Chapter 3.1

Chapter 3.1

When Yeon-ha stepped out after showering, the dining table was already set in the living room. Feeling a bit awkward, she sat across from Min-gyu. They usually ate at the dining table, but occasionally, they spread out a small table like this. It all depended on Min-gyu’s mood at the time.

“Next time, help me set the table,” she said, feeling guilty.

Min-gyu looked at her as if he’d heard something surprising. “All I did was take things out of the fridge. There’s nothing to set up. Now, eat up.”

“…Thanks for the meal.”

Yeon-ha knew that he wouldn’t start eating until she did, so she picked up her spoon. The rice Min-gyu had made early that morning was warm, and the side dishes, recently replenished, were abundant. Min-gyu usually returned before dinner, but sometimes he was out all day. When that happened, he took extra care to ensure Yeon-ha had her meals.

“When I lived alone, I never bothered with all this,” he had said once. That was probably true. When Yeon-ha first came here, the fridge had only a single bottle of soju. It seemed he mostly ate out.

The space was quiet, devoid of a TV, with only occasional birdsong filtering through the slightly open window. Yeon-ha, having just woken up, wasn’t very hungry but tried to eat diligently. She kept sneaking glances at the man across from her.

‘He looks upset,’ she thought.

She hadn’t noticed earlier, but now it was clear he wasn’t in a good mood. Yeon-ha prided herself on being perceptive. She didn’t ask outright, but it seemed something had gone wrong with the work Min-gyu had mentioned doing at dawn. Just a guess, but judging from his usual patterns, he might have been trying to find more work.

“No matter how much you look, it won’t happen anytime soon. Yesterday, I wasn’t thinking straight,” he said.

“…….”

Yeon-ha hesitated at Min-gyu’s sudden indifferent tone. She opened her eyes wide, trying to understand what he meant, then frowned as she grasped the vague implication.

“Don’t say weird things.”

“Then stop looking at me and eat your food.”

Just as Min-gyu was about to take a big bite, he looked into Yeon-ha’s eyes and chuckled. He seemed quite amused by her slightly trembling gaze and then added something out of the blue.

“What are you going to do when you start missing me?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, it looks like you really enjoy looking at my face.”

He rambled on, saying she should look as much as she wanted while she was there, but it would be a problem if she stared so intensely. Yeon-ha let him speak and quietly focused on her meal, feeling slightly relieved that his mood seemed to have improved a bit.

Then, a thought crossed her mind, and she looked up.

“Hey.”

Min-gyu, who had already finished a bowl, made a gesture for her to continue. Holding her spoon, Yeon-ha quickly spoke.

“I can cook if we have the ingredients.”

“Hmm?”

“Buying side dishes every time isn’t great. Maybe I should do some grocery shopping and cook…?”

Although it wouldn’t be as delicious, she added sheepishly. Min-gyu’s gaze turned peculiar as he looked at her.

“Why would you do that?”

“Huh?”

His reply sounded almost harsh, and Yeon-ha was momentarily taken aback. His sharp, humorless expression was definitely intimidating. He glanced at her bewildered face, then picked up the water cup next to him.

“Did I bring you here to cook for me?”

“If that were the case, I wouldn’t have asked you to live with me.” Min-gyu’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he gulped down water. Yeon-ha watched him, noting his obvious discomfort. Min-gyu set the cup down and exhaled deeply, his chest heaving in a way that seemed almost ominous.

“I told you, you don’t have to do any housework or anything. Just lie around and focus on getting your ankle better. I might not be able to pamper you, but I said I’d make sure you were comfortable while you’re here.”

That’s true, but… Yeon-ha sighed inwardly. She hadn’t intended to follow his instructions to laze around so diligently. She really hadn’t expected things to turn out this way.

“Just until your ankle heals, let’s live together.”

His calm face when he said that now seemed to overlap with his current cold expression. Even back then, despite his words, he had an oddly intimidating aura.

“I’ll take care of everything while you’re here.”

She had dismissed his words as just talk. She never imagined she would end up being so idle. She was used to being busy and tired, struggling with her tough circumstances. This kind of routine was entirely unfamiliar.

Anyway, that’s why she thought she should at least make some side dishes. She felt guilty about Min-gyu always buying food from the nearby store. Having grown up watching her grandmother run a restaurant, she was quite capable of cooking decent meals.

But it seemed Kwon Min-gyu didn’t like the idea.