Ha Joon checked the microphone status and efficiently prepared for an impromptu live performance.

When he announced he would do an unscheduled live performance, cheers and applause erupted from the surprised people.

As expected, the reaction was passionate.

The atmosphere in the pub heated up even before it started.

Welcoming voices could be heard here and there.

“My goodness, what’s this sudden surprise event? There was no mention of a performance.”

“I know, oh my! Oh my. How wonderful. It looks like he’ll even play the piano himself.”

“Hey, we did well coming late. If we had come and left early, we would have missed this!”

“It was worth waiting in line for a long time to get in.”

“I need to record this on video and keep it.”

“Me too. I’ll watch it again and again.”

Except for a few indifferent male customers, everyone turned to face the direction of the piano.

Ji Ho had never sung in front of people since J’s music gained huge popularity.

Even when he had the chance, he consciously avoided it.

That’s why he hesitated when he heard Ha Joon’s absurd request.

If he sang as he usually did with his uniquely praised voice, it could arouse people’s suspicion.

Especially Yi Soo, who enjoyed J’s songs, might recognize it immediately, so he was cautious.

‘I’ll have to sing in a completely different tone, but can I do it well?’

In fact, he was a bit nervous about singing in front of people without being discovered.

Above all, he didn’t want Yi Soo to find out he was J while singing in a place like this.

Ji Ho, seated at the piano, had a thoughtful expression.

Would he be able to disguise his voice well?

Why was he going to such lengths for this? Just as he felt self-loathing, Ji Ho saw Yi Soo.

Thanks to Ji Ho sitting at the piano as Ha Joon said, Yi Soo, who had finished her kitchen work, was coming out to rest.

‘Right. It was because of Yi Soo.’

That reason was enough.

Ji Ho placed his hands on the piano, giving Yi Soo an affectionate smile.

**

“Kids, there won’t be any more orders now, so come out and rest.”

Juhee poked her head out of the kitchen and said.

“Really?”

Aera asked brightly.

“They said we’re out of ingredients, so we’ve closed food orders completely and are only selling drinks during Ji Ho’s performance.”

“But what’s this sudden performance?”

“It’s a service in lieu of food. People are going crazy with excitement.”

“Wow. Ji Ho really is the appetizer substitute. So our work is all done, right?”

Aera laughed, stretching her arms out like she was stretching.

“Yes. You guys should enjoy Ji Ho’s singing too.”

“Okay! Let’s go out quickly, everyone.”

With the table seats full, Yi Soo sat at the bar next to the counter.

Seated in the closest spot to the piano, Yi Soo found herself unexpectedly right next to Ji Ho.

Ji Ho, wearing a white shirt, sat upright in front of the piano.

His elegant posture and relaxed expression gave off an air similar to that of a professional performer.

“Yi Soo, Ji Ho looks really cool today!”

Aera whispered quietly in Yi Soo’s ear as she sat next to her.

Yi Soo’s feelings were no different.

‘Ji Ho, you can stop being so handsome now. I really want to be the only one seeing you like this.’

Honestly, Yi Soo wasn’t very pleased with this situation.

The women filling the bar.

The sparkling eyes looking at Ji Ho with excited gazes.

Yi Soo unconsciously let out a sigh.

At last, as Ji Ho played the piano and sang the first line of the song, exclamations burst out here and there.

‘So this is how it sounds when he sings with that voice.’

His singing was sweet and mellow, as if his vocal cords had been dipped in honey.

Yi Soo rested her chin on one hand and gazed at Ji Ho, lost in thought.

She felt pleased, proud, and more fluttering than at any other moment she had seen Ji Ho so far.

Yi Soo even had the illusion that only Ji Ho and herself existed in this space.

She couldn’t hear anything but Ji Ho’s voice, couldn’t see anything but Ji Ho.

Ji Ho’s gentle eye smile directed at her made her heart feel like it was melting.

The lyrics of the song Ji Ho was singing all sounded like confessions directed at her, making Yi Soo’s heart flutter throughout the entire song.

Then at some point, Yi Soo’s brow furrowed slightly.

The more she was drawn into Ji Ho’s singing, strangely, J came to mind.

There was a subtly similar timbre somewhere.

‘Does he know I like it and is deliberately singing similarly?’

Knowing it couldn’t be true, Yi Soo still couldn’t easily shake J from her mind.

**

What woke Yi Soo from her dazed state was the sound of people’s cheers and applause.

As soon as one song ended, applause burst out, and as if by agreement, everyone called for an encore.

With continued encore requests, Ji Ho was only able to finish after singing five songs in a row.

As Ji Ho gave his final greeting and stood up, sighs of disappointment and exclamations erupted from here and there.

“I want to hear more!”

“It’s too disappointing!”

“This is no joke. It feels like my eardrums are melting.”

“I won’t be able to sleep tonight from excitement!”

Leaving behind the people expressing their intense disappointment, Ji Ho slipped away from his seat without lingering.

Though it was something he really didn’t want to do at first, he felt he had done well during the singing.

It was because of Yi Soo, who had been watching him as if entranced.

Ji Ho had never received such a gaze from Yi Soo before.

If he had known she would like it this much, he would have sung for Yi Soo sooner.

Today, Ji Ho sang solely for Yi Soo.

**

In the car on the way to Yi Soo’s house.

Ji Ho was driving while looking straight ahead, but he could sense Yi Soo’s gaze fixed on him from his peripheral vision.

“If you keep this up, you might bore a hole through my face?”

Ji Ho said with a chuckle.

