Chapter 17: Just Grow Up Healthy Part 2

“The distance is only a 20-minute walk, but with 40 minutes to kill, I intentionally stopped by a café near Dora’s house.”

Since I’d be thirsty after cleaning, I thought I’d buy something to drink as well.

There was plenty to do in 40 minutes.

Being outside of work meant I could watch original content cuts freely without anyone watching over me.

After spending a challenging 40 minutes suppressing laughter in the corner of the café to preserve my dignity as a working adult, I picked up a peppermint tea for Dora—her favorite—and headed to her studio apartment.

Me: I’m here!

But when I arrived, there was no response.

I pressed my ear against the door just in case and heard loud crashing sounds coming from inside, like plastic objects falling and rolling around.

Why did it sound like she was wrecking the house instead of cleaning? Hopefully, she didn’t touch the soundproof booth.

Ding-dong.

I rang the doorbell, but Dora still didn’t respond.

This time, I knocked hard on the door.

Knock, knock, knock, knock.

But as soft as my fists are, the knocking sound was equally cute.

Still, it was loud enough not to be drowned out by the noise inside, yet there was no reaction.

Was she wearing headphones?

Recently, she posted on Z that she’d bought great headphones, saying connecting them to the sound card was like stepping into a whole new world.

Ever since she became cuter, I’ve encountered countless new situations, but this one made me a bit flustered—it concerned my livelihood, after all.

“As long as she didn’t mess with the computer, it’s fine.”

I was fairly certain she hadn’t touched the area around the computer.

Even though a certain conversation we’d had a few days ago on Talkcode came to mind…

Dora: Instead of worrying, I’ll just pretend my equipment broke.

Dora: Let’s meet at my place, hehehe.

Parallel Operations Team Majia: Please keep such talk out of rooms where I’m not present.

Dora: Boohoo.

It should be fine.

Dora has moments of inexplicable genius, but would she really create such a bothersome situation just to call me over?

‘Maybe I should wait about 10 minutes.’

She might apologize to the viewers for being late and promise to accept a penalty, but her tardiness usually doesn’t exceed 5 to 10 minutes.

I could watch two more short clips in the meantime.

Although it was cold outside, the residential elevator room was indoors since it was a studio apartment complex.

Using my coat as a makeshift mat, I plopped down at the end of the corridor next to her door.

The floor was a bit chilly, but the robust HVAC system kept the hallway warm.

After watching two videos, the racket inside finally subsided, as if the cleaning frenzy had ended.

And, as if on cue, a call came through.

I slid my phone to answer it while knocking on the door.

“I’m at the door.”

“Oh no, I’m sorry! I was listening to loud music with my headphones and didn’t realize.”

“No problem. Open the door.”

Dusting off my coat as I stood up, I waited.

Beep-beep-beep.

The door lock released, and the door swung open.

Inside stood Dora, looking disheveled but thankfully wearing dolphin shorts.

The first time I visited, she’d dashed out in her underwear, which startled me beyond belief.

“Sorry I was late seeing the message. Did you wait long?”

After checking the door was locked again, I murmured expressionlessly.

“Not really. I’m just glad you’re not in your underwear this time.”

“Hey, I told you to forget about that! And I wasn’t in underwear—it was a no-pants look!”

“Either way, you weren’t wearing pants.”

“Ugh.”

Really.

The shirt she had on that time wasn’t even long enough to cover much.

If someone else had seen her like that before me… I didn’t even want to think about it.

Looking around the room, I noticed it was noticeably tidier than my last visit, except for one suspicious moving box sitting in the middle of the living room.

‘…Did she run out of time cleaning?’

Judging by the vibe, it seemed like she gave up midway and hastily shoved everything into that box. Better to ignore it.

Opening it and finding a black melon cover or lace-trimmed triangular cloth would be too much for me to handle.

Passing by Dora, who was grinning awkwardly, I headed toward her computer.

Her studio apartment was divided by a middle door, separating the living room and the bedroom, which she had completely converted into a soundproof booth.

So beyond that door lay her streaming space.

Gulp.

I opened the door, wondering how chaotic it might be—or hoping it was at least somewhat organized—but…

Plastic water bottles and Zero Cola bottles rolled around the computer area.

Towels piled high on one side, as if she’d dried her hair after showering while streaming.

Hair ties, probably needed for her streaming equipment, were scattered every 30 cm or so, in various colors.

It was a completely unorganized mess.

“…Phew.”

I couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief.

It was the first time seeing such a disaster actually calmed me.

Turning toward Dora, who stood behind me, I gave her a thumbs-up.

“Thanks.”

Dora shrugged proudly.

“You don’t have to thank me so much. Hehe. If there’s stuff to clean up, hand it to me. I’ll take care of it!”

Looks like she took it as praise.

It took about 30 minutes to restore the computer area to its original state.

I handed things over to Dora, who acted like a tiny robot, scurrying to place trash in the recycling bags and tossing ambiguous items into that big box.

Sure enough, the box was strategically placed where the door would block it.

She kept heading there, so it was pretty clear.

After cleaning off all the dust from the equipment without causing a storm, we were finally done.

