The Ferris wheel, pulled along by Eun-jae’s hand, was perfect for overlooking the entire amusement park. The problem was, the air inside the Ferris wheel felt so suffocating that it seemed like he might choke. Normally, when a boss and an employee are sitting across from each other in a Ferris wheel, it’s the employee who tends to feel the tension. However, Seo Eun-jae, with a calm expression, merely stared out the window, and the one who was actually feeling awkward was not his boss, but the Director himself, Seon-woo.
Seon-woo had known that Eun-jae didn’t like him being seen with Gwak Seung-hyeon, but he never imagined that Eun-jae would go so far as to hold hands and run away like this. It wasn’t a scene out of a movie, after all. It was strange that after dragging him here in such a manner, Eun-jae remained silent.
The atmosphere was too awkward for Seon-woo to start speaking first, so he, too, turned his gaze to the window. After a long silence, Eun-jae finally spoke.
“I haven’t been on this in a while. I never had the chance when I came with other people.”
Eun-jae, who had been looking in the opposite direction, shifted his gaze to Seon-woo. Seon-woo didn’t respond immediately, as he was busy trying to think of the “appropriate answer” to give as a Gwanggong. Eun-jae, sensing the silence, continued speaking.
“You’ve probably never done things like this, right? Going to an amusement park, riding the rides, eating churros, or just hanging out with others on a day off…”
“That’s right. I’ve never done anything like that.”
At least not from the perspective of a Gwanggong. Seon-woo answered, and Eun-jae gave a small smile.
“I thought these things might seem bothersome and useless to you, Director. You might find them boring or the food might not suit your taste. But still, I wanted to do things like this with you—simple, ordinary fun things.”
While Seon-woo wasn’t sure how the Gwanggong would feel about it, Eun-jae’s words touched him more than he expected. The reason was simple. He was reminded of how Eun-jae had made sure to feed him things like churros and other snacks earlier.
If Seon-woo simply followed Eun-jae’s lead, there would be no downside to it. It would be a welcome source of joy in his otherwise grim Gwanggong life, and the hunger pains that had plagued him would lessen. It was easy to understand why the original Gwanggong, before Seon-woo, had been so infatuated with Seo Eun-jae.
But if that was the case, then what was the real reason Seon-woo couldn’t feel entirely at ease with Eun-jae now? Was it because of the system’s repeated demands?
At that moment, Seon-woo thought of Gwak Seung-hyeon’s face. He turned his gaze away from Eun-jae and stared out the window, wondering if he could spot Gwak Seung-hyeon’s chocolate-colored head among the tiny figures below. Even he thought it was strange.
After a long while, Seon-woo finally turned his gaze back to Eun-jae.
“Still…”
“Yes?”
“Today was enjoyable.”
It wasn’t a lie. Despite the numerous restrictions and discomforts, coming to the amusement park today had been fun. Yet, for some reason, it felt like he was lying. He avoided looking directly into Eun-jae’s eyes, instead shifting his gaze elsewhere. Eun-jae, however, seemed completely unaware of his inner turmoil and smiled brightly.
“Then I’m glad.”
Although it was still awkward, the atmosphere gradually eased after that. As the Ferris wheel slowly passed over the peak of the amusement park and began its descent, the two of them engaged in a somewhat normal conversation. By the time they got off the Ferris wheel, Seon-woo’s mood had definitely lightened.
However, the expected sight of Gwak Seung-hyeon chasing after them was nowhere to be seen, even after they had completely exited the Ferris wheel queue. Had he been left behind? It wasn’t like he could make a lost-child broadcast for an adult man, so Seon-woo decided to check his phone, thinking he should at least try calling.
As soon as he turned on the screen, a text notification appeared. It seemed that the tension inside the Ferris wheel had prevented him from noticing the message. When he checked the message box, he realized that calling would be futile.
[An urgent matter came up, so I’m heading back first.]
Seung-hyeon hadn’t followed him, nor was he waiting around. Seon-woo informed Eun-jae of this, and Eun-jae appeared to be quite disappointed on the surface.
“Oh, he left first? That’s really too bad.”
Of course, his eyes betrayed no such sentiment. Seon-woo could sense that Eun-jae was thinking, “If he was going to leave like this, he should have done so earlier.” Trying to ignore that thought, Seon-woo turned his head away.
Soon, Seon-woo and Eun-jae left the amusement park alone. Eun-jae, who had mentioned he came by public transport rather than a private car, seemed satisfied at the idea of sitting in the passenger seat of Seon-woo’s car for the return trip.
Seon-woo didn’t know what kind of mindset he was in while driving. After dropping Eun-jae off and arriving at his house, Seon-woo immediately collapsed onto the bed, burying himself under the blanket. As expected, his Gwanggong status alarm quickly appeared.
<Gwanggong does not collapse onto the bed. Gwanggong’s score decreases by 2.>
A groan of irritation escaped Seon-woo’s lips.
