Episode 63

 

“Is the meal you buy me the same as the one I get for free?”

Haeun answered indifferently to Seongjae’s hesitant remark. He turned his eyes away and opened his phone. Haeun couldn’t send the message before because Seongjae had blocked the screen, so now he was checking it again. 

Since the other person’s identity had been clarified, or maybe because he was still focused on the conversation, Seongjae didn’t stop him from looking at his phone this time.

“If I ask you to eat with me, it means I’m offering to pay… Why would I ask you to pay?”

Seongjae muttered in a tone of disbelief. If that was the intention, then of course Haeun would welcome it. But he couldn’t just cancel his promise with Yejun forever. 

Without responding to Seongjae’s words, Haeun focused on the screen.

 

ㅠㅠ Next time, we must eat together!!! 

 

The unfinished message remained in the window. At least it was lucky he hadn’t sent it by mistake. The message asking if no one else would buy his food was already marked with a read receipt, and after that, there had been no reply from Yejun.

Is he busy? Or maybe he’s angry. Haeun had a bad feeling that he might be mad. So he quickly completed the message he had been writing. 

 

ㅠㅠ Next time, we must eat together!!! 

I really wanted to go eat todayㅠ

 

He thought that this would be enough to calm him down. He put the phone back in his pocket and then spoke to Seongjae.

“Hey. I think he’s mad because I couldn’t send the reply because of you.”

Technically, it was because he had sent a message that could be seen as teasing or starting trouble, but if Seongjae hadn’t interrupted, he could have resolved it right away, so it wasn’t entirely his fault. 

But Seongjae seemed to think very differently. He turned to him with an incredulous face, as if he had just been grabbed by the hair.

“If someone doesn’t reply, you should just assume they’re busy. Why are you getting petty and sulking about it?”

Black Bers isn’t anything special. Seongjae added, almost mockingly. Given Seongjae’s prideful nature, there was no way he would genuinely feel inferior to Black Bers, so it was clearly a joke, but it somehow sounded sharp, as if there were thorns in his words.

“If you talk about that in front of others, we’re screwed.”

“Am I you? Who would make a mistake like that?”

Seongjae retorted with a sarcastic tone, but it didn’t bother Haeun at all. In fact, he was more familiar with this kind of conversation than a sweet, gentle one.

“So, does that mean you’re buying me food today?”

Haeun casually changed the subject, and Seongjae looked at him with a puzzled expression. However, it seemed he had no intention of going back on his own words. Instead of denying it, he gruffly said only one thing.

“Is food all you think about?”

Seongjae muttered under his breath, almost as if asking how he had become so obsessed with food. 

That was a question only relevant to Haeun, who had the idol mentality deeply ingrained in him; it had nothing to do with her. Without missing a beat, Haeun shrugged and replied.

“When you’re hungry, don’t you think about food, no matter who you are?”

Seongjae paused at that. When he looked up and met his eyes, he suddenly had a slightly serious expression. 

Haeun was confused, wondering why he was acting like that, but before he could ask, Seongjae opened his mouth.

“…Now that I think about it, you must not have had breakfast.”

Haeun figured that was why he was acting strange—he was suddenly feeling guilty. He chuckled, feeling like he was looking at a cute younger brother, and said with a smile.

“Hey. I rejected Black Bers for you, so at least I should get something to eat, right?”

“Does Black Bers only eat caviar three times a day?”

Ignoring Seongjae’s incredulous tone, Haeun walked ahead, though with his shorter stature, he didn’t look like he was making a strong impression. Seongjae, still following him, asked him a question.

“So, what are you going to buy? Cosmetics?”

“Yeah. Is it bad?”

Seongjae, who had a hard time hiding his disbelief, finally managed to steady his voice and answer. Haeun, looking slightly unsatisfied, frowned and thought for a moment before replying.

“Hm, is there no other option?”

“Well… accessories like necklaces or earrings, or perfume?”

Just as Haeun was about to respond, he heard a notification sound from his phone.

『The level of affection will rise or slightly rise depending on which gift you choose! Choose wisely!』

He paused and closed his mouth, which had been about to open without thinking. Did the gift choice really have anything to do with affection levels? Haeun fell into thought. 

It wouldn’t be bad to choose cosmetics, which Seongjae seemed eager to buy. But considering how Seongjae’s sister might react to receiving cosmetics, it might be better to choose something else.

