This bastard didn’t think that far ahead.
Living with him made me realize something—Do Jihoon actually had a bit of a hot-blooded streak. Sometimes he just acted first and thought later.
Do Jihoon’s expression slowly turned worried.
Seeing that, I joked that it wasn’t like 112 existed for no reason. Judging from that guy’s behavior, he seemed like such a pathetic coward that he probably wouldn’t come back again.
“Doji. How was your day today?”
“Today? I volunteered at the hospital. The kids were cute.”
“You like kids?”
“I don’t mind them. They’re pretty.”
“Really? Then later when we get married, should we have a daughter who looks like you and a son who looks like me?”
I asked him excitedly.
Do Jihoon didn’t answer.
At some point, he had started looking at me with the same expression someone would use when staring at a single-celled organism.
“…Yuri. I told you not to just say things carelessly. Think before you speak.”
“You bastard. I’m an adult too, you know? I know everything I need to know.”
“Yeah. Very reassuring.”
“You little—”
After we started dating, Do Jihoon came to pick me up often.
Whenever I got home late, almost every time. Even when I asked him to come because I missed him, he always agreed without hesitation.
He was a kind guy.
“Do Jihoon. Is there anything you want from me?”
“That’s a sudden question.”
“No, it’s just… you always come pick me up, but it feels like I never do anything for you. I feel a little bad about it.”
He thought about it for several minutes.
Then he spoke.
“For now, there’s nothing.”
“What’s with that extremely changeable answer?”
“If you feel indebted, then it can’t be helped. I guess I’ll have to think hard about what I should ask you for.”
“…That’s not what I meant.”
That bastard Do Jihoon.
He was the type who would invent an errand even if there wasn’t one. I hurriedly tried to stop him.
We walked home through the warm summer night.
After washing up and brushing our teeth together, we changed into our couple pajamas and lay down on the bed.
The moment I lay down, all kinds of worries started bubbling up.
One of them was that.
Do Jihoon’s birthday—one week away.
Very casually, I asked him about his plans for next week.
“Doji. What are you doing next week?”
“About the same as this week. Volunteering and going around for different activities.”
“Really? Nothing changed from the schedule you shared with me?”
“Yeah. Nothing.”
His voice came out low.
He must be sleepy. It made sense. He had been out all day, and then he even walked to the café late at night to pick me up.
Somehow, this guy seemed busier during vacation than during the semester.
I stroked his hair and whispered good night into his ear.
***
“Hoo…”
I tried to keep my nerves steady.
In my hand, I held a piping bag filled with fluffy cream.
“Ugh……”
My hands trembled.
If I messed up here, it was over. I widened my eyes and carefully tried to pipe the whipped cream nicely.
“Wow. I did it.”
The result was successful.
A couple strawberries poked out awkwardly from the cake, and the whipped cream looked a little blotchy—but still.
This was pretty good.
“Yeah. This is good enough. It’s not like I’m a chef.”
I rationalized my mediocre cooking skills.
Thankfully, the one-day cake-making teacher generously praised my somewhat horrifying cake.
“Th-this is good! Is this your first time cooking?”
“…No. I cook at home sometimes…”
“…Ah.”
The teacher’s exclamation sounded rather pitiful.
“B-but baking is your first time, right?”
“Yes! It’s my first time baking. I’ve only cooked meals before.”
“Right! Then this is very well done.”
Cold sweat seemed to be forming on the teacher’s forehead.
I couldn’t help but applaud the effort required to earn money like this. Truly, making money was hard anywhere.
“Now, shall we pipe the message you want to write in the center?”
“Yes!”
Now only the final step remained.
Writing the name and a birthday message in the center!
I steadied my suspiciously shaky wrist and started writing.
‘Happy birthday my Doji!’
‘Let’s be happy together forever and ever with Yuri.’
I looked at the finished result.
I was extremely satisfied.
Except for one tiny mistake—Doji looked like Moji, and “forever and ever” looked more like “previous year hello.”
“Teacher. Can I wrap it like this?”
With immense pride, I packed the cake I had made myself.
I chose a pretty cake box and carefully placed the cake inside.
Now only the last step remained.
Writing a handwritten letter.
A handwritten letter.
It was incredibly cheesy, but at the same time, nothing conveyed your true feelings better.
I remembered my first meeting with Do Jihoon, all the bickering fights we had, and the moment we finally started dating.
