It's Okay to Just Hold You
Senior, you really do seem like a fox girl. It's okay to just hold you like this. How on earth was he supposed to interpret that?
The important thing was that Jinwoo had taken her words literally. He really had simply held her in his arms.
The two of them stayed that way for a long time, wrapped in each other. The room without a single word was utterly silent. All that could be heard was the sound of their hearts beating against one another through their embraced bodies.
Was the pulse so loud because everything around them was too quiet? Or was it because Eunbyul's heart was truly pounding that fiercely?
I don't know.
Either way, that strange atmosphere lingered between them for quite a while.
Eunbyul was the first to speak. She did so in a slightly sheepish voice.
"Haha... If this were a novel, the delivery would arrive right on cue at a moment like this."
"...Yeah."
But the real world clearly didn't deal in such perfect timing. There wasn't so much as a doorbell, let alone the sound of a motorcycle passing by the window.
"Since it's already like this."
"Huh?"
"Want to stay like this until the food gets here? Oh, this counts as research too. I want to know what it feels like when the protagonist and heroine are hugging each other."
Eunbyul wet her dry lips. Even after saying it out loud, she looked incredibly embarrassed. The sight was so adorable that it made him want to tease her.
"So that makes you my heroine, senior?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Eunbyul flinched in his arms. It was the same playful question she had asked him before. He was simply throwing it back at her. Yet that single, insignificant remark made her ears flush bright red.
Huh?
Jinwoo felt his own body tense up as he watched her. Only then did he realize how the question might be taken, and what kind of meaning Eunbyul could read into it.
The thought that he might have crossed a line slipped in alongside a thread of fear. What if this meeting, this contract between them, ended because of it?
Their current relationship was that of author and reader. He wasn't sure if he was allowed to break that boundary. At least, the Jinwoo of right now couldn't say for certain.
Which was why her answer hit even harder.
"...No."
His heart dropped at Eunbyul's reply. Even though he'd expected it, the impact was stronger than he'd anticipated. He was grateful she still had her face buried against his chest, not looking up at him. At least until the corners of her mouth curved into a mischievous little smile.
"If we're being precise, I'd say you're the one who's my heroine, Jinwoo."
Until she tilted her head up with that playful glint in her eyes.
...She's cute.
Jinwoo let out a soft chuckle despite himself.
Maybe senior had noticed after all. The flicker of anxiety he'd felt in that moment. Knowing that, she had responded in her usual teasing way, turning it around beautifully.
It's always the protagonist who saves the heroine.
As expected, he could never get the better of her. Jinwoo found himself thinking it all over again.
The doorbell rang a little while later. The pair, who had been holding each other all that time, quickly pulled apart. Whether it was from the embrace or the embarrassment, both of their bodies felt flushed with heat.
"Oh no. What if I gave you my cold?"
"I'm pretty sturdy, so I'll be fine."
"Haha... what kind of line is that? Anyway, I'll go get the food."
Eunbyul headed for the front door. Naturally, Jinwoo slipped further inside to hide. He was an adult now, so it shouldn't matter who he met, but showing this situation to his family was... well.
Embarrassing.
If possible, he wanted to keep his meetings with Eunbyul a secret. Not for any deep reason, but because they would absolutely tease him about it. Ah, but Mom had already caught them. Damn it. He'd have to bring her some red ginseng later as a proper bribe to keep her mouth shut.
"Food's here~"
Eunbyul returned with both hands full of bags, beaming brightly. The fact that she could smile so innocently with this much food in front of her was honestly one of her charms.
"After I ordered, I realized how much it was! Think we can finish it all?"
"We'll manage somehow. Snack food doesn't taste good once it gets cold."
"Can the son of a tteokbokki shop really say that?"
"It's just the truth."
Jinwoo deftly unpacked everything. The speed and precision with which he tore open the bags were on another level. In the blink of an eye, a perfect spread of Korean snacks covered the table.
"Whoa, you're really good at that."
"If you've packed orders yourself, you naturally learn the best way to unpack them too."
"Hehe, I do like sharp kids like you."
"Wow, you actually got that reference."
A beautiful woman who could catch a manga reference? For an otaku, she might just be the ideal bride. Anyway, the two of them began eating enthusiastically with their chopsticks.
Tteokbokki, sundae, fish cakes, and all sorts of fried items. Looking at it now, there really was a lot.
"Mmm, so good."
