“Kwon Jukyung, what about you? Did you do a strip show while sleeping?”
“Strip show?”
Jukyung tilted his head and looked down at his bare body. Then he went “ah” with an expression like it was nothing.
“I must have taken it off because it felt stuffy. I usually sleep in just my underwear.”
I flinched again at the word underwear, but fortunately Jukyung was still wearing the shorts he’d put on before sleeping.
“What did I think it was? Making a fuss over nothing.”
Jukyung grumbled as he got off the bed, then stretched his arms out straight and twisted his body. His sleek back muscles and waistline, receiving the sunlight softly penetrating through the screen, drew beautiful shadows. His firm shoulders and balanced shoulder blades, his straight spine—truly a subject that became more desirable the more I looked.
I was momentarily captivated and staring blankly when Jukyung turned his face this way, so I pretended not to look and turned my gaze elsewhere. Jukyung’s eyes seemed to linger on my face for a moment, but fortunately he disappeared into the bathroom attached to the room without saying anything.
As the sound of water began, I pressed down on my heart that had been pounding since who knows when and secretly sighed. At least I’m lucky he didn’t catch me sleeping burrowed into that bastard’s embrace. That was close. If he’d caught me, he would definitely either nag endlessly or tease me at every opportunity, treating me like a pervert saying he caught my weakness. I think I did it because I was cold while asleep, but from today I should either suggest turning off the air conditioner or something, because this won’t work. I might cause another incident.
Somehow the heat that had risen to my face didn’t easily subside.
***
“Today’s Saturday, so let’s go out. We’ll eat out for breakfast-lunch combo and go buy your clothes.”
Jukyung seemed to be in a good mood from the morning. Even while leisurely washing up and having tea, the corners of his mouth kept rising. The morning time passed uneventfully without any picking fights. Since he’s a working person, I understand being in a good mood on Saturday morning, but buying my clothes means spending money—why is the creditor in a good mood?
I examined Jukyung’s face with suspicious eyes. Having started the morning by falling out of bed and feeling an ominous premonition, at first I kept my guard up thinking about why Kwon Jukyung was in a good mood and when he’d pick a fight again. There might be some trap hidden, and who knows when his mood would change and he’d be mean.
While riding in the car to eat brunch, I suddenly remembered that this morning too there had been a slightly stronger scent than usual, so I finally brought up the perfume topic.
“That perfume you use, where’s it from?”
Actually, the fragrance wasn’t consistent. When I first got in Jukyung’s car and entered the house, I felt a faint lingering scent, but it wasn’t that strong and perhaps because I quickly got used to it, I stopped noticing it well.
Nevertheless, I didn’t forget because sometimes I felt quite a distinct scent after Jukyung showered or at night when sleeping. I thought maybe he was the type to spray perfume after showering in the evening and before sleeping at night. Rather, I didn’t really notice the scent during the day.
But Jukyung didn’t answer for a long time. Not only that, but the look in his eyes as he stared at me was somehow unusual. With a furrowed brow and one eyebrow slightly raised, he was looking at me as if I’d posed some riddle of the century.
Why are you looking at me like that when I’m not even trying to dig out state secrets?
“Uh… why?”
Even when I asked, there was no real response. Jukyung kept staring with that strange face while waiting at the signal, then even after turning his gaze away from me, he had a pondering expression for quite a while. Then, only after hearing honking from behind, did he start the car.
“It’s custom-ordered.”
Much later, Jukyung answered like this. It was around the time we arrived at the brunch restaurant and were getting out, and I’d been thinking about something else, so I was momentarily confused about what he meant.
“Hm? What is?”
“The perfume. The one I use. It’s not off-the-shelf but custom-made to order.”
Jukyung said in a somehow sarcastic tone, scrutinizing my face as if gauging my expression.
“Ah… really?”
I honestly wanted to know more about the perfume, but given that reaction, I didn’t bother asking further. Among people who care about fashion, there are those who particularly hate others copying their own style, and I just thought Kwon Jukyung was that type.
“……”
“……”
I didn’t ask more questions, and Jukyung, probably thinking I’d lost interest, didn’t talk about perfume any further. A strange silence hung between us, but once we entered the restaurant and started ordering and eating various appetizing dishes, the awkward atmosphere quickly disappeared.
The meal was delicious. I hadn’t expected much, but I could choose and taste quite a variety of dishes mixing East and West. Rib fingers with unique fruit sauce, avocado with salsa sauce, ssambap with each bite-sized wrap and sauce, royal tteokbokki, tarts with nuts, and fresh fruit yogurt—it was almost like a full-fledged fusion restaurant like a buffet.
