# Chapter 40
“The movie’s about to start.”
Kwon Dojin whispered in my ear in a lowered voice, took my stunned hand, and led me to our seats. Since I was defenseless, I moved as he wanted, but when I faced the seats in front of me, I suddenly came to my senses.
“Are you crazy?”
“What?”
“What kind of lunatic reserves couple seats when friends are coming to watch a movie? And recliner seats at that!”
I couldn’t shout because other people were around, but I emphasized each word as I spoke.
“It’s better to be comfortable.”
Dojin replied in a nonchalant tone and curved his eyes. He gently pulled our joined hands, urging me to sit down. A sigh rose from within me, but it was also difficult to keep standing any longer.
If the seats had been at the very top, it might have been different, but because they were in the middle, I could feel the glances of people pretending not to look.
“You’re so cunning.”
As I sat down, Dojin, who sat beside me, looked even brighter. Seeing his expression gave me a headache, and as I pressed my forehead, he casually leaned against my shoulder.
“What’s wrong?”
“I was reflecting on the fact that I’m an idiot.”
“What are you saying? There are few people as smart as Habin.”
How could a smart person not notice the differences from a regular theater until entering the screening room?
Actually, I had thought something was strange. However, I was so distracted by the arcade that I didn’t have the energy to look properly. I was only thinking that I needed to get to the screening room quickly.
“Isn’t this expensive?”
Since it seemed like there was still time before the movie started, I tapped Dojin’s crown lightly. His head was in the perfect position to tap since he was leaning on my shoulder.
“Not really.”
“…I don’t think so. I know it’s expensive.”
“It wasn’t a burdensome price.”
Dojin’s voice was calm, as if he genuinely didn’t find the price burdensome. Instead, he pressed his body, which was leaning on my shoulder, even closer.
“If you can watch the movie comfortably, that’s enough for me.”
His gentle voice made my desire to scold him fade, and I withdrew my hand from bothering his head. Of course, it was heavy to keep Dojin clinging to me, so I pushed his body away too.
“So cold.”
“You said you wanted me to be comfortable. Think about your weight.”
After waving my arm casually, I used the control to lie back comfortably. Dojin adjusted his chair following my lead but stared at me instead of the screen.
“…What are you doing?”
“There’s still time before the movie starts.”
But that doesn’t mean my face is a sight to see. A dissatisfaction that wasn’t quite dissatisfaction came to mind, but I didn’t bother to voice it.
“By the way, how much did you spend?”
“Why?”
“Because we’ll split the bill.”
I turned my head to look at Dojin and saw his expression had hardened. Not understanding why, I tilted my head, and he sighed. Then, reaching out to grab my hand, he spoke in a gentle voice.
“You don’t need to worry about it.”
“But I am worried…”
“I’m someone who receives an appearance fee, so I can’t have Habin spend money.”
Isn’t that separate from this? Just as I was about to move my lips to respond to this incomprehensible statement, the advertisements ended, and the theater suddenly darkened. Since I couldn’t say anything more in this situation, I decided to wait until the movie ended.
Being a romance movie, bright colors, cheerful music, and fresh, lively dialogue hit my ears. To be honest, it wasn’t that entertaining, but it was decent enough for a famous film.
While watching the actors perform earnestly on screen, I suddenly became conscious of Dojin beside me and turned my head. Our eyes immediately met, which startled me, and I hastily looked back at the screen.
‘Was that a coincidence?’
It must be, right? If it wasn’t a coincidence, it would mean he had been staring at me the whole time, but why would Dojin do that?
Still, just to check, I rolled only my eyes to look at him. This time, I saw him smiling, which made me frown. Thinking he might be teasing me, I felt annoyed, but since the movie was playing, I couldn’t speak.
Instead, I lightly pinched the back of his hand resting on the armrest. It probably didn’t hurt much, but he opened his lips slightly and said “Ah,” which seemed artificial. He drooped his eyes and mouthed that it hurt.
That’s what you get for teasing me. I deliberately ignored him and stubbornly watched the screen. I ignored all his actions—extending his hand to tap my arm, subtly grabbing my hand and gently shaking it.
However, contrary to my expectations, Dojin’s pestering continued persistently, so I shook my captured arm rather roughly. When I deliberately frowned and glared at him, he withdrew his arm with a sulky expression.
“So childish.”
I whispered in a very small voice, but he must have heard it because he leaned his body toward me.
“What did you say?”
His voice was whispering just like mine, but I could hear it clearly because the distance was close. And because the distance was close enough to be uncomfortable, I firmly pushed his forehead with my index finger.
“You’re too much.”
“Just watch the movie.”
The distance between seats was far enough that this level of conversation shouldn’t be a problem, but we couldn’t keep talking during the screening. So I deliberately put my elbow on the opposite armrest from Dojin and rested my chin on it. The increased distance would prevent him from clinging to me.
