He was momentarily at a loss for words. It was an outcome he couldn’t have predicted.
Staring intently at Cha Jae-woo, whose face was surely filled with confusion even without looking, he waited. Then, as if realizing how abrupt he sounded, Cha Jae-woo added an explanation.
“You seemed busy.”
“Ah.”
Letting out a short sigh, he scratched his cheek. If he had been that busy, he wouldn’t have asked to have a meal together in the first place.
“I’ll come back tomorrow. You should get some rest.”
Still, there’s a limit to how cautious one should be. Jumping to conclusions on his own was practically a talent at this point. Though, honestly, it wasn’t his place to complain.
They say people start resembling those they like—was Cha Jae-woo starting to resemble him? Would Cha Jae-woo end up becoming like him?
Uh… That would be a bit…
With brutal self-awareness, he shook his head fiercely.
“Just sit down!”
His voice might have come out a bit loud in his rush. Seeing Cha Jae-woo, who had been ready to turn around, hesitate, his face burned bright red from embarrassment.
“I-It’s going to be ready soon. I’m hungry. And… I don’t like eating alone.”
It probably sounded way too desperate, the words tumbling out like an avalanche, but there was no helping the frantic urgency.
Even saying something as simple as let’s have a meal together—how hard it was to get those words out. He couldn’t afford to let the opportunity slip away so easily. It really did feel like he was the only one panicking here.
“……Then, should I cook it?”
At that, the irritation bubbling up inside him vanished without a trace.
He turned to Cha Jae-woo in disbelief. The idea of Cha Jae-woo cooking ramen was so absurd it momentarily stunned him.
“You know how to cook?”
It didn’t suit him at all. Just the thought of Cha Jae-woo in the kitchen felt wrong. No matter how he looked at it, it was hard to imagine that Cha Jae-woo had ever cooked anything himself.
He couldn’t help but wonder if Cha Jae-woo even knew how to cook ramen.
There was a housekeeper at Cha Jae-woo’s home who was an excellent cook. She prepared all three meals daily, and given that, it didn’t seem likely that Cha Jae-woo ever had to bother with something like ramen.
Sure, Cha Jae-woo was good at everything he did, so he would probably do fine if he tried. But a strong hunch told him Cha Jae-woo had never actually done it before.
“Roughly.”
And it seemed that hunch was right.
Well, it made sense. Cha Jae-woo had lived in that mansion since he was a child. The housekeeper, the chauffeur, and most of the staff had been there since Cha Jae-woo was young. It was unlikely he’d ever needed to take care of such trivial things himself.
As a side note, it was a bit sad that, even after all that time together, Cha Jae-woo hadn’t been able to open his heart to them.
Hearing the housekeeper explain that some of Chairman Cha Seong-ju’s people were mixed in among the staff made it even sadder. Living life while having to doubt everyone around you must have been exhausting.
Thinking about all that, he realized he was now more curious whether Cha Jae-woo had ever eaten ramen before rather than if he knew how to cook it.
“By the way.”
A pure curiosity surfaced, and he didn’t bother to hold it back.
But the moment he opened his mouth, he lost his words, seeing Cha Jae-woo’s lips twitch slightly.
It made sense—this was a rare sight. Cha Jae-woo didn’t smile easily. Compared to the past, he had grown a bit softer in expression, but it wasn’t as if he had suddenly become bright and cheerful.
Maybe it was just his nature. Sometimes, though, it seemed like he was deliberately maintaining that stoic look.
“Cha Jae-woo?”
“Yeah, mm.”
And then, Cha Jae-woo smiled absentmindedly. He even seemed lost in thought for a moment. He didn’t know what Cha Jae-woo was thinking, but he was certain it had to do with him. Absolutely.
Otherwise… it would be unacceptable. He was standing right there—who else would Cha Jae-woo be thinking about with that smile?
“What was that just now?”
Not bothering to hide the complicated swirl of feelings—part pleased, part unsettled—he confronted him.
He could have just let it go with a nothing and moved on. It was just a slight lift of the corners of his lips, after all. Asking what he was thinking seemed unnecessary.
But he decided to be honest about his feelings. And right now, he wanted to know what Cha Jae-woo had been thinking. He concluded he needed to openly admit to harboring such petty curiosity.
