After thinking for several days, Ha Yeon finally accepted Min Je’s offer. No matter how she thought about it, there was no better option in her situation.

After finishing her last part-time job, Ha Yeon packed her bags late in the evening and headed to Ji Hoo’s house.

“Welcome.”

“Elder sister!”

Mi Ran, the housekeeper, and Ji Hoo, who had been waiting after receiving advance notice, greeted her with bright smiling faces.

“Please, take good care of me.”

As she bowed and entered, Mi Ran showed her to the room.

“If there’s anything uncomfortable while staying, don’t hesitate to tell me.”

“Thank you. You can speak casually to me.”

“Then, shall I do that?”

Mi Ran smiled and immediately spoke casually. Mi Ran, who appeared to be in her mid-50s, seemed to have quite a good personality.

Ha Yeon entered the room she was shown and looked around. Wow, an exclamation spontaneously escaped.

A king-sized bed, desk, dressing room, and even a small bathroom – this space would be her room from now on.

‘It’s much better than the studio I used to live in.’

Ha Yeon looked down at the large carrier she had dragged in. How embarrassing that after unpacking everything, there was only one carrier. It was truly a funny yet sad story.

After roughly tossing the carrier aside, Ha Yeon went straight to Ji Hoo’s room.

“I’m so happy that elder sister is living with us in our house.”

“Are you that happy?”

Ha Yeon gently stroked the child’s round forehead with a face full of smiles.

Then she pulled out a book from the bookshelf.

“Elder sister will read you a book. Now it’s time for good children to go to dreamland.”

“Okay.”

The child obediently replied. Judging by the sparkle in his eyes, he wasn’t sleepy but rather expecting how she would read the book. Ha Yeon smiled and slowly began to read.

“It was a morning in December when white snow was falling heavily. Jamie, looking at the world that had turned pure white, could not be as happy as before. Because…”

The child’s voice, which had been asking questions and agreeing several times, was no longer heard. Instead, a steady and even breathing sound could be heard.

‘So this is why they say sleeping children are like angels.’

Ha Yeon kissed Ji Hoo’s forehead once before quietly slipping out of the child’s room.

Grumble.

But of all times, her stomach was screaming that it was hungry. Only then did Ha Yeon remember that she had skipped dinner.

She wasn’t shameless enough to rummage through the kitchen on her first day, so now what should she do…

As Ha Yeon sighed and headed towards her room, her eyes met Min Je’s in the large portrait.

‘Oh my, I was startled.’

She would have to be careful from now on. She really thought their eyes had met and her heart sank.

Slightly annoyed, Ha Yeon put her hands on her hips and glared at the portrait.

“Is being handsome everything?”

But staring at the portrait that exuded sexiness bordering on decadence, it seemed that being handsome was indeed everything. Ugh, this dirty world where looks are paramount!

Unable to contain her increasingly agitated emotions, she pointed her finger at the portrait and said,

“No matter how busy you are, shouldn’t you at least come home when your son is sleeping!”

While Kang Min Je might be her favorite, disappointing things were still disappointing. As Ha Yeon, who had seen a disappointing side of him as a father on the first day, snorted, someone answered from behind her.

“I’m sorry about that.”

Ha Yeon doubted her ears as she blinked rapidly.

It couldn’t be. Why was she hearing Kang Min Je’s voice? Was she hearing things because she had been thinking too much?

Ha Yeon turned her head, creaking like a broken machine. And her eyes met directly with a pair of eyes looking at her, leaning diagonally against the wall.

‘Oh my goodness! It’s real?’

Face to face with eyes far deeper and sharper than those in the portrait, her whole body froze as if petrified.

“Ha, ha, ha, I’ve been engrossed in a drama lately. I was just imitating some famous lines from the drama.”

Swallowing curses at her own crude excuse, Ha Yeon rolled her eyes, wondering how to get out of this crisis.

“Ah, is that so?”

When Min Je responded mechanically, Ha Yeon, feeling embarrassed, quickly said to leave the place:

“Well, then I’ll be…”

Grumble grumble grumble.

Of all times, an enormous sound erupted from her stomach.

“How many days have you been starving?”

He said, tilting his head slightly sideways with a sly look. It must have been her imagination that his sharp gaze suddenly turned sympathetic.

Embarrassed, Ha Yeon blushed and stammered a reply.

“Ah, it’s not… I just didn’t eat dinner today.”

His head tilted more to the side, as if he couldn’t understand.

“Wait a moment.”

