CH 115

“You’re going to do all of these?” Muyeol had asked.

“Yeah.”

“Do you think you can do it?”

“I gotta try. There are so many interesting classes. After participating in them, I’ll eventually learn that not everyone out there is like that attacker.”

He already knew how courageous she was, but she’d seemed so incredible to him then.

She jumped into the world to battle against the panic disorder all by herself, and it had reminded him that she was still the ‘Shitty Yoon’ from back then. She was the scary sort who would beat up just one enemy when she was cornered, but would annihilate them completely.

This time, Muyeol was sure, Yiyoung was determined to counter the fear affecting her daily life with happiness. Her eyes had been sparkling, and Muyeol had felt like he was looking at the bright morning star.

“Good luck,” he had told her.

“Okay. I’ll try really hard! I will start attending the classes after I return.”

So, Muyeol had made a request to Sangsu in advance, “Please look for a bodyguard who can stay next to Yiyoung like a friend.”

Sangsu would be searching for a qualified bodyguard by now. Yiyoung seemed fine now, but she was still a patient, so Muyeol was trying to be cautious. There was still a chance of Yiyoung fainting in the middle of the crowd if she ever forgot to take her medicine, and he simply didn’t want her to face any situation like this when all alone.

Muyeol pulled out his phone, still gazing at Yiyoung, and clicked a picture of her profile. She looked like the Simpsons with her wide eyes. But Yiyoung noticed him taking a picture, so she turned to look at him.

“A shot to commemorate,” Muyeol silently mouthed.

Yiyoung cocked her head to the side, unable to understand what he’d said. But Muyeol turned away and put the phone back in his pocket. He knew she would try and delete her Simpsons-like commemorative picture if she found out, so it was better if she had no clue about it. Yiyoung watched him for a bit before turning back to the screen.

Muyeol then realized that she was now addicted to watching movies. She would probably spend her days at the culture center and the nights on the couch watching movies after the trip. As he thought about how she would have other things to focus on, Muyeol felt empty. He was getting used to sleeping while hugging her, but now she would probably be busy watching movies.

Muyeol frowned. He finally realized how big of a deal it was that his life revolved entirely around her. Through Yiyoung, he discovered new feelings.

He massaged the space between his brows, confused as to whether that was a good thing or not. He didn’t know how to react.

Muyeol tried to imagine what would happen to him. Would he still be able to endure everything if the invisible wall containing the deep ocean within him collapsed? As he thought about all this, fear surged within like a tsunami.

The only thing that drew Yiyoung’s attention away from the screen was the delicious aroma wafting in the air. She lifted her head, and upon seeing the meals being served, she immediately paused the movie. “Yay, how exciting! It’s time to try the flight meals.”

She ordered Korean food, while Muyeol got a steak. Mr. Hong had told Yiyoung how Muyeol always paid attention to the flight meals for customer insight, and she was reminded that Muyeol was a businessman. He never enjoyed food, but he seemed to care a lot about what was being served to the customers.

The food was eventually served, and Muyeol slowly tasted each course to evaluate them and wrote his observations in his notebook. He then asked Yiyoung, “Can I taste yours?”

“Of course.”

Muyeol tasted some of Yiyoung’s food and wrote in his notebook again.  Meanwhile, Yiyoung gulped down huge bites of the food, thoroughly enjoying the delicious meal. She’d always found served meals to be better-tasting than any meal she needed to cook herself. But then Muyeol stopped eating, seemingly done with his meal.