Chapter 127. There Was A Sea (9)

Meanwhile, at the writer’s office…

“Congratulations, Writer Ha!”

“It’s definitely going to be a green light!”

Kwon Tae-Won and Jung So-Mi congratulated Ha Jae-Gun one after the other after hearing about the verbal agreement for Oscar’s Dungeon. Since the novel was published through Laugh Books, these two had to be notified first.

“The game wouldn’t be created in a day or two. I think it should take at least a year.”

“I suppose so.”

“The project plan should be sent over once the IP contract is signed, and I will begin working on the scenario based on that. I’ve already gotten permission from the director, and I’ve got quite some time on hand, anyway.”

Jung So-Mi came back from the kitchen with three cups of coffee.

Ha Jae-Gun looked at her and said, “I think they’re looking to make a webtoon for the game’s marketing purposes.”

Jung So-Mi’s expression brightened instantly at the mention of a webtoon.

“That’s great! I think it’d be great if we could promote it together with Comic KT. Otherwise, there’s always Navin or Dawoom too.”

“So I think I’ll need your help, Ms. So-Mi.”

“…Pardon?” Jung So-Mi asked with a smile on her face, looking dazed.

Ha Jae-Gun turned to Kwon Tae-Won and said, “President, I hope that Ms. Jung So-Mi can work on the webtoon.”

“Ah, I see.”

“I like Ms. So-Mi’s drawing, and I think we’ll need a good storyboard artist to help bring the webtoon to life,” Ha Jae-Gun spoke with vigor.

Jung So-Mi had been editing quite a few of his popular novels up until now.

The support and encouragement she had provided him—not just as an editor but also as a reader—couldn’t be ignored. Every help Jung So-Mi had provided to Ha Jae-Gun so far had become turning points in the latter’s life.

“I think Ms. So-Mi has a better understanding of my novel’s world setting, and I’m confident that she can convey it in her drawings accurately.”

What came next after her skills were her character.

There was no difficulty communicating with Jung So-Mi at work. There had been obstacles, but trust had never been lost. Ha Jae-Gun had long verified Jung So-Mi’s character.

“But Writer Ha, my drawings are…” Jung So-Mi trailed off, her face stricken with fear.

Ha Jae-Gun grinned and placed a copy of Oscar’s Dungeon on the table.

“You’re a pro, Ms. So-Mi. Look at how many illustrations you’ve done up until now. I’ve also seen all the webtoon practice drawings you’ve done so far. Please have confidence in yourself.

”The author of the original novel likes it, so what else would you need aside from that?”

“I’m worried that you’re the only one who likes my drawings, Writer Ha,” Jung So-Mi said, sounding doubtful.

“No, I think your illustrations are great, too, Deputy Jung. If your skills aren’t there, why would I let you continue working on the illustrations for the other novels?” Kwon Tae-Won added with a smile.

Jung So-Mi looked down at the book and pondered for a while.

After staring at the cover of Oscar’s Dungeon for quite a while, she finally looked up and said with confidence, “Thank you. I’ll do it. I believe in Writer Ha's words and that President Kwon would find a good storyboard artist to assist me.

”I’ll do my best for the webtoon!"

"Yes, that's the spirit."

Ha Jae-Gun raised his palm up for a high-five.

Jung So-Mi smiled bashfully and gave him a high-five.

"I'll leave the rest of the project in President Kwon's good hands. Of course, that includes the contract."

"Sure, Writer Ha. Don't be worried and focus on the movie."

"Thank you. Rika, shall we get going—mm?"

Rika ran down from her usual spot at the windowsill, where she was watching the world outside. Ha Jae-Gun picked Rika up in his arms and stood up.

"You're unsure when you'll come back to Seoul after heading to Donghae for the time being, right?"

"Yes, I might stay until the last filming day. I have to discuss and edit the scenario based on the circumstances while the filming is ongoing."

"I told Mom to take good care of you on my behalf," Jung So-Mi said.

"She already takes great care of me. Your family's bed and breakfast is a 5-star hotel. All right, I'll be going."

Ha Jae-Gun was putting on his shoes when he turned around briefly and realized that none of the other writers were in the office.

"It feels unusually empty today."

"Yeah. Something seems to have come up for everyone. Writer Yang went on a trip with his friends, Writer Jang and Writer Lee went back to their hometowns."

Ha Jae-Gun didn’t talk to anyone about Kang Min-Ho's problem.

Kang Min-Ho had sent a message saying that something urgent had come up at home, and he had to stay in his hometown for another week. Kang Min-Ho had been working on his manuscript at home and sending them over through email.

“It feels lonely to see the always busy office so quiet all of a sudden,” Jung So-Mi murmured in the silence.

Ha Jae-Gun smiled sadly and opened the door.

The stagnant cold air in the hallway inundated him.

***

— Noona, are you really not going to come over? The miser, Hyun-Kyung hyung, is going to treat us to gopchang[1]!

