Side Story 5

From that day on, Hyemi started living with Damon. At school, she felt as if her every move was being watched. One reporter kept following her too persistently, so, annoyed, she swung her fist at him.

“Cough!”

“You should’ve left when I warned you.”

The reporter, clutching his side, trembled.

“If you follow me again, the next thing to break will be that thing between your legs.”

Her words, filled with real threat, made the reporter gulp and run away. Yuri, who had been watching, widened her eyes, then burst out laughing.

“That was so satisfying. He’ll be too embarrassed to come back after being hit by a girl.”

“This is such a nuisance.”

Everywhere she went, people whispered when they saw Hyemi. But she didn’t really care. What she worried about most was her parents’ reaction.

She’d forgotten to call them, and even the day after the scandal broke, they hadn’t called, so she hoped maybe they didn’t know because they didn’t use the internet much. She wished it would just blow over, but as if on cue, her phone flashed with a call from [Mom], and she let out a deep sigh.

“So what? Just say you’re getting married.”

“It’s not that easy, you know?”

Hyemi glared at Yuri and answered the call.

“Hello?”

-You brat! What on earth have you been doing?!

Her mother’s voice was so loud, Hyemi held the phone away from her ear before putting it back.

“Mom, calm down. I just got a boyfriend.”

-Not just any guy! He’s a famous model, isn’t he? A model!

“So what? Mom, he’s just a normal person except for being a model. There’s nothing different about him.”

-Sigh…….

Her mother let out a deep sigh. Smiling, Hyemi continued.

“And Mom, I might marry him.”

-What?! Cha Hyemi! How long have you even known him?!

“I’ll come introduce him soon, okay? Love you, Mom!”

Hyemi kissed the phone and quickly hung up. Others might think she was rushing into marriage, but she didn’t care.

‘We’ve spent decades together.’

They’d even had a kid, seen each other grow old. Hyemi was certain she would marry Damon. He’d mentioned marriage registration and family meetings, so she was sure he felt the same.

Just then, her phone vibrated with a new message.

[Your class ends at 5, right? I’ll pick you up. Let’s have dinner together.]

Of course, it was Damon. Hyemi grinned and replied, sending a heart-filled emoji. Damon had never sent her emojis before, so she expected the same this time.

But her phone vibrated again, and thinking it was another message, she checked. When she saw it was from Damon, and that he’d sent a heart-filled emoji just like hers, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Her sudden laughter drew everyone’s attention. Yuri slapped Hyemi’s shoulder, scolding her.

“Why are you suddenly laughing? Did something good happen?”

“Yuri, my boyfriend is so cute. You know what’s cute about him—”

“Ugh, enough! I’m getting a boyfriend too!”

Yuri was a little jealous of Hyemi dating a famous model, but she had no interest in hearing such sappy stories. Hyemi giggled, telling her story whether Yuri listened or not, until Yuri eventually fled in defeat.

* * *

Hyemi couldn’t wait for her last class to end.

“That’s it for today.”

As soon as the professor’s voice signaled the end, she rushed out of the lecture hall faster than anyone. It was just past 5 o’clock, so Damon was surely waiting.

She hurried to the main gate and spotted a very familiar car. As she ran over, the driver’s door opened and Damon stepped out.

“Wow, it’s Damon!”

“Hey, I told you that’s the car Damon drives.”

“He must be here to pick up his girlfriend. So jealous.”

Everyone’s eyes were fixed on Hyemi. It was a bit overwhelming, but she also felt proud that the man was hers. Just then, she saw two women approach Damon.

“Um, can we get your autograph?”

“Oh, sure.”

Damon thought he’d just sign and send them off, so he quickly scribbled his signature. The two women were screaming inside at seeing him up close. One of them turned on her phone camera and stepped closer.

“Can we take a picture together?”

“I’m afraid not.”

Hyemi stepped between them with a bright smile. The woman, pushed aside, looked at Hyemi in surprise.

“I’m not generous enough to watch my boyfriend take pictures alone with another woman.”

“It’s just a picture, what’s the big deal?”

“Well, I don’t like it.”

Hyemi’s expression hardened as she tilted her head. At her sharp words, the women flinched, muttered about how ridiculous it was, and hurried away. Hyemi snorted after them.

Seeing this, Damon wrapped his arm around her waist, pulled her close, and kissed her cheek. His cute gesture seemed like an apology for making her upset. Of course, as soon as she got his kiss, Hyemi forgot all about being mad.

“Shall we go eat?”

“Ah, yes.”

Damon opened the passenger door, and Hyemi hopped in. As they drove to the restaurant, she began to worry that her actions earlier might have caused trouble for Damon.

