📍 The Yang Family Home
"I'm home!" Jeongmin announced loudly as he stepped into his luxurious residence. "Jae-yi! Where are you, my princess?!"
Hyebin, trailing behind him, gazed around the interior of Jeongmin's family home in awe. The grand pillars, crystal chandeliers, and European-style furniture only emphasized the fact that the guy in front of her came from an extremely wealthy family.
"Jeongmin Oppa?!" A shrill little voice came from the living room. A moment later, a small child came running toward them.
Hyebin noticed that the little girl was probably around the same age as her niece, perhaps five or six years old. She was wearing a pink dress, with her hair braided into two pigtails. Jeongmin immediately crouched down and spread his arms, welcoming his little sister into a tight hug.
"There's my favorite girl in the world!"
Hyebin smiled warmly as Jeongmin's little sister wrapped her arms tightly around her brother's neck like a koala. Just then, a white Pomeranian puppy came hopping out from behind the hallway, wagging its tail enthusiastically.
"You're my favorite oppa in the world!"
"Where's Mom?" Jeongmin asked as he settled his sister on his lap and played with one of her braids.
"Mom? She's in her office, on the phone," the little girl answered innocently. A few seconds later, Jeongmin's little sister's round eyes suddenly noticed Hyebin standing not far from her brother. The child lit up with delight. "Oppa... who's that pretty eonni next to you?"
Hyebin was both surprised and flattered by the sincere compliment that slipped from the girl's lips. The child smiled so sweetly, revealing deep dimples in both cheeks that looked remarkably like Jeongmin's.
Jae-yi let go of Jeongmin and walked over to Hyebin, tugging at the hem of Hyebin's shirt to signal that she should crouch down. Hyebin complied, kneeling so they were at the same height. At the same time, Lolly, the puppy, ran over and, without hesitation, rested its head on Hyebin's lap, enjoying the gentle strokes of her fingers.
"Look at that. Lolly liked you at first sight," Jeongmin explained as he watched the warm interaction.
"Eonni..." Jae-yi tilted her head and stared at Hyebin with intense curiosity before whispering her innocent question. "Are you Jeongmin Oppa's new girlfriend?"
"Jae-yi..." Jeongmin immediately cut in warningly, shaking his head in disbelief. "Why would you ask our guest something like that?"
Jae-yi instantly crossed her arms over her chest, her little lips pursed in annoyance at being scolded by her brother. "I was just asking!"
Hyebin gently took Jae-yi's fingers and stroked them warmly. "It's okay, Jeongmin." Jae-yi immediately flashed Hyebin another sweet smile. "But I'm not your brother's girlfriend. I'm just his friend and study partner."
"Oh..." The little girl's sigh was filled with unmistakable disappointment. "I thought this pretty eonni was going to be Oppa's girlfriend. I was already so happy..."
Jeongmin chuckled at his sister's antics and patted her shoulder. "Don't you want to introduce yourself properly?"
Jae-yi immediately stood up straight, then bowed ninety degrees toward Hyebin with adorable politeness. "Hello, Eonni! My name is Yang Jae-yi, and I'm six years old!"
Hyebin giggled at her formal introduction. "Hello, Jae-yi. You can call me Hyebin Eonni." Hyebin gently rubbed the child's chubby cheek.
"Hyebin Eonni?" Jae-yi smiled enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. "Eonni's name is so pretty, just like you!"
"Thank you so much, Jae-yi," Hyebin replied. The girl was genuinely surprised and charmed. For some reason, the little girl in front of her was incredibly good at giving sweet compliments capable of melting anyone's heart.
Jeongmin, watching the moment up close, couldn't hold back his smile. He truly admired how naturally Hyebin interacted with and looked after his beloved little sister. Jae-yi then turned slightly toward Jeongmin and whispered in a deliberately loud voice.
"Oppa... I really like Hyebin Eonni!"
"Oppa likes her too."
"Huh?" Hyebin froze. She looked up at Jeongmin, her expression an extraordinary mixture of confusion and shock.
Jeongmin's confident smile faltered as he realized the three honest words had just slipped out of his mouth completely unfiltered. The atmosphere between them suddenly turned awkward and silent for several seconds. Jeongmin scratched the back of his neck even though it didn't itch, trying to think of an excuse to save face.
