June 14th, 2025.
South Korea, Tongyeong – 3:20pm
Inside a restaurant, Hyun-Woo and Min-Seo sat across from each other. The place was packed, and the atmosphere made it seem luxurious. Huge windows were everywhere. Min-Seo looked stressed as she looked down at her plate: medium-cooked steak with white rice on the side. She tapped her right index finger on the table repeatedly.
Hyun-Woo grabbed some rice and put it into his mouth. His gaze was soft and full of worry as he stared at her. He swallowed and, with a soft-spoken tone, he reached out his left hand and placed it on top of her right. "Love, try and enjoy the date."
Min-Seo looked up and met the gaze of her lover. She kept tapping her finger even as his hand rested on hers. "I can't… I'm sorry, Jisoo hasn't replied to me. There was also a murder of nineteen people in the club. What was Jisoo thinking…?"
"Kang-Dae contacted me and told me Jisoo is at the organization right now getting treatment. Apparently, his body was filled with bullet holes, over forty of them." Hyun-Woo took a small pause before continuing, "I don't know what happened, but I doubt it was Jisoo who killed those nineteen people. He may be an assassin, but he wouldn't kill innocent people. He had to be caught in the crossfire against another assassin or something like that."
Min-Seo sighed. She looked back at her plate before her eyes slowly moved to focus on Hyun-Woo's hand. She met his eyes again and softly smiled. "You're right, this could be our last date. I should try enjoying it more, thanks, honey." Hyun-Woo smiled as he moved his hand and got back to eating.
Min-Seo grabbed her silver fork and knife before cutting into her steak and enjoying it. "Does it taste good?" Hyun-Woo asked as he chewed on his rice. She nodded before picking up some rice with her fork, and she spoke with her mouth full. "It's really good, it reminds me of my mom's steak."
"Your mom just moved to Thailand like last week, right?" Hyun-Woo asked, and she nodded. "Uh-huh, I would've gone but the organization wouldn't let me." She took a small pause to eat more rice before continuing, "She'll be there like a month. I'll miss her. And also, her signal is so bad over there. So we can barely even text."
Hyun-Woo looked upset at the news. "A month? That means a whole month without her bulgogi? I might die." Min-Seo raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying my bulgogi isn't as good as my mom's?" Hyun-Woo nodded. "Love, I adore your cooking. But your mom has like three times the experience you do. I'm sorry, but I am saying hers is better."
She stuck out her tongue at Hyun-Woo before looking away. "Huh! What did I do, I'm just being honest with you, love," he said. Min-Seo stayed silent for a bit before gazing back at him. "I'm your girlfriend, you're supposed to say I'm the best at everything."
Hyun-Woo chuckled a bit, covering his mouth with his hand curled into a fist. "Love, you make better bulgogi than your mom." Min-Seo softly smiled as she gave a cold reply, "Too late, I'm not making bulgogi for a month. You can wait for my mom to come back."
Hyun-Woo stood up and placed his hands on the table before leaning forward. "Wait, wait! I'm sorry, please, no, please Min-Seo." He looked around and saw everyone staring at him. He sat back down. Min-Seo giggled as she cut a piece of steak and ate it. Suddenly, Hyun-Woo brought up a story from the past.
"Do you remember when we were still only friends and my uncle tried hitting on your mom?" he said as a small chuckle came out.
Min-Seo smiled as she swallowed the steak. "Yeah, during my cousin's birthday, right? Oh my gosh, it still haunts me. Good thing my mom isn't ready to move on from his death."
"That sounds so wrong to say," he replied.
Min-Seo softly laughed as she nodded her head. "It's been years since he died, and I do want her to move on and find happiness… Just not with the uncle of my boyfriend."
"Hey, my uncle isn't that bad. He might smoke, drink, do drugs, gamble, but he's got a good heart," Hyun-Woo replied. Min-Seo sucked her lips and avoided eye contact with him. "Don't gaslight yourself, honey. He is that bad. Him donating five hundred won to a homeless person every month doesn't make up for it."
"Hey! He actually said it was one thousand won, not five hundred…" Hyun-Woo looked down at his plate as she looked back at him. He continued, "Okay… maybe my uncle is that bad."
Min-Seo smiled. "I'm glad you realized. Don't gaslight yourself, honey." Hyun-Woo grabbed a spoonful of rice into his mouth and then spoke. "Understood, Ma'am."
"Oh, you're definitely getting it tonight…" Min-Seo said with a playful grin. Hyun-Woo almost spat out his rice, barely managing to swallow without choking. He nervously asked, "Getting what…?"
She raised both her eyebrows, her grin getting bigger. "You know what I'm talking about." "Shut it, we're eating," Hyun-Woo said, trying to regain his composure.
"Where are you taking me after here, honey?" Min-Seo asked as she bit down on the steak.
"I'm planning on taking you for a walk in the nearby park. I still have more planned, but that's a secret."
The two of them continued to eat in silence for a moment before Min-Seo brought up a question. "Honey, you know how you're a prodigy, right? Do you ever think about going after the title of Assassin One?"
Hyun-Woo softly shook his head almost instantly. "I may be a prodigy, but there are even greater prodigies than me. Especially those people who are offspring of previous Assassin Ones. I don't stand a chance. And I also don't really want the title. I became an assassin because I had a talent for it and it made good money."
Min-Seo nodded in understanding. "Makes sense. Oh! Honey, do you remember when you first became an assassin? I almost died laughing when I saw your expression when you first saw me in the organization." Hyun-Woo nodded. "My reaction was understandable. The girl who worked in the same cafe as me, whom I also had a crush on, was an assassin."
She giggled. "Did I ever tell you I also had a crush on you when we worked in the cafe? I just never made a move because I was an assassin and you weren't." Hyun-Woo nodded. "Yes, Love, you tell me that like every week. Even after I became an assassin, you barely even made any moves. I confessed!"
Min-Seo raised an eyebrow. "I made no moves? So when I asked to have a sleepover at your house, and then made breakfast for you in the morning—that isn't making a move?"
Hyun-Woo chuckled as he nervously looked away. "Uh, I thought that was just you being kind." She sighed. "Even at that point in our friendship, I made it clear to you that I struggle to wake up early. Yet I woke up at six a.m. to make you breakfast! Is that not making a move?"
Hyun-Woo sighed before raising his hand. "Fine, I'm just stupid, you did make moves."
A man in a uniform walked over. The two of them looked over at him. "Yes, what can I do for you?" Hyun-Woo replied. "The bill, please."
The man nodded before walking away. A moment later, he came back and handed him the bill. He looked down at it. "Only three hundred thousand won? Not bad at all."
Hyun-Woo then looked up at Min-Seo and handed her the bill. "Here, love, pay for it."
Her face was stunned, and even the waiter looked shocked.
"Huh..? You invited me to the date, now you're making me pay? You are ridiculous…" she said. Hyun-Woo chuckled before pulling out his wallet and credit card. "I'm messing with you, love."
June 14th, 2025.
South Korea, Tongyeong – 3:37pm
Hyun-Woo and Min-Seo came walking out of the restaurant while holding hands. Hyun-Woo wore a black suit while Min-Seo wore a black dress and heels. "Let's get going to the park, honey. I want to use the swings," she said.
Suddenly, Hyun-Woo grabbed her by the chin and pulled her in for a kiss. He pulled away and softly smiled at Min-Seo's flustered expression. She coughed and acted like nothing happened.
"Let's go!" she said, tugging his hand. Hyun-Woo softly nodded and followed her.