Chapter : 12
He glanced at Hyun as if she were ridiculous.
It seemed Interpol needed to start from the very basics of undercover work.
“What?”
“I thought you guys were supposed to be capable. You can’t even get your hands on a used car?”
There was something Hyun had forgotten.
Jaehyuk wasn’t avoiding foreign cars because he couldn’t afford them.
The reason he had been close to Daeik since childhood was because their families had long-standing ties.
His father had passed away, but Jaehyuk’s family had once been a powerful name in its own right. The wealth he possessed was probably no less than Daeik’s family’s.
It was just that no one knew, because it was hidden behind his life as a salaried employee.
Remembering that fact a second too late, Hyun awkwardly scratched the back of her neck.
His tone—like he was talking to a subordinate—irritated her a little.
“‘Go get one’ sounds like an order.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be coming in as my junior?”
“What?”
Warm air tinged with sunset light drifted in through the open window.
Jaehyuk’s lips curved upward with it.
With a teasing smile, he said,
“You’d better get used to it. You’re starting work tomorrow, aren’t you?”
Just looking at that smirk made her blood boil.
As Hyun stood there blankly, Jaehyuk asked an unavoidable question.
“What are we having for dinner?”
—
Hyun usually ordered delivery.
An older lady came once a week to make side dishes, but even setting the table felt like too much trouble.
“I’ll order something.”
“That’s not healthy.”
He was unbelievably cheeky—always nitpicking everything she said.
“Oh? Then what do you want to eat?”
She had promised herself she wouldn’t get annoyed, but her nature wouldn’t allow it.
She was used to leading agents from the front, giving orders. Following someone else’s lead didn’t come naturally.
Maybe that was why she kept butting heads with stubborn Jaehyuk without even realizing it.
“Should we go grocery shopping?”
“Are you crazy?”
He wanted to do something that troublesome? She had never once gone to a supermarket herself in her entire life.
When you suddenly start doing things you’ve never done before, that’s when you die.
“So I’m supposed to go alone looking like this?”
He suddenly grabbed his waist and pretended to be in pain.
After moving around just fine all this time.
Hyun clicked her tongue in disbelief.
But Jaehyuk showed no sign of backing down.
“You can’t even shop alone. How are you going to manage going to work?”
“You’ll be next to me at work. So you should be next to me when we shop, too.”
If she had known he was this shamelessly slippery, she never would’ve pulled him in from the start. Regret crept in, but she couldn’t disobey orders from above now.
“Ha… fine. Wait. I’ll go change. And do something about those clothes.”
“What’s wrong with them?”
“They look like they’re about to rip. If you look, you’ll probably find something bigger.”
In the end, Hyun was the one who gave in—considering that his wounds hadn’t fully healed.
She’d been nagging him to recover quickly, so feeding him delivery food felt a little wrong. Still, the fact that she felt like she’d lost irritated her, and that irritation unfairly landed on Jaehyuk’s T-shirt.
While Hyun went into her room to change, Jaehyuk looked himself over.
‘Is it really that bad?’
He had noticed the clothes were a bit smaller than what he normally wore.
He just hadn’t realized it was enough to be pointed out like that.
Clothes only needed to cover the important parts, didn’t they?
Pushing that thought aside, he rummaged through the closet to find something larger, as she’d said.
“So, what are we making?”
Jaehyuk silently listened as Hyun grumbled the entire way to the supermarket.
Eventually, perhaps embarrassed by her own complaining, she changed the subject and asked about dinner.
“Is there something you want to eat?”
“Delivery these days is really good.”
“So something we can’t get delivered.”
“Yeonpo-tang?”
Trying to think of something difficult to make, yeonpo-tang—octopus soup—came to mind.
In truth, maybe it wasn’t impossible to get delivered. But it wasn’t exactly a dish a woman living alone would typically order.
Jaehyuk nodded slightly and pushed the cart into the store.
As Hyun followed him around, she soon realized what it meant to have your eyes spin with excitement.
All the delicious food she hadn’t even known existed because she always ordered in—this was where it all lived.
From fresh octopus to countless cuts of meat, her mouth watered.
“What is this? This place is heaven.”
Delighted just by looking, Hyun dashed around the supermarket like a child. Only later did she notice Jaehyuk pushing the cart with his injured hand and feel a little sorry.
“Sorry, sorry. I got too excited. Give me the cart—I’ll push it.”
“It’s fine. Just put in whatever you want.”
He had never once listened in a single go.
Instead of arguing further, Hyun lightly shoved his side and snatched the cart away.
With no other choice, Jaehyuk followed behind her.
While she browsed casually, he had already gathered all the ingredients for yeonpo-tang.
‘I was just saying it. He’s really going to make it.’
Since it was one of her favorite dishes, she didn’t bother stopping him.
They continued wandering the store.
“Let’s get this too.”
The section that caught her attention most was the alcohol aisle.
If she had known she could buy such good liquor at these prices, she would’ve come much sooner.
“And this.”
“What are you going to do with all that?”
“I’ll drink it over time.”
Hyun placed a bottle of whiskey and a bottle of wine into the cart. She was about to grab a case of canned beer but remembered Jaehyuk’s still-healing injuries and put it back.
“Why aren’t you buying that?”
“I’ll get it next time.”
She had every intention of carrying everything herself. But if she bought too much, she might end up having to split the load with him.
Now that she knew how wonderful supermarkets were, she could always come back.
After picking up snacks and jelly instead of heavier alcohol, they finally finished shopping.
Beep, beep.
The sound of barcodes scanning didn’t stop, and only after spending a small fortune did they leave the store.
They had no idea they’d soon start bickering again at the entrance to the underground parking lot.
“Stop showing off and give it to me.”
Sometimes Jaehyuk wondered if this was really the Lee Hyun he used to know.
The woman who used to smile sweetly and speak gently was nowhere to be found.
Hyun blocked his path as he naturally reached for the bags and snapped at him.
“If you don’t want your wound reopening and bleeding all over the place, hand it over.”
“This is fine.”
“I’m sure people would love seeing you bleed in the parking lot, right?”
As if she couldn’t tolerate his stubbornness any longer, Hyun swiftly snatched the shopping bags from him.
It wasn’t far to the car anyway.
She marched briskly toward the parking lot.
What stopped Jaehyuk in his tracks was the vibration of his phone in his pocket.
“Wait, I need to take this.”
He called out briefly to Hyun’s back before answering.
“Hey, Ajin.”
At the name of the person who had halted him, Hyun’s steps slowed as well.
When she turned, Jaehyuk mouthed for her to get in the car first. She felt uneasy and wanted to stay, but he had already stepped away.
With no choice, she loaded the bags and got into the car.
Since she had driven her own car, she took the driver’s seat.
She started the engine and waited, but he was strangely late. After several minutes passed without Jaehyuk returning, she was just about to get out to look for him—
Click.
The passenger door opened, and he appeared as if nothing had happened.
“Why were you so late?”
“Oh, was I? Sorry.”
She hadn’t known he was in separate contact with Daeik’s younger sister.
Hyun wanted to ask right away what kind of relationship he had with her.
But suddenly she wondered whether she even had the right to ask.
