Triangular Meeting #2
“Um… say hello. This is Jihyeok… Song Jihyeok. He’s a close… friend who’s helped me a lot.”
Sehwa, put on a better performance. Even Yu Seunghyeon can tell how flustered you are. Or maybe not—given how dense he is, he’s just sitting there with that stupid grin on his face.
I decided to greet him first.
“Hello. I’m Song Jihyeok.”
When I extended my hand, Yu Seunghyeon shot to his feet and clasped it.
“I’m Yu Seunghyeon. Thank you so much for helping Sehwa. And thank you for offering to let me stay at your place as well.”
You have a lot to be grateful for. But you’re already drinking the kimchi soup before it’s even served. I never had any intention of letting you in.
“It’s a shame you two couldn’t move in together.”
“Oh, no, it’s fine. By the way, you must like pajeon.”
“I just felt like having some when it started raining. I was going to eat with a friend, but something important came up, so I guess I’ll be eating alone.”
Sehwa’s body trembled ever so slightly. She must have realized the words were meant for her. Yu Seunghyeon’s face filled with pity.
“I see… Would you like to join us, then?”
“No. Sehwa was singing about how much she missed seeing you, so it would be rude of me to butt in.”
“Ah, Sehwa said that?”
Yu Seunghyeon looked at her with loving eyes. Too bad Sehwa was too busy watching my every move to notice.
“She did. It was quite endearing.”
A waitress called out from across the restaurant that my order was ready. I flashed her a bright smile before continuing.
“I’ll be on my way. Let’s grab a meal together sometime.”
“I don’t even know when my next day off will be… Don’t go. Just sit with us. We don’t mind.”
This guy was painfully, hopelessly dense. What Sehwa desperately needed right now was someone reliable to listen to her troubles—not some fool trying to repay a debt with gratitude. He was practically begging me to steal his girlfriend.
I turned to Sehwa.
“What do you think?”
“Huh…?”
Her flustered expression was almost pitiful. She was going to agree no matter what. She’d feel guilty for meeting Yu Seunghyeon without telling me.
“I… It’s fine. Sit down.”
“Got it. I’ll stay for a little while, then.”
Sehwa shifted over to make room. After bringing the packed pajeon to the table and sitting beside her, I watched Yu Seunghyeon smile good-naturedly.
“Are you two close?”
“I’d say we’re pretty close within the university.”
As I answered, I slipped my hand onto Sehwa’s thigh beneath the table, hidden from Yu Seunghyeon’s view. She let out a small cough and forced an awkward laugh.
“Not just pretty close. The closest.”
“Really? That’s good to hear. By the way, do you drink makgeolli too, Mr. Song Jihyeok?”
While gently kneading Sehwa’s thigh, I picked up the makgeolli bottle.
“Of course. I love it. Let me pour for you first.”
“Oh, thank you.”
He accepted the drink with the utmost politeness, even rising slightly from his seat when pouring for me. I’d never done anything official for him. Sure, I’d offered him a place to stay, but he’d refused, so we were equals now. Yet the way he treated me—like I was the one marrying Sehwa and he was just some caretaker—made it clear. The more deferential Yu Seunghyeon became, the more Sehwa would see me as her absolute superior.
After pouring for Sehwa as well, Yu Seunghyeon spoke up.
“Shall we toast?”
A toast, huh? To your own efforts to distance yourself from Sehwa, you idiot. I smirked and raised my glass.
[Jihyeok, are you home? I just sent Seunghyeon off and I’m heading back… You didn’t even get to eat the pajeon properly. Should I bring some?]
[Are you asleep? Why aren’t you answering your phone?]
[Text me when you wake up.]
[Can’t you just pick up the phone?]
The phone on my bed vibrated. Lying there leisurely, I chuckled. It was already two in the morning. Most people would be deep in dreamland, yet here came the barrage of calls and texts. What a nuisance.
Buuuzzz—!
Another vibration. This time a call. The pattern—texts first, then a call—was so predictable. I decided to answer.
“Mmm… Hello?”
I put on a groggy, half-asleep voice. Method acting at its finest.
—Were you sleeping? Sorry…
“Yeah… What’s up…?”
—Can I come in for a bit? Open the door.
“Just punch in the code… 5584…”
After giving her the password and hanging up, I heard the keypad beeping followed by the front door opening. Water ran in the living room bathroom—Sehwa washing her hands. Moments later, my bedroom door creaked open ever so quietly. Her pretty face peeked through the gap, but she couldn’t see anything in the dark room. She seemed to be waiting for some sign before entering.
“Not going to knock?”
“S-Sorry…”
“Come in…”
At my permission, Sehwa hurried over and perched on the edge of the bed. She watched as I, still looking half-asleep with messy hair, fiddled with my phone.
I stretched with a groan and spoke with feigned disbelief.
“Why so many calls and texts? It’s two in the morning.”
“I missed you…”
“What about Yu Seunghyeon? Did you two have a good time?”
“Yeah. I just dropped him off at the hotel. He wanted to go for round two… but he was so red in the face I sent him straight to his room.”
“And you? How much did you drink?”
“Just the few glasses I had with you. Sorry for waking you.”
I wordlessly shifted over to make space. Sehwa slipped off her outer clothes and lay down beside me. A faint mix of makgeolli, grease, and fabric softener clung to her. I sniffed the air, and she suddenly pulled the ends of her hair to her nose.
After smelling it herself, her face twisted.
“It smells pretty bad… Should I go wash up?”
“Doesn’t bother me. You can stay like this.”
“No. I don’t want the smell getting on the blanket. I’ll go home and shower. Just wait a bit, okay? Don’t fall asleep.”
