Big Life

Chapter 202. What? Dragon Rider? (8)

'Oh no...!'

Lee Yeon-Woo buried his face in his hands. He had made an unplanned, spontaneous confession under the influence of alcohol. On top of that, his first line was: 'I'm not fine.' It was so childish that he felt like smashing his head open.

"..." Meanwhile, Jung So-Mi stared silently at Lee Yeon-Woo. His sudden confession had caught her off guard; she never thought that she would receive one from Lee Yeon-Woo. The surprise came to her much stronger, as she had never really felt him treat her like a woman.

It was true that they had grown closer ever since they started working together in the office. There had been many times when they had conversations over meals and drinks together with just the two of them. Still, it was still on the basis of their relationship as an editor and writer. At least, that was what Jung So-Mi had in mind.

“Um...” Jung So-Mi swept her fringe that was fluttering in the wind and then spoke slowly, “I’m a bit shocked. No, I’m actually quite shocked.”

“I’m sorry.” Lee Yeon-Woo removed his hands from his face and looked up. He glared at the telephone pole across the street and said, "But my feelings are true. I'm not spouting nonsense just because I'm drunk. Although it's true that I'm feeling more courageous because of the alcohol."

"I never knew you thought of me that way..."

"I tried my best... to no avail... I even suggested going to a few places together if I found it to be good."

"..." Jung So-Mi but her lips instead of responding. She felt as if she was seeing herself confessing to Ha Jae-Gun all over again. And then it felt like she could understand him as well, how he had felt when hearing her confession when he already had someone else in his heart.

"I'm sorry, Writer Lee." Jung So-Mi did not take long to reply. Like how she understood why Ha Jae-Gun had rejected her firmly back then, she decided to respond in the same way and said, "You're really a good person, Writer Lee. I'm really thankful that you like me, but I can't reciprocate your feelings."

"Aren't you being too firm?" Lee Yeon-Woo turned to face Jung So-Mi with slight anger in him. "I'm not asking you to give me an answer right here and now. You should think over this for a few days first and—"

"Nothing will change even if I think it over for a few days." Jung So-Mi cut him off without hesitation. "As you know as well, I'm from Donghae. I came all the way here alone and have been striving to make a living on my own. I've just barely succeeded, and I'm already satisfied with my current lifestyle. I'm also too busy to be dating anyone."

"I'll make sure not to affect your life—"

"I'm grateful for your confession, but this is just your own thoughts. I believe that there will certainly be a degree of influence on one another when people start dating each other. And I do not wish to embark on this journey at all. I'm really sorry."

Lee Yeon-Woo's breathing turned rougher. However, it lasted briefly, as his head drooped gloomily. Even his once-adamant shoulders fell helplessly like sandcastles facing huge waves.

"I got rejected then," Lee Yeon-Woo said in self-mockery with a smile that wasn't exactly a smile. His words mixed with the cold wind and dispersed into the air, not even hoping for a reply. "I'm sorry, I didn't know my place."

"Please don't say that. You're fine as you are, Writer Lee." Jung So-Mi said before going silent. She would love to say more in consolation, but she stopped herself from doing so, afraid that she would seem deceitful. It was better for her to take a step back for Lee Yeon-Woo's sake.

"I think we've been away for too long. The others should be getting worried, so I think it's time for us to head back up?"

"Please go back first, Deputy Jung. I'll organize my thoughts for a while and head back soon."

Jung So-Mi nodded and went ahead first. To Lee Yeon-Woo, her disappearing footsteps felt colder than the winter wind. Was it because of his usually optimistic character that had brought his hopes up? Who knew that her rejection would come right away? He suddenly felt fearful of just being alive.

Lee Yeon-Woo stepped back into the convenience store once more. He looked at the case of cigarettes behind the part-timer and said, “Please give me a pack of cigarettes.”

“Which would you like?”

“Please just give me one that sells well.” As it was his first time smoking, he bought a lighter as well. Lee Yeon-Woo left the convenience store and sat down under the parasol outside, and then he bit a cigarette stick.

“Cough! Cough!”

As he lit the cigarette up and drew a breath, cough and tears burst out at once. The bitterness of heartache was overwhelming, and he couldn't help but start admiring the smokers.

