# Chapter 50
Following Maeng Moa outside the school gate, a car immediately approached us.
The black vehicle was not only long but also quite wide, as if it had broad shoulders. Its overwhelming size was truly imposing, and the emblem in the center exuded an incredible presence.
“What are you doing? Get in.”
“Huh? Oh, right.”
I was blankly admiring the exterior of the car when Maeng Moa grabbed my shoulder. Coming to my senses, I followed him into the car.
The door closed smoothly with just a slight push, automatically locking itself. Inwardly impressed, I carefully sat on the expensive-looking seat. It was so plush that the ride would surely be comfortable.
I tried to contain my excitement to avoid making a fuss as I looked around the interior. The inside was even more luxurious than the outside; the steering wheel and the various function pads themselves were fascinating.
“Done with your inspection?”
I turned my head at the amused voice beside me to find Maeng Moa staring at me with an odd smile. I thought I’d been examining it nonchalantly, but apparently not from his perspective. I leaned back with an embarrassed smile, and the seat embraced my body with remarkable comfort.
Only then could I see the driver in the front seat. The man with the pleasant face must have been watching me all along because our eyes met immediately, and I quickly bowed my head.
“Hello.”
“Hello. Nice to meet you. I’m Song Jihoon, Moa’s manager.”
“Ah, yes. Nice to meet you.”
A trainee with a manager already? I wondered about it but let it go. As I was beginning to feel uncomfortable under Song Jihoon’s steady gaze while I greeted him politely, he turned to Maeng Moa.
“When you said you were with a senior you knew, I thought you meant Seoheon, but this is a student I haven’t seen before.”
“Yeah. Let’s just get going now. We’ll be late.”
“Alright.”
As Maeng Moa gestured for him to hurry, Song Jihoon nodded and soon took the wheel, moving the car slowly.
The smoothly starting vehicle was so quiet that I could barely feel it moving. Feeling comfortable, I relaxed my grip on my bag and looked out the window. The car was traveling at a moderate speed, making it pleasant to view the scenery outside.
“Hyung. What about my dinner?”
“Ah, there should be a shopping bag back there.”
“Is what I asked for there too?”
“Yes… but why did you want that?”
At Song Jihoon’s questioning voice, Maeng Moa snickered and said:
“Because I need it.”
What did he need? Out of curiosity, I stared at Maeng Moa as he placed a plastic shopping bag in front of him from the back seat.
Looking at the familiar design, I recognized it was from the sandwich shop we ate at yesterday in the club room.
What he took out was a salad that looked healthy just by looking at it. Finely shredded meat was placed on top of fresh vegetables, appearing to be a chicken breast salad.
Was Maeng Moa on a diet too? Or trying to build muscle? It made sense for him to take care of his body as an aspiring celebrity, but it was surprising since he didn’t seem to need body management. As one of the main characters, Maeng Moa was tall and well-built even from the outside.
Recalling what I’d seen in the animation, he had a moderately slim yet firm physique. While thinking about this, Moon Seoheon’s completely different body suddenly came to mind, so I decided not to dwell on it further.
Instead, I found myself scanning his body, and Maeng Moa must have felt my gaze because he stared at me before crossing his arms in an X-shape in front of his chest. Though his face was frowning, the corners of his mouth were slightly raised, showing his playful nature.
“What is it? Why are you looking at someone else’s body like that?”
“…Sorry. I was just wondering if you’re on a diet too.”
As I scratched my cheek in embarrassment, Maeng Moa glanced at the salad he’d taken out and made an “ah” sound. Soon, he smiled slightly as he picked up the salad, examined it from different angles, and looked at me.
“I have a weight check soon. I need to lose a few kilos to reach my target weight, so lately I’ve been eating only like this for dinner.”
“Really? That must be tough.”
It seems he’s not under strict management. And considering how he asked for soda or cola at lunch, he probably has his own standards. While he’ll manage himself, I conveyed a message with a nuance of encouragement, and he grinned.
“Are you feeling a sense of kinship because I mentioned I’m on a diet?”
“Huh? No, not really?”
I hadn’t thought much about it, but recalling how Yoon Taeho hadn’t taken good care of his body, I unconsciously rubbed my stomach. Maeng Moa, who had glimpsed my gesture, snickered and pulled his comfortably reclined body forward.
“Senior, you’d be better off building muscle than losing weight. You’re definitely soft and squishy.”
“Ah, hey!”
I cried out softly in surprise as he suddenly grabbed my arm and kneaded it. When he even reached towards my stomach, I quickly caught his hand, telling him to stop.
“Why so sensitive when we’re both guys?”
“It’s because you touched me so suddenly. It’s not that I’m sensitive; it’s that you’re being rude.”
“Ah, yes, yes.”