"I'm glad."
"Now that I think about it, aren't you sick of this? Maybe I should have ordered something else?"
"I have eaten it a lot, but it still tastes great."
His father was a man who took his snack shop seriously. Ever since Jinwoo was little, his dad had never been satisfied and kept experimenting with recipes. Thanks to that, even Jinwoo, who ate it all the time, never grew tired of the tteokbokki. If anything, it seemed to taste better every time.
"Wow~ That's amazing. Running the shop, making deliveries yourself, and still doing research on top of it all."
"He's basically just a weirdo with too much stamina."
"Hey! You can't talk about your good father like that."
Whoa, she actually said "hey" like that. How could a person be this cute? It felt like his heart was being healed. It was completely different from his own family, where everyone was always busy roasting each other.
"Anyway, it's seriously delicious. The proper way to eat tteokbokki is to dip the rice cakes in the sundae broth. That's the real rule."
"Are you some kind of language wizard?"
"I'm not running a writer persona for nothing~"
The two of them shared the snacks in perfect harmony. At first he'd worried they might have leftovers, but as they talked and ate, they somehow finished everything. It seemed food tasted even better when you were eating it with someone you wanted to be with.
"Whew! I'm stuffed! Your family's tteokbokki really is the best. Should I go say hello to them sometime?"
"No. Absolutely not."
Pure, pretty Eunbyul meeting his father. He couldn't imagine anything good coming from that in any sense. Mostly because it would end with him being mercilessly teased.
"I'll pass on your compliments for you."
"That works then. Ugh! After eating all this delicious food, I feel like my cold is completely gone."
"Still, just in case, make sure you take your medicine."
"Jinwoo, the way you nag sounds exactly like an older brother. I'm the one who's older here."
Eunbyul pouted her lips slightly. Seeing that adorable expression, Jinwoo couldn't help but laugh. If Eunbyul were his little sister, then...
No, that doesn't feel right either.
Jinwoo shook his head, having run through all sorts of thoughts in that short moment. Their current relationship was just right. Author and reader. That seemed like the most comfortable distance.
"Oh, right. Here, senior."
Jinwoo pulled out the pink notebook and handed it to her. He hadn't been able to give it to her earlier because she'd been too out of it from her cold.
"This is why you called, right? Thank you~"
Come to think of it, it was thanks to the notebook that he'd even found out she was sick. In a way, the notebook had helped him.
"...You didn't open it, did you?"
"Of course not."
He had no hobby of casually flipping through other people's notebooks. Especially not when it belonged to none other than Silverstar's author notes. Even from a purely monetary perspective, it would probably fetch a decent price.
Eunbyul let out a visible sigh of relief. Seeing that only made him more curious about what was inside.
"What did you write in the notebook?"
"Uh, um? N-nothing special?"
Eunbyul's eyes darted around as she made her excuse. He'd thought this for a while now, but this author really was terrible at lying. But what could she have written that made her react like this and try to hide it?
"I'm curious. Can't you at least give me a hint?"
"N-no! It's embarrassing!"
"I won't tell anyone."
"It's because it's you that I can't, okay?"
What did that even mean? It was fine with other people, but not with him? He prided himself on being Silverstar's number one fan. That kind of remark stung a little.
"I even took care of you while you were sick. Don't I deserve at least that much as a reward?"
He wasn't actually upset, but he pretended to sulk anyway. He figured that with her kind heart, even this much would make her waver.
But when Eunbyul looked at his act, she simply gave him a mysterious smile. Then she reached out and stroked his hair.
"Aww, is our Jinwoo upset because I won't show him?"
She must have realized he was a little hurt, because now she was treating him like a child. Honestly. If she thought something like this would make him let it go, she was sorely mistaken. Though, annoyingly enough, it felt like he could forgive her for anything in the world right now.
"Hehe~ But you're right. Since Jinwoo took such good care of me, I should give you something in return, shouldn't I?"
With those words, Eunbyul slid closer to him. She drew near enough that the reduced distance became impossible to ignore. Then she whispered softly right by his ear.
"Then shall I give our Jinwoo a reward?"
"A... reward?"
"Yeah. I'll grant you one wish, anything you want. No matter what it is."
Eunbyul gave him a bewitching, sly smile. Jinwoo's heart began to pound fiercely once again. If she were a nine-tailed fox, her tail would definitely be swishing behind her right now. Her smile was that irresistibly seductive.