Episode 74

Haeun had experienced Kim Gyowon acting like that before, so he could somewhat understand the frustration Yejun must be feeling. Thinking back to when they first met on set, he totally sympathized—anyone would be furious inside. Given that, it was really something to see Gyowon and Yejun acting like they were fighting over Haeun right now.

Yejun kept staring at Gyowon with sharp eyes. Although Gyowon’s unbeatable verbal pace had gotten the better of him for a moment, Yejun didn’t seem to lose his spirit.

Caught in this unstoppable tension, Haeun wondered if he should step in. Maybe say something like, “He’s not actually that bad a person, it’s just his way of speaking…” to ease the mood.

Just then, he noticed Yejun glance briefly in his direction.

『Yejun’s affection level increased by 2!』

What? He hadn’t even done anything. The affection scores really made no sense. Wide-eyed, he looked up at Yejun, who quickly turned his head back.

『Yejun’s affection level increased by 2!』

‘Wait, what? Changing his mind like that all by himself… what’s going on?’

The moment Yejun’s gaze shifted back to Gyowon, his affection dropped again. Haeun sneaked a glance at Yejun’s back.

‘Why is he dropping my affection points while staring at Kim Gyowon?’

Was it because being next to irritating Gyowon made Haeun seem irritating too? Haeun silently tried to analyze Yejun’s psychology. Maybe because of Gyowon, Yejun’s irritation was spilling over onto him, then softening because he felt it wasn’t his fault, only to get annoyed again when looking back at Gyowon—this cycle repeating over and over.

Or maybe it was because he was just standing there quietly and not taking sides that Yejun’s affection dropped. Thinking this made him mutter to himself—he wasn’t a kid, after all.

…But how old was Yejun again? He thought he knew but it was fuzzy. Same age as Haeun? One year apart? Either way, he was close in age, and Haeun was actually a couple years older than his original self, so calling Yejun a “kid” wasn’t totally off.

‘Guess it’s up to understanding me with my big heart.’

While Haeun was shaking his head at his own thoughts, Gyowon finally spoke.

“If you have anything more to say—”

『Yejun’s affection level increased by 2!』

Anyway, it seemed like this was the moment to side with Yejun. Even if he didn’t fully take his side, at least he should stop Gyowon, who seemed ready to fire back again. Shaking off his distracted thoughts, Haeun quickly intervened.

“Hey!”

Both of them turned to look at him at the same time. He wanted to speak directly to Yejun but felt a bit wary of Gyowon’s gaze. Still, if Yejun’s affection dropped any further, it would be troublesome, so he had no choice.

“Are you free today? I want to make the promise you made last time happen today.”

He saw both Yejun and Gyowon’s expressions falter simultaneously.

***

Haeun sat on a chair like it was a bed of nails, waiting for Yejun to come back. The eyes of people around kept catching him, so he forced himself to pretend he saw nothing. When he tried to distract himself, the scene from a moment ago replayed in his mind.

Yejun was the kind of person whose mood showed on his face more than expected. At first glance, he seemed expressionless, but from that blank face, emotions were surprisingly easy to read. 

When he told him to keep the promise to buy him a meal today, it was clear he was unsettled. And when he pressed a little more, he quickly responded with a look like, “Hmph, if you insist that much…,” agreeing.

Meanwhile, Gyowon quietly watched Haeun. He called his name with a voice that somehow sounded like a warning: “Haeun ah.” Yet, there was no notification of affection dropping from him. 

Had Gyowon tried to stop him, the situation would have been more difficult, so he considered himself lucky that he didn’t say anything to hold him back.

Still, feeling awkward, Haeun mouthed that he would contact him later. Then Gyowon quickly left the place, possibly upset after the fact. But if he had left Yejun’s affection to keep dropping right there, it might have triggered a serious “status ailment” after such a long time, and he would’ve ended up making a scene in front of both of them. So, he comforted himself by thinking it was inevitable.

He saw Yejun walking over holding a drink in each hand. He firmly told him to stay put, so he couldn’t get up and could only watch him approach.

