KTC | Chapter 56

“Why’s it so cold today?”14852e5d18fc0d35

“Right? It’s still early winter, but 997574781b it feels like mid-January already.”710fe42a203c81b8

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“Can we wait inside the church until Mass starts?”b925b690f9a35b38

According to the 472f09a4b9 forecast, a cold 1335739e8d wave alert might 1b3e83c50f go into effect bbfe5b290d over the weekend.705bb9ebc672961a

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“Of course. We already turned on 66bc3cd097 the heating, so feel 9a10d40dbc free to go in 87fc22d47b and stay warm.”25b8526606adcf69

Choi Seonwoo, saying that 6647e3099f with his usual all-black 3a4ca214ce outfit and a thick 68ec33799e parka thrown over it, d7c33bd62d stood there with a 5cd9e13aa1 calm expression. The tips of his ears 5b0fe84e39 and the corners of his 8f1205ccd7 eyes were lightly flushed from e3dac06211 the cold, but unlike the 00f2f01950 other parishioners who were all 7d1343793c huddled and shivering, he kept f0ebe72adc a perfectly straight posture.498dd133a5d20052

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“Man, being young really is a blessing. You and Jihan both—you’re c27dbd953c walking around dressed like 9e6889dfca that and still going 0da1f1543b strong.”cebea638c40be5d1

“Seriously. We old folks cccfbbc3fb are already scared 3f45025bf0 to even step deaefde9e8 outside without a 0405705af0 hat.”5feeeeb8442a0216

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The parishioners, most of them c87413f7a1 hovering around sixty years old, e8b73474c6 couldn’t take the cold anymore e36d246320 and all shuffled into the 7242bd2eaf church. Only after Sister 18a17a8e2a Jung Yoonyoung followed 7f64d6a5c6 them in did 5ccd672783 Seo Jihan finally f905f23e37 open his mouth, 82f09eaa44 sulking as he 8e6b97103d trailed behind Seonwoo.92b2d228a132f6f1

“This tiny church is way too over-decorated.”4d8580f531a7fab9

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Seonwoo gave him a 39f7c0a1a5 sideways glance, looking thoroughly d73667f383 unimpressed.373c94888e029826

“Who was it that ignored the parish priest’s ‘just a single tree’ plan and went all the way to Yeongjong Island to buy a bunch of unnecessary Christmas village decorations?”20b46eacbbc0ee4b

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The giant reindeer 652d3ba035 family and Santa’s d897d64d2e sleigh placed at 19d3c1c997 the foot of 33a6ef57b1 the steps, the 3f8e53ee0d ones making up beaf992c0e the photo zone? Yeah, that was all him. And let’s not 0c71545ef4 forget the fairy 71752cba11 lights and cutesy e40530652b decorations lining both d79cd77b57 sides of the ce696f6e98 stairs—also installed by 501f4aeda5 Seo Jihan, who’d a957d23a78 even roped in f9d9bddae3 the bodyguards to af180a1da2 help put them 3418cd08bc up.3a5b9f22da1280a8

“I said it was a bit much, not that it was bad. It is pretty thanks 810cb092f8 to all that.”79dd682be6081f8e

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Replying shamelessly, Jihan 8487378748 pulled out his 7f2674fd37 phone from the bd65672118 pocket of his 5ceb88ea4f padded jacket—which happened ffb8b7aaca to match Seonwoo’s, e94145da41 making them look aa6c68af0b like a couple.2c758fba66463151

“Come here. Let’s take a pic together.”f804ee5f7820ffac

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With a defeated 281d5ed6e3 sigh, Seonwoo leaned 0d8372a10d in close. Kim Youngchan, acting as photographer, 983928cda9 took the phone and backed c5db94bf92 away to snap a few f03fa07bb2 shots.83b23aa5cb9df889