After both Jukyung and I filled our bellies with the generous meal, our moods relaxed comfortably. Eating like this, it seemed like before long I’d not only regain my previous weight but actually gain weight.
That would be troublesome. There was the external problem, but if I got plump from eating all the food Kwon Jukyung fed me, I’d definitely hear him say how much money he spent feeding me and so on. Just like Father tried to shackle me by asking if I knew how much money he spent raising me.
Come to think of it, the image feels somehow similar. Like the witch in “Hansel and Gretel” who fattened children to eat them. While eating ice cream for dessert, I glanced at Jukyung, and Jukyung, who was drinking iced tea, sent me a crooked look asking what I was looking at. I quickly lowered my head again to scoop ice cream, so he wouldn’t catch my mischievous gaze.
Anyway, after finishing the satisfying meal, we moved to a department store. Even during vacations when I didn’t want to be home, I flew back to Europe not long after coming to Korea, so I’d hardly ever been to Seoul department stores. Also because when shopping, I often went directly to overseas designer stores rather than department stores.
The large Gangnam department store had more big and flashy stores than I thought. But it seemed several of my favorite brands weren’t tenanted. I was thinking it was a shame, then smiled bitterly thinking what did I have to be disappointed about? Unless I went home, they were brands I’d have no connection with anymore anyway.
“This way.”
I listlessly followed into the store Jukyung entered and looked around. It was a so-called luxury brand, not something I could buy now. So I figured Jukyung must be interested. Sure enough, Jukyung was rummaging through casualwear rather than the interview suit I urgently needed.
The friendly smile shown by the employee who greeted us didn’t seem to come purely from a business mindset. Judging by the way she kept stealing glances at Jukyung’s face.
“Come here and look too. Don’t just stand there blankly.”
Jukyung beckoned with his hand to me, who’d been standing near the entrance with arms crossed.
Ah, how annoying.
That’s what I thought inside, but I couldn’t upset the patron. Though I briefly felt reality hit me wondering why I had to have this mindset, I decided to think positively that I was receiving pre-education before properly going out into society. I hid my annoyed look and obediently went to Jukyung’s side and scanned the clothes. And I couldn’t help but tilt my head.
“Don’t the clothes here suit skinny kids better?”
Of course Jukyung wasn’t a bumpy style either, so there would be sizes that fit, but the models the brand’s lead designer took as muses were mainly very thin and slender styles. For Kwon Jukyung, a brand with a more aristocratic yet masculine feel, so like what he’s wearing now… huh?
I blinked and examined the clothes Jukyung was wearing again. Jukyung’s clothes were indeed from that brand I thought would suit him. And if I wasn’t completely mistaken, even among the so-called luxury brands, it was exceptionally expensive. Not clothes a self-proclaimed ordinary person would buy and wear, right?
Come to think of it, my thoughts suddenly reached the fact that Jukyung’s car, the furnishings filling the house, and the clothes he wore were all expensive. They were so familiar to me that I hadn’t felt any sense of incongruity until now. Were they fake? But everything looked good quality for that.
Or was he the type to purchase good things even if it meant overextending, but instead only buy exactly what was necessary and use them for a long time? Thinking about it, that seemed likely. As Kwon Jukyung himself said, his house had so few items it felt bare. Even dishes, cups, and utensils were stocked exactly two sets each. There was just exactly what was needed, to the point of wondering why two sets instead of one.
I heard Seoul housing prices were considerable even by global standards. He said the house was monthly rent, and the car was installments. Well, that lifestyle exists too. Car poor, house poor, you know, that kind of thing.
“……”
Suddenly my thoughts reached a slightly gloomy imagination. Could Kwon Jukyung, contrary to his decent appearance, have a lot of debt? So maybe he’s helping me with an investment mindset? To find out who my father is later and get a cut. Or if it seems hard to get money from me later, maybe he’ll contact Father to get money and sell me out?
While I was briefly getting serious alone and writing a novel in my head, Jukyung held up clothes against me. It was a bright-colored thin summer knit.
“What are you doing holding it up to me?”
When I spoke unenthusiastically, Jukyung looked at me as if I was saying something strange.
“It’s for you, so who else should I hold it up to?”
“……?”
“Why are you staring stupidly?”
“What I need is a suit though?”
“Well, that’s true, but look at yourself. Are you planning to keep going around like this normally?”
I looked down at the clothes I was wearing. Except for the shirt I wore underneath, everything was the same as what I wore yesterday. Well, clothes were the only thing I had, so it was an unavoidable choice, but since I’d changed my underwear and shirt, I didn’t really mind.
