**Special Chapter 3**
“Sua, I want you, because of the way you touched me just now,” Hyun-oh placed the responsibility on Sua.
At his words, Sua chuckled lightly. He always seemed mature and adult-like, but at times like this, he seemed like a child throwing a tantrum.
“Lies. Even if I didn’t touch you with my fingers, you would still feel the same.”
She intended to say that, but her words were cut off by Hyun-oh’s lips. He kissed her, not leaving even a small gap, tasting her as if to assert his dominance. There was a faint taste of chocolate from Hyun-oh’s tongue, which had tasted the cream just before.
* * *
Eventually, they could start their meal an hour later.
They sat facing each other, in front of a simple yet appetizing dinner that Sua had reheated and prepared.
“Wine, anyone?”
Sua shook her head at Hyun-oh’s question.
“No, I’m fine today. If you want to drink, go ahead.”
“If you’re not having any, then neither am I.”
“It’s okay.”
“I’m okay too.”
Instead of wine, they poured sparkling water mixed with ginger ale. They clinked their glasses.
“Happy Valentine’s Day.”
“Happy Valentine’s.”
And so began the long Valentine’s night.
While having dinner, they shared what had happened today. As there had been little conversation between them, leading to misunderstandings, they made an effort to talk as much as possible. Sua raised her eyebrows as she took a bite of pasta.
“But why did you walk today, Hyun-oh?”
Normally, a driver would have dropped him off at the house parking lot. They wouldn’t have met outside. Hyun-oh wiped his lips with a napkin as he spoke.
“I was in the car, and I saw you, so I asked the driver to stop. I wanted to see your familiar figure.”
“I see.”
As Sua nodded, Hyun-oh narrowed his eyes and looked at her face.
“What’s wrong?”
“Me?”
“You’re thinking deeply while walking. Even if my car passed right by, you wouldn’t have noticed. I thought something serious was going on at work.”
“Oh.”
Come to think of it, she had been thinking about the offer Yoon Dam had made to her today. Should she accept it? She had thought about it several times. It was a decision that wasn’t easily made.
“The CEO made me an offer. I was thinking about whether I should accept it.”
“What is it? What’s so serious that you’re thinking about it like this?”
“It’s nothing much.”
It was a significant and burdensome matter, but it wasn’t something he needed to worry about.
Sua brought up the topic of the editor’s diary. She explained that she had been writing a work diary every morning, and Yoon Dam had suggested publishing it as a book.
“So he wants me to write a book.”
Hyun-oh’s lips curled up. His eyes softened.
“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”
“It is. But…”
She was happy about it, but she also felt anxious. What if Yoon Dam saw it more positively than it actually was? What if the book didn’t sell well, or if it received negative reviews? Those worries came to her first.
“I’m worried because the CEO seems too positive about it.”
“I doubt it.”
Hyun-oh brushed Sua’s worried forehead with his fingertips. Whenever Sua thought hard about something, deep wrinkles formed on her forehead. Whenever that happened, Hyun-oh would comfort her.
“I don’t know much about writing, but he’s a businessman before he’s an editor. He wouldn’t invest in something unnecessary. Publishing a paper book involves not only publishing costs but also marketing costs and other associated investments. He must see value in it to suggest it.”
“Do you think so?”
Sometimes, Sua thought of Hyun-oh as a big tree. Unlike her fluttering heart, he always stood firmly rooted to the ground. So whenever Sua’s mood floated away, he would hold her firmly to prevent her from swaying.
“You want to do it, don’t you?”
Of course, she did.
Sua loved books and writing, so if she said she didn’t want to publish her own book, it would be a lie. It was also enjoyable to share her experiences as an editor with others.
“Yes.”
“But why hesitate? It’ll be fun. Sometimes, I found it amusing when you talked about what happened at work.”
Sua’s eyes widened at Hyun-oh’s words.
“Hyun-oh…”.
Sua had never thought that one day she would tell such stories with her own mouth.
“You always laugh at my stories, whether they’re interesting or not.”
It was embarrassing to speak with her own mouth, but it was true. Even for trivial stories, Hyun-oh listened with great interest, smiling until the end. At his words, Hyun-oh smiled again.
“That’s true.”
She had told him about going swimming together not too long ago, and even though it was not a particularly special story, he had listened with a smile until the end. When she told Hyun-oh about it the next day, Hyun-oh was surprised, saying, “You even share such trivial stories?”
Hyun-oh tilted his head for a moment. Lost in thought, he looked up for a moment and then lowered his gaze.
“I’m not sure.”
“…….”
“Maybe because I like you, everything you say seems interesting. Or maybe you’re just good at storytelling.”
She thought it was nonsense, but when he confessed so positively and sweetly, Sua’s cheeks flushed again.
It had been over two years since they started living together. Yet, when she was with Hyun-oh, her heart still raced like this. Sometimes she wondered if she was sick, it beat so fast.
“Honestly, I’m not sure, but I believe it’ll work out.”
“Do you think so?”
“Yeah. And if it doesn’t, I’ll buy at least ten thousand copies.”
Ten thousand? Sua’s eyes widened at the absurdity of Hyun-oh’s words. These days, unless you were a blockbuster author, most first editions started at two thousand copies. Ten thousand copies were so many that you would need to print at least five editions. For Sua, who was publishing her first book, it was a dizzying number.
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Of course, it will sell well, and many people will enjoy reading it, but still, just in case.”
Then Hyun-oh brushed Sua’s cheek with his palm.
“Don’t worry, I’m here. Take courage, Han Sua.”
It was meant to comfort Sua, who seemed worried about what would happen if the book didn’t sell well and who might be blamed at work. Her face lit up with a smile, her heart touched by his words.
“I’ll give it a try. It might make me a little busy… but I want to try. And…”
“And?”
“Please don’t buy ten thousand copies even if it fails.”
Hyun-oh chuckled softly at her words. He nodded.
“If you want.”
“Thank you. And… I plan to take a break from work to focus on writing for about a year.”
“All of a sudden?”
“Yes.”
She had already told Yoon Dam about it this morning. If she started writing the book, she would finish her current projects first and then take a break to focus on writing.
“Is it okay?”
“I’m okay with it, but you love editing, right? Isn’t writing going to take up a lot of time? He said it’s just organizing what you’ve already written.”
“I want to focus on writing, but…”
As Sua lifted her fork and twirled the spaghetti in front of her, she couldn’t figure out how to say it. She had thought about how to tell him this many times in her head, but she couldn’t find an answer. In the end, she decided to be honest.
“Something else came up.”
“What happened?”
Hyun-oh’s eyes showed deep concern, wondering what had happened.
