After stopping at a rest area along the way and driving leisurely, it took a little over five hours to reach the Yeosu tollgate.

“Honey, aren’t you very tired from driving so long?”

As Ina massaged Juwon’s shoulders with a concerned look, Juwon smiled and took her hand.

“No, I’m not tired at all, so don’t worry.”

“Still… I’m sorry for making you drive alone.”

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. I wasn’t bored at all because you kept talking to me from beside me.”

“Then that’s good. I’ll call my mom first.”

Ina picked up her phone and called her mom.

“Hello? Mom?”

-Oh, daughter. Have you arrived?

“Yeah, Mom. We just passed the tollgate. I think we’ll be there in about 20 minutes.”

-Is that so? Come quickly. You must be hungry. I’ll prepare the meal.

“Okay. Got it.”

As soon as she hung up, Ina’s heart started pounding.

“I’m getting nervous for no reason. Aren’t you nervous?”

When Ina asked, Juwon smiled, raising the corners of his mouth slightly.

“Now that we’re actually arriving, I’m a bit nervous too.”

“You’ll see when you meet her, but my mom is rather quiet. But my aunt is…”

“What about your aunt?”

“My aunt tends to talk a lot. And also… she might get excited when she sees you.”

“Why?”

“My aunt really likes handsome men.”

“…Hmm.”

Juwon tapped the steering wheel, seeming a bit embarrassed.

“You saw with Yeongmin, right? How much he liked you as soon as he saw you. Like mother, like son, I guess.”

“Hmm. I see.”

“Anyway, my aunt is quite talkative. But she’s a good person, so just bear with it.”

“Of course. She’s your aunt after all.”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

A moment later, Juwon’s car arrived at a three-story building.

“Is this it?”

“Yes. The seolleongtang restaurant on the first floor is my aunt’s, the second floor is rented out, and my aunt, mom, and Yeongmin live together on the third floor.”

“What about others? Aren’t your uncle or grandmother here?”

“My uncle passed away when Yeongmin was in elementary school, and my maternal grandmother passed away three years ago.”

“Oh…”

“Let’s go up quickly. Mom said she’s waiting with the meal prepared.”

“Oh. Okay. Just a moment.”

Juwon got out of the car, opened the trunk, and took out three large shopping bags.

“What’s all this?”

Ina looked at the shopping bags with wide eyes.

“Just some simple gifts I bought.”

“Looking at the size, it doesn’t seem simple.”

Juwon chuckled and took Ina’s hand.

“Let’s go up quickly. The adults must be waiting.”

“Oh? Oh. Okay.”

Ina took Juwon’s hand and pressed the intercom bell at the gate next to the first-floor store.

-Oh? Sister! Come up quickly!

Yeongmin opened the door with an excited voice, and Ina climbed the stairs with Juwon, her heart pounding.

“Brother Juwon!”

Before they even finished climbing to the third floor, Yeongmin shouted loudly and ran out in his socks.

Then he jumped and hugged Juwon tightly.

Juwon, who was holding the luggage, stumbled.

“Hey, Kim Yeongmin! Can’t you see he’s carrying things?”

At Ina’s words, Yeongmin startled and quickly let go, then held out his hand to Juwon.

“Brother. Give them to me. I’ll carry them.”

“No, it’s okay. Let’s just go in quickly. The two of them are waiting, right?”

“Of course! They’ve prepared a feast and are waiting.”

Yeongmin grinned widely and quickly led the way.

As soon as Yeongmin opened the third-floor entrance, the smell of food that you’d expect at a feast wafted out.

Ina swallowed her saliva and looked at Juwon, who gave her a bright smile.

“Mom! Aunt! Brother Juwon is here!”

Yeongmin shouted loudly as he entered the entrance.

‘Someone might think a brother returning from military service had come back.’

Ina smiled wryly as she entered the entrance with Juwon, and saw her mom and aunt standing right at the entrance.

“Mom. Aunt!”

Ina called out to the two in a cheerful voice, but the two seemed not to even see Ina as they stared at Juwon with the same expression, mouths agape.

They stared so intently that even Ina felt embarrassed, and then her aunt spoke as if entranced.

“Oh my, oh my… Our Yeongmin’s words were true, huh? Is this a person? Or a sculpture?”

“Aunt!”

Embarrassed, Ina quickly called out to her aunt.

“See? Didn’t I tell you? I said our brother is incredibly handsome, right?”

Not sure when he became ‘our brother’, Yeongmin said proudly to his mother with an excited face.

“Yes, it’s true, isn’t it? He’s even more handsome than our Nam Jin oppa, isn’t he?”

Juwon coughed once, seemingly embarrassed, then bowed at a 90-degree angle in greeting.

“Hello, Mother. Aunt. I’m Lee Juwon, Ina’s boyfriend.”

Ina’s mother and aunt, mouths still open, bowed their heads together in response to Juwon’s greeting.

“Brother. Don’t do this here, let’s go in quickly. Hurry.”

“Yes, yes. Don’t stand at the door, let’s go in quickly. Yes.”

The aunt ushered Juwon and Ina inside, gesturing hurriedly.

Ina’s mother still couldn’t say a word, her face surprised.

“You must have had a hard time coming such a long way, right? You must be hungry, so let’s eat first. Yes?”

“Aunt. Please speak comfortably. And this is a small gift.”

“Oh my, oh my! What is this?”

The aunt received the shopping bags Juwon handed her with wide eyes.

“It’s nothing much. Just a small token.”

