“It’s time for the drama.”

“……”

“It’s time for the drama.”

“……”

“Park Yeon!”

Park Yeon turned his head with a startled expression.

“What?”

“It’s eight o’clock.”

“So what?”

“Isn’t it drama time?”

Even as he said it, Seo-jun felt doubtful as to why he had to inform him of this.

Glancing at the clock, Park Yeon picked up his phone again as if he wasn’t interested.

“I don’t have to watch today. I can catch the rerun.”

Seo-jun shook his head.

‘I thought a feature phone would be okay, but I was wrong.’

He had been staring at his phone all day. What if he had been given a smartphone?

Just imagining it was terrifying. He would have probably been glued to it the entire day.

How much time had passed?

“Hey.”

Park Yeon approached Seo-jun, who was cleaning the hall. When Seo-jun turned his head, he saw that Park Yeon was hesitating, which was unlike him.

“Uh… so, um… well….”

“You seem to have something to say. Just say it comfortably.”

“This isn’t about me. It’s a story from a drama.”

“Okay.”

“In dramas, the male lead asks the female lead for her number, right? Because he’s interested.”

“Yeah, that’s usually called ‘getting her number.’ Why?”

“The male lead definitely got the female lead’s number, but when he tries to contact her, there’s no reply. What does that mean?”

“Wouldn’t that be revealed in the next episode?”

“I can’t wait until the next episode, so I’m asking now.”

Seo-jun wondered why he was being asked about this. In fact, Park Yeon probably knew more about dramas than he did.

Still, since he was asked, he should give an answer.

“Sounds like the male lead got rejected.”

“Re… jected?”

“It means he got turned down.”

“But he got the number?”

“Then the female lead must have given him a fake number.”

“Why? Why would she do that?”

“I don’t know what the writer intended, but usually, it happens when she’s not interested in him.”

“But she smiled while giving it to him?”

“She probably smiled so he wouldn’t check by calling on the spot.”

“……”

“Are you okay?”

“……Let me ask one more thing. He called the number, but instead of a dial tone, the call was immediately cut off. What does that mean?”

“That’s probably call blocking.”

“Call blocking?”

“It means she completely blocked any contact from that number.”

“……”

Seo-jun tilted his head. Park Yeon’s shoulders were trembling slightly.

‘Just how immersed did he get in that drama?’

Shaking his head again, Seo-jun continued cleaning.

Meanwhile, Park Yeon, frozen like a stone statue, bit his lip.

Why?

Why would she do this?

Was there really a need to be this cruel?

‘…Was I that unappealing?’

Park Yeon let out a sigh.

When he got the number, it felt like he had gained the whole world. Like he was flying.

He had even unintentionally cast a flight spell in his excitement. But it turned out to be a fake number…

He let out a bitter laugh.

‘Well… Someone like me doesn’t match a true goddess. Still….’

Just once, just one last time, he wanted to see her smiling face again.

Even though she had stabbed into his heart and torn it to shreds, what could he do?

It was his fault for not being to her liking…

Park Yeon left the shop.

Then he made his real body invisible. His destination: the convenience store where the true goddess worked.

But something was off. Instead of the true goddess, a true middle-aged woman was standing at the counter.

‘What the….’

In his shock, Park Yeon canceled his spell and rushed into the store.

“Welco—”

“I have something to ask!”

“Huh?”

“The true goddess… no, the employee. Where is she? Didn’t she always work at this time?”

The middle-aged woman wearing a name tag as the store owner looked at Park Yeon with suspicion.

“Why do you ask?”

“Just tell me, please! Did something happen? Did she get hurt? Or was she kidnapped by a criminal organization?”

Park Yeon actually wished it were one of those two cases.

If she was hurt, he could heal her with magic. If she was kidnapped, he could rescue her.

But the heavens were not on his side.

The store owner spoke indifferently.

“She quit yesterday.”

“Q-Quit? Why? For what reason?”

“Some weird guy kept bothering her….”

The store owner trailed off and looked at Park Yeon again.

He looked normal. But the way he talked was odd.

‘Could this be… the weird guy Na-hee mentioned?’

The store owner scrutinized Park Yeon suspiciously. He frowned and asked.

“Is there something on my face?”

“Huh?”

“You keep staring at me.”

“Oh, no… that’s not it….”

The store owner hesitated, flustered. Seeing that, Park Yeon smirked knowingly.

“This is troubling.”

“Huh?”

“I already have someone I love.”

“L-Love?”

“I have someone I adore. Even if you harbor feelings for me, I cannot return them. I’m sorry. But more importantly, why did she quit?”

The store owner was now certain.

The weird guy Na-hee talked about.

It was definitely him.

It would be best to make sure he never set foot in the store again.

“Ah… You mean Na-hee? She said some weird guy kept creeping her out. He came in all the time and wouldn’t leave her alone.”

“Creeping… her out?”

“Yeah. It got so bad she had to get meds from a psychiatrist. In the end, she just quit. I don’t know what ghosts are doing these days, not taking care of lunatics like that.”

Lu… lunatic?

That was a word he had never heard before.

But the pain of hearing that word wasn’t as bad as the heartbreak of realizing she thought of him as a lunatic.

“Ahhh!”

Seeing Park Yeon like that, the store owner lady nodded in satisfaction.

‘This should be enough, right?’

In reality, Kim Na-hee's beauty was enough to make many men’s hearts flutter.

Among the convenience store customers, there were quite a few who asked for her number.

And among them, there were those who approached Kim Na-hee in strange ways—people who suggested unusual meetings.

