134 - I Unknowingly Rejected My Favorite

EP.134 #134. Is Luca Embarrassed? Curious after hearing someone needed help, I peeked inside the fitting room. Doa, dressed in a hanbok of the same color as Luca's, asked me to tie her ribbon. "I... I don't really know how." Damn it. The only knots I've ever tied are shoelaces. Asking me to tie a woman's hanbok ribbon was like asking a child to reach a book from the highest shelf. "Oh... really?" Doa gently touched her pink jacket. I swallowed hard. In reality, I didn't know much about ribbons, but I couldn't help wanting to fidget with it. "Still, why don't you give it a try?" Why do you keep smiling like that? As if she were a young lady from a noble family in the Joseon Dynasty, Doa gave a lady-like smile. Though my mind screamed it was impossible, my hands were honest with their desires. Grabbing Doa's jacket ties, I just let my hands move on their own. As the soft fabric brushed against the back of my hands, it felt oddly suggestive. Han Taemin. You're here to help Doa. You shouldn't be having these thoughts. And, as expected. "...Oppa." "...Yeah?" "Do I look like a Christmas present?" You're the one who asked me to tie it. The only knot I know is how to tie a ribbon. Oh, there's also the one for army boots. As I let go, signaling I was done, Doa looked up at me with disbelief. "Goodness... My lord... No matter how much I'm like a flower, tying a ribbon like this..." Mocking me in Luca's infuriating tone, Doa gently pushed me out of the way. Before I even had a chance to feel embarrassed, I made eye contact with a staff member. "...Oh." Oh, why does timing always have to be like this? The staff member seemed to want to discretely move past the situation, but I couldn't help feeling wronged. "Um. My girlfriend doesn't really know how to tie a ribbon." "Oh, really?" With an awkward smile, she approached the inside of the fitting room. "Excuse me, ma'am." "Yes?" "If you need any help..." -Click- As the lock was released, Doa stepped out. And surprisingly, the same woman who had asked for my help said, "Oh, I think it's fine now." She looked like a lady who had expertly tidied her outfit. * * * "I apologize, my lord..." Struggling to match my pace with her short legs, Doa followed along. Honestly, just that alone was so cute that I considered letting it go. But I relished the feeling of being the one in control for a bit longer, so I decided to keep up the act. "The young lady simply wishes for my lord to give her another chance...!" I halted my steps and looked down at her. "Why did you lie to me?" Perhaps running out of witty comebacks, Doa blinked her bright eyes a couple of times. "If that's what you say, go ahead and explain yourself. Didn't you say you couldn't tie a ribbon?" "That... because...!" Doa's lips twitched. "My lord, it was you who seduced me first!" Her tiny fists lightly thudded against my chest. Unable to hold back my laughter, I pulled her into an embrace, and Doa buried her face into my jacket. "...I'll untie this." "If you undo that, I'll have to walk around tying this with a ribbon instead. Please don't." We held hands and headed towards a large gate, which I assumed was the main entrance. By the tiled walls, many women were snapping photos. "...Me too." Running up to the wall and striking a pose, Doa called out. Taking her phone, I chuckled softly and turned on the camera app. With the vibe you'd typically find on Instagram. Though I'd seen it a lot, I'd rarely taken photos myself, making my hands tremble slightly as I captured the moment. "How is it? Did it come out pretty?" "Hmm... Come, check it out yourself." Snatching the phone from my hand, Doa's expression subtly changed. "Hmm... Uhm..." "Why? Is it bad?" "It's... just not quite right." Requesting another shot, Doa ran to the wall, striking the same pose again. I think I took it the same way as before. Upon checking it once more, Doa shook her head and approached another couple nearby. "Could you please take a picture of us?" "Ah, sure." The woman took the phone, and Doa pulled me beside her. "I'll take it now. One! Two! Three!" "What pose should I do?" "Just do whatever suits you." Telling someone who doesn't naturally know how to pose to do it well is quite a challenge. My instincts