Illusion Blind Date - Chapter 17

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#Episode 17

Soft, pliant lips pressed against his firm ones for several seconds before pulling away.
Bom’s already large eyes widened further, her face flushing as though set ablaze.
Tae Moon slowly drew back his upper body and retreated a step.
He hooked one hand at his waist while the other smoothed along his lips.
A dizzying sensation that assaulted all five senses came pouring down indiscriminately, shaking him to his core.
What in the world….
“Gasp!”
A suppressed whimper escaped Bom’s lips a beat too late.
Only then grasping what had just happened, Bom hastily covered her mouth with the back of her hand and scrambled backward.
Tae Moon’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He watched in silence as she wiped her lips with the back of her hand, her face still flushed.
Bom’s eyes, fixed on him, were tangled with conflicting emotions.
Naked, and now a kiss on top of it.
Unintended though it was, it felt like the entire universe was blessing them to do well together.
The lips that had touched and parted grew unbearably ticklish, so Tae Moon crushed the coffee bean rolling around in his mouth.
Crunch.
The sound of him grinding the coffee bean echoed through the quiet house.
“I’m—I’m so sorry.”
Snapping to attention at the sound, Bom apologized.
Tae Moon’s dark gaze drifted across her flustered face.
He considered teasing her—that you were the first person to steal a kiss from me, after seeing me naked no less.
He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the sight of Bom, bewildered and at a loss for words.
The round forehead, the arched brows, the straight nose, the small lips.
Those soft lips….
Cutting off the direction his thoughts were heading, Tae Moon spoke in a low voice.
“I’ll make the coffee.”
Bom, who had been worrying her lower lip, nodded.
“The machine wasn’t working because the water tank was empty.”
“I—I didn’t even realize that….”
Whether from embarrassment or the kiss, Bom’s face showed no sign of returning to its normal color.
The urge surged through him to grab those flushed cheeks and kiss her again.
“It happens.”
But Tae Moon merely smiled nonchalantly as if nothing had occurred, took out the water tank, and filled it with fresh water.
“Let me do it from now on. I promise I can really do it well.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes!”
Her face burning red, Bom forced a hollow smile and restarted the machine.
Whirrrr.
From the automatic machine where all one had to do was add beans, rich coffee soon poured out, its deep aroma filling the room.
“Here you go!”
As though nothing had happened at all, Bom held out the cup with a bright voice.
Her effort was painfully obvious.
The hand holding the Mug Cup was small and delicate, so fair and translucent that veins showed through it.
“…I’ll enjoy it.”
Tae Moon reached out and took the Mug Cup from her.
“Ah!”
Where their hands brushed, a spark flew.
It was quite a jolt.
Startled, Bom quickly curled her fingers and looked up at him blankly.
“Why did that…?”
“Why the static electricity? Beats me. Maybe it’s because we’re electrically compatible?”
“Huh?”
Bom’s eyes flew open in astonishment.
It was the exact look she’d give a madman.
It was unbearably cute.
“I think I’m already a goner.”
“Sorry?”
She looked at Tae Moon with an expression asking what on earth he meant.
“I saw you naked.”
“Oh!”
Bom let out a shriek.
“And I stole a kiss from you.”
“Ahhhhh! Please! Stop teasing me!”
Tae Moon gazed at Bom, now burning like a roasted sweet potato, and allowed himself an amused smile.
“Y-you go on ahead. I’ll grab mine and be right down.”
Tae Moon decided the teasing had run its course and turned to leave, though his laughter proved difficult to suppress.
His chest tingled with warmth.
Back in the Living Room, Tae Moon sank deep into the sofa.
The mug cup in question remained cradled in his hand.
He squeezed it tightly. The back of his hand, where Bom’s had touched him moments before, still tingled.
This was absurd.
Here he was, beating his own drum in solitude, completely ignorant of what Bom truly felt—it was almost pitiful.
A rueful laugh escaped Tae Moon’s lips.
Perhaps time was what he needed.
Tae Moon brought the coffee Bom had made to his lips.
After a sip, the taste was exactly as he’d anticipated—mediocre.
He let out a quiet chuckle and took another sip.
Through the slightly open Terrace door, a fragrant breeze heavy with flower scents drifted in.
He turned his gaze from the Terrace toward the Kitchen.
Bom was making her way toward him, moving quietly and carefully.

