Chapter 34.1

Chapter 34.1

André de Lafayette, the only son of the Chairman of the Lafayette-Lowell Group, which owned hotels and department stores across North America and Europe, and a direct descendant of a prestigious French noble family, found himself climbing out of a rooftop room window likea thief in nothing but his briefs.

Outside, dusk already fell, making it quite dark. However, it was still light enough that anyone passing through the alley could clearly see a large foreigner standing in just his briefs.

André, unable to believe the situation, placed a hand on his forehead and let out a long sigh. He then noticed the shirt in his hand. Glancing around, he hurriedly put his arms through the sleeves.

Something felt off.

His fist couldn’t make it through the sleeve and got stuck halfway. André raised his arm. The white shirt had shrunk as if it had been washed improperly. He lifted the hem with his other hand and spread it out.

It was Miran’s shirt.

“Huh.”

At that moment, the dog from the house behind, which had been watching André warily, started barking loudly. Soon, the barking spread like dominoes through the narrow alley, with dogs from the neighboring houses joining in. The pungent smell of grilled salted fish wafted from somewhere.

“Ugh!”

André covered his mouth, his shoulders shaking. The silhouette of the sturdy man quietly convulsed as he leaned against the wall. He pressed his fist to his mouth, trembling as if sobbing, and pounded the wall.

It was a cool and tranquil autumn night.

–

Miran slid the window open and peeked out. She called out to André in a hushed voice.

“André?”

André stood by the window, arms crossed, leisurely counting the stars in the sky. He heard the sound of Juran closing the back door and stepping out.

“Sorry to keep you waiting so long! I’m really sorry.”

Miran’s eyes widened when she saw that he was still in his briefs.

“It’s evening, so it must be quite chilly outside. Why didn’t you put on the shirt?”

Without a word, André thrust the problematic shirt towards her. Miran, looking bewildered at the shirt in his hand, covered her mouth.

“Oh my!”

A hearty laugh escaped through Miran’s lips as she took the shirt. Trying to stiffle laugh, she bit her lips, but André gently pushed her aside and lightly hopped over the window sill despite his large frame. He then sat on the bed, pulled back the blanket, and retrieved his crumpled shirt from underneath.

Miran was wearing an oversized T-shirt with a ribbon-adorned cat illustration, which she hastily put on before Juran came in. She plopped down on the bed, burying her face in the shirt and silently shaking with laughter.

André glanced at Miran as he buttoned his shirt. Even as he put on his pants, Miran couldn’t stop her quiet laughter. With a twitch of his lips, he composed his expression and gently pulled the shirt away from her face.

Miran, her face flushed from stifled laughter, took a deep breath. Tears formed in her eyes from laughing so hard.

His escapade was thrilling, addictive, and unnecessarily beautiful. But it was enough. It was time to return to their places.

Seeing André put on his jacket, the smile faded from Miran’s face.

“Why… where are you going?”

“I’m going back.”

When André calmly answered, Miran looked up at him with a crestfallen expression.

“Are you mad at me? I’m really sorry. My unni Juran came by unexpectedly to bring some side dishes… My unni is twenty years older than me. She’s like a mother to me, and she’s very conservative and strict, probably because she’s from an older generation. If she saw me alone with a man, especially a foreign man, she might faint on the spot…”

Miran rambled on, making excuses, as she gently tugged at his jacket sleeve. His cool green eyes glanced down at the sleeve and then back up to her face. Startled, Miran let go of the sleeve, and her stomach growled loudly. She blushed, rubbing her belly with an embarrassed expression.

“I had an early lunch, so I’m hungry. André, you haven’t had dinner either, right? My unni brought some stir-fried pork and other dishes. Unni is a really good cook. So, please stay for dinner, okay?”

“No, thank you. I hope your film shoot goes well tomorrow. And… Farewell.”

André politely declined the dinner invitation with a faint smile and bid Miran farewell. He glanced at his watch and started walking towards the front door. Miran quickly ran over and blocked his way.

“Don’t go.”

“……”