Of course, it wasn’t like he had written up rules for this kind of situation, but still.
“About what?”
“You smiled.”
“……Did I?”
“Are you pretending not to know?”
Maybe it was because his voice came out sounding a little sulky, or maybe it was because of that teeny, tiny frown. Either way, Cha Jae-woo immediately denied it.
Seriously, he caught even the slightest slip in his expressions so easily. Should he just walk around with a permanent smile like wearing a Hahoe mask? If doing that meant he wouldn’t have to see a flustered Cha Jae-woo every time his expression slipped a little, maybe it was worth considering.
“So…….”
Meanwhile, as if thinking that a simple denial wasn’t enough, Cha Jae-woo added on.
He listened quietly. Watching Cha Jae-woo struggle to carefully choose his words felt oddly endearing, a little sad, and honestly, a bit delightful, too. It was truly a tangle of emotions.
“You always do that before you talk—you say, ‘So, um.'”
His eyes blinked slowly.
……Was that it? That was what made him smile?
He already knew he had that habit. Whenever he said, So, um, before starting a sentence, it usually wasn’t with friends but more out of habit from answering questions all the time. It wasn’t funny. He always thought it was strange that anyone found it amusing.
Ultimately, Cha Jae-woo’s words only gave him the fresh realization that, yeah, he did that a lot even with Cha Jae-woo. Still, it didn’t explain why it was funny.
“Hmm…….”
Staring directly at him with a face full of dissatisfaction, he watched Cha Jae-woo tightly press his lips together, as if hesitating.
“It’s just… because it’s cute.”
“…….”
At that sudden, almost blurted-out confession, he dumbly gaped. He hadn’t expected those words at all. His gaze locked on Cha Jae-woo, who was awkwardly turning his head away.
It wasn’t even that grand of a thing to say. ……Hadn’t he already heard Cha Jae-woo say I love you before? Even so, this still hit hard. For some reason, his heart started pounding madly in his chest.
Maybe there was something wrong with Cha Jae-woo’s eyes. He thought that was cute? He must really be seeing everything through rose-tinted glasses. Was that an actual side effect of imprinting—making Espers see their Guides through a filter so they wouldn’t regret it?
“……I see…….”
Trying to calm his racing heart with some silly thoughts, he quickly realized it wasn’t working.
He coughed awkwardly and shifted his gaze around. As he scrambled to find another topic, the burning sensation creeping up the back of his neck kept bothering him.
Getting all flustered from just a single comment—he really was a hopeless case.
But he had plenty of excuses ready. It wasn’t just anyone; it was Cha Jae-woo who had said it. And even if it was the same words, back then Cha Jae-woo had said them so coolly and maturely. Now, he hesitated so much that it even felt fresh and innocent.
Seeing him act so bashfully after having lived such a rough life… it was kind of a new charm. Then again, had he really lived that wildly? Could that even be called living? Back then, for Cha Jae-woo, even something like guiding had been no different from a lifeline.
“……Ha.”
A deep sigh slipped out without warning.
It seemed like he was just as blinded as Cha Jae-woo. No one had said anything, and yet here he was, desperately making excuses for him. It was almost laughable.
And it wasn’t just that. All those times he had confidently declared he would never fall for Cha Jae-woo—they now seemed utterly meaningless.
He was still helpless against Cha Jae-woo. Maybe, even if Cha Jae-woo hadn’t imprinted on him, he would have ended up choosing to stay by his side anyway.
No, he definitely would have. Everyone always said he was too soft for his own good. Whether it was pity or love, he wouldn’t have been able to turn away. Not that it was anything to brag about.
“So, what were you trying to say?”
Noticing how he clammed up awkwardly the moment Cha Jae-woo finished talking, Cha Jae-woo cautiously broke the silence.
Even though his heart was still racing way too fast, he couldn’t ignore Cha Jae-woo’s question. Forcing himself to speak, he opened his mouth.
“Ah, it’s just…… I was wondering if you’ve ever had ramen before. You kinda seem like someone who’s never tried it.”
The conversation continued, awkward and shaky, with neither of them able to meet each other’s eyes properly.
Even teenagers wouldn’t be this bad. And it wasn’t like they were just some innocent kids—they had already been through way more than that!
