I thought I had heard wrong at first.

But as I listened carefully, I realized it wasn’t a mistake.

The loud voice coming from the first floor was Ki Sun Woo calling “Come eat!”

I’d told him several times not to bother, but now he was even urging me to eat meals. It was absurd.

Since he’d clearly keep calling until I came down, Se Eun got up without hesitation.

It had only been 1 week since they married.

Se Eun felt a slight need to explore this man called Ki Sun Woo.

The public’s opinion that he was trash or a prodigal son didn’t really matter to her.

For Se Eun, the key was whether he could maintain peace within this small space given to her.

If he kept invading her space like this, she would need to prepare some countermeasures.

“…!”

But such plans flew out of her head as soon as she entered the kitchen on the first floor.

The dining table in this house was by no means small, but surprisingly it was packed full of food.

And mostly Korean dishes that Se Eun liked.

“What… is all this?”

As Se Eun asked dazedly, looking back and forth between the plates and Sun Woo, he quickly pulled out a chair and flashed a brazen smile.

“Our dinner, what else?”

“Dinner?”

“When I checked the fridge, the food the housekeeper made was already gone. You’ve just been eating disposable salads every day, haven’t you?”

“That’s…”

Se Eun didn’t like preparing meals.

Of course, that didn’t mean she didn’t like delicious food.

After the accident, every time food entered her mouth, her grandfather’s fierce glare made Se Eun basically lose her appetite.

Mealtimes were always just uncomfortable, to the point where she felt it would be better to put dirt in her mouth.

But looking at the food he had prepared, her appetite was starting to return like a lie.

For her who had only eaten under scrutiny her whole life, this was a feast too hard to refuse.

“Then I’ll… sit down for now.”

“Sit comfortably. I even put out cushions.”

Se Eun sat down hesitantly and peeked at the food.

She suspected he might actually be a chef, despite being called unemployed.

“Did you… make all this yourself, Ki Sun Woo?”

“Yeah.”

“This much?”

“My reputation is already bad enough. It would be unfair to add rumors of starving my wife. Eat a lot. Eat everything I prepared.”

After his brazen reply, Sun Woo scooped up a big spoonful of rice and held it out to Se Eun.

“It’s, it’s fine. I’ll eat on my own.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t feed you the side dishes too. I’m just giving Yeon Se Eun a start, in case you get distracted looking at the table and let it all get cold.”

Finding it more embarrassing to leave the spoon hanging in the air, Se Eun reluctantly opened her mouth slightly.

The spoonful was so big that the rice could barely fit in her mouth.

Sun Woo chuckled softly.

“Miss Yeon Se Eun. Haven’t you been to the dentist? You can’t do anything opening your mouth like a baby chick. Come on, open wide, ah~.”

Se Eun’s cheeks turned bright red at his tone, as if speaking to a child.

She had no choice but to open her mouth wide and swallow the heaping spoonful of rice.

“Well done. Now eat all the side dishes too. The braised short ribs and soft tofu stew are especially delicious.”

“…Alright. You should eat too, Ki Sun Woo.”

Finding it strange that his rough kindness felt delicate, Se Eun focused on the meal to shake off her thoughts.

Surprisingly, all the food he made was excellent.

Thanks to that, she was able to have a proper meal for the first time in a long while.

Only the sound of chopsticks clinking filled the space between them, but it felt like a calm peace.

Taking advantage of this tranquility, Se Eun secretly observed Ki Sun Woo.

First, his way of speaking.

At a glance it seemed casual, but rather than frivolous, it sounded surprisingly elegant.

Perhaps due to his good vocal projection and baritone, it sometimes felt like soft, rhythmic humming.

Of course, the content of his words wasn’t like that.

Next was his appearance, which undoubtedly drew attention.

He exuded a strange charm, endlessly handsome yet with traces of a immature boy’s rebelliousness.

Overall, she thought his distinct features were balanced by light eyes, creating a very harmonious face.

His Adam’s apple, prominent when he spoke, sometimes looked like an instrument being played.

“Why are you staring at someone else’s throat as they swallow food?”

“Ah…”

Se Eun snapped back to her senses.

She had been so focused that her chopsticks were awkwardly frozen in midair.

Her eyes had also been fixed on the middle of Sun Woo’s neck.

Casually stirring her chopsticks, Se Eun confessed her curiosity that had just arisen.

“I was just wondering if all men’s necks are that straight and long.”

Though she had simply voiced her honest impression, Sun Woo’s chopsticks also stopped.

Wondering if she had said something wrong, Se Eun stared intently at him.

