Chapter 117
Although he said that, Seo-jung couldn’t help but recall the situation while getting ready. Because of this, despite preparing early, it was much later when he finally got in the car. He shook his head to clear his thoughts.
Seo-jung rubbed his face. He couldn’t keep dwelling on these thoughts forever. He didn’t like that he was still stuck in that situation while the person who dropped the bombshell was probably happily on their date.
He tried to think rationally. The person he needed to focus on now was Da-bin, not Cha Yoon who had left for a date. Seo-jung gripped the steering wheel, determined to stop wasting time recalling what happened in the room.
The car moved quickly forward. After driving for a while, the navigation announced they had arrived near the destination. As Seo-jung got out of the car after parking, his phone rang as if on cue.
“Your date partner is currently waiting for Ki Seo-jung at OO Park.”
This was the first time he had received such a message, despite having had two official dates before. Puzzled, Seo-jung tilted his head before following the sign with the park’s name. As he walked in the cool breeze, he saw the quiet park come into view. Seo-jung put on a smile, lifting the corners of his mouth.
Just as he passed the entrance and stepped inside, Seo-jung’s pace slowed and then came to a complete stop. He had spotted someone standing in the middle of the park.
What’s this? Those overly broad shoulders and tall stature were too much to be Da-bin. Seo-jung slowly scanned the person from head to toe. As his gaze moved downward, the smile on his face faded, and by the time his eyes reached the person’s feet, he was filled with bewilderment.
Thinking something must be wrong, he hurriedly pulled out his phone. As he unconsciously took a step back, he accidentally stepped on a twig on the ground, making a loud snapping noise. Startled, he reflexively looked down, and when he looked up again, it was already too late.
Seo-jung’s eyes met with those of the person who had turned around – none other than Cha Yoon.
“Hyung!”
“Ah, this is driving me crazy…”
Seeing Cha Yoon enthusiastically waving at him, Seo-jung squeezed his eyes shut and muttered under his breath with a sigh.
***
“The third date will be conducted simultaneously with all male contestants who chose the same female contestant. Feel free to showcase your charms to the fullest today.”
Seo-jung read the belated notification message from the production team. Since the dates had always been one-on-one until now, he never dreamed he’d be going on a date with other contestants who had also chosen Da-bin. When he looked up, he saw that Woo-jun and Da-bin also seemed surprised, checking their phones with bewildered expressions.
The only one who didn’t match this atmosphere was Cha Yoon. He was fixated solely on Seo-jung, staring so intently that it almost hurt to look at his face.
Seo-jung turned to take in Cha Yoon, who was looking at him with unusually sparkling eyes. He seemed so excited that Seo-jung thought if he had a tail, it would be standing straight up behind him.
Seo-jung understood why Cha Yoon was so happy to see him. After his confession, Cha Yoon had always expressed his feelings with his whole body, so it would have felt more abnormal if he hadn’t acted this way.
What Seo-jung found strange was this: there was no trace of surprise on Cha Yoon’s face.
“Cha Yoon.”
“Yes, hyung.”
“Did you check the message?”
At Cha Yoon’s eager response, Seo-jung pointed to his own phone and asked.
“Message?”
“We just got a message from the production team. It says all the male contestants who chose Da-bin will be going on a date together today.”
“Oh, that.”
Cha Yoon’s face, which had shown curiosity, instantly changed at Seo-jung’s words. Seeing him nod as if it wasn’t a big deal, Seo-jung realized that he had already known about the situation.
And at the same time, everything that had happened with Cha Yoon from last night to this morning started to play back in chronological order.
First, last night when he came out of the shower to find Cha Yoon standing in front of his bed, and his phone placed in an unusual spot. Then this morning, Cha Yoon’s date outfit and the appearance of the cologne Seo-jung had gifted him, which had put him in a bad mood all morning.
What he thought was just Cha Yoon snooping through his phone to find out who he was interested in turned out to be part of a bigger plan to go on a date with him today. Dressing up and using the “special occasion” cologne he never used were all for the sake of their date.
Not only that, but Cha Yoon’s excited expression upon seeing their similar shirt colors and his parting words about meeting later – now that he knew the full story, it all made sense.
He couldn’t understand how Cha Yoon had obtained information about the date in advance. But one thing was certain: he felt relieved right now. Yes, Seo-jung was relieved to know that Cha Yoon had been so excited about going on a date with him, not someone else.
He felt conflicted about his contradictory behavior and emotions – wishing for Cha Yoon to forget him and meet someone else, yet struggling with negative emotions when such an opportunity actually arose, and then feeling relieved upon realizing it was all a misunderstanding.