Just before the awkward atmosphere spiraled out of control, the elegant sound of footsteps came from the main staircase. "Jeongmin-ah? You're home, sweetheart?"
Hyebin turned her gaze toward the source of the voice. A well-dressed middle-aged woman approached them. Hyebin assumed she was Jeongmin's mother. The woman's style and aura were so refined that even the way she walked made Hyebin suddenly feel a little nervous and intimidated.
"Mom!" Jeongmin greeted his mother with a broad smile.
"Who is this pretty girl?" she asked with a friendly smile, revealing dimples exactly like those of both her children. Jeongmin's mother raised both eyebrows at her son teasingly. "Is she the new girlfriend you've been telling me about?"
"No, Mom!" Jeongmin groaned softly and shook his head vigorously, while Hyebin nearly choked on her own saliva at the blunt question. "We're here to work on a Biology project from Professor Kang."
Hyebin released Jae-yi's hand, stood up straight, and bowed formally to Jeongmin's mother. "Hello, ma'am. I'm Han Hyebin. I'm Jeongmin's Biology project partner from Veterinary Medicine," Hyebin introduced herself politely, silently hoping the woman in front of her wouldn't get a bad impression of her.
"It's nice to meet you, Hyebin-ah. Jeongmin finally brought such a sweet study partner home."
"Oh, right, ma'am... I brought you a little something," Hyebin said, remembering the gift and awkwardly handing over a paper bag containing a box of premium pastries she had bought at the bakery earlier.
"Oh my, you shouldn't have gone to the trouble of bringing a gift, sweetheart," Jeongmin's mother said as she accepted the bag.
"It was no trouble at all, ma'am. I happened to be waiting at the bakery before Jeongmin picked me up, so I figured I'd buy it while I was there."
"Thank you so much. That was very thoughtful of you."
Seeing that her brother's attention had been taken away, Jae-yi walked over and tugged at the hem of her mother's dress and Jeongmin's hand. "Jeongmin Oppa! I want to play dolls with Hyebin Eonni in my room!" Jae-yi demanded, giving him a pair of puppy eyes that were nearly impossible to resist.
"You can't, Jae-yi-ah," Jeongmin refused, instantly making Jae-yi's eyes well up with tears. Hyebin felt terrible when she saw it. "Hyebin Eonni came here to study and work on an important report. Come on, Hyebin. Let's go to the study upstairs," Jeongmin said, gesturing for Hyebin to follow him.
Hyebin glanced at Jae-yi guiltily and stroked the child's braided hair in apology before following Jeongmin, who had already started toward the stairs. When Hyebin and Jeongmin had only climbed a few steps, Jae-yi laughed mischievously, tugged on her mother's hand, and called out loudly enough for them to hear.
"Mom! I really like Hyebin Eonni! Can we ask her to be Jeongmin Oppa's girlfriend?!"
Jeongmin stopped halfway up the stairs when he heard that. He turned around and shouted down at her. "Oppa heard that, Jae-yi!!"
Jeongmin's shout prompted a bright laugh from his mother below, while Hyebin could only cover her face with her notebook, trying to hide her smile and the blush on her cheeks as they continued toward the study.
The tapping of laptop keys clashed with the silence of the wood-floored study on the second floor, which was also Jeongmin's bedroom. Hyebin sat in one of the cushioned chairs beside the large desk. She stared intently at her laptop screen, her fingers never stopping as she focused on completing one of the important sections of their project proposal draft.
"Do you need any help?"
Jeongmin leaned toward Hyebin as he sat beside her. Their shoulders nearly touched. Hyebin, fully absorbed in her work, suddenly turned her head to the side and was startled by the extremely short distance between their faces. Their noses were only a few inches apart.
"I-I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
Jeongmin raised one eyebrow and studied Hyebin's eyes closely. He clearly realized how tired the girl beside him was, since they had been poring over rows of sample data and scientific journals for nearly an hour and a half without a break.
The project-planning stage had taken about an hour, consisting mostly of Jeongmin's guidance and explanations as Hyebin followed along and listened carefully to the complicated points of their genetic analysis.
Hyebin bit her lower lip. Her eyes felt a little dry, and her fingers ached. Honestly, she was thinking about asking for a short break, but she wasn't sure whether someone like Jeongmin would agree.
"Could we... could we take a short break?" she asked bravely, looking at Jeongmin hopefully.
