The usual bangs that covered his eyes to the point of seeming gloomy were properly arranged today. His clothes, too, which were always pitch-black, seemed quite bright today. Though they were still in the monochrome spectrum.

In short, it was different. Ian seemed to have dressed up a bit for this outing beyond the office.

“You look cute today.”

Ian smiled at me. I scratched my cheek, feeling a bit awkward.

“What’s that in your hand?”

“Just some snacks I got on the way here. Cookies and candies, stuff like that.”

“Our Jiha, you were just a streamer I alone knew. Now, you’ve become a celebrity.”

Ian had been watching my broadcast from the very first day. He was a viewer who had witnessed my growth from the sidelines.

“I never imagined it would come to this when I first started broadcasting.”

“Really? I expected it.”

“How did you expect it?”

Ian answered simply.

“Because I liked it.”

Thinking his perspective represented the general public, huh? That’s possible. I just nodded and let it go.

We entered the exhibition hall.

I was expecting something like an art gallery, but there was a variety of things on display. Videos, sculptures, paintings, and other unique items. It was quite splendid.

“I heard it’s an expensive exhibition. We should thank Poppopo.”

I thought it was just an extra ticket, but it turned out to be a valuable one that we got for free.

‘I should buy dinner or something later…’

Receiving it like this definitely felt burdensome. Deciding to enjoy the view for now, we promised to make it up later.

There were a few experiences to try, and plenty of things to see, so time flew by quickly. The exhibition even extended to the outdoor walkway.

It was a day when the sunlight poured in beautifully. A mild breeze blew, making it neither too hot nor too cold.

‘I wish Hans was here, too.’

It was inevitable that I thought of Hans.

“That looks like you.”

Ian’s voice snapped me out of my reverie.

Looking where he pointed, there was a black rabbit sculpture.

“How does that resemble me?”

“It looks just like you.”

As we were chatting, a rustling sound came from somewhere.

“…?”

I looked towards the direction of the sound, the bushes.

There was nothing there.

“What’s wrong?”

“I heard something from the bushes.”

“A rabbit, maybe?”

“Why are you so obsessed with rabbits all of a sudden?”

“They’re cute, aren’t they?”

Anyway, it was nothing to worry about. I needed to focus on Ian right now.

“There’s a second exhibition hall over there.”

“It’s huge. Let’s see everything since we’re here.”

“Sure.”

* * *

After thoroughly enjoying the exhibits, it was already time for dinner.

“That was fun.”

“There was a lot more to see than I thought.”

There was a lot to talk about while looking around, and certainly, being out like this left no room for awkwardness with Ian.

“Let’s have dinner around here. I’ve made a reservation.”

“Really?”

I was surprised by the unexpected consideration.

“You’re the reason we got to come here for free. The least I can do is buy dinner.”

It was thanks to Poppopo more than me, but still, I was grateful for the offer, though it felt quite awkward.

On our way there, I felt something was off.

“…?”  

I quickly turned around.  

There was nothing behind me.  

“What’s wrong?”  

“No, it’s just that… I felt like someone was around.”  

Was it just my feeling? I tilted my head slightly.  

“It’s nothing. Let’s go.”  

“Jiha, wait a moment. Your ear.”  

“Yes?”  

Ian leaned in and whispered in my ear.  

“Someone is following us.”  

His voice was chilling.  

“About three people.”  

Not just one, but three.  

I whispered back.  

“…Since when?”  

“For quite a while now.”  

“Why didn’t you say anything?”  

“I didn’t want you to worry.”  

Not saying anything because of that? It was just absurd.  

So, three people have been following us? But why?  

“It doesn’t seem right to just ignore it and go on.”  

That’s stating the obvious.  

With Ian by my side, there shouldn’t be any danger.  

I walked briskly towards the place where I had felt the presence earlier.  

It was behind a big tree. Ian, without saying much, followed me.  

Feeling a bit tense, I looked at the tree we were approaching.  

But before I could get there, someone burst out from behind the tree.  

“Hey, why push and…”  

It was Hans.  

The tension immediately evaporated.  

“……”  

“……”  

I exchanged glances with Hans and then asked quietly.  

“What is it?”  

“That…”  

Hans dodged my gaze slightly and answered.  

“Just wanted to see if you were doing well.”  

“You think that makes sense?”  

“…No.”  

Hans seemed to realize himself that his excuse made no sense.  

Soon enough, PleaseShakeACarrot and OnlyFinley were also there.  

Seeing my blurry gaze, the two hurriedly made excuses.  

“Hans was worried and dragged us here.”  

“Jealousy―”  

PleaseShakeACarrot and OnlyFinley said, giggling.  

“Too bad. I wanted to have fun with Jiha, pretending I didn’t know. But this is it.”  

If Ian had noticed earlier, had they been following us since the afternoon? It was ridiculous.  