“So, we’re supposed to go on a date all together today?”
“Seems like it. That’s a bit disappointing.”
While Seo-jung was lost in thought, Da-bin and Woo-jun’s voices were heard in succession. As if waking from a dream, focus returned to Seo-jung’s eyes. He looked at the two of them in turn. Seeing Da-bin still unable to hide her surprise and Woo-jun smacking his lips as if he hadn’t expected this turn of events, Seo-jung came to his senses.
At least for now, it wasn’t the time to be caught up in his own feelings. Although unintentional, he was ultimately responsible for potentially ruining Da-bin and Woo-jun’s date. Therefore, it was his responsibility to help ensure their date went smoothly.
Part of him wanted to scold Cha Yoon, the cause of all this, and demand he fix the situation immediately. But expecting that from someone who was staring at him with sparkling eyes, seemingly deaf to Da-bin and Woo-jun’s words, would be foolish.
Right, let’s focus on what needs to be done. Having reached this conclusion, Seo-jung turned his back on Cha Yoon and addressed Da-bin and Woo-jun.
“Instead of standing around here, why don’t we go get something to eat first?”
“I’m absolutely fine with that.”
“Shall we?”
“Come to think of it, Da-bin must be hungry too. Yeah, let’s go eat first.”
Cha Yoon was the first to respond to the suggestion of getting lunch. His voice sounded clearer and louder than anyone else’s since he had quickly stuck close to Seo-jung’s side, but Seo-jung pretended not to notice and smiled only at the other two.
“Da-bin, what do you want to eat? Let’s have whatever you like.”
“Didn’t Da-bin say yesterday she wanted pasta and wood-fired pizza? Should we go for that?”
“Pasta and wood-fired pizza sound good. Is there a nice place around here?”
“I told you yesterday I know a good place, remember? Let’s go there. It’s not far from here.”
“Oh, the place where you raved about the prosciutto and arugula pizza? I’m totally up for it.”
When Seo-jung broke the ice by mentioning lunch options, Woo-jun and Da-bin’s conversation flowed naturally. As he listened to their exchange, he thought that if things continued like this, there wouldn’t be any problems.
“What about you, hyung?”
“Pardon?”
“I’m asking what you want to eat. Do you really want pasta and wood-fired pizza?”
“That’s fine with me.”
“Are you sure? You prefer Korean food over Western, don’t you?”
Cha Yoon spoke confidently, as if recalling data he had seen in the NEW room. Because of this, Seo-jung felt Woo-jun and Da-bin’s gazes turn towards him as they were sharing a phone in a friendly atmosphere.
He shouldn’t have given Cha Yoon an opening here. Seo-jung closed his eyes deeply before opening them and lifting the corners of his mouth.
“It’s true that I like Korean food, but today I’m in the mood for Western.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure? You’re not just pretending to want it when you actually don’t, right?”
“Absolutely not.”
Despite repeated assurances, Cha Yoon narrowed his eyes and met Seo-jung’s gaze, as if he couldn’t believe him. His look suggested he was determined to uncover even the slightest hint of a lie.
Seo-jung met Cha Yoon’s gaze without flinching, not backing down. As their staring contest continued, Da-bin, who had moved closer to them, touched Seo-jung’s arm.
“Seo-jung.”
“Ah, yes. Da-bin.”
“Are you really okay with this? If you don’t like it, we can eat something else. You know I’m not picky and eat everything well.”
“That’s right. Or we could split up and eat separately. We could divide into me and hyung, and those two over there.”
Da-bin shrugged and gestured for him to speak freely, as if she was concerned. Agreeing with her words, Cha Yoon offered an unsolicited solution. Seo-jung gave Cha Yoon a look as if telling him to be quiet. If such a thing were possible, the production team wouldn’t have planned this kind of date in the first place.
“I really want to eat it, so don’t worry and let’s go to the place Woo-jun suggested.”
“Hmm, alright. Then I won’t worry about it anymore?”
“Yeah, Da-bin, you just think about what you’ll order when we get there.”
“Okay, then let’s hurry. Now that we’ve talked about it, I’m really hungry.”
Da-bin grinned and rubbed her stomach as she naturally moved to Woo-jun’s side. Seeing the two of them together again, Seo-jung let out a sigh. If it was like this just deciding on lunch, he was already worried. As he was thinking that he’d need to keep a close eye on Cha Yoon to prevent him from causing trouble until the end of the date, he heard muttering from behind.
“We should just split up and eat separately. I want to eat alone with hyung…”
The voice full of disappointment seemed meant for Seo-jung to hear, but he pretended not to notice and followed Woo-jun and Da-bin as they walked ahead.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
