That’s why contracts should be in writing. The time it took to leave the apartment and go down to the lobby in the elevator was unexpectedly five minutes.

Soo-yeong bent her arm as she had seen in the video, asking Woo-jin to hold onto it. Videos suggested that visually impaired individuals feel more secure when the support person offers a bent arm.

However, Woo-jin either didn’t hear her or ignored her request, wrapping his arm around her shoulder instead. This wasn’t a pose for guiding someone but rather for a man on a date embracing a woman.

Her heart, which had been fluttering since yesterday just thinking about linking arms, went wild as she was embraced by him.

She was supposed to be in a professional role guiding a visually impaired person, but her heart was racing. This was too much, even for employee welfare. Trying to hide her pounding heart, Soo-yeong twisted in his embrace and said, “This makes it hard for me to walk. Hold my arm instead.”

“I prefer holding you. Since you’re the one who wanted to go out, let me do it my way,” Woo-jin firmly replied.

Soo-yeong frowned and muttered, “Ah, it really is going to be hard to walk like this…”

Didn’t he dislike being touched? Is this how he satisfies his needs? Huh?

As he showed no intention of letting go, Soo-yeong took a deep breath to calm her frantic heart. However, assuming he was just unfamiliar with going out with someone, she opened the front door.

Woo-jin, holding Soo-yeong, felt like he was falling the moment he stepped out of his apartment. The arm around her shoulder tightened, and his already slow steps from inside the house became even slower.

Getting to the elevator felt like a huge task, but he didn’t want to show any weakness in front of her.

While waiting for the elevator, he seemed relatively calm, but as soon as they got on, Soo-yeong felt his heartbeat intensify.

Is he having a panic attack? Am I going to have to handle this situation today?

Worried about pushing him too hard, Soo-yeong swallowed nervously. A different kind of tension made her own heart race.

As soon as the elevator reached the first floor, Woo-jin’s phone alarm rang, and he hastily pressed the button for the 10th floor before even stepping into the lobby.

As the elevator doors closed again, Soo-yeong felt more relieved than disappointed.

When they got back to the apartment, exactly eight minutes had passed. Woo-jin let go of Soo-yeong and retreated to his room.

Soo-yeong sat down on the sofa, taking deep breaths. She thought it would be simple after watching YouTube, but it was far from it.

Can she continue these five-minute walks? Did she dig her own grave? Her mind was filled with thoughts.

Meanwhile, Woo-jin entered his room, crawled under his desk, and gasped for air. He wanted his nebulizer but couldn’t bring himself to get it.

The decision to walk with Soo-yeong for five minutes had been impulsive. He reacted to Naeun’s words that he hadn’t changed since the old days.

He had achieved independence, was active as a writer, earning from royalties. He had learned Braille, keyboarding, and typed until his wrists nearly went numb.
Woo-jin’s pride was hurt by Naeun’s remarks that dismissed all his efforts, simply because he didn’t go outside or accept help from a support worker.

Honestly, he had learned Braille out of pride too, after she implied he would spend his life illiterate like a child.

Though they often fought and hurt each other, Naeun was always the one who spurred him to take on challenges.

But when he actually went out with Soo-yeong, it felt different from the time he moved into this house. The fear of unknown entities making contact was overwhelming. Standing in a pitch-black world felt like standing at the edge of a cliff with nowhere to step.

He suddenly realized he might have been holding Soo-yeong too tightly. Yet, she didn’t complain at all. What was she thinking?

Did she think he was a coward?

While resting on the sofa, Soo-yeong suddenly felt hungry and went to the kitchen to make fried rice, chopping up rice, meat, and vegetables from a lunch box. Her creativity seemed to be upgrading while living with Woo-jin.

The food, all homemade, had a nice aroma and taste. Now she just needed Woo-jin to come out. Considering he seemed to have a hard time earlier, she wondered if he would.

After pacing back and forth in front of his door, her eyes drifted to the piano. Should she try playing it? Maybe the gentle sound of the piano would lure him out. Or maybe he’d come out angry at the noise…

Sitting cautiously at the piano, she couldn’t remember any particular piece to play. What could she play to show off her skills?

Woo-jin, hiding under his desk, lifted his head at the strange music. Was that a familiar tune? But it didn’t sound like that…

Soo-yeong, lost in ‘Silent Night, Holy Night,’ was startled by a loud bang. Woo-jin had struck several low keys at once.

“Don’t play if you don’t know the music.”

“What? I know the music.”

“Is that how you play a famous song? Anyone else would think you composed it.”