“Alright, let’s step aside. Let the couple enjoy their date.”  

Ian tactfully made his exit.  

“Just go to the place we reserved. Use my name to get in.”  

“Bye, Nuna― We had fun thanks to you!”  

“Have a good date!”  

The three of them left, giving us space.  

“……”

Silence lingered in the air, leaving just the two of us.  

“Looks like the mission ended up a failure.”  

“…Sorry.”  

Hans couldn’t bring himself to meet my eyes.  

“Look at me.”  

Hans obediently met my gaze, almost as if I was scolding him.  

“What are you so worried about? That I’d mess up?”  

“The opposite.”  

Hans rubbed the back of his neck as he spoke.  

“…I kept worrying that Ian might make a mistake with you.”  

“Jealousy?”  

“……”  

Given his reaction, it seemed jealousy was indeed the main reason, with everything else just an excuse.  

I had acted like it was nothing when I heard about it. Was all that an act, too?  

“You’re so worried that you secretly follow me, yet you act indifferent?”  

“Your mission is more important right now. I can’t let my personal feelings show.”  

As always, he’s a stickler for rules.  

I let out a playful laugh.  

“Well, since it’s come to this, let’s just enjoy our date. I’m glad I dressed up.”  

“……?”  

“It’s good to have a mission, but we’ve only been dating for a short while. We need this time. We’ve never really enjoyed a proper date.”  

Probably, Ian stepped away for that reason too.  

Hans quietly looked at me. I continued with a smile.  

“Still, I’m glad you’re jealous. Until a few days ago, I wasn’t sure if Hans really liked me. I was quite bothered by it.”  

“Really? Why?”  

Why would he ask that? I narrowed my eyes and stared at Hans.  

“Never mind, let’s go to the restaurant Ian reserved. It’s right here.”  

“……”  

Hans awkwardly matched his steps with mine.  

The restaurant we arrived at was quite luxurious.  

It was surprisingly generous of Ian to easily give away a reservation at such an expensive place.  

Upon mentioning Ian’s name, we were immediately guided to our table, a spot by the window with a great view of the city lights.  

“This is totally a date spot. That darn guy.”  

Hans muttered to himself, seemingly annoyed at Ian who wasn’t even here.  

“Who knows? Maybe Ian knew you’d follow and reserved it on purpose to give it away.”  

“No way.”  

Hans didn’t seem to consider that possibility at all.  

“Have you been following us the whole time?”  

“No. I mostly hung around with those guys, practically having fun.”  

That explains why I was so slow to notice. Under the guise of tailing us, it seemed more like they were just enjoying an outing.  

With that, Hans’s head drooped again.  

“Anyway… I’m really sorry for secretly following you. I didn’t mean for it to go this far, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it…”  

“It’s okay, really.”  

Hans kept apologizing.  

It wasn’t something the usual Hans would do.  

“If you like me that much, what can I do?”  

“……”  

Hans couldn’t find the words to retort.  

“Don’t go on dates with that guy anymore.”  

“It was just a casual outing.”  

“Still.”  

“Okay, I got it.”

I decided to humor Hans’s jealousy a bit.  

“But I like it. Can you do it often from now on?”  

“What? Tail you?”  

“No, get jealous.”  

“You really have strange tastes.”  

But what could I do? I was just worrying that Hans might not like me much, and here he was, wasting his time because of jealousy. It inevitably made me feel better.  

The date turned out to be quite enjoyable.  

* * *  

Hans dropped me off at my house.  

“I’ll leave now.”  

I couldn’t let Hans leave so coldly as usual.  

“Don’t go.”  

“What?”  

“Stay for a bit. You’re not working tomorrow anyway.”  

“……”  

He had no excuse to leave.  

As I looked at him with pleading eyes, Hans sighed.  

“Fine.”  

I beamed at his response.  

Hans and I entered the house.  

‘Ah, I forgot to clean up.’  

In the rush of preparing this morning, clothes were scattered everywhere.  

I hadn’t expected anyone to come over, so I left in a mess.  

“The house has a lot of personality.”  

“Just say it’s a mess.”  

Hans nonchalantly started picking up the clothes. I was shocked to see him naturally begin to clean.  

“Just sit. I’ll clean up.”  

“It’s okay.”  

Knowing Hans’s personality, he wouldn’t be able to stand the mess.  

Well, I was going to clean, but since Hans is doing it… I decided to make tea in the kitchen instead.  

By the time I returned with the tea, the first floor was spotlessly clean. I was amazed at Hans’s cleaning skills.  

“Have some tea.”  

“Thanks.”  

We sat side by side on the sofa, sipping our tea.  

“……”  

An inexplicable silence lingered between us.  

Was it always this awkward with Hans? The strange atmosphere made it hard to start a conversation.  

“Jiha.”  

Hans called my name.  

As I turned my head, Hans’s face was right in front of mine.