Pick Up the Rejected Pure Love

Living with Han-gyeol, I've come to learn a few more things about him.

One of the easiest things to notice was, surprisingly, Han-gyeol is not a morning person.

If the alarm clock goes off, he wakes up immediately, but if he doesn't hear it, he sleeps like a log.

At first, I thought he would wake up after thirty more minutes of sleep, but even after an hour, he didn't open his eyes.

Today, I wanted him to sleep well, so I turned off the alarm clock and headed to the kitchen.

After putting on the apron hanging on the fridge, I immediately started preparing breakfast.

Han-gyeol always eats breakfast, so after cooking the rice, I went straight to making stew.

I added plenty of tofu, which he likes, and also put in the beef brisket I bought from the market.

Once it started to bubble, I scooped the rice and took out the side dishes.

I thought about waking Han-gyeol, who was still sleeping soundly in the room, but I wanted him to sleep a bit longer.

I dragged a chair next to the bed and sat down, staring at Han-gyeol as he slept.

At moments like these, there's a constant battle between the moral sense that says not to pounce on a sleeping person and the desire to just give in and do it.

As if sensing my gaze even in his sleep, Han-gyeol carefully opened his eyes. He immediately confirmed it was me and murmured in a deeply sleepy voice.

“Angel...”

It seems he's not fully awake yet.

“Did you sleep well? Hurry and eat breakfast.”

“Already? Gosh- I didn't hear the alarm.”

As soon as Han-gyeol checked the alarm clock on the bedside table, he jumped up.

“I turned it off so you could sleep comfortably. Come on, let's eat.”

“Since I overslept anyway, let's lie down for just ten more minutes.”

“No. The stew will get cold. Get up now- kyaak!”

Han-gyeol immediately grabbed my arm and pulled me down.

He hugged me tightly and didn't let go.

“Just ten more minutes...”

“Alright...”

Sometimes he can be so forceful.

My heart started pounding like crazy from the morning.

I love the gentle and kind Han-gyeol, but I also like this rough side of him.

I hope he hugs me this tightly on his birthday tomorrow too... Like a bad boy... It's so incredibly sexy.

“Han-gyeol. It's been ten minutes. Get up now.”

“I guess I have no choice. Let's go eat breakfast.”

“Yes, yes. Let's hurry up. The stew will get cold.”

We held hands as we left the bedroom and had breakfast.

Han-gyeol enjoyed the breakfast I made for him.

I wonder if Han-gyeol knows that his lips curl up a bit every time he eats something delicious.

When we live together, I start to notice little habits unique to Han-gyeol that only I can see.

I love that. It's something even Han-gyeol doesn't know about himself, and only I do.

It makes me feel possessive, and I feel satisfied.

“Is it good?”

“Yes. It's really delicious. Your cooking skills have improved over time.”

“Really? Maybe it's because I added more MSG than usual~?”

“No, it's because you made it~”

He always says the nicest things and never criticizes.

“Han-gyeol, is there anything inconvenient about living with me?”

“No. Not at all. I think it's really great that we live together.”

“Come on~ There has to be at least one thing, right? Tell me~ I won't get mad~”

“Isn't this one of those typical trap questions?”

“You're not falling for it~”

Having such a pleasant morning is all thanks to Han-gyeol. I love seeing his sleepy face and starting the day with a conversation.

“Is there anything that bothers you, Eun-ha?”

“Yes, there is one thing.”

Han-gyeol's spoon dropped from his hand.

“What is it... Tell me. I'll fix it.”

“I like you so much that I always want to see you. Even when you're next to me, I want to see you, and I want to scrunch you up and carry you in my pocket.”

“If you hadn't said that last part, it would have been very romantic.”

“The problem is that I like you more and more every day.”

“I feel the same way. Though, I don't want to scrunch you up.”

“Hehe. Oh- I'm planning to go home for a bit today.”

“Why?”

I had a gift for Han-gyeol sent to my parents' house. A perfume, and an outfit for tomorrow night...!

“I want to bring back some more clothes before the semester starts.”

“I'll go with you. I can help carry things.”

“Oh- Th-there's no need for that!”

“Why? Are you meeting someone?”

“Yes! I'm meeting with Hyun-joo Unnie for a bit.”

Sorry, Hyun-joo unnie.

“Well... If you say so. Call me if you have a lot of stuff to carry, okay?”

“Sure! Don't worry.”

I felt a bit guilty about lying, but it couldn't be helped.

After breakfast, I headed straight home.

I couldn't risk someone at home finding the package.

****

As soon as I arrived home early in the morning, my brother, who was lying on the sofa, greeted me.

“Huh? What brings you home?”

“I need to grab a few things.”

Recently, my brother has been living alone, so I thought the house would be quite messy, but it was cleaner than expected.

It seemed he was taking out the trash regularly and vacuuming every day.

What the heck? He's doing better than I thought?

“What have you been up to lately?”