Luckily, it seemed like no matter what he chose, the affection level wouldn’t drop. He had heard it would either rise a lot or a little. 

If the difference was only in how much it would rise, there was no need to listen to Seongjae’s words. 

Seongjae’s affection level was already high enough, and just maintaining it seemed like it would meet the conditions for clearing. There was no need to raise it significantly.

In fact, it might become troublesome if the affection level rose too much and got closer to the “couple zone.” Right now, it was perfect that just talking to him made her sick to his stomach.

Quickly coming to a decision, Haeun spoke again with a serious expression.

“Do you know what kind of lipstick your sister wears or what foundation she uses?”

“…Well, no.”

Seongjae answered with a blank expression, clearly feeling awkward. He looked like a pitiful younger brother. 

For someone who was an idol and familiar with makeup, his attitude was surprising. Haeun shook his head in disbelief.

“How can you think of giving her cosmetics as a gift when you don’t even know that…”

“Well, I thought I could just give her something like lotion or something, right?”

Seongjae retorted, a bit defensive. Haeun shook his head again and responded.

“I once gave a base from a cosmetics store that was recommended, and she broke out in pimples and I got scolded like crazy.”

“…”

“Hm… If I give her a perfume she doesn’t like, she’ll just complain, and it’ll become a useless gift. I think accessories would be the best. Has your sister pierced her ears?”

Seongjae fell silent and just looked at Haeun. Maybe he was deep in thought because of Haeun’s serious expression. Or maybe he thought it was strange that, despite having no enthusiasm earlier, he suddenly seemed so passionate about buying food.

“Maybe in the past?”

Haeun easily answered the unexpected question. He then shook his head sternly again.

“But even if her ears were pierced, they could have closed up, and if you pick the wrong earrings, they get infected.”

“Is that from experience?”

Seongjae glanced at Haeun’s ears. 

Haeun reflexively touched his own ear. Unlike Park Haeun, whose ears were adorned with many piercings, Idol Park Haeun’s ears were smooth and clean. 

It felt strange that his ears were so clean, considering that as an idol, he probably had to wear accessories in his ears often. Seongjae spoke with a slightly puzzled look.

“Don’t you have some kind of allergy… that makes it so you can’t pierce your ears? Didn’t you also not get your ears pierced during your previous album because of that?”

Haeun had no idea such a setting existed. He was someone who didn’t have any allergies, so he never thought of it. Seongjae probably asked without thinking, but Haeun, who felt a little cornered, hesitated for a moment. However, he soon answered smoothly.

“…It was before my debut. And even the girls who don’t have allergies still get their ears irritated sometimes.”

“Is that so? I didn’t know.”

As expected, Seongjae wasn’t being all that serious—he accepted it easily enough. It seemed he was also persuaded by Haeun’s reasoning that, for various reasons, a necklace would be a better gift than cosmetics or earrings. 

Though he still looked somewhat regretful about the cosmetics, the two of them ultimately started walking again to pick out a necklace.

While they were walking, Seongjae suddenly asked,

“Wait, you have a sister?”

Haeun paused for a moment. He didn’t know whether Park Ha had a sister or not. 

As he stalled with an awkward “Uhh…,” he realized he actually had no idea about Park Ha’s family background at all.

“Who knows.”

If he answered carelessly that he did, and it turned out Park Ha didn’t, it might raise even more suspicion. Until he found out for sure how Park Ha’s family was structured, it would be best to say nothing definitive.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Seongjae muttered, clearly thrown off by the vague answer. Haeun snapped back irritably for no good reason.

“Ugh, I said I don’t know.”

“If you don’t, then you don’t. If you do, then you do. How can you not know—”

As usual, Seongjae was about to start nitpicking, but then he suddenly stopped mid-sentence. Then, just like that, he shut his mouth completely and turned his head away.

“…Never mind. That happens sometimes.”

When had he ever let something go so easily? And now he was backing off just like that. 

A quick glance at his face showed a strangely understanding expression—like he knew it all and was being gracious. He must’ve misunderstood and assumed Haeun had some kind of complicated family issue… Still, the important part was that the topic had been dropped.

To seal the deal and keep him from asking any more questions, Haeun even pulled a solemn, sorrowful expression. Perfect setup for going necklace shopping.

Just then, both Haeun’s and Seongjae’s phones buzzed at the same time.