Watching Jeongeun follow the driver out, Yunjoo’s face fell into despair. No matter what, she wanted to avoid being alone with Kangwook, and now she was about to be stuck with him in a car, narrow and enclosed with nowhere to escape. When had he even arranged for another car to be brought over?

‘You traitor, I can’t believe you!’

She stood at the doorway Jeongeun and the driver had just walked through, shoulders drooping. She had figured that with Jeongeun around, Kangwook wouldn’t have been able to lose his temper, but now her shield was gone. She couldn’t bring herself to turn away, still clinging to the friend who had already left.

“Don’t you think Cha Yunjoo should ride with me?”

His voice, neither high nor low, was perfectly suited to making a person feel small.

“No, I’ll just take my own car…”

“Cha Yunjoo!”

The warning in Kangwook’s voice dropped low, and Yunjoo snapped her mouth shut. She stood there with the expression of an elementary schooler bracing for a scolding, eyes cast downward, looking like she was begging for a swift death. At the sight of her, Kangwook barely managed to hold back a laugh that threatened to burst out.

‘Honestly, Cha Yunjoo. What am I supposed to do with you? Now you’re making it hard to even stay angry.’

Kangwook took his seat first and, without a word, gave Yunjoo a look that told her to sit down. She knew she had to sit, so she chose the far end of the seat, as far from Kangwook as possible. His dark eyebrows twitched, but she pretended not to notice and looked away.

“There are only two of us. Isn’t that a bit too far?”

“Being close isn’t always better.”

“Ah, I’d say right now is exactly when Cha Yunjoo should be reading the room.”

“No, reading the room was something I should have done yesterday. Right now, keeping my distance is the answer.”

She was really good at this. Kangwook fixed a sharp stare on Yunjoo, who had a comeback for every single thing he said. Still, she made up her mind to hold out for as long as she could. No matter how piercing his gaze was, it was better than sitting closer to him.

“Come sit closer, while I’m still asking nicely.”

“Nice words carry just fine from a distance.”

“Cha Yunjoo!”

Her name, called low and hard, made her heart lurch, but she clenched her fist and steadied her trembling nerves, refusing to back down.

“Yes, Mr. Choi Kangwook.”

“Ha, honestly…!”

“Whoa, whoa, let’s calm down first… Take a deep breath or something.”

Kangwook’s words cut off, and he turned to look at Yunjoo, who had pressed herself further back and was watching him with wavering eyes. His expression went blank with disbelief.

“Cha Yunjoo, last chance.”

Kangwook gave a single tilt of his head, no gesture, no words. Yunjoo felt a storm of conflict raging inside her. He said last chance, so should she move over now? Once that man set his mind to something, he wasn’t the type to let things end on anyone else’s terms.

“Fine. I’ll come over. There, I’m coming.”

She repeated herself needlessly as she scooted closer, then fixed her gaze straight ahead. Kangwook followed her line of sight.

“Is someone up there? I’m pretty sure your friend left a while ago.”

Ugh, seriously. She couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes, but Kangwook wasn’t about to let that go. He clearly knew exactly what he was doing, and at times like this she really wanted to give him a good smack.

“You didn’t know? There’s someone else in your house besides us, Kangwook. You’ve never seen them?”

“What?”

She spent so much time around people who acted for a living that she figured she’d give it a try, but then she watched Kangwook suddenly start scanning the direction she was looking.

“I see them sometimes when I’m alone.”

He didn’t actually believe her, but something about it sent a chill crawling up his spine, and he turned to look behind him.

“Oh, so you’re scared of ghosts, Kangwook?”

“Who’s scared? There’s no such thing as ghosts!”

“Really, not scared at all? One’s sitting right next to you.”

At Yunjoo’s deadpan face and words, Kangwook quickly lowered his right arm, which he had been raising.

“Not on that side.”

“…!”

At the words saying it wasn’t on the right, he immediately dropped his left arm and shook it out, acting like something had touched him. Yunjoo burst out laughing.

“Hahaha, hehehe.”

Embarrassed by Yunjoo’s laughter, Kangwook felt his face go hot and his voice rose without meaning to.

“Cha Yunjoo!”

“Haha, sorry, sorry. So you do have something that scares you, Kangwook.”

“Who said I was scared!”

“Really? It’s behind you.”