<Gwanggong does not groan. Gwanggong’s score decreases by 2.>
He scoffed at the absurdity. The scoff was, of course, an action encouraged by the system, so this time, no notification followed.
Though his score had dropped by 4 in an instant, it wasn’t an immediate problem. This was because, after the system was restored following his time with Gwak Seung-hyeon, his score had remained at a relatively high level. Today, even though he had spent time with Gwak Seung-hyeon, there hadn’t been anything particularly noteworthy to cause a drop.
…Ah, Gwak Seung-hyeon again. He never stays out of the picture, does he?
Seon-woo sighed inwardly, raising a hand to cover his eyes. That’s when his phone rang. Just as his mind was beginning to drift, the number on the screen instantly brought him back to full attention.
“Seems like I’m not going to become a gentleman after all,” he thought, just as the call came through. After a brief hesitation, Seon-woo answered the phone from Seung-hyeon.
“What is it?”
Instead of a polite greeting, he spoke curtly, but Seung-hyeon’s response was as composed as always.
—”Hello, Director. Did you get home safely?”
“What’s the reason for your call?”
However, Seon-woo didn’t answer Seung-hyeon’s question and instead asked again. This time, his response wasn’t due to the system’s commands; it was just pure irritation.
Seon-woo himself didn’t understand what was going on. He wasn’t angry at Seung-hyeon, nor was there any reason for him to feel upset. In fact, when the call came in, he had even been glad. So why was he speaking so bluntly? Had he unknowingly absorbed the Gwanggong mindset?
While Seon-woo was lost in thought, Seung-hyeon responded.
— “I was worried about you leaving first, and I was curious if you got home alright…”
“And?”
— “Do you remember what you said last time?”
Seung-hyeon answered Seon-woo’s words without any hesitation. If Seon-woo had been talking to anyone else in such a manner, he wouldn’t have been able to respond properly. But Seung-hyeon was truly a strange person. Seon-woo tried to desperately recall what Seung-hyeon might be referring to, but on the outside, he remained silent.
— “I told my mother about it, and she wants to have a meal together as soon as possible.”
Ah.
Seon-woo inwardly let out an exclamation of realization. It wasn’t that he had forgotten, but he hadn’t expected Seung-hyeon’s mother to try and set up a meeting so quickly. The woman he met on the chairman’s birthday had been quiet, seemingly cautious, but also subtly firm in her demeanor. Even when she immediately withdrew her hand and backed off, the way she had tried to stop him from taking action had shown a surprising amount of courage. Considering the cold, intimidating atmosphere of the Gwanggong, it was indeed a bold move.
— “How about the day after tomorrow? Will you have time?”
While Seon-woo was thinking, Seung-hyeon’s words continued. Seon-woo hesitated, not immediately responding. It wasn’t that he disliked the idea. He didn’t mind it, but wasn’t it a little too sudden?
Since it had been Seon-woo himself who had suggested the meeting, he had no intention of rejecting the meal offer. However, the day after tomorrow felt too soon. He needed some time to prepare himself mentally, so he felt he would have to decline this time.
…Just as he was thinking that, the events from earlier that day suddenly flashed through Seon-woo’s mind. He remembered how, despite Seung-hyeon wearing the crocodile headband, Seon-woo had accepted the cheese hat. He also recalled how, despite Seon-woo attempting to throw his ice cream on the ground, he had still taken the churros from Eun-jae and eaten them.
None of it had been Seon-woo’s intention, of course, but Seung-hyeon couldn’t know that.
Thinking about that, Seon-woo suddenly couldn’t bring himself to say, “Do I look that free? Let’s reschedule.” With a deep sigh, Seon-woo exhaled into his phone.
***
Two days later, Seon-woo sat facing Seung-hyeon and his mother in the private dining room of a restaurant.
Seon-woo had a serious expression on his face, but Jo Jeong-hee’s face was bright with a smile. It was almost amazing how she could maintain such a cheerful expression despite the cold gaze of the Gwanggong. He still felt a discomfort in his stomach whenever he saw her, but he was able to brush it off, telling himself it was all due to the system. It was all thanks to her bright expression that he could tolerate it.
Seon-woo turned his head, trying to hide any signs of displeasure as much as possible. He directed his gaze towards where Seung-hyeon was sitting. Seung-hyeon’s face was noticeably more tense than usual. When their eyes met, he forced a smile, but there was a slight stiffness to it. Perhaps it was due to the atmosphere of the room.
“Thank you for coming out today…”
Jeong-hee spoke quietly. She seemed to be trying to express her gratitude for him being there. Seon-woo opened his mouth to offer a polite response, as was customary. However, the conversation didn’t continue smoothly.
<Gwanggong score decreases by 5!>
Before he could even speak, his score dropped simply because he had opened his mouth after listening to her words.