“I don’t have any appetite, and I’m getting sleepy too. I’ll go to sleep after watching some TV, so enjoy your meal.”

— Alright, noona. I’ll bring some back for you, too. Ah, noona! You remember that I Live Alone is going to be broadcast today, right?! You’ve got to watch it!

“I know. I’ll watch it later. Bye.”

Jang Eun-Young put down her phone and reached for her keyboard. Her typing echoed heavily and slowly in the silent office. She wasn’t in her best condition to write today.

‘Did something happen…’

Her mind was filled with concerns for Kang Min-Ho. Kang Min-Ho said that he would return after a week, but he was still missing.

She hadn’t heard any news from him either.

She knew why he had to return to his hometown, so she couldn’t bring herself to contact him first. When she asked Jung So-Mi in passing, the only answer she got was, “I think something happened back at home.”

‘Did things go well with that blind date?’

It was great news if he had decided to stay for a while longer because there had been some progress between him and his blind date partner. In other words, it was something she should be happy about.

However, Jang Eun-Young couldn’t smile.

‘Phew… I should stop for today and rest.’

Jang Eun-Young saved her Word document and turned off her laptop. Her story development was bleak, and she felt tired as well. She picked herself up to make a quick dinner.

Beep, beep, beep!

Just then, she heard the door lock’s jingle.

Someone was typing in the password for the door.

Jang Eun-Young raised an eyebrow. Ha Jae-Gun had gone to Donghae, so it was strange that someone was trying to get into the office.

“Hyung…?!”

Jang Eun-Young’s jaws dropped.

Kang Min-Ho was at the door, and he returned wearing the exact same outfit as when he had left—a suit. He was dragging a carrier behind him.

The only difference was that he was drenched.

“What happened, hyung? Why are you drenched?”

Jang Eun-Young quickly brought him a towel.

Kang Min-Ho took the towel and wiped his face.

“I was walking back home, and it suddenly poured,” he replied.

“I thought you had something to do back at home? Has it been resolved? Is that why you’re here?”

“Yeah, sort of.”

“Go wash up and change into a fresh set of clothes before you catch a cold. Have you had dinner yet?”

“Not yet. What about you?”

“I was about to make myself dinner. I’ll work on it, so go and shower.”

Kang Min-Ho headed into the bathroom while Jang Eun-Young started preparing dinner. Her hands suddenly moved even faster as she trimmed the vegetables. She felt a sudden surge of energy in her.

“It smells good.”

“Hyun-Kyung brought some fermented bean paste back from home. Sit down, it’ll be done soon.”

The table was soon laid out with their dinner, and Jang Eun-Young sat across from Kang Min-Ho. They dug into the food silently for a while, but Jang Eun-Young was the first person to break the silence.

“Have you resolved everything back at home?”

Of course, the blind date was included in the everything that Jang Eun-Young had mentioned.

However, Kang Min-Ho only nodded dryly in response.

“Nothing happened during the time I was away, right?”

“I’ve only been writing in the office, so nothing’s new.”

“I see…”

“…”

The two continued eating in the awkward silence without making any eye contact.

They soon finished their meal.

Kang Min-Ho stood up to wash the dishes while Jang Eun-Young took his drenched suit and hung it up.

It was after they had each brushed their teeth that Jang Eun-Young broke the silence once more and said, “The episode of I Live Alone with Writer Ha will be showing soon.”

“Oh, right. I should watch that.”

“Do you want a can of beer?”

“Sure.”

An advertisement was on the TV.

Jang Eun-Young and Kang Min-Ho sat beside each other and sipped on their beer.

Jang Eun-Young sat cross-legged on the sofa and gazed at the TV. Usually, she would have laid down on the sofa and put her legs on Kang Min-Ho, and she would have already asked him to massage her stiff legs.

However, she couldn’t do that anymore.

Ever since Kang Min-Ho returned to his hometown for the blind date, a wall had formed between them. It was a wall so solid and tough that she couldn’t break it by herself.

“I’ve already finished the beer.”

“Do you want another?”

“I’ll get it.”

“Get one for me, too.”

Kang Min-Ho brought out three cans of beer, and I Live Alone was finally showing.

Park Do-Joon’s face filled the screen, and they started talking.

“Mr. Do-Joon looks so natural, but he looks really tired here. It seems that they weren’t lying when they said that there’s zero directing.”

“According to Mr. Ha, there was still some directing. They simply made it look as natural and as entertaining as possible.”

“I see. Perhaps because I’m watching this here in the office, but I can relate better than other celebrities.”

“Same here, it’s more entertaining.”

Park Do-Joon was currently making what looked like a messy caricature of egg rolls when Ha Jae-Gun arrived at his house.

Jang Eun-Young slapped her knees and exclaimed, “Writer Ha really paid attention to his hairstyle! I guess it’s not strange because he’s going on TV. Look! He really looks different than usual.”

