episode_0042
by fnovelpia#42
‘… Even with your face covered like that, you can still shine.’
While I was still unable to come to my senses at the sight of Yunseol in her white one-piece dress, which I was seeing for the first time, Yunseol spoke in a slightly gloomy voice.
“Does it not suit you? Sister Hwayoung recommended it to me… .”
I was so flustered by Yunseol’s words that I ended up stammering.
“That, that’s impossible.”
… The word ‘date’ that I had thought about earlier keeps floating around in my head.
That can’t be true.
“… Really? That’s fortunate.”
When you hear things like that, you can’t help but misunderstand. Really.
.
After we entered the restaurant, the one who greeted Yunseol and I was a waiter wearing a stylish tuxedo.
“This restaurant operates on a reservation basis. May I ask your name?”
“I made a reservation under the name of Yoonseol. For two people.”
“… Confirmed. I will guide you to your seat. ”
The place the waiter guided us to was a private room.
In dramas, aren’t there places where CEOs of large corporations or celebrities secretly eat?
It’s a space with exactly that kind of feeling.
“… .”
After that, Yoonseol and I sat down at the table and naturally picked up the menu.
‘Let’s see… ten thousand won for water?’
Did they extract it directly from some Antarctic rock?
I was prepared for this when I first entered the store, but the price tag was still dazzling.
If water is ten thousand won, the other menus are… oh my god.
Glance.
I was surprised to see the price lists of other menus, so I absentmindedly looked towards Yunseol.
“… .”
Unlike me, Yunseol’s expression when she came into the room and revealed her bare face was extremely calm.
It seemed like he had been here several times before.
“Over there… .”
I spoke to Yunseol cautiously.
“Yes?”
“I’ll pay my share. I’ll take a little bit of what I get for it… .”
Although Yunseol said she would treat me to lunch in return for dinner…
‘The price range is so different.’
To put it roughly, it’s like giving one ABC chocolate and getting a set of 25 Ferrero Rochers in return.
But Yunseol didn’t seem to like what I said. She shook her head from side to side and spoke to me.
“I told you I would treat you.”
“Still… ”
“Sup.”
… I feel like it’s deja vu. I think Zia was like this before.
As I blankly stared at her, Yunseol coughed in vain, seeming embarrassed.
“Ahem.”
After that, Yunseol continued speaking.
“Then, next time… Boss, please buy it for me.”
“Yes?”
next?
No way…
“Wow, originally friends were supposed to take turns living together… !”
…it wasn’t a date request, was it? Well then, that’s it.
‘Friend, La.’
Why do I feel regret at the word friend?
It’s surprising that Yoon Seol and I became close enough to be called friends in the first place.
After a while,
“Then, I’ll do this.”
I chose the most affordable dish on the menu.
“… You can choose something else.”
“That’s really okay. I usually like risotto… .”
At my answer, Yunseol glared at me as if she was displeased… but there was nothing she could do.
But people have a sense of shame.
A guy who asks his friend to buy him beef just because he bought him a meal is bound to be hated.
.
And then time passed and the food arrived,
“Okay, I’ll eat well.”
Thump thump.
Soon, the sound of forks, knives, and spoons hitting plates echoed faintly throughout the room.
“… .”
The dish I ordered was called risotto with truffle butter, and it was definitely delicious.
It tasted good, but there was another problem.
That’s right,
‘I can’t breathe…’
A slight, no, very uncomfortable silence enveloped the room we were in.
“… .”
In fact, while the menu was coming out, there was no conversation between Yunseol and me.
“Hey, Mr. Yoonseol. Aren’t you doing hero activities today?”
“… This week is vacation. I was recognized for my efforts in taking down a violent gang last week. ”
“Aha… .”
Or,
“I enjoyed the vitamin drink that Yoonseol brought me last time. Thank you.”
“… That’s fortunate.”
… there was a brief conversation like this.
But that’s it.
That didn’t lead to a long conversation.
Originally, a conversation isn’t something that is done unilaterally by just one party.
Since Yunseol’s side did not continue speaking, the flow of conversation was naturally interrupted.
“… .”
It’s my personal feeling, but I have to say that it seemed like Yunseol couldn’t concentrate on the conversation.
Every time I spoke, my lips would move… it was like I wanted to say something.
‘… or maybe it’s just awkward.’
Why, isn’t there? I’m the type of person who doesn’t bring up words in awkward situations.
Rather, Yoon Seol might have felt uncomfortable with me speaking to him.
‘Let’s just eat.’
Just when I was about to turn my gaze back to the food in front of me,
“Excuse me, sir.”
“Huh?”
Yunseol took a deep breath and then opened her mouth.
“… Do you have any hobbies you like?”
