A Gentle Intruder (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 14
“Five thousand won is way too expensive.”
“Look who’s talking, young man! This is domestic, dried by my own hands this spring! How can you call this expensive?”
“It’s just a handful.”
“Goodness. Go soak it in water and see. You two could eat plenty and still have leftovers.”
“Just give me this much more, please.”
The shopkeeper, still haggling, noticed Da Jung standing behind and chuckled as if meeting a weary man. Da Jung, having just ended her call with Kyung Jun and turning off her phone, offered the shopkeeper a smile before glancing down at Jae Ho’s back. He was even more shamelessly bold and nonchalant than she’d imagined—yet it was a side of him only she seemed to know, and she didn’t dislike it.
“Mr. Jae Ho, I think we should go.”
“Miss! Is he your boyfriend or your husband? This man here is pickier than I thought!”
Da Jung hesitated for a moment, unsure how to respond, but Jae Ho spoke first.
“We’re not boyfriend and girlfriend yet, and definitely not husband and wife, ma’am. You know what ‘some’ is? ‘Some.’”
Jae Ho selected the basket that seemed fullest and handed it to the ajumma with a slick grin. The ajumma opened a black plastic bag and asked him in return,
“What’s a ‘seom’?”
“It’s not ‘seom,’ it’s ‘some.’”
“So what’s that, then?”
Jae Ho scanned the area with his eyes to see if there was anything else to buy. He picked up a mesh bag of onions and handed it over, grumbling.
“It’s walking at the pace of someone slow.”
He handed over the money.
“That’s what ‘some’ means.”
“If the young man just waits, that’s all he needs to do.”
The ajumma rebuked him. Jae Ho was about to say something more, but Da Jung grabbed his sleeve and spoke again.
“Mr. Jae Ho, we really should go now.”
**
The man who once prided himself on smooth handling suddenly drove terribly. Da Jung could tell from the tensed muscles twitching in his forearm that his grip on the steering wheel was tight enough to crush it. His braking at the speed bump was abrupt.
“My friend—he’s coming.”
It didn’t take long for the man, who she’d pegged as a gentle retriever, to reclaim the air of a black panther. Feeling uneasy about the atmosphere, Da Jung went out of her way to give a longer answer than needed.
“Oh, yes. He’s my childhood friend—we grew up together. Born in the same OB-GYN clinic, lived in the same neighborhood, and we’re so close we’re practically family.”
“He’s a man.”
“Oh… yes, he is a guy, but to me he’s just a friend…”
Jae Ho shifted his grip on the wheel and naturally took Da Jung’s hand. He looked like a male animal marking his territory.
“Is he staying over?”
His question carried a sharp edge, making Da Jung’s voice shrink.
“…He said he probably will.”
“He’s going to let him stay?”
“Oh…”
Realizing exactly what part upset him, Da Jung offered a gentle, reassuring smile.
“I get why you’re worried. He’s just a friend! He’s always been overly concerned about me—he’s coming because he worries when I’m alone. There are two rooms at the guesthouse, so of course we’ll sleep separately.”
Jae Ho’s furrowed brow didn’t ease; this clearly wasn’t the answer he wanted.
“Don’t worry too much. I’ve literally never once thought of Lee Kyung Jun as a man.”
Jae Ho let out a sound that resembled a scoff.
“It’s not about what Yoon Da Jung thinks.”
“What?”
“It’s whether he sees Yoon Da Jung as just a friend.”
“Of course he does!”
Da Jung smiled brightly, half-closing her eyes innocently.
“We really, really are just friends.”
Seeing Da Jung’s guileless eyes, Jae Ho was momentarily speechless.
“He said he’d come every weekend because he worried about me traveling alone. Seems like this week, he’s using his vacation days to come even sooner.”
Should he call her naive, or clueless?
Wasn’t she old enough by now to know that all men in this world were, without exception, wolves? Jae Ho included himself squarely in that category. His mind was swarming with thoughts of holding her hand, wrapping his arms around her waist, kissing her—so it felt rather ridiculous that only he was expected to stay rational.
One wolf by Yoon Da Jung’s side was more than enough.
Lee Kyung Jun’s gaze had always been dangerous. He’d been consistent and steady like that. Even back then, he’d always walked Da Jung home and turned back—but every time he left, reluctance dripped from his footsteps.
He’d pointlessly carry Da Jung’s bag, take her to school, go to the library together—all under the guise of “friendship,” while behaving more like a man than anyone else ever had.
And it was still the same today.
“There’s no such thing as platonic friendship between a man and a woman.”
“There is!”
“Don’t make him stay over.”
“Then where would he…?”
“That’s his problem to figure out.”
His fingers, clasping Da Jung’s hand, tensed tightly. Her hand felt soft—so delicate it might crumble like silken tofu if squeezed too hard. A secret thrill traveled through his palm, making his blood boil low in his core. He wanted all of her, entirely his.
“No man in his right mind lets the woman he likes sleep with another man.”
He tried to speak gently, yet his voice kept carrying a chill.
“Listen carefully. Let me make this clear: before being a friend, he’s a man. Even if you grew up like family, you’re not actually family.”
Jae Ho corrected her, point by point.
“Keep your distance, okay? Your ‘some’ guy doesn’t have much patience.”
Da Jung turned her head to quietly watch his profile as he drove. Outside the window, fiery red maple trees flew past like brushstrokes in a painting, while the man beside her frowned and spoke again.
“It’s not just patience—he’s also possessive. And he gets jealous easily.”
“…”
“Hmm?”
“…”
“Answer me.”
