* * *

I elbowed Kwon Sahyeok in the stomach.

Not very hard, but he still winced and stepped back dramatically.

“Ow.”

“It didn’t even hurt.”

“What? It hurt a lot! You think S-classes don’t feel pain?”

“….”

“Oh wait, you’re an S-class too, so you’d know. S-classes feel pain.”

“That wouldn’t hurt an S-class.”

“You’re tough, Heewon.”

Hearing Kwon Sahyeok say my name made me cringe.

I frowned and glared at him.

“Stop acting familiar and calling me by my name.”

“Oh, come on. We’re sharing secrets now—that makes us close. If not, we should get closer. Or you can call me Sahyeok if you want.”

Sahyeok?

A shiver ran down my spine at the thought.

Kwon Sahyeok laughed as if he found my reaction hilarious.

“If that’s too much, you can call me hyung. Or even hyung-ah if you’d like.”

“Let’s just go eat.”

Feeling like I was at a disadvantage, I changed the subject.

Instead of teasing me further, Kwon Sahyeok nodded obediently.

“What do you want to eat?”

“Anything you want. I don’t really care.”

“Hmm… What have you eaten today?”

“Nothing. I don’t have much of an appetite.”

“Alright, then Hyung Sahyeok will take you somewhere with good food.”

“….”

Amused by his own antics, Kwon Sahyeok took me to a hotel restaurant near the Samho Guild.

We were naturally led to a private room, where I sat comfortably and ordered from his recommendations.

The food was delicious, and the plating was beautiful.

While drinking tea after dessert, Kwon Sahyeok received a call.

Glancing at the caller ID, he smirked, put the call on speaker, and answered.

“Kwon Sahyeok.”

An aggressive voice that seemed ready to strangle someone came through.

It was a voice I knew well—Baek Gunho’s.

“Don’t mess with Seo Heewon.”

“What do you mean, mess with?”

“Stop wasting his time.”

“He came to me first.”

Kwon Sahyeok replied smugly.

“If you want to stop him, call him directly. Don’t whine to me.”

With that snide remark, Kwon Sahyeok ended the call.

I figured Baek Gunho would start calling me next.

My phone had already been ringing for a while, but I’d muted it and flipped it over.

“Don’t provoke Baek Gunho for no reason.”

It was a warning. Baek Gunho was unpredictable when pushed.

He’d once started a fight over a misunderstanding, and it had made the news.

I couldn’t understand why Kwon Sahyeok kept provoking him.

Sahyeok grinned at me.

“I did it on purpose. He’s in the way of me wooing you.”

“What?”

“You don’t have a lover now, so there’s nothing stopping me.”

I was dumbfounded by his words, which were not only ridiculous but also flawed.

“We weren’t lovers.”

“Maybe not married, but you two were practically in a common-law relationship.”

What nonsense.

I glared at Kwon Sahyeok, but instead of continuing to talk, he simply smiled at me, amused.

“…Were you serious about being interested in me?”

“Of course. What else did you think I’ve been saying this whole time?”

“A joke.”

“You’re too cruel…”

Standing up, Kwon Sahyeok walked over and sat beside me.

I tried to move away, but his grip was faster.

Kwon Sahyeok grabbed my hand, gently rubbing my wrist with his fingers.

The sensation was strange enough that I quickly pulled away.

Watching me, Kwon Sahyeok seemed thoroughly entertained.

“Guys like me aren’t easy to come by. Take your chance and play with me.”

“Play with you?”

“Yeah, do whatever you want.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“What do you think? I’m asking you to have fun with me.”

Kwon Sahyeok gave me a blatantly suggestive once-over.

Biting my lip, I glared at him, but he just laughed, finding even that amusing.

“You’re so crude. Why are you like this with me?”

“You’re really my type. Pretty and fun.”
“…….”
“Don’t glare at me like that.”

Kwon Sahyeok’s face suddenly leaned in closer.

I stared at him in a daze and managed to dodge just before our lips met.

His hand brushed past the side of my ear.

“Your ears are red.”

“It’s because you’re doing weird things….”

“Hey, Heewon.”

Why does he keep acting so familiar, calling me by my name?

I felt unsettled, reminded of Baek Gunho.

As I sat there, fidgety, Kwon Sahyeok quietly studied me.

I expected his usual carefree expression, but his gaze was surprisingly serious.

