Emergency Blind Date - Chapter 21

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#Episode 21

“Do you dislike me?”

What kind of question is this now?

Actually, Kang Hyeok was devastatingly handsome and had looks that were practically her ideal type. On top of that, he was unexpectedly caring—wasn’t he the man who didn’t hesitate to touch her dirty feet and bandage them?

But whether this meant she liked him romantically, she wasn’t sure.

When she couldn’t even tell if her racing heart whenever she saw him was from fear or excitement, how could she know?

Right now, this whole situation just felt surreal.

It doesn’t make sense for the Professor to be doing this to me.

With trembling hands, she picked up her wine glass and moistened her throat. The wine went slightly down the wrong way and she almost coughed, but barely managed to hold it back.

As she wiped her lips with a napkin and caught her breath, Kang Hyeok handed her a glass of water.

“Drink this. Are you okay?”

“Ahem, yes. Thank you.”

She took the glass with both hands and swallowed a sip. This cleared her head a bit and gave her a tiny bit of courage.

Da-som cleared her throat and asked directly.

“…Do you like me, Professor?”

“What do you think?”

Kang Hyeok chuckled and asked back.

When Da-som couldn’t answer and stayed quiet, Kang Hyeok brushed his lips and narrowed his eyes.

“It’s not like I have time to spare or nothing to do. What kind of crazy bastard would be doing this if he didn’t like you?”

Feeling stuffy, he hooked his finger on his tie and loosened it, then undid one shirt button.

That’s true.

Eun Hyeok called the Professor a crazy pervert, but that can’t be right, right? Haha.

“But still, after only meeting a few times…”

“For me, once or a hundred times is the same. But you’re saying it’s not like that for you?”

Maybe Eun Hyeok’s words were right.

How can seeing someone once be the same as seeing them a hundred times?

Da-som once again confirmed that she wasn’t capable of handling Kang Hyeok’s direct approach and said what she felt.

“I, I like the national actor Han Bin.”

“…Han Bin?”

Kang Hyeok’s eyes narrowed as if he didn’t understand.

“Yes. But Professor, you’re more handsome than that actor. And you have a better body too, of course.”

“…”

“So to me, Professor, you’re like a celebrity. I could become a fan of you, but honestly I’m not sure about anything else.”

Kang Hyeok pulled back from the table and leaned against his chair back, crossing his arms.

After a moment, he spoke.

“So you’re saying it’s that unrealistic.”

Da-som slowly nodded.

Kang Hyeok briefly observed himself acting like a crazy person, frantically rushing in alone.

Right, she had reason to be scared. Cursing inwardly, he softly curved his eyes into a smile.

He could hide his boiling insides as much as needed.

And if time was needed, he could wait for that too.

He took the water glass Da-som had left unfinished and emptied it in one gulp. Da-som, who had been staring at his bobbing Adam’s apple, quickly looked away when their eyes met.

I should thank Goh Ah-reum for giving birth to me so handsome.

An absurd laugh escaped at the thought that the day would come when he’d use his face like this.

“Jeong Da-som.”

When he called her name, Da-som looked up.

“It’s certain that I’m more handsome than Han Bin or whoever. So I guess I need to start by letting you know I’m a man you can reach just by stretching out your hand.”

“…How?”

However it takes.

If she feels distance, he needs to close that distance first.

If she wanted to go step by step from A to Z, he would do that. If that was the pace Da-som could handle, he wanted to keep her by his side even if it meant doing it that way.

“If we keep seeing each other and meeting, the distance will disappear too. Don’t you think?”

Da-som covered her flushed cheeks with both hands and rolled her eyes around as if trying to grasp the meaning behind Kang Hyeok’s words.

That sight was so adorable he wanted to bite her.

Should I set up a net first so she can’t escape?

“First, I’m planning to tell my family the truth. That the person I met for the blind date was you, Da-som.”

“Oh, then I might die.”

It wasn’t hard to guess that Da-som would be in trouble if word of what the sisters had done reached their stepmother’s ears.

“I’ll handle it well so word won’t get out, so don’t worry about that part.”

“…Still.”

Whatever she was so anxious about, the uneasiness in her big eyes was transmitted to Kang Hyeok too.

“I’m someone who needs to get married urgently. But I can’t say I met your sister when I haven’t even met her. I’m planning to tell the truth that I met you, Da-som, and buy some time, so understand it that way.”

Though it was actually Goh Ah-reum who felt more urgency about marriage than him, Kang Hyeok deliberately said it that way.

“Ah, I understand.”

“In the meantime, let’s get closer.”

“So, how…”

Da-som’s face showed she didn’t know what to do as she asked in a trembling voice.

“Like this.”

Kang Hyeok leaned forward and carefully wrapped his hands around Da-som’s hand that was on the table.

