part 46

"Hello." 

"Yes." 

As soon as we met at the airport, Seung-rok gave a brief answer. 

It was a dry, one-syllable greeting, like sand breaking apart. 

And that was it. 

Seung-rok immediately sat in the passenger seat and fell asleep. 

He slept so soundly that I wondered if he was dead. 

It was surprising how neatly and beautifully he slept. 

But seeing him like that made me feel a bit sad. 

I did not want to.

Actually, I wanted to scold myself for expecting something. 

Nothing had changed. 

We were still in that lukewarm employer-employee relationship. 

There was no problem whatsoever between Seung-rok and me. 

Maybe I should have welcomed this situation with open arms. 

As long as this proper relationship continued, my job was safe. 

It meant I wouldn't be buried in debt or kicked out of my comfortable home. 

But strangely, I felt a piece of my heart growing cold. 

Objectively, it wasn't a bad situation. 

The bigger the expectation, the bigger the disappointment. 

I didn't even know what I wanted. 

While feeling that strange confusion, my Mini Cooper slowly came to a stop. 

Following the navigation app without thinking, I had arrived home.

"Would you like to eat something?" 

I asked, with a hint of hope. 

"…I'm fine."

Seung-rok left only a shorter reply than usual and staggered to his room. 

Before, I felt he seemed tightly wound, not exhausted. 

Today, he looked more tired than usual. 

I watched him with a puzzled expression. 

I understood him.

He was tired and wanted to rest. 

It wasn't a bad thing. 

But why did I feel so puzzled? 

I took off my jacket because I felt heat. 

But it wasn't enough. 

I couldn't cool down. 

The heat finally left me when I entered the annex. 

Today, the annex felt especially cold because I was alone. 

Feeling lonely was new. 

I had lived in this house for half a year.

During that time, I was always alone, at least when I slept. 

I actually liked that solitude. 

It felt like my mom's nagging, which stuck to me like glue, had finally disappeared.

I enjoyed building my own castle in my tiny space. 

It was a place where I could do whatever I wanted without anyone bothering me. 

Just making café-style brunch by myself every day made me happy. 

But now, I didn't know why this place felt so lonely to the bone. 

The house felt as cold as an ice castle from 'the Frozen'. 

I wanted to cool down just a moment ago, but now I wanted to escape the cold that had seeped into my bones. 

It was fickle, but that's how I felt.

I had no choice but to rummage through the fridge on the first floor and take out some food. 

Wine and cheese crackers, just like the snacks Seung-rok had prepared not long ago. 

I even added red wine. 

It was the same meal he had set for me last week, just without him.

Sigh.

Finally, I grabbed my phone and connected it to the Bluetooth speaker. 

The song that played was always "Bloody Snow," just like last week.

I was being silly. 

Maybe I wanted to go back to that moment.

Drip.

I poured myself a glass of wine and started sipping.

"…"

How long had it been? 

I hadn't even finished three glasses, so it couldn't have been long. 

Then I suddenly remembered my jacket. 

I must have left it in the living room of the main house.

I sighed. 

I thought about getting it tomorrow, but my car keys and, more importantly, my phone were in the jacket. 

If my ex-boyfriend, who had been persistently contacting me lately, called and Seung-rok saw it… 

The thought alone was terrifying. 

I didn't know why I was worried about that.

I had only had a couple of glasses of wine, so going to the main house wasn't a big deal. 

I couldn't blame anyone. 

It was my own foolishness. 

I grabbed a flashlight and headed to the main house.

***

Knock, knock.

"…Yes?"

I felt a strange sensation on my arm. 

Something was tapping me. 

Slowly, I opened my eyes and saw Seung-rok standing in front of me.

"What are you doing here?"

"Huh?"

I blinked. 

Then, I started to remember. 

I had come to the living room to get my jacket. 

The temperature was just right, and I fell asleep, using the jacket as a blanket. 

Now, I was awake, as you can see.

I stared at Seung-rok. 

He always wore makeup perfectly. 

Even though he was a guy, his eyeliner was much thicker than mine. 

It suited him so well that I never really noticed it. 

Being a K-pop idol, it made sense.

But today was different. 

He had just finished showering, his hair was down, and his face was bare. 

His usual sharp and clean look was gone. 

Instead, his features looked delicate, softer than usual. 

Normally, he was like a popular leopard at the zoo, but now he seemed like a pet cat he raised himself. 

This natural look was more attractive to me, to be honest.

His hair was still wet from the shower. 

He wore comfortable pajamas. 

He always dressed neatly. 

