Chapter 46

Late in the evening, Seojin and Haji were eating fruit together in the living room.

“Isn’t it nice to go back to work after a long time?”

“I’d be upset if you enjoyed it more than being with me.”

“It’s not that. It’s just that working gives me energy, I guess?”

Seojin watched Haji as she talked about her day, chewing on a strawberry. She held a fork with a strawberry on it in her hand.

“I thought you were coming today.”

“Oh, the group order?”

Seojin nodded, and Haji smiled brightly.

“I’m too busy now to do deliveries myself.”

“Seems like it.”

“Were you disappointed?”

Haji leaned closer, scanning Seojin’s expression as if she wanted to see his disappointment.

“Of course. I ordered just to see you.”

Seojin quickly noticed that Haji had finished her strawberry and popped another one into her mouth.

“You were with me all day yesterday, so when did you order?”

Her speech was slightly slurred by the large strawberry filling her mouth. She couldn’t resist asking Seojin until the end.

“In the morning, when you were asleep.”

“That early?”

“I didn’t do it myself.”

Seojin, who had been answering Haji’s words one by one, tilted his head. Suddenly, his lips sucked on her lower lip.

“Because it was dripping.”

The strawberry juice.

Haji’s face turned as red as a strawberry in an instant.

“You could have wiped it with your hand…”

“It would be a waste.”

Is this something to be wasted?

She wasn’t sure if he was serious, but his expression was so indifferent that she couldn’t bring herself to ask.

“Oh! I found something in the study earlier.”

“What?”

Haji, who had been waiting for his reaction, took something out from behind her.

“What is that?”

“What do you think?”

“A letter?”

“Correct.”

Ding dong, Haji exclaimed in a clear voice, bringing the letter in front of his face.

“It’s a love letter, isn’t it?”

“…I didn’t intend to keep it.”

Seojin suddenly remembered the existence of letters he had forgotten about. Letters he had received during his childhood.

He had disposed of them several times, but they kept appearing like a bottomless pit because of Seonghee a while ago. The culprit who kept putting them back in his room even after he threw them away.

So he planned to throw them away when they moved, but he had temporarily forgotten. Amusingly, he had forgotten many things as Haji became his priority. Unlike himself.

“It wasn’t opened, but I was curious, so I read it. I didn’t do anything wrong, right?”

“It’s okay. I was going to throw it away anyway.”

“Geez, you’re such a mean sunbae, aren’t you?”

Seojin, who kissed Haji’s pouty lips, took the letter away.

“Oh! I wasn’t going to give it back yet.”

“You don’t need to keep it, and you should call me something other than sunbae.”

“What else should I call you besides sunbae?”

“Why suddenly sunbae again?”

Haji slowly pushed her hips back. As the distance grew between them, she brought her hands behind her.

“I didn’t know you were this popular. That’s why it’s not just one letter, is it?”

She pulled out a bunch of letters from behind. A pile of letters appeared before Seojin’s eyes, along with Haji’s slightly pouting expression.

“This is a bit unfair.”

“Why?”

Haji glared at him with an expression that seemed to ask if he dared to make excuses.

“I didn’t know you enjoyed being this popular. Enough to collect letters in one corner of the study?”

“It’s a misunderstanding.”

“I’ll listen to your excuse.”

Haji crossed her arms and lifted her chin, like an arrogant judge.

In fact, she wasn’t angry at all, but she wanted to see him flustered, as he often teased her.

When he truly showed his flustered side, she felt a small thrill.

She wondered if this was why he teased her.

“Well, to tell the truth…”

Seojin started his excuse by brushing his face with his hand, as if contemplating something.

Seeing that, Haji’s eyes sparkled. She was secretly thrilled because he was so troubled by her joke.

“And?”

Unable to hide her curiosity, she leaned forward. She was curious about what he would say next.

“I like letters.”

“What?”

He likes letters?

There wasn’t a single letter he had read among these.

Haji tilted her head, focusing on his words.

“I like receiving letters…”

Like?

Haji stared at his lips.

And?

“I also like doing this.”

“Ah!”

In an instant, Haji, who was pinned down on the sofa by Seojin holding her waist and back of her head, let out a surprised scream.

“Lips are definitely better than letters.”

“…What?”

Seojin’s gaze swept over Haji’s lips, pinned beneath him. It made Haji purse her lips inward.

“Hearing words is better than reading them with your eyes.”

“What…?”

“Let’s end the childhood love letter prank here and have an adult conversation with our bodies.”

Haji pouted her lips, watching Seojin’s playful face. This time, genuinely.

“You knew it was a joke?”

“How could I not, with your eyes sparkling like that?”

How could he not know?

“Geez. I thought you really fell for it.”

“I was going to pretend to fall for it.”

He kissed her forehead.

“If you weren’t so cute.”

“When was I ever cute?”

He repeatedly kissed her face.

Feeling dissatisfied that her prank didn’t work, Haji found the kisses bothersome.

“Stop, stop!”

Even with Haji’s hands pushing him away, Seojin’s lips showed no sign of stopping.

“Oh! Really! Stop!”

Using all her strength, she pushed Seojin’s body, which was teasing her with kisses.

Thud, his large body fell off the sofa.

“Uh…?”

Haji’s eyes blinked rapidly in surprise as the large presence on top of her disappeared.

“Sunbae…?”

When she rolled over to look below the sofa, she saw Seojin, who hadn’t moved since he fell.

“Are you okay?”

“…”

“Oppa?”

Even when she called him by the title he wanted, there was no response.

“If you’re embarrassed, I’ll pretend I didn’t see. Get up.”

Haji poked Seojin’s arm with an outstretched hand. His firm biceps didn’t budge even with her gentle touch.

“Are you really hurt?”

As Haji, growing increasingly serious, tried to get up, a hand stretched out and grabbed hold of her.

“Ah!”

Her body landed on top of Seojin’s below the sofa. Her heart pounded loudly in surprise, beating wildly against his body.

“You scared me!”

Haji punched his shoulder lightly with her fist. Her heart had skipped a beat, thinking he was really hurt.

“I didn’t know you’d cry over a joke.”

“Hiccup… I was just surprised…”

Tears fell from Haji’s round eyes. They were tears of relief.

Once her fear that he might really be hurt subsided, tears flowed helplessly.

She was momentarily scared that her precious person might disappear.

“I’m sorry. It was my fault.”

Seojin patted the small body sobbing on top of him.

“Don’t play jokes like this. It’s scary.”

“Okay. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t get sick. Don’t get hurt either.”

“Yeah.”

Seojin sincerely answered her tearful words. Putting his heart into the words she wanted to hear.

Once her sobbing subsided, Seojin held Haji’s face, making her look at him. Her nose was red from the recent crying.

“Did I feed you too many strawberries?”

“Why?”

“Your nose is like a strawberry…”