How did it come to this? How did we end up here?

Yoo In stared blankly at the man sitting in front of her, elegantly cutting on the plate, falling into a sudden question that came to her.

The gentle and quiet New Age music playing, the clinking of tableware, and the whispering conversations from the table across.

Meals with this neat man, who matched so well with the classic and elegant interior like the heavy silver knife, had already reached a number that could be counted on both hands.

It meant that sitting across from this man and eating had become familiar and comfortable.

“Why? Doesn’t it taste good?”

The man who noticed Yoo In’s hand stopping asked, raising his cool eyes that had been lowered.

“Ah… no.”

“Then. You said you were hungry. Are you full already?”

“No, I just thought of something for a moment.”

Yoo In made an excuse and picked up the fork she had put down. However, the thoughts that had hazily risen did not easily subside and invaded Yoo In again.

There were many questions that she couldn’t understand no matter how much she thought about it. Yoo In clearly had no intention of getting close to or keeping anyone by her side other than her two friends.

It was like that in early spring when Jae Hee’s birthday party was held, and it was like that when the beautifully blooming cherry blossoms were falling.

But now she was meeting this man more often than her friends whom she couldn’t see well due to each other’s schedules.

Naturally eating meals, drinking tea, eating desserts and discussing the taste, taking walks on the green spring roads.

Spending time together was gradually becoming adapted to and noticed.

“What are you thinking about with me in front of you?”

“It’s a secret.”

“What’s so secret? Makes me more curious.”

Even the conversation that was taking place so familiarly that people who knew Yoo In would be shocked felt natural.

Whether this person was special, or if her personality had changed, or if it was for a completely different reason, she couldn’t know.

Just that Do Ki Yeon had crossed over her fence and properly settled in. That one thing was clear.

“Just. It’s a bit strange.”

“What is?”

“That Director Do and I… are sitting together in a place like this.”

“Suddenly that’s strange?”

Was it a bit out of the blue? But Ki Yeon laughed lightly.

“Well, it’s not entirely wrong. I’ve thought that too.”

“You too, Director?”

Yoo In was a little surprised that he, who always maintained an inscrutable and confident attitude, had such inner thoughts.

Come to think of it, there were times when she felt he was a bit cunning when looking at him. He acted with manners, maintained a relaxed smile, and showed kindness and consideration, but it seemed like that wasn’t all.

It was as if he had hidden his true self behind a layer and carefully covered the surface with only what he wanted to show, like a sculpture.

However, the identity of the occasional sense of discomfort was small and fragile, making it difficult to grasp.

“It’s the first time I’ve devoted this much time to someone like Nam Yoo In. It was a bit awkward at first.”

Yoo In tilted her head slightly at his words.

“What about the people you met before?”

“I didn’t do this much. I didn’t want to either.”

Ki Yeon, who answered nonchalantly, put down the silver utensils he was holding and made a slight smile.

“Come to think of it, Nam Yoo In is really amazing. You’ve made me like this. What have you done to me?”

“Is it my fault again?”

It was now familiar to hear the “It’s all Nam Yoo In’s fault” that he often said when this kind of topic came up.

Yoo In shook her head as she heard the sound of cheerful laughter.

It was better to give up quickly since no matter how she objected, it would end up as he said.

After laughing heartily, when Yoo In picked up her fork again at Ki Yeon’s suggestion-like order to hurry and finish eating, a faint vibration sounded around the table where they were sitting.

The source of the noise was the mobile phone in Ki Yeon’s jacket that he had draped over. His brow furrowed as he checked the screen.

“Just a moment.”

Ki Yeon, who asked for understanding, responded with a short “Yes.”

Yoo In looked at him briefly as he focused on the call, then turned her gaze to the plate that still had plenty of food left.

This too was something that always happened when she was with him. As her sister had told her, as he himself had said, he was a very busy person.

Some days he would leave in the middle because it couldn’t be resolved over the phone, and some days he couldn’t keep his promises.

After that, he seemed to be sincerely sorry, but Yoo In didn’t think much of it. She just passed it off as him being busy with work.

“Yoo In.”

She lifted her head at the soft call. The man still had his mobile phone to his ear.

“Wait a moment. I’ll be right back.”

This time too, he was letting her know he had to leave his seat as if the conversation was going to be long.

Yoo In nodded, and Ki Yeon smiled slightly and tapped Yoo In’s crown as he passed by.

Left alone, Yoo In ignored the food she had lost interest in and took out her mobile phone from her bag to check the notifications.

She roughly looked at the chat piled up with Jae Hee and Ji Han, and read the message Ji Han had sent separately.

[Yoo In. Are you home?]

Yoo In hesitated for a moment, then typed and sent a short ‘Yes. Why?’

She had to lie because the matter of Ki Yeon was still a secret to everyone.

The simple reason of it being bothersome had slightly changed now, and she was putting off opening up because she didn’t know how to explain about Ki Yeon.

[Want to go to the Han River together after a long time? How about it?]

Yoo In’s fingers paused at Ji Han’s reply that arrived quickly.

Ji Han, who had said he was busy with rehearsals for the theater club’s performance at the upcoming university festival, had been proposing sudden meetings more frequently these days.

And strangely, every time that happened, Yoo In was with Ki Yeon.

Just like today.

“…What is this.”

It’s like he knows something. Yoo In muttered inwardly.

