一层一层剥掉你的衣服

We stopped in front of the subway station. We had totally forgotten to bring the VJs along with us. Not just me and Jia either. All of the members had forgotten. They were supposed to arrive at 10, but we had left at 9.

“Oh no. What do we do?”

“Let’s call the manager and tell him to send the VJs.”

I called Manager Lee.

The ringtone blared.

Hey, Hyuk. I mean…uh, Hi.

There’s no way I can bring myself to treat him as my elder, but I can always be polite.

Hi, Sian. It’s me.

I’ll need you to call our VJs for us. We already left.

Really? Why so early? Anyways, I’ll tell them so just stay where you are. I’ll call them right now.

Thank you~

Call ended.

“Sian, what did he say?”

“He’ll call them. Let’s just wait right here.”

We sat down on a bench nearby. And then, we began to people-watch.

“Don’t you think he’s cute?” Jia said, pointing at a young man in the distance.

“Not really,” I said, shaking my head. I’m a man. A man who likes women. Which was why I was currently checking out the women. Why do women have to be so pretty nowadays? Of course, there are fat girls as well. Probably because they enjoy their food and also enjoy their lives. The ones I saw currently were too skinny.

“Are you looking at girls?”

“Yeah. I’m not really into guys.”

“Really? Why not?”

“Because I’m a guy,” I said to myself.

“What? You’re a guy?!” Jia shouted. Oops.

“N-no! I mean…I’m not really into guys.”

“Right. No way you’re a guy. You don’t even have the right parts.”

“....”

Hearing that made my heart sink. It’s not even like I had it cut off. I mean, in the past, they did, but they normally only cut off the testicles or simply made it so that it wouldn’t develop fully. Sometimes, people would just go around castrating people if they were bored. I also heard that Sima Chian, the Chinese scholar, was also castrated after saying the wrong thing to another man. Anyways, my point is, the Grim Reaper basically castrated me. I’ll never forgive Him for that.

People-watching helped time pass quickly and soon, we saw a familiar figure heading towards us.

“Good morning~”

Jun-jin called out to us with a wave of his hand.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning, Jun-jin. Oh, but what about my VJ?” Jia asked.

“Oh, today it’s just me. It’s a Sunday,” Jun-jin said with a grin. I guess the idea of hanging out with two beautiful girls on an otherwise eventless Sunday must have been exciting for him.

“You sure are a lucky man.”

“Oh, hehe…am I...?”

Jun-jin smiled sheepishly. Then he asked, “So for today, just promoting and handing out leaflets?”

“Yep. Promoting the event. Passing out leaflets. Maybe some lunch.”

“Oh…l-lunch...?”

Jun-jin suddenly looked nervous.

“Don’t worry. I won’t ask you to buy it,” I assured him.

“No bets either.”

“Who said anything about bets? Do you want to make one?”

“No!” Jun-jin said firmly. I guess he was really against making bets at the moment.

We got on the subway and rode all the way to Hongdae. We took photos and gave autographs to some of the passengers who recognized us. It felt kind of nice to be so popular. Is this why people choose to be famous? Getting recognized for your talent and being admired by the public. It’s pretty great.

Once we arrived at the station, we got off and walked out.

“So this is Hondae.”

“We were here just a few days ago.” Jia reminded me with a smile.

“This is the first time I’m here during the day.”

Suddenly, from the distance, I saw two completely naked girls running in our direction. They flashed right by us. I noticed they were foreigners. Jesus Christ.

“Is Hongdae always like this, even during the day?”

“Occasionally, you run into people like that. Girls who get real drunk.”

“Nice.”

I watched the girls as they disappeared – well, I watched their butts anyway. Jun-jin was watching with his mouth wide open, though he snapped it shut when he saw me watching him.

“You look happy.”

“Oh, no.”

“I understand,” I said with a grin. Suddenly, a police officer also ran past us.

“I bet the police are happy too.”

Lucky bastard.

“Let’s start!”

Jia and I began to hand out leaflets, saying things like ‘Please come see us in Myeongdong on Monday’ or ‘Please support us.’ Stuff like that.

