SRP 14

Chapter 14

The couple who had just passed by on a nearby bench whispered to each other.

“They went public about dating, didn’t they? If you look on social media, there are tons of date photos. Did they come here on a date today?”
“Should we follow them?”
“Let’s not bother them while they’re on a date.”

Even when they recognized celebrities, adults kept a respectful distance and protected their privacy.
Spring began to feel self-conscious.

The warmth of his large hand, the gentle grip of his fingers, the way he matched his pace to hers as they walked.
It made her stomach flutter.

Then Gogeon let go of her hand and positioned Spring closer to the fortress wall. He took her other hand and walked on the opposite side, naturally shielding her from people’s gazes.

“It would’ve been nice if we could’ve dated like this back then.”
“We lived in the practice room. There was no time for that. And no money either.”
“Still, I liked it.”
“Me too.”

It was a time when passion alone was enough to make everything enjoyable.
If you chased a shining dream, anything felt possible.

“Ah, why did you join that company back then? When you debuted later and I found out about your family, I was shocked. I couldn’t believe my ex-boyfriend was from a chaebol family!”

She meant it. When Ilju showed her the internet article, she’d been so stunned she’d nearly blacked out.
It also made sense why he hadn’t gone to a big company even though he’d received so many business cards from major agencies.
She realized that someone like him could’ve started his own company, yet had deliberately stayed at a small one.

“When we were trainees, we wore the same clothes every day, and we didn’t even have money for shoes, so we dug through donation bins.”
“We did.”

Gogeon chuckled softly, apparently remembering it too.

The night air still held the warmth of the day.
The scent of trees in the park, different from the city.
Small houses lined along the narrow road, the lights illuminating the fortress wall, and the warmth she felt through their joined hands.
Everything soaked her emotions in a gentle, tender way.

“Your father’s the head of an entertainment company. Did he oppose your dream of becoming an entertainer?”
“That, and more. My grandfather dotes on me. He forced me to learn group management. He planned out my whole life—get an MBA in the U.S., make it big in the major leagues, then come back and join the group. So I left home. I wanted to try doing something on my own, at least once.”

Rebellion and defiance get wrapped up as youth. It was an age when even failure was accepted as experience.

“I don’t regret it. Because I met you back then.”

He struck without warning.
Spring tried hard not to look at Gogeon walking beside her, hand in hand.
There’s no way an action cam would record her heartbeat too… right?

“After you dumped me pretty harshly, I did follow the path my father wanted. But I didn’t want it to end there.”
“And you succeeded as an actor.”
“I did. And now we’re meeting again like this, going on a date.”
“No, I mean… not me….”

Why does it always circle back to us dating again?
It sounded like his life goal had been to meet her again.

Get a grip, Lee Bom.
Don’t misunderstand. It’s acting. Just acting.

“This way. There are trees, so people don’t usually come here. It’s a secret spot.”

She followed him past the trees, and an open space appeared.
She’d already seen the night view on the way up, but the scenery from this wide, elevated spot felt completely different.
It looked like colorful opal jewels scattered across the city.

“Wow, it’s amazing.”

Wanting to see it a little closer, her steps drifted toward the railing.
She’d seen night views before, even during trips to Japan with her sisters, but this time her chest felt tight.
She’d been so busy living that she hadn’t been able to enjoy things like this.
All it took was a little time, yet that had been so hard to spare.
She hadn’t had the mental room for it.

“I guess I’ve been living too frantically. I’m only seeing this view now.”
“You said you kept working nonstop after Pink Pop disbanded, right?”

Gogeon’s voice came from close behind.
He placed both arms on the railing, caging her in from behind.
Her shoulders tensed, afraid her back might touch him.

“I had to make a living. I was worried since I was a somewhat known celebrity, but when I went to part-time job interviews, even the owners didn’t recognize me. I worked like that, and then Ilju unni started a company and called me over.”
“That must’ve been hard.”

His warm breath brushed the crown of her head.

To Spring, it was just something in the past.
It had been emotionally tough at the time, but she was young and thought things would work out eventually.
She’d stayed positive and lived well enough.
Everyone has ups and downs in life—big or small—so she thought she’d just gotten through one hurdle early.

But hearing his words made her nose sting.
She’d never wanted recognition, yet an old, long-buried emotion welled up and clogged her throat.