***

“Mm, nice. How refreshing.” The long winter night made 6 a.m. look dark.

Lee Soo-Hee lay flat on her stomach on the bed, reading the manuscript of the English version of The Breath with light from a table lamp nearby.

“Ah, this is good. The fatigue is melting right before my eyes.”

“Maybe I should quit being a writer and be your exclusive massage therapist instead.”

“But where are your hands heading? I don’t need a massage there.”

“Really? What about here?” Ha Jae-Gun went under the blankets.

Lee Soo-Hee giggled and flipped herself around. “Why are you so horny? I never knew you were this type of guy.”

“I’m just the average man. It’s actually extremely normal.”

“Umph.”

Ha Jae-Gun captured Lee Soo-Hee’s lips once more. They had stayed up the entire night, and Ha Jae-Gun hadn't stopped for even a moment. She still gladly let him do what he wanted, wrapping her arms around his neck. She was exhausted but happy.

The man who looked like he couldn't get enough of her was so lovable in her eyes.

“I don’t even have any energy left in me to shower.”

“Don’t shower, then. What do you think of the translated copy?”

“You still have the conscience to ask? You didn’t even give me time to focus on reading it.” Lee Soo-Hee pinched his cheeks and wriggled them. They were both covered in sweat.

“I’m almost done with the first volume, and I think it’s good.”

“Really? There’s nothing more to edit?”

“Yeah, to me. Open House's comments are great as well. I can see that they’ve read your novel properly.”

“Nice. Let’s go with this, then.”

“Huh?”

“Open House. Your positive opinion just backed up my decision.”

“Didn’t you say that they’re coming to Korea, too? Meet them, have a talk and decide later.”

Bzzt!

Ha Jae-Gun’s phone, which was left on the table, rang for a while. Ha Jae-Gun slowly turned over and reached out for it. Seeing that it was a message from Ha Jae-In, he opened it to read, his eyes narrowing in the process.

- Bring Soo-Hee back home one of these days. I’ll make dinner for her. ^^

“What’s going on?” Ha Jae-Gun mumbled.

“What’s wrong?”

Ha Jae-Gun then showed his phone to Lee Soo-Hee, and she widened her eyes in surprise, covering her mouth.

“How did she know? Didn’t you say that you didn’t tell your family that I’m back?”

“Yeah. I should give her a call.”

Ha Jae-Gun tilted his head to the side and pressed the dial button. As if she had been waiting for his call, Ha Jae-In answered it in a heartbeat.

— You’re up early, our great writer.

“Well, it somehow happened. But how did you know?”

— I saw it on the Internet.

“Internet?”

— A photo of you guys hugging tightly is circulating on Twitter.

“Ahh...”

Ha Jae-Gun trailed off and looked at Lee Soo-Hee. Who knew that someone would have taken a photo at that moment?

— You sneaky punk, you didn’t even tell me anything. Are you with her now?

“Well, yeah...”

— Alright, I won’t take up your time anymore. Make sure to bring her home one of these days, alright?

“Okay, noona. I’ll call you again.”

Ha Jae-Gun hung up and accessed the internet immediately. The keywords Ha Jae-Gun's woman, Ha Jae-Gun one-piece girl, One-piece girl photo collage, Ha Jae-Gun lover and many others were dominating the real-time charts.

“What? Someone took a photo of us?”

“Everyone seems to have known that you’re the one-piece girl...”

Ha Jae-In was right. Several photos of him hugging Lee Soo-Hee by the car were circulating on social media. Seeing the time of the original post, it had only been less than ten minutes since he saw Lee Soo-Hee last night.

- I knew a long time ago. They should have been dating a few years back, no? But seeing these photos again, her beauty is just brrrr

- Didn’t they say that the lady is working at the game company? What job position is she holding at a game company? Model?

- Seems like we’ll be hearing of their marriage soon. T.T I’m feeling sad already nggg

-Did anyone hear news about the bunned-hair girl???

- Ah, she was at the autograph event, too kekekeke I’m really envious of Ha Jae-Gun Jae-Gun. She’s unbelievably pretty, like a doll;;;

- Yeah, yeah, I saw her in the flesh at the autograph event kekekekeke She’s not just photogenic; she looks the same in real life. Really, really pretty.