If she pulled away, he would have to try a different approach. Kang Hyeok softly curved his sharp eyes and stroked the small back of her hand with his thumb.

Like her feet, her hands were small and delicate too.

He loosened his grip, feeling like her bones would shatter into pieces if he applied just a little more pressure to something so fragile. Strangely, his throat felt parched.

“…So like this?”

Da-som turned her palm over and interlaced their fingers as if weaving them together.

Kang Hyeok almost let a curse slip from his mouth.

Whether she knew what she was doing or not, Kang Hyeok swallowed hard while looking into Da-som’s innocently clear eyes.

Damn it.

Kang Hyeok’s body reacted to just one light hand movement.

It’s not like I’m some crazy bastard.

“That’s right. Han Bin can’t hold hands like this anyway.”

Da-som, who had no idea about Kang Hyeok’s situation, curved her eyes prettily and gently shook their joined hands.

What on earth is she thinking?

How nice it would be if he could read the thoughts in that small head of hers.

“…We held hands today, so should we kiss tomorrow?”

The thought of biting and sucking those plump, small lips was something he’d had since he first saw her.

Where did his resolution to take it slow go? His heart became impatient. Sweat was building up in their joined hands.

He felt like he was going crazy.

“Then should we get a room the day after tomorrow?”

It was quite a talent to be able to have such dangerously suggestive conversations with such a bright, innocent face.

“You’re being cheeky.”

Kang Hyeok was the first to untangle their still-intertwined hands as he spoke in a voice that hid his excitement.

Then Da-som giggled.

Our Da-som has a habit of laughing things off when she’s embarrassed.

Suppressing the urge to intertwine their hands again, he repeated to himself to approach just a little more slowly.

Now should I pull the net I’ve cast just a little?

“Next week there’s Central General Hospital’s 30th anniversary event…”

“Oh, now that you mention it, I think it was around this time. Last year they gave out towels to the staff.”

“Yeah. This time they’re planning to do it grandly at a hotel with all the stakeholders. Come with me.”

“Uh… You want to go together with me? Is that okay?”

“I’m going to stop by my family home and tell them the truth anyway, and it shouldn’t be strange for us to go together.”

Perhaps noticing that Kang Hyeok’s words were full of holes, Da-som stared at the edge of the table and fell silent for a moment.

“Why, don’t you want to go together?”

So he decided to try another pathetic trick.

“Well….”

“Or I might have to go on another blind date.”

Though that would absolutely never happen, there was no better method than this.

“…Ah. Eun Hyeok will go that day too, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Yes, I’ll do that.”

Using Eun Hyeok, who had not even a speck of reliability, as her support, Da-som finally agreed.

Was acting like this because of his age really the right thing to do?

No matter how much he thought about it, these were the only ways to quickly approach Da-som, who was keeping her distance from him as if he were a celebrity.

Seeing Da-som obediently listening as if going on a blind date as a substitute was some great sin, an indescribable emotion surged up.

He just wanted to hug her until she crumbled.

***

Returning home, Da-som flopped down on her bed and stared blankly up at the ceiling.

Having repeatedly tensed and relaxed her heart the entire time she was with Kang Hyeok, a heavy pain washed over her.

It seemed she would need to store up considerable energy to deal with Kang Hyeok in the future. Just having slight physical contact and conversation had drained all her energy.

She needed to call the kids, but she didn’t even have the strength to lift a finger.

Should she meet them tomorrow and talk then?

As she lay on the bed with her eyes closed, catching her breath, her phone vibrated.

Buzz, buzz.

Groping around with her arm to grab her phone, Da-som slowly opened her eyes and checked the screen.

It was a text from Eun Hyeok.

「Jeong Da-som. Call me when you see this text.」

Not Cotton Ball, but Jeong Da-som. Eun Hyeok’s discomfort came through even in the text.

Da-som immediately called Eun Hyeok. As soon as the signal connected, Eun Hyeok’s voice burst out.

―Hey, Jeong Da-som.

She could hear music and people chattering, so it seemed he was at a bar.

“You’re going to burst my eardrums. Yeah, it’s me.”

―Were you alive? Did you safely escape from That Person?

“Wh-what are you talking about?”

Da-som’s voice automatically became smaller as she felt inwardly startled.

―You think I didn’t see? You said you had urgent business and were going to the family home, but then you got in That Person’s car and went to the W Hotel?

“E-Eun Hyeok. That’s not it, I was going to explain everything….”

―Anyway, nothing happened, right?

“Nothing happened, what do you mean. Han Byeol is next to you right now, isn’t she?”

―She is.

“I have something to tell you, so come to my house. I’ll explain everything.”

―You should have done that from the start. Wait, we’ll be right there. Hey, Wonstar, get up. Let’s go.

After ending the call, Da-som ruffled her hair.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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