Defective Banana - Chapter 36

To check off one item from his relationship bucket list—“Go see the ocean at night with Ara”—Seohyuk started going undercover like a completely different person.

He wore a bucket hat with little bells on it, a huge, hip oversized shirt, and an equally ridiculous leather jacket. His pants? Cargo pants overloaded with more pockets than any human reasonably needs. After putting it all together, he strutted confidently out of the room and stood before Ara.

“I specially put this look together for tonight. I don’t look like myself at all, right?”

And truly, if anyone said this guy was movie star Kang Seohyuk, they’d be laughed out of the room. He looked like a full-blown street punk.

Ara pursed her lips and asked seriously, “Do you really have to dress like this? You look like you’re about to mug someone.”

“This is the only way to not get recognized.”

“Well, I guess your height already makes you stand out. Still…”

“Trust me, this is all based on experience. Just follow my lead, no need to worry.”

Ara scratched her cheek, not entirely convinced, but Seohyuk just gave her a wink and popped his jacket collar up higher.

“Yeah… you really don’t look like you,” Ara muttered. She walked a slow circle around him, checking him out from every angle. Her lips curled slightly, like she was holding back a laugh.

Then, just when he put on the black mask in his hand, his look reached peak disaster. Those cargo pants with their endless pockets, the sloppy oversized clothes, and that leather jacket perched on top of it all… yeah, he looked like a total delinquent.

With his face now hidden under the hat and mask, Seohyuk reached out his hand sweetly to Ara.

“Shall we go?”

Ara closed her eyes for a moment, then sighed and held out her hand—not to take his, but for something else.

“Give me a mask too.”

“Huh? But the air’s fine today.”

“No, I just… it’s a little embarrassing to be seen with you like this.”

“Ah… fair enough.”

Only after covering her face with the black mask he gave her did she finally look a bit more at ease. Together, they headed for the Busan beach.

It was dark enough to see stars overhead, but the glowing lights from the tall buildings nearby made the beach feel like daytime. Unbelievably, the beach was packed. People were wandering along the sand, enjoying the night air.

Waves crashed gently in the distance, and a long bridge stretched across the sea, its colorful lights shimmering beautifully.

Ara and Seohyuk strolled hand in hand across the sand, moving slowly and freely, just enjoying each other’s company.

Then they heard it—gentle music, a soft song accompanied by guitar. The sound mixed with the waves, drawing their attention. Naturally, they walked toward where a small crowd had gathered.

The soulful melody and heartfelt lyrics made the night even more romantic.

Still holding hands, they smiled as they listened to the music.

Then, out of nowhere, Seohyuk hugged Ara from behind and whispered in her ear, “Ara, lower your mask a little.”

“Hm? Why?”

As she turned and pulled it down slightly, he did the same—then leaned in and placed a quick kiss on her lips. Then, like nothing happened, he lifted his mask back up and hugged her tighter.

Ara gave him a sharp look, then grumbled under her breath, just loud enough for him to hear, “Seriously? With all these people around? Are you just done caring about anything? You don’t listen to a word I say anymore. Do you even realize how much trouble you’re asking for?”

She kept muttering as she pinched his thigh where no one could see. Seohyuk yelped softly, but didn’t let go—instead, he hugged her even tighter and whispered back with a sly smile, “This is your fault, you know. So take responsibility.”

Ara felt something firm press right into her backside, making her bite her lip behind her mask. It was… definitely real.

Real and growing. Amused, she grinned under her mask and pinched him again.

A little while later, the two of them left the beach and went to a photo booth.

They didn’t bother dressing up—just went straight in, posed in different ways, and started snapping pictures. Seohyuk had taken off his hat and mask, now hugging Ara from behind while flashing playful, expressive faces like the pro actor he was.

“Ara, look at me.”

“Huh?”

As she turned toward his voice, he suddenly kissed her, full-on and with no warning.

That exact moment got captured as the final photo in the strip, and soon the four-photo print came out.

“You’re really unbelievable,” Ara muttered.

