Chapter 70
“……”
Cha Yoon, who seemed like he was about to cause a scene, ended up closing his mouth without saying a word. What put the brakes on his actions was Ki Seo-jung’s profile. The moment he saw that face, he remembered what Seo-jung had told him in the garden the night before.
‘If Cha Yoon acts like that, everyone will dislike him.’
Why was he dwelling so much on such an insignificant comment? Why should he care if others disliked him or not? Since when did he start caring about such things?
It wasn’t like him to hold back what he wanted to say out of fear of being disliked. Unsatisfied with himself, he tried several times to speak up, but his throat felt blocked, and no sound came out.
After repeated failures, Cha Yoon lost his resolve. Unable to say anything, he deflated like a balloon, reducing the volume in his chest, and emptied his drink to quench the burning inside.
Even after cooling his insides with cold beer, an irritating emotion remained like residual heat. Cha Yoon suppressed his unpleasant mood and quietly kept his seat. He was told to act as he pleased without bothering others, not to pretend to be in a good mood.
After some time passed like this, a small vibration sound brushed his ear. Cha Yoon reflexively turned his eyes towards Ki Seo-jung.
His intuition was correct. He spotted Ki Seo-jung picking up the phone he had placed on the floor. Cha Yoon was certain that this vibration was related to the “second date” that had been a topic of lengthy conversation earlier.
Realizing this, Cha Yoon unconsciously leaned his body slightly towards Ki Seo-jung. He also made sure to pull his upper body back a bit to see the entire screen.
“Kim Sae-young has chosen Ki Seo-jung as her second date partner.”
“Shi…”
Cha Yoon, who read the text on the screen as naturally as if it were his own phone, couldn’t hold back a curse. Starting with Seo Min-ha, then Song Joo-ah, Yeo Ji-yoon, and Shin Da-bin, and now even Kim Sae-young. It was a grand slam achievement.
What on earth was he doing to make all the female contestants in the X House show interest in Ki Seo-jung? Well, with no flaws to speak of, it would be stranger if they didn’t fall for him. Cha Yoon quickly answered his own question, a thought he had already had several times.
As he was glaring at the name “Kim Sae-young” while chewing on his plump lower lip, he felt a slight sting on the side of his face. Cha Yoon turned his head to the side. What he faced then were Ki Seo-jung’s eyes.
“……”
“……”
Even after their eyes met, Ki Seo-jung didn’t say anything. He just stared with an expressionless face.
Did he notice that I peeked at his phone? Cha Yoon felt like he had been caught doing something bad, but he quickly regained his composure. At times like this, it was best to act confidently.
“What?”
Remembering the saying that the best defense is offense, Cha Yoon spoke as if he hadn’t done anything suspicious. In response to this brazen question, Seo-jung, who had been silent, finally opened his mouth after a long pause.
“Why do you keep looking?”
A direct question came out without any cushioning. Cha Yoon flinched but quickly composed himself and rapidly spilled out words.
“What are you talking about? I’ve never looked at your phone. Why would I bother sneaking a peek at your phone? I don’t care at all about how many date requests you’ve received or who asked you out.”
If I say this much, he’ll think I didn’t look at his phone. Whew. Cha Yoon took a deep breath and deliberately puffed out his chest.
The rising intonation at the end of his sentences, adding words that weren’t asked, and his long-winded explanation, coupled with his uneasy shifting eyes – he looked typically like someone who had been hit right on the mark, but Cha Yoon himself felt relieved. As he finished speaking and was slowly relaxing his tensed shoulders…
Ki Seo-jung’s next words made Cha Yoon flinch again.
“I never mentioned a phone.”
…Shit. Cha Yoon bit the soft flesh inside his mouth, realizing he had tripped over his own words. What should I say? No matter how much he thought, he couldn’t come up with anything. Finally, Cha Yoon decided to resort to his specialty.
“Anyone would think you were talking about a phone, right? There’s context and a flow to the situation! Don’t you agree? If you ask like that, even if it wasn’t me, anyone else would naturally think you were talking about a phone. It’s not me being weird.”
Cha Yoon raised his voice defensively, feigning innocence. It was exactly like the saying, “The one who farted gets angry first.” As if that wasn’t enough, he nudged Soo-ho, who was enjoying himself next to him.
“Hyung, why…”
“Am I wrong?”
“What?”
“I’m asking if what I said was wrong.”