made me extend my index and middle fingers into a V shape. Seeing this, Doa quickly intervened. "Oppa, give me your hand." "Like this?" "No, the other side too." Holding both my hands, she instructed me to look at her. "Let's go again!" In the end, we took about three more photos with different poses, continually nodding and expressing our gratitude. With a bright, happy face, Doa looked at her phone. She extended the screen towards me with a satisfied look. "They came out well, right?" "Yeah, I guess." Despite feeling it might be a shallow thought, the photo indeed captured us looking at each other as if it was from a drama scene. "This is how you should take pictures. Like this." "Ah, I don't know. It's hard." Having wandered inside, we circled around the palace and returned to return the hanboks. "What should we do now?" There was still some time left before Luca's broadcast. We decided to head to a nearby cafe to relax our tired legs. "Oh, there's a piano." It was a relatively secluded cafe, and it didn't seem very crowded. "True. Doa, can you play the piano?" "Nope? How about you?" "I..." Seeing a note that said playing was allowed, I sneakily sat before it. "Wow... Oppa, you're not just going to play 'Chopsticks' after sitting down so coolly, are you?" Once again, Doa provokes my pride. Kim Doa. Interlocking my fingers and stretching, I positioned myself. What should I play? If I'm going to play, I might as well choose a piece I'll remember well, right? I started playing a piece that had stuck with me no matter how hard I tried to forget it. To my surprise, Doa, who didn't expect me to know a classic tune so well, turned to watch me with wide eyes. I played for about a minute, just as much as I could recall. When I finished, Doa applauded from the side. "What gives? How are you so good at this?" "But this is all I can play." "You're kidding." "I used to be able to do more, but now I've forgotten everything." I can't sing for the life of me, but I can play the piano, thanks to my mom—she was a piano major. Memories of practicing while getting my palms slapped come back. Once, I didn't play and just marked circles on the paper; I got a spanking for it. "Wow... Oppa, you seem different now." "How did I usually seem?" "Um... like a geek?" Since she wasn't exactly wrong, I gave a wry smile and got up from the chair. "Oh. Play one more piece." "The drinks are ready." Just then, the pager buzzed, and I headed to the counter. Sitting by the window, I took out the documents I received a few days ago from my bag. [A Hundred Questions and Answers] "Can I look?" "Yeah. It's nothing special." Doa flipped through the questions, skimming them. "Hmm... Should I try this out too?" "On your stream? That'd be great! People would love it." If Luca did a Q&A, there'd be people who'd memorize every answer and carry it around. "No, I mean I'll try guessing yours. Why would I do it on a broadcast?" "Why not? It sounds fun." "I'll think about it if I run out of content." Doa sipped her green tea latte and read out the question. "What's your current interest?" "Luca-tan." There was no hesitation. It was a fact, and there was no question about it. But my girlfriend's reaction was incredibly cold. "...Oppa. Be serious." Doa puffed out her cheeks and protested. "But I was being serious." "You're really going to answer like that?" "Why not? Saying 'my hobby is reading or watching movies' is 500 times less interesting." Doa's eyebrows wiggled like worms. "You'll get in trouble at work if you joke like that." "Kim Doa. Is a VTuber a joke to you?" Do you know how many fans you have? Treating that as a joke is absurd! In terms of pure popularity, I couldn't even hold a candle to Doa. "It's not that it's a joke... No, I mean, what will people think if you say you're a VTuber fanatic?" "They told me at work to be honest." "There's a limit to honesty." "Why are you embarrassed by Luca all the time?" I'm proud to be a VTuber fan! Especially when it's vacation time, and I'm dragged to acting classes from morning to sweat it out, all because of someone! "I don't... ugh... just stop... with that..." "I'll make your name renowned! Doa!" "I don't know... do what you want..." Doa ran a hand through her hair as if dealing with a headache.