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Join the ServerJung Seunghee’s hand grazed his hat. Startled, Eunhae flinched, wondering if he intended to remove it.
Yet, he merely brushed the brim before lowering his hand.
“Perhaps we should meet on a cloudy day next time. Your adorable face is hard to see, Noona.”
“But, but… UV rays are just as strong even on a cloudy day.”
“Is it really the UV rays?”
“…I suppose you could say that.”
“Then we should meet at night.”
“At night… at night… M-my dad is strict, so I can’t. I have a curfew.”
She had no such thing. Eunhae’s father would have thrown his hands up in delight if she told him she was staying up all night with friends.
“A curfew? What time do you have to be home?”
“W-well… twelve o’clock?”
“…Midnight?”
“In other words, midnight… right.”
Having blurted out whatever came to mind, the conversation was quickly becoming convoluted. It felt as though continuing to speak would only make things more awkward.
“I’m, I’m hungry. Let’s go eat.”
“Sounds good. Is there anything you’d like?”
There were many things she craved. There was a limit to what she could order for delivery or cook at home.
“Samgyeopsal! I also want steak… And I love kalguksu and janchi-guksu. Oh, and also, I want instant tteokbokki…”
“That’s quite a lot.”
“…Right? I gave you plenty of options, haha… Pick one from these.”
“Samgyeopsal might make your clothes smell, so it’s not ideal for today. How about steak?”
“Perfect!”
“You’re really cute, Noona.”
He called her cute again.
“I don’t like being called cute.”
“I call you cute because you *are* cute.”
“I want to be pretty and handsome too.”
Eunhae gazed at Jung Seunghee with a pout.
He was dressed in a manner not significantly different from his usual style. While he typically favored a preppy look, often sporting a baseball jacket instead of a blazer or cardigan, today he wore a classic, thin cardigan.
He looked annoyingly dashing.
“It must be nice to be handsome.”
“Of course it is. You like me because I’m handsome, don’t you, Noona?”
“No, I don’t.”
Eunhae’s resolute reply caused Jung Seunghee’s relaxed expression to falter slightly. Her serious demeanor suggested she wasn’t joking.
“…Let’s go eat first. There’s a good steakhouse nearby.”
“Okay.”
The steakhouse Jung Seunghee led her to looked expensive, judging by its ambiance alone. As she followed the host inside, Eunhae felt a pang of unease.
‘Will the prices here be okay? No matter what, I’m the senior, so being treated feels a bit…’
Sure enough, the prices on the menu were anything but ordinary.
‘Still, I have my pride as a senior. I can’t just walk out because it’s expensive, can I?’
“Feel free to choose. Just avoid the lunch menu, as it’s not available on weekends.”
Eunhae timidly selected a 6-ounce steak.
“We’ll start with a house salad, and for the main course…”
Unaware of her internal struggle, Jung Seunghee ordered five items, including a starter and several sides.
“Noona, would you like anything to drink? Their ade is made from fresh fruit juice, so it’s quite good.”
“Oh, oh, then just a strawberry ade…”
“One strawberry ade for her, please, and sparkling water with ice for me.”
The server confirmed the order and departed.
Eunhae, her face troubled, finally managed to tear her eyes away from the menu.
One advantage of this expensive restaurant was the generous spacing between tables. This allowed her to comfortably remove her hat.
As she tidied her disheveled hair, Jung Seunghee spoke.
“You really eat so little, Noona.”
The cheapest option she had chosen was a mere 6 ounces.
“How much is 6 ounces?”
“About 170 grams?”
“When are they going to get rid of the imperial system? It’s an arrogant unit that goes against the times.”
“I agree with you. While I can generally grasp lengths and weights, Fahrenheit temperatures still confuse me. Anyway, it’s less than 200 grams; will that really be enough for you?”
“I think you’re more impressive. 12 ounces is 340 grams? All of that… it probably will fit.”
Eunhae assessed Jung Seunghee’s build across the table and nodded.
He was well over 180cm tall and said he exercised a lot, so it made sense that he would eat a lot of meat.
“Your family’s food expenses must be high.”
“My Engel coefficient is a bit on the higher side, yes.”
Just then, the server brought the drinks along with the receipt. Jung Seunghee took the receipt before Eunhae could check it.
“Were you looking so serious because you planned to treat me?”
