Chapter 160 – 160화 – Her X Her X Her (9)
Ugh.
Ye-hwa rubbed her forehead with her hand, then, realizing that Cheon Jin-hyun was staring at her blankly, she made an “oops” face.
“Ah, hello…?”
“Yes, hello?”
He tilted his head at her, then smiled.
It was a kind-looking smile.
“You’ve been coming back to the cafe lately. I was worried you were tired of it since you hadn’t been around for a while.”
“Ah, that’s…”
Ye-hwa was momentarily at a loss for words.
[Hmm. Is that so?]
[I’ll judge people myself. There’s no reason for me to be friendly with you.]
No matter how prickly she acted, his attitude toward her never changed.
While she was speechless, the traffic light turned green.
Jin-hyun glanced at the traffic light, then turned his head back to Jang Ye-hwa.
“I’m going to cross. Do you have anything to say? I’m going to lunch. You can come along if you want.”
The last time they ate together, the atmosphere was so bad, yet he was making the offer so casually.
“……”
She felt a bit curious.
How could he be so consistently kind?
Is that why he’s the worst playboy?
‘I’m crazy.’
Ye-hwa shook her head inwardly.
However, she couldn’t refuse.
She had even received a gift, and she was the one who wanted to ask him something. Refusing to have lunch here would be too inhumane.
“Okay, I will.”
“Oh, really?”
Ye-hwa’s eyes narrowed at his question in return.
“……You said we should try to get along. Don’t you want to?”
“Of course not. Let’s go together.”
Jin-hyun crossed the crosswalk.
A cool autumn breeze brushed against Jin-hyun’s clothes. Ye-hwa walked beside him.
“What kind of food do you like, Ye-hwa?”
“I… I eat anything.”
“That’s the most difficult answer.”
“It’s true.”
It wasn’t a lie.
Ye-hwa’s taste was surprisingly broad, and she knew how to enjoy cheap food moderately well.
Of course, she liked fancy food a little more.
“I don’t really have any food I dislike, let’s go wherever is convenient for you, Jin-hyun.”
“Hmm. Okay.”
Jin-hyun nodded and continued walking.
Ye-hwa, following him, felt inexplicably good.
The scent that kept wafting from his side as she walked slightly beside him.
The scent she had been so eager to smell was constantly wafting.
Ye-hwa tried to smell as much as possible while walking close to Jin-hyun.
‘Hoo…’
Ye-hwa, having smelled the scent as much as possible without being noticed by Jin-hyun, felt as if the fog in her head had cleared.
A refreshing coolness filled her along with the autumn breeze.
“Let’s eat here.”
“Ah. This place is…”
Ye-hwa looked at the sign of the restaurant where Jin-hyun had stopped.
It was a pretty decent Korean restaurant that Ye-hwa also frequented.
Ye-hwa glanced at Jin-hyun.
He hadn’t opened his cafe in this neighborhood for long, but he knew this place. And considering they met at the kalguksu shabu-shabu place last time, it seemed like their food preferences might be similar.
“Don’t you like it?”
“No, I do.”
Ye-hwa, putting on an effort to look normal, went inside with Jin-hyun.
There happened to be a vacant table, so they were seated right away.
Ye-hwa, having ordered the restaurant’s best menu item, looked at Jin-hyun. Jin-hyun was also looking at Ye-hwa.
Jin-hyun asked Ye-hwa.
“By the way, what’s the matter today? You seemed like you had something to say.”
“Ah, that’s…”
Ye-hwa told him about the diffuser she had received as a gift. She said that its performance was so good that she wanted to get more.
At that, Jin-hyun smiled as if he was glad.
“Ah, I’m glad you liked it.”
“Yes, but the effect is so good…”
“I told you it was special.”
Ye-hwa nodded at Jin-hyun’s smile.
“So, could you give me a little more? Ah! Of course, I’m not asking for it for free, I’ll buy it. Or at least the brand name… I want to know where it’s from, but I can’t find it anywhere. There’s nothing written on the box either.”
Ye-hwa said that and looked at Jin-hyun. He looked like he was pondering something.
“Is it not possible…?”
When she asked with a hint of disappointment, Jin-hyun shook his head.
“No, it’s not that it’s not possible, but it doesn’t have a brand name. It’s something my acquaintance made by hand.”
“Ah, is it handmade?”
“Yes, something like that.”
“I see…”
Ye-hwa understood.
No wonder she couldn’t find the brand name no matter who she asked.
“Then, would it be possible to trade for the diffuser through you, Jin-hyun? I’ll buy it for a higher price.”
