I Like You a Lot, Sincerely
Of course, every last item on today's schedule was canceled.
Fortunately it had been the final shoot, so they decided to fold the remaining work into the two days of filming still left. The real problem was the flooded set; word came that they would push the shoot back two days and build an entirely new one. Han Yojung's schedule took a hit, yet she agreed without hesitation. She had wanted a little more rest in Korea anyway. That, at least, was a relief.
Whirr—
I stood in the living room hanging her clothes on hangers and drying them with a hairdryer. Kang Bitna had gone in to shower and still had not emerged after thirty minutes. It was four in the afternoon. Junseok was asleep; my younger brother had not come home from work yet.
Whirr—
Only the drone of the dryer filled the quiet living room.
"Maybe I should turn on the TV…"
I switched it on quickly before she came out. Flipping channels, my hand stopped naturally on the news. The screen was covering today's "Save the Han River Campaign." The camera lingered on one man in particular—the current mayor of Seoul, Jo Seung-kwon. He alone had won consecutive terms as Seoul Metropolitan Mayor on the absolute support of the citizens and was still deeply loved by them. Lately talk had begun of him as a leading contender for next year's presidential race, yet he insisted he had no interest in the presidency and would simply fulfill his duties as mayor with full responsibility.
On the screen he smiled gently while shaking hands with citizens; a woman trailing close behind him caught my eye. Surrounded by bodyguards, she was clearly someone important connected to Jo Seung-kwon. A black dress, a wide-brimmed hat, and sunglasses hid most of her face. Still, the image she projected and the fleeting contours of her features matched someone already stored in my memory—long hair neatly tied back, an intellectual air, a face that felt familiar. Pale complexion, a medical bracelet around her wrist. The patient who had suddenly approached me and fired off questions. She had possessed a rather eccentric personality; I still remembered vividly how the nurses and bodyguards had hauled her away.
That's definitely the woman I saw in the VIP lounge Healing Library at LK Hospital.
No wonder the face had seemed familiar—I must have caught it in passing on television sometime.
Could she be Jo Seung-kwon's daughter?
Just as I was trying to match their faces, the bathroom door opened and Kang Bitna slowly appeared. After the brain awakening my physique had improved and the clothes that no longer fit me had been set aside; I had given her the smallest long-sleeve T-shirt and shorts among them.
"Oh, the clothes are a bit big."
On her they hung so loosely her shoulder line showed clearly, and the shirt was long enough to swallow the shorts completely—practically a no-pants look. She stepped into the living room awkwardly, cheeks flushed, fidgeting.
Cute… so cute?
The thought lasted only a second before I remembered it was winter.
"Ah, just a moment."
I went into the room and pulled a long fur robe from the closet—something I had bought ages ago and never once worn. After the awakening I barely felt the cold.
"Put this on. You'll be more comfortable."
"Ah, thank you."
She slipped into it at once. It dragged on the floor, but warmth was all that mattered.
"Just sit for a bit. I've already boiled water."
I settled her on the sofa and headed for the kitchen. I poured the waiting water into a teapot and brought it out with cups. A clean peppermint scent drifted through the living room.
"Have some tea. It should settle your stomach."
I filled a cup and held it out. She bowed her head lightly, accepted it, and began to sip.
"Ah… this is nice."
"Yes. It's not mine, but please help yourself."
I had meant it as a small joke; she gave no particular reaction.
"……"
"……"
Silence stretched for a moment. Then something occurred to me. I stood, held out the remote, and offered it to her.
"Watch some TV while the clothes dry. I'll tell Beomjin to pick up groceries, so you can stay for dinner and leave afterward. I'm going upstairs to wake Junseok."
"Ah, okay. Got it."
I rose at once, grabbed my phone, and started up the stairs while texting Beomjin. Then I opened the securities app and checked today's close.
Gukmidang had climbed again. The 77,000 shares I had bought roughly two weeks earlier at 5,200 won closed at 9,800. Estimated value: about 760 million won. Starting from 400 million, I was already sitting on a 360-million-won profit—nearly an 85 percent return. Unfazed by the unstable international climate, Gukmidang was printing all-time highs.
Yet the sharper the surge, the cooler one must stay. I scanned the charts and reassessed the price.
Can I really call this expensive right now?
Volume was still rising; institutions continued to accumulate. Most important of all, the climb was not some fleeting theme or event-driven spike. Global monopoly supply in the premium non-alcoholic market, cultural demand for K-food and healthy living, and—above everything—a locked-in sales base. Earnings would hit the books far faster than expected; another rally before the next quarterly report was highly likely. The pilot sales results in the United States, still barely known at home, remained as well. Plenty of reasons to keep holding. At this pace I could own a building inside half a year.
I blanked the phone screen, climbed to the second floor, and eased the door open a crack. The monitors still showed coin-trading windows, stock graphs, disclosures, issues, and live news. Blackout curtains were drawn; snoring drifted out. He was dead to the world.