“The best way to forget is to meet someone new.”

“I told you, we weren’t dating.”

“But you liked him, didn’t you?”

“…No.”

“If you didn’t, why do you look like this?”

What exactly does this look mean?

I rubbed my face with my hands.

I didn’t want anyone to see the mess Baek Gunho had left me in.

But even when I lowered my hands, Kwon Sahyeok was still watching me, his expression soft and almost pitying.

“You must’ve really liked him.”

“…….”

“For how long?”

“……About ten years.”

The words slipped out of my mouth in a low whisper, almost impulsively.

Kwon Sahyeok didn’t laugh or act surprised. He just nodded, his face unchanged.

“That’s a long time. No wonder it’s hard to let go.”

“…….”

“But why didn’t you two date?”

“Well….”

It was something I’d never shared with anyone, but it seemed I needed to vent.

Once I started talking, I couldn’t stop.

“…Baek Gunho didn’t like me that way.”

“That bastard? Anyone could see he was crazy about you.”

“Not in a romantic sense.”

“I don’t think so….”

Kwon Sahyeok let out a disbelieving laugh.

Yeah, I knew how it could look that way.

Baek Gunho’s obsessive attention always prioritized me above everything else.

“It really wasn’t like that.”

“And now it is?”

I had meant to speak vaguely, but Kwon Sahyeok immediately picked up on the past tense in my words. I didn’t deny it and nodded.

“…That’s what he says.”

“Hmm….”

Kwon Sahyeok frowned slightly, seeming lost in thought.

Then, as if he had figured something out, he nodded to himself with a knowing expression.

“I see. Makes sense.”

“What does?”

“Nothing much.”

But leaving it at that after making such a cryptic comment was infuriating.

I pressed him.

“Tell me.”

“Uh…”

“Spit it out.”

“Fine… I was just wondering if you two had slept together.”

“…….”

“You’re the one who asked me to talk.”

Before my clenched fist could make contact with his jaw, Kwon Sahyeok ducked out of the way, grinning smugly.

Sure, I did insist he speak quickly, but still…

“Why would you think that?”

“Maybe he lost his mind after realizing how good it was with you?”

I regretted asking for his reasoning. Of course, it would lead to this.

Was that really it, though?

Could it be that simple?

Did Baek Gunho’s feelings change because of that?

I couldn’t imagine what he found so great about it… but still.

“Heewon.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Does it bother you because it reminds you of Baek Gunho?”

He was annoyingly sharp. I bit my lip.

Like before, Kwon Sahyeok leaned in as if to kiss me, but I stopped him with my hand.

He grabbed my wrist, pulling it away as he whispered.

“Don’t you want to forget?”

I couldn’t answer right away. Did I want to forget? I wasn’t sure.

“Think it over. If you’re with me, I’ll make sure you don’t even think about Baek Gunho anymore.”

“Why are you so confident?”

“Because I am. Whatever I do, I’ll be better than him—dating, sex, whatever.”

I could maybe believe the dating part, but the last comment left me stunned.

I stared at him in disbelief, but Kwon Sahyeok looked completely unfazed, like he had said nothing out of the ordinary.

Where does he even get that confidence?

Baek Gunho has lived through countless loops—there’s no way he’d fall short in comparison to Kwon Sahyeok.

He must’ve had plenty of experience with women when I wasn’t around.

The thought made my chest tighten painfully.

Why did it still hurt to imagine?

It would be so much easier if I could just fold up these feelings and move on, but things never worked out the way I wanted.

“Let’s go.”

Kwon Sahyeok stood up and ruffled my hair messily.

Annoyed, I pushed his hand away and got up too.

Kwon Sahyeok drove me home.

When his car stopped in front of my house, I was about to get out when I froze.

Standing there was none other than Baek Gunho, looking unmistakably pissed off.

“Seo Heewon.”

“…….”

“Where are you coming from?”

I mean… dinner with Kwon Sahyeok, but obviously that wasn’t the point.

When I didn’t answer, Baek Gunho grabbed me and pulled me out of the car.

His sudden roughness made my body tremble with fear, but he let go just as quickly.

In the next moment, someone else pulled me into their arms protectively—Kwon Sahyeok.

His grip on my shoulders tightened.

“Did you use violence?”

“Of course not.”

“Trash.”

Over my head, I could hear Kwon Sahyeok muttering in disgust.

* * *