Defective Banana - Chapter 27
A hand brushed past Ara’s face—Kang Seohyuk’s. When she saw the black card settle into the shop owner’s palm, she spun around and glared up at him.
“Can you not whip out that black card all the time?”
“I just wanted to get it for you. For a second there, I thought a goddess had descended from the heavens.”
He flashed a playful smile through his bangs and said it like it was an offhand comment—but if he kept talking like that, she didn’t know what he’d do when his identity got out.
Frowning at his boldness, Ara pulled out the ornamental hairpin and let her hair fall loose.
“Don’t you have any other cards?”
“Nope. I only carry this one around. But—” he leaned in slightly, a teasing glint in his eyes “—I carry other things heavy. All three of them. Experience really is everything, huh?”
As he winked, Ara bit back a laugh. She had a pretty good idea what “three things*” he meant.
TL/N: *Face, body, heart.
While Seohyuk went to pay, Ara wandered along the counter, scanning the shelves. Her eyes landed on a pair of couple bracelets featuring the same jade as the hairpin earlier. She grabbed the set and slipped into the small accessories store.
“I’ll pay for these with my card, please.”
The shop owner nodded, taking her card and handing back Seohyuk’s black one with a whisper.
“Is this really a black card? That guy outside must be someone huge. Who is he?”
Flustered, Ara waved her hand and laughed nervously.
“Oh no, it’s nothing like that! That’s my cousin. He’s unemployed. Seriously—no job.”
Whether the lie landed or not, Ara acted completely unbothered, throwing in a loud, exaggerated laugh for good measure.
“Ohhh, I see. I’ve just never seen a real black card before. I thought it was the black card you only hear about. Anyway, here you go—thank you for shopping!”
Ara left the store with the hairpin and the bracelets, hurrying over to Seohyuk. She tugged his arm gently and started walking. As he followed her without resistance, Ara handed him the black card and murmured under her breath.
“From now on, I’m paying for everything. Got it?”
Her sharp glare made him nod without thinking, and he quickly fell in line behind her. Once they’d walked a bit further into a quiet alley, Ara looked around and stopped him.
“Hold on—give me your hand.”
“My hand? Here?”
Seohyuk assumed she was about to scold him and maybe smack it—but that was just his weird wishful thinking again.
Ara pulled one of the bracelets from the bag. Realizing what she meant, Seohyuk held his hand out.
“So one of these was for me?”
“Of course. We came all the way to Jeonju. I had to get you something.”
He squinted, a bit shy. “Man, how do people deal with corny stuff like this…”
But his eyes were practically sparkling with joy.
Ara tied the bracelet snugly around his wrist—sky blue jade encased in silver, braided with black thread—and smiled to herself.
“Looks good on you.”
Seohyuk, who had been watching her from above, suddenly pushed her gently against the wall. He caged her in his arms and lowered his mask to his chin.
“Give me a kiss.”
“What? Here? Are you insane? What if someone walks by?”
“Just a quick one. Please?”
Before she could answer, he cupped her cheeks and pressed his lips to hers, tilting his head as he pulled her in deep.
Worried her head might bump the wall, he cradled the back of it and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her close.
His lips were warm and tasted faintly of coffee. The sweetness spread in her mouth.
Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it might burst. The suddenness of it, the slight thrill of being caught—it all had her giggling mid-kiss. His lips softly sucked her upper, then lower lip, gently exploring inside her mouth.
Just when things were heating up, the noisy chatter of children echoed from nearby. Startled, Ara pushed him away. Seohyuk quickly turned toward the sound.
It was coming from the alley they’d just passed through—the one with the accessory shop. And it was definitely getting closer.
Panicking, they both backed off and turned their faces in the opposite direction.
A noisy family appeared—three kids, and one of them, probably around six, pointed back and forth at Ara and Seohyuk, yelling.
“Wow! Choco! It’s a choco couple*!”
TL/N:*Their matching brown outfits.
Then the older brother chimed in with a smirk.
“No it’s not, that’s poop brown. All you think about is chocolate.”
Luckily, their older sister stayed quiet, and their mom scolded the younger two.
“Hey! Shh! Keep it down!”
