Chapter 175: First Date
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 175: First Date
Chapter 18 - The Girl Has Now Become an Adult.
1
Christmas.
For couples, it’s the most important day of the year.
What would happen if, on a day that could be just as important for those who aren’t in a relationship, your significant other suddenly went out of contact?
Naturally, you’d be furious enough to go ballistic.
In a way, it would feel like being stood up.
But on the other hand, you’d be worried.
Nothing would be more concerning than the person you love suddenly becoming unreachable.
And right now, Si-ho’s case was the latter.
Because I had a long history of getting into trouble, the moment I became unreachable, Si-ho had gone straight to the World Returnee Association.
Thankfully, Seol-hyang had been quick-witted enough to pass along information to the Association beforehand, which was how Si-ho learned about our situation.
But upon hearing I had gone to the Tower of Revelation, Si-ho had been sick with worry.
When I finally showed up on Christmas night, she was immensely relieved, but then she immediately started pouting.
To what extent, you ask?
“Um, Si-ho?”
“……”
It was to the point where the Ha Si-ho hadn’t even answered me for several days now, no matter how many times I called her name.
Looking thoroughly peeved that I had gone to the Tower of Revelation without even contacting her, Si-ho sat beside me, sipping her drink through a small straw with her tiny mouth.
Looking at her puffed-up cheeks, I couldn’t tell when her anger might finally subside.
As I stood there, at a loss for what to do, Heuksan, who had been watching from the side, gave me a look as if I were pathetic.
“Why is a guy like this stronger than me?”
That’s thanks to the future you, I thought.
But I had no time to deal with Heuksan right now.
“Si-ho, I’m sorry. Okay? I’ll be sure to contact you from now on.”
I pleaded with her, my heart aching.
Perhaps because this was a side of her I had never seen before, I was even more clueless about how to handle the situation.
Ignoring me completely, Si-ho slurped up the last drop of her drink and stood up from her seat.
“I don’t know.”
Leaving those words behind, she walked away, and I covered my face with my hands.
What was I going to do?
It seemed Si-ho was truly, deeply upset.
“Haa, Mr. Ha-chan, you’re really wrapped around her finger.”
As I was agonizing over how to appease Si-ho, Yu U-jeong, who had been watching alongside Heuksan, spoke to me.
When I looked at her, asking what she meant, Yu U-jeong glanced toward Si-ho and clicked her tongue.
“I was so annoyed I wasn’t going to tell you, but you’re starting to look a little pitiful, so I’ll let you in on it.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Si-ho, that little lady’s anger has long since faded.”
Hearing that, I tilted my head.
No matter how I looked at her, Si-ho seemed furious. How could her anger have faded?
I couldn’t understand it at all.
“For a woman, just seeing the man she loves return safely is enough for her anger to disappear. In the first place, the reason she was so worried is because she likes him so much.”
“What does that have to do with her not being angry anymore?”
“This is why men… honestly. Listen carefully. Her anger is definitely gone. But just because her anger is gone doesn’t mean her feelings are settled. Sometimes, a woman just wants to show a man, ‘Hey, I’m mad at you.’”
“And what’s the point of showing that?”
“That’s usually when there’s something she wants.”
With that, Yu U-jeong rested her chin on her wrist.
“What do you think that little lady wants?”
“What Si-ho wants?”
I blinked once.
When it came to what Si-ho wanted…
It was embarrassing, but nothing came to mind other than myself.
After all, she had always put me first.
“Are you an idiot? It’s simple. Sex…”
“Unni, that’s enough.”
At that moment, unable to stand it any longer, Ji-eun clamped a hand over Yu U-jeong’s mouth and sighed.
Then, she looked at me, her cheeks puffing out slightly.
“Ha-chan, to be honest, I was angry too. I like you too, so it really hurts when you just leave like that without a word.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“But Si-ho has built up so much more with you than I have. She must have been hurt even more deeply.”
Ji-eun said with a faint smile.
“So this time, you should properly ask her out on a date.”
The word “date” made me think of the plans we had made for December 31st.
“Si-ho is probably just waiting for that.”
Would that really be enough?
I was a little worried, but these were the words of Ji-eun, who was closest to Si-ho.
I slowly nodded.
“To be honest, I’m dying to go on a date with you that day, too.”
Ji-eun let out a small sigh.
“But in the end, it was Si-ho who helped me continue to like you. So I’ll yield, just this once.”
She said, laughing awkwardly.
“Gah!”
Just then, Yu U-jeong licked the hand covering her mouth, causing Ji-eun to shriek and pull it away.
In that instant, Yu U-jeong flicked her tongue out, licked her lips, and turned back to me.
“I don’t want to yield. Mr. Ha-chan, want to go with me first? What good is a virgin who cums the second he’s inside? I’ll teach you every little thing, nice and slow.”
I stared for a moment at Yu U-jeong, who was sucking on her finger as she spoke, before turning my head away.
It wasn’t even worth a response.
And I was sorry, but I had come too far to be swayed by words like that anymore.
A date, huh.
Putting Yu U-jeong aside, Ji-eun’s words were definitely worth listening to.
Since December 31st was tomorrow, it seemed I needed to talk to Si-ho about this first.
I wandered around the company, looking for Si-ho.
Fortunately, I found her not too far away.
An empty training room.
Si-ho was sitting there all by herself.
