Flirting with Life on the Line – 3

Garam: You’re keeping to your diet, right?

I was just about to tear into a chicken drumstick when a text came from Garam.

Was it a sixth sense, or was she watching me from somewhere? Still, it was a relief she didn’t video call.

Inho: Yes, I ate a little while ago and I’m lying down to sleep now.

Garam: Ah, you said you’ve been going to bed early these days.

Inho: Yes.

I put the drumstick in my mouth and bit down, the crispy batter and juicy meat exploding in my mouth.

Ah, this is the taste.

Some might say it’s a taste everyone knows, so there’s no need to bother eating it, but it’s because it’s a familiar taste that I keep seeking it out.

-Ddrrrring

I was just savoring the food that was maximizing my sense of smell and taste when Garam seemed to have more to say.

Why call when she could just text…

I roughly wiped the grease off my hands with a wet wipe and slid the screen.

“Hello?”

Since I was supposedly lying in bed, I answered the phone with a slightly hoarse voice.

“I hope I’m not disturbing you?”

“No. It’s okay.”

So please hurry up and finish.

“It’s awkward to exercise while our center is being remodeled, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But we can’t just stop exercising. How about we meet up and exercise like today?”

“Uh… sure, that’s fine.”

“Let’s start with a fasted jog in the morning. We can run in Han River Park.”

Suddenly, the difficulty of the exercise increased dramatically. It’s hard enough to wake up early, but on an empty stomach?

“Uh….”

“Come on, you haven’t been exercising properly for the past few days.”

She whined, using her nasal voice.

“Yes, yes. Then I’ll go to your house by 8 o’clock.”

Ah, the chicken’s getting cold! Let’s finish this quickly.

The savory smell of oil has been making my mouth water since a while ago.

-Vroom

I could hear the sound of a car over the phone.

“Garam, weren’t you at home?”

“Ah, I had some business to take care of. Because of the remodeling.”

So she was diligently looking into something. I was a little worried because she didn’t seem very interested, but that’s a relief.

“You’re busy.”

“Haha, I guess so. I even had some heavy lifting to do. Anyway, I just finished work and I’m going home now.”

“Okay, go home safely.”

“Yes, see you tomorrow.”

With her polite greeting, the call ended.

The day went by similarly to yesterday.

After picking her up and jogging in Han River Park, we went to a salad shop and had breakfast.

She definitely said we were just going to jog, but she brought a Sandbag and made me do lunges, so my thighs are sore.

I ate Tasteless greens, just like yesterday, and headed to the cafe I’ve been frequenting lately.

She brought the laptop she used at the center, saying she was looking into companies related to the remodeling.

Having nothing to do, I skimmed through the report Ho-cheol had organized and read the magazines in the cafe.

For a while, Hana and I were focused on our own work.

Of course, Garam kept glancing at me while she was working, but it’s a relief that she didn’t stick to my side and rub her body against me.

She was too clingy at the bowling alley yesterday, which was embarrassing.

Still, seeing her change her behavior when I politely expressed my refusal, I think there’s still hope.

Okay, if I draw a clear line like this, she won’t do anything weird.

I felt good about the situation going as planned.

“I’m going to wash my hands for a moment.”

Garam, who had been typing on her laptop for a while, went to the bathroom.

I also got up from my seat for a moment to stretch and relieve the stiff muscles in my neck and shoulders.

I was so focused that I didn’t realize it, but it’s already been two hours since I came to the cafe.

As I stretched my body a little, I heard cracking sounds from various parts of my body. Is this what it means to get old?

It’s hard to move my body even now in my middle age, so I’m already scared of how uncomfortable it will be when I’m possessed by the body of an old man later.

No, why am I even thinking about being possessed?

I can just survive here and die. Come to think of it, I don’t know what happens if I die of natural causes.

Maybe the condition for this damn Dimensional Shift to end is natural death.

“Hmm….”

In the end, to verify the hypothesis, I have to live.

Let’s try to live hard.

“Excuse me… customer.”

I was turning my waist and stretching diligently when a cafe employee spoke to me.

I quickly turned my head, wondering if she was going to cause trouble like yesterday, and saw a small woman who looked to be in her early twenties.

“Yes?”

“Well, this is a new cake we just brought in. The manager told me to give it out to customers and get some feedback.”

The employee was holding a tray, and on it was a piece of chocolate cake that looked very sweet.

“Ah… yes, thank you.”

I looked around and saw the same cake on each table.

I guess cafes do this kind of thing these days.

I thought they were giving me a service because I’m a regular, but I feel a little embarrassed.

I was reaching out to take the tray when suddenly a hand appeared and grabbed the employee’s arm.

“Eek!”

Garam, who had returned, grabbed the employee’s arm tightly.

The tray that had fallen in the commotion crashed to the floor, making a loud noise.