My Favorite Has Started A Live Broadcast!

“……..”

A small amount of sunlight seeped into the room through a tiny gap in the curtains.

It was still early morning, so it wasn’t very bright, just enough to faintly make out my surroundings.

The train reservation for our trip to Busan was around 11 o’clock.

If I calculated the time it would take to get to the station, I’d need to get up and start preparing now to leave comfortably.

“Haaaahm…”

I wasn’t sure how late I had stayed awake last night, but judging by the yawn escaping me, it must’ve been pretty late.

I wiped away the tears forming at the corners of my eyes, pulled the blanket that had slipped down back up, and stepped out of the room.

For the past few hours, I had packed everything necessary for our two-day, one-night trip into a large suitcase.

The usually quiet house was bustling for a change, and my sister helped me pack a few small items into the suitcase.

I leaned over the dining table to explain the location of Strawberry’s food, toys, and treats to Eun-ah unnie, who was half-asleep with her head resting there.

I knew that Eun-ah unnie and Strawberry didn’t get along very well, but there was no one else I could entrust Strawberry to.

“Use this chance to get along. You can’t keep being like this forever.”

“Aaah… such a hassle… You’ll be back tomorrow anyway, can’t I just stay at your place instead?”

“Don’t be like that… You always argue with Strawberry every time you see her.”

“Haaah… fine. But after you film that video, send it to me. It’s expensive.”

“Okay~”

Min-young seemed quite excited.

She was wearing a straw hat, which gave off a distinctly vacation vibe, instead of her usual hat.

Her usual dark clothes had been swapped out for bright and colorful ones, which suited her well.

Chocoa, on the other hand, looked as usual.

She wore her typical black clothes, her usual expression, and her hairstyle.

But today, there was a subtle difference—her lips curved slightly higher than usual, her neatly pinned hair, and her necklace, which looked as beautiful as ever.

“……”

I, too, felt a little giddy, perhaps because this was my first trip in a long while.

I started getting ready to leave the house with a bit of excitement.

I checked the gas valve, moved any potentially dangerous or sharp objects to places Strawberry couldn’t reach, like the cabinets or higher shelves, and turned off all the lights in the house.

I reminded Eun-ah unnie once more to take care of Strawberry and checked the time.

“Let’s go.”

After finishing all the checks, I addressed Min-young, who was taking mock poses with the camera, seemingly testing it out.

Chocoa, who had been petting Strawberry on the bed, also got up, and the feeling of being fully prepared set in.

“Meow?”

“Strawberry, I’ll be back tomorrow evening.”

I placed Strawberry on the cat tower, petted her head once, and left the house.

“The weather’s really nice.”

On the way to the train station in a taxi, Chocoa commented softly.

I opened the window slightly, and the cool breeze mixed with the warm sunlight came in.

“…Having the window open like this reminds me of riding a tractor back then…”

Although it didn’t have the same vibrations and noise as back then, it still gave off a similar vibe.

I leaned against the open window like a dog, feeling the car’s vibrations.

“Uuugh…”

“You’re getting car sick, and yet…”

“Blergh… Ughhh…”

With about 30 minutes left before the train departure, I spent 20 of them in the bathroom.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes… I think… I’m ready now…”

With my sister helping me, I waited for the train, feeling my stomach finally settle.

“…Wow… This place is huge…”

The only train I had ever been on was the Mugunghwa train, boarded from a small and shabby temporary station.

Back then, I couldn’t keep my balance on the train, so I ended up rolling around everywhere.

Thankfully—or perhaps unluckily—there were hardly any passengers heading to the countryside where I lived, mostly elderly grandmas and grandpas with white hair.

With their help and rural kindness, I barely managed to get off the train.

But Seoul was truly different.

It was so massive that it couldn’t all fit into my field of vision.

There were opposite sides that looked to be dozens of meters apart, ceilings that seemed endlessly high, and a spacious interior.

The station even had convenience stores and various facilities where you could grab a simple meal.

-In a moment, the KTX bound for Busan will arrive. Passengers using the KTX, please proceed to Gate 3.-

Although we had already moved inside the gate, I kept glancing back and forth between the numbers on the massive pillars and the seat number I had reserved as I adjusted my position.

“Whoa… Unnie! Look at that.”

Min-young pointed somewhere while shoving the camera lens toward me. Her finger was directed at the train approaching from a distance.

“Wow… If we had something like that back in the old neighborhood, would we have even needed to move?”