Better not wake him now.
I had no choice but to return downstairs. Kang Bitna still sat on the sofa, quietly watching television, robe drawn close, both hands wrapped around the teacup. She looked cautious, like a cat that had just slipped out of somewhere, yet somehow peaceful. I made a soft sound so I would not startle her, then sat opposite her.
"Feeling a little better?"
She nodded.
"Yes… the warm tea helped a lot."
"Good."
I smiled gently and answered simply, but my mind was turning over every angle—her situation, her condition, the atmosphere of the room, the weight of the words I was about to speak. Rationally, everything said I should not. My old self would have obeyed that judgment. The analytical power and control that arrived with the brain awakening always delivered the correct answer, forcing efficiency over emotion, timing over heart. Yet to keep logic from smothering feeling and to step free of that transcendent indifference, I had to stay true to what I felt right now.
If not now… I might never be able to again.
I steeled myself and opened my mouth.
"Kang Bitna."
At the exact same moment—
"Um…"
Our voices overlapped. I froze; she closed her mouth in surprise. When our eyes met we both laughed softly. The timing was off, yet the air between us had grown more natural.
"You first."
"No, Hoojin, you first."
When she yielded, I gathered myself and spoke.
"Actually…"
For the first time since the awakening my heart began to pound hard. My mind was still analyzing what effect the words would have on her, but this once I shut the analysis down. I would be faithful to the feeling.
"Kang Bitna, since that day I've thought about it a great deal… and I finally understood what I feel for you."
I looked into her eyes; her pupils trembled finely. She swallowed, face tight with tension.
Right then—
Beep-beep-beep-beep—
Clunk!
The front door opened.
"Hyung! I'm home. Bought meat and veggies, and a bottle of wine too! What's Bitna noona doing?"
Bags rustled; Beomjin's bright voice cut straight into the living room.
Of all times??
I stood at a fork. Say it now, or put it off. Delay any longer and my head felt ready to split.
I can't put it off anymore! Straight ahead!
"I like you a lot too, Kang Bitna. Sincerely."
I looked her straight in the eyes and laid it bare. My voice had risen without my noticing, so not only she but Beomjin—who had just stepped into the living room—stood frozen, staring at us.
"Ah!"
She clapped both hands over her mouth. Beomjin backed up with a flustered look.
"Ahaha… I forgot the carrots! I'll run and grab them real quick!"
Thirty minutes later Beomjin was chopping with an indifferent face while Junseok, hair still mussed from sleep, grilled the pork belly Beomjin had bought. I washed vegetables and set the table; Kang Bitna sat demurely in a dining chair. Her expression was prim, far more withdrawn than usual. Yet every time I brushed past she subtly reached out, seeking contact. Each touch sent a strange, full-body thrill through me—utterly different from the cerebral spark of absorbing knowledge, and far more intense.
Ah, I might actually faint at this rate.
I tried to steady myself; it was useless. My senses felt razor-sharp, as if electromagnetic current were running through me; even my heart rate climbed. Neurotransmitter release triggered by emotional stimulus—an emotional-resonance amplification that appears when the senses where feeling and sensation intersect become overdeveloped. I had read the theory in a neuroscience text: when love, tension, or excitement fuse with physical contact, the reaction can amplify several times beyond the ordinary.
Looks like that's exactly where I am. Should I take something?
Thud!
Beomjin brought the knife down lightly on the cutting board and glared at us.
"It's already eyesore enough. If you're going to keep that up, why don't the two of you just go into a room."
"Huh?"
"What? Why me?"
We jerked apart and stared at him as if he had lost his mind. Beomjin shook his head and resumed chopping. Suddenly Junseok carried over a plate of meat and set it down in front of us with a thud.
"Eat before it gets cold. And go in first."
"Wh-what do you mean go in first! What kind of nonsense is that?"
I raised my voice in indignation. Junseok looked at me with the same indifferent face.
"Actually, I heard what you said while I was coming down the stairs and went right back up."
"What?"
I stared at him, dumbfounded. That meant everyone currently in the house had heard my confession. Kang Bitna's face turned tomato-red; I stopped thinking altogether and simply switched my brain off.
A short while later the four of us sat down to a lively dinner. Golden grilled pork belly and spicy kimchi stew made a perfect pair. Watching Kang Bitna peck at her food with tiny chopsticks, I quickly wrapped a ssam and held it out to her.
"Here. You have to eat well so you don't catch a cold and don't get sick."
"Ah… yes. Thank you."
She accepted it with a shy, flushed face and ate.
"Ugh! Ah, I think I'm gonna puke."
"Hoojin… you're full of shit."
Apparently Beomjin and Junseok were not feeling well. I ignored them both and simply watched Kang Bitna while I ate. She could not meet my eyes, as if embarrassed. Even without a drop of wine her cheeks were already rosy.
And so our day one began.