Actor Lee Jae Ho truly excelled at this kind of acting—the mesmerizing gaze that subtly ensnared a woman, the tone laced with obsession. Da Jung almost felt as if she’d slipped into a drama, playing the female lead showered endlessly with love by Lee Jae Ho. Who was he, anyway? Some Oh Chae Won-type.
She felt impossibly happy—yet suddenly frightened. She now vaguely understood how Cinderella must have felt wearing those glass slippers.
“Well… then…”
Da Jung spoke, sounding a little foolish.
“I’ll take your opinion into consideration. If my friend comes, I’ll look for another nearby guesthouse…”
At that moment, Jae Ho let go of her hand and picked up her phone resting on her thigh. While driving, he glanced down briefly and tapped out a number with casual indifference—yet his fingers looked firm and decisive. After entering his number, he pressed call once.
“My number.”
She’d obtained Lee Jae Ho’s personal number—something she’d long yearned for, something she’d never even dared dream of—with laughable ease. She imagined the faces of her fangirl friends who would faint from shock if they knew.
“I’ll be staring at my phone the entire time you’re with your friend.”
“…Why?”
“Why?”
Jae Ho shook his head and gave a hollow laugh.
“How can you even ask ‘why’?”
Arriving at the guesthouse, he parked skillfully and lightly tapped Da Jung’s cheek. His gesture seemed both adorably affectionate and oddly impatient, leaving Da Jung wide-eyed in surprise.
“The woman I like is going to be with another man. What other reason do I need?”
“…”
“…Honestly, only I’m burning up inside.”
Her heart pounded.
“Don’t make me ‘some’ alone.”
“But I never—”
“I’ll keep waiting.”
“…”
“I want you to think about me.”
**
Kyung Jun arrived in the late afternoon.
When the call came from the marketplace, Da Jung had actually wanted to tell him not to come. Listening to Kyung Jun’s cheerful voice—saying he was taking a day off—made her stare blankly at the broad back of the man beside her.
…He probably won’t like this.
The man finally decided to buy after inspecting the color and smell of the dried bracken, stood up, and opened his wallet. Just as she was about to say, “Don’t come,” Kyung Jun spoke.
[I’ve passed the tollgate. I’ll be there in thirty minutes.]Then he announced he’d be staying over. Da Jung was too flustered to stop him, and he took her silence as eager approval—fully convinced she’d obviously put him up for the night.
That attitude subtly irritated her. Kyung Jun had always been the kind of friend she wouldn’t mind sharing a bed with—but now her feelings prickled oddly. Startled by this unfamiliar, jagged emotion rising within her like a sharp pebble, Da Jung bit her lip and looked up at the man.
The very man who’d stirred this change in her heart was grumbling as he paid.
“We really, really are just friends.”
Though she’d answered with innocent confusion to his blatant jealousy, inwardly she’d wished: I really hope Lee Kyung Jun just turns back.
But contrary to Da Jung’s hopes, Kyung Jun inevitably arrived at the guesthouse. Smiling, he stepped out of his car, looked around at the scenery, and let out a sigh of admiration.
“Wow. The sea here is beautiful even the second time.”
Da Jung replied without smiling.
“What about Kyung Mi unnie? What will she do without her car?”
“She said she’ll use yours.”
“What kind of logic is that? You could’ve just brought my car yourself.”
Kyung Jun laughed brightly, as if he hadn’t thought of that. But did it really need that much thought? Da Jung followed his laugh half-heartedly as she watched him. After all, he had rushed here out of concern for her. She tried hard to smooth out the rough edges of her heart.
As usual, Kyung Jun came close and gently ruffled her hair. He asked softly if she’d slept well, whether she’d had nightmares, if she was cold—and wrapped her shoulders warmly.
It was their normal, everyday routine, yet it now made her uneasy. Jae Ho’s voice echoed in her ears, firmly labeling Kyung Jun as “a man.” Kyung Jun’s familiar touch now felt slightly burdensome.
“Let’s go inside.”
Kyung Jun pulled out his suitcase and shopping bags, then took Da Jung’s wrist. Da Jung instinctively pulled her hand away—her eyes instinctively flicking toward the second-floor terrace of Room 101.
Kyung Jun didn’t seem to mind her reaction much and continued speaking.
“You haven’t eaten a proper meal since you came here, right? Today, oppa will grill some meat for you. Look forward to it.”
“Did you bring meat?”
“Yeah. Pork and Hanwoo beef. Let’s have a barbecue.”
“But you have to light the fire. Can you even do that?”
Da Jung’s fingertips trembled slightly as she spoke. Recalling vividly how firewood would dance and flare up like a living thing, cold sweat broke out on her back. Ever since her older brother died in a fire, flames had become Da Jung’s deepest fear.
Kyung Jun knew this well.
“I’ll handle it. And it’s charcoal, not open flame. You’ll be okay.”
Though she rarely faced blazing fires—so it wasn’t usually noticeable—the flame represented direct, visceral terror to Da Jung. Whenever she went through hard times, she’d be haunted for days by nightmares of being trapped in fire.
“You need to overcome it little by little, Da Jung. It’s okay. Lighting charcoal is manageable. I’ll be right beside you.”
Kyung Jun stepped forward as if to hug her, his eyes fixed on her trembling pupils. But Da Jung stepped two paces backward.
“Okay, okay. You do it. Men are supposed to handle things like this anyway.”
Kyung Jun’s expression shifted oddly at her retreat, then slowly returned to his usual self.
“Lately, you keep seeing me as a man, huh? Making your heart flutter.”
Before she could counter, he took her hand and opened the front door. Da Jung, wearing an awkward smile, resisted briefly before being gently pulled inside.
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
_____
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