“Haha. I’d like to, but it’s out of stock right now. The one I gave you was the last one left.”
“Ah…”
Ye-hwa sighed in disappointment. Jin-hyun smiled at Ye-hwa.
“But, they said they’ll make more, so I’ll let you know when they’re back in stock.”
“Ah, really?”
“Yes, here… this is my business card? If you send me a message or text to this number, I’ll let you know when the new product comes out. I don’t know when that will be, though.”
“Ah, yes, thank you.”
Ye-hwa carefully put Jin-hyun’s business card in her wallet.
“Here’s your bulgogi beef bowl~.”
“Ah, yes. This way.”
“Enjoy your meal~.”
Soon after, the food came out, and Ye-hwa ate her meal with a slightly disappointed feeling.
There was progress, but no major achievement.
She didn’t know when it would come out.
She had never felt such a new world-like feeling before…
And the diffuser was similar to Jin-hyun’s perfume scent. She felt a bit hesitant to ask if he had any perfume.
‘No, should I ask?’
Ye-hwa hesitated, then opened her mouth.
“By the way, that diffuser scent. It’s similar to Jin-hyun’s perfu-“
“Yes?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
Ye-hwa picked up her spoon again.
The atmosphere of the meal was much more comfortable than last time.
Well, that was probably because she wasn’t being so stiff with Jin-hyun.
Come to think of it, Jin-hyun had always tried to treat her gently. She was the one who had always treated him with an icy attitude.
Maybe he wasn’t such a bad person after all…
‘No, no. He’s a playboy.’
Ye-hwa recalled the scene of Jin-hyun kissing another woman while having Su-jeong, and going into a motel together.
‘But…’
Still, she thought she might need to get rid of some of the bad evaluations she had of him so far.
She still thought that people don’t change easily, but Jin-hyun’s evaluation was slightly rising within Ye-hwa.
That’s when it happened.
“Ah, just a moment.”
“Yes.”
Jin-hyun received a phone call.
“Yes, yes. Arin. Ah~ you still haven’t arrived? I’ll go right now. First of all…”
Jin-hyun was talking on the phone, then suddenly got up from his seat.
“I’m sorry. Something came up at the cafe, so I have to leave first.”
“Ah, is that so.”
“I’ll pay… no. I’ll pay for my share before I go.”
Jin-hyun said that and was about to turn around.
[I’ll pay for the meal and leave. Ugh, I don’t want to be treated.]
Suddenly, she remembered what she had said to him at Outback, along with the last meal.
Ye-hwa shook her head.
“It’s okay. I’ll pay today.”
Jin-hyun’s eyes widened at Ye-hwa’s words, looking surprised.
For some reason, Ye-hwa found Jin-hyun’s expression amusing.
“Ah, thank you. I’ll let you know as soon as the diffuser is back in stock.”
“Yes.”
Jin-hyun nodded and left the restaurant.
Ye-hwa, who was watching Jin-hyun’s back, remained and sighed.
It was a shame, so much.
She couldn’t get the diffuser, and she didn’t know when it would be made again.
“Still… he said he’d let me know.”
Right.
There was progress.
She would just focus on working hard as before, and when the diffuser came out, she would use it as a bonus.
It was easier for her to think that way… huh?
That’s when it happened.
Something caught Ye-hwa’s eye as she sat alone, lifting her spoon.
The diagonal chair from where she was sitting.
That is, the seat next to the one where Cheon Jin-hyun had been sitting.
There was a coat hanging there.
“……I thought he was meticulous, but he left this behind.”
She was going back to the cafe to work anyway.
She would take it to him.
Ye-hwa got up from her seat, went to the other side, and picked up his coat.
As she was about to fold it to make it easier to carry, her nose suddenly reacted.
“Ah…”
Scent.
His scent was coming from the coat.
It wasn’t as strong as the diffuser, but it was a subtle scent that kept rising.
Ye-hwa glanced around and, feeling that no one was looking at her, lowered her head a little more.
Sniff, sniff.
“Haa…”
It wasn’t a mistake after all. It was his scent.
Ye-hwa put the coat on the chair for a moment, walked to the entrance of the restaurant, and looked out the door.
Cheon Jin-hyun.
He was nowhere to be seen, as if he had already gone far away.
Ye-hwa returned to her seat.
She quickly finished the rest of her meal, packed her things, and got up.
And she looked at his coat, which she had folded and placed on the chair earlier.
The coat from which the scent was rising.
The diffuser that she didn’t know when would be available again.
‘Gulp…’
Ye-hwa swallowed.
She slowly reached out and stealthily picked up the coat.
After paying, Ye-hwa did not head to the cafe that day.