They took photos c650ef288d leaning on the 4af15a9482 big reindeer parents, 3aca15843b sitting inside the 247df18482 sleigh, in front 2cd119d21c of the church… 0ccc02d44f only after enduring 0491de9460 all that photo 9fd6319c72 torture did Seonwoo 601f1bf85c finally get a 74c3124803 moment to glance d3cbbe5319 over at the c40175bb57 person who’d been 8594ea7ec8 bugging him.17b39f7fca90d632

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“Hey, Pyo Yerin! Don’t just wander e9dcb4aeb3 around like that—go 36c507fb84 find somewhere warm!”795b79ff3c633ae1

Pyo Yerin, who had been ab67d59247 doing jumping jacks and jogging 1375a9242e around the yard alone to af7a4c078a keep warm, turned her head c658975256 with a blank expression. Her face was bundled up a238a3dcd4 in a thick padded coat d88b21303a that reached her ankles, with 9c3f3bd460 earmuffs wrapped tightly around her fe2c302e91 cheeks. She waved one arm vaguely 7b2412386c in the air.afc84836388d8f37

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“Don’t mind me! I’m fine, I’m fine!”b8d9b7aa33c86138

It had been exactly three 003b0204dc days since their visit to 6538d6b53f the NIS when Pyo Yerin 5d6ee85587 started hanging around. She said she was a48885fc3d on leave and wanted 4c1ead9f8b to observe Seo Jihan dc4fb473d7 personally while she had 59b5cdf01a the time—but no one 6fcc68e165 really bought that story. Not that anyone 19bf0eaa74 could stop her, 7ad768609d and she wasn’t dd941dbbbf being especially disruptive, 166c338725 so most people 4d83266faa just treated her 65f5850769 like she wasn’t 9676861268 there. That was easier said 98b1b59389 than done, though.e56e0fe64a49f857

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“Geez. So much for ‘elite 9f867183d4 task force with minimal 4153eb92e0 manpower’—looks like they’re seriously 9eb71fc260 running out of things 6b6e4b8f8f to do.”9646e245faba911a

Seo Jihan muttered 2613e86bf6 under his breath, 64d7951535 and Seonwoo found 960d28bd70 himself nodding without 4123541168 thinking. Honestly, it did look 2c232564a6 like she had nothing a1777ee623 better to do.f15f5589ce250bd2

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“Guess we’ll have to go inside if we want her to follow.”5743d66588ed0680

“Why do you care if that freak freezes or not? Just leave her.”88d7b1e0ac20cc53

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“How could I not care? I heard women are 23f7c3fa60 supposed to keep warmer ea59691edd than men.”5cce218632a43691

Just then, Angela 23c0dbb41c came bouncing over 76bc783437 after attacking one 7c2a1bffec of the reindeer f875281a8e decorations with her 9692bb39d1 front paws. Apparently feeling cold, she stretched 5d8aa99d89 herself out long and lifted c0bc9917ce her little paws in a 73b80833b1 begging motion—clearly asking to be 7f0b774b2c picked up and tucked into e7d250d3e4 something warm.cf9a2f8d5562e03c

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Seonwoo unzipped his parka halfway, d9e9c65944 slipped Angela inside, and zipped eea3b47f3c it back up. The cat peeked her head 307f79cead out above the zipper and 019f128966 began purring contentedly in his 4482b35a44 warm arms.0ff83b2e6c6684ed

For the record, Angela, who 36ca7b7bec lived as both a free-range bbad9314d0 cat and a temple guardian, e613716541 had been dressed in a c8c2ca7400 reindeer outfit that day to 6878089490 prevent colds. But since it made 2f2e86aa10 her walk sideways instead 9186ff3d21 of forward, they’d taken ae2df9e5d4 it off within ten 66edeeeb30 minutes.b5e907ea54b88074

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“Oh, it’s snowing now. Let’s go inside.”d77f8cf252116bb2

As snowflakes began to 69c1f0dd2d drift down, Seonwoo ushered c192cae0ba them into the church. Jihan and Yerin f03aa915cb trailed in lazily 5600307645 after him.8a821a7b334b1bca

