Actually, It’s a Messy Melodrama Chapter 76

“Mr. President really is reckless.”

Haeshin, who eventually gave up on warning Taejun, shook his head and said. Taejun let out a small laugh.

“Why would I need a plan for something like this?”

“……That is true.”

Indeed, when you think about it, it was a correct statement. The wealth and power Han Taejun possessed was his plan.

What flaw would be left on Han Taejun even if a few pictures were taken here? The public would rather praise Han Taejun’s taste for being unpretentious compared to his possessions and his appearance, which shone even in such a commoner’s cafe.

“But seriously, why did you come here?”

“Why did I come?”

“Yes. Surely you did not really come here just to drink coffee.”

“I came here to drink coffee though?”

“Yes?”

“You said you were drinking coffee, so I wanted to drink it with you.”

“Ah……”

Haeshin blinked his eyes again with his mouth agape. In the conversations between the two, it was usually Han Taejun who lost his words, overwhelmed by his verbal skills and brazenness, but today the relationship seemed to be reversed.

Taejun decided to answer kindly because Cha Haeshin’s eyes, without saying a word, were asking, “Did you really come all the way here just to drink not particularly famous coffee?”

“You said this is your favorite cafe.”

“……Yes.”

“It means it is a cafe you like enough to ask for my permission to come here.”

“Hmm…… Is that right?”

“So I came too. I was curious, I wanted to know where this cafe that Cha Haeshin likes so much is, and what kind of coffee he drinks.”

Haeshin looked even more full of questions after hearing Taejun’s answer.

Taejun’s words that he came because he was curious about where his favorite cafe was and what kind of coffee he drank felt strange. Clearly, there was not a single word he did not understand, but he felt like he could not quite grasp the meaning.

The surprising thing was that even though his mind did not understand the meaning of the words, his heart reacted first and started beating fiercely. It was not just his heart. Haeshin hastily took a large sip of the coffee in front of him, feeling as if his cheeks and earlobes were unnecessarily heating up.

“So what is the name of that?”

Taejun, who had been watching him quietly, asked. Haeshin slightly raised his cup.

“This?”

“Yes. So I can try the same thing.”

“Will this kind of coffee suit Mr. President’s sophisticated taste?”

“Are you teasing me again?”

When he playfully questioned Haeshin, who brought up a sophisticated taste for just a cup of coffee, Haeshin burst out laughing and got up from his seat.

“Then I will buy you this coffee.”

“You will?”

“Yes! I can buy this much for our Mr. President.”

“Really.”

Of course, Taejun did not want Cha Haeshin to buy him anything, but he found Haeshin’s triumphant face when he offered to buy it not bad, so Taejun nodded.

“Go ahead.”

“Wait a moment!”

Haeshin headed to the counter with a bright face, as if that was something very exciting. It seemed Cha Haeshin was also close with the cafe owner, as the owner, seeing Haeshin approach, lowered his body and spoke to him in a friendly manner.

“Amazing, Cha Haeshin.”

The sudden surge of emotion instantly subsided. He wondered how he lived his life to be able to become so close to everyone around him.

Even if he himself tried to look good because the more goodwill he received from those around him the more beneficial it was, it was another matter whether it actually worked on the people around him.

Taejun glared at Haeshin’s profile, who was even smiling widely, wondering what they were talking about, and crossed his arms with a look of dissatisfaction.

No one noticed that the cafe owner’s spine, who was already on edge, shivered at that fierce gaze.

In the meantime, Haeshin, who had finished ordering, took out his wallet to pay. It was the old, worn wallet Taejun had seen before. He recalled Cha Haeshin, who had carefully kept Taejun’s business card in his worn wallet in a narrow alley on a midwinter night. Taejun bit his lip at the sensation of his chest suddenly dropping.

Haeshin took out a few bills from that wallet instead of Taejun’s business card this time. It was an unfamiliar sight to Taejun. He could hardly remember when he last bought something with cash.

Taejun’s gaze swept over the menu board hanging on the wall. Every item on the menu seemed ridiculously cheap to Taejun, but that money must have been a difficult barrier for Cha Haeshin.

When his thoughts reached that point, the meaning of the cup of coffee Haeshin was buying him now instantly became monumental.

The fact that Cha Haeshin, who had suffered his entire life because of money and eventually even had to lose his life because of that money, was willingly spending money for him felt incredibly special.

Could Cha Haeshin not have known that Taejun could buy not just coffee, but the entire cafe, if he wanted? Yet, Haeshin simply wanted to do something for him. Even if it was something insignificant that could not even become a speck of dust to Taejun, Haeshin wanted to express his profound gratitude.