After saying that, Min Je carefully opened and entered Ji Hoo’s room. Only then did Ha Yeon realize that he had come to see the sleeping Ji Hoo.

Min Je approached the sleeping child, muffling his footsteps.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he looked down at the child sleeping like an angel and stroked his forehead once.

The sight of the sleeping child not only melted away the fatigue of a hard day but also made him feel like he wasn’t qualified to be a father.

Ending the day by looking at the sleeping Ji Hoo was like tasting both sweetness and bitterness simultaneously, like two sides of a coin. So when he saw the sleeping child, he usually had various thoughts, but today, unlike usual, he had only one thought.

‘The sound was incredible.’

He couldn’t help but snicker.

Earlier, he had tried so hard not to laugh in front of her embarrassed face that his stomach had nearly cramped. That’s why he had fled into the child’s room right away.

‘How can such a sound come out?’

The petite woman must be raising some kind of beast in her stomach. Otherwise, there’s no way a ‘growling’ sound could come from a human stomach.

After snickering, Min Je kissed Ji Hoo’s forehead and left the room.

Ha Yeon was waiting with a face like she was being punished, unable to do this or that.

“Let’s go. There should be something to eat in the kitchen.”

*

“There’s nothing here though?”

Ha Yeon’s face clearly showed disappointment as she looked into the empty refrigerator. The only thing in the fridge was cola.

“Hmm?”

That’s strange. Min Je mumbled, rubbing his chin.

He was a person who took meticulous care of himself. So he didn’t eat late-night snacks. He had also told Mi Ran in advance not to leave food, so she would cook just the right amount and either throw away or take home any leftovers, at her discretion.

Min Je scratched his face awkwardly, feeling Ha Yeon’s piercing gaze. Judging by her expression, leaving the refrigerator empty seemed like he had committed a heinous crime.

“Don’t tell me, there’s not even ramen?”

Ha Yeon asked as if it was her last ray of hope. When she had tried to go to sleep without eating, it was bearable, but from the moment she thought about eating something, her body, still full of expectations, was in more turmoil than before.

“Wait a minute, there might be some…”

Min Je rummaged through the sink drawers one by one. Honestly, this was the first time in his life he had searched such places.

“Oh!”

He exclaimed, having discovered something.

“Is there any?”

Ha Yeon approached with lightning speed.

Whether Mi Ran had bought it to eat herself or not, there was a bundle of ramen on the shelf.

“Thank goodness…”

Min Je exhaled in disbelief as he watched Ha Yeon hug the ramen and grin broadly.

“Um… would you like some?”

She asked, smiling brightly as she prepared to cook the ramen, clearly pleased about something.

“No, don’t worry about me.”

“Are you sure you won’t eat? You’ll regret it. I may not look like it, but I’m really good at cooking ramen. And please speak casually.”

The incessant chatter wasn’t unpleasant. It felt like some warmth was circulating in this house that was always silent.

That must have been why. The reason he didn’t just go in but took a seat at the table.

“Ah, then I’ll speak casually. I’m fine, don’t worry about me.”

Not wanting to keep offering food to someone who said they wouldn’t eat, Ha Yeon really only cooked her portion of ramen. Fortunately, there were at least some raw eggs in the fridge, so she could add a minimum of garnish.

“Thank you for the meal.”

With a cheerful greeting, Ha Yeon lifted a large chopstick-full of ramen and blew on it. Then her eyes met directly with Min Je’s.

Why is this man watching someone else eat when he’s not eating himself?

Ah, this meddlesome personality is the problem. Ha Yeon couldn’t bring the noodles straight to her mouth and instead held them out to him.

“Here, don’t just watch, have one bite.”

Min Je stared blankly at the springy noodles held out in front of him.

Today, for some reason, the smell of ramen was stimulating his appetite. Usually, he wouldn’t even glance at something like ramen.

Gulp, he swallowed. She must really be incredibly good at cooking ramen. To make even the great Kang Min Je think he wants to eat it.

“Well, then, shall I?”

Min Je took the chopsticks she offered, as if reluctantly eating.

Slurp slurp slurp, the noodles were sucked into his mouth. Hmm? It’s more delicious than I thought? The chewy noodles clung to his mouth.

Then he suddenly came to his senses when he saw Ha Yeon’s strange expression.

“I told you to have one bite, but you left only one bite.”

Min Je was shocked and looked down at the bowl in dismay. Did I really eat this much in an instant?

“Don’t be like that, just finish it. I’ll have to cook again for myself.”

