-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Why Do You Want to Escape?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Yi Yeon left another message for Do Hyun.
[Shall we just eat something simple at home?]
Army stew wasn't exactly a simple dish, but she had no other excuse to invite him over.
[Sure.]
A simple reply came from Do Hyun.
I wonder what time he'll arrive.
Yi Yeon had never worried about meals since moving into Do Hyun's house.
Thanks to the housekeeper who came every other day, there was always prepared food she could scoop up and take to the second floor to eat.
Was it because she'd heard the rumors today about Do Hyun's mother passing away?
Suddenly, she thought she should make something he liked.
[Expected arrival at 8.]
It was like they had telepathy.
Do Hyun had somehow read her mind and let her know his arrival time just as she was wondering.
Running short on time, she ordered ingredients through a quick-delivery app before getting home.
Upon arriving home, Yi Yeon dropped her things on the second floor and headed straight down to the first.
"Where are the aprons?"
Yi Yeon looked around and spotted one on top of the water purifier.
"The housekeeper's tastes are... surprisingly cute."
It was a yellow apron printed with a bear cub joyfully running through a wide meadow, clutching a honey pot under its arm.
Was it happy from eating the honey, or from frolicking in the field?
After admiring the design for a moment, Yi Yeon checked her ringing phone. It was a text saying the ordered ingredients had arrived at the door.
"Time to show off my skills after so long?"
Yi Yeon unpacked the ingredients a few at a time and got to cooking.
Slice some cabbage, add minced garlic, onion, a ton of Spam—the most important part—and one packet of oxtail soup stock, and done!
Beep beep!
She was deep in concentration when she heard the front door.
Yi Yeon stirred the army stew vigorously with the ladle, then rushed to the entrance in surprise.
Do Hyun had arrived earlier than expected.
"You're here early?"
Do Hyun paused mid-step as he was coming in.
Yi Yeon had come out to greet him at the door, blinking her eyes.
He seemed embarrassed to see her in the yellow apron, holding a ladle in one hand.
His gaze scanned the bear cub on the apron, the ladle, and then her face before he spoke.
"You tied your hair up."
He'd never seen her with her hair tied back before, since she usually wore it as a bob—or rather, a wig—shaking it around.
"Yeah, it was getting in the way while cooking..."
Yi Yeon felt his gaze lingering on her jawline.
Is the ponytail weird? Really weird?
She fiddled with her bound ponytail.
In her rush to cook before he arrived, she'd tied it up absentmindedly without checking.
"It looks awkward, right? I was planning to let it down once I finished cooking."
Yi Yeon squinted her eyes slightly and lifted the corners of her mouth, a hint of shyness in her expression.
"Tied up suits you better."
Huh?
Yi Yeon jerked her head up, her face that she'd ducked in embarrassment.
Her heart gave a little flutter.
She must have misheard.
He must have eaten some honey like the bear cub on the apron. There was no other way such sweet words could come from Do Hyun's mouth.
"Yu Secretary, your face is smaller than I thought. Smaller than my hand, probably?"
Do Hyun suddenly thrust his palm toward her face.
He held his hand flat in front of her face and wiggled his eyebrows.
"Bigger than my hand, huh."
Do Hyun flashed a playful grin and brushed past her into the house.
Yi Yeon stood there blinking in a daze, her cheeks flushing red.
That deep gaze scanning her the moment he arrived home, the sweet comment, the sudden palm in her face, the teasing killer smile.
Something must have happened outside—Do Hyun seemed in high spirits.
"What was that?"
Just a few words from him, and her chest was humming with gentle vibrations.
Yi Yeon squeezed her eyes shut, shook her head, and patted one cheek.
Get it together, Yu Yi Yeon! Snap out of it!
He probably said it with no thought, no meaning behind it.
"Oh, right."
Do Hyun, heading to his room, turned back.
"Put this in the fridge for me."
He lifted his wrist toward her, a shopping bag dangling from it.
"What's this?"
"Bought some beef to grill over the fireplace for dinner."
Do Hyun must have pondered the menu after her suggestion to eat dinner together. He hadn't come home empty-handed.
"Then we have to grill it right now!"
Yi Yeon's eyes sparkled at the word "beef."
Do Hyun looked at her in disbelief and chuckled softly.
"You said you prepared dinner."
"I'm eating beef too."
Yi Yeon waved her hands dismissively at his words.
"We can have it with the army stew. They go great together, right? We can't just stick expensive department store beef in the fridge. It'll be ready in 15 minutes. Want to wash up?"