“Oh? Yes… I’m your senior, after all.”
“We’re dating, even before the senior-junior dynamic.”
“…Oh, right!”
“A boyfriend has his pride, you know.”
“Thank you for upholding your pride. I hope you’ll continue to do so often.”
Eunhae expressed her sincere gratitude. Jung Seunghee merely chuckled, apparently taking it as a joke.
“Are you working a part-time job?”
“Pardon?”
“No, honestly, this place is a bit expensive for my allowance, so…”
“Ah. A part-time job… Well, it’s something similar.”
“Similar?”
“Because it’s the same in the sense of investing free time to earn money.”
His words didn’t immediately make sense. Eunhae tilted her head but didn’t press further.
It felt impolite to pry, given they weren’t that close.
“The strawberry ade is delicious.”
“Can I have a sip?”
“Sure.”
Eunhae unthinkingly handed over the large cup.
Jung Seunghee’s lips touched the straw she had just been using. His well-formed lips pursed into a circle.
Their gazes met, his dark brown eyes locked with hers. He stared intently at Eunhae, intensifying the suction on the straw with his lips.
She felt her own lips grow dry. A strange sensation tightened in the pit of her stomach.
“It’s good.”
“Uh, yeah. It is good. You, you should’ve ordered this too.”
“It’s too sweet for me.”
“You don’t like sweet things? I really love sweet things. I can’t drink plain Americano.”
She wanted to shake off the strange feeling. Eunhae blurted out anything that came to mind without thinking.
“There’s too much high-fructose corn syrup. You should be careful with it too, Noona. Still, it’s better here because they mix it with sparkling water instead of soda for the ade.”
“High-fructose corn syrup… It’s important.”
“If Americano isn’t your thing, starting with a latte with no syrup is a good option. Milk has lactose, so it has a natural sweetness.”
She doubted whether a tongue accustomed to syrup would be satisfied with lactose, but she nodded anyway.
The steak was incredibly delicious. In a proper steakhouse like this, she thought it would be fine to eat it a little less cooked, so Eunhae had ordered hers medium-rare.
“This is my first time having medium-rare, and it’s incredibly tender and good.”
“The meat itself is excellent here. It’s delicious even without dipping sauce, isn’t it?”
“It is!”
Eunhae enthusiastically cut and ate her steak. Even 6 ounces felt like a bit much for her, but it was so delicious that she finished every last piece.
“That was a great meal. Thank you. You bought the movie tickets too.”
“You can buy me coffee after the movie.”
“Alright!”
Jung Seunghee lightly took Eunhae’s hand.
‘He already held my hand once when we left the restaurant, so it’s fine…’
Yet, she found herself enjoying the warm sensation of his touch enveloping her fingers.
She left her hand in his.
As they walked slowly to the cinema, the screening time drew near.
“Should we get popcorn?”
“I’m full.”
“Then I’m fine too. How about drinks?”
“I’ll just have water.”
The cinema was even larger than Eunhae had imagined.
“The seats are so plush. It’s so comfortable, I might fall asleep.”
“If you’re sleepy, you can sleep.”
Jung Seunghee took Eunhae’s hand as she looked around, admiring the interior.
“Why are you holding my hand?”
“Because I want to. Your hand is small and cute, Noona.”
“No, I told you I don’t like being cute…”
“I call you cute because you *are* cute.”
“Fine, Korea has freedom of expression, so do whatever you want.”
Eunhae gave up, letting Jung Seunghee knead her hand as he pleased.
Time passed, the auditorium darkened, and the surround sound enveloped her.
‘The sound is much louder than I expected.’
About ten minutes later, Eunhae’s face turned pale.
“I, I’ll just, just step outside for a moment.”
The whisper she directed at Jung Seunghee trembled terribly. However, Eunhae was so focused on trying not to speak loudly that she didn’t even realize the tremor in her voice.
Her online friends had stressed that one should never cause a disturbance in places like cinemas!
Seeing her ashen face, Jung Seunghee furrowed his brow.
“Noona, are you alright?”
“T-that, yes! The restroom. I suddenly really need to go.”
“…Alright. Be careful.”
“Yes, yes.”
Eunhae bowed her head repeatedly to the people as she exited the auditorium. It was fortunate that it was dark, so she didn’t make eye contact with anyone.
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