Maeng Moa made a gesture with both palms visible, as if admitting his mistake, and stopped. Although he retreated obediently and responded well, his gestures and tone were extremely annoying.
I let out a hollow laugh and decided to exercise as soon as I got home. I had originally intended to start gradually from last week, but I thought I should focus on studying because of the monthly evaluation, so I hadn’t properly started yet.
There’s nothing else to do at home, so as Maeng Moa said, I should do something worthwhile like building some muscle.
Just then, Maeng Moa took out something else from the shopping bag. Wrapped in packaging with the same logo, suggesting it was from the same place, was a hot dog sandwich.
A long, thick sausage peeked out from both sides, topped with a heap of salad mixed with vegetables and what looked like eggs. As I stared at the delicious-looking hot dog, Maeng Moa handed it to me.
“Oh, is this for me?”
“Yes. I said I’d take care of dinner, didn’t I? This place is good. I bought the most popular one, so no complaints.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at his implication that I should eat it even if I had complaints, but since I didn’t mind it at all, I accepted it happily.
“Thanks. I’ll enjoy it.”
“Haha, sure.”
Before eating, I glanced at Song Jihoon, who was driving. When our eyes met, he told me to enjoy my meal. I nodded in thanks and carefully picked up the hot dog to avoid spilling anything.
I was very cautious not to drop even a crumb. It was quite burdensome to eat something in such a luxurious car that wasn’t even mine, but I planned to eat it quickly somehow.
Just as I was about to take a big bite, Maeng Moa stopped me.
“Wait a moment.”
“Why?”
“This.”
After rummaging through the shopping bag, Maeng Moa soon found what he was looking for and handed it to me with a grin. It was strawberry jam.
I stared at the strawberry jam resting neatly in his hand and then raised my gaze to look at Maeng Moa. The look was meant to ask why he was giving me this.
“You like it, don’t you? Eating it with this.”
“Ah, that’s true, but…”
I remembered Oh Seulbi asking if I spread strawberry jam on sausages after hearing what she said before. Had he remembered that and prepared it for me? I was grateful, but there was an awkward aspect to it.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you need it?”
Maeng Moa, sensing my hesitation, asked with a puzzled face. I took the strawberry jam from his hand and casually said:
“I’ll eat this later. I don’t think it goes well with this hot dog.”
“…What?”
I wondered how to explain to Maeng Moa, who frowned as if not understanding what I meant, and simply pointed to the vegetable salad on top of the sausage.
“Because of this. If there wasn’t any salad, I would have spread it on, but it doesn’t go well with this.”
“…What does that… Then what does it go well with?”
Maeng Moa, still looking confused and bewildered, asked with a deflated laugh.
“Well… I wonder if wasabi or mustard would be good to sprinkle on?”
Maeng Moa’s expression became subtle at my words. After a moment of silence, he alternately looked at me and the hot dog.
“You don’t like ketchup or mustard sauce?”
“No, I like them all.”
“Then by what criteria do you eat like that?”
“Hmm… it depends on what kind of bread and what’s inside…”
I took a bite of the hot dog, which I hadn’t eaten while talking, and organized the rest of what I wanted to say in my head. Seeing that Maeng Moa was still staring at me intently without even unwrapping his salad packaging, I quickly chewed and swallowed.
“Soft and moist sandwiches like egg sandwiches or tuna sandwiches are generally delicious when eaten with wasabi, and it’s tasty to spread strawberry jam on sandwiches with meat or ham. And for those with just vegetables, I eat them with teriyaki sauce or tonkatsu sauce.”
As I calmly explained how I generally eat bread, Maeng Moa’s tightly closed lips gradually opened. I silently watched his face with his eyes and mouth all wide open, and after closing his mouth, he asked in a dumbfounded manner:
“…There are rules for that too?”
“Of course. I don’t just mix anything together.”
In real life, when people saw me eating food in unusual ways or looking for certain things, their reactions were divided into two types. One was to be shocked but laugh it off, and the other was to talk behind my back, calling me an attention seeker.
Though the reactions differed, the common point was that they thought I mixed foods randomly without thinking. The problem was that I had my own sense of harmony and ate what matched, but it didn’t appear that way to others. There was even a time when I had a big fight with a colleague I didn’t get along with because he jokingly called me a “food trash processor.”
Would everyone think that way here too?
I looked at Maeng Moa’s awkward smile, with his brow furrowed but the corners of his mouth turned up, and slightly shrugged my shoulders.
I don’t know what he thinks, but I’m just glad he’s not cursing. Judging from the fact that he even deliberately gave me strawberry jam, he doesn’t seem to find it disgusting.
“Alright. If you like that, then you should eat it that way.”
As he nodded, apparently accepting my explanation, and responded with a tone that showed respect, I couldn’t help but laugh.
