Turning around, she saw an elderly couple with neatly done hair.
“Could you take a picture of us, please?”
“Of course.”
The grandfather handed her a Polaroid camera. Eunsoo gladly took the camera and snapped a photo of the couple against the sea backdrop.
“Here you go. I hope it turned out well.”
“Young people surely know how to take good photos. Thank you.”
The grandfather smiled, receiving the camera and film. That’s when the grandmother spoke.
“You should take a picture with your boyfriend too. I’ll take it for you.”
“Me?”
Confused by the sudden mention of a boyfriend, Eunsoo realized that Juhan had quietly come up behind her.
“Oh, no, we’re fine…”
“It’s all part of the memory. Come over here and stand together.”
Though reluctant, the couple’s kindness made it hard to refuse. Eunsoo and Juhan awkwardly stood side by side where the elderly couple had been.
“Newly met? Why so shy? Hold hands at least for the photo.”
Eunsoo and Juhan’s eyes met. Juhan was the first to reach out and gently grasp Eunsoo’s hand.
“Oh, how lovely. That looks nice.”
Eunsoo swallowed dryly, feeling her entire focus drawn to her hand wrapped in someone else’s warmth. Her thoughts were distant as she wondered why this felt so different. She had held hands on the ride and at the cafe for show. Why did it feel different now?
Was his hand always this large and warm?
Startled by her own thoughts,
Out of nowhere, Eunsoo turned her body away, saying, “It seems the sun is really setting now.”
As Eunsoo said, the sky above the sea was gradually turning red. They both watched in silence, forgetting everything as the colors in the sky changed.
“It sets faster than I thought.”
After the crimson sun had sunk into the sea, Eunsoo murmured, “It’s amazing how it doesn’t immediately turn dark even though the sun has set.”
“That’s true.”
After standing there a little longer, they turned around without a word.
On the way back to the car, Eunsoo said, “Let’s go home now.”
“Weren’t we supposed to do something after Han River?”
“No. I think we’ve filmed enough.”
“Okay, then.”
Juhan agreed amicably and began to walk ahead. He was casually holding his hands behind his back, and in one of them was the Polaroid photo from earlier. Seeing this, Eunsoo felt a peculiar sensation.
What exactly did we do today?
Before any more strange thoughts could enter her mind, Eunsoo quickly answered herself.
What else could it be? Just preparing props… for the upcoming shoot.
Taking a deep breath, Eunsoo stepped forward decisively. It was time to return to everyday life.
That night, after a shower, Juhan, drying his hair with a towel, stopped at the dining table. The Polaroid photo he had set down earlier was there.
The image of him and Eunsoo holding hands felt both unfamiliar and familiar. Familiar on one look, awkward on another, and then natural again on the next glance.
After staring at it for a while, Juhan, with the towel carelessly thrown over one shoulder, picked up his phone. He took a picture of the Polaroid, added a few more photos from today, and sent them somewhere. He then attached a message.
[Do these look like a couple’s photos?]Soon after, his phone rang loudly. It was Kiwoo.
“What’s this? Did you send it to the wrong person?”
“Do these look like couple photos?”
“Well, they looked so much like a couple I got goosebumps. Done? What is it? Did you send it by mistake?”
Juhan chuckled bitterly.
“Sorry, hyung.”
“What are you sorry for? Because you sent it by mistake?”
“It’s not a mistake, I’ve been keeping something from you.”
“You’re not…”
“I’ve been seeing Eunsoo again. It’s been about a year, and we’re appearing on a show together.”
Silence came from the other end of the phone.
“Are you angry because I kept something so important from you?”
“No, it’s not that…”
“Don’t be mad. It’s not like that.”
“What?”
Juhan then brought up the real topic. He explained it was for the show, and that originally Solhee had told them to keep it secret even from family, but he couldn’t do that with Kiwoo.
“Eunsoo said the same. You wouldn’t be fooled anyway.”
After a long pause, Kiwoo sent a brief reply.
“I’ll come to your shop tomorrow. We’ll talk more then.”
And before Juhan could respond, the call ended abruptly.
Is he really angry?
A bit startled, Juhan decided not to call back right away, thinking Kiwoo might need some time to think. He felt regret that he should have calmly told him face to face instead of acting impulsively, just to realize the reality of their situation.
But about 30 minutes later, there was a loud knocking at the door. Surprised, Juhan looked outside, seeing someone with a serious expression standing there. He quickly opened the door.
“Why have you come in the middle of the night?”
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
