episode_0047

After finishing their healing walk in the park with Isea, they arrived at the movie theater.

As expected, the city and the inside of the theater were bustling with people.

Even someone like me is out here having fun, but I wonder how the insiders are enjoying themselves.

Luckily, Isea had pre-booked the movie tickets back at the park.

It would have been a shame to come all this way through the crowd and not be able to watch the movie and have to go back.

Isea is meticulous in this aspect.

We stood in line at the familiar snack corner.

“Jina.”

“Hmm?”

Isea looked at me with sparkling eyes.

“Should we order a couple set?”

“…Sure. It’s cheaper that way…”

For some reason, recent memories started to come to mind.

The day I went to the movies with Soyun, and the day I went with Sung Yurin.

Today, Isea is by my side.

Huh? Looking at it this way, it seems like I’m having a pretty good school life.

Compared to my past life, it’s like night and day.

In my past life, the most fun I had was going to the PC room a few times with the guys.

There are also good things about hanging out with the protagonist of a romantic comedy.

Let’s be nicer to Yoon Jiwoo. He seems to be feeling down lately, maybe because of his exam scores.

While agreeing with Isea’s teasing remarks, I couldn’t help but feel grateful for Yoon Jiwoo.

It was our turn.

“Please give us the couple set. Caramel flavor… and for the drink, I’ll have cola.”

“Yes. Let me help you with the payment.”

I reached out my card over Isea’s shoulder.

Isea also tried to pay with her card, but the staff discreetly took my card.

It was the smiling winking lady staff member.

“You bought the movie tickets. I’ll pay for this.”

What’s with this back and forth about who pays. This kind of annoying thing happens every time.

But there’s something I can’t just back down from… something like that.

After completing the payment, we received the popcorn and cola and sat on the chairs in the lobby to wait.

“When does it start?”

“Uh, we still have some time. It starts in 40 minutes. I booked the earliest one.”

“That makes sense. We came without a plan, so it’s a miracle that there are seats available.”

Just looking around, it’s full of people.

I casually popped a popcorn into my mouth.

Caramel popcorn is still my favorite.

No matter how much I eat, popcorn flavored with salt or butter just doesn’t taste good.

“Oh, by the way. It’s Sooyoon’s birthday tomorrow. Did you prepare a gift?”

Isea asked while sipping her cola.

A birthday gift.

Of course, I prepared one.

“Yeah. I just bought her a dress that I think suits her. How about you?”

“Oh? You bought a dress? I bought one too.”

“Really?”

I became curious when Isea said she also bought a dress.

“What kind of dress is it? Show me.”

“Um~ Let me see….”

Isea opened her phone and found the dress, then looked at me.

“Jin, show me yours too.”

“Uh… I just bought this kind of dress.”

I showed Isea my purchase history from an online shopping mall.

The outfit I chose was a casual shirt and pants that I thought would look good on a petite girl like Soyun.

I don’t know how much time I spent searching for this. Shopping malls, lookbooks… next time, I’ll give a gift that’s not clothes.

“Wow. It’s cute. It’ll suit Sooyoon well. Jin, you always wear black clothes, but surprisingly, you have a sense of fashion, don’t you?”

“Well… I wear black clothes because they’re comfortable. And I just chose one of the best-selling items.”

I urged Isea to show me hers as well.

Isea turned her phone around and showed me the dress she was going to gift.

“Oh. Hmm….”

Surprisingly, it was Ise-ah who presented a feminine look as a gift.

“Soyoon doesn’t usually wear clothes like this. You should buy her something like this. It would look really cute on her, don’t you think?”

Maybe.

Soyoon is a really pretty girl, so if she dresses up in such clothes and decorates herself, she might emit a different charm than her usual appearance.

Come to think of it, even at Ise-ah’s birthday last time, the dress suited her quite well.

Showing me the clothes on her phone, Ise-ah whispered to me in a subtle tone.

“Right. Like you did for me…. Will you do the same for Soyoon?”

“What? …Oh, that’s what you mean.”

I was momentarily puzzled, but soon I realized what Ise-ah was talking about.

“You mean the drawing? Hmm…. Should we keep it a secret?”

Even though it’s a secret, the truth will be revealed by tomorrow, but still.

Of course, I had already drawn the picture, but it was slightly different from Ise-ah’s.

“What’s that?”

Ise-ah, hearing my words, glanced at me.

