Chapter 34: Unexpected Connections and Sweet Adjustments

“Shall we head out soon?”

With the situation resolved, the already cramped room, warm from six occupants, began to empty as everyone gradually stepped outside.

Only Ma Won-ho and Dohwa remained seated on the sofa. When it was finally time to rise, Dohwa found their feet reluctant to move. They lingered for a moment, but, setting aside the lingering regret, they pushed themselves up.

After all, they could visit that room frequently now.

A thought crossed their mind: it wouldn’t be so bad to sit alone in that room, reading a book from time to time. With that, they moved to the living room and settled back onto the sofa.

“Somehow, I think we’ll be staying on the first floor today?”

“We can’t carry this upstairs, can we?”

“Oh, right.”

Jae-hyun gestured toward the puzzle. Ma Won-ho, wearing an expression that suggested he’d completely forgotten, picked up a single puzzle piece, flicked it into the air, and expertly caught it.

Dohwa belatedly checked the phone they had left on the sofa. Just as Chaeyeon-woo had mentioned, a message had arrived, confirming access was permitted from 9 AM to 11 PM.

‘It’s almost 9 o’clock.’

After checking the time, they leaned back into the sofa, only then becoming aware of the blanket draped over their shoulders.

Since there were two, it would be perfectly fine to return them later.

While the living room also had blankets, the one from the bedroom was made of microfiber, offering a wonderfully soft and pleasant texture.

Dohwa ran their hand over the blanket, then pulled it closer to cover themselves.

“Which of you hyungs is going in first?”

“We haven’t decided that.”

“We all have to go anyway, so isn’t it better to do it quickly? I don’t want to go alone…”

Chaeyeon-woo, his face a mournful pout pressed against a cushion, turned his head to the side.

“Hae-il hyung, can’t you go in with me?”

As the rooms were separate, they couldn’t physically enter together. Chaeyeon-woo likely meant they should go in at the same time.

It was surprising enough that Chaeyeon-woo, despite asking playfully, had singled out one person. A brief silence ensued, and Dohwa cautiously observed the mood.

‘It seems they got closer while cooking together.’

Staring overtly at Kang Hae-il, who sat directly beside them, felt too obvious. Thus, Dohwa’s gaze remained fixed on Chaeyeon-woo.

Yet, everyone else’s eyes were undeniably drawn to Kang Hae-il.

“Sure.”

The simple, concise reply resonated in their ears.

Chaeyeon-woo’s eyes, which had been fixed on Kang Hae-il, widened briefly before crinkling, and he erupted into a smile brighter than any Dohwa had seen before.

With his energy visibly soaring, he asked, beaming with delight.

“I’ll just quickly grab something to drink. Oh! Is anyone else having iced tea?”

“…Me. No ice, please.”

“What about the others? Are you all set?”

As Dohwa quietly raised their hand, their eyes met Chaeyeon-woo’s directly.

A quick scan of the room revealed that Dohwa was the only one who had raised a hand for iced tea.

“I’ll have coffee.”

“If you drink it now, won’t you not be able to sleep later?”

“Drinking alcohol makes me sleepy.”

To Jae-hyun’s concerned remark, Woo Sori responded with an unruffled voice.

A small laugh escaped Dohwa as they watched Jae-hyun’s mouth fall open, as if he had just experienced a profound revelation.

“Then, who wants coffee!”

As if swayed by that simple declaration, everyone raised their hands, each opting for coffee.

Two iced teas, four coffees.

It seemed unlikely that Chaeyeon-woo could manage all the drinks alone, and Dohwa was debating whether to offer assistance when, at that very moment…

“You’re going in with Yeon-woo anyway, so why don’t you just go together now and make the coffee?”

As Ma Won-ho subtly glanced at Kang Hae-il while speaking, every head in the room swiveled toward them.

No verbal answer came from beside him, but Kang Hae-il responded by silently rising from his seat and heading toward the kitchen.

Chaeyeon-woo, scrambling to his feet, quickly followed after him.

“How interesting~”

“It’s still early on, after all.”

Where the two had been, a group of people remained, their faces alight with excitement, like children who had stumbled upon something truly fascinating.

From the initial surprise ambush when they first arrived to the entirely different atmosphere compared to the first week, everything felt new.

‘It’s quite remarkable.’

The speed at which they had grown close, now able to joke with each other without a second thought, felt truly novel.

Dohwa had primarily been an observer, yet even they were slowly, imperceptibly, being drawn into the group.

“Hyung is a total master at making coffee.”

Soon after, Chaeyeon-woo returned, making a small commotion as he handed Dohwa their iced tea.

The scent of coffee permeated the living room, but Dohwa, upon receiving the iced tea, immediately took a sip.

It was sweet.

‘It was sweet—perhaps *too* sweet.’

Without a flicker of expression, they quietly set the cup down.

In stark contrast, Chaeyeon-woo continued to drink from his identical glass of iced tea without pause, seemingly unfazed by its sweetness. It was truly astonishing.