Seeing Min Je’s furrowed brows in disbelief, Ha Yeon bit her lip to keep from laughing as she stood up.

She shouldn’t think a grown man is cute, but looking at his expression, she couldn’t help but think that.

Well, the ramen I cooked is delicious. With pride in cooking devilishly good ramen that makes you unable to stop slurping noodles, Ha Yeon nodded and cooked two more portions, dividing them into bowls.

“Have some more. Don’t hold back.”

Ahem, Min Je cleared his throat lowly and mumbled a response.

“I’ll eat well. It’s delicious.”

The clumsy expression of emotion made her heart feel fluffy.

At first, he had a very scary impression, but seeing him like this made her wonder if she had misunderstood.

“Whew, I feel like I can live now that I’ve eaten.”

Min Je felt like he was possessed as he alternately looked at Ha Yeon patting her stomach and the empty bowl in front of him.

“Now, for the final palate cleanser, you have to drink this.”

She opened a can of cola from the fridge full of them and handed it to Min Je.

He didn’t usually drink cola either. But when he came to his senses, he found himself frowning as he accepted and drank the cola.

“What on earth did you do to me?”

He asked, genuinely puzzled.

“It wasn’t amazing enough to ask what I did. Next time when there are more ingredients, I’ll cook for you again.”

Min Je’s eyebrow raised as he watched Ha Yeon interpret and answer as she pleased.

The next morning, Ha Yeon woke up to the sound of the alarm and blinked blankly.

Looking up at the unfamiliar ceiling, Ha Yeon suddenly exclaimed and jumped up.

“Oh my, look at me. I need to take Ji Hoo to kindergarten!”

Barely washing her face, she hurriedly went to Ji Hoo’s room, but the child wasn’t there.

This time, she ran down the stairs with heavy footsteps, and in the kitchen, Ji Hoo and Mi Ran, who were having breakfast, looked at Ha Yeon with round eyes, wondering what the commotion was about.

“Ahaha, Ji Hoo, you really wake up early.”

As Ha Yeon sat down awkwardly next to Ji Hoo who was eating, the child replied:

“Elder sister, you’re the one who woke up late.”

Flinching at the merciless fact-bombing from the morning, Ha Yeon vowed to definitely wake up earlier than Ji Hoo tomorrow.

“Want some rice?”

At Mi Ran’s smiling question, Ha Yeon shook her head. She had eaten too much last night, so her face felt swollen and her stomach wasn’t feeling well.

“Really? I guess you’re not the type to eat breakfast usually?”

“That’s not it. Today I’m just not feeling well.”

Mi Ran’s eyes curved slightly as she listened quietly to Ha Yeon’s words.

“Hmm, coincidentally, the manager also said he wouldn’t have breakfast today. He usually always has breakfast.”

What on earth are you imagining? Whatever it is, it’s not like that! Ha Yeon couldn’t bring herself to retort and just groaned.

Just then, Ji Hoo put down his spoon, seemingly finished with breakfast.

Ha Yeon glanced at the time and quickly stood up, seeing it was almost time for the kindergarten van to arrive.

“Ji Hoo, if we leave now, we can catch the van.”

Except for when Min Je took him to work or when the driver occasionally dropped him off, Ji Hoo, being a very diligent and mature child, usually took the kindergarten bus to and from school.

But the child didn’t follow her out and just kept staring at Ha Yeon’s face?

“Why? Is, is there something on my face?”

Ha Yeon touched her face in confusion.

“Elder sister, I don’t think we can go out together today.”

Sigh, the child let out a short sigh.

“Why? What on earth happened to my face to make you sigh?”

“I wanted to show off to my friends, but today… I don’t think I can.”

The child trailed off as if hiding something he really wanted to say. Thump, Ha Yeon’s face darkened with shock.

So, Ji Hoo, you mean I’m embarrassing!

“Today I’ll go out with the auntie. See you later, elder sister.”

As Ha Yeon was gaping in shock, Ji Hoo waved his hand with an indifferent face and left with Mi Ran.

“Why? What’s wrong with my face? Am I that embarrassing?”

Ha Yeon stood in front of the mirror, snorting. But…

Who are you?

In the mirror was a woman whose face was so swollen that her eyes were only half their original size.

The ramen was the culprit. Of course her face was swollen after eating a double portion of ramen that night because she was hungry.

“Even so, this is too much…”

She felt abandoned.

As she walked dejectedly through the living room, there was a click, the sound of a door, and Kang Min Je came out.

And the moment she saw his face, Ha Yeon couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

His face was swollen just like hers.