“Well, I'm about to return to college too. Please, show some interest in your brother.”

“You've had plenty of time to play around. Anyway, no packages arrived, right?”

“Packages? No, none.”

“That's good then.”

I went into my room and started packing the clothes I was going to take home.

Since it was just a formality, I didn't pack much and quickly returned to the living room.

My brother, lying on the sofa watching TV, spoke up.

“How is it living with Han-gyeol?”

“It's great. Every day is fun.”

“Hey, you should contact Hyun-joo once in a while. She sometimes asks about you.”

“Huh? She does? Why doesn't she contact me?”

“I guess she's hoping you'll reach out first.”

“Oh, now that I think about it, I haven't contacted her since I moved in with Han-gyeol.”

“Meet up with her if you get the chance.”

“Yeah, I should.”

I immediately called my unnie. I wasn't sure if she'd pick up since it was morning, but I soon heard her voice.

"Hello?"

“Unnie-! What are you doing today?”

“I'm free today. Why?”

“I called because I miss you~ I'm at home now, where are you?”

“Oh really? How about we have lunch together?”

“Sounds good! But I have a package coming, so I might be a bit late. Is that okay?”

“I'll come to you then. I'll be there soon, so wait for me~”

“Okay!”

After hanging up, I told my brother that unnie was coming over.

“She’s coming over.”

“What? Why not meet outside instead of bringing her here?”

“We'll be leaving soon, don't worry.”

****

“Thank you~”

Thankfully, the package arrived just past noon.

I quickly put the package in my bag and closed it.

It would be embarrassing if unnie or brother saw it…!

Shortly after, unnie arrived.

“Eun-ha~ I'm here.”

“Unnie~ It's been a while.”

As soon as she saw my face, her eyes widened.

“Eun-ha, you've gotten so pretty since the last time I saw you. Is it thanks to Han-gyeol?”

“Yes, yes! I guess it's because I'm living with Han-gyeol. You look great too, Unnie.”

“Thanks~ Did the package arrive?”

“Yes, it did. We can go out for lunch now.”

“Hey, Shin Eunwoo. Are you coming with us?”

“No, I'll stay home and rest. You two have fun~”

“Alright~”

I packed my things and headed to a nearby restaurant with Unnie.

After we ordered, she looked at me with a curious expression.

“Eun-ha, how is it living together?”

“Huh…?!”

“I haven’t lived with anyone yet. I’m curious about what it’s like.”

“Oh, it's really great. I get to be with Han-gyeol every day...!”

I answered, but it seemed that wasn’t what she was curious about.

She leaned in close and whispered.

“Are you using protection...?”

Unnie’s words made my ears turn red instantly. But living together... it was hard to pretend that nothing had happened.

I gave a slight nod.

“Alright. You must always use protection, okay?”

“Y-yeah...! So please, shush-!”

“Good. This is something you must never forget, no matter what. Although, with Han-gyeol, I'm not too worried.”

“Right?! Yes, Han-gyeol is very considerate.”

“If there’s an issue, it’s probably on your end, Eun-ha.”

“Ugh...!”

She hit the nail on the head. Am I that easy to read?

“You’re not skipping protection because you think it’s a safe day, are you...?!”

My heart started pounding for a different reason.

“N-no! That’s never happened...!”

“Hmm... I’m suspicious...!”

“Don’t worry...!”

I need to be more careful from now on. No more lies to Unnie.

“I should have told you sooner, but the opportunity never came up. You do realize you’re still too young to get married, right?”

“Well... if we're going to do it eventually, maybe sooner is better...!”

“I’m not against marriage. But rushing into it isn’t wise. Remember that. Got it?!”

“Yes...”

In the end, I received a thorough sex education from Unnie during our meal. The main takeaway was never having unprotected sex.

Although I knew this, hearing it directly from her made me more aware.

After lunch, we had a cup of coffee together before heading home.

As soon as I walked in with my large suitcase, Han-gyeol greeted me.

“You’re back sooner than I thought.”

“Oh- yes! Did you eat?”

“Yes, I ate the breakfast you made.”

“Well done~ Didn't you miss me?”

“Of course I did~ Come here.”

As Han-gyeol opened his arms, I jumped into them.

“I missed you too~”

“I thought you’d be back late after meeting Hyun-joo Noona.”

“No, I came back right after lunch and coffee.”

“Did she say anything special?”

“She... told us to always use protection-!”

“Ah-! Yes, we should definitely...”

Both of us felt a bit guilty and couldn’t finish our sentences.

“L-let’s be more diligent about it from now on...?”

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

Trying to lighten the mood, Han-gyeol extended his hand.

“Give me your luggage. I’ll put your clothes away.”

“N-no, it’s fine! I’ll do it!”

“Huh? Isn’t it heavy?!”

“Not at all! You just relax in the living room!”

I quickly took my luggage and rushed into the room.

There's no way I could let him see what’s inside until tomorrow.

--- The End OF The Chapter ---

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