LS Ch 40

Jewoo thought she wasn’t tired, but after blankly staring out the window, she dozed off for a moment. When the car stopped, she opened her eyes and realized they were in an unfamiliar place.

“A parking lot?”

It wasn’t outside but rather some kind of parking garage. Looking around, she asked, “What kind of restaurant has such a large parking lot?”

It seemed more like an underground parking lot of an apartment or a department store.

“This is my house.”

“Huh?”

Jewoo’s voice lifted in surprise, unsure if she had heard that correctly.

“Your house?”

She pointed at Yiwon with a questioning glance, and he nodded.

“Goodbye.”

Jewoo turned around to leave, but Yiwon immediately grabbed her jacket collar.

“No. Why would I go there? Aren’t your group members there too? What are you going to tell them?”

Unlike Jewoo, Yiwon was a member of an idol group, and she had heard that most idols live together. Even though they had decided to date, she didn’t think it was the right time to meet his members.

“Don’t rush. I’ve been living separately from the members for a while. I live alone now.”

“Ah…?”

Jewoo looked at him with a questioning glance, and Yiwon smiled softly before nodding to indicate they should go inside. Still confused, she followed him but couldn’t understand why they had come to his house when he had only mentioned eating.

They took the elevator from the underground parking lot, and it led them to a building with 20 floors.

“Where did you live again?”

Now that she thought about it, she realized she hadn’t heard anything about it. She had seen news articles about other celebrities and which apartments they lived in, but nothing about Kang Yiwon.

“Near the company.”

The answer was simple, but it left Jewoo pondering where his company was. She guessed it was somewhere around Gangnam, but she wasn’t sure.

The elevator stopped on the 17th floor, and when they got off, she saw that there was only one apartment per floor. It seemed like a place chosen for its security. The door lock wasn’t a regular key or pin code but a fingerprint scanner.

“How does the manager get in?”

Jewoo wondered if a manager would ever need to rush over unexpectedly while living alone.

“There’s a card key.”

Yiwon opened the door for her and let Jewoo enter first. The apartment was surprisingly ordinary, a 30-pyeong apartment with a layout she had seen before. However, the view from the living room balcony overlooked the Han River. It wasn’t Gangnam, so it seemed like it was near the Han River.

“The view is nice.”

“It’s even prettier at night.”

It made sense that the view of the Han River would be beautiful at night, but for some reason, Yiwon’s tone made it sound like he was implying she should stay until then.

“I’m just going to eat and leave.”

She said this jokingly, but when Yiwon’s face stiffened slightly, she realized it might not have been a joke to him.

“You said you needed to go to the practice room anyway.”

Jewoo understood that Yiwon had his own schedule, and despite wanting to tease him, she didn’t want to push him too hard since he had already been through a lot with the flight and had been sleep-deprived.

“It’ll only take two hours. I don’t have any plans after that.”

So he wanted her to stay for those two hours, she realized.

“I also need to go home and unpack.”

Jewoo responded, recalling that she had been brought here directly from the airport. Yiwon remained silent, his lips pressed into a firm line. He didn’t want to let her go.

“You’re not planning to lock me in here, are you?”

She half-jokingly asked, but Yiwon let out a low groan and avoided eye contact. It seemed like he had at least thought about it.

“Ugh, I’m starting to get scared.”

“I only thought about it. Just thought about it.”

His weak excuse made her smile. After all, she didn’t think Yiwon would actually do something like that. Besides, he was probably too busy to even think about locking anyone up.

“It’s just for today.”

After making her wait for two weeks, she felt it might be okay to let him have his way for one day. As she took a step back, Yiwon’s expression immediately brightened. His reactions to her words, like an innocent child, made her smile. Fans probably didn’t know this side of Yiwon.

“You said you were going to give me food. Give me food. I’m curious what’s going to come out.”

Since Yiwon brought her here, it was natural for Jewoo to expect him to make the meal himself.

“I’m not very good at it.”

Yiwon responded with a troubled expression.

“It doesn’t matter. As long as I can eat it.”

Jewoo reassured him, and Yiwon opened the fridge, pulling out various ingredients. Watching him, Jewoo went to the living room and sat on the sofa, thinking it might make him more nervous if she watched him too closely.

“You can just make ramen.”

She added that just in case. Ramen wouldn’t be a problem at all. After traveling through Europe and eating greasy food, she was actually craving some ramen.

