Between Us is X - Chapter 21

“A bit later, see you then. What could it be?” Eun Soo answered the phone with a puzzled look.

“Hello?”

“I’ll pick you up in front of your house later.”

Joo Han’s voice, lower than usual due to the early morning, came through. Eun Soo’s eyes widened.

“It’s close by, why bother? I can just walk to the cafe.”

“No. I’ll just come get you. See you later.”

“Huh? Okay.”

As soon as she answered, the call ended. Now fully awake, Eun Soo looked down at her phone and furrowed her brow.

What the? As if we’re really going on a date or something.

She suddenly felt flustered. It was an unfamiliar, tingling feeling. Come to think of it, it’s been so long since she’s even been on anything resembling a date.

‘Date, what date? It’s work overtime.’

Eun Soo shook her head lightly to rid herself of the pointless thoughts and got out of bed, heading to the bathroom.

She washed up as usual and tried to get ready as if she was going to work like any other day. But she kept getting distracted.

‘It’s not a date but we’ll be taking photos. And those will go on the broadcast. Then wouldn’t it be too plain? My makeup too, and my hair…’

But she didn’t want to try too hard and look like she put too much effort into it. In front of the mirror, Eun Soo picked up and put down the curling iron, picked up and put down a darker colored lipstick, before finally letting out a hollow laugh.

“What am I doing…”

In the mirror, overlapping her troubled expression, were old memories.

At twenty-two, she and her friend Joo Han became lovers.

On the day they were first meeting after defining their relationship, in other words before their first date, Eun Soo was caught up in worries she never imagined.

‘Can I go as usual? Dressing up too much would be embarrassing. But if I go too casually and the atmosphere becomes awkward? I can’t exactly ask Kim Joo Han what he’s going to wear.’

Last week, when they were still just friends and made plans to go see an exhibition by Eun Soo’s favorite artist, she had no idea she’d be worrying about this.

‘I was only worried about what we would eat after seeing the exhibition…’

After hesitating a while longer, Eun Soo made up her mind and opened the closet. She took out a dress she had bought but never worn, and undid her usually tied up hair. She also took out all the makeup she had shoved in the drawer and rarely used.

It was fine up until she left the house after getting fully ready. She headed out confidently with a spring in her step for the first time in a while, but started getting nervous as she got closer to the meeting place.

‘What do I do? I shouldn’t have bothered doing something I usually don’t. Should I just go home?’

Hesitating in front of the meeting place, Joo Han, who was a head taller than most, came into Eun Soo’s sight. Before she could greet him, their eyes suddenly met as he turned toward her.

Thump.

Even though she didn’t do anything wrong, her heart sank and started pounding irregularly. It seemed like she missed her chance to run away. She tried to wave and greet him as casually as possible, but Joo Han suddenly turned his body.

“Huh?”

Did he not see me? No, our eyes definitely met?

Not only did Joo Han turn around, he even started walking away in the opposite direction. Eun Soo quickly chased after him.

“Kim Joo Han!”

Eun Soo lightly grabbed Joo Han’s arm.

“Where are you going?”

Joo Han, who had abruptly stopped walking while being grabbed, spoke without turning around.

“Wait, don’t look at me for a second.”

Eun Soo blinked her eyes, dumbfounded.

“What, were you trying to avoid me? Why, are you embarrassed of me?”

“No. That’s not it.”

Eun Soo stared at Joo Han’s back.

Come to think of it, Joo Han looked a bit different too. He was wearing a crisp shirt and black slacks, the kind he would only wear when he had a presentation assignment at school. His hair also looked styled, although she could only see the back of his head.

Then Eun Soo noticed. Joo Han’s ears and the back of his neck peeking out were noticeably red.

Joo Han turned slightly. Even his cheeks were flushed. As soon as their eyes met, he lowered his gaze as if tired and mumbled.

“It’s not that I’m embarrassed of you, it’s that I’m embarrassed…”

It was an expression and tone she was seeing and hearing for the first time.

The moment the familiar Joo Han felt like a strange man, Eun Soo’s cheeks also flushed hotly.

It was because she knew exactly how Joo Han felt and why he couldn’t look at her properly.

That day, she learned. The feeling of liking someone could be visible. It could be tangible.

