for lunch during the lunch break. If we had waited until the weekend, we could have spent more time together, but the classes were too intense to wait that long.

"I know a great place to eat. It's a bit far from here, but it's really good."

"Can't resist a good restaurant. Haha. Should we take a taxi? We need to be back by 4 PM, so we should move quickly."

"Don't worry. I brought a car!"

A car? When I looked where Joo-ah was pointing, there was a stylish car. I don't know which brand is famous in this world, but the car looked expensive.

"Wow! You have your own car."

"It's not mine, it's my mom's. Anyway, since we have a car, you don't need to worry about getting back."

The current time is 12:23 PM. We need to be back by exactly 4 PM, so we need to return by 3:30 PM at the latest. Even so, we can only spend about 2 hours together. Despite the short time, I thought these 2 hours were valuable.

'We need to spend time together like this to make progress.'

There's no time. I need to make the most of every moment. We drove in Joo-ah's car. Since it takes about 30 minutes by car, we needed to talk during the ride. I was about to start a conversation, but Joo-ah beat me to it.

"How did you get cast for the debut team?"

I don't know much about that. But I had the knowledge to answer thanks to my notes.

"I was street-cast. I was working part-time, and they said it would be a good opportunity and that they wouldn't let me regret it. They said it was okay even if my skills were lacking."

"I knew it! I thought that might be the case. You were promised a spot in the debut team, right?"

"They couldn't put it in the contract, but I basically got a promise. The contract says that if I don't make it into the debut team, my trainee contract will be automatically terminated."

When I signed the contract, they asked me to keep this agreement a secret from the other trainees. But since she is no longer a trainee, I didn't see a need to hide it from her.

"Congratulations in advance, even though it might be too early."

"Debuting is just the beginning. Honestly, I'm worried because my skills aren't that great."

"You'll probably be practicing until you're exhausted before your debut. The trainers will teach you everything, so you don't need to worry."

She spoke harsh truths in a gentle voice.

"…They teach you everything?"

"Yes. I've seen tone-deaf, uncoordinated kids transformed into decent performers. Your case is quite common. But whether you can endure the process determines if you debut or not."

Joo-ah shared her knowledge as a senior trainee. Thanks to her, we were able to chat comfortably without any awkward silences during the drive to the restaurant. As we got out of the car and entered the restaurant, people's gazes turned to us.

"Welcome."

Buzz, buzz—

Can you believe this beautiful woman is on a date with me? Hehe!

The attention from people made my chest swell with pride.

"Damn, she's so hot."

"Maybe I could hit on her too?"

"No way."

"Her face is insane, right?"

"She's tall too."

"Damn, she's my type. Is she going to the bathroom?"

"No way, dude. Look at her level. You wouldn't fit in with them."

Hearing the whispers, I snapped back to reality. Looking around, I realized most of the customers were women. They were envious of Joo-ah, not me, and they were impressed by me being with her.

'This is life!'

Joo-ah seemed to have anticipated this situation and had made a reservation in advance. She spoke with a staff member, and we were quickly seated in a private room.

"The cheese buljim chicken here is amazing. Let's get three servings. Also, some steamed eggs. What would you like to drink? A cold beer? Oh right, you have class in the afternoon. Too bad. It goes really well with beer."

"Haha, how about just one glass? One beer won't get me drunk."

I've had plenty of alcohol, so one beer won't affect me. A beer to lighten the mood is perfectly fine.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, it's fine. Beer isn't really alcohol, it's barley tea."

"You must drink a lot."

"Yes, I do."

The friendly atmosphere continued even after we entered the restaurant. The beer and food arrived, and as expected from a famous place, it was delicious.

"Phew! Ahh! So good!"

Joo-ah seemed to forget I was there for a moment, as she ate with sauce on her cheek, sweating profusely. Seeing a pretty woman enjoy her food was so satisfying. I enjoyed watching her eat more than eating myself.

"Ah?!"

She suddenly realized and froze, her spoon suspended in mid-air.

"I, I ate too quickly, didn't I? I've been on a diet for so long, I lose control when I see delicious food."

"It's cute to see you enjoy your food so much."

"Oh no, I'm so embarrassed."

She covered her small face with her hands and stomped her feet.

Thud!

Something hit my heart at that moment. Gulp—

"It was cute."

"What? Me?"

"Yes. I like seeing a woman enjoy her food."

She blushed and smiled shyly.

Is this what it's like to be a handsome guy? If I asked her to go to a motel with me, she might shyly smile and take my hand. I'm feeling confident.

We started eating again. As we finished our meal, the conversation with Joo-ah gradually slowed down. It was almost 3 PM. Naturally, a thought came to mind.

"It's too short."

I want to spend more time with her. If this were school, I could skip class, but my life as a trainee is too important to do that.

"I gave up, but since you have the chance to debut, I hope you give it your best."

"Of course, I have to. But I wonder when I'll get to spend time like this with you again. It's too bad."

Unlike her, who is now free, I am bound by my debut team obligations. I need time to achieve my goals, but I don't have much time.

"...."

"...."

We both knew that even if we met like this again, it would be difficult to have a good outcome. She needs to move forward for her future, and so do I.

'The mood was good, but how did it turn into this?'

I must have said something wrong. Why did I say such stupid things? Am I still a loser even in this world? I felt a wave of self-loathing and closed my eyes tightly. Suddenly, an unexpected twist happened.