90: Laughing like a goose

Xu Zhiyou felt Kim Ji-soo's murderous gaze and turned her head away from Park Chaeyoung.

She seriously suspected that if there weren't two people between them, Park Chaeyoung would probably have been dismembered by Kim Ji-soo by now, completely lacking in discernment.

Kim Jennie whispered into Xu Zhiyou's ear, "Chaeyoung is so mad at you that her head's spinning. Remember not to let Jisoo kill her, or you'll have to take her place as the main vocalist."

"No, Show Ge is still quite gentle. At most, she'll brainwash Chaeyoung; she wouldn't resort to violence, but she'll definitely annoy her to death."

"Then we won't be in trouble, right?"

"I'll be fine. If she keeps nagging me, I'll just give her a chop to the neck."

Hearing this, her neck ached. "She's the eldest, can't you give her a little face? Always like this, it's not good for internal group unity!"

"I'm the leader, and none of you ever give me face. Now you're talking about unity with me? Have some shame!"

"Uh? I didn't say anything."

It was impossible for Kim Jennie to give her face, not even a little; she had to resist when necessary.

"Look, look, double standards!"

"I didn't hear you, don't talk to me."

Kim Ji-soo saw them whispering and directly pulled Xu Zhiyou up. "Come here, I'll switch places with you. You're suited for isolation."

"Uh!!!"

"Finally, some peace and quiet. From now on, you'll sit on the side during events."

"Tch!" The people on stage weren't performing, so what if she said a few words? Was it really necessary?

Just sitting there listening to the host ramble on was like a high school principal's opening day speech, utterly boring. She definitely wouldn't come to this kind of event once she became famous.

About half an hour later, the Best New Artist award was presented. The winners were BLACKPINK and NCT127. Xu Zhiyou didn't feel excited, only embarrassed.

Even the Best New Artist award had to be split between two. No wonder Lim Yoona said it had no real value. This was typical 'dividing the pork,' and they still had to pretend to be happy. Damn, they were all actors; she still had to learn.

Walking casually down the aisle, Park Chaeyoung somehow managed to hit her calf on the iron frame of the stage speaker when she first went up on stage.

Xu Zhiyou immediately went over to support her, seeing her expression twisted in pain. It looked painful. "Let me help you go down and rest for a bit."

"No, I'm already on stage. How can I go down? It hurts so much, boo hoo~"

"Why are you arguing with me? There's still another performance later. Let's see what's wrong. What if you hurt a bone?"

Park Chaeyoung endured the pain and walked forward. "Whatever, I'm not going down."

"What's going on?"

Kim Ji-soo also sensed something was wrong and turned to see them holding hands, which is how it looked from her angle.

"She hit her leg on the iron frame. I'm supporting her. Which of you is going to give the speech?" It wasn't realistic to go down now. She didn't care, but Park Chaeyoung couldn't.

"Let Jennie go. She doesn't talk much."

On stage, Xu Zhiyou supported Park Chaeyoung. "Are you sure you're okay? Your leg is still trembling."

"It hurts so much!"

"I told you to watch where you're going. Lean on me; I'll support you."

"Oh!"

Kim Jennie was pushed into the spotlight without a prepared speech. With so many seniors in the audience, she was already nervous, and being asked to speak was truly a challenge for her.

"Um, well, thank you AAA... hehe, annyeong..." She glanced at Kim Ji-soo, then continued her magical speech, making the audience below laugh uncontrollably.

"Yoona Eonni, I remember her rapping, right? How does she act so cool when she's like this?"

Bae Suzy was also charmed by Kim Jennie's cuteness; she really wanted to go up and 'rua' her. Bae Suzy might not be the only one thinking this.

Lim Yoona saw Park Chaeyoung hit the speaker's iron frame when she went on stage. It looked painful to her.

Kim Jennie stammered through her speech, and hearing the laughter, she started laughing along.

Xu Zhiyou really wanted to cover her face. This girl was so unreliable, socially anxious to this extent.

Over at TWICE, Hirai Momo found Kim Jennie particularly cute. "Nayeon-onni, Jennie is so cute!"

"She used to be socially anxious. Why did Zoe let her speak? Shouldn't it be her or Ji-soo's job?"

"Rose hit her leg, and Zoe is supporting her, so she can't speak. Jennie-oni looks like she was forced into it."

Kim Dahyun also saw Park Chaeyoung stumble when she went on stage, and then Xu Zhiyou went over and held her hand.

"Then Ji-soo could have supported her. Why make it difficult for Jennie?"

Lim Nayeon felt nervous for Kim Jennie. Making a socially anxious person speak publicly was somewhat difficult.

"Rose is the second tallest in the group, only Zoe can support her so coordinately. And look at the fans' enthusiasm; they can turn an accident into a hot topic. Her mind works really fast."

If Xu Zhiyou knew Kim Dahyun's thought process, she would definitely say, "Sister, you're probably overthinking it; I'm not that smart."

On stage, Xu Zhiyou saw her trembling constantly. "Chaeyoung, when I was a kid, I used to kick wooden frames when practicing martial arts. You, on the other hand, went straight for an iron frame. I'm truly impressed."

"Yah! Are you trying to die? I'm really in pain. Can't you have some sympathy?"

"I'm in pain too! Your nails are almost digging into my flesh. Did you hear me make a sound?"

Park Chaeyoung then realized she had used too much force. "Uh? Next time you kick something, I'll let you pinch me back. For now, let me pinch you."

"You're crazy, aren't you? This kind of thing can be returned."

"Pretty much! How much longer will they be? I really want to rub it; it hurts so much!"

"Just wait. NCT127 is after this. Or, I could block you while you rub it."

"No, I can hide from the camera, but there are so many people in the audience; it's too obvious!"

...

Kim Jennie finally finished her stammering speech. It was indeed fast, taking about forty seconds in total, including the stutters.

The key was that the audience didn't feel it was perfunctory. This was her unique characteristic, and it had to be said that Kim Ji-soo understood her best.

As she finished her speech and was about to retreat to the corner, "Ow, ow, slow down, slow down! I grazed my knee-high boots! It hurts so much!"

Anyone who's been bumped knows what it feels like when the affected area is scraped. Not collapsing on the spot meant her endurance was strong enough.

"Pfft! Giggling like a goose~"

Xu Zhiyou knew she shouldn't laugh, but seeing Park Chaeyoung like this, she couldn't help but let out a giggle, then forced it back, turning it into a goose-like honk.

"Yah! Be a human!"

"Mianhae, it won't happen again, I promise, giggling like a goose~"

Park Chaeyoung directly punched her in the back, which was caught by the camera, showing them holding hands and leaning on each other even when receiving an award.

"Wahahaha, I told you the 'Grudge Couple' is true love! Look, look, even on stage, they're still the 'Grudge Couple.'"

"What are they saying? Chaeyoung looks so angry, and Zoe is laughing so happily."