“You really need to be careful of your actions now.” Lee Soo-Hee said out of the blue after reading the netizens’ comments, but there was a smile on her face; she seemed to be enjoying the current situation.

“You seem to be enjoying this.” Ha Jae-Gun commented.

“Of course. If you dare to cheat to do anything weird, the netizen investigation team will tell me everything. I’ll be relieved then.”

Lee Soo-Hee’s phone rang, and this time, a call came in. The name shown on the screen made the smile on her face disappear.

“Yes, Mom?”

— Tell me, you’ve been back in Korea since yesterday, right?

“How...did you know?”

— Your father told me, young lady. You were dating that writer Ha Jae-Gun? Why didn’t you tell us?

“Mom, I... What happened was...”

— Anyway, your father is going crazy, asking when you’ll be bringing him home. You know your father, right? Hurry up and bring him home before I faint.

“How...!” Lee Soo-Hee turned pale in an instant. Meanwhile, Ha Jae-Gun overheard their conversation on the phone and sat upright beside her, as if Lee Soo-Hee’s father was right in front of him.

***

“Why are you here at the airport, Mr. Ha?”

“I’m here to welcome someone.”

“About the photo that was circulating a few days ago, can you comment on it?”

“I’m dating her.”

“Ah, really? Congratulations. When did you guys start dating? Are you guys dating on the premise of getting married?”

Ha Jae-Gun stopped in his tracks. He needed to send this reporter whom he met unexpectedly away from the gate. He fixed his tie that was messed up from his brisk walking and asked the reporter, “I’m sorry, where did you say you were from?”

“Ah, I’m from Weekly Trends; my name is Hyun Sung-Beom.” The reporter belatedly pulled out his name card and presented it to Ha Jae-Gun. Ha Jae-Gun took it and looked around their surroundings before saying, “Reporter Hyun Sung-Beom, I’m actually busy right now, I’ll give you a call soon if that’s okay.”

Ha Jae-Gun was at the airport today as the president and editor-in-chief from Open House were arriving in Korea. Despite Kwon Tae-Won’s dissuasion, Ha Jae-Gun still came to the airport to welcome them in person.

“Who are you meeting at the airport today...?”

“An agent from the States.”

At the same time, Ha Jae-Gun’s phone rang in his pocket. It was a call from Kwon Tae-Won.

“Yes, President. Ah, they’re out already? Okay, I’ll be there soon.” Ha Jae-Gun hung up the phone and started heading off again. He then added to the reporter following behind him, “If you leave now, I’ll let you in as an exclusive on what we talked about earlier.”

“Really?”

“I haven’t broken any promises in my life so far.”

“...I’ll be waiting for your call!” The reporter grinned and stopped following Ha Jae-Gun.

Ha Jae-Gun waved his hand lightly at the man and hurried off.

‘I can’t bother the visitors just because of me.’ Ha Jae-Gun never thought that he would meet a reporter who had him on their radar at the airport. The gate where he was supposed to meet Kwon Tae-Won came into view, and he saw Kwon Tae-Won first.

‘Hmm...?’ Ha Jae-Gun’s eyes narrowed in surprise.

The petite woman standing next to Kwon Tae-Won should be Chae Yoo-Jin, and the two men next to him should be the president and editor-in-chief of Open House.

“Ah, Writer Ha. Over here.”

Kwon Tae-Won and Chae Yoo-Jin spotted Ha Jae-Gun first and waved at him. With that, the black man, seemingly in their fifties, and the Asian, seemingly in their forties, turned around to face Ha Jae-Gun.

The black man had a huge physique similar to that of a martial artist, and the Asian standing beside them was petite; both smiled gently at Ha Jae-Gun.

“You’re here so soon. This is the president of Open House, Ben Smith, and this is the editor-in-chief, Eden Cooper.”

Chae Yoo-Jin introduced Ha Jae-Gun and Kwon Tae-Won back to the two in English. Ben Smith had a towering height of two hundred centimeters. He looked down at Ha Jae-Gun and reached his hand out, asking for a handshake.

“N-nice to meet you...” Ha Jae-Gun said before grabbing the man's hand.

Ha Jae-Gun’s voice trembled as he stood beneath Ben’s shadow.