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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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There were a total of 42 freshmen in the Digital Content Department.
For the MT, we were divided into seven groups of six.
Each group had one or two second-year students as leaders.
Lee Soyeon: Let’s meet briefly after class today for a meeting.
Yoo Bam: Think about what we should do for the talent show!
Today’s classes ended early.
I spent the lectures brainstorming ideas for the talent show.
I need to make sure the attention isn’t on me.
The leader had said everyone in the group had to participate. I was initially devastated, but looking at it from a different perspective, it wasn’t so bad.
What if I had been chosen through the ladder game…
Ugh, I didn’t even want to think about it. What was I supposed to do in front of so many people?
On the other hand, having everyone participate eased the pressure a bit. With eight people on stage, I could blend in if I played my cards right.
I started brainstorming ideas that would minimize my time in the spotlight.
After class,
The freshmen in group 3 headed to the designated classroom.
“No one’s here.”
The classroom was empty.
The leader and sub-leader probably hadn’t finished their classes yet.
We awkwardly sat in a circle and introduced ourselves.
“I’m Noh Juwan.”
“I’m Oh Sihyun.”
I already knew their names, of course. But unlike the three I had become friends with at the freshman gathering, I was still awkward around these two.
“I’m Kim Sung-joo. You probably heard during the self-introductions, but I’m twenty-two. Don’t feel like you have to be formal; let’s be friends. Did anyone come up with any ideas for the talent show?”
As expected, Sung-joo took the lead. He was handsome and friendly, so he was already popular in the department.
“I can only think of singing.”
“Hmm. How about we copy a skit from Gag Concert?”
A skit? Absolutely not. It would be a disaster if it flopped. All eight of us would be on stage, and we didn’t have anyone to hype up the crowd.
Then, Sung-joo put on a gloomy expression and said,
“Ugh, what am I going to do about the cross-dressing? I never thought I’d have to dress as a woman!”
“Ahaha. But you’re so handsome that you’ll probably look good even in women’s clothes.”
Sihyun complimented Sung-joo with a laugh. Her eyes were glued to him.
Juwan, on the other hand, couldn’t take his eyes off A-reum.
“Um, A-reum, you were chosen to dress as a man, right?”
“Yeah. I don’t really want to, but not as much as Sung-joo oppa. Ugh.”
“You don’t have any men’s clothes, do you? I can lend you my middle school uniform.”
Juwan eagerly tried to continue the conversation. He was clearly trying to talk to A-reum, using the cross-dressing as an excuse.
A-reum is pretty, after all.
Juwan wasn’t the only one who thought so. A-reum, with her pretty features, was the center of attention among our classmates. She was short and cute, so some of the girls were already treating her like a living doll.
But A-reum’s favorite doll was actually me, who was relatively quiet. She turned her head slightly and mouthed, Can I come over to your place later?
Since experiencing sex, A-reum had been trying to come over to my apartment whenever she could, though she hadn’t slept over again.
I nodded slightly. I had also developed a taste for sex. I hadn’t been able to be intimate with A-reum lately because of the sudden influx of assignments. Who knew this crazy department would assign projects in the second week?
“E-Everyone’s so friendly. Right?”
Sung-hyun mumbled. He seemed incredibly uncomfortable.
This guy’s body is all grown up, but his personality hasn’t changed at all.
The Sung-hyun I remembered was short and small. He was so timid that he couldn’t even initiate conversations.
But he had somehow grown to be almost as tall as me, and his body had transformed into that of a muscular macho man. Seeing him act so timid in such a body was quite the contrast.
“Weren’t you getting along with everyone before classes started?”
“W-Well, that was because it was the first time meeting everyone.”
“Ah.”
I understood immediately. Getting along with people in a completely new setting was different from trying to fit into an already established group.
But wasn’t the situation a bit different now?
Three out of the six were people he knew. Sung-joo and A-reum were the center of attention, but they were also close to Sung-hyun. And I had made up with him, so we were friends again.
Just then, the classroom door opened.
The chatting freshmen turned their heads.
“Oh, the freshmen. Hello!”
Judging by the cheerful tone, it was Yoo Bam sunbae, the third-year sub-leader. Soyeon sunbae, the leader, always spoke formally.
Sung-joo asked hesitantly, “A-Are you Yoo Bam sunbae?”
“Yes. Hello, I’m Yoo Bam.”
My guess was correct.
But there was something unexpected.
“I’m a third-year, but this is my first MT. My first talent show too. So, I’m really excited!”
Her slightly awkward speech and pronunciation, and her green eyes, which were rare in Korea…
Yoo Bam sunbae was clearly not Korean.
As it turned out, Yoo Bam sunbae was a foreigner.
The group leader, who arrived a little later, explained, “Yoo Bam is an exchange student. So, this is her first MT.”
“That’s right! I’m an exchange student. I love Korea! K-pop, K-dramas… and Korean food is so delicious!”
“Bam unnie, introduce yourself.”
“Aha. I’m Yoo Bam. That’s my Korean name. My real name is Leila. Full name is a secret!”