“Hahaha, you’re right.” Kang Min-Ho’s voice sounded somber. He felt apologetic to Ha Jae-Gun, but he wasn’t paying attention to the show at all. He shouldn’t be having this conversation with Jang Eun-Young at all.

“Don’t you think they’ll talk about the movie on the show, too? Maybe talk about Director Woo as well?”

“Would they?”

“Hyung, are you tired? You sound exhausted.”

“I’m tired because I haven’t had any beer in a while.”

Ha Jae-Gun left Park Do-Joon’s house after having coffee and sharing some conversation after their meal. However, the show didn’t end with Ha Jae-Gun’s departure.

The program continued with Park Do-Joon and Ha Jae-Gun meeting at a cafe.

“Oh, so this is the additional filming they did. I heard they loved how entertaining it was when Writer Ha appeared in the scenes they had edited, so they added more scenes for him at a cafe.”

“Ah-ha.”

Park Do-Joon and Ha Jae-Gun were seen having a casual conversation over coffee on the TV. After some small chit-chat, Park Do-Joon changed the subject.

Park Do-Joon: I want to go hang out at your writer’s office again. I enjoyed that seafood and chicken soup the last time I went.

Ha Jae-Gun: Yeah, you’ve become the star in the office that day. Writer Jang kept complimenting you, saying how cool you were, until her throat turned dry.

“Oh, my, hyung! We got on TV!” Jang Eun-Young said and grinned brightly. Even Kang Min-Ho sat up the moment they were mentioned and leaned forward in interest.

Park Do-Joon: Are the writers doing well?

Ha Jae-Gun: Yeah, well…

Park Do-Joon: What is it? Why do you look like something has happened?

Ha Jae-Gun: There’s a writer with an issue, but I can’t really help much.

Park Do-Joon: Who? Writer Jang? Or…

Ha Jae-Gun: It’s not nice to say it on the show. They’re probably watching this.

Gulp! Kang Min-Ho gulped a mouthful of his own saliva. Ha Jae-Gun was definitely referring to him. The unexpected development made him freeze with nervousness.

Park Do-Joon: All right, then let me know what the concerns are about.

Ha Jae-Gun: About a person they like.

Park Do-Joon: Wow, that’s my specialty. What is it exactly about?

Ha Jae-Gun: The income of writers isn't stable, you know that, right? So they asked me if there was someone out there who would still like them despite that. That’s the gist of it.

Park Do-Joon: So what did you say?

Ha Jae-Gun: I told them that there’s definitely someone like that. He just has to look closer.

“…!” Jang Eun-Young froze over.

They fell silent and became conscious of each other, but the show continued.

Park Do-Joon: Since they’re watching right now, how about you say something to them through the camera?

Ha Jae-Gun: Should I? I wish you good luck, Writer-nim. You’ll definitely succeed.

Ha Jae-Gun stared shyly into the camera and pumped his clenched fist into the air.

When Kang Min-Ho met Ha Jae-Gun’s gaze, the burning passion that he had been suppressing within him surged violently.

“W-who is it? Who told Writer Ha about their relationship problem? Was it Hyun-Kyung? Or Yeon-Woo?” Jang Eun-Young mumbled, acting like she were calm as she took three gulps of her beer.

Kang Min-Ho hung his head down before Jang Eun-Young, who was fanning her flushed face, and said, “It’s you.”

“Me? I didn’t say something like that.”

“I told him about you.”

“…?!” Jang Eun-Young’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Kang Min-Ho didn’t dare to look up as he muttered, “It was a lie when I said that something came up at home. I needed time to think about you. It was only today when I finally made up my mind and decided to go back here.”

“What are you saying, hyung…?”

“It’s all thanks to Writer Ha—he gave me the courage to do this. I don’t want to think about the future right now. For now, what matters is the present. Even if our relationship ends up changing, I’ll still say it.”

Kang Min-Ho looked up at Jang Eun-Young and stared straight into her eyes.

Jang Eun-Young felt tied down by his gaze, and her heart pounded so hard against her chest that she felt like her heart was about to explode.

“S-s-so… I-I’ve known you for so long. It’s very hard for me to say this, but—Ahh…!”

Kang Min-Ho couldn’t finish his sentence.

Jang Eun-Young had grabbed him with her trembling hands, and she had interrupted Kang Min-Ho by pushing her lips onto his lips. Their sweet breath was released as their lips slowly opened up.

“Don’t say it, hyung,” Jang Eun-Young whispered and kissed him once more.

Kang Min-Ho pulled Jang Eun-Young in by her waist, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Their bodies were quickly entangled, and they fell onto the sofa.

“W-wait. Don’t, hyung… I’ll take them off.”

Jang Eun-Young took the remote control and turned off the lights.

Soon, their rough breaths filled every corner of the dark living room.

1. Gopchang is a cow or pig's small intestines. ☜