“Oh, hi. We’re having a mini-concert tomorrow so please come and watch~” I said to one girl with strong looking thighs. The girl took the leaflet and said to me, “You’re Sian, right?”

“Yes, I am. Thank you for recognizing me,” I said, giving her the most respectful bow I could.

“Of course I recognize you. I saw the video.”

“Oh.”

Of course.

“We should fight.”

“What?”

“I’m Eun-soon Lee. The country’s best fighter.”

“Oh...”

I didn’t know who she was. I racked my brain but nothing came up.

“I guess you don’t know who I am. That kind of hurts,” Eun-soon said, looking truly disappointed.

“I’m sorry. I really don’t know.”

“It’s fine. You’ll hear more about me soon. I plan to officially challenge you.”

“Challenge me in what?” I asked.

“Mixed martial arts! We should have a round!”

“....”

Was this girl crazy?

“I’m an idol.”

“Does it matter? You’re really good. Have you not read the comments? There’s even an article about it. People want to see you and me have a fight.”

“Really?”

It was an invitation. But a fight against someone so young…and a girl at that...It was kind of disappointing.

“Yes! I really wish for us to have a battle!”

“Of course. Wish all you want ~” I responded before hurrying away.

“I guess the rumors must be true,” Jun-jin said, eying Eun-soon.

“What rumors?”

“There was a rumor that the Korean Devils contacted Mr. Park about the possibility of setting up a match with you. I also heard that Jinwoo is strongly considering it, but I don’t know for sure.”

“Huh.”

Jinwoo, that bastard. He wants me to fight against someone younger than me? As a soldier, this was treacherous waters. And with a woman!

“I think a fight between you two would be fun. Eun-soon Lee is the best in the country. No, the entire continent. And she’s only twenty years old on top of that. I hear that she’s going to compete in her first US fight next year in the UCIVA as a representative of Korea. It’s really exciting.”

“Oh, really? Then by all means, be excited.”

“....”

***

After we finished, we headed back to the YH Entertainment building. I wanted to do some workouts and meet with Jinwoo.

“Hey, Sian,” Jia said.

“What?”

“I hear Snake doesn’t come to the gym anymore. Do you want to know why?”

“I mean, I don’t really care.”

It’s true. There’s no reason for me to care whether that Snake guy comes to the gym or not.

“According to the rumors, Snake apparently quit working out altogether.”

“Hmm, I guess,” I said with a nod. I still remember that one time I lifted that barbell in front of Snake. I guess he was really shocked by that.

“But why do you care? Do you like him or something?”

“No. It’s just weird that he quit working out just like that, isn’t it?.”

“You get excited easily.”

Like a puppy who just saw his reflection.

“You can go ahead to the gym. I need to see Jinwoo first.”

“Okay. I’ll start working out first then,” Jia said before heading towards the opposite direction from me. I then made my way to Jinwoo’s office.

***

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

I opened the door.

“Hello.”

“Oh, hi Sian. What brings you here?”

Jinwoo greeted me with a bright smile. Whatever traces of his disdain for me were gone and he was now looking at me as if I were the most precious gem to step into his office. Then again, considering my potential, I’ve done a good job of showing him just how much I was worth. Didn’t he get a lot of offers from other companies asking me to endorse their products? He’s probably as happy as a clam.

“I wanted to see you.”

“Me? Hehe. I’m the company president, Sian. Remember that?”

‘Not that, you perv.’

Somehow, I managed to keep that to myself.

“I wanted to talk to you.”

“Talk to me? About what? Here, take a seat.”

I sat on a chair across from Jinwoo.

“What did you want to talk to me about?”

“Was it Geum-soon? Do you know a person named Geum-soon?”

“You mean Eun-soon.”

“Yes, Eun-soon Lee. Do you know her?”

“I do,” Jinwoo replied with a nod.

“But how do you know her?”

“I ran into her while I was passing out leaflets. She said she wants to have a fight with me.”

“Oh…hehe...”

Jinwoo suddenly became sheepish.

“The truth is, Sian...”