“If we did, the area would’ve at least been promoted to a town.”

“Probably, huh…”

Watching the train rapidly pull into the station, I felt a flutter of excitement.

It hit me that I was actually going to board something like this, travel with my sister and Chocoa, and experience something new. These thoughts all seemed to etch themselves into the sound of the train screeching to a halt.

“Hey… want to go on a family trip after you graduate?”

“….I’d love to!”

“Alright, I’ll hold the luggage. Let’s get on.”

Now that my motion sickness had subsided, there was no reason for me not to help.

I boarded the train, hoisted Chocoa’s suitcase into the overhead luggage rack, and took my seat.

The camera Min-young kept pointing at me felt burdensome, but I decided to let it slide since she was in such high spirits.

“Wow… this is my first time on a KTX. The seats can even spin around.”

Chocoa rotated her seat to face me and my sister.

“It’s over two hours to get there, so if you’re sleepy, take a nap. Let me know if anyone’s hungry.”

In the bag I had packed earlier, I had some kimbap and sandwiches I made in the morning, as well as some snacks Chocoa had given me.

“Whoaaah…”

Hoping anyone hungry would help themselves, I unfolded the small table, set the bag on top, and leaned back in my seat.

The smooth ride of the train, far steadier than a car, allowed me to relax as I watched the swiftly changing scenery outside the window.

***
Lee Min-young POV

“……..”

Chocoa, wearing earphones and seemingly listening to music, momentarily put down the camera. I handed her some of Unnie’s homemade food from the bag.

“Hm? Thanks, I’ll eat it too.”

“Sure.”

Unnie, who appeared to have fallen asleep, lay motionless, her breathing steady.

With every inhale and exhale, her chest rose and fell rhythmically. The temptation to poke her as a joke was strong, but I held back, focusing on my sandwich instead.

“Mm.”

As expected, the sandwich was delicious, and the kimbap stayed true to the basics while catering to my tastes.

“Ugh.”

Just as I had predicted, unnie’s small bag contained necessities like a water bottle and tissues.

Using them to clean my hands, I resumed filming.

Occasionally, I captured Chocoa nibbling on jelly, and I made sure to record the fast-moving scenery outside the window, but none of it compared to the footage I had of unnie—it was easily double the amount.

I spent the remaining time testing the camera’s features on unnie.

***
Eun-ah POV

“Hey… hey!”

Although I had initially planned to head back home and take a nap, the thought of being home alone unsettled me.

It seemed like the cat didn’t enjoy being left behind by its owner either, crying out and dashing around.

“Meowww!!”

“What’s wrong? Did you stop now?”

After wandering the house and realizing it was just the two of us, Strawberry stopped crying and stood in front of me, her fur bristling.

If it were an ordinary stray cat, I might have just scared it off, but I couldn’t do that to her.

We’d be living together for a long time, so I didn’t understand why she was still so wary of me.

“Sigh… Like they said, we can’t keep fighting forever…”

“Shhh…”

Even now, Strawberry hissed at me with her fur on end. I couldn’t help but question if it was even possible for us to get along.

“Why do you hate me so much?”

“…”

“Sigh… What am I doing, trying to talk to a cat?”

I didn’t like how I kept trying to engage her when she clearly didn’t want to interact.

At the same time, I didn’t like how she acted so carefree, unaware that I was the one covering for her and letting her live comfortably in this house.

“This is why I don’t like animals… They’re just like people. Always doing whatever they want…”

As I stood abruptly to leave, Strawberry flinched in surprise and hissed even louder.

“…Sorry.”

I already knew from Su-yeon what she didn’t like, so why was I still pushing it?

Even though she was right in front of me, looking more pitiful than I was, I still found myself annoyed.

If I glared, she grew more wary, and if I acted even slightly aggressive, she backed away, trembling.

“Sigh…”

How did Su-yeon manage to get through to this cautious little creature?

I softened my expression as much as I could.

I crouched down to minimize the height difference between us, meeting her blue eyes.

“…Hello.”

“Shhh….”

The wary cat hesitated for a moment, her hissing subsiding.

Then, as if inspecting me, she circled me with light, deliberate steps.

Passing by her food bowl, the chair, and the dining table leg, she finally completed a full circle and sat down a bit closer than before.

“…..”

Watching her silently, I noticed her lowering her head slightly, and closing her blue eyes.

“Oh…”

The soft sensation of her fur against my fingertips disappeared too soon, leaving me sighing in disappointment.

“…Churu…”