Episode 1
The day Tae In-hyeok crash-landed into Ha-rang’s world was at the tail end of a spring day.
It was that ambiguous threshold of the season, too hot to keep the window closed, yet too early to turn on the air conditioner.
Just another ordinary day, no different from usual.
Ha-rang, a senior in the Business Administration department at Korea University, headed to a study cafe.
It wasn’t exam period, but she was in the middle of preparing for an English interview, studying for over three hours every day.
The study cafe Ha-rang frequented was cheap and rarely crowded, primarily because it was located in the heart of the nightlife district.
Being on the second floor, street noise and the smell of cigarette smoke from the alleyways seeped insistently through the windows.
The native English conversation flowing from her earbuds covered some of the noise, but there was no blocking the pungent cigarette smoke.
‘Unbearable.’
Frowning, Ha-rang approached the window.
In the narrow, shabby alley plastered with flyers, two male students in uniforms were exhaling long streams of opaque smoke.
“I almost got caught smoking by the homeroom teacher today. Of all people, it had to be him. I was so scared.”
“Heh, you crazy bastard. If you get caught by him, you have to write a reflection paper. It’s so annoying, that’s all he ever makes us do.”
“It’s because it’s annoying that he makes you do it. Hide it better next time.”
She had only intended to quietly close the window, but she couldn’t just ignore students in uniform smoking so blatantly.
“Hey, you two. Put out the cigarettes.”
A voice, even in tone, neat and clear like glass beads, spread through the alley.
The students tilted their heads back towards the sound.
“Who’s that busybody ahjumma?”
They sneered, as if finding Ha-rang’s interference amusing.
Ha-rang’s eyes narrowed.
They say you shouldn’t bother kids these days—had she made a mistake? And to be called an ahjumma…
At twenty-three, having never been in a relationship, Ha-rang felt particularly indignant.
Just then, one of the students, who had been scrutinizing Ha-rang’s pale face, let his lips curl into a delinquent smirk.
“We’ll put out the cigarettes if you come down and hang out with us. Drinking with you, noona, just seems like it’d be fun for some reason.”
Thinking her attempt to engage in conversation made her seem foolish, Ha-rang let out a sigh and pulled out her phone.
“You go to Yujin High School, right? I’m reporting you to the school.”
“What? Ah, shit! Ahjumma, you wait right there!”
The students, their faces scrunched up, looked ready to storm up to her location any second.
Just as they were about to move, a low voice flew in from somewhere.
“And where do you think you’re going, leaving me here?”
It was a pleasant baritone, so perfect it could belong to a voice actor.
Had there been someone else in this alley all along?
The students turned towards the direction of the voice. Ha-rang’s gaze naturally drifted to the end of the alley.
Fizz—
From within the lightless darkness, a small flame appeared with a burning sound, then died out.
As the darkness receded, the figure of a man gradually became visible.
The moment she saw the tall man standing right in the center of the light, Ha-rang caught her breath.
“I was in the middle of enjoying the show. If you have something to say, say it here.”
He had a noble appearance that didn’t belong in this dirty alley.
With the top button of his white dress shirt undone and a navy tie worn loosely, the man was incredibly tall with broad shoulders, like a model.
His nearly 190cm frame, seemingly well-maintained, clearly indicated a good physique at a glance.
His roughly swept-back hair and unrefined, raw gaze hinted at an innate arrogance no one would dare imitate.
Overwhelmed by the aura emanating from the man, the students faltered, unable to utter a word.
The man, looking down at them, let out a soft laugh and patted their shoulders with his large, veiny hands.
“Your faces are wearing thin, kids.”
He didn’t use any particular force or make any threats, yet the students were frozen as if gripped by the scruff of their necks.
“But it’d be troublesome if you developed a crush on me. Hyung’s taste isn’t milk-scented brats, it’s more like… over there.”
Slowly.
The man’s pupils moved to where Ha-rang was.
