I narrowed my eyes and looked at him, as if I had completely figured out his taste.
Cha Rui still kept his gaze fixed on the mangoes and smiled faintly.
Whether it was my imagination or not, his soft expression conveyed deep affection that went beyond simple kindness.
‘Cha Rui can make an expression like that, too.’
The feeling was instantly ticklish, like swallowing a single feather, and I vigorously scratched my chest.
It was unbearably difficult to endure, as if fine downy hairs were swirling around my heart.
As if he had eyes on the side of his head, Cha Rui immediately turned toward me.
“Why? Are you uncomfortable somewhere?”
“No, just… I’m itchy.”
At my trivial remark, he slightly furrowed his brow and approached me.
Then, he lightly grabbed my wrist, as if telling me not to scratch, and looked down at the boxes piled up next to him.
I hadn’t noticed at all, but inside those boxes were luxurious, individually packaged peaches.
I wondered why there were peaches in early winter, but they turned out to be the very expensive (Great Snow White Peach variety.
“Surely you didn’t touch them.”
“……”
Cha Rui meticulously examined my palms, genuinely showing concern.
Seriously, I’m not a kid who pokes at anything…
Furthermore, the boxes were even covered with plastic wrap, so I felt wronged to be misunderstood like this.
However, even as I shook my head, denying it, I honestly wasn’t offended by his reaction.
Instead, it felt like the downy hairs tickling my heart had increased from one to two.
I was so internally itchy that I almost wondered if I had accidentally touched a peach.
“……Go and finish picking the mangoes. I’ll look for something else.”
In the end, I had no choice but to escape the spot, using the ingredients as an excuse.
If I stayed there, I felt my confused emotions would be clearly visible on my face.
I didn’t want to show that side of myself in front of Cha Rui.
‘That’s strange, really.’
I was walking through the mart, rubbing my chest in confusion, when my steps suddenly halted.
Now that I thought about it, having never eaten mango bingsu shaved ice before, I had no idea what ingredients went into it.
Even in my previous world, I had only ever delivered the packaged cooler bag and never even seen the actual dish.
“Besides mango, what else is there?”
It was a moment when I was aimlessly looking around, at a loss.
Chirpy, who had been wriggling in my sleeve, suddenly darted forward.
I wondered where it was rushing off to, hugging the doll, and sure enough, it was the nut section.
It never fails to deviate from my expectations by a single inch.
“We have plenty at home. No.”
Above all, I had already bulk-ordered them for same-day delivery.
I crossed my arms, showing it was out of the question, as there was still a full amount left in my item pouch.
But as I decisively raised my hand, I flinched upon seeing Chirpy’s appearance.
To my surprise, the leaf-shaped pin was still stuck in its hair.
“Wait, why are you still wearing that?”
Now that I thought about it, I didn’t remember taking it off.
Things had been hectic, and the situation was complicated in several ways, so I hadn’t been able to pay attention to Chirpy.
Even so, it could surely take it off itself, yet it was still wearing it.
“That’s a crime. Do you want to be dragged to the police station?”
When I approached, raising an eyebrow, Chirpy hurriedly covered its head with both hands.
The way it precisely hid the pin showed a clear resolve not to give it up no matter what.
‘It’s only fast at sensing things when it’s unhelpful.’
Actually, we couldn’t go back right now because of the people, so it was pointless to forcibly take it away.
Well, taking it away would be difficult in the first place.
Instead of causing a scene here, it might be better to just apologize to the store owner and pay several times the price in compensation.
“How much am I spending today, seriously…”
In the end, I could only conclude this with a warning not to do it again.
I felt like I had been far too lenient lately, so when we got home, I’d need to properly educate it.
To think I’d end up having to lecture an S-rank spirit about not stealing.
Life really is unpredictable.
“Did you pick everything? Shall we go now?”
After that, we circled the supermarket no less than twice, but all I held in my hand was just one can of condensed milk.
Even after looking up the ingredients in detail on my phone, that was all I found.
A normal red bean bingsu would be different, but ingredients like mango puree or syrup were simply hard to find in a neighborhood supermarket.
If I had known this, I would have just gone to a large hypermarket despite the crowd.
“……”
But the awkward situation wasn’t over yet.
In Cha Rui’s arms were mangoes, of course, but also a shaved ice machine and a large bag of ice.
