152 - I Unknowingly Rejected My Favorite

EP.152 #152. I Told You Not to Touch It. "Did you sleep well?" The bed felt far more comfortable than my usual apartment bed. Through my blurred vision, I saw my girlfriend asking about my well-being. "Yeah, thanks to you." "I completely passed out too, thanks to you." When I opened my arms, Doa nestled into my embrace instead of giving me a verbal response. The fresh scent of her shampoo was incredibly appealing. Due to her petite frame, every time Doa would snuggle up to me, I couldn't help but feel a comforting sense of security. "Doa." "Hmm?" "So when exactly did you buy that?" I pointed to Luka's costume, haphazardly draped over a chair, and Doa's expression turned shy. "Oppa. Was it the day after we decided to go on a trip after my acting job ended? Or perhaps the day after that?" "...Really?" Recalling the magical night we had, I felt as if I was swimming through a dream. If I shared this story with my friends right now, none of them would believe me. "How... did you end up buying it...?" Did she plan to buy it all along, or was it to show me here? I suspected it was the latter, but who knows. Maybe she just wanted to try cosplaying as her character for once. "Because I thought you'd like it." ...Seems like there wasn't any other reason. "I like you without you having to do any of this." Even if she didn't imitate Luka or wear Luka's costume, she was already my precious girlfriend. "I know. But I wanted to do it for you." "Thank you." "You're welcome." With the vivid memories of the night lingering, we didn't step outside again until the sun was high in the sky. "Where should we go first today?" "How about we eat?" We each had a hearty bowl of rice near the lodging, and then we set out for the main course of our trip. It was the place we were perhaps most looking forward to. "Wow, this is incredible." Doa nodded in agreement. So this entire building is a paradise for anime fans? The scale was incomparable to anything in Korea. It was fascinating that an entire building was filled with such content, and even more so that the whole block was like this... Is this... heaven...? "Shall we start by going in there?" Doa, too, was a subculture enthusiast. Her dark brown eyes sparkled brightly. As we entered the anime shopping center, it was filled wall to wall with all sorts of merchandise. "Wow! Oppa, look at this!" Doa couldn't take her eyes off a display rack. "Aren't they adorable?" Watching her shake a keychain of her favorite character, she seemed cuter than the item itself. "Yeah, they are. How much is it?" "This is 3,500 won?" "It seems a bit pricey..." "Well, where else would you find it if not here~" My girlfriend picked up a shopping basket and marched forward on her short legs. "Wow, damn." Turning a corner, I couldn't help but swear. "Why? What's there?" Doa, who was browsing another corner, approached me. "U... It's the Unshin corner!" Seeing a display for a game I'd spent a lot of money on flipped a switch in my brain. "Oh... I see..." "Doesn't this stir something inside you?" Luka-chan! You did this in your streams, too! I spent so much for your gacha pulls! "For me, it was just alright..." Her indifferent tone somehow sparked a bit of mischief in me, but there wasn't time to dwell on it. It was a blessing I didn't buy clothes yesterday. With some emergency funds in hand, I shopped with utmost caution. I wanted the photo cards, the SD figures, and more. In my heart, I wanted to buy one of everything. With trembling hands, I carefully counted the money down to the last coin to see how much I could afford. "What are you doing?" Having already settled for a bagful of purchases, Doa returned with a white shopping bag in hand. "Choosing wisely." "Is there something you want?" "Yeah. Ugh... I'm really torn on whether to buy this." Pointing to a large mouse pad with my index finger, Doa's expression subtly shifted. "Hmmm... it's pretty~" "What? Don't you like it?" "No? Get it if you want it, Oppa." It was only right to buy it with how well it was made. As I firmly resolved and reached for the packaging... "...Oppa." I turned my head at Doa's rather displeased voice. "Yeah...?" "If you buy that..." Could it be she already knew I was low on cash? No way. I hadn’t mentioned it. "The