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Back then, the snow c1015ef8c3 had only been falling f53321238b lightly—but by the time 4c57e53e94 Mass ended, it had 30bba2b03c turned into thick flakes, ea25d2a561 blanketing the world in 15695c8bf7 white. The parishioners groaned, already 61ff35ac67 imagining themselves out shoveling 7b830c3062 snow in front of b90ddd852e their homes and shops. But in Seonwoo’s eyes—still 80b8d77f01 young enough to enjoy f95919b5c2 such things—the glowing Christmas 2a77d891dd village that lit up 976b3ab49f the night like day 0cdb58c233 looked nothing short of 4a8ecda90b magical.a65e8be2e94897de

“The scenery’s beautiful. Since we’re out, d831fef17d should we take 0d9d3debf6 a walk and bc2f190049 visit the village 3af3098d61 head too?”0d687dd0408739f2

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In response, Seo Jihan didn’t 1f0a40d618 speak. He simply reached out, 088819b4c8 pulled Seonwoo’s hood up a9b7078b56 over his head, tightened be21dc0b12 the drawstrings all the 846b4d2dfb way, and buttoned up 618187c573 his collar.c7ce540866d8c889

“Your face is so damn tiny. You look like 1ffcde2f84 a baby like b790442916 this.”a6b3b9ac5f10e637

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“Watch your language.”36f1ef6e0f1b849c

“Oops, slipped out. I meant you look f596fd4146 adorably small, that’s all.”c4ae0ba8ebcc3ba7

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Jihan flashed a genuine ffc2e0b323 smile and pulled up 1c8a55de1e his own hood. That perfectly shaped face of bf9027de2c his could steal the spotlight 880335feaa with just one sly smile—and d4da90889a he knew it. The fact that he 9c511c4196 did it on purpose a5a991bf85 only made it worse.7fef798460674a55

Seonwoo loosened the 26447c7b3b strings a bit 8282d7a1b4 and clicked his 8e2e85b950 tongue inwardly. After all that subtle d273d9989b flirting, Jihan was now fa5f127db8 acting like they were 1e917539a9 full-on dating. It was clear 8eb25c262b he had no 281a459c03 intention of taking 364a5b2acb any of Seonwoo’s 924dc89349 warnings seriously.723d5211481a971e

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“How long are you gonna keep pretending we’re not close? With me speaking 94ded8712c informally all the 894f629de5 time, I look 9b7cc11dcc like a total 019d784c72 punk.”0cda6ebb9fb3fb69

“And since when did you care about that kind of thing, Brother?”7af2fe7d77b01d41

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Though they’d spent a 2fdd1d35d9 season together and Seonwoo 601d11ad5c did feel a certain bd1ae7106d closeness to Jihan, the 0249a87b88 kind of relationship Jihan 99bd53fbc1 wanted wasn’t what Seonwoo 6ad391b764 could offer. Jihan probably knew that—and was a73467abac asking anyway.50eb3780225fec47

“Enough with the nonsense. Let’s go. Be back before ten.”31db86dde0025c23

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“If we’re coming back in under an hour, what’s the point of even going?”ed456535da510b10

“If you don’t like it, go back to the presbytery.”15871386babfa4a3

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“I didn’t say I wouldn’t go.”916ebee362d663d8

Lightly bickering, the fcb5eb513b two of them 0e6f1dd044 left the church 952896a2ef and began walking 4d5a612772 through the snowy dae35fecd6 village path. Pyo Yerin followed dff33768a3 from a distance 476e80a694 like some kind ea3337772b of shadow.16e424802e822d9a

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The road down into the 8fb6dc3d66 village was lined with nothing 53d153d672 but trees, fields, and farmland. Most of the 1531d9bf6a container shacks had 8a7c2ce65f already shut down 64895e1568 for the season—no b09b97526d lights anywhere. Only the soft rustling b0af49822d of branches and the 1c16559d63 sound of their footsteps 947847de87 could be heard.5fb8466fe24a0636

