New Normal - Chapter 36

A single line, thrown out with a smile, made her spine go cold.

Wait… had he waited for her that night? For a long time?

“Um, Juwon. I’m sorry about that day. It’s just that…”

“Why’d you run away?” he cut her off. “Things were going pretty well. Was it because I can’t kiss?”

Jisoo opened her mouth to explain, but he was faster. His tone was blank, but the question sounded sincere. His lips were curled upward, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all.

“Or was it the s3x? Thought I’d be bad at it? Is it ’cause my d1ck’s small? Or did you find some other big one you liked better?”

“Excuse me?!”

Jisoo looked around in a panic. The street was crowded and noisy—drunks stumbling out of bars, people laughing and chatting as they passed.

And yet, somehow their conversation felt like it was happening behind a glass wall, floating separate from the world.

Her face burned from embarrassment.

“You can’t say stuff like that out here!”

“Why not? Who’s listening?”

Juwon let out a dry laugh, digging at the ground with the tip of his shoe. Tap, tap. A casual, mindless movement that reeked of irritation.

Then he folded his arms and leaned slightly to one side, staring down at her with a sharp, uneven gaze.

“Meeting you threw me off, you know. Never met a woman who says she needs to poop right before we sleep together. Never met one who ran away completely either.”

Jisoo covered her face with one hand, mortified.

s3x… poop… Were those even words allowed in the same sentence?

This whole thing had turned into a disaster—and it was entirely of her own making.

Her plan was to apologize, wrap things up neatly, and move on. But any chance of a graceful exit had just flown out the window.

Not that Juwon cared. He just kept going.

“Honestly, if we hadn’t bumped into each other again tonight, you probably never would’ve contacted me. And apologizing? Not even on the table. So, I’ve been thinking.”

“Juwon, please…”

Her voice trembled, almost tearful. But he didn’t stop.

“Was it really because of that thing you said? You know, the… big one?”

The way he threw it out made her words catch in her throat.

She was completely silent, lips slightly parted, and Juwon’s expression grew more serious.

“So you’re only interested in d1ck, not the person attached to it? Is that it? Why do you even need it? Just curious? Want to try it out?”

Every word hit like a blade. The background noise felt like it had disappeared—her ears rang with nothing but his voice.

As Juwon stared down at her, his gaze grew steadier.

“Juwon, that’s not—”

“No. Don’t even try. Forget the ‘big one.’ Just tell me straight. Why’d you take my number and text me in the first place?”

The words came out rapid-fire, but now his expression was completely serious. His dark brown eyes held no trace of humor.

Jisoo bit her lower lip.

It was too late to play clean.

She had hoped to erase everything that had happened between them, pretend it never existed. But things were far past that now.

So maybe… just maybe… it was time to be honest. About everything. Should she tell him about the shaman?

That might be the best shot she had at the truth.

She hesitated, weighing her words, when suddenly the crowd around them surged—people brushing past like waves.

More and more bodies pressing in, and Juwon, frowning now with visible impatience. If he said “big one” again in this crowd…

She couldn’t stay silent any longer.

So she blurted it out.

“It was because of a shaman!”

The confession came out loud and sharp—too loud.

Even the background chatter seemed to pause for a second. Juwon’s eyes widened in surprise. Heads turned in their direction.

Jisoo’s cheeks burned. She wanted to disappear into a hole.

Mortified, she looked away, but Juwon just blinked in disbelief.

“…A shaman?”

He repeated it slowly, like he needed to confirm he’d heard right. His face was a strange mix of confusion and disbelief.

And Jisoo didn’t wait—she rushed into the explanation.

“I know it sounds crazy. But this year’s supposed to be a huge misfortune for me—sambok year. And not just any misfortune, but a severe one. I don’t even usually believe in that stuff, but so many things kept going wrong, I started to panic. So I saw this shaman who’s supposed to be really accurate, and he said I needed something—or someone—big. I didn’t know what that meant, but then you kept showing up, and I thought… maybe you were the ‘big’ one he meant. I’m sorry, I know it sounds nuts. But I swear, I didn’t mean to use you. I was just… desperate.”

Her voice cracked. She was nearly in tears, lips trembling, the words tripping over each other.

Juwon stared at her, stunned. For a second, he didn’t react. Then… slowly… a crooked smile tugged at his mouth.

“So… you were trying to use me as some kind of lucky charm? A big, thick talisman?”

Jisoo’s face turned bright red—half from shame, half from frustration. But Juwon, amused now, was actually smiling.

“I’ve gotta say… I’ve seen a lot, but this? This is new. Seduced by destiny. I like it. Very original.”

Still looking at her, he scratched his neck and grinned wider.

“So let me get this straight. You needed some massive ‘energy’ to balance your fortune, came looking for me… and then what, realized I wasn’t big enough after all? So you ran?”

He was teasing, obviously, but still relentless.

Yet… something had shifted. There was a warmth creeping into his expression now—still mischievous, but softer around the edges.

“That’s not it!” she burst out. “And do you have to keep talking about that?!”

“I do,” he said easily. “Honestly, I thought you’d have bailed already with another ‘I need the bathroom’ excuse. But since you’re actually being honest for once, I’ve got to ask—what changed? Why’d you back out that night?”

She sighed deeply.

She couldn’t bring herself to look at him. Her eyes dropped to the ground as she answered.

“It’s just… I remembered something the shaman said. Not to sleep with the benefactor.”

As her voice trailed off, Juwon’s face shifted slightly, eyes narrowing.

“You seriously believe that? Do the shaman really get that specific?”

“It was my first time, okay?”

She spat it out and squeezed her eyes shut. A deep silence followed.

When she dared peek up, Juwon was staring at her, dumbfounded.

“That was your… first time? With me?”

The late-summer air was still thick and warm—and so was the silence between them. He blinked at her slowly, his expression faltering.

Jisoo’s heart pounded. Had she said too much?

Juwon turned his face slightly, then scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. He looked… genuinely rattled.

A hot breeze brushed past. It seemed to make the moment even heavier.

Maybe I shouldn’t have said that, she thought.

He still wasn’t looking at her. Instead, he stared off into the distance, then let out a quiet breath.

“…Okay. Well. At least now I know.”

Jisoo glanced up carefully. His expression was still unreadable, but she noticed the tips of his ears were red—even in the dim light.

He shifted his jaw and flexed his fingers inside his coat pockets.

“…Did you drink a lot tonight?”

It sounded casual, but the tension in her shoulders melted a little.

She wasn’t sure if this counted as a proper resolution… but it felt like the worst of the storm had passed.

“…Just a bit.”

He stared at her a moment longer.

Then he chuckled softly.

“Let’s go get some hangover food.”