Luka-chan mouse pad at home... will it end up in the trash?" "Pardon...?" Why is the conversation going this way? I hurriedly explained that wasn't the case, but the air puffed in Doa's cheeks showed no sign of deflating. "No, I won't toss it! I'll put it in the closet and use it again later!" "No? If you do that, you'll look at this face and not Luka's while you eat, with me stuck in a corner!" "You said you're not Luka!" "Who else but me can be Luka!" In a corner of a foreign anime merchandise center, a passionate exchange between a couple unfolded. "Ah! Whatever! Buy it or don't!" But I had no intention of backing down this time. The more she protested, the more this turned into a Romeo and Juliet effect. I no longer intended to let go of the mouse pad in hand. "Hmph!" Doa, refusing to communicate, stomped upstairs, leaving me to collect just two other items. Normally, I would indulge her requests or whims, but this was unreasonable. Come on. It's not like it has her face on it, so why is this an issue? I told her I wouldn't throw it away, just use it again. Muttering to myself as I completed my purchase, I awaited her return on the first floor, still lingering inside. "What were you doing for so long in there?" Was she refusing to come out because she was upset? Just as I was about to search for her upstairs, Doa walked out from the exit. "Why did it take you so long?" "Here." Doa handed me a white bag from the same store. It wasn’t particularly large. “Do you want me to hold that?” “No. It's for you, oppa.” When I checked its contents, my opinion of Doa—no, Doa-sama—needed to be immediately revised. “No way. How did you get something so precious...” Inside the bag were a variety of Unshin goods, the ones I could only drool over because I'd spent my cash on that mouse pad. “Wow. Did you really buy all of this...?” Even just a single photo card would have made for a wonderful gift. “Ah. Just take it when it’s given.” She dismissed my concerns as if unwilling to discuss them and raised her index finger as if giving a warning. “Just make sure you recharge back in Korea, alright?” “What?” “When you’re back in Korea, don't walk around looking all gloomy. Use these to keep your spirits up.” Turning around without waiting for a reply, Doa marched ahead, and wanting to express my gratitude, I ended up carrying all her bags for her. “Wow... you’re something else, much like myself.” By the time we wrapped up our long shopping spree and sat down for dinner, my hands were filled with colorful bags of all shades. "What can I say, I can't resist cute things." Honestly, if I had more money, I would've probably bought twice as much. There were high-quality goods I'd never seen in Korea, and the prices were quite reasonable too. “Omatase itashimashita~ (Thank you for waiting~)” As our ordered sushi arrived, Doa eagerly picked up her camera to capture some photos. “Now, let’s eat!” It looked like she was about to offer a prayer with her chopsticks. Yet, as the saying goes, "the fruit of patience is sweet," the sashimi melted like magic in our mouths. “Wow...” “Incredible...” Instead of chatting away, we focused intently on enjoying the meal, filling our bellies without a word. A satisfied smile spread across our faces, overtaken by happy fullness. As night began to fall, Doa mentioned she needed to use the restroom and headed into a shopping center. Left alone outside, I idly played with my phone... “Ano...” When I glanced up, wondering if someone was addressing me, two Japanese women stood looking up at me. “Kankoku no moderu-san desuka?” They bluntly asked if I was a Korean model. I shook my head vigorously to indicate no. “Moshi yokattara...” Why on earth were they asking me, of all people, if I was available? Both at once, no less. “No, no, no, no.” I was expressing that I wasn't interested when I felt a presence behind me. Naturally, Doa had come up and linked her arm with mine. “Watashi no kareshi ni yo de mo aru no?” The mix of Luka's characteristic voice and her playful Japanese sounded like a scene from an anime. Despite her broad smile, Doa’s eyes weren’t laughing. “I-Ie...!” The two women quickly moved on. Blinking in surprise, I asked Doa what all that meant. “Nobody touches what’s mine.” Doa leaned in and planted a sweet kiss on my cheek.