“Come on, how hard could it be working at a company run by someone you know? It’s sweet. I’m totally being a salary thief.”
“It must’ve taken a lot of courage to come back to this industry. People probably recognized you too.”

Feeling the solid warmth of his chest against her back, she didn’t know what expression she was supposed to make.

“You’re really amazing, Lee Bom.”

Solid praise made a person strangely weak.
She was fine.
She’d been fine all this time.

“…That doesn’t mean I’m going to cry from being touched.”
“If you don’t want to cry, don’t. I’ll make it so you don’t have the mental space to think about anything else.”

There he goes again, saying weird things.
He never let her let her guard down.
With the action cam on her collar recording everything, she couldn’t even say much.

“Oh, look over there.”

Spring froze at the unfamiliar voice. They were whispering, but she could hear everything.

“So it’s true—Gogeon came here on a date with his girlfriend.”
“Let’s go somewhere else.”
“Why? It’s not like they rented the place. Let’s go over there too and look at the night view. Maybe we can take pictures together.”
“They’re on a date.”
“Who said we’re bothering them?”

People were approaching. She hurriedly turned to leave, but Gogeon’s arm wrapped tightly around her.
He pulled her into his chest, holding her so she couldn’t move.
Then his lips touched the top of her head.

“Seriously… I don’t want to work today. How am I supposed to go, leaving you behind?”

No other thoughts came to her mind.
Her head went blank—she couldn’t respond to his words or even smile shyly.

“Ugh.”

Her knees gave out.
If he hadn’t been holding her from behind, she might have collapsed right there.
Her face grew hotter and hotter.

What underwear am I wearing today?

That was the first thought that came to her.
For no reason, her stomach tingled and her lips felt parched. Without realizing it, she wet them with her tongue.
The large hands supporting and enclosing her body tightened pleasantly.
She could hear her heart pounding all the way up in her head.

Should I turn around and hug him back? Or not? Maybe just interlock fingers like this? If we’re lovers, it’s a kiss. After hearing something like that, it has to be a kiss. At least our lips should brush…

Gogeon tilted his face beside her head. His lowered gaze turned toward her, burning hot.

A kiss! He’s going to kiss me!

His hand covered the action cam on her collar.
Instinctively, she closed her eyes and lifted her chin.

“Turn your head just a little more. Just make it look like I’m kissing your jaw.”

…Huh? My jaw?

Then, beneath her lips, his hot lips touched her full chin.

Ah, right! We’re acting!
She’d completely forgotten. She’d fallen for Gogeon’s acting.

Startled, she hunched her shoulders—and her lips brushed against his.

Soft yet dry, his lips were hot.
Even Gogeon was startled, pulling back for a moment.

“No, I mean—”
“Yeah. Me too.”

What did I even say for him to reply ‘me too’?!

Before she could say anything else, their lips overlapped again. His lips pressed and parted hers, his tongue pushing in.
She tried to pull back in shock, but Gogeon didn’t allow it. Instead, he cradled the back of her neck and tilted her head.
He invaded deeply, stirring as if she belonged to him.

Keeping up with his movements was overwhelming. She could barely breathe.
As their lips mingled and rubbed together intensely, all strength drained from Spring’s body.

She should stop.
But—it feels too good.

The sweetness of sugar melted thickly all the way to her head.

With rough breaths, Gogeon finally pulled away, wetting her lips as he did. Their breaths tangled between them.
Her vision swam as she looked up at him.

His hands, his breath—everything about him was hot.

“Ha… damn it.”

At his low curse, his brows drawn together, Spring snapped back to her senses.

“Oh my.”
“Wow…”

Soft exclamations—ones that weren’t hers.
Without turning her head, she caught sight of people filming with their phones at the edge of her vision.
She’d thought it was safe since the spot was hidden by trees, but people had gathered before she knew it.

“L-let’s go.”

Spring grabbed his hand and hurried along the fortress path.

“You look great together!”
“Have a beautiful love!”
“Kyaaah!”

At the cheering voices, her steps quickened even more.

What do I do? We really kissed.
She’d been swept up in the mood and actually did it.
Spring felt like crying.

A video she’d kick her blankets over before sleeping was about to be immortalized.
No—maybe it was already on social media.