“Can’t promise that… Just bring a change of clothes and wash here. There’s a bathroom in the master bedroom.”
“Huh?”
Her eyes widened in obvious panic. She must have misunderstood.
“Don’t get the wrong idea. I just figured I’d fall back asleep if it’s quiet, so I said that. You can leave the door open and use the living room bathroom if you want.”
“Ah… I thought… Okay, just five minutes—no, three minutes. Wait for me.”
“Got it.”
Sehwa dashed out of the house, her footsteps echoing. Good thing the building had solid soundproofing—elsewhere, that would’ve been a noise complaint, Sehwa.
She returned shortly with fresh clothes, checked if I was asleep, then entered the bathroom and turned on the shower. The door was left slightly ajar, as if to pressure me into staying awake. Did she really have no sense of caution, or was she inviting me to peek? The thought was rather arousing…
While I stared at the ceiling, lost in such thoughts, Sehwa emerged with her wet hair wrapped in a towel.
“Asleep?”
“…. No.”
Relieved, she lay down beside me again and brought a lock of her hair to my nose.
“Smell it. Does it still—ah…”
A damp sensation brushed my philtrum. Realizing her mistake, Sehwa yanked her hair away and quickly wiped the moisture from my upper lip with her finger.
I chuckled.
“Doesn’t smell anymore. Did you have fun?”
“Seunghyeon kept talking about you. Said you seemed like a really good person.”
“Did he? You must’ve been disappointed.”
“Why?”
“You’re troubled by all these monsters appearing around the world. You wanted to confide in Yu Seunghyeon and get some comfort, didn’t you? But he spent the whole time talking about me. Aren’t you upset?”
Sehwa’s expression shifted dramatically. I’d hit the mark exactly. I knew everything.
“That’s why I tried to leave early… but it didn’t work out. If it’s okay with you, I’ll listen instead.”
“…..”
“Or we can just forget it and sleep.”
Sehwa wiped her eyes. Tears had suddenly welled up. She was overwhelmed… genuinely moved.
“I don’t want to talk about it… You’re already working so hard too…”
Her voice trembled. A protective urge welled up inside me.
“It’s fine. The equipment development is almost done. The doctor said she’ll handle the finishing touches. I’ve got plenty of time now. Later, let’s transform and test out how to use it.”
Sehwa nodded, her face lighting up with clear joy. It wasn’t excitement about the new gear—it was happiness that I now had free time.
“Crying one second, smiling the next… What a mess.”
“Kkng…!”
Even the way she sniffled was cute. And funny. Sehwa buried her face against my chest. When I patted her back, she relaxed completely, melting into me.
“I think you’re really strong. People are trying to expose your identity, you’re struggling because you can’t protect everyone from the monsters, yet you endure it all alone in silence.”
“…..”
“It must be exhausting. Just hold on a little longer. The search range for Evilion—that ridiculous name—has expanded, and the doctor says talks with the World Coalition are progressing. We’ll be fully prepared so you can rush out whenever a monster appears—hup!”
A sudden, intense pressure against my lips. Sehwa’s soft, plump ones had crashed into mine. She kissed me passionately, pushing her tongue into my mouth. My words must have comforted her. I still had more to say, but it could wait.
After a long kiss, I tapped her back several times to signal her to stop. Sehwa pulled away, her eyes dreamy, and honestly confessed what had happened earlier.
“Jihyeok… I held hands with Seunghyeon today. Even though you told me not to…”
What? She did that even after I warned her? What a little temptress. I’d have to pressure Marcela to finish modifying those tracking demon dogs soon. I wanted to scold her, but she’d been through enough lately, so I let it slide.
“I couldn’t come up with a good excuse, so I had no choice… Please don’t be mad.”
Hmm… I’d planned to warn her, but this was probably enough.
“It’s fine. You were honest, so I’ll let it go.”
“I won’t do it again. Not until you say it’s okay. Never, ever again.”
At this rate, she might actually say she’s breaking up with Yu Seunghyeon. No, probably not. Sehwa was simply repaying my comfort and atoning for disobeying me—she still had strong feelings for him. The Sehwa I knew wouldn’t have a complete change of heart from just this. But the weight on my side of the scale had increased dramatically. Maybe we were approaching equal footing? I couldn’t be sure yet.
“I got it. Since I have more free time now… want to go shopping the day after tomorrow? We can eat out and come back.”
“I’d love that. I’d love anything. But why the day after tomorrow? What about tomorrow?”
“I have something to do tomorrow.”
It had been a while since I’d seen Yuria. Time to show my face. When we met, I planned to create a situation where she could contact me first.
“Something to do…? What is it? Are you going to the lab? Or meeting that old friend of yours?”
Sehwa’s eyes looked ready to shoot lasers. No need to stir up unnecessary jealousy. I’d treat her well for the next few days.
“No. The uncle is being discharged tomorrow, so I’m going to have a meal with him.”
“Uncle…? Ah! That secretary who was hospitalized?”
“Yeah. I’d like to bring you too, but we have some personal matters to discuss… Sorry. I’ll come back as early as I can. Will you wait for me? When I return, we can go shopping.”
“Okay, I’ll wait. But aren’t you tired?”
“Of course not if it’s with you. Just wait quietly.”
“Got it. Hehe…”
Sehwa’s face brightened instantly. She let out a bright laugh and rested her head on my arm. She made no move to leave, and when she pulled my other hand over to interlace our fingers, it was clear—she was planning to sleep here tonight.
Maybe Yu Seunghyeon’s behavior had disappointed her that much. She was acting like someone starved for affection. I silently thanked him in my heart.