Jeongmin gave a faint grin. "I thought you'd never ask." Hyebin stared at him in confusion, blinking several times. "Why are you looking at me like that?" Jeongmin asked, noticing her puzzled stare.
Jeongmin got up from his seat, stretched both arms toward the ceiling, and sauntered over to the soft gray sofa behind them before dropping onto it comfortably.
"It's just... I thought you were the type of perfectionist student who hated taking breaks while studying and would keep pushing yourself until you finished," Hyebin replied as she turned her chair toward the sofa where Jeongmin was lounging.
"I'm not like Minjae. I'm pretty laid-back and I know my limits, so you don't have to worry about me working you until you pass out," Jeongmin said casually.
"Can I ask you something?" Hyebin said again. She had only wanted to get rid of the thought and curiosity that had been on her mind since they were first assigned to work together.
"You already did," Jeongmin said with an even wider grin, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned back casually on the sofa and looked straight at Hyebin.
Hyebin rolled her eyes at his obnoxious response. "Why did you agree to be my partner? I mean... you're a double major with great grades. You could have asked Professor Kang for anyone as your partner."
Jeongmin tilted his head for a moment, pretending to think hard before answering. "Why not? First, I like being paired with someone I've never worked with before. Second, you're not a terrible academic. At least you genuinely contribute a lot to the project instead of being dead weight who only boosts my name."
"Thanks... for the backhanded compliment." Hyebin held back an embarrassed smile. "By the way, your mother is really nice... and Jae-yi..." Hyebin paused, remembering the adorable girl. "She's so cute, and so is Lolly. You're lucky to have such a warm family."
"Trust me, Hyebin. My little sister may look adorable in front of a stranger like you, but she's actually a little devil in disguise. You just haven't seen how mischievous she can be when she gets going."
"But I think you're the devil instead of Jae-yi."
"You might be right," Jeongmin said, a gentle, charming grin appearing on his lips. His eyes narrowed as he stared at Hyebin with an intensity that suddenly made the air in the room feel warm. "So, be careful, love. I might be the real devil in disguise instead."
"I'm not afraid of you, Jeongmin. And—"
Knock! Knock! Knock!
A soft knock from outside the wooden door cut Hyebin off mid-sentence. The door opened, and Min-ah entered carrying a tray with two glass bowls of fresh fruit and a glass of chilled juice.
"I brought you both some fresh fruit for a study snack," Min-ah said with a warm smile as she came in and set the tray on the table near the sofa.
"Thank you so much for the food, ma'am. You really didn't have to go to the trouble..." Hyebin stood and bowed politely, feeling somewhat embarrassed and unwilling to impose on Jeongmin's family.
Min-ah quickly shook her head, her face full of affection. "I insist, sweetheart. You've been studying so hard." Min-ah looked at Hyebin with a hopeful glimmer in her eyes. "Oh, and Hyebin-ah... could you stay here and join us until dinner?"
Hyebin was startled and suddenly at a loss. She turned her gaze toward Jeongmin, who was still sitting on the sofa. He gave her a small signal with his eyes, asking her to nod and accept his mother's invitation. But, feeling uncomfortable, Hyebin did the opposite. She felt that she had already imposed on the family for too long.
"I'm sorry, ma'am... I don't want to be a burden or trouble your family any longer, I—"
"Of course she'll stay for dinner, Mom!" Jeongmin suddenly cut her off in a loud voice.
Hyebin immediately shot Jeongmin a confused, mildly protesting look, but he deliberately ignored her pointed stare. Min-ah's eyes lit up with delight.
"That's wonderful! I'll cook something special tonight. I'll come see you two again in an hour!" With that, Min-ah left the room energetically and closed the door.
"Yang Jeongmin!" Hyebin muttered, half-whispering but emphasizing every word once the door had closed.
"What? Why do you keep refusing?" Jeongmin asked as he picked up a slice of apple from the tray. "Besides, you still have to stay here until we finish the initial draft of our project—at least half of the goal we set for today. Whether you like it or not, you'll be hungry."
Hyebin fidgeted with her fingers. "But still..."
"Besides..." Jeongmin continued in a slightly softer voice, "Mom seems to really like you. And Jae-yi will be thrilled if you stay a little longer to eat with us. Just consider it a thank-you for agreeing to help me."