Chapter 27.2

Chapter 27.2

The image of him walking through the rain with that bag of alcohol filled her mind, leaving an odd, bittersweet feeling.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the bathroom door clicking open.

“Are you hungry?”

Min-gyu emerged, towel-drying his still-damp hair. Before she could answer, his hand swatted hers away from the bag she was rummaging through.

“No,” she said, shaking her head.

“Come on, you should eat something. Skipped lunch too, didn’t you?”

“I wasn’t hungry.”

She trailed off, mumbling about how she’d eaten too much the day before. It was true—her binge on snacks yesterday had left her feeling like she needed to detox today.

“You can’t starve just because you had a few snacks.”

He tossed the towel haphazardly into a laundry basket and raised an eyebrow.

“So, should we head out and grab something? Steak, maybe?”

“What? Out of nowhere?”

Yeon-ha frowned slightly. She repeated that she really wasn’t hungry, but Min-gyu, as usual, showed no intention of letting it slide.

“Always eating at home gets boring. Let’s go out. I was planning to anyway.”

“I said I’m fine. Didn’t you buy this to drink now?”

“This is for later. When you’re asleep, I’ll drink it by myself.”

They bickered for a while in front of the bottles, going back and forth with slight variations of the same argument—her insisting she didn’t want to eat and him countering that skipping meals all day didn’t make sense. When he remarked that this was probably why her health was so weak, Yeon-ha finally gave up, gesturing toward the window with her chin.

“But look at how much it’s raining.”

As she said, the rain had turned into a torrential downpour, hammering against the window. It was intense for a spring rain. Min-gyu glanced outside briefly before responding nonchalantly.

“We’re not eating nearby. We’ll go somewhere else.”

“…Huh?”

Her head tilted in confusion at his somewhat mismatched reply. He clarified in the same casual tone.

“When I say we’re going out to eat, I mean further away. Don’t worry about it.”

Yeon-ha hesitated before asking again, trying to make sense of his words. “What do you mean by that?”

“You don’t like walking around this neighborhood with me, do you?”

“….”

His matter-of-fact statement made her heart sink heavily. As her lips pressed tightly shut, Min-gyu paused before narrowing his eyes slightly.

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing,” he added, sounding almost flustered.

It was rare for him to show any hint of discomfort, but there he was, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

“Of course, it makes sense. I mean, I don’t exactly have the best reputation around here. What good would it do for you to be seen with me? People wouldn’t have anything nice to say about it. It’s just… obvious.”

His voice rose slightly as he continued, and though he sounded defensive, the words felt more like an awkward justification on her behalf. Yet, hearing him voice such thoughts made her flush with shame. It wasn’t that she hadn’t considered these things herself—if anything, he had perfectly articulated the concerns she had tried to ignore.

Whenever they went out together, Yeon-ha couldn’t help but scan her surroundings, hyperaware of people’s gazes. She knew that if anyone from the neighborhood recognized her, they’d start asking questions.

Rumors about her grandmother’s passing had already spread, but no one knew much about her circumstances after that. Many were aware she’d recently taken the college entrance exam, so if word got out that she was still living here, idle chatter would inevitably follow. If people saw the two of them together, the gossip would only escalate.

To avoid entangling herself in unnecessary rumors, she had tried her best to steer clear of attention.

She thought she’d hidden her discomfort well.

But Min-gyu had seen through everything.

The realization that he understood her so clearly startled her more than anything else. After a moment of silence, Yeon-ha parted her lips to speak.

“I don’t hate it.”

“….”

“I don’t hate walking around with you, so don’t say that.”

Her words seemed to catch him off guard, and he tilted his head slightly, as if trying to gauge her sincerity. His gaze fixed on her intently, searching for something, but Yeon-ha held his gaze without flinching.

Her heart prickled with guilt. Maybe he had already seen through the thin facade she was putting up.