Though he said it was nothing much, Ina glanced and saw it was a set of premium Korean beef and the most expensive brand-name cosmetics set from the department store.

Oh my… Our Juwon spent too much money.

Ina felt both sorry and grateful at the same time.

“Oh my, oh my. Why did you bring such expensive gifts when you came such a long way? You could have come empty-handed.”

“It’s not polite to come empty-handed when meeting elders.”

As Juwon smiled and said this, the aunt’s mouth opened wide again.

“Oh my… Not only is your face handsome, but your heart is incredibly handsome too, isn’t it.”

“Sister.”

Ina’s mother, who had been silent until then, finally spoke, grabbing her sister’s arm.

“Don’t keep people who came from far away standing, let’s eat quickly.”

“Oh. Yes. That’s right. Come this way quickly. Let’s eat.”

“Alright, I understand.”

“Brother. Give me your jacket.”

Yeongmin quickly took Juwon’s suit jacket and carefully hung it on a hanger.

Juwon, who had washed his hands alongside Ina, went to the kitchen and sat at the table.

Ina’s eyes widened at the table set with galbi-jjim, japchae, grilled pollack, raw fish salad, various namul dishes, and Yeosu’s specialty mustard leaf kimchi – it really looked like the table legs might break.

“We haven’t prepared much, but please eat a lot.”

At her mother’s words, Juwon smiled brightly and replied.

“Not at all. This is a feast, isn’t it? Everything looks so delicious, I don’t know where to start.”

Ina’s mother smiled and scooped a heaping bowl of rice for Juwon’s place.

Ina was shocked at the visual that looked like at least two bowls of rice combined.

“Oh my. Mom! This person doesn’t eat this much rice. It’s too much.”

“Oh my, what are you saying? With his height like a telephone pole, he needs to eat this much to maintain that build. Isn’t that right?”

At her aunt’s words, Juwon smiled and replied.

“Yes. I should eat about this much. I’ll eat it gratefully.”

“Yes, yes. Eat quickly. You must be hungry.”

“Yes.”

And as soon as Juwon picked up his chopsticks, Yeongmin picked up the largest piece of galbi and quickly placed it on Juwon’s rice bowl.

“Brother. Try this. The galbi-jjim is incredibly delicious.”

Juwon quickly picked up the galbi with his chopsticks, worried it might fall off the precariously high mound of rice.

“Oh my, our Yeongmin grew up as an only child and was so lonely, but after going to Seoul this time, he talked all night about getting a handsome brother-in-law.”

“Cough.”

Surprised by the word ‘brother-in-law’, Ina choked on her food while eating and started coughing.

“Are you okay?”

Juwon quickly grabbed a glass of water and held it directly to Ina’s mouth to feed her.

Ina drank the water without thinking, surprised, but her mother and aunt’s eyes widened at Juwon’s caring action.

The aunt smiled, raising the corners of her mouth, and put a spoonful of raw fish salad on top of Juwon’s rice bowl.

“Try this too. The raw fish salad I made is so delicious, you won’t notice if one of you dies while eating it, you know?”

“Ah, yes. I’ll enjoy it.”

Juwon replied and quickly devoured the food piled up on his rice bowl like accumulated points.

“Ah, Aunt. He’ll eat on his own, so stop giving him more. There’s already too much rice, what if you keep giving him more?”

At Ina’s rebuke, her aunt glanced at Ina and smirked.

“Oh my! Look at this girl! She’s really taking care of the man who will be her husband, isn’t she?”

“Aunt!”

As Ina called out with a reddened face, her aunt pretended not to hear and put a handful of raw fish salad in her mouth.

“Oh my! I don’t know who seasoned it, but the seasoning is amazing, isn’t it?”

As her aunt praised herself and continued to eat the raw fish salad, Yeongmin laughed gleefully.

Her mother kept looking closely at Juwon while eating, and Ina was worried as Juwon’s heaping bowl of rice looked like a mission that needed to be cleared.

The person most excited at this table was, of course, Yeongmin.

The stormy mealtime passed.

Juwon ate so much that he was worried his pants button might pop off, but he didn’t show it.

“I ate very deliciously. Thank you, Aunt. Mother.”

The aunt nodded, looking fondly at Juwon who was greeting them politely.

“Yes. We’re very satisfied that you enjoyed the meal, aren’t we? We’ll clean up quickly here, so go to the living room with Ina. We’ll bring out some fruit and coffee.”

“I’ll help clean up too.”

As Juwon rolled up his sleeves and spoke, her aunt and mother were startled and waved their hands.

“Oh no. How can a guest clean up? Go sit in the living room with Ina. Quickly.”

At her mother’s words, Juwon still hesitated, so her aunt pushed Juwon’s back.

“Oh my, how can a guest do this work? We’re both very quick with our hands, so we’ll clean up in no time, okay? Go sit down.”

At her aunt’s urging, Juwon reluctantly went to the living room with Ina.

Yeongmin, still grinning for some reason, sat right next to Juwon.

“Brother. After we drink coffee, do you want to go sightseeing in Yeosu? I’ll show you around.”

“Sightseeing?”

“Yes. Mom and aunt have to go down to the restaurant later anyway. They can’t leave their posts during dinner time because it gets busy.”

“Then shouldn’t I go down and help too?”

“Oh come on. What could you help with? Even when you offered to clear the table, mom and aunt were startled.”

“Still, I feel too sorry…”

“If you came as a guest, just act like a guest and leave.”

Ina took Juwon’s hand and patted it as she spoke.