Though she didn’t want to reveal her heart’s pounding to Seo Jun, her chest throbbed all the more loudly during the entire ride and still did.

“Sir, you must be tired. Let me down, please.”

“What about your foot?”

“It seems okay, and we’re almost there.”

“…….”

As So Yeon impatiently wiggled her toes, Seo Jun’s lips tightened.

He wanted to stay like this a bit longer and thus walked slowly. Once at the villa, he purposelessly wandered around.

The loud thumping of his heart. Her endearing grip tightening around his neck. The feather-like breath tickling his ear. And that sweet scent.
“So it’s okay to sit here?”

“Of course.”

After seating So Yeon on one side of the cloud bridge, Seo Jun stretched his long legs and sat next to her.

Under the faint moonlight above the water, the scene looked like a snapshot of a couple sitting side by side. So Yeon murmured in a low voice, as if speaking her thoughts aloud.

“It’s really nice. I’ve always wanted to do something like this…”

“Is this So Yeon’s style?”

“I guess I’m a bit old-fashioned.”

“Not that you’re particularly demure. You were quite fierce. What was that about a tiger? Threatening to bite everything off.”

“You followed me just to tease me?”

Coy eyes landed on his handsome face.

“Yeah. It was quite fun. I would have regretted not following you.”

“It’s good to know you found it amusing. I was scared just enough not to die. Have you always been like this? Teasing and provoking people. I remember, once you…”

As So Yeon chattered away, a hint of displeasure slowly creased Seo Jun’s brow.

He had wanted to say these things for a while but refrained because he disliked feeling childish. However, he couldn’t hold back any longer and fixed a discontented gaze on So Yeon.

“Why do I have to be called ‘Director’?”

Even with Seo Jun’s prickly tone, So Yeon’s lips didn’t stop.

“What should I call you then? Teacher? Senior? Or perhaps the great star, Actor Tae? What do you prefer?”

“…”

“See, you don’t like any of them. You always do this. Teasing, getting angry, or ignoring. I called you ‘Director’ because that’s what you are, but what did I do wrong…”

Breathless from speaking so fast, So Yeon paused for a moment. Seo Jun, lightly holding her chin between his thumb and index finger, drew her gaze towards him.

“Would you do anything I ask?”

“Well, if it’s within my ability…”

“…”

The throbbing in his temples was intensely annoying and infuriating.

His mind had been filled with thoughts of her all day long.

Even today, he hesitated many times whether to approach her or call out her name while she aimlessly wandered in the woods. The sight of himself behaving so out of character, to the point of being laughable, was unbearable.

Does she even know this side of me?

The uncharacteristic me.

How much longer must I endure this?

So Yeon, because of you, how much more will I…

Seo Jun’s gaze, fixed on her face, seemed to delve into the depths, while his fingers unconsciously tightened around her chin.

Her face, bathed in the moonlight’s gentle glow, resembled a wildflower blooming in the night. Lost in her clear, serene features, Seo Jun finally spoke.

“Say my name.”

“Huh? Whose name…”

“Mine. Always, when it’s just us two.”

“Just us two?”

“Yes, you and me, just the two of us.”

Feeling a ticklish sensation in her heart, though there was nothing special about a name, So Yeon looked perplexed.

“Tae, Seo, Jun… Like this?”

“Say it again.”

When So Yeon hesitantly spoke his name, Seo Jun asked her to repeat it.

“Tae Seo Jun… sir?”
Her voice calling his name seemed to deepen his gaze.

So Yeon continued to look at Tae Seo Jun, not wanting to lose sight of him.

Being so close to Tae Seo Jun felt like time had stopped, as if they were the only two in the world. So Yeon wanted to cherish this strange, heart-fluttering feeling for a long time.

“It’s quieter now.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you. Despite appearances, you talk quite a bit.”

“I’m not. I don’t talk that much. It’s the first time I’ve heard that…”

“See? You’re talking a lot again.”

With her lips pursed in feigned anger, So Yeon’s round eyes took on an innocent look.

“You’re pretty, so I’ll let it pass.”

Praise for being pretty was always welcome. The corners of So Yeon’s mouth lifted slightly. Seo Jun gently caressed her tempting lips with his thumb, his voice barely audible.

“Is it okay?”

His face, pulling her gaze, his lightly drooping eyelashes, seemed to long for more than just a kiss.

So Yeon unknowingly placed her fingertips gently on Seo Jun’s cheek.

As if confirming that this tender Seo Jun wasn’t a dream.

Wishing that if this was a dream, she would wake up very, very late.

But contrary to her heart’s desire, So Yeon’s hand quickly retreated from his face. Her gaze fell to the ground beneath the bridge.

When she had fled the villa, she had wanted to escape from him as far as possible. She was a sinner who couldn’t step back when it came to the issue of her child. She knew she didn’t have the right to face Seo Jun squarely.

So Yeon bit her lower lip, her hands nervously fidgeting.

Wanting to see his face again.

Wanting to touch that face she had exposed so vulnerably.

Yet she was constantly reminding herself not to.

“Why don’t you just say no if you don’t want to…”

Seo Jun gently grasped her slender chin, drawing her gaze back to him.

Her eyes trembled as she looked at him again.

Her heart was racing.

A season when the cold winds no longer blew had arrived – a fully-fledged spring. Now, she had another season to remember this man, aside from winter.

That alone made So Yeon’s heart swell enormously.

Stars twinkled brilliantly in the night sky, piercing through the darkness. The wind, carrying the fresh scent of the forest, was as soft as cotton wool.

It was a perfect night.

For a trembling first kiss with a first love.