“I’ll be back!”

“See you later.”

Dohwa waited until the two had left the living room and entered their rooms before finally rising.

Holding the iced tea glass in one hand, they calmly entered the kitchen, where they meticulously adjusted the drink’s sweetness by adding tiny, precise trickles of water.

‘This amount is just right.’

At last, the perfect iced tea was born.

Dohwa returned to the living room, a satisfied expression on their face as they held their now-perfected drink. On the sofa, Jae-hyun sat alone.

“…Where did everyone go?”

“They both went up to the second floor for a bit. Won-ho said he had something to get?”

Jae-hyun lowered his phone, and as their eyes met, he offered Dohwa a gentle smile.

‘Was it always this spacious?’

After everyone had been huddled together, the sudden emptiness made the room feel incredibly vast.

The awkward silence left Dohwa at a loss for words, so they simply continued to sip their iced tea.

“I bought the book you wrote.”

“Oh… really?”

“I haven’t finished it yet, but I brought it with me this time. I intend to read the whole thing while I’m here.”

At Jae-hyun’s unexpected revelation, Dohwa’s face flushed crimson.

Despite the kindness of his words, Dohwa was first overwhelmed by a wave of embarrassment, which was then swiftly followed by feelings of gratitude and a touch of awkwardness.

They knew they had to respond, yet their mouth merely worked soundlessly. Sensing their plight, Jae-hyun playfully spoke again.

“Should I go upstairs and get my copy of your book too? If I get the author’s signature, I could sell it for a high price, couldn’t I? As a premium item.”

“…It probably wouldn’t sell, but I can sign it for you.”

“You’re not just writing three letters of your name, are you?”

“No.”

Dohwa shook their head vigorously in response.

Although they didn’t often have the chance to use it, it was a signature they had meticulously crafted with considerable thought.

“I’ll definitely have to get the author’s signature later.”

Watching Jae-hyun respond with such a serious tone, Dohwa found it impossible to discern whether he was teasing or genuinely sincere.

They conversed naturally, and it was only belatedly, each time Jae-hyun revealed a mischievous streak, that Dohwa realized he was merely joking.

When Jae-hyun’s gaze drifted behind Dohwa, Dohwa instinctively turned as well.

“You two have a nice atmosphere going on.”

“Shouldn’t we make ourselves scarce again?”

Ma Won-ho stood on the stairs, whistling softly, with Woo Sori standing casually beside him.

‘It seems they changed clothes.’

Observing the two, now dressed in more casual attire than before, Dohwa found themselves wondering when they should go change. Meanwhile, Ma Won-ho, a smile playing on his lips, swiftly descended the stairs.

Woo Sori followed him down, then settled comfortably onto the sofa.

“…A camera? Did you bring that separately?”

“Yeah, I had it at home, so I decided to bring it along. It’s a film camera.”

“I want to see it too.”

Only then did Dohwa’s gaze finally fixate on the object held in Ma Won-ho’s hand.

Lately, it felt as though Dohwa was seeing more cameras than they would in a lifetime, but this particular film camera was a first.

Dohwa, who typically documented life through words rather than photographs, watched with relative indifference as Woo Sori turned the camera over in his hands.

The explanation about the film camera went in one of Dohwa’s ears and out the other, but it seemed the others were paying closer attention.

Woo Sori, having listened to the instructions on how to use it, leaned closer to Dohwa and spoke.

“Let’s take a picture of just us. Is that okay?”

“By all means. That’s why I brought it in the first place.”

Upon hearing Ma Won-ho’s casual reply, Woo Sori immediately extended his arm, thrusting the camera toward Dohwa.

The sudden appearance of the camera lens startled Dohwa, but at the shouted instruction to make a ‘V’ sign, they reflexively formed a somewhat awkward ‘V’ with their hand.

Woo Sori checked the photo the moment it was taken, then lifted his head, a smile playing on his lips.

“It turned out well. This time, let’s take one with all four of us.”

Little did Dohwa know then.

Just how serious Woo Sori was about photography.

Held captive by Woo Sori, Dohwa posed for several shots with the film camera. But, recognizing the lengthy development process, someone suggested taking photos with their phones as well.

“They all turned out great, didn’t they?”

“Won-ho takes good pictures.”

“I should’ve asked him to take pictures when we were on a date last week.”

Ma Won-ho’s talent shone brightly.

Woo Sori reviewed the results, expressing a hint of regret, before entrusting the photography entirely to Ma Won-ho. He then proceeded to take an exorbitant number of photos with his phone camera.

In that process, Dohwa, who unintentionally became a subject, gradually lost the color from their face.

‘They won’t take any more, will they?’

While Woo Sori examined the results, Dohwa quenched their parched throat with iced tea, subtly increasing the distance between them.

Whether the photos turned out well was no longer of any concern to Dohwa.

Exhausted, they leaned back into the sofa when the sound of a door opening reached their ears, and someone came rushing in.

“I’m here! What’s everyone doing?”

A savior had arrived.

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