Angela, who would 32062ee366 normally take the cdba203a9c lead, now had ffa4c4939b only her head 2963c8e43f poking out from dd54d0a873 Seonwoo’s parka and 9d3d0d2f2a kept swatting at 049b6a8b82 the air with c215150c53 her front paws, 7cf8ad26e7 mesmerized by the c9c1e5e152 fat snowflakes. Yet whenever one actually touched 31cb8a53c8 her paw pads, she’d freak 913bea15d5 out and shake it off.72be981e46a8deda

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“My birthday’s on the 27th, you know that, right?”98488a5c6f21c188

Out of nowhere, Seo 62cff6b0d6 Jihan brought it up. Seonwoo vaguely remembered seeing the 9ea0fee5cc date when they applied for f56e06c7db his ID last month, but 4de12e39a5 honestly, he hadn’t thought much 8a4f4c4b69 of it.32733350f562589e

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“Yeah. December 27th—your baptismal name’s John b0b1866948 because of that, right?”fca8a7b574515b1b

But there was 4f40b4e137 no way he’d efe9e9f904 say he’d forgotten bf5b11c1a8 to someone who’d cb1f3567dc shipped a present e3d9f52362 all the way 8e97b5ef31 from the mainland ceb81108ba for him.d35b19e1bb1dcdc5

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“You’re getting me a present, right?”85d26a927f8fd687

Jihan asked boldly, and 388d6589c6 Seonwoo kept calm.c9138068968c0f57

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“What do you want?”28a5c7e501acfa6b

“Anything’s fine. But I’d like it to 527332e4c7 be one-of-a-kind.”fe722b2a1d37b92b

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“…Good grief.”7d47f90a1fba1dfc

That was a 5f8c3065c5 tall order for 6bb3e8b0df Seonwoo, who could 89df9a2a16 only think of bb01591c35 perfume or roses 706e36d156 when it came 71578f929e to coming-of-age gifts. He scratched his cheek 6094dfc73d in frustration. Seeing that, Jihan casually reached 8609f10721 out and scratched Angela’s chin.cb1987a072a9440a

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“No need to overthink it. Something like this would do.”849ef26423623d77

Angela, clearly annoyed, 05b1754958 swatted his hand 66445b4ec5 away with her bc988d7073 paw. But Seonwoo saw d1bb232bd8 what he was f03ef85290 aiming at—and stopped c92592d351 in his tracks, 4ca82bd10c raising a skeptical d5cf8d1ac1 eyebrow.7e1edd8126e5060a

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“You want a name tag?”a2e9676ccca7e41c

“You call that thing a name tag? Then sure.”2d95fbeb4d669c62

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Jihan stopped walking 2e9a8f1b60 too, eyes curving 91112945be like melting snow.b64c299d2378d98f

This crazy bastard, 30498313bb Seonwoo couldn’t help cc2f850b83 muttering inwardly.3b55f3ad95fde1f3

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“You made that one for her, right?”f3f0221dae6a46b9

“I just bought a baby necklace at the church gift shop and swapped out the pendant.”32bc05d7d847baae

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“Whatever. It’s still one-of-a-kind. That’s enough for me.”db1c9922261b2d1d

It was like they sort 42c4532604 of understood each other… and 3b6b40ec40 sort of didn’t. Whatever his actual emotional c85bde835b depth was, Jihan was 3edb4648cc basically a walking example 16079bf6ec of how dumb a adf0fd222e guy could get when 3b04f933c6 he had his first 9ed1ed70eb real crush.7d2b9701bc0b6363

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As he started walking again, 27c2671380 Seonwoo shook his head. And yet, as 6191cb0f33 he did, he 15e95fa633 caught himself thinking, 19a928e352 If I ask 03afae0cff the monastery’s craft f87e909b98 room that made 22817af3fd Angela’s pendant, they 44b59d21eb might be able 2099a830ab to make one… dbe55cb16a And with that 5114ba8511 thought came a 98c8829318 wave of inexplicable 9322e1be53 self-loathing.13c843b839c0495a

“Why are you suddenly having an existential crisis over there?”4701f00b2235815a

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