Even after living together for half a year, I had never seen him in such relaxed clothes before. 

I wondered what it would be like if he took off those clothes. 

What was underneath?

Just seeing his slightly defined muscles made me imagine his body. 

The thought alone made my head spin.

I stared at him without realizing it, and Seung-rok spoke up.

"What are you doing, teacher?"

Not 'Mina,' but 'teacher.' 

The distant title made me pout a little. 

I asked with a hint of mischief.

"What about you, Seung-rok? You should be sleeping. It's already… 3 AM."

3 AM? 

Had I slept that long? 

I was surprised but continued without showing it.

"Why are you here, Seung-rok?"

"I'm hungry."

He glanced towards the kitchen. 

I couldn't help but laugh. 

There was a snack spread just like the one I had eaten earlier. 

Maybe he remembered the night we had wine last week. 

Maybe he set up the wine spread and found me here. 

The silly thought made me laugh.

I got up playfully and held out my hand.

"Give me some too."

"What?"

"That."

I pointed at the snacks and smiled. 

Seung-rok clicked his tongue.

"Really?"

He looked at me for a moment and then spoke.

"Go to bed."

"I can't. I want to sleep here."

"Why?"

"I'm drunk."

I said, sprawling out on the sofa. 

Usually, I was careful in the living room, worried Hayeon might come. 

But tonight, I was tipsy and didn't care. 

I lay down with a 'f it, whatever happens, happens' attitude. 

Seung-rok got up, grabbed the snacks from the kitchen, and put them in a plastic bag.

"Let's go to the annex. You can have snacks there."

"Why?"

"So the kid doesn't wake up."

He nodded towards the room. 

Right, it was 3 AM, and Hayeon and Grandpa were still asleep. 

I had to agree with him.

"…Okay."

We stepped outside and walked quickly through the night.

I looked up and saw the bright moon. 

It was so beautiful. 

As I was thinking about the moon, my foot slipped on the wet grass. 

I hadn't looked at the ground for a moment.

"Careful!"

Seung-rok caught me.

"…"

"…"

We stared at each other. 

Seung-rok's eyes seemed to ask if I did it on purpose.

"S-sorry."

He sighed and held out his other hand. 

I had no choice but to take it. 

My ankle hurt a little from the slip, but I couldn't help but smile a bit. 

We walked to the annex, holding onto each other in the dark.

As soon as we got to the annex, I plopped down on a chair. 

My leg hurt a little. 

Seung-rok sighed again, went to the fridge, and made an ice pack with a plastic bag. He put the ice pack on my ankle.

"Why were you wandering around drunk? You should have rested."

"I left my jacket."

"You could have gotten it tomorrow."

"…"

I stayed silent. 

I didn't want to say I was scared he might hear my ex-boyfriend's call.

Meanwhile, Seung-rok stared at the snacks on the table that I was about to eat.

Then he looked at his plastic bag. 

The snacks were just like the ones I had.

"We're in sync," he said.

I couldn't help but snicker a little. 

I didn't want to, but I felt like I had lost. 

As I was thinking that, Seung-rok sat down and poured another glass of wine in front of me. 

Then he took a sip.

"Why are you drinking?"

"Can't I drink if I want to?"

We had a brief staring contest. 

I was just teasing, not really telling him not to drink. 

But today, I felt like picking on everything he said.

"No, go ahead."

He gave me a slight glare and reached for a cracker.

It was the first time I saw him eating snacks like that. 

He usually only ate vegetables or tofu. 

I watched him eat with a curious expression. 

Maybe because I had slept a bit, I felt wide awake. 

It was hard to believe it was already dawn. 

Instead, I felt more and more alert. 

I didn't know if it was because the alcohol was wearing off or because I had woken up.

Then I finally understood the situation. 

I was alone with Seung-rok in a room late at night. 

It was a dizzying situation. 

But Seung-rok didn't seem to notice me at all, casually eating snacks in front of me. 

That made me feel annoyed. 

It felt like I was the only one conscious of him.

So I spoke without thinking.

"Can you eat right now?"

Seung-rok suddenly put his wine glass down on the table.

"Why?"

"…You're lucky, Seung-rok."

"Why?"

"There is no need to harbor expectations for you. This will prevent disappointment."

"No?"

He lowered his head to avoid my gaze and added.

"I tend to expect too much."

Then he looked at me with bright eyes and a radiant smile. 

He raised his hand and poked my arm with his finger. 

A jolt of static electricity ran through me. 

I couldn't tell if it was the electricity, my feelings, or my body reacting.