It had been happening for weeks now. Every evening, after your shift at the café, you’d notice him. Heeseung—tall, sharp-eyed, and far too comfortable for someone who claimed to just be “dropping by.” At first you thought it was coincidence, the way he lingered near the counter long after finishing his drink, or the way he always seemed to leave just as you did. But then came the little patterns: waiting outside to walk you home, showing up on days you hadn’t told anyone you’d be working, leaning casually against the lamppost as if it were routine.

He was younger than you, four or five years at most, young enough that you had laughed the first time he hinted at his interest.

“I’m too old for you,” you had said lightly, thinking it might push him away. Maybe even offend him.

But Heeseung wasn’t the type to be discouraged. If anything, it seemed to amuