novellhall 37. Two clumsy people
37. Two clumsy people
Bae Joo-hyun suppressed the pounding emotions welling up inside her and tried her best to make her voice sound calm and composed.
But in the end, all the words that had been carefully prepared turned into a barely audible sound that escaped softly from the nasal cavity.
"Um."
If Li Jingcheng hadn't had his physique enhanced and his hearing sharpened, he probably wouldn't have caught that subtle response. But now, he dared not tease the little rabbit, which had already pricked up its ears, both wary and expectant.
He spoke softly, in what he thought was his gentlest and most sincere tone, "Then let's meet, okay?"
Bae Joo-hyun seemed to draw courage from those words, raising her voice slightly as she asked the question that had been swirling in her mind, a question that made her both anxious and desperately want to know the answer to.
"What... exactly do you like about me?"
Without the slightest hesitation or doubt, Li Jingcheng knew this was the crucial moment to answer. Almost the instant her words fell, he responded in a steady and clear voice, "Do you believe in fate?"
Instead of giving a direct answer, he posed a question to buy her some time, while his mind raced, organizing the words that would most resonate with her.
"That day, I was being chased by fans and accidentally wandered into that convenience store. And that's when I met you, who was suffering from hypoglycemia."
"If I had to say what initially attracted me..." He slowed his speech, as if recalling something clearly, every detail as vivid as yesterday, his tone somewhat uncertain, "Perhaps it was the way you were, even in that state, stubbornly holding on until you finally couldn't hold on any longer and then accepted my help."
His voice became softer, as if carrying images and breath, "Or perhaps, it was you leaning against me, letting out a faint, gentle fragrance, light and quiet, that made me feel inexplicably at ease."
"Or perhaps, it was that adorable expression on your face when you saw my abs, wanting to look away yet unable to resist, like a little lovesick girl." Lee Kyung-sung chuckled softly, a hint of mischief in his voice as he recalled Bae Joo-hyun and Lee Hyeri's teasing glances.
"Or, when you look worried and want to call the police for me, or even want to go to the police station with me."
"Or... when you kept bombarding me with text messages, and every word you said was filled with anxiety."
His voice gradually lowered, carrying a sense of fate that he couldn't quite explain, "Or perhaps, even earlier, like a past life's infatuation with you, it was this feeling that somehow pushed you into my life."
Finally, Li Jingcheng's voice was as soft as a feather, yet it carried an unwavering certainty.
"I don't know exactly from which moment it started. But what I do know is..."
His words were left unfinished, but the lingering resonance was more powerful than any straightforward confession.
On the other end of the phone, Bae Joo-hyun's expression fluctuated with his words. Sometimes she was shy, sometimes moved, and when she heard his low last sentence, all her emotions turned into the softest tremor in her heart.
She bit her lower lip, not wanting him to hear the tremor and joy in her voice, and finally, she only let out a small sound, but one that couldn't hide her excitement.
"So... what do you like to eat?"
She didn't directly answer whether she agreed to come or not, but the question itself was a tacit consent tinged with girlish reserve.
Li Jingcheng had seen and heard too many fast-food style relationships, but this kind of interaction, which was full of testing, sweetness, and even a little bit pretentious and cautious, made him fall deeply in love with it, without the slightest impatience.
Perhaps, this pure attraction and tug-of-war is the most captivating aspect of the initial stages of a relationship.
"I want to eat..." Lee Kyung-sung deliberately dragged out his words, then said earnestly with a smile, "What Bae Joo-hyun likes to eat."
Bae Joo-hyun rolled her eyes slightly at the air, but couldn't help but smile and say, "Hey! I was serious!"
"I'm serious too." Lee Kyung-sung's voice still held a smile, but now carried a gentle sincerity. "I want to understand Bae Joo-hyun better, starting with her favorite foods."
Bae Joo-hyun felt her heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of her chest. Time seemed to stretch out infinitely, stand still, everything around her blurred and faded, leaving only his warm, smiling voice coming through the airwaves. She didn't even realize what she had blurted out.
"...Yeah?"
On the other end of the phone, Li Jingcheng clearly heard her suddenly erratic breathing, and that voice filled with confusion and sweetness. His smile widened, a mischievous thought suddenly popping into his head. He deliberately pinched his throat, using an exaggerated, high-pitched voice...
"Our Joohyun-nee~ You're smitten, aren't you? Aigoo, our Joohyun is absolutely adorable~"
"..."
The enchanting, ambiguous atmosphere that had just been floating on pink clouds was instantly shattered by this quirky voice.
There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone, and then—
"Li Jingcheng!!!"
Bae Joo-hyun's voice, filled with clenched teeth, almost pierced the receiver. The sweet, fluttering emotions she had felt moments before were now replaced by rage; it seemed she had unleashed every single curse word she could think of in her life.
Finally, she got so angry that she hung up the phone!
"Huff...huff..." She held her phone, breathing slightly. The screen went black, reflecting her own face, still flushed, but with her eyes wide with embarrassment and anger.
As she watched, she couldn't help but chuckle to herself.
But her smile froze a few seconds later. Oh no! Was she too rude? She yelled at him by name and hung up? Would that brat think she was incredibly unladylike and lacking in manners? Would he look down on her later?
She bit her finger, staring at her phone, wanting to call home, even just to say something nice, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
After hesitating and struggling for a long time, she finally opened the text message interface and began to carefully consider each word, trying to organize her thoughts and salvage her image a little.
She was completely overthinking it.
The one who regretted it even more at this moment was Li Jingcheng, who was lying on the sofa. He scratched his hair in frustration. "Damn it! Why am I always like this! I forget my goal at crucial moments, and my brain prioritizes having fun instead. I had fun teasing Bae Joo-hyun, but judging from her reaction, she probably used every curse word in her head."
Although it felt like there weren't many sentences, it was just the same few sentences over and over again.
Sigh, sometimes when that mischievous impulse comes over me, I just can't control myself, and there's no going back. Calling back now would probably only make things worse.
He sighed, gathered his thoughts, and sent a text message.
Next time, I'll cook your favorite dishes. Today, let me learn more about Bae Joo-hyun's preferences.
He sent the message, then regretted it. What if Bae Joo-hyun's cooking didn't suit his taste? Or what if the dishes she liked were the ones he didn't particularly like?
"Sigh, whatever." He rubbed his temples, thinking resignedly, "At worst, I'll just eat more food and bring it in. Once I really win her over, I'll make sure Bae Joo-hyun learns to cook Chinese food. Hmph, let's teach her how to yell at me, she'll know her place in the family."
Meanwhile, Bae Joo-hyun, who was struggling with how to edit a message to salvage her image, saw a new message from Lee Kyung-sung.
She stared at the words on the screen, reading them over and over again, before finally letting out a quiet, long sigh of relief. Her tense shoulders relaxed, and the corners of her lips involuntarily curved upwards.
Thankfully, he wasn't angry. On the contrary... why am I actually looking forward to it?
She typed a reply with nimble fingers.
"Don't mess with me next time! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻"
She added an angry emoji that she thought looked really fierce.
After sending it, she nodded in satisfaction. Yes, that's it. It expressed my dissatisfaction while also appearing... well, kind of cute? I'm a lady, a top trainee, a future star with straight A's! I'm not the kind of girl who yells at people randomly!
However, just as she breathed a sigh of relief, a new and more pressing worry immediately welled up in her mind, instantly occupying all her thoughts.
"Oh, wait, what should I wear?"