By Zephyria 
Yeon-rok, who had forgotten that Moon Gyeon-woo had once proposed that they become lovers because Gyeon-woo had been acting so nonchalant, was flustered. Moon Gyeon-woo glanced at Yeon-rok once, then slowly lowered his gaze and asked.
“Are you two actually dating, by any chance?”
“No, we’re not actually dating. I… I’m going to live as a bachelor!”
It was just that Yeon-rok’s heart wavered whenever Choi Hwan kept mentioning the word ‘family,’ but they were absolutely not dating. He had not lost his resolve to continue living as close roommates with the three of them.
“Right, as long as that’s the case, it’s fine.”
Yeon-rok found it quite bewildering whenever Moon Gyeon-woo acted like this. It had been much easier to deal with him when he was cold, as before. It was uncomfortable and strangely tense. However, it wasn’t an unpleasant kind of tension. Yeon-rok realized once again that he was truly weak against those who showed him kindness.
“Uh, I’m going to sleep for a bit… I think I’m getting motion sickness.”
As soon as Yeon-rok quickly changed the subject, Moon Gyeon-woo rummaged through the large bag he had brought.
“Sleep using this.”
He slid a neck pillow around him, covered him with a blanket, and tucked a cushion into his arms. When on earth did he pack all of this? Yeon-rok received them, feeling dazed. Once he was fully equipped, it was comfortable, and he fell fast asleep the moment he leaned his head back. Having slept so sweetly, he woke up to a hand gently shaking his shoulder.
“Yeon-rok-ah, we’re at a rest stop. What do you want to do?”
Opening his eyes, Yeon-rok realized that he was comfortably resting his head on Moon Gyeon-woo’s shoulder. Startled, he snapped his head up.
“Why are you so surprised? Did I put my head somewhere it shouldn’t be?”
Moon Gyeon-woo spoke tenderly, even smoothing down Yeon-rok’s messy hair. Still unable to adapt to this kindness, Yeon-rok became even more startled and practically bolted out of the car. Moon Gyeon-woo followed him out with a beaming face. Yeon-rok apologized awkwardly.
“Sorry, I must have been heavy.”
“You weren’t heavy at all, and since it’s you, it’s fine. Oh, look, there are snacks over there, Yeon-rok-ah.”
Just as Moon Gyeon-woo intended, Yeon-rok was quickly distracted by the rest stop snacks.
“Wow, those look delicious.”
In truth, he hadn’t felt a single bit of motion sickness; rather, the hunger he had forgotten while sleeping came rushing back. On the contrary, it was Moon Gyeon-woo who was experiencing motion sickness, as he had a motion sickness patch attached behind his ear. Yeon-rok, who had been noticing it, asked.
“You seem to have motion sickness; is it okay if the smell of food wafts over?”
“It’s fine, so don’t worry about me and just eat.”
Still, thinking that Moon Gyeon-woo would suffer if he ate in the car, he decided to eat before heading back in. The good thing about having four bodyguards accompany them was that they could buy various things and share them. The bodyguards tended to eat a lot, matching their physical build. Excited, Yeon-rok bought plenty of different kinds of rest stop snacks.
After setting up a snack spread on the table, he first squeezed ketchup and mustard onto a piping hot corn dog. Because it didn’t come out well, he tried to bite it off, and it splattered all over his top. It wasn’t particularly surprising. Moon Gyeon-woo, who was watching from the side, silently handed him a tissue. Yeon-rok gloomily wiped the sauce off his clothes.
As always, his petty and minor misfortunes didn’t end there. When he sat in a chair, he ruined his bottoms because someone had spilled a drink, and while picking up a dropped chopstick, he bumped his forehead against the table. On the way out after having a delicious lunch in downtown Gangwon-do, his shoelace suddenly came undone, and he almost tripped.
“You really are high-maintenance.”
Moon Gyeon-woo spoke as he crouched down without hesitation to tie Yeon-rok’s shoelace. Throughout the trip, he had been handing Yeon-rok wet wipes, bringing him new chopsticks, and checking on his bumped forehead.
“Sorry for being high-maintenance.”
Will this trip be okay… Yeon-rok replied gloomily, feeling inwardly anxious. However, Moon Gyeon-woo hadn’t said those words with the intention of scolding him.
“Why? I like things that are high-maintenance.”
As he spoke, his beautiful eyes curved softly as he looked up. This eye-smile was as unfamiliar as Moon Gyeon-woo’s kindness, leaving Yeon-rok momentarily speechless.
“…There, all done.”
Feeling embarrassed because it was his first time having someone else tie his shoelaces, Yeon-rok grumbled.
“I’m not always like this. I just have times when I’m this unlucky. It happens often, so I’m used to it.”