The space around her was shimmering, as if she were in the middle of training.
Seeing that, I decided to wait for a moment.
A short while later, the shimmering around Si-ho stopped.
Then, her head turned toward me.
It was as if she were asking what I wanted.
Looking at Si-ho, who was gazing at me intently, I scratched my head before finally approaching her.
“Si-ho, can we talk for a bit?”
Si-ho stared at me for a moment before giving a slight nod.
Seeing that, I felt a little relieved and spoke to her.
“I don’t think you want any more apologies, so I’d like to say something else now.”
Si-ho remained silent, looking up at me.
“Tomorrow is December 31st.”
I gave her an apologetic smile.
“I want to go on a date with you tomorrow. Do you think you could stop being angry with me?”
At my words, Si-ho remained perfectly still.
Then, she slowly walked toward me and looked up at me intently.
Her small face came into view.
She, who was petite enough to only reach just below my chest, looked up at me for a long time before finally opening her mouth.
“Were you serious about what you said before?”
It had been a while since I’d heard her voice.
I knew what she was referring to, so I smiled back.
“Yeah, I want to go on a date with you.”
The moment I said that, Si-ho wrapped her arms around my waist and hugged me tightly.
With her in my arms, I raised a hand and stroked her hair.
“…I was really holding back a lot.”
“I’m sorry. For not noticing.”
“That’s why I wanted to be greedy, too.”
I lowered my hand and gently embraced her shoulder.
At that, Si-ho smiled as if she were the happiest person in the world.
“I’ll dress up really pretty tomorrow, Si-ho will.”
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
“That’s right. You should. You’ll be the one falling for me first, Manager.”
Si-ho was already beautiful enough, but since she said so, I smiled along with her.
“So really, look forward to it. I’ll be looking forward to it, too.”
Reconfirming that what Ji-eun had said was true, I nodded.
It looked like I needed to come fully prepared tomorrow.
2
After making up with Si-ho, the next day arrived in a flash.
The Christmas decorations on the streets were gradually disappearing, replaced by a year-end atmosphere.
Perhaps because today was the last day before the new year, the streets were bustling with people getting ready to welcome it.
Standing on one such street, wearing a scarf, I let out a long breath.
Just like with Seol-hyang and Ahyu, that bastard Baeksan had once again made himself scarce.
Where does he disappear to every time?
I wasn’t sure, but for some reason, I had a feeling he was off watching over Heuksan.
“Manager.”
At that moment, a voice cut through my thoughts as I was looking at my phone, and I lifted my head.
Where I looked, there stood a petite girl.
Wearing a pretty white coat and black stockings underneath, she had her dark blue hair tied up.
The ends of her eyes were slightly upturned, which could make her look sharp at a glance, but the gaze she directed at me was incredibly soft.
And I knew very well that those eyes were directed only at me.
“Si-ho.”
When I called her name, Si-ho clutched the crossbody bag slung over her shoulder and came to my side.
“Have you been waiting?”
“Nope, not at all.”
It seemed Si-ho had put on some light makeup today; she had a distinctly dolled-up feel.
Since she was naturally so stunning that she usually didn’t wear any makeup, the effect felt even more pronounced.
I couldn’t help but let my gaze linger on her.
“So, what do you think?”
As Si-ho looked at me with expectant eyes, I let out a dry cough.
“You’re beautiful.”
When I gave her the awkward compliment, the corners of Si-ho’s lips lifted slightly, making it obvious how pleased she was.
“You look cool too, Manager.”
“I didn’t even dress up that much.”
Compared to Si-ho, I probably looked like a total slob.
“No, you don’t. In my eyes, you’re the coolest. Because you’re the person I like the most.”
Si-ho, who had thankfully said that, moved closer to me.
“Can I hold your hand?”
Hearing her question, I pulled my hand from my pocket.
Si-ho looked at my hand, then took it with her own small one, squeezing it tightly.
“Your hand is so warm, Manager.”
“That’s because I kept it in my pocket.”
“And it’s so much bigger than mine.”
Well, there was quite a size difference between us.
The difference in our builds was so significant that I worried others might find us suspicious.
Then again, it’s true that we are suspicious.
Even if she was turning into an adult tomorrow, today, Si-ho was still a minor.
I wondered what difference a single day made, but I couldn’t help the nagging feeling in my heart.
Whether she knew what was on my mind or not, Si-ho seemed so happy to be holding my hand that she kept glancing down at our intertwined fingers.
Seeing her so happy naturally made my own heart feel warm.
“Shall we go?”
“Yes.”
After that, Si-ho and I began to walk down the street in silence.
Perhaps because this was my first time going on a proper date like this, I was a little nervous.
As the adult, I felt like I should say something, but when I tried, I had no idea what to talk about.
What do kids these days even talk about?
I felt lost for a moment, but when I turned to look at Si-ho, I saw her smiling back at me.
Right. What did it matter what kids these days talked about?
This was Si-ho, after all.
“Si-ho, let’s go to the place I booked.”
“Okay.”
Since it was the end of the year, I had made a reservation at a place with a nice atmosphere.
And so, I started to head there with Si-ho.
Si-ho could have teleported us there in an instant, but we didn’t do something so unromantic.
Just walking down the street together, holding hands, was meaningful in itself.
However, we ran into one completely unexpected problem.
The door to the restaurant I had booked was closed.
What the—