Furthermore, condensed milk and various other ingredients were already sitting on the checkout counter.
They wouldn’t appear for the life of me when I was looking, but they appeared now; it was truly baffling.
But who was I to blame?
I should blame my own eyes, which were no better than decoration.
I just quietly shut my mouth and put the condensed milk back where it belonged.
After much difficulty, we finally arrived at Cha Rui’s house after a long detour.
“Oh…”
And the sound that escaped my lips the moment I stepped inside was quite ambiguous.
It was an involuntary exclamation of awe, as I felt I needed to show some kind of reaction.
Of course, Cha Rui’s house was quite spacious and nice.
He was born into a wealthy family and was at the peak of S-rank, so how could it not be?
However, the interior was surprisingly very ordinary compared to what I had expected.
‘Yes, if Cha Rui were a wealthy 60-year-old, I would definitely think that.’
How should I describe it?
It had the kind of feel that comes to mind when you think of a chaebol house from way back when?
The furniture felt heavy and static, rather than modern in design.
After all, young people don’t usually buy walnut furniture.
It didn’t seem like it had been passed down through generations, but simply seemed to be his personal taste.
‘Looking at the house, you’d believe it was a set from a 90s drama.’
I was so dumbfounded by the unexpected sight that I absentmindedly looked around the living room.
I never thought Cha Rui would have the refined, middle-aged taste of an older man.
Not only was it far from trendy, but not even a single rare artifact decoration, which an S-rank Hunter should certainly have, was visible.
Even Woo Jaehyun’s simple house had rare items placed in various spots.
“You’re more modest than I thought.”
“You think so?”
“Well, compared to me…”
‘Seo Inho’ was not even remotely on the same level as this.
Despite being just barely S-rank, his house was probably the most extravagant, perhaps even more so than an S3.
I subconsciously let out a small sigh as the chandelier in the living room suddenly came to mind.
The fact that I’ve been saying I’d take it down but still haven’t suggests that ‘Seo Inho’s’ taste lingers unconsciously.
At this point, I wondered if my subconscious was actively blocking me from changing it.
“Can I look around the rooms?”
I slowly looked around the house and stopped abruptly in front of what seemed to be Cha Rui’s bedroom.
At a glance, it was a typical wealthy CEO’s bedroom, the kind you’d see in movies or dramas.
I asked for permission and turned around to see Cha Rui setting out the groceries on a wooden dining table.
When he readily nodded his head, indicating it was fine, I immediately stepped into the room.
Hmm…
In terms of taste, Cha Rui might actually be more uncompromising than ‘Seo Inho.’
Who would ever think this was a room for a man in his twenties?
I chuckled softly as I ran my hand over the neatly spread velvet comforter.
Chirpy seemed quite pleased with the feel of the blanket and was tumbling around with its doll.
However, as I was admiring the bedroom, a picture frame on the bedside table suddenly caught my eye.
The face in the photo looked familiar, and it was none other than the picture taken at our house on my father’s birthday.
I had my arm around his shoulder, and Cha Rui was smiling gently.
“You put this picture here.”
I felt it at the time, but just looking at the photo, you’d think we were the best of friends.
Cha Rui’s expression was that natural and relaxed.
The fact that he framed it and placed it by his bedside meant he must have quite liked the photo.
Imagining him personally printing the photo and carefully placing it into the frame made the corners of my mouth lift slightly.
It was somehow cute, and I felt a strange, inexplicable emotion.
As I gazed fondly at the picture, my head gradually tilted.
It was because I sensed a subtle incongruity at the right corner of the frame.
Perhaps the photo was smaller than the frame, as I could slightly see the backing, which wasn’t plain paper but had a sky-like background.
It was as if another photo was layered behind the first one.
After a moment’s consideration, I finally couldn’t suppress my curiosity and began to disassemble the frame.
Like a thief whose feet are burning, I glanced at the door, worried that Cha Rui might suddenly walk in.
“I’ll just check quickly and put it back right away.”
Clink.
Before long, the back of the frame was undone, and two photos dropped into my hand.
One was the picture taken on my father’s birthday, and the other was a photo of ‘Seo Inho’ and Cha Rui together in school uniforms.
The two young faces were playfully pressing each other’s cheeks with their hands.