“I didn’t know what you liked, so I got what you drank last time.”

“Oh, I like this.”

Haeun himself barely remembered what Yejun had drunk the last time they met, so he found it surprising that he had remembered and picked out the same drink.

He took the drink and glanced at Yejun. They were in a café inside the broadcasting station, and Yejun was still dressed in his prince costume. 

Honestly, regardless of how well it suited him, it was an embarrassing outfit to be around in, but since he had been the one to bring him here first, he couldn’t blame him.

Yejun mentioned he had another schedule soon, so he couldn’t stay long. It was a mystery why he had agreed so quickly when he suggested meeting today. Anyway, having a proper meal was impossible, but he offered to buy him a coffee, which was why they ended up here.

“……”

They drank quietly, and the cup quickly emptied as neither of them knew how to start the conversation. Haeun’s throat grew dry, not knowing what to say. Yejun, who had been persistent about meeting up, was now tightly sealed-lipped when it was just the two of them.

If that was the case, why had he insisted on having a meal together in the first place? Was he really just trying to get her to eat? His face remained calm and unreadable. The first flicker of a different expression appeared only after more than half of the drink was gone.

‘Ah, suddenly he seems hesitant.’

Watching the easy-to-read change on his face, Yejun lifted his head. Haeun, not wanting to seem too eager and reveal that he was watching him closely, met his gaze with a casual expression.

Yejun spoke slowly, his voice calm despite the hesitation.

“I’m sorry about earlier.”

“Yes?”

“I feel like I was way too blunt earlier. You must have your own side of things, too.”

Honestly, he thought that was true. Even after becoming Park Ha, empty words didn’t come easily to Haeun, so he just let out a small “Ah” and nodded absentmindedly. Then, suddenly realizing he should say something, he added belatedly.

“Oh, no, it’s nothing.”

No clever words came to mind, so he just closed his mouth. Honestly, it was only fair to feel sorry. Yejun didn’t seem to mind his short reply much. He seemed aware that he had made things awkward for him.

Haeun wasn’t one to hold grudges, so that attitude almost made his heart soften. Yejun calmly continued.

“I’ve heard I’m the type to say whatever comes to mind without caring much about the situation…”

At that moment, Haeun couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

“You should’ve been a bit more careful… why?”

Yejun looked slightly puzzled and asked, “Why?”

Haeun almost choked on his drink and just waved his hand. It wasn’t really funny, but somehow, hearing such a candid confession in such a calm tone seemed amusing.

“Oh, no, it’s just… you’ve actually heard that before.”

“Is that surprising?”

Yejun tilted his head slightly, clearly not understanding what was so surprising about it. Haeun tilted his head too and said.

“A little, yeah? I think it’s hard to say that kind of thing to someone’s face.”

Especially to Yejun. His expressionless face and calm tone, combined with the kind of personality that speaks his mind no matter what, and his confident, unyielding demeanor made him a tough person to handle. Even though he wasn’t very talkative, every word felt firm and resolute.

And more than anything, Yejun was a top star. Someone you couldn’t easily criticize outright.

“Really? But I’m pretty casual with my members; we just talk about anything—”

“Oh, there you are.”

Haeun, who had been focused on what Yejun was saying, quickly lifted his head. The voice hadn’t come from him—it had come from behind him. He blinked in surprise as he watched Yejun frown slightly, his eyes now fixed somewhere above his head.

“What’s with this look, Yejun? Still in costume? What are you doing?”

The voice continued behind him, the calm and gentle tone sharply contrasting with the biting words, creating a strange sense of cognitive dissonance.

Turning his head all the way back, Haeun finally caught sight of the speaker’s face. No wonder the voice had felt familiar—it belonged to someone she’d seen countless times on YouTube.

“Oh, Seo Siyoung! …Sunbae-nim.”

A friendly smile spread across his face as he looked down at him. He gave a small, cheerful wave and responded warmly,

“Ah, it’s hoobae. Hey there.”