“I’ve had my eyes on that pretty noona for a while now.”
When their eyes met, the man smiled faintly.
“……”
It was as if the world had been reduced to just the two of them; all sound was cut off, and time stood still.
Despite the distance, it felt like he was right in front of her, seeing through to her deepest, most secret places.
Ha-rang was trapped, unable to move.
Could one really feel this way just from looking at another person?
It was only a little later that the man’s eyes, which had devoured Ha-rang, moved to the students’ name tags.
“Let’s see. Yujin High School, Kim Woo-yeol, Jeong Ha-bin……”
Once free from his gaze, the frozen air began to flow again.
“Haa.”
It was only then she realized she hadn’t been breathing.
Her fingertips were trembling. As Ha-rang clenched her fist, the man’s voice came from the first floor.
“Take out all the cigarettes you have. Ah, and you’ve got some money too, right?”
Naturally extorting their belongings, the man smiled, his eyes narrowing into slits.
The smile drawn by his finely shaped features was beautiful. Dazzlingly so.
His black eyes, resembling obsidian, were like those of a wild beast contemplating whether to take the life of the person whose fate it held.
Faced with this conflicting emotion they’d never felt before, the students swallowed dryly and looked up at In-hyeok.
The significant difference in their sturdy builds prevented them from even considering反抗.
The students, making tearful faces, hurriedly pulled out the contents of their pockets.
It was just half a pack of cigarettes and a little over 50,000 won in cash.
“You were going to have fun with just this? And imported cigarettes? You brats whose blood hasn’t even dried yet seem to know what’s good.”
Tch. The man clicked his tongue as he transferred the students’ money and cigarettes into his own pocket.
“XX Bank, 333……”
“Huh?”
Noticing the students’ dumbfounded faces as he listed the numbers, the man kindly added.
“hyeok forgot because it’s been so long. People don’t really carry cash these days, right? Transfer the money and show me your balance is zero. Or we can hold hands and go to the ATM together.”
“Ah, no! I’ll transfer it right now!”
The students hastily opened their banking apps.
Only after confirming the transferred amount in his account, and meticulously collecting their branded shoes, smartwatches, and tablet PCs, did the man break into a wide smile.
“If you want to see hyeok again, go ahead and report me to the police.”
The students shook their heads with all their might.
“No! We’ll absolutely never report you!”
“That’s right! Please believe us!”
The price they had to pay for just finding a secluded alley to smoke in was too high.
“S-so, can we go now?”
The man stared intently at the pleading students for a while, then lost interest and jerked his chin, signaling they could go.
As this sudden mercy was granted, the students bowed so deeply their foreheads nearly touched the ground before scrambling away without a second thought.
One of the students leading the way stumbled, twisting his ankle. The man looked genuinely sorry.
“Tsk. A man needs to have strong lower body.”
The man, who had been standing idly in the now quiet alley, slowly turned around then.
As if he knew Ha-rang had been watching all along, his eyes immediately locked onto hers.
Once again, the world stopped, and only his lips, red like midsummer roses, curled slowly.
Just who was he determined to enchant?
The man inhaled deeply on the filter until his cheeks hollowed, then let out a long stream of smoke.
Through the smoke spiraling and dispersing, his black pupils ensnared her, shoulders hunched.
“How old are you?”
His first words carried a subtle hint of laughter.
Although the instinct that conversing with this intensely striking man was dangerous surged within her, it seemed she couldn’t avoid answering either.
“……T-twenty-three.”
“A baby,” the man added before asking another question.
“University student?”
“……Yes.”
“No wonder you’re cute.”
It seemed like a strange word had been mixed in, causing Ha-rang’s brow to furrow slightly.
“I’m…… cute?”
The man, with his hands shoved in his pockets, tilted his head.
The curve of his lips was decidedly mischievous.
“Should I say you look like you’d be fun to make cry then?”