As expected, he only pouted without clinging to me, which was comfortable. Additionally, it got quiet, allowing me to enjoy the movie pleasantly.
I decided not to give Dojin any attention until the end of the movie. I had no idea what he would say if our eyes met again.
As time passed, along with the movie heading toward its climax, my body also sank deeper into the chair. I had only watched movies in regular seats, so I didn’t know, but recliner seats were really comfortable and nice. Plus, the distance between seats wasn’t close, and there were dividers, so it was comfortable.
I blinked slowly while exhaling a languid breath. Afraid I might fall asleep regardless of the movie, I rubbed my eyelids. After struggling to hang on until the end of the movie, I made a sound close to a sigh when the ending credits started rolling along with a song.
“Was it fun?”
“It was fun, but the seat was so comfortable that I almost fell asleep.”
“Yeah, it seemed like it.”
I was surprised by his ready agreement as I was yawning briefly, and I looked at Dojin.
“How would you know that?”
“Because I was watching Habin, so I know.”
“…Without watching the movie?”
He shrugged his shoulders instead of answering. I was momentarily stunned by his audacity to suggest watching a movie and then boldly admit he hadn’t watched it.
“It would have been fine if you fell asleep. I wanted to see Habin sleeping too.”
“What would you use my sleeping face for?”
“Because your sleeping face would be pretty too. I wanted to see it.”
What is he saying?
I unconsciously frowned at his unhesitating answer. Seeing my expression, Dojin laughed with a throaty sound. Eventually, when even the ending credits finished, he gathered his things and reached his hand out to me.
“Let’s go. Aren’t you hungry?”
“A little?”
“There’s a good shabu-shabu place nearby. Want to go?”
At the mention of shabu-shabu, I nodded without thinking. It was something I liked but couldn’t eat often, so I quickly took his outstretched hand and stood up.
“How long does it take to get there?”
“It’s in the basement of this building, so it doesn’t take that long. Are you very hungry?”
“It’s not that, I’m just excited. It’s been a while since I had shabu-shabu.”
My lips naturally curled up, and my voice bounced. As I followed Dojin, who knew the way well, out of the screening room, my eyes caught a place where loud music was flowing. Even if I didn’t want to look, the music was so flashy that it drew my attention.
“Hey, Kwon Dojin.”
“Yes?”
“Isn’t that the arcade senior Kang Jinwoo mentioned?”
When I urgently blurted out, Dojin looked at where I was pointing. I wanted to grab his collar and shake him vigorously for his delayed exclamation, but I held back. More urgent than that was getting away from here as quickly as possible, so I firmly pushed his back.
“I’m sorry. I’m used to going out this way, so without thinking—”
Since he said it was a habit, I had nothing to say. Since I couldn’t do anything about what had already happened, I gestured with my chin for him to move quickly.
“Huh? Isn’t that Kwon Dojin?”
Calling a person ‘that’—what terrible manners. Dojin also seemed displeased as his eyebrows twitched, but he didn’t stop walking. It must be for my sake.
“Huh? Where?”
“There, the guy being pushed along.”
Dojin’s eyebrows twitched again at the word ‘guy.’ I stroked his back slowly, conveying that he should endure it.
“Then is that the famous Kwon Dojin’s bitch?”
These people keep referring to a person as ‘that’!
The more I heard, the more angry I became. Part of it was also because they called me “Kwon Dojin’s bitch.”
“…Habin-ah, do I have to endure this?”
“We can’t fight in a public place. The one who endures wins in this situation.”
I tried to compose my expression despite Dojin’s voice sounding like he wanted to devour someone. Dojin was excited, but I couldn’t show excitement too. When I responded as calmly as possible, he frowned but endured as I said.
“Seeing him ignore us and go, maybe it’s not Kwon Dojin?”
“Yeah. Has Kwon Dojin ever ignored a provocation directed at him?”
“Never.”
The words coming from behind stuck in my ear. So Kwon Dojin wasn’t the type to ignore when challenged to a fight.
“How much fighting did you do to get that kind of reputation?”
“Just… normal amounts.”
“It doesn’t seem like a normal level.”
I narrowed my eyes, still suspicious. Dojin laughed awkwardly and said we should go quickly, turning slightly to hold my hand. And that’s what caused the problem.
“No way! Anyone can see that’s definitely Kwon Dojin!”
What was simply turning his body to hold my hand ended up showing his face to the others, turning their suspicion into certainty.
“Habin-ah, we need to run.”
“What—?”
With a hardened expression, Dojin quickly made a decision and gripped our joined hands tightly. I almost bit my tongue in surprise because he started sprinting before I could make a proper judgment.
“Kwon Dojin is running away! Catch him!”
Why are you guys acting like this again!
If I had known this would happen, I would’ve just stayed home no matter what. Late regret washed over me.