They split the photo strip and headed back to their hotel. Thanks to Seohyuk’s ridiculous outfit, no one had recognized him, and their Haeundae night beach date ended peacefully.

***

Back in their room, Seohyuk immediately picked up on Ara’s scary glare and dropped to his knees in front of her.

“Am I about to get scolded really badly?” Ara crossed her arms and stared him down, wondering what the hell to do with this runaway beast of a man.

It had all started when they were riding the elevator back up to the 22nd floor. Out of nowhere, he’d cornered her, yanked down his mask, and started kissing her like he’d lost his mind.

“I did wrong, so I deserve to be punished, right?”

He emphasized the “right?” with a cheeky little smirk. It was infuriating… and honestly, kind of cute.

“I told you to behave yourself in public. You seriously want to get punished that badly tonight?”

“You don’t even know, do you? You’re insanely sexy when you’re scolding me.”

“Oh, really now?”

Ara let out a breathy laugh, then pressed her foot into his thigh while he was still kneeling.

“Haahk.”

Despite being used to this kind of thing, it was like flipping a switch—just a bit of pressure and his lower half instantly caught on and started reacting.

His baggy hip-hop pants began to… rise. Seeing it swell slowly, Ara moved her foot and brushed the front of it with a teasing hand.

“Already so hard, huh.”

“Haa… can I take this off now?”

“Why? Too hot?”

Seohyuk nodded slightly, eyes locked on her face.

Feeling playful, Ara stepped back and said, “I drove a lot today. I’m beat. I’m going to bed now. I’ll take this room, you take that one. Got it?”

“Already? In separate rooms?”

“This is part of your punishment. What, am I not sexy anymore?”

Still kneeling, Seohyuk held her hand and stroked it, murmuring, “But I wanna sleep holding you.”

“You never just hold me when we sleep.”

“You know I can’t help it. It’s the natural, noble instinct of mankind following the laws of—”

“Okay! I’m going to bed. You have a nice night, Seohyuk.”

She turned to walk away, but he didn’t let go of her hand.

“Even if you’re tired… can’t we hang out just a little longer? I brought wine you like.”

“Wine? Where?”

Looking around, Ara’s curiosity piqued. Seohyuk smiled softly and stood up.

“Hold on.”

He disappeared into the other room and came back with a bottle of wine and a tray of fruit.

“When did you get that?”

“I ordered it through room service earlier. They delivered it right on time. I didn’t even know hotels had this kind of setup. One sec—there’s more.”

Winking, he went back into the room and came out holding a small shopping bag and a white cake in both hands.

“Huh? What’s with the cake?”

He set it on the table, and Ara sat down on the couch, eyeing him suspiciously.

“What’s going on?”

Seohyuk pulled out a small, flat box from the shopping bag and looked straight at her.

“This is a present. For you.”

“A present?”

Ara’s eyes widened as she opened the box with a recognizable luxury logo on it. Inside was a delicate silver bracelet adorned with multiple diamonds.

Seohyuk gently took her wrist and asked, “Do you know what today is?”

“Today?”

She looked up at the ceiling, trying to think, then Seohyuk smiled and continued.

“Just as I thought. It’s our 100-day anniversary.”

“Our 100 days? Oh… like how people celebrate babies turning 100 days old?”

She knew he was a thoughtful guy, but she never imagined he’d go this far with something this cute. Ara couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

While she was giggling, Seohyuk struggled to clasp the bracelet onto her wrist.

“You have no idea how betrayed I felt when I thought we were doing a couple bracelets back in Jeonju and you gave one to my mom instead.”

“What? Matching bracelets with your mom is sweet! What’s the big deal?”

“I only wanna do that stuff with you.”

He stared at her with sincere eyes and held up his own wrist, showing off his bracelet.

“Oh, so this one’s the matching pair?”

While hers was dotted with several diamonds, his had white letters engraved on it instead.

<White Ara>

Ara looked back and forth between his and hers, smiling softly.

Just knowing they were sharing something the same made her heart flutter—and weirdly, brought a warm sense of comfort.

‘So this is what they mean by emotional attachment.’