“That’s for next time.”

Yiwon responded quickly, probably thinking ramen wasn’t suitable for the first meal he was making for her.

She felt a bit uneasy, seeing him holding a knife and staring at cabbage in a way that seemed dangerous, but decided to act like she didn’t notice.

When she checked her phone, there were a few missed calls from Jiho. It had been set to vibrate, so she hadn’t heard it. She pressed the call button, and it connected immediately.

“Yeah?”

The moment she picked up, Jiho’s voice started scolding her.

“Did you get back? Why didn’t you pick up the phone?”

He hadn’t contacted her at all during her time in Europe, so she was surprised by his concern.

“I’m in Seoul, safely back.”

Thinking he might be worried she hadn’t arrived, Jewoo reassured him that she had made it.

“Are you going to the company tomorrow? They want you to sing the theme song for the drama, can you do that?”

“Ah…”

Jewoo glanced over at Yiwon, who was still in the kitchen. Since they were asking her to sing the theme song, it seemed likely that Yiwon’s theme song would also be something she would be singing.

“Is there a scheduling conflict with Kang Yiwon?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t checked, but I guess there could be. I think there’s a song they both sing together.”

“Did you just hear about it today?”

“They contacted me late yesterday afternoon. You’ll do it, right?”

He was asking her, but honestly, there was hardly any room for choice. It wasn’t common to have the lead actor sing the OST, but if the production company requested it, it would be difficult to turn it down. Plus, since Yiwon was from an idol group, it seemed like they assumed he would be singing.

“I’m not a singer, though.”

Jewoo said, but Jiho didn’t seem to care. In fact, Jewoo wasn’t just an actress since childhood; she could sing pretty well too. When she was in her late teens, she was offered to switch to being an idol when her child actor roles started to feel awkward. While her singing was decent, she never really considered it since she had no talent for dancing.

“Are you still uncomfortable with Kang Yiwon? Should I set up a separate recording schedule for you?”

Jiho seemed to be worried that Jewoo might still be uncomfortable with Yiwon, assuming she went on the trip to Europe to escape from him.

“Kang Yiwon? He’s in the kitchen cooking right now.”

Jewoo almost laughed, thinking Jiho might be shocked, but she just shrugged it off with a smile.

“No, it’s fine. If there’s a duet, it’s better to record it together. Just match the schedule to his. I’m free, so he should adjust his timing.”

When Yiwon’s name came up, he turned around. Their eyes met, and when Jewoo smiled at him, he tilted his head in confusion. But he stayed quiet, perhaps not wanting to disturb her call.

“I’ll come pick you up tomorrow. What time should I come by?”

Since Jewoo needed to check the theme song at the company anyway, Jiho said he would pick her up when he went to work.

“No, don’t come. I’ll go by myself.”

She wasn’t sure if she would be home in the morning. She had told Yiwon she’d stay here, so it was likely she would be sleeping at his place.

“Don’t be too late. You still need to check your next project.”

Jiho reminded her, mentioning the next project. She agreed and ended the call before heading to the kitchen. After checking on the progress of the cooking, Jewoo let out a small laugh.

The cabbage was in pieces, and the eggs in the bowl had eggshells floating in them.

“You’ve never cooked before, have you?”

Jewoo asked with certainty, and Yiwon turned his head awkwardly. After all, had he really had time to cook?

“What were you trying to make?”

“Fried rice?”

Why was his answer phrased like a question? Given the poorly prepared ingredients, it was understandable he wasn’t sure.

“Move aside. I’ll do it.”

Jewoo pushed him aside and stood in front of the sink. First, she removed the eggshells floating in the bowl and gathered the scattered cabbage into a pile on one side.

“What about the rice?”

Since he said he was making fried rice, Jewoo asked where the rice was. Yiwon took two instant rice packs out of the cabinet beneath the sink. Scanning the area, she realized there was no rice cooker. It seemed like he never cooked rice himself.

“Isn’t there kimchi? You don’t have that, do you?”

When she asked about kimchi, Yiwon pulled out a large container from the fridge. It didn’t look like store-bought, so Jewoo raised an eyebrow, and he replied, “My mom sent it.”

“Sit and wait.”

Jewoo told Yiwon to get out of the kitchen. Thankfully, she had all the necessary ingredients, so she figured she could make fried rice without much trouble. Unlike Yiwon, Jewoo was very skilled in cooking.