“Yoon hyung, what are you…”
Soo-ho hesitated, confused by the demand for an answer without any context. Meanwhile, as Soo-ho didn’t give the answer he wanted, Cha Yoon’s expression grew increasingly grim. Flinching at Cha Yoon’s contorting face, Soo-ho looked back and forth between Seo-jung and Cha Yoon before shaking his head.
“Ah, you’re not wrong. Yoon hyung is right. Yeah…”
“You heard that? Even Kim Soo-ho says I’m right. Stop making innocent people look bad.”
A voice tinged with disappointment was heard from behind, saying, “But hyung, I’m Jung, not Kim…” but it was already after Cha Yoon was done with him. Cha Yoon completely ignored the voice and wore a triumphant expression.
Seo-jung couldn’t help but frown. It was obvious to anyone that it wasn’t natural at all, and Cha Yoon was the one being strange. Seo-jung took a deep breath and opened his mouth as if he had more to say. Just as Cha Yoon was about to raise his guard to counter whatever he might say…
Another small vibration sound was heard. It came from the phone Ki Seo-jung was holding.
Seo-jung glanced sideways, exhaled the deep breath he had taken, and turned his head away. Cha Yoon felt relieved to escape the suspicious gaze, but only for a moment.
He rolled his eyes again. He felt the need to know who else had asked Ki Seo-jung out on a date. He didn’t have time to think about ‘why’ he felt such a need.
As Cha Yoon was gradually tilting his straight back to peer at the small screen, Seo-jung, unable to ignore the blatant stare at his phone, turned his gaze towards him. Cha Yoon, who had been peeking over his shoulder, quickly averted his eyes as soon as Seo-jung’s gaze returned.
Ahem, he cleared his throat and needlessly stabbed a piece of ham and melon with his fork.
“Try this.”
“What? I don’t like th— oomph!”
“Oh, you’re eating it well.”
This time, Jung Soo-ho was the sacrificial lamb. Cha Yoon grabbed Soo-ho’s shoulder and forcefully shoved the ham and melon into his mouth. He had stuffed it in so carelessly that melon juice was dripping down Soo-ho’s chin, but that wasn’t his concern.
After pretending to focus on Soo-ho for a while, Cha Yoon slowly glanced to the side. Fortunately, Seo-jung’s head had returned to its original position.
Contrary to his worry that Seo-jung might have put away his phone due to the time he had wasted, Ki Seo-jung was still looking at the screen. Was the content really worth looking at for so long? It was just a one-line message. Cha Yoon briefly rolled his eyes but quickly erased his puzzlement. Whatever it was, it was good for him as he was curious about the new message’s sender.
Just as he was about to lean in once more to look at Ki Seo-jung’s phone, Seo-jung’s finger, which had been motionless on the phone, moved. With just two taps, the cute pink-bordered mailbox window disappeared without a trace.
And what took its place on the screen was half of Seo-jung’s expressionless face and Cha Yoon’s own face staring intently at the screen.
What’s this? Cha Yoon couldn’t understand the situation unfolding before his eyes for a moment. He just continued to make eye contact with himself on the screen. When he closed his eyes, the Cha Yoon on the screen closed his eyes, and when he opened them, the Cha Yoon on the screen opened them too.
After staring at the mirror-like screen for a while, Cha Yoon suddenly shouted and jerked back. He had finally realized. Seo-jung, unable to bear it any longer, had turned on the front camera.
“Ah, shit!”
At the loud curse that cut through the drinking party, the gazes of the contestants who had been chatting in small groups converged. Upon identifying the culprit who had disrupted the atmosphere, all the contestants wore expressions that suggested this was not surprising at all. It’s Cha Yoon again. There’s not a single day that passes quietly. Their faces clearly displayed such sentiments.
For the first time in his life, Cha Yoon felt his face flush with shame. Of course, it wasn’t because of the stares from people who had nothing to do with his life. It was Ki Seo-jung’s eyes that he had met over the phone screen. That’s what made him feel the emotion of embarrassment.
Cha Yoon stood up abruptly. He made sure to step back carefully to avoid accidentally hitting the table again. The contestants’ gazes followed Cha Yoon’s face as he stood up, but Ki Seo-jung was an exception. He simply put his phone in his pocket, like someone who had achieved their goal.
Would it have been better if he had reacted like the others? Seeing him just putting away his phone with an expressionless face made the shame double. Unable to bear staying in his seat any longer, Cha Yoon turned around and left the living room.
“Yoon hyung, where are you going!”
“Cha Yoon!”
As he climbed the stairs with heavy steps, he occasionally heard voices calling him from behind. Of course, even among those voices, the one Cha Yoon was waiting for was not heard.
