Fake Lovers
Lee Sia went to the bathroom and took a moment to check herself in the mirror, fixing her makeup. Of course, there wasn't much to change, but she did it anyway out of sheer habit. While she was doing her makeup, a thought suddenly struck her. Why was she so familiar with leading on a date?
Today, Sia had put together a perfect date course of her own. She had planned something simple like eating together and seeing a movie, but the date course Park Siwoo had made looked even better than hers. In fact, apart from buying her clothes, she hadn't really done anything. The fact that she had even gone to buy clothes and paired a sweater with a cardigan had looked great, but it was too cold for a proper date, so she had dragged him along anyway. Of course, she had no issues with Siwoo leading the date. Even if it was called a fake couple, dating like real lovers felt wonderful.
The one thing Sia was worried about right now was this:
'Was there a girl who went on a date with him before me?!'
It was possible that the first date Sia had been on with Siwoo wasn't actually her first. The way Siwoo had led so naturally had left her flustered. Because she had been with him since they were kids, Siwoo had never gone on a date with anyone else. Since Sia was always glued to his side, making it clear to anyone that he was hers, there was no way a big girl would have dared to approach him.
In Siia's eyes, she had successfully chased away all potential rivals. Yet here Siwoo was, putting together the perfect date course, leading with such ease, and taking photos in the most natural way. It made her wonder if there really was some girl Siwoo had secretly met. Of course, Siwoo had only dated Sia. The skill with which he had led today came from thorough research. She had seen general date-course tips online, explored good photo spots in the city, and even checked out cafes for their atmosphere, menus, and actual vibe. As she scrolled through SNS photos at those cafes, she had gotten so used to how to pose for flattering shots that it felt second nature. This seasoned date course was only possible thanks to Siwoo's meticulous prep. Still, in Siia's eyes, she didn't know how much effort he had put in, so her heart had felt a little unsettled.
Yet Sia thought, 'Hah! In the end, I'm the one who gets to smile!' and stepped out of the bathroom with renewed determination.
“Excuse me…”
A voice calling out to her suddenly came from the side. Curious, Sia turned her head. A guy was standing there. She thought he looked older than a high-schooler, maybe in his twenties. Before she could react, he asked,
“If it's okay, could I have your phone number?”
The guy had clearly just wanted her number. He looked like an adult.
“I'm underage, so no thanks.”
Sia turned to leave, but the guy quickly added,
“Oh, I didn't mean it like that… I just wanted to contact you…”
“Is that so?”
“Huh?”
“Then what did you mean by 'contact'?”
“No, not like that… just… to talk…”
“Haa…”
Sia let out a long sigh and calmed herself to answer politely.
“I came with my boyfriend, so I can't.”
“But I'm not saying we should keep going… just give me your number…”
“Hey.”
At first, since Siwoo was nearby, she had just responded casually and tried to leave, but the guy kept pushing, saying things like “overstepping boundaries.” It made Sia angry.
“Since we're not even going to break up, there's no point talking. Just get lost.”
“No, people don't cross lines like that…”
“Just leave. I don't even want to breathe the same air as you.”
“……”
The guy who wanted to argue that Siia's words were too harsh suddenly felt a chill down his spine when he met her eyes and quickly turned away.
“People who stick around for no reason…”
Sia was used to dealing with this kind of harassment, so her expression had twisted. But remembering she was on a date with Siwoo right now, she forced her face to stay calm.
“It's a date… it's a date… it's a date…”
After a few deep breaths, Sia walked straight back to Siwoo.
※※※※※※
“What's wrong?”
Siwoo's face looked strangely stiff when he returned to his seat, so he asked what was up.
“Hmm? Nothing's wrong?”
“Really?”
Sia's face looked a bit stiff, almost like she was hiding something. Anyway, it felt like something was off, but if Sia said there was nothing wrong, then there must be nothing wrong. Siwoo changed the subject.
“Want to get something else to eat?”
“No. Is there somewhere else you want to go?”
“Hmm… The plan was to stop here… Is there somewhere else you want to visit?”
“I don't really have anywhere in mind.”
“Then shall we head back to the cafe?”
“Yeah!”
After that, Siwoo and Sia left the cafe and boarded a bus heading home. While they were on the bus, they chatted about school, and when the bus passed by their neighborhood, Sia suddenly jumped up.
“Eh? Can I get off?!”
Sia looked startled as she asked if she could get off.
“Yeah, I was going to walk you all the way home.”
“Ah… Oh, really…?”
When Siwoo said he was walking her home, Sia paused for a moment before asking,
“But… isn't it far?”
“A little distance is fine on a date. Don't worry.”
“Ah… Oh, thank you.”
Sia said thanks and fell silent. After getting off in front of Siia's apartment, Siwoo walked her all the way to the lobby entrance. Now it was time to part ways.
“Hmm… Thanks for today, Siwoo.”
“No big deal. I bought you clothes in the first place.”
“Hehe, but it's all from our mom's money anyway, right?”
“Still, thank you.”
“……So, next time too? You'll go on a date with me again?”
Sia asked cautiously about the next date. Siwoo felt a little happy when he heard that. Sia asking about the next date meant she had enjoyed their first one.
“Of course.”
“Hehe! Thank you!”
Sia smiled brightly and suddenly hugged him. Caught off guard by her quick movement, Siwoo couldn't pull away. In doing so, their faces ended up very close.
“……!”
Siwoo instinctively turned his head away, embarrassed and flustered. Sia noticed and asked in a soft voice,
“By the way, there's something I want to ask.”
“What is it?”
“Isn't this the first date we've been on?”
“Huh?”
“No, you just seemed really used to leading dates. I thought maybe you had gone on dates with other people.”
“Eh? No, I haven't.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, if that's what Siwoo says, then it must be true.”
When Siwoo denied it, the scary atmosphere vanished. Sia then said,
“Thanks for today! See you on Monday!”
“Yeah, take care.”
“Mhm!”
After parting ways with Sia, Siwoo went home, showered, and dried his hair when a cheerful alarm sounded. He checked his phone and saw Sia had posted many photos from their date on SNS. Siwoo had said it was fine to post his face, but Sia hadn't uploaded one. The moment he thought maybe she didn't want to show her face, he saw the comments and the feeling disappeared.
[Boyfriend Date ♥]
Siwoo's heart raced when he saw Siia's bold declaration that she had a boyfriend right there in the photo. At the same time, his heart fluttered with emotion, joy, and excitement. The feeling was so intense that it kept making him shiver. To top it off, Sia had changed her profile picture to a novel cover and set the background photo to one of them holding hands at the cafe. With those changes, the feeling that they were really dating hit him even more.
“Haa…”
A silly sound escaped him as the corners of his mouth naturally lifted. He must have slept well last night.
※※※※※※
Monday morning.
When they arrived at school, their class was already a little noisy. Well, it was probably because of Sia and him. When Siwoo and Sia entered the classroom, the group of kids all turned to stare at them at once. Of course, they were talking about them. But Siwoo had expected this reaction, so he ignored it.
—Ping~
Suddenly his NovelTalk app alarm went off.
“Who is it?”
“Oh… it's them.”
Minseong and the other two had contacted him. Since those were the only guys Siwoo was close with, Sia immediately knew who they were.
“Ah, why so suddenly?”
“Hmm… Wanna meet up for a bit?”
“Yeah, go quickly.”
Siwoo wondered what was going on and stood up from his seat.