Thinking through all of those moments, I carefully moved my pen.
Then I attached the finished letter to the cake box.
The birthday cake project for Do Jihoon was finally complete.
I was on my way home with the cake.
Suddenly, I remembered what I had asked Do Jihoon that morning.
“Will you be late today?”
“No. It’s an external activity hosted by a government ministry today. It’ll end right on time.”
“Okie dokie.”
Despite my worry that Do Jihoon might notice something about his birthday, he was completely oblivious.
I wondered if he was pretending not to notice—but it wasn’t that either.
He just didn’t seem to expect anything special for his birthday.
How could that be?
As someone who used to say “My birthday’s coming soon” starting three months in advance every year, it was a feeling I couldn’t understand.
I arrived home quickly.
I didn’t have a driver’s license, so I had to cross mountains and rivers switching between buses and subways—but still, I got home fairly fast.
The cake was ready.
Today I planned to make jeon, japchae, and seaweed soup.
I took out the zucchini and mushrooms I had bought earlier from the refrigerator.
“Hmm hmm hmm~.”
Preparing Do Jihoon’s birthday feast naturally made me hum.
I was really curious about the expression Do Jihoon would make when he came home and saw the birthday table waiting for him.
Would he shout in surprise, asking what all this was?
Or would he freeze up and be unable to say anything?
Both would be ridiculously cute.
I hummed while preparing the food for quite a while.
Before I knew it, it was around 9:30—the time Do Jihoon was supposed to arrive.
I carefully set the dishes on the table.
Looking from far away, then up close, making a huge fuss while deciding which arrangement would satisfy Do Jihoon’s picky aesthetic sense.
Though the only choices were whether the jeon went on the left or the japchae went on the left.
I checked the clock.
Before I knew it, the time was approaching 10.
“Ah! He’ll be here soon. Hurry hurry….”
I turned off every light in the house, closed the curtains, and took out the cake.
I stuck the cute candles into the cake and held a match in my hand, waiting for the sound of Do Jihoon’s footsteps.
My heart pounded wildly.
A camera was waiting beside me.
It was there to capture Do Jihoon’s surprised reaction.
Suppressing my racing heart, I held the cake and looked around again for the perfect place to surprise him.
The living room?
Or right by the entrance?
It was a very happy dilemma.
In the end, the entrance won.
I stood by the entrance and waited again for the sound of Do Jihoon’s footsteps.
…….
“…Hmm. Maybe he’s a little late.”
It felt like about ten minutes had passed.
Maybe something came up.
I waited quietly.
…….
“…Maybe he’s really late…?”
I looked at the clock again.
It was already approaching 10:30.
That’s strange. The government external activity ended at 9. Why is this bastard coming home so late?
…….
“…Hmm….”
My legs were starting to hurt.
I carefully placed the cake on the floor and plopped down beside it. I thought I was about to get varicose veins.
…….
I checked the clock again.
It was 11:13.
At this point, I couldn’t deny it. Do Jihoon was coming home late today.
“Ah, damn it.”
The excitement drained out of me.
Disappointment lingered in my body. But there was nothing I could do.
It wasn’t like we had made a promise. I couldn’t complain just because Do Jihoon came home late.
Since it was the first birthday after we started dating, I must have naturally assumed we’d spend it together.
“Geez.”
I took off the cone-shaped party hat I was wearing and tossed it aside.
I thought about putting the cake away but ended up just leaving it on the living room table.
Sleepiness crept in.
Even though I liked teasing Do Jihoon for being like an elementary school kid who sleeps early, my own average bedtime was 11:30.
My eyelids kept drooping.
“Ah… I should set an alarm.”
Just one alarm at 11:50.
If he still wasn’t home by then, then it really, really, really couldn’t be helped.
Of course, I wasn’t disappointed at all.
My eyes felt a little moist, but I rationalized it by saying it was just because I was a fairy and holy dew had naturally formed.
“……”
I’m not disappointed.
I’m not disappointed.
It was my fault for not telling him about his birthday beforehand because I wanted it to be a surprise.
I’m not disappointed.
I’m not disappointed.
I’m not disappoint…ed.
I’m… not disappoin…ted.
Repeating “I’m not disappointed” over and over, my consciousness gradually became hazy.
It was more effective than counting a hundred sheep.
My vision slowly narrowed until, eventually, everything faded.
Before I knew it, I had fallen fast asleep leaning against the sofa.