Just then, Haeshin, who had finished paying, approached with a bright face. Taejun deliberately crinkled his nose to hide his surging emotions and faced Haeshin naturally.

Taejun planned to return the kindness Haeshin showed him today a thousand, ten thousand times over.

☂️

“How is it?”

Even though it was not the coffee he made, Haeshin asked with a nervous face, like a chef introducing a new menu for the first time. Taejun, savoring the taste of the whipped cream and coffee that filled his mouth, replied, living up to his expectation.

“It is good.”

“Really? Wow, that is a relief.”

Haeshin was greatly relieved by Taejun’s reaction, which might seem insignificant. It seemed he was genuinely worried that it might not suit his taste.

“But is there a particular reason why you especially like this cafe?”

It was genuine curiosity. The interior and the taste were not bad, but if there was anything that made this space uniquely special, that was questionable.

He wanted to know what made it special to Cha Haeshin, as he felt he could find a cafe of this level anywhere, even if it was not an expensive place. That was equivalent to saying he wanted to know what Cha Haeshin liked. Han Taejun was curious about all of Cha Haeshin’s preferences, tastes, likes, and dislikes.

“Hmm……”

Haeshin, who had a thoughtful look on his face for a moment at Taejun’s question, soon continued to speak.

“This was the first place where I bought coffee at a cafe with my own money.”

“Ah……”

“I think the taste was so shocking because it was the first time. Wow, there is such a delicious coffee in the world? Now that I think about it, I wonder if I just liked the whipped cream…… Or maybe I just liked the feeling of spending money for myself for the first time……”

Haeshin’s expression as he recalled his memories did not seem to be dwelling on the misfortune of his life. That is why Taejun’s heart ached even more. Haeshin’s composure always became a sharp needle piercing Taejun’s heart.

“I liked that memory, so afterward, whenever I got paid, I indulged in my only luxury for myself……”

“Indulged in……”

“And then after the regression started, well, um…… whenever I regressed to a time when I was lucky enough not to be confined by Jin Youngmin yet, I would immediately rush to this cafe because I wanted to enjoy my freedom.”

“……”

“For me, it became a symbol of, what should I say, freedom and happiness? That kind of feeling.”

Haeshin, having finished speaking, gave his characteristic Heh laugh. He seemed to hope that his words did not sound too sorrowful. So Taejun, instead of pitying him or feeling helpless sadness, took another sip of Cha Haeshin’s freedom.

A stimulating sweet taste filled his mouth. He could clearly visualize Haeshin’s figure, sitting alone in the cafe and feeling a small happiness from this sweetness. Cha Haeshin, who never let go of freedom, happiness, or hope, no matter when or in what situation.

“From now on, you will be able to freely drink coffee at a cafe every day if you want.”

“Will I?”

“Of course.”

Taejun nodded as if it were not a significant issue. There was no need to be solemn about dreaming of such a trivial future.

“Wow, but Mr. President.”

Just then, Haeshin suddenly opened his mouth, his eyes sparkling.

“Why?”

“This is really good.”

“What is?”

“Being able to talk about everything about me.”

Haeshin’s voice was genuinely excited, like a thrilled child.

“It is truly unbelievable. I did not know it felt so good to be able to speak comfortably without hiding anything, without worrying, and without being careful. I genuinely lived without knowing.”

As he continued to speak, Haeshin repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists. He felt a tingling sensation even at his fingertips from the thrilling experience he was having for the first time.

Even now, having become accustomed to the life of a regressor, there were times when Haeshin was fed up with pretending not to know anything every time.

Pretending to encounter a situation he already knew clearly for the first time, and pretending not to know people he knew, were all tiresome. A life where he even had to change his personality and speaking style depending on the regression point was not easy for Cha Haeshin either.

But now, there was someone he did not have to do that for. At least in front of Han Taejun, Haeshin could be solely Cha Haeshin without any acting.

“I am really brazen, right.”

Then, Haeshin suddenly thought he was saying something overly selfish and quickly added.

Saying that he was glad to be honest with the person who lived through hell by regressing every time he died without knowing the reason. Thinking about it again, he felt like he had made a truly psychopathic statement.

“Um, I apologize. I was so excited that I did not realize……. This is the first time I have been in a situation like this.”

Haeshin apologized, awkwardly hunching his shoulders. It seemed his mood had been too elevated. He felt like he wanted to hide in a mouse hole if he could.