Yi Yeon clutched the shopping bag like she absolutely wouldn't let it go.
She was determined to eat that beef somehow.
Catching on to her resolve, Do Hyun didn't argue further.
"I'll wash up, so do whatever with the beef."
Do Hyun left her with the words she wanted to hear and went to his room.
Yi Yeon resumed finishing the cooking.
Hum de dum~
She started humming. A quick taste of the army stew was perfection.
Take that, store-bought army stew!
Yi Yeon took side dishes from the fridge, plated them, and finally scooped steamed rice into bowls, setting everything on the dining table.
"Why hasn't he come out yet?"
She felt strange, like she was waiting for a husband holed up in his study.
Knock knock.
"Vice President, dinner's ready."
My stomach's practically glued to my back.
The door opened at her knock. Do Hyun held a different shopping bag than before.
He held it out to her again.
"What's this?"
"Wine."
Inside the long bag tied with a ribbon was a bottle of red wine.
"You seemed to like it."
Oh... Army stew calls for soju.
He must have remembered her sipping wine at the restaurant and saying it was good.
"No wine for this. Army stew needs soju."
Yi Yeon pulled a bottle of soju from the fridge and plunked it down on the table.
"We have soju at home?"
Do Hyun, who usually drank whiskey, was caught off guard by the sudden soju.
"I picked it up at the convenience store on the way."
The dinner was thoroughly prepared, booze included.
Do Hyun fetched a mini grill from somewhere.
"Yu Secretary can't grill meat."
Do Hyun stood again, took the beef from in front of her, and picked up the tongs, as if he planned to do it himself.
"How'd you know?"
"You look like you can't. With those tiny hands, you probably can't even hold the tongs right."
With wine glasses set beside the mini grill, it looked surprisingly nice. She regretted not lighting candles.
"Eat the army stew before it gets cold. It's so good, don't let it go to waste."
"I don't eat bad food."
"Just try it first."
Do Hyun scooped up a spoonful of army stew at her confident words and swallowed.
"...Not bad."
Not bad, yet he didn't stop spooning it up.
"That's it? Isn't it delicious?"
Yi Yeon clasped her hands, gazing at him with sparkling eyes like a puppy begging for pets. Do Hyun stared into her eyes for a long moment before answering.
"You've got talent in cooking."
Yi Yeon beamed a bright smile at his praise.
"Of course! Daughter of a Chinese restaurant owner."
"What does that have to do with it?"
"Cooking genes don't just disappear. Here, cheers?"
True to form for soju that paired with army stew, it went down smooth.
Do Hyun was busy eating army stew with one hand and grilling meat with the other.
He placed a few well-done pieces on Yi Yeon's plate.
Yi Yeon snatched them up and ate, her mouth curving into a satisfied smile.
"So good."
Ah, hot.
Whether from the alcohol or the small grill in front of her, Yi Yeon fanned herself.
The rising buzz warmed even her crown, turning her cheeks peach-red.
Do Hyun silently set down the tongs and stood to adjust the AC.
"Ah, much better."
Maybe the grill? Yi Yeon cupped her cheeks, the buzz hitting her faster than usual.
Looking at the bottle on the table, they were already heading toward their third.
"I've been wondering for a while."
Do Hyun spoke up as he refilled her glass.
"Yeah? Ask away."
Yi Yeon, tipsy, grinned broadly at him.
"Why do you wear clothes that don't fit?"
It was a jab at her slightly loose-fitting outfits.
"What's wrong with blouses and pants? I just wear them comfortably."
Yi Yeon rested her chin on the table, sounding fed up with clothing critiques.
"What, did someone say something?"
Do Hyun probed gently, reading something in her reaction. The other secretaries wore tight skirts, so someone must have commented on her secretary attire.
"Of course. The marketing director said something at first, and the head secretary remarked that my clothes seemed baggy... But I don't think they're that big. They just don't cling. It's not like I'm wearing anything so oversized I can't work."
There was that assistant manager Kang who always picked fights, too.
"But everyone's used to it now, so they just let it be."
Yi Yeon tipped the remnants of her glass into her mouth with a casual flick.
The clink as she set it down signaled she was pretty drunk.
"Hmm... Why I wear these clothes... To escape men's gazes, I guess."
"Gazes?"
"Yeah, those interested looks. From sticky, lecherous guys."
Do Hyun stared at her silently.
Reading the "uncomprehending" signal in his eyes, Yi Yeon furrowed her brow.
Huh? Is he glaring with his eyes? Like, what do you have to hide from men's gazes?!
"Why do you want to escape?"