“Let’s go inside and wait. There’s not much time left.”

Seeing me trying to change the subject, Ise-ah stood up as if she couldn’t stand it.

“Okay. Let’s go.”

* * *

Ise-ah entered the theater with Seo Jin.

The seat that left a strong impression on her was right in front of her.

When she saw this seat empty at the park while booking movie tickets, she was captivated and booked this seat.

Ise-ah looked to her side.

Seo Jin was there.

A few days ago…. Yoon Jiwoo was sitting in that seat.

Now, Jin is sitting there.

Did you notice?

What does this seat where you and I sat together mean to our relationship?

No, he probably didn’t catch on. He’s indifferent to such things.

Meanwhile, Seo Jin looked at the ticket given by Ise-ah, and then realized what movie they were watching, making a perplexed expression.

Seeing that, Ise-ah nudged Seo Jin.

“How about we eat the popcorn we bought as a couple set and watch a romance movie together?”

“……….”

Seo Jin didn’t respond.

However, Ise-ah slightly blushed and chuckled as she looked at Jin’s cheeks.

Yes. It’s not too bad.

She finally discovered a glimmer of possibility. And she also seemed to have some idea of how to handle this man.

…But maybe, let’s stop here for today.

I’d like to do more, but….

I have other plans with other kids, and there are still relationships to sort out.

* * *

Have you ever felt the sensation of stepping out of a movie theater into the bright sunlight? It’s like experiencing a time difference….

When you’re inside the theater, it feels like it’s nighttime right now. But when you step outside, it’s daytime.

That’s when your mood gets a little weird.

That’s how I feel right now.

“Wow, time is running out.”

Ise-ah was energetically stretching her body.

I also stretched my stiff neck.

After checking the time, I asked Ise-ah.

“What should we do? Should we go home?”

“Huh? You don’t want to play more with me?”

Ise-ah had a shocked expression on her face.

I quickly denied her statement.

“No, it’s not that….”

“Then let’s just have dinner together before you go. Okay?”

“Sure.”

As I agreed, Ise-ah hummed a tune.

“Hmm~ Alright, alright…. How about having Japanese food for dinner, which Jin likes? I heard there’s a good ramen restaurant that Jin frequents.”

Hmm. Did she hear that from Sooyoon or Yurin?

That place is pretty good.

“Okay. Let’s go there if you’re okay with it. It’s fine with me. If we go there late, there’s usually a waiting line. It’s actually a good time right now.”

The time that was left until dinner time turned out to be a stroke of luck.

By the way, this will be the fourth time I’m taking a girl to this ramen restaurant….

I hope the owner doesn’t recognize me, right?

A few days have passed, you might have recognized me four times.

But still… I hope it’s not true.

Although we’re not that close, it must seem quite strange to others.

Anyway, the conclusion after taking Isea to the ramen restaurant was, as expected, very satisfying.

Unlike me who ordered a set from the beginning, Isea only ordered ramen and ended up boldly ordering rice as well.

After finishing it all, she pretended to be innocent and shy, but it was already too late.

…Well. Anyway, it’s definitely a taste that women like, right?

“So. How many people have you dated?”

After leaving the ramen restaurant, Isea poked my side and asked.

“…What do you mean?”

I knew exactly what she was talking about, but pretended not to know.

I had a feeling that it was something she shouldn’t tell me.

“Hmm. Somehow I feel like there’s more than three….”

Avoiding Isea’s subtle gaze and muttering, I urged us to head home.

Isea seemed to want to hang out with me a little longer, but since it was Soyun’s birthday tomorrow and we would meet again, I comforted her and decided to go home for today.

Moreover, we planned to go to the amusement park tomorrow, so I persuaded her to go to bed early to avoid being too tired.

Watching Isea’s back as she entered the house, I also headed home.

Although I was a bit tired, it seemed like I had a fulfilling day.

* * *

As I arrived home, the surroundings darkened.

The empty house was also dark and cold.

I turned on the lights, had a glass of water, and sat down on a chair.

Then I reflected on what happened today.

What was today’s Isea like? A bit different from usual… No, she’s always been the type to play around, but today the direction of her jokes seemed a bit different.

It almost stimulated my dormant love cells to wake up.

Lost in thought, I shook my head and grabbed the vacuum cleaner.

Oh, come on.

In the quiet evening, the sound of the vacuum cleaner filled the house.