Seungju, dressed in the suit Eunseo bought for him, grabbed his resume and left the house.

On the education section of his resume, he only wrote up to ‘Graduated from Hankuk High School.’ He didn’t include ‘Graduated from Hankuk University, Business Administration’ because he thought they might not give him a job if they knew.

Stepping outside, he involuntarily hunched his shoulders. To him, today’s world was almost like the future. Though he felt anxious about going out alone and even more so about working, he reassured himself that he needed to adapt.

After walking a distance equivalent to two bus stops, he arrived at the convenience store, his destination. Taking a deep breath, he entered.

“Excuse me? You want to work here?”

The elderly store owner looked dubious as a model-like man in a sharp suit handed over his resume.

“Yes.”

“We pay minimum wage, you know?”

“That’s fine. Just give me a job.”

As Seungju spoke with the store owner, the owner’s wife stood beside them, staring at Seungju’s face with her mouth agape.

Suddenly realizing he hadn’t checked the minimum wage, Seungju mustered his courage and asked.

“Um, how long would it take to earn 500,000 won here?”

“Hm? If you work six hours a day and only on weekdays… including weekends, two weeks should be enough.”

“Could I work for just two weeks? I have some circumstances.”

The owner looked perplexed.

“Well, that’s a bit… Sorry, but it doesn’t seem like a good fit for our store.”

Just then, the owner’s wife, who had been staring blankly at Seungju, suddenly snapped to attention and glared at her husband.

“You, always so clueless!”

Turning to Seungju with a smile, she said, “Two weeks is fine. Start tomorrow.”

Seungju cautiously asked another question.

“Also, could I leave thirty minutes early? I’ll come in thirty minutes early in exchange.”

Eunseo was strongly opposed to Seungju working part-time.

So Seungju planned to work without Eunseo knowing. The job’s advertised hours were from twelve to six. But since Eunseo usually returned home between six-thirty and seven, he needed to leave by five-thirty at the latest to prepare dinner.

Though he thought it was a tough request, the store owner’s wife readily agreed.

“We’ll accommodate the time. Just make sure to come in. Okay?”

“Thank you!”

Seungju bowed, expressing his joy.

“I’ll work very hard!”

Earlier than usual by two hours, Eunseo boarded the bus home. She had finished her work early and was instructed to head straight home without returning to the office.

Excited about the rare early return, she thought, ‘Should I take Seungju out for dinner?’

She felt guilty that Seungju always prepared dinner, despite her insistence not to treat him as a housekeeper.

Seungju, mature beyond his years, coped well even after learning of his mother’s death. Although he had somewhat prepared himself, knowing she had been missing for a long time, it seemed impossible for him to be okay so soon. He must be pretending.

Eunseo’s heart ached for him. ‘I should take him out for a nice meal today,’ she decided.

Suddenly, she overheard high school girls chatting on the bus.

“Hey, have you seen the new part-timer at the convenience store near the main gate?”

“Yeah. I went in without thinking the day before yesterday and nearly fainted when I saw him.”

“The day before yesterday you could enter without thinking. Yesterday and today it’s been crazy busy there. But is he that handsome?”

“Crazy handsome. Like, super, super, super, super, super handsome.”

“Five supers? How handsome must he be for a convenience store part-timer and not a celebrity?”

Judging by their excitement, Eunseo’s curiosity was piqued. ‘Really, how handsome could he be to warrant five supers?’

Noticing their uniforms, she realized they were students from her alma mater, Hankuk Girls’ High School, near her home.
Thinking it might be a good opportunity to visit her old school as well, Eunseo decided to go there after getting off the bus.

However, her mission to check out the handsome guy wasn’t going to be easy. A long line was already formed in front of the convenience store.

“Oh, come on, hurry up and buy what you need. This is so annoying.”

“Ah, crazy. They’re taking forever.”

Students in line were grumbling, each throwing in their complaints. On the other hand, students coming out of the store had smiles on their faces and their cheeks flushed with excitement.

“Damn, his voice is incredibly good too.”

“I locked eyes with him while paying, and I thought my heart was going to stop.”

Eunseo wondered if this was what a fan meeting of an idol group felt like, having never been to one but only heard of it.

Students in line and those who had come out were eagerly exchanging information.

“He looks just a bit under 190 cm tall.”

“Did you ask his name?”

“I was too nervous to ask. You go in and ask!”

Even though personal taste varies, everyone who had seen him seemed to unanimously sing praises.