Kim Na-hee quit because of those people who made such strange proposals.

However, there was one thing the store owner lady didn’t know.

The fact that the strange person wasn’t Park Yeon.

“……”

It was a truly dramatic twist of fate.

“Hyung, what’s up with Park Yeon?”

Yeon-jun glanced at Park Yeon, who was slumped over the table.

“He’s been like that for a while.”

“Is he sick?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Then why is he like that?”

“It’s not like this is the first time we’ve seen him acting weird.”

“That’s true, but… he looks kind of depressed, like he’s completely drained.”

“I saw earlier that he was really immersed in a drama. I think he’s still caught up in the emotions from it.”

Yeon-jun nodded.

That was highly likely.

“Alright, I’m heading out.”

“Hyung.”

“Huh?”

“Get me a Melona on your way back.”

Seo-jun chuckled and left the store, heading toward the mart. He was out of Arutus Al.

“Seo-jun, young man.”

As soon as he entered the mart, someone called out to him. It was Kang Min-hee.

“You’re already back at work?”

Kang Min-hee hadn’t been coming in for a few days due to handling the funeral and other matters related to Lee Jin-soon’s passing.

She still hadn’t completely shaken off her grief, yet she had returned to work.

“Yeah, the manager was considerate enough to give me some time off, but I had to come back sooner or later.”

“What about your grandmother…?”

“Thanks to you, we had a proper three-day funeral, and we placed her in the columbarium.”

“I’m sure she’s in a good place now.”

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I’ve managed to hold on.”

Kang Min-hee smiled gently.

But there was still sadness lingering in her eyes. It seemed she hadn’t fully let go of Lee Jin-soon yet.

“Don’t mention it.”

“And…”

“Yes?”

“I think this will be the last week I see you, Seo-jun.”

“What do you mean?”

“I decided to quit after this week.”

“Did the mart…?”

“No, it’s not that. The nursing home admitted their fault and agreed to compensate us.”

“Compensation?”

“Yeah. It’s a pretty big amount, so I won’t have to worry about living expenses for a while. I plan to take a break and sort out my feelings. My husband also wants me to.”

“Ah…”

“I really wanted to stay in touch with someone as kind as you for a long time, but it’s a shame. Thank you for everything.”

“No, I should be the one thanking you. You helped me a lot too… Oh! Instead of saying goodbye like this, why don’t you and your family come to my store sometime?”

“Your store?”

“Yes, come by for lunch on your day off. I’ll treat you to a nice meal.”

“That sounds good.”

“When would be a good time for you?”

“Hmm… My husband has Saturdays off, so how about this Saturday? Would that work for you, Seo-jun?”

“Of course.”

“Alright, then I’ll bring some homemade infused liquor as well.”

Seo-jun smiled and nodded.

Saturday, the day of their promise, had arrived.

Seo-jun woke up early and prepared the ingredients for both the store’s business and the meal he planned to serve Kang Min-hee’s family.

Just as he finished prepping everything, the store door opened.

“Seo-jun, young man.”

“You’re here?”

“Did we come too early?”

“No, you’re right on time. Hello.”

Seo-jun also greeted Lee Chang-hyun.

“I didn’t get a chance to thank you before. Thank you. Thanks to you, my mother-in-law was laid to rest peacefully.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“And this here is my son.”

“Hello.”

Gun-woo, who was in middle school, still had a youthful look. His face had acne, and a faint mustache was beginning to sprout.

“Nice to meet you.”

As Seo-jun exchanged greetings with Gun-woo, Kang Min-hee lifted something up.

“I don’t know if it’ll suit your taste, Seo-jun.”

“Is that infused liquor?”

“Yeah, I made it three years ago with deodeok root. Originally, we planned to drink it together when Gun-woo turned twenty… but we’ll drink it today instead.”

Seo-jun unconsciously licked his lips.

Three-year-aged deodeok liquor… How good would it taste?

Seeing him, Kang Min-hee chuckled softly.

“Judging by your expression, I’m glad I brought it.”

“I don’t know if I should be drinking something so precious.”

“Don’t be silly. But now I’m curious about what you’ll make for us.”

“I’m curious too. My wife spoke so highly of your cooking, so I skipped breakfast.”

“Don’t expect too much. It’s nothing fancy—just ordinary food you’d eat any day.”

“Even so, I bet it’ll be amazing if you’re the one making it, Seo-jun.”

Seo-jun smiled softly.

“Then please have a seat.”

“Need any help?”

“No, you’re guests. Just relax. I’ll bring it out soon.”

Seo-jun went into the kitchen and started preparing the meal for Kang Min-hee’s family.

Clatter— Clatter—!

Chop chop chop!

Hearing the sounds from the kitchen, Kang Min-hee’s family grew even more excited. Especially Kang Min-hee, who had tasted Seo-jun’s cooking before.

“I’m really looking forward to this.”

“Is Seo-jun really that good at cooking?”

“Didn’t I tell you? I think he’s even better than my mom.”

Hearing that, Lee Chang-hyun let out a surprised exclamation.

His mother-in-law, Lee Jin-soon, had been an extraordinary cook. She seemed to make dishes effortlessly, yet the flavors were beyond description.

‘And he’s better than mother-in-law?’

Lee Chang-hyun nodded.

They would find out soon enough.

“It’s strange, though. There’s no strong food smell.”

“Yeah, I can’t tell what he’s making.”

“There’s a faint boiling smell, but…”

Just as they wondered how much longer it would take—

“It’s ready.”

Seo-jun stepped out, carrying a tray with something on it.