***

Ugh, she couldn’t even do that one thing right.
Every time they met, she seemed to add another entry to her dark history.
Bom rolled her foot across the floor with a soft thud and soundlessly patted her own cheeks.
The way she’d been making mistakes she normally never would—she wanted nothing more than to disappear into a mousehole.
A long sigh.
The breath came without her meaning it to.
A kiss!
Surely he didn’t think she’d done it on purpose?
How was she supposed to know he’d be standing right behind her like that?
Bom traced her lips with her fingers, remembering the sensation.
Firm and moist and soft.
An indescribable sweetness.
And it had been my first kiss.
She quickly switched on the Coffee Machine, still touching her lips.
She’d wanted to do better, thinking that whether her friends could stay here depended on her actions, but she wondered if she’d only made things worse.
She steadied herself, resolved not to make any more mistakes, and gathered her composure.
Whoooosh.
When the loud mechanical sound finally ceased, quiet settled over everything.
Now that the coffee was done, she should head to the Living Room.
Mug cup in hand, Bom glanced toward the Living Room.
Even now, Tae Moon’s radiant figure caught her eye.
He was practically a commercial unto himself.
In his pale sky-blue knit and dark trousers, holding the cup, he looked like a scene straight out of a television advertisement.
Sexy, handsome, refined—he simply had it all.
Bom tossed a single coffee bean that had fallen by the sink into her mouth and crept carefully toward the Living Room.
She’d wondered what it tasted like when Tae Moon chewed it so eagerly, but it was only bitter.
“The coffee’s delicious.”
As soon as Bom sat down, he lifted the cup to show her, speaking with what seemed like genuine approval. At least it appeared to be drinkable.
“Oh, thank you.”
Had she managed to make up for her earlier mistake, even a little?
Bom offered him an awkward smile as she watched him.
While she kept thinking about her lips, his face remained completely unmoved.
Bom chewed the coffee bean still rolling around in her mouth and savored its bitter taste.
Unsettled.
Still, that was my first kiss. And it turned out to be nothing but an accident.
Living among those matted-haired Crocs all day had worn me down, so I suppose it made sense—but I couldn’t shake the feeling of being wronged.
“Have you been staying at the Hospital this whole time?”
He asked in a gentle voice, as if cutting off some tangent my mind wanted to spiral into.
His tone was honeyed enough to more than compensate for his sharp features, yet that commanding presence that made people shrink back hadn’t vanished at all.
Those glossy black eyes, predatory as a beast’s, remained unchanged.
It was the kind of gaze that naturally drew forth deference. Bom straightened her spine and corrected her posture.
“Yes. I usually sleep well at the Medical Resident Dormitory anyway.”
“Not because of me?”
Did he really just throw that curveball at me?
If that’s how it is, honesty’s my only move.
“Well, there has been some of that. I thought it might make you uncomfortable, Professor…….”
“Then will you keep feeling that way from now on?”
“……?”
Did that mean she could keep living here?
He’d never explicitly told her to leave, but then again, no one had ever assumed they were welcome to stay either.
“Do you mean……I can keep living here?”
It was genuinely welcome news for Bom, who’d even started thinking about finding her own place.
“When did I ever tell you to leave? I don’t remember saying that.”
Instead, you held me responsible for seeing you naked.
Watching him smile faintly and drink his coffee, she felt that everyone could probably just stay here.
“Thank you.”
She answered quickly, before he could change the subject.
How fickle the human heart is.
Just moments ago she’d thought it best to give up the room, yet his single sentence had erased that thought entirely.
She’d have to read her landlord’s mood carefully, but honestly, living here suited Bom in many ways.
Having lifted a great weight from her shoulders, Bom smiled with relief.
“The others will be happy too.”
“Maybe. We’ll have to see if they’re happy or not.”
Bom’s raised lips gradually fell back into place.

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