• Huh? Why didn't Sungjoon text Haeyoung? Gaeun's message came out of nowhere... Did something happen between the two of them?
• They did the dishes together.
• Is that part of the setup? Are they joking? Anyone could tell it was Haeyoung.
• What if it turns out Sungjoon and Haeyoung are just friends? Maybe it wasn't love in his eyes, just the way you look at a friend.
• Who looks at a friend that sweetly?
• Nooo, Sungjoon is ditching Haeyoung!
• I actually like Sungjoon with Gaeun too.
The atmosphere of the show had shifted. There was a scene where Haeyoung looked at Sungjoon with unease, and another where Sungjoon was laughing and chatting cheerfully with the other female cast members.
"Gaeun, want to get some fresh air?"
His words could have easily been drowned out by the noise of the drunken cast members, but the show made sure to highlight his line—with subtitles, no less.
Sungjoon stood side by side with Gaeun on the balcony. He was practically grinning from ear to ear. Brimming with confidence, he boldly flirted with Gaeun.
Up until that point, the reaction to Sungjoon hadn't been all that bad. It was only the first day, after all—so it was understandable that he might be interested in both Haeyoung and Gaeun.
• He even voted for Gaeun. Clearly, he has feelings for her.
• Then what about Haeyoung?
• It's only the first day. Isn't it weirder to lock in on one person so soon?
• No way… It felt real. Ugh, my heart.
• Are the Woo-Yeon couple stans already losing it? Why so dramatic this early?
But the support for him didn't last long. Right after finishing his conversation with Gaeun, Sungjoon headed straight to Jang Taeri's room.
"Why aren't you coming downstairs? Want to get some fresh air together?"
It was almost the same line he used with Gaeun.
Sungjoon was now standing with Taeri in the same spot he had just been with Gaeun. After some intense flirting, even Taeri had walked away.
He turned his phone back on and reread the three messages he'd received earlier. Then, he rubbed his neck and jaw.
"Am I really that good-looking?"
He muttered it under his breath, but viewers heard it loud and clear.
The audience reaction exploded:
• Aaaaaaaaack— relatable emotion overload!
• Is he insane? LOLLL I thought he was just hitting on everyone, but turns out he's just full of himself!
• Who even texted that guy?
• The early spark always burns out fast.
• I thought he had a crush on Haeyoung, but I guess he's not all in after all.
• Texts have a lot of influence. If he got three, he's probably interested in all three girls.
Stupid Jo Sungjoon.
This was exactly the plan—to have Sungjoon receive all three votes on the first day. But no one expected the plan to work this quickly.
Even the producers took the bait and amplified the moment with their edits.
• Oh my, Sungjoon looked so happy getting those three votes!
• He's seriously so pure and cute.
• Honestly, if I got that kind of attention on day one, I'd probably be walking on air too.
The panel tried to paint Sungjoon in a positive light, but the effect was minimal.
• I'm sorry, Sungjoon. I'm giving up on you.
• How can someone that "pure" already be juggling three girls?
• Why is it bad to date around on a dating show? Honestly, going all-in on one person from the start is more boring. People like Sungjoon actually make it more fun.
• The fun is in criticizing him.
• Yep, that part's true.
There was no scene of Minji looking sad or upset about receiving zero votes. Instead, they briefly showed the female contestants hanging out on the second floor, eating snacks and chatting casually.
From that angle, it was clear that Minji was still benefiting from favorable editing.
And it didn't feel disappointing—after all, from the very first episode, it's not like anyone really thought something serious would happen.
Instead, the show revealed that Sungjoon and Minji were just friends.
An hour and a half flew by in an instant.
Then, the preview for the viewer-voted date segment started to play. The live reactions poured in even faster than during the actual broadcast.
• As expected, "Chance Date" is so entertaining.
• Hurry up and give us Episode 2!
• Is Sungjoon really ditching Haeyoung for someone else?
• Feels like it.
• So in the end, Sungjoon flirted with every girl except his girl-friend LOL.
• What's going to happen to my stock—Sungjoon and Haeyoung?
• Guys who flirt with everyone never end up being decent. Sung-jun is not one of them.
• When's Episode 2 coming out?
• Wait, is this the date they're going on based on the votes from a few days ago? Already??
• When do they even have time to edit? It's practically real-time.
• "Chance Date" is infamous for that—the production team basically dies making it.
