Though it wasn’t a story to boast about anywhere, it was quite refreshing to hear her friends heartily badmouthing him. Tae Ha and Soo Yeon weren’t the types to curse, and Mi Joo preferred to act rather than speak.
“Don’t be upset, Si Hyun. I’ll introduce you to a good man.”
“I’ve had enough. I’m sick of hearing about men.”
Si Hyun vehemently waved her hand. Somehow, she had ended up in a delicate situation with Tae Ha, but she had absolutely no intention of seeing other men. The mere thought was horrifying.

As it happened, all four friends who had come out that day were unmarried, with two of them being staunch nonmaritalists who even refused to date.
“Since it’s come to this, let’s just forget about things like dating and just have fun hanging out together.”
“No risk of betrayal then, right?”
The friends, excited, pulled Si Hyun into their plan.

Well, it’s not like I plan to stay single forever… She thought, but then glasses of soju clinked together and Si Hyun closed her mouth.

Let it be, for now.

The chatter with her longlost friends went on until well past ten at night. Si Hyun managed to dissuade her friends who were suggesting a second round.
“Actually, I’ve not been drinking much recently. I drank today because I was meeting you guys.”
Through her experience with Woo Jin, she realized that there were no problems in the world that alcohol could solve. So, even today, she drank much less than her usual amount. Just enough to feel good.
“Okay, today’s bill is on me!”
When Si Hyun shouted and headed towards the counter, her friends stopped her by grabbing her arms.
“Why should you pay? Put it away, put it away.”
“I should pay since we met because of me.”
“What are you talking about? You were wronged by the divorce, why should you pay for the drinks?”
In the end, Si Hyun was pushed back by her friends and couldn’t even take out her wallet.
“Let’s go, invincible solo squad!”
It was when she was coming out of the restaurant arm in arm with her friends. Across the street, under a lamppost, there was a familiarlooking large black sedan.

It looks like Tae Ha’s car, she thought as she was about to call a taxi, but then she saw the person standing in front of the car and half of her drunkenness flew away.

“What the? Have you been waiting for me all this time?”
As she quickly ran up and asked, Tae Ha nodded.
“I thought I’d take you home after your gathering was over.”

Si Hyun was so surprised she couldn’t close her mouth. She had dropped her off here at fivethirty, and now it was tenthirty, meaning he had been waiting in the car for a full five hours.
“Really, doesn’t your back hurt?”
“I’m fine. I worked in the car, so time went by quickly.”
“What about dinner?”
“Not yet.”
“You idiot! Why are you starving and waiting? Just go home!”
Distressed, Si Hyun started stomping her feet. Suddenly, she felt a heat on her back. She turned around in fear to find her friends all staring at her with the same expression.
“Am I the only one finding this ridiculous?”
“I find it ridiculous, too.”
“What, you’re sick and tired of hearing about men?”
“Damn it, what a waste of booze.”
Their reactions were as if they had been scammed. The two friends who had been pleased about the increase in the ranks of the solo army earlier looked at Si Hyun as if she were a traitor. Joo Eun squinted her eyes and pointed at her.
“That, that, really! Damn, I knew it was going to be like this!”
This is crazy. As Si Hyun didn’t know what to do, Tae Ha walked over to her friends for some reason.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Yoon Tae Ha.”
Tae Ha bowed politely towards Si Hyun’s friends.

When the tall, statuesque man approached and greeted them, her friends didn’t know what to do.

They just came out of a drinking party and suddenly had to behave modestly, tucking their hair behind their ears, touching their cheeks, forcing a girlish voice, it was chaos.
“Hello, hohoho. We are Si Hyun’s university friends.”
“You’re very handsome at first sight.”
The only confident one was Joo Eun.
“We’ve met before, haven’t we? I’ve seen you a few times when you were in middle school, and I saw you briefly somewhere else last time.”
The other three friends were dumbfounded.
“In middle school?”
“Don’t you remember? The boy Si Hyun used to raise while she was working parttime. We said he would be popular if he became an idol because he was so handsome.”
Surprised, her friends took another look at Tae Ha.
“Oh my, is this him from back then?”
“Wow, now that you mention it, it’s right!”
“Seriously!”
The friends who had been staring at Tae Ha’s face in surprise turned to look at Si Hyun all at once. It was exactly the same look that Joo Eun had given her at the hotel.
“Si Hyun had a plan…”
I knew that was coming! Si Hyun shouted before the sentence even finished.
“No, I didn’t!”

Si Hyun protested desperately with both hands.
“Don’t get it wrong. We’re absolutely not in that kind of relationship!”
Of course, no one believed her.
“He waits for you in the car for five hours, and you have no relationship?”
“What about when you told him to go home earlier?”
“Wow, don’t tell me you’re living together?”
She felt like the remaining buzz from the alcohol was flying away. This was something she absolutely couldn’t deny. Si Hyun turned pale and shouted.
“Are you all crazy? I’ve been divorced for how long now!”
“Then what’s with this situation right now?”
“We just happened to end up living in the same neighborhood by coincidence.”
Nevertheless, her friends didn’t withdraw their suspicious glances.
“I know you haven’t seen him for a while, but to me, he’s just a child, a child.”
For a moment, Tae Ha’s face stiffened, but Si Hyun didn’t care. She reached out and pinched his cheeks with both hands, making cooing sounds.
“Where do you see him as a man? He’s so cute.”
With his cheeks stretched and pinched, Tae Ha silently looked down at Si Hyun.
“….”

lu lu lo la ▪️ net (lululola.net)