Having finished tying the laces, Moon Gyeon-woo dusted off his hands and stood up. He tilted his head.
“Hmm, from what I can see, rather than being unlucky… have you ever had an ADHD test?”
“Huh?”
At the unexpected topic, Yeon-rok let out a blank sound. What was ADHD again? Wasn’t it that? Being distracted and unable to concentrate?
“I think I’ve heard the term.”
“To me, it seems there’s a possibility you have ADHD. Of course, I can’t diagnose you without a test. I’m just saying you have those tendencies.”
Since a doctor was saying it, it sounded plausible to Yeon-rok. Is that so? Maybe… No, but there are definitely times when I’m just plain unlucky. The bodyguard Hyungs told me I have good athletic nerves, too. Moon Gyeon-woo suggested that he try taking a test next time.
“Anyway, shall we go now?”
“Let’s walk a bit to help with digestion.”
In truth, Moon Gyeon-woo seemed to be enduring his motion sickness throughout the journey without letting it show. His complexion was pale, he hadn’t eaten snacks at the rest stop, and he had eaten very little for lunch. Thus, using digestion as an excuse, they decided to wander around downtown for a while.
Since there was a traditional market nearby, they stopped by to buy some food. Although the resort provided three meals a day, snacks were a separate matter. Yeon-rok, who had eaten a hearty lunch, thought so.
“Oh, a fortune teller’s shop.”
Yeon-rok muttered while swallowing a piece of hotteok. Moon Gyeon-woo, who had been giving his hotteok to a bodyguard, also turned his gaze. Seeing the shop with a sign that read ‘Horyeong Divination Center,’ something came to mind.
“There was a time in the past when I was really unlucky. Nothing was working out, so I tried visiting a fortune teller.”
Moon Gyeon-woo, who was likely at the forefront of scientific progress more than anyone else in the vicinity, cast an openly ridiculing look at the shop. At a glance, he seemed like someone who wouldn’t believe in superstitions at all.
“But as soon as I went in, they told me I was unlucky, hit me with a bowl of salt, and kicked me out.”
“You didn’t report them?”
“Eh, why report someone over some salt? I just left, thinking I really am unlucky.”
As Yeon-rok looked around for a place to throw away the hotteok paper, Moon Gyeon-woo took it and put it in his own pocket, speaking coldly.
“All that is just a sales tactic. Suckers get hooked by those fancy performances. They do it to make you come back and cling to them so you’ll spend money. Where in the world are there gods or ghosts? They’re just scammers.”
Listening to the scathing evaluation, Yeon-rok suddenly felt mischievous and pointed to the shop.
“Still, it seems like it would be fun. Shall we try going in?”
Moon Gyeon-woo immediately looked reluctant. But seeing Yeon-rok’s eyes sparkling with mischief, he reflexively nodded.
“Sure… once in a while, I guess…”
His expression looked as if he were swallowing the words, I suppose it’s okay to waste money on something like this. Amused, Yeon-rok took Moon Gyeon-woo’s hand and led him. Upon entering the shop, it smelled of jajangmyeon, perhaps because it was lunchtime.
“Welcome~. Just a moment. I’ll go after I finish eating this.”
Giving them a quick glance, a middle-aged woman slurped up the remaining jajangmyeon. Only after clearing the bowl did she leisurely sit down.
“Are you here for a reading? Sit right here.”
Moon Gyeon-woo sat down, secretly harboring a look that said, Go ahead and try. The shaman applied a bold red lipstick and naturally struck up a conversation with Yeon-rok.
“So, what are our young gentlemen so curious about that they’ve come here? I specialize in Saju.”
“Not particularly…”
Just as he was about to say he wasn’t curious, Moon Gyeon-woo looked at Yeon-rok and shut his mouth. Yeon-rok, eyes shining with interest, sincerely provided his Saju details. Moon Gyeon-woo refused coldly.
“I’m fine. I don’t want to give my personal information in detail to a stranger.”
Perhaps it was the first time she had encountered someone so rude, as the shaman looked at him with a reluctant expression, prompting Yeon-rok to quickly jump in.
“I don’t have anything in particular I’m curious about! Hmm… what should I ask?”
“Then I’ll just give you a general overview, shall I?”
Speaking casually, the middle-aged shaman looked at the written Saju and scribbled various things down.
“Our young man has a Saju with a lot of blessings. Your luck is very good. The harmony and balance of the five elements are well-maintained. You have a face that can turn misfortune into good fortune. Wherever you go, you’ll find a benefactor, a true benefactor.”
“Oh…”
Yeon-rok’s expression became ambiguous. A Saju with many blessings? A benefactor? Good luck? He suddenly recalled the words that it was all a sales tactic and they were scammers. Sure enough, Moon Gyeon-woo couldn’t hold back.
“Isn’t that something anyone could say?”