“Damon, I think I might have ruined your image a bit……”

“It’s fine. I was going to refuse anyway. I don’t take pictures with fans.”

“Soon there’ll be posts saying ‘Damon’s girlfriend is rude’.”

Damon just chuckled at her words. Still, Hyemi didn’t regret it. As she chatted with him, she thought she should talk seriously about marriage tonight. Before she knew it, the car stopped in front of a stylish building.

“Let’s go in.”

Damon held out his hand and Hyemi took it. Inside the restaurant, strangely, there was no one else. She’d expected it to be crowded at dinnertime, but it wasn’t.

‘Is this maybe a members-only restaurant……?’

With those thoughts, she followed Damon to their reserved table by the window overlooking the fountain.

“How is it?”

“It’s beautiful. Did you make a reservation?”

“Well…… yes.”

In truth, he’d rented out the whole place, but that was a kind of reservation too. Damon nodded, and Hyemi’s eyes sparkled. He smiled and handed her the menu.

“What would you like to eat?”

“Hmm……”

Hyemi opened the menu and scanned it, almost jumping at the price of the course meals.  

‘The cheapest one is 400,000 won per person? That’s insane.’  

She glanced up and saw Damon studying the menu with a serious expression. Of course, since he was the one who suggested dinner, he wouldn’t ask her to pay.

Sensing Hyemi’s gaze, Damon looked up and met her eyes.  

“Why? Is there something wrong?”  

“Huh? No! It’s just my first time here, so Damon, please order something delicious for us.”  

“Alright.”  

Damon nodded and called for the server. He ordered the most expensive course on the menu, which was a staggering 600,000 won. While waiting for the food, Hyemi spoke up.  

“Damon, when is your next shoot?”  

“I have a magazine shoot tomorrow.”  

“Which magazine?”  

“Ella.”  

At that, Hyemi’s eyes widened. Even though she didn’t read magazines, she knew how famous Ella was—and how famous its featured models were.  

“I don’t have class tomorrow… Can I come watch the shoot? I promise I’ll just sit quietly and watch.”  

“Sure, you can.”  

“Really? Thank you!”  

Damon nodded without hesitation. Sometimes, the long shoots wore him out, but it would be nice to have Hyemi there.

“Oh, Damon.”  

“Yeah?”  

“When are we getting married?”  

At Hyemi’s words, Damon paused in the middle of cutting his food. Then he resumed moving his hands and answered.  

“When do you want to get married?”  

“As soon as possible. To be honest, I already told my mom we’d probably get married. But we’ve lived together for years, so what’s the big deal?”  

“That’s true.”  

Damon’s expression hardened slightly as he spoke. Hyemi tilted her head, wondering if he’d changed his mind, and felt a sudden pang of disappointment. So she asked,  

“Damon, do you… not want to marry me?”  

“What?”  

“You just don’t look happy.”  

“Absolutely not.”  

Damon put down his knife and fork and spoke firmly. Hyemi turned her head away, pouting. Seeing her clearly upset, Damon floundered, opening his mouth again.  

“Hyemi, I didn’t make that face because I don’t want to marry you.”  

“Then why?”  

“…It’s because the ring I ordered hasn’t arrived yet.”  

At the word ‘ring,’ Hyemi’s eyes widened. Damon ran a hand over his face and finally confessed everything.  

“I wanted to propose when the ring arrived. I didn’t want to just make a vague promise to marry you. Once I proposed and you accepted, I was going to register our marriage right away.”  

“…Not a family meeting first?”  

“That can come later.”  

For Damon, the most important thing was to bind Hyemi tightly to his side. He had no intention of ever letting her go, so registering their marriage right away didn’t seem rash.

“The most important thing to me is the marriage registration.”  

“Hmm, I don’t really mind that either.”  

Damon pulled Hyemi’s hand to him and kissed the back of it.  

“So please wait just a little longer. Okay?”  

“Alright.”  

Hyemi blushed and nodded. The thought of being proposed to made her a little excited. 

After dinner, they headed to the officetel together. She didn’t even bother changing her clothes and sprawled on the soft sofa.

“The bed is comfy, but the sofa is super soft too. I love it.”  

“Okay, but hurry up and get changed and take a shower.”  

“Ugh, but I’m too lazy…”  

Lying on the sofa, Hyemi tilted her head back and grinned at Damon.  

“Damon, can’t you help me wash?”  

“……”  

“Hm? Wash my hair, wash my body… Let’s soak in the tub together.”  

Damon shook his head, then strode over and lifted her up in his arms.  

“Are you sure you won’t regret this?”  

“What’s there to regret about getting help washing?”  

Hyemi wrapped her arms around his neck, grinning.