He stroked his neck, while pulling up the corners of his mouth.

“If you’re curious about men, I can satisfy all your curiosity. I’m willing to kindly teach you everything from top to bottom, day and night.”

“That’s not what I meant!”

At her unusually raised voice, Sun Woo stared at her blankly before bursting into laughter.

“Seems you don’t like being teased. You always speak so gently, but this kind of reaction is good too, more human.”

“That’s not it, it’s because you keep saying strange things…”

“It’s okay. No need to be embarrassed. I’m probably your first man, right? It’s natural to be curious.”

“…!”

At the words “first man,” Se Eun’s cheeks turned as red as the soft tofu stew broth.

“Alright, alright. I’ll stop talking, so keep eating.”

Se Eun glanced at him primly once, then lowered her head again.

“By the way, since we’re talking about necks, what’s that round necklace you always wear? It looks just like a child’s.”

“Ah… this?”

At Sun Woo’s question, Se Eun grasped and released the necklace swaying at her collarbone.

The plump pendant hanging in the middle of the chain felt cool in the evening air.

“This is a keepsake from my mother.”

“A keepsake…?”

“Yes. It’s a child ID necklace she gave me when I was young. I’ve always worn it as a keepsake since my mother passed away. It doesn’t matter that it’s for children since no one sees it anyway.”

“…I see. It’s good that you wear it well like that then.”

Though Sun Woo’s voice was unusually calm with a hint of some other emotion, Se Eun didn’t ask about it.

Just not saying it was childish or bothersome was enough.

Every time she wore this necklace, her grandfather and even her aunt openly expressed their dislike.

Perhaps that’s why. Feeling somehow grateful, Se Eun honestly expressed her thanks.

“Anyway, thank you for today. The meal was really delicious.”

“It’s nothing much. From now on, the dinner table will be like this every day. You’d better expand your stomach capacity.”

*

That night, even the moon was submerged in darkness and the whole house was quiet.

Normally Se Eun would have been fast asleep by now, but she just couldn’t fall asleep.

Was it because she had eaten such an extravagant meal after so long?

Along with each delicious dish, Sun Woo’s expression as he kept feeding her lingered in her mind.

Her stomach felt twisted and ticklish in a strange way.

Finally, Se Eun got up and left the room.

There was no way she could fall asleep like this.

One step, another step, she slowly moved forward in the darkness, leaning against the wall.

That’s when something entered her dim field of vision.

“…Ki Sun Woo?”

Surprisingly, Sun Woo was standing in front of her father’s tightly locked room.

For a moment, her legs gave out like a lie and her body swayed.

“Yeon Se Eun, are you okay?”

Sun Woo quickly ran over and supported Se Eun.

Her breath caught at the large hand holding her waist.

From the chest pressed close, she smelled a woody scent mixed with the night air.

Because of that, her intent to demand why he was standing here in the middle of the night completely disappeared.

Se Eun’s consciousness was focused only on the excessively close distance between them.

She had ended up in a position as if embraced in Sun Woo’s arms.

Feeling this wouldn’t do, she tried to open her mouth, but long fingers lightly pressed down on Se Eun’s lips.

Then Sun Woo calmly looked around and whispered.

“Shh! I think there’s a mouse.”

“What? A mouse? That can’t be…”

Her terrified voice trembled helplessly.

She couldn’t tell if it was because of the mouse, or the finger touching her lips.

All she could hear was the loud pounding of her own heart.

But Sun Woo remained completely composed even in this sudden situation.

“This house was empty for almost 20 years, right? It wouldn’t be strange for mice to appear.”

“So… you came out to catch mice? At this hour?”

“Why, is that not allowed?”

“It’s not that it’s not allowed, but…”

Se Eun, who had been drawn into the conversation, suddenly realized his hand was still supporting her waist.

She felt it would be better if a mouse actually appeared right now.

It was unbearably embarrassing.

“Um, Ki Sun Woo. It doesn’t seem like there are any mice after all, so could you please…”

Se Eun cautiously looked up at Sun Woo.

By now her eyes had adjusted to the darkness of night, and his form was quite familiar.

But she shouldn’t have raised her head.

Sun Woo’s nose bridge was close enough to brush against her own.

Se Eun learned for the first time that an unintended accident could create such a dangerous situation.

Even on a moonless night, moonlight shone brightly in his eyes.

That pair of moonlit eyes softly caressed Se Eun’s lips.

Then he whispered to her with fresh breath.

“Yeon Se Eun. Is this area off-limits too?”