Just like how you can see the air through the movement of clouds and wind, feelings too could be this vividly seen, heard, and felt through the look in the eyes, the color of the cheeks, the sound of the pounding heart, the warmth of the hand that gently grabbed hers.

The moment of realization was still vivid. The memory was still vivid too. It’s just that the emotion from that time had inevitably faded and couldn’t be felt again.

Those were good times.

Eun Soo, who had muttered to herself like an old person, took her gaze off her stern expression in the mirror and turned around.

She opened the closet again and took out a different outfit. It was a dress that looked so pretty in the store window, but somehow seemed too flashy once she brought it home, so she never wore it out.

After changing clothes and doing a bit more with her hair and makeup, time was tight. Eun Soo hurriedly gathered her things and headed out, recalling something at the sound of the front door closing with a beep.

‘Ah right, I need to change the passcode.’

The passcode Joo Han had set before was 0511. Numbers she couldn’t forget even if she tried not to remember. She had meant to change it right away out of annoyance but kept putting it off because she was distracted or out of time like today.

In the end, Eun Soo couldn’t change the passcode today either and quickly headed down the stairs. Joo Han’s car was parked right in front of the house.

“You’re here early.”

Eun Soo peeked her face through the open passenger window to greet him, then opened the back door and threw in her bag with clothes to change into later as if tossing it. She then got into the passenger seat and sneaked a glance at Joo Han.

Actually, after thinking about old memories earlier, a ridiculous curiosity crept up. If she showed up looking very different from usual like back then, how would Joo Han react now?

But it was Eun Soo who was internally startled. Coincidentally, Joo Han was also dressed similarly to that time long ago. A shirt and slacks, even a hairstyle that half-exposed his forehead.

But while the style was similar, the vibe was completely different. The white shirt at twenty-two had a fresh and neat feel, but stretched taut across the now broader shoulders and chest, the white shirt at twenty-nine looked somewhat dangerous.

The hair was also different despite being styled the same way. It was even more noticeable how his eyes and jawline had gotten much sharper. It was the face of a definite man, with no traces of boyishness left.

As Eun Soo was caught up in the feeling of trying to tease him but instead getting punched in the heart, Joo Han opened his mouth.

“You look pretty.”

“Huh?”

“I said your outfit is pretty. It suits you well.”

She became even more flustered at the plain reaction. Eun Soo replied with a slightly suspicious and confused gaze.

“Thanks. You too, today you’re kind of…”

“Kind of?”

“Kind of like a CEO.”

“Then am I a CEO or a director?”

Joo Han, who had no idea what impressions and adjectives were contained in the five syllables of ‘like a CEO’, responded as usual and pressed the navigation.

“Where do we go first?”

“For now, Lotty Land. We’ll go in and stay until 12. Then move to the cafe. We’ll be there for about 2 hours, then head to the Han River to get some picnic concept shots, and then go to . We’ll take photos while having dinner at the restaurant. Going with the program’s intention, we’ll firmly take on the office romance concept while incorporating some promotion…”

Joo Han’s mouth slowly opened as he listened to the fake date briefing flowing smoothly.

“Is this schedule possible in one day?”

“We have to make it possible. But since all the locations are near Seoul, I wonder if it’ll seem a bit unnatural…”

“Say we didn’t have time to go far because we were busy.”

Knowing Eun Soo’s personality of doing everything properly once she starts, Joo Han quickly cut her off, worried she might suggest going to the airport right now.

“Okay, got it for now. Let’s get moving quickly.”

As they drove on the unfamiliar road, Joo Han stared straight ahead. He seemed focused on driving, but in fact, all his attention was drawn to the seat next to him.

Whether it was perfume, shampoo, or makeup, an excessively sweet and dizzying scent wafted from Eun Soo’s direction. It wasn’t that strong, but to Joo Han, it felt like a fatal fragrance. He kept feeling suffocated and uncomfortable around his heart.

Actually, Joo Han was also realizing it.

Forget the scent, he had been in this state from the moment he saw Eun Soo coming out the door earlier.

He had expected her to come out pretty since she always dressed neatly even when going to work, but he was startled by how pretty she was to this extent.