Yi Soo couldn’t take her eyes off Ji Ho for even a moment, regardless of his teasing words.

The lingering feeling from earlier still hadn’t faded, and she kept wanting to look at Ji Ho.

Clearly the same person, yet strangely, Ji Ho felt like a different person before and after hearing him sing.

“Do you like me that much?”

“Yes. Honestly, today… I think I fell for you.”

How should she express this feeling, this sensation?

It felt like an indescribable, fluttering, heart-pounding emotion kept swirling inside her heart.

She thought she’d never be more entranced than when she saw Ji Ho playing the piano, but today she saw even more.

“You’re just falling for me now? Wow… that’s harsh.”

Ji Ho burst into laughter, both amused and incredulous.

He felt good, but equally dumbfounded.

It was late, but should he be glad she fell for him now at least?

“Your singing… was so good. You could really be a singer.”

Yi Soo could still hear Ji Ho’s singing in her ears as if it were still playing.

Just recalling that song made her heart flutter again.

Ji Ho glanced sideways.

It was the first time Yi Soo had turned her body completely towards Ji Ho while riding in the car together.

Ji Ho had never seen Yi Soo like this before.

She didn’t have this expression even when he gave her an expensive necklace.

“So I guess good looks don’t matter, just being good at singing is enough.”

He kept laughing in disbelief at the fact that Yi Soo’s point of falling for him was his singing.

He had guessed as much when she had a happy expression while talking about J, but still.

“Yes. I think so.”

Yi Soo readily agreed.

“The songs I sang today were all for you.”

Yi Soo smiled shyly, unable to control her face that was squirming with happiness.

“Oh, by the way, you didn’t drink even a sip of alcohol?”

It was a very late question to ask Ji Ho, who was already well into driving, but Yi Soo belatedly thought to ask.

There’s no way he wouldn’t have drunk while serving tables.

“Of course not. I brought the car, so obviously I didn’t drink.”

“That’s what I mean. How could you bring the car on a pub night?”

“I thought you might be tired after it’s over. I wanted to drive you home comfortably. Were you very tired earlier?”

At Ji Ho’s words, Yi Soo suddenly felt the weariness she had momentarily forgotten.

She doesn’t know how busy she was in the kitchen, not even able to straighten her back properly once.

Thanks to whom.

“It was intense. The orders were endless.”

Suddenly, Yi Soo’s tone became a bit cold.

“You were really popular.”

Yi Soo’s tone had changed quite differently from earlier.

Ji Ho rolled his eyes to the side, subtly gauging Yi Soo’s mood.

He felt like he had done something wrong even though he hadn’t.

“Come to think of it, I guess so. All those women who came to see you earlier probably felt the same as me, right?”

Yi Soo stared at Ji Ho while speaking, unclear if it was a soliloquy or a question.

Ji Ho pressed his lips tightly together.

“You saw it too, right? Women cheering for you and looking at you with excitement. Did you like it? They were going crazy, recording videos to keep of you singing. Why did you have to look so cool in front of people? I really want to be the only one to see that. Did you do it on purpose…”

At that moment, Ji Ho leaned over and quickly sucked Yi Soo’s lips deeply before releasing them.

He had seized the moment when the car stopped at a red light.

“W-what? Suddenly.”

Yi Soo blushed and was flustered by the sudden kiss.

“When you talk like that, I can’t help myself.”

The traffic light changed, and the car started moving smoothly again.

Ji Ho faced forward again and drove as if nothing had happened.

“I told you before that I honestly feel good when you’re jealous. It’s fluttering and cute, so it’s hard to resist.”

At a loss for words from the sudden kiss, Yi Soo just slightly rolled her eyes.

“You know that I only looked at you earlier… Don’t you still know that you’re the only one I see?”

Ji Ho spoke in a gentle voice.

Why doesn’t she get used to Ji Ho’s confessions that come at any time?

Yi Soo’s heart fluttered again.

“From now on, every time you say things like that, I’ll reassure you. That you don’t need to be jealous of anyone.”

Ji Ho turned to look at Yi Soo’s face for a moment and grinned.

“Okay.”

Yi Soo said in a small, creeping voice.

‘How can I not fall for you when you’re like this?’

Why are you so deliberately cool today?

“It’s good that you understand now. I don’t mind if you keep checking if you’re not sure.”

Why does the way home feel so short today?

Ji Ho’s car had already arrived in front of Yi Soo’s house.

“We’re here already. I wish your house was a bit farther.”

Yi Soo felt the same reluctance to part at Ji Ho’s words.

She didn’t think she could fall asleep easily because of her fluttering heart all evening.

The clock in the car showed 11:30.

Ji Ho must be as tired as I am.

“Thanks for driving me.”

Yi Soo spoke slowly in a tone dripping with regret.

As she unbuckled her seatbelt to get out, Ji Ho followed suit and unbuckled his.

“Yi Soo.”

Ji Ho’s long arm pulled Yi Soo’s waist.

He hadn’t had a single sip of alcohol, but something hot seemed to be boiling inside his chest as he held Yi Soo.

Every time Ji Ho parted with Yi Soo, he felt like he was in a tug-of-war between hot instinct and cold reason.

“I really don’t want to say goodbye, what should I do…”

Ji Ho’s gentle voice, filled with sincerity, tickled Yi Soo’s ear.

Instead of answering, Yi Soo tightly hugged Ji Ho’s broad back with both arms.

Yi Soo took a deep breath, loving the scent coming from Ji Ho’s embrace.

‘I wish I could fall asleep buried in this scent all night long.’

It was the first time Yi Soo had such a thought.