Looking at the clean computer area, Dora clapped gleefully.

“It’s so clean now! You’re the best, Jiya!”

“If only you had some equipment knowledge, you could’ve done this alone.”

“Hey! No need to state facts. I know that, but I can’t do it, okay?”

“Dinner?”

“We need to eat.”

“The boss gave me the company card and said to treat you to something nice. So, tell me what you want.”

“Wow, steak! Two steaks okay?”

Her love for meat was befitting of her dragon-themed YouTuber persona.

If you asked her the most steaks she could eat, Dora would confidently start at two.

When the boss celebrated their debut with a buffet trip, she’d reserved steak four times.

“Only if you eat everything. Also, no burping on stream.”

“Ah! Seriously!”

As Dora huffed and shook her body, her oversized T-shirt swayed, revealing her… well, let’s just say it was noticeable.

Not that it mattered to me.

When I first met the first-gen members at auditions, I admired their charm, talent, and creativity.

But after working with them for a year, they were now just noisy family—each a blockhead, an oddball, or a loudspeaker.

Dora could flaunt her twins the size of her streaming panels all she wanted, but I felt nothing.

With a smirk, I opened the delivery app.

“Do you want cola?”

“No, I don’t drink it.”

“Well, I’m having some.”

Dora hesitated before suddenly leaning her hands and chin on my shoulder and whispering in my ear.

“Just one Quincy Zero Lemon….”

Despite having the most mature figure among the members, Dora always smelled fresh and soft.

I turned slightly to glance at her, and she giggled innocently as if to ask why.

Was this really the same girl who used to flinch and back away whenever I stared at her?”

“Just from seeing how they’re constantly clamoring to grab a meal with me in Talkcode, it was clear their attitude toward me had changed compared to before.

Although Dora was a bit standoffish when she first opened the door, that was probably just her apologizing for being late to our appointment.

Now, she’s suddenly charging forward like this.

This must be the vibe with other first-gen members too.

I’d better not be too surprised if the others start treating me like a close friend in the future.

“I added cola.”

“Thank you… hehe.”

Anyway, since I’d ordered for Dora, I figured I should order something for myself.

Returning to the main screen of the delivery app, I searched for pizza.

As I did, Dora, peering over my shoulder at my phone, asked, “Huh? You’re not having steak with me?”

“I’m craving pizza today.”

The idea was to have separate meals, but Dora opened her mouth slightly and muttered, “Hearing you say that makes me want pizza now.”

“What about the steak?”

“Sorry, can you cancel it?”

Cancel it now?

“You don’t have to. Can’t we just order both?”

“Ugh, I’m not a pig or anything. I can’t eat that much.”

“I’m eating too, you know.”

Hearing this, Dora tapped the top of my head lightly with her palm.

“What’s the point? You’ll eat one slice of pizza and say you’re full.”

Then, she even grinned mischievously.

It seemed she was retaliating against me calling her a klutz by suggesting I eat like a bird.

She wasn’t wrong.

Ever since my body had shrunk, my meal portions had halved compared to before.

Still, trying to challenge me to a verbal sparring match was a silly move.

I wasn’t bothered by being called small or childish in the first place.

“I should ask your YouTube editor to make a highlight reel of your klutzy moments.”

“Hey…!”

Despite being much taller than me, her puffed-up cheeks looked cute.

Her reactions were so amusing that I couldn’t help but tease her.

It’s the same with the boss—when people treat me comfortably, my mischievous side tends to come out.

But I’m their manager, and I’m working right now, so I need to pull it together.

“Just kidding. So, what kind of pizza do you want? Pizza or steak, if there’s leftovers, we can just take them home, so I’ll order both.”

The puffed cheeks threatening to burst deflated immediately.

“I’ll just eat whatever you want. I already picked my steak, hehe.”

She’s going to regret this.

Without hesitation, I placed the order and showed her the pizza I’d chosen.

Immediately, Dora’s face twisted as she stepped away from me.

“Now I suddenly don’t want pizza anymore…”

Hearing that made me irrationally annoyed.

What’s so bad about pineapple pizza?

Dora (YouTuber) Gallery

What’s going on? Is there a collab today?

Seen on Z:

Akari Dora @Akari_Dora – 1 min ago

(Photo)

How can anyone eat something like pineapple pizza?

Dora usually doesn’t post her meal pics unless it’s for a collab.

(Comments:)

Dora185: Did she call Komari?

Dora: Komari’s out today playing ranked, so she’s not coming.

Dora351: And Komari hates Hawaiian.

Dora874: There’s probably no one else to call today.

Dora716 (OP): That’s why I asked.

Dora716 (OP): Even the boss is streaming today.

Dora (YouTuber) Gallery

“I’ve figured it out.”

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

No way, did she actually have a taste for pineapple pizza?! HAHAHA

(Comments:)

Dora185: What? Spill it.

Dora157: This guy is laughing.

Dora951: You too?

Dora363 (OP): You too?

Dora910: Reporting you for favoritism.

Dora1: Hey, you too?

Dora01: Even the mod?

Dora240: And the admin?

Dora932: Are they clueless? …

Dora910: ???????