She wiped the laughter from her face and pointed with a straight, serious expression. His head started to turn on instinct, but then his eyes met Yunjoo’s. D*mn it! The look on Kangwook’s face when their eyes met was too funny, but she knew she absolutely could not laugh again, so she tilted her head up toward the ceiling.

“Is it up here?”

“Cha Yunjoo!”

The genuine anger in his voice told Yunjoo it was time to stop fooling around. She had forgotten for a moment while laughing, but she still hadn’t heard a word from Kangwook about what happened.

He was flustered at himself for falling for Yunjoo’s ridiculous prank, and mortified that he had actually been fooled, so his voice came out a little louder than intended.

“Had enough fun?”

“Well…”

“Then shall we talk about something even a ghost can’t help you with?”

She had no more moves left, the pranks had to stop, and all she could do was wait for whatever came next, so she quietly closed her mouth and waited for Kangwook to speak.

“I’m going to give Cha Yunjoo time to talk now. When you’re done, I’ll have my say.”

He was giving her the chance for a closing argument. She had to make it count and find a way out of this.

“Kangwook.”

“Go ahead.”

The man’s voice telling her to speak was so rigid it sounded frightening. Her heartbeat, which had briefly settled, climbed again.

“It’s just that Jeongeun and I hadn’t been in touch for so long, and I was so happy to hear from her that I forgot about our plans… But I’ve never gotten so drunk that someone had to carry me home. Really.”

She was rambling, and even she found it pathetic. She had a feeling she had just thrown away her last chance. She couldn’t even look at Kangwook’s face, just muttering her excuses in a tiny voice. Kangwook wasn’t listening to her excuses at all. He just kept watching the top of her head the whole time.

He was curious how her expression, which he couldn’t see, was changing as she talked on like that. As time passed and her words stretched longer, she was fidgeting with her hands too, and the sight of her squirming with anxiety was amusing enough that he just let it go on. It was also his own petty revenge on Yunjoo for teasing him a little while ago.

When she finally finished and Kangwook still said nothing, she found it too strange and lifted her head, only to meet the eyes of the man who had been staring straight at her. The moment their eyes met, her heart dropped with a start, and she drew in a breath without thinking, quickly bowing her head to break the eye contact.

The man’s eyes were pressed shut and piercing, his gaze too dark to bear, and her heart trembled.

“Cha Yunjoo, always keep your head up when you speak.”

“Yes!”

His voice was so much softer than his gaze that it startled her, and what he said startled her even more. She had thought he was furious, had been steeling herself to take whatever he said without letting it hurt her, but Kangwook said something she never expected.

“Even in front of me, same thing. Keep your head up, wherever you are. Boldly. Even if you’ve done something wrong, you can just apologize.”

At Kangwook’s words, tears welled up in Yunjoo’s eyes. Even in the moment she had done something wrong, he was telling her she could still hold her head high. Did Choi Kangwook, this man, know that when he said things like that, she felt a confidence rise in her that made her think she really could? She lifted her head, and a tear rolled down from her tear-filled eyes. Kangwook panicked.

He hadn’t gotten angry, hadn’t said anything harsh, and yet she was crying. He hadn’t even started what he actually wanted to say, and she was already in tears. He didn’t know what to do.

“I haven’t said a single word yet and you’re already crying. Cha Yunjoo, isn’t that playing dirty?”

“Kangwook, I still don’t really know, what love is. But I’ve started to like you. You.”

What was she saying?

“What? What did you say? Cha Yunjoo, say that again!”

“I said I’ve started to like you, the terrible man, Choi Kangwook.”

“Yunjoo! Cha Yunjoo!”

At first he heard nothing at all, and then the next moment he had the sensation that his breath had stopped entirely. It truly felt like his heart had come to a halt. Kangwook’s stunned, frozen eyes held only Yunjoo in them.

“But I’m still confused, and I don’t fully trust you yet. I’ll probably waver at the slightest breeze and show you my wounds and make things hard for you. And I can’t keep pace with your feelings quickly, so you’ll have to go slowly with me. Bear with the frustration. I’ve been hurt a lot and I’m scared of many things. Match your steps to mine as I’m just starting out. You.”

She answered the question he had thrown out a long while ago and fumbled through it awkwardly. Yunjoo was frightened by her own feelings. Kangwook didn’t want to embarrass her, blurting it out and then getting scared like that. He was careful, worried that even laughing too loudly or speaking too firmly might startle her.