Both Ji Han and Jae Hee were very keen, but Ji Han was especially so. He was particularly sensitive about matters related to Yoo In, to the point of being called a nanny by Jae Hee.

So this time too, she was in the middle of speculating whether he had vaguely noticed something with his unique Ji Han-style intuition.

Suddenly, a hand appeared and knocked on the table.

“Hello?”

An unknown man was smiling near Ki Yeon’s seat.

For a moment, the unpleasant scene in the Chinese restaurant corridor flashed through Yoo In’s mind, and a sharp voice flowed out.

“Who are you?”

“You looked bored alone for a while now. Seems like your companion went somewhere?”

Yoo In sighed deeply as if to show him. Then she looked towards the entrance where Ki Yeon had left earlier, but the slender figure was still not in sight.

The man spoke again with a smile all over his face.

“Hey, I’m not a weird person. I even filmed a commercial recently, haven’t you seen me on TV?”

The man pointed at his own face with his index finger as if telling her to look carefully.

Yoo In looked at the man with an unpleasant gaze, then said coldly.

“No. I haven’t seen you, so please leave quietly.”

“Ah~ You’re quite prickly. Well then, just tell me one thing. What are you preparing for now? Actor? Idol?”

Yoo In’s expression clearly showed that she had no idea what nonsense he was talking about.

The man seemed to understand the meaning of denial well, and his face changed to one of bewilderment.

“Huh? You’re not? Then the person who was with you earlier−.”

It was then. The chattering man’s shoulder was firmly grasped by a large hand and pushed back a couple of steps.

Both Yoo In who was sitting and the person who was speaking were startled by the presence that appeared silently.

“What are you doing?”

Ki Yeon spat out coldly and fiercely.

His eyes, cold as ice, looked at Yoo In and then turned to the man who had been pushed away.

The man, seemingly too shocked to see Ki Yeon, froze with his eyes wide open, then laughed awkwardly while adjusting his clothes.

“Oh, uh, you’re Director Do Ki Yeon, right?”

“You know me?”

Ki Yeon’s brow furrowed with annoyance as he stood half-covering Yoo In with his hands in his suit pants pockets.

The man, now with a ingratiating face, smiled artificially and bowed slightly.

“Director. Hello! I met you briefly at a drama reading site recently. Do you perhaps remember?”

Ki Yeon was silent for a moment.

Then, as if recalling a memory, he tilted his head slightly to the side and slowly scanned the man standing in front of him from head to toe.

Under the suffocating pressure emanating from the expressionless Ki Yeon, the man’s shoulders flinched and soon shrank. In just a few seconds of sustained eye contact, the man turned as white as if he was being strangled.

Yoo In, who was watching this, also became tense, her throat going completely dry.

At this moment, he was not the Do Ki Yeon who smiled prettily and said he was good for Yoo In, but the image of Director Do Ki Yeon of the number one Il Lang Entertainment.

“But you know.”

“…Y-yes?”

“You say you saw me at the reading site, so what? Is that the reason you came to hit on my lover?”

The man’s mouth fell open. His complexion darkened rapidly like the sky before rain.

Yoo In was equally shocked by the outrageous words, but Ki Yeon’s atmosphere was so ominous that she only bit her lips tightly.

“Ah… that, I was rude…”

“Being rude is a given. Are you admitting that’s the real reason now?”

“Ah, no, no! That’s not it. I just wanted to greet Director Do once, so I asked this… person−.”

The man’s gaze, who was frantically waving his hands and sweating profusely, briefly drifted to Yoo In.

Seeing this, sparks flew in Ki Yeon’s pitch-black eyes.

“Hey. Why are you looking there? Weren’t you talking to me?”

A deep voice, full of irritation, pierced the man like an attack.

The large back covering Yoo In completely swelled up and then subsided as if angry.

“Ah, this is, well, a misunderstanding! There was absolutely no other intention, Director. Please believe me. I, I really came to greet you, Director. If I offended you because of me, I’m so sorry.”

The man apologized and made excuses, bowing his waist pitifully and obsequiously, but Ki Yeon laughed mockingly.

“Greet? Why. Do you think you’ll get one more line if you make an impression on me? Did your agency tell you to do this?”

When the man could only open and close his mouth without saying anything at the scathing and fierce tone, Ki Yeon sneered even more coldly as if bored.

The man with a face as if he had lost his country, and the man who laughed at him without restraint.

The unfamiliar scene unfolding between the two with such striking appearances was not something commonly seen in a restaurant, and more and more gazes began to flicker towards them.

Unable to bear it anymore, Yoo In gently grabbed Ki Yeon’s wrist and shook it. His arm flinched for a moment.

“Director. Everyone’s looking.”

At Yoo In’s small voice, the rock-like body that seemed unlikely to move turned around swiftly, causing a breeze.

“Yoo In, let’s go. Stand up.”

It was a pleasant voice completely different from when dealing with the man, but Ki Yeon’s face was still stiffly frozen.

As Yoo In stood up, looking at him with anxious eyes, Ki Yeon, who had been ignoring the man who was still bowing, tightly grasped Yoo In’s hand.

As the two quickly left the restaurant, the gazes of the onlookers stuck to them tenaciously, but Yoo In couldn’t feel any of it.

All she could feel was the hand gripping tightly as if never to let go and the cool temperature of the shoulder holding her.