“Where are you from?”
“That’s a secret too. It’s my concept. You know, um… Mysterious!”
She was clearly eccentric. But it wasn’t off-putting. She had a bright, cheerful smile, and she was undeniably pretty.
Reddish-brown hair.
Emerald green eyes.
Fair skin, suggesting mixed ancestry.
That alone was enough to create an air of mystery, but Yoo Bam sunbae also possessed an air of elegance. It felt strange to use this expression for a foreigner, but she had the aura of a well-bred young lady.
“Let’s decide quickly. Share ideas. Talent show.”
“Bam unnie, that might take a while, so I’ll finalize the cross-dressing roles first.”
“Aha, okay. Soyeon is reliable. But cross-dressing? I’m jealous of the guy who gets to dress as a woman. I want to do that!”
“Huh? You want to cross-dress?”
“Yes! I’ve never cross-dressed before. I’m curious! But we already did the ladder game, so it can’t be helped.”
Maybe she wasn’t a refined lady, but just a bit of an airhead. She looked aristocratic, and her intonation was elegant, but her words were filled with childlike curiosity.
Pi A-reum, seizing the opportunity, raised her hand. “I don’t mind not cross-dressing…”
“Oh, you’re giving up your spot?!”
Yoo Bam sunbae’s face lit up, and the leader glared at Pi A-reum. She probably thought Pi A-reum was trying to push the responsibility onto the upperclassman.
But the leader sighed and nodded. “Well, there’s no rule against a third-year participating. And Bam unnie seems to really want to do it.”
“Thank you, Soyeon.” Yoo Bam sunbae clasped her hands together, her green eyes sparkling. She was incredibly cute.
Before starting the meeting proper, the leader looked around at us. “First, since I’m your senior, I’ll drop the formalities. You can speak comfortably too. Um, and…”
She glanced at Sung-joo. Even the formal leader is weak to handsome men, I thought, but I was wrong.
“Ah, you know my age. You can speak comfortably to me too.”
“…Okay. I mean, yeah.”
And so, the meeting began.
First, the cross-dressing.
“I have wigs. Long ones are better for a dramatic transformation, right?”
Sihyun was in charge of the wigs.
“I’ll bring the clothes. Super lovely ones!”
Yoo Bam sunbae was in charge of the clothes.
“Um, maybe not too feminine…”
“Sung-joo is handsome, so he’ll look good even in lovely clothes. I’ll make him pretty.”
Yoo Bam sunbae was very enthusiastic. The other girls also seemed excited about dressing Sung-joo up. Meanwhile, the guys, including myself, sighed in relief or avoided Sung-joo hyung’s pleading gaze. Sung-joo hyung, fighting…
Unlike the women’s cross-dressing, there wasn’t much for the guys to do for the men’s costume. It didn’t require wigs or makeup. We just decided to figure it out ourselves.
Now, all that was left was the talent show.
I felt bad for Sung-joo hyung, but honestly, since I wasn’t cross-dressing, this was much more important to me.
“What should we do for the talent show?”
“I have an idea. How about we do a skit, like from Gag Concert…?”
Juwan seemed really set on doing a skit. He even seemed to have planned it out, but unfortunately, it didn’t get a good reception from the group. I was against it too.
But the problem was that no other ideas had been suggested. If there were no other options, Juwan’s idea would win by default.
I was about to raise my hand when the leader sighed and said,
“A skit is too risky. I saw one fail miserably before, and it was so embarrassing to watch. If there are no other ideas, we can just do a group dance…”
I quickly raised my hand. “How about a musical?”
“…A musical?”
The leader’s face crumpled. She looked even more horrified than when the skit was suggested. The others didn’t seem thrilled either.
I quickly added, “Not a serious musical, but like, recreating a music video. Take a look at this.”
I took out the notebook I had prepared and opened it. Inside were the storyboards I had diligently drawn during class.
Yoo Bam sunbae looked up at me after seeing the storyboards. “Cheol-jin, you draw well. Easy to understand. Very good.”
“Th-Thank you.”
As I awkwardly thanked her, I noticed someone else staring at me. It was the leader, who had been frowning just a moment ago. Why are you looking at me like that?
Then, after staring intently, the leader nodded as if she understood. “So, only three or four people have to sing, and the rest can just chat and create the atmosphere?”
“Exactly. Only those who are good at singing have to sing. And with this setup, we can even use our phones to look at the lyrics.”
“That’s good. Forgetting the lyrics would be embarrassing. It’s good to have one less thing to worry about.”
The leader nodded and looked around at us. “I like Cheol-jin’s idea. What do you guys think? Any other suggestions?”
No one raised their hand.
My idea was chosen for group 3’s talent show.
But there was one problem.
Sung-joo looked at me and said, “Cheol-jin’s a good singer. You’ll take one of the male parts, right?”
“Huh? I can’t sing!” I waved my hands in denial.
Then, Sung-hyun, oblivious to my distress, said seriously, “No, Cheol-jin. You were good at karaoke last time. Have some confidence.”
This traitor!
My plan to coast through the talent show was ruined.
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