• This season's even more intense than the last. The cutthroat energy is insane.
• Who did you vote for in the first impression round? I'm lowkey regretting not picking Minji too. Her profile photo was totally misleading. Visual chemistry really is everything.
└ Minji is serving, for real.
*****
Meanwhile, on the evening the first episode aired,wearing a cap pulled low over his face, Sungjoon walked into the bar.
"Hey, it's celebrity Jo Sungjoon!"
"What the hell, man?"
Sungjoon chuckled and gave his friend a light slap on the back before taking an empty seat. He adjusted his cap self-consciously, glancing around.
The production team had told the cast not to draw attention to themselves during breaks from filming—but he had no real intention of following that rule.
In fact, he'd even put on makeup before coming out, hoping that people would post comments saying he looked better in person.
"We were just talking about your show, actually. What were you thinking, man?"
His friends, already a bit drunk, giggled among themselves.
They were referring to the controversial final scene of the first episode—the one where Sungjoon came off as full of himself.
Sungjoon grabbed the drink from the person next to him and downed it in one go.
"I don't know, f**k. It's the editing, okay? That PD's already notorious."
"Yeah, but why you of all people?"
"Because I'm the easiest one to stir up drama with."
"True. You swept all the text votes too. What were they even seeing in you?"
They burst into laughter again. Sungjoon forced a smile but was seething inside, silently cursing them.
Once I blow up, these guys won't even be able to look me in the eye.
"So how are the girls on the show? Are they actually pretty in real life?"
"They're... whatever."
Sungjoon replied casually, like it was no big deal. He didn't want to come off flustered or overly eager.
"Eh, they're just okay. So who are you actually getting close to? You've been flirting all over the place, just like we did at our old hangout."
"Hey, shh."
Sungjoon glanced around. The noise from the bar seemed to cover their conversation, so no one else overheard.
"I'm just feeling things out with everyone. No need to rush. Everyone says they like me anyway."
Of course, in the later footage, the number of texts did start to drop one by one, but that didn't matter. Once filming resumed, it would be easy to regain popularity.
"Ugh, that's annoying. Just focus and lock down at least one person. From what I saw on the show, you're about to get kicked out soon."
"Stop hyping things up."
"I'm serious! You don't get the vibe? The girls are probably watching the show too, do you really think they'd still vote for you after seeing that?"
Sungjoon took a silent swig of his drink. Well, maybe. Eh, it's not like his popularity was going to drop that easily.
"Anyway, if you're not going to go after that last girl, introduce me. She's the best."
"Who? No way, Seo Haeyoung?"
His friends didn't know Haeyoung was Sungjoon's long-time girlfriend.
They had forgotten for a moment. The show definitely made it look like Sungjoon was totally smitten with Haeyoung. No one knew why the editing twisted things that way.
"Ugh, I can't say much, but she's definitely not the one."
"Why? She's pretty."
"Seo Haeyoung?"
"Yeah, I think she's the best too—great figure and all."
He made an exaggerated gesture over his chest to emphasize her shape. Everyone burst out laughing at the cheesy move.
"Hey, hey, Taeri and Minji look better."
"What are you talking about? That guy's eyes are between his legs or what? Anyone can see Seo Haeyoung is top tier."
"He's just salty. Pretending to reject her because he got dumped."
"Are you crazy? Why would she dump me? She can't live without me."
"That's nonsense."
"What do you guys know? Just drink your booze."
Sungjoon downed his soju and frowned. His friends' voices echoed in his ears.
Seo Haeyoung better than Taeri? Even better than Minji?
No way. He had never thought about it like that. Her face wasn't bad — if it were, they wouldn't have dated in the first place.
Still, a no is a no. Seo Haeyoung was kind of tacky, frustrating, annoyingly kind—yeah. In a word, she was the boring, lifelong wife type. The kind of old-fashioned woman you only think of when you're weak and need someone to take care of you later.
Is their taste a bit weird?
Sungjoon called a designated driver and leaned back in the back seat. The smell of alcohol lingered on his breath.
He logged onto an OTT streaming site and started watching Friendship Dating 2. The video began from somewhere in the middle.
On the screen, Haeyoung and Jaeyoung were standing side by side, doing the dishes.
Haeyoung smiled brightly, clearly enjoying herself. Then came Jaeyoung's interview.
"Haeyoung caught my eye the most. She's so pretty when she smiles."
Is that so......?