He remembered feeling exactly like this on their first date a long time ago. That time, he couldn’t even make proper eye contact with Eun Soo all day.

At first, Eun Soo was hurt, not knowing why he kept avoiding her. Later when she found out the real reason, she played a prank of deliberately bringing her face close to his, making him break out in a cold sweat.

‘Stay calm. That was early 20s.’

Still, he was secretly proud of himself for being a bit older now and complimenting her ‘pretty outfit’ without showing his fluster. The thought of having to do that all day made him feel momentarily overwhelmed, but he decided to have confidence.

‘It’s not even a real date now.’

For something that wasn’t a real date, the fact that it took him quite a while to get ready in the morning was something he chose to ignore.

Joo Han, who had taken out as much tension as possible from his hands and shoulders gripping the wheel, opened his mouth.

“By the way, where is the location of that cafe you said we’re going to after the amusement park…”

Joo Han glanced to the side, about to change lanes, and faltered. Eun Soo was absentmindedly looking at her phone with her legs crossed, causing her skirt to ride up slightly, revealing her fair thighs. Actually, it wasn’t even that short, but Joo Han’s heart sank helplessly.

Unaware that she had just seriously obstructed the driver’s vision, Eun Soo replied without even lifting her head.

“Ah, that place. It’s in Paju and they said it takes about 40 minutes. Jae Rim told me to go there before. She said there aren’t many people yet but word will spread quickly and it’ll get crowded soon.”

“Oh, I see.”

After driving for a while without saying anything and only looking ahead, Joo Han tentatively spoke.

“But come to think of it, will you be able to ride the rides wearing that skirt?”

Eun Soo turned to him with a dumbfounded look.

“You were thinking of riding the rides? I was just planning to take evidence photos.”

As far as Eun Soo remembered, Joo Han didn’t like rides and such. Joo Han’s belief was that he didn’t see the point in voluntarily paying money to endure fear and danger.

For that reason, the two of them had never been to an amusement park, which was a rather common date spot.

Eun Soo’s doubtful gaze pricked Joo Han’s cheek. Joo Han tried to answer nonchalantly.

“I was thinking the same, but I wondered if you might have opened your eyes to the joys of rides in the meantime.”

“What’s that… Are you talking about yourself?”

“No. My eyes aren’t open either. We’re here.”

After parking the car, the two headed to the entrance of Lotty Land. Walking side by side on the crowded path connected to a large shopping mall, Eun Soo muttered.

“But why are there so many kids in school uniforms?”

My Ex-Girlfriend Is The Regent In The Female-dominant World (Male lead transmigrates to the matriarchal world)

Two years ago, Gu Sui picked up a homeless woman in ancient costume from the street.

Apart from occasionally claiming to be a princess from a female-dominant country due to illness, her figure, appearance, intelligence, and martial arts skills were impeccable.

Naturally evolving from roommates to girlfriends, as time went on, Gu Sui found it increasingly difficult to tolerate her queen syndrome.

“Mu Jiulu, can you stop controlling me inside and out? Let’s break up.”

Gu Sui made a breakup call, and since then, he couldn’t find any trace of her.

A year later, Gu Sui, who was planning to move, woke up the next day and found himself in a different place.

“Young Master, today is the day you choose your Wife-master through martial arts competition at Jade Dew Pavilion. Please get up quickly.”

Gu Sui: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?

As the only son of a general’s mansion in a female-dominant dynasty, the young empress personally issued a decree allowing Gu Sui to select his Wife-master through martial arts competition. Whoever could defeat him could marry him.

Gu Sui: “……”

He didn’t inherit the original owner’s martial prowess, so anyone could defeat him! And what the hell is a Wife-master?

Forced to come to Jade Dew Pavilion, the densely packed women below made Gu Sui’s agoraphobia act up, and his face was full of resistance.

Until he saw the Regent sitting on the second floor, with a smile on the corner of her lips, her eyes wicked and nonchalant.

Hmm… she looked a little familiar.

It turned out that the Regent also found him a little familiar.

Mu Jiulu fiddled with her bone clasp, her deep gaze locked on the man who was out of place in this world.

“Finally, I found you.”

Male transmigrates into female-dominant world

One-sentence summary: What goes around comes around, taking turns in the crematorium

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