“Yes.”

“There’s an MMA team called the Korean Devils. Not only are they the best team in the country, but also the largest investors in the KJOBBAB competition.”

“So?”

“Eun-soon is a member and she said she wanted to have a match with you.”

“Oh, really?”

“I’m still thinking about it,” Jinwoo said with a shrug.

“Do I get a say in this?”

“Of course I planned to ask you. After I signed the contract. Haha.”

A wide smile came across Jinwoo’s face and he began to laugh. Without thinking, I let out a growl. Jinwoo jumped in surprise at the sound.

“A-are you mad...?”

“Of course not,” I said, putting on a fake smile. It was important for me to calm down. Who knew how many more accidents I might get myself into? I was going to need this man’s help a lot more in the future if that ever happened.

“But, Sian, you should really think about it. Eun-soon Lee is the country’s number one female MMA fighter. Not just in Korea either. She’s considered the best fighter in Asia, and she’s only twenty years old. She’s really popular. They say that just saying her name is enough to scare even the fiercest street dogs.”

“Doubt that.”

I smirked. That sort of person would have to be the best of the best. Was Eun-soon really that person? From what I saw, there was no way. I doubt any street dog would pay attention to her. They’re not easily impressed.

Anyways, Jinwoo continued to speak.

“Think about it. If you and Eun-soon were to fight, it would make headlines.”

“Yeah?”

“And the results won’t matter. Even if you lose, your popularity would skyrocket. And that would bring more attention to the program and the other members in general. And if you were to win? That would just be insane.”

“I’m an idol.”

“Is there a law that says idols can’t do MMA? Everyone already knows you can fight. Like I said, just the fact that you’re having a match with Eun-soon is enough to make the news. She’s also famous in China, which means you can become famous in China. It will be good for you!”

‘At least you’re having fun, you prick.’

I seriously wanted nothing more than to shout out curses at him, but I stopped myself. I didn’t want to get so angry to the point it became physical.

“But do I really have to fight with someone that young? And with a girl?” I asked directly. As a soldier, that was just unacceptable. I did not train myself just to go up against some baby-faced brat.

“You’re a girl too. And you’re only twenty-one.”

“Oh.”

That was a point. I was also a girl, and only twenty-one at that.

“But, Sian, there’s another reason why you should do it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that Eun-soon looks down on you. Didn’t you see the interview?”

“What interview?” I asked. What was he talking about?

“Let me show you. Hang on.”

Jinwoo tapped a few buttons on his phone and pulled up a video. It was a video of an interview that she had done after winning a match a few days ago. I obediently focused my attention to the video.

You truly are remarkable, Eun-soon. Congratulations!

Thank you.

But have you seen the recent news articles?!

Which one?

The one about Sian Lee, the trainee from YH Entertainment!

Oh, yeah. I saw the video of her fighting against those four guys.

Eun-soon said, giving the camera a big smile. She looked pretty confident in herself.

A lot of people are saying they’d like to see a match between you two! What do you think?!

Pfft.

Eun-soon snorted at the suggestion and replied.

Weren’t those guys just drunk? They kept swaying in the video. If it had been me, she wouldn’t have lasted a single minute. I would’ve gotten her immediately. Like this.

Eun-soon gave a series of jabs in the air before continuing.

She looks like a beginner to me. She’s nowhere near my level. It might be better for her to fight with the amateurs.

For a twenty year old, Eun-soon sure had a lot of arrogance oozing out of her.

One more question! If a match was set up between you two, would you go for it?!

I wouldn’t mind. Though I’d worry for that pretty face of hers.

Eun-soon’s smirk became wider as she leaned into the camera, saying,

“Did you get a nose job? Well, after a match with me, you’ll definitely need one. Hahaha!”

The interview soon ended after that. Was she just saying all that stuff to get attention or was that her real personality? Well, either way, if she wanted to make me angry, it worked.

“What do you think? Don’t you want to teach her a lesson?” Jinwoo asked me. There was no doubt about it – he knew exactly how to rile me up.

“Set up a date,” I said, clenching my fists.