‘hmm?’
hobby?
It’s a somewhat odd question. What’s going on all of a sudden?
“… .”
Although I was puzzled by her words that made no sense, I answered whatever came to mind.
“Hobbies? Well, I don’t really have anything I can call a hobby. Just watching TV.”
“I see… .”
Yunseol’s sudden question did not end there.
“Well, then. What do you usually do on your days off?”
“I don’t really have a day off… ”
“Ah… .”
What are your hobbies? Or what do you do on your days off?
…It was like a conversation that a man and a woman on a blind date would have.
What are you thinking all of a sudden, Yunseol?
“What’s your favorite movie?”
She continued to ask me questions, her tone slightly awkward and slightly hesitant.
… Glance, glance. Even while talking, he moved his gaze under the table.
“I don’t really watch them… but if I have to pick, I like hero movies.”
“Me, me too… .”
Just when I thought that her appearance was like reading a script, I noticed something at the end of her gaze.
‘…Notes?’
It seems like food is already out of sight.
Yunseol stops using her fork and knife and looks down at the table.
I’m not sure what it says, but it was definitely a note. That’s it.
“Phew.”
“… Boss?”
Yunseol looked at me blankly for a moment, seeing my laughter that burst out unintentionally.
“Ah.”
… After a while, he noticed my gaze and hurriedly hid the notebook behind him.
I saw it on the internet once.
It is human nature to smile when you see something cute.
“Don’t laugh… .”
How can you not laugh when you see that?
***
Because Yunseol desperately hid the note, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to check its contents… but thanks to that, the awkward atmosphere disappeared as if it had never existed.
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I feel like my inner intimacy has increased a little.
“Mr. Yoonseol. Where did you buy that notebook?”
“… Tell me about the note one more time. I’m going to get really mad.”
“Yes.”
The distance between Yunseol and I, which had felt a bit distant until now, felt like it had narrowed considerably.
After finishing such a pleasant lunch (by me), what greeted us as we left the restaurant was…
Swaaaah-
… it was a heavy rain shower.
“Wow, it’s pouring down a lot.”
It felt a little cloudy before I even entered the store.
Perhaps because it was summer, the cloudy sky was covered with dark clouds for a moment.
“The weather forecast said it was going to rain this morning… By any chance, boss. Did you not bring an umbrella?”
“Yes.”
Actually, I didn’t plan on going out today.
After a sudden lunch appointment, I was so busy getting ready to go out that I didn’t have time to look at the weather forecast.
‘hmm.’
Looking at the raindrops, it looks like it’s going to rain, but I don’t think it’ll stop any time soon.
There’s a store nearby anyway. Should I go there and get rained on?
‘… I think I’d rather do that.’
I have several clear umbrellas at home. It’s a waste of money to buy more.
Anyway, I have an umbrella that I left at the store… so it’ll only rain up to there.
After finishing my thoughts up to that point, I said goodbye to Yunseol, who was hesitating while holding an umbrella for some reason.
“Mr. Yoonseol. I had a good lunch today. I’ll buy it next time.”
“Oh, yes… .”
“Then, take care.”
Just then, as I was about to step out into the rain,
‘uh?’
─Yunseol gently grabbed my collar.
“Okay, just a moment… .”
While I was dumbfounded by Yunseol’s sudden behavior, Yunseol opened her beautiful lips and continued speaking.
“The boss just caught a cold, and if he gets rained on, he might get sick again… ”
… A situation that somehow feels like deja vu.
The way Yunseol was talking nonsense overlaps with the way he had asked for my phone number before.
“… .”
Yunseol, who had been talking quickly while I was dumbfounded, finally said,
“Also, my umbrella is a folding umbrella… but it’s bigger than I thought, so… ”
He spoke softly, with his head bowed.
“… Let’s share an umbrella. I’ll take you home.”
***
Meanwhile, inside a high school in Seoul.
In a classroom where the excitement from the vacation had not subsided, there was a class that strangely had a higher ratio of males.
“Hey, Jiho. Who’s that girl sitting by the window?”
The gender ratio in this classroom, which was originally co-ed, is 5:5.
But the reason why this class was so full of boys was because the boys from other classes flocked to see one girl.
“Don’t you know her? She’s famous. Lee Ji-ah. She got confessed to three times a day.”
“You’re crazy… .”
“She doesn’t go to school often, so when she does, she’s like this. But what, does it seem like she got prettier after the vacation?”
A female student looking out the window, oblivious to the male students’ chattering.
“Sigh.”
Every time the female student let out a worried sigh, the male students’ exclamations erupted here and there.
Either way,
The school girl staring out the window where it was still raining─Jia thought.
‘I miss you, sir.’
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