Ara subtly turned away and wiped her lips with her hand. Seohyuk stood awkwardly still, pretending to be fascinated by the scenery beyond the wall.
As the family passed right in front of him, the youngest kid looked up and shouted.
“Whoa! Choco ajusshi is soooo tall. He’s like a giraffe!”
Their dad, trying to keep things from escalating, tugged the child’s hand.
“Let’s just walk quietly, okay?”
He probably picked up on the atmosphere between the couple.
Even the elementary-school-aged son seemed to notice something, because he whispered—just loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Did they kiss or something? Their faces are super red.”
“Hem-hem! Kids, seriously, hush!”
A few seconds later, once the family disappeared from view, Ara marched back to Seohyuk and slapped his back.
“See? I told you people might walk by!”
“Ow, Ara! You can’t hit me here… this could get really awkward for me.”
He looked down meaningfully.
“Oh—crap!”
Ara’s gaze followed his, down to his pants. Yep, the problem was visibly rising.
Seohyuk stared at her for a moment, swallowed hard, and said.
“Wanna look for a nearby hotel?”
“Absolutely not. You need to calm down. Sing the national anthem or something and follow me. Slowly.”
Ara walked ahead, and Seohyuk stuffed both hands into his pockets and awkwardly followed.
His pants, already tight to begin with, made things painfully obvious.
Every time someone passed by, he darted to the wall and pretended to admire the view over the fence. Thankfully, his tall height made that a convincing cover.
After wandering the neighborhood a little longer, they bought some snacks.
Whenever Seohyuk tried to pull out the black card again, Ara would slap his hand away and hand over hers.
They picked up a few delicious-looking pastries and spicy tteokbokki, then headed back to their lodging.
Inside the traditional hanok house, they settled onto the wooden deck to wait for Donghee and her group.
The two of them dug into the tteokbokki first—thick, spicy red sauce with lots of green onions. Even the soft-boiled eggs were split in half and shared like pros.
While they were sipping on soda and munching on bread, Donghee returned with her friends in a noisy bunch.
“You just got here?”
“Yeah. Picked up some sashimi. Let’s drink.”
Donghee came over and eyed the spread Ara and Seohyuk had laid out.
“Wait—did you guys start eating without us?”
“Sorry, we were starving. We’ll clean it up real quick. Come sit.”
“Leave it. We can just eat what’s left. But hey—check this out.”
She proudly held up a box with handles and opened it to reveal several glass jars filled with colorful flower petals.
“Huh? What’s this?”
“I got you a whole set. You steep these petals and drink them like tea. Pretty, right? Good to sip while you’re working.”
“Aww, unnie, thank you! I actually got you something too.”
Ara pulled out the bracelet from her pocket and handed it over.
“It’s a couple bracelet—with your son.”
“Me and Seohyuk? Oh my, it’s adorable.”
At that, Seohyuk stared blankly at the bracelet on his wrist. He had assumed they were a couple bracelets between him and Ara.
“Haha… so it’s me and Kim Yeosa, huh…”
Ara fastened the bracelet onto Donghee’s wrist and smiled proudly.
“Isn’t it cute?”
“The color’s so pretty. Thanks, Ara. I’ll wear it all the time.”
“Thank you too. I’ll enjoy the tea.”
Meanwhile, Donghee’s friends pulled out bottles of booze, the clinking of glass loud and festive. They set out the sashimi and various dishes—fusion-style, colorful, and mouthwatering.
Donghee handed out chopsticks.
“Alright, everyone. Time to go to town on this food!”
And with that, the drinking party began. Ara, Seohyuk, Donghee, and four of Donghee’s friends.
“I can’t believe Seohyuk got this famous.”
“Right? I thought he’d stay in modeling, with his height and looks, but next thing you know he’s in movies—and now he’s a top star.”
“He’s such a good actor. Loved the film, Seohyuk.”
Their compliments made Seohyuk beam, dimples and all.
“Everyone wants me now. I’m very busy, ladies. Cheers!”
As he played it up, Ara leaned over to Donghee and whispered.
“Unnie, is he always this smooth?”
Donghee rolled her eyes. “Only when he’s in a good mood. Little brat.”
The two women sat there, watching Seohyuk ham it up, sipping their drinks and sharing smiles.