Chapter 552: Chapter 552

.

‘She’s Yerin of Darlings,’ I uttered to myself, then I threw a glance at the guy standing across her. ‘Who’s that?’

He did look familiar, but I sincerely had no idea who he actually was. His well-defined facial features attracted my attention, but due to his big upturned eyes, the guy didn’t look that gentle and meek.

There was some resemblance between Lee Nara and the guy, so he seemed to play the role of her little brother, but they emitted utterly different vibes.

‘Wow, people can give off such different vibes while looking so alike,’ I exclaimed, then nodded my head as Jooin and his cousin, Woo San, came to my mind. ‘Yeah, of course, why not?’

Yoo Chun Young didn’t look that close to either of them. He kept his usual straight face, but I was aware of him wearing some expressions when being with Eun Hyung or quarreling with Eun Jiho.

Rambling those thoughts in my head, I smiled aimlessly. What was so special about perceiving those things? Was I feeling superior to them in terms of having known Yoo Chun Young longer and more in detail?

I diverted my gaze back onto the opposite side, then did a double-take. The night sky that appeared through the scattered crowds was in total darkness.

What should I do? Not only Ban Yeo Ryung but also my parents, who came back from work, would have realized that I wasn’t at home. I, of course, told them that I was traveling with my friends, but if Ban Yeo Ryung and my parents bumped into each other in front of our house, they would be doubtful about why it was only me who didn’t return home yet.

“Geez, it must be past seven. Let’s hurry.”

Disheveling my hair, I bent my steps determinedly. Just before leaving the spot, I turned around, then found Yoo Chun Young having left the guy and the girl and getting a face mask from someone. I tilted my head for a second.

If he was moving by car, no need for him to wear a mask. Was he then returning home, using public transportation? It would still take about half an hour by subway. Why would he not use the car then?

Wearing a mask with his baseball cap pulled over his eyes, Yoo Chun Young suddenly swerved to my side without a break. It bewildered me. He never wandered around wherever he went as if he was a person who always knew the best choice without regrets.

I became perplexed every time he showed me that behavior. It seemed like he wouldn’t even let his life flash before his eyes. But if any memories were brought back to him in rapid succession, those would probably be the faces of things that he lost forever.

“Ham Donnie.” He called me again in the street surrounded by darkness. Pulling his cap more over his eyes, Yoo Chun Young asked me a question.

“What are you doing here?”

His blue eyes shone in the pale shade. A light gentle wind swept between us, then a moment of silence prevailed in the space.

After hesitating for quite a while, I uttered, “I thought you’re scolding me.”

“Why?” asked Yoo Chun Young, tilting his head.

“Because you were dropping your voice at the end of the sentence.”

“Well, because you had some weird look,” replied Yoo Chun Young.

In my point of view, the guy and girl over there were having more of a doubtful look. With that thought in my mind, I glanced at the place behind him where he just left.

They weren’t throwing us a hostile look, but it was somehow quite threatening that I wished they wouldn’t remember my face. Then a moment after, I became speechless as I realized the meaning behind his words.

“Uh, since when did you know that I was here?” I asked in perplexity.

Yoo Chun Young replied nonchalantly, “Ever since you came here.”

“No way. Do you have eyes in the back of your head?”

Throwing that question, I tried to move his cap aside and look at his temple. Avoiding my hand, Yoo Chun Young showed me a soft smile. It appeared on his lips so surprisingly like coin magic.

I dwelled upon his face in a daze. Perhaps, Yoo Chun Young and the character on the TV show in my memories still overlapped in my eyes.

As I became silent for a moment, Yoo Chun Young asked me in wonder, “What’s wrong?”

“Ah, nothing,” I replied, then tossed him a question after a pause. “Weren’t you going somewhere?”

“No. You?”

“Huh?”

He added, “You seemed to be going somewhere in a hurry.”

“Oh…” I smiled awkwardly, then replied in a low voice. “Just home…”

I didn’t know what to say afterward, so I just disheveled my hair for a while. The words that slipped out of my mouth sounded unfamiliar to me. Home, yes home… I should just go back home.

Watching me behaving absentmindedly, Yoo Chun Young grabbed my arm out of the blue and turned me around. I blinked my eyes as the direction he was looking at came into my view.

It wasn’t Ban Yeo Ryung’s cafe where he was shooting the TV drama until just now, but a smaller coffee shop right beside the alley. Only two or three tables would fit the size of the space.

Feeling confused, I asked, “A coffee shop? Now? Why?”

“Just want to buy you something to drink,” he replied, not like a friend, but an old uncle whom I just met after a long time. Then he turned his head and added, “If you have something to talk about, that’s also fine.”

I paused at his words. As he gave me a curious look, I shook my head and just followed him again, revealing a quiet smile on my face.

If Yeo Dan oppa was the only person I was allowed to have feelings for, Yoo Chun Young might be the first person in this world I wasn’t permitted to have a crush on. However, he was so sweet to me that sometimes I felt sad and empty about it.

The cafe was very small, so as soon as we went inside, we had eye contact with the cashier. Feeling slightly embarrassed, I said hi. Yoo Chun Young also slightly bowed, then stepped into the hall to find the closest table.

While we took a seat, the server fastened his shocked glance upon us for the whole time. Rather than being astonished at Yoo Chun Young’s captivating appearance, the server seemed to have noticed who he actually was. Well, if the shooting took place in this area for a while these days, people working around here would definitely know that he was an actor.

Just as expected, the server asked Yoo Chun Young for an autograph when he stepped to the counter. Standing beside him, I made an excuse for nothing.

“Um, I’m his friend. We go to the same school although we’ve never been classmates. But since we went to the same middle school, we’re close. Ah, and we take the same classes sometimes.”

Yoo Chun Young was looking at me like nobody had asked me anything.

“What do you want to drink?” he said.

“Um, orange juice.”

They say it’s a waste of money to drink tea or orange juice in a cafe. However, I only had caffeine during my studying time since I had to sleep well at night, so I had no choice other than to sip a glass of juice. It was the same as using the remaining potions in a more efficient way when playing games.

After my response, Yoo Chun Young didn’t say to me like drinking juice here was a waste of money, but he did show me an odd look for a second.

Facing the front again, he said, “A WARM orange juice, please.”

I slapped him on the back unintentionally.

“Hey,” I uttered, widening my eyes. “Are you out of your mind? How can someone drink a WARM orange juice?”

“Maybe by microwaving it?” He replied, still keeping his calm.

Being dumbfounded, I asked, “No, I mean, why would someone microwave and drink a warm orange juice in the first place?”

“Because you don’t look good. I want you to drink something warm and feel better.”

“No, just no. Come on, even the lady is looking at us weird!”

While I argued and slapped him again on the back, the server, revealing an indescribable expression, then changed the look on her face into a smile as if she had listened to my whisper.

“I will try,” she said kindly.

“Ah, no, sorry. It seems to be such a meaningless challenge.”

I tried to dissuade her from heating the juice, but she returned the card to Yoo Chun Young after the checkout and left for the fridge.

I wished she didn’t have any social media accounts, or else, I wouldn’t be able to sleep today as well, being concerned about finding some trending keyword like ‘Yoo Chun Young’s warm orange juice.’ If that happened, then there was no point in me refusing to drink a cup of coffee in the cafe.