“Puhechwi!”

Without bothering to cover her head, Sooyoung sneezed and said goodbye to the bathroom. Wearing that light dress yesterday turned out to be a mistake.

Since she wasn’t going to the interview anyway, and the weather had gotten cold, why did she dress like that and go out? Moreover, she couldn’t even show it to Seol Woojin. But still, since she touched it…

“Achoo!”

This time, a runny nose followed. It seemed like she had caught a cold.

Instead of setting the table, Sooyoung blew her nose with a tissue. Although she bought octopus stir-fry at the side dish store on the way, Sooyoung didn’t feel like eating at all.

Thinking she should watch Woojin eat, he appeared in the kitchen as if it were a bad habit.

“Give me rice.”

The line was as consistent as his tone. They say that in old age, the husband’s least favorite words to hear from his wife are, “Give me food.” Sooyoung was only twenty-five, but she could understand that feeling.

Wasn’t a manager supposed to do things like schedule management? Although she thought he wouldn’t cook, seeing the manager buy gimbap for the celebrity made her think that in the end, it was the same thing.

“Sit.”

At Sooyoung’s words, Woojin, instead of sitting in the chair, fixed his gaze on her.

“Why?”

“Your voice… sounds strange.”

“Oh, it seems my voice changed because I caught a cold.”

“You caught a cold?”

“After doing an unnecessary stunt yesterday…”

“…But why did you come?”

At Woojin’s question, Sooyoung looked at him, wondering if he was worried about her, and then smiled, saying,

“It’s not to the extent of taking a sick leave. And, if I take a day off, Seol Woojin might starve again… Aren’t I really kind?”

Sooyoung smiled, but Woojin, without much reaction, stood still and soon left the kitchen. The sound of the door closing was heard shortly afterward.

What’s this? Is he worried that I might catch a cold? Oh, man… I came to prepare his meal even though I’m sick… Really… Life… sucks.

The untouched octopus somehow felt poignant. But when the sound of the door opening again was heard, he walked back into the kitchen.

He extended something to Sooyoung. It was two pills and a bottle of medicine.

“What’s this?”

“Cold medicine.”

“…Is Seol Woojin a doctor? Is it okay to take it randomly like this?”

Returning Woojin’s words from before, which he had said to her, whether he didn’t remember or not, he said calmly,

“It’s medicine prescribed by the attending physician, so it’s okay. Take it. And go home.”

“How many minutes has it been since I came, and you’re telling me to go already?”

Sooyoung received the pills and put them in her mouth, then drank the medicine. It had a disgusting strawberry flavor.

“Go home and rest. Don’t give me your cold.”

“Tsk, I knew you’d say that. Don’t worry, I won’t give it to you. I’ll just watch you eat. Sit and eat.”

“…You eat too. You have to eat well to get better.”

“It would be a hundred percent right if we ate together, right? And I don’t even think about food. But still, I’ll eat.”
When he reached out, Woojin fumbled to find the spoon and handed it to her. Sooyoung took the offered spoon and scooped up some rice. She thought she should eat so that Woojin would eat too.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Although he claimed to have caught a cold, sounds of continuous sneezing and nose blowing echoed in the living room.

Why isn’t she going home even though she’s told to? Is it difficult for her to go home? It doesn’t seem like it’s because of a sense of responsibility for work.

Woojin was not particularly concerned about her being in the living room, but there was nothing he could do when she refused to leave even though he told her to.

When the clock pointed to 3 o’clock, Woojin thought she should have cleaned up roughly by now, so he stood up with the intention of sending her home.

However, as soon as he turned the doorknob, a familiar sound came from outside. The sound he heard when he first met her.

The sound of a stuffy nose and blowing it sounded unpleasant. But she was told to go home…

Woojin cautiously walked in the direction of the sound, and as he approached, he stumbled on something and knelt on the living room floor.

“Ah! Ugh…”

Fumbling under his foot, he grabbed a mop handle with his hand. Pushing the floor with the mop, he felt like he fell onto the sofa as if he had fallen asleep.

Ignoring the pain for now, he focused on the sound of her voice, fearing she might wake up at his scream. But her sniffling sounded louder than the scream, or perhaps it seemed unbroken.

While wiping his knee with one hand, he stood the mop in a corner of the living room. His hand felt numb, probably due to some problem in the previously injured area, but first, he needed to check her condition.

He cautiously reached out toward the direction of the sniffling sound. Soon, he touched warm and soft flesh with his fingertips.

Seeing that her hair could be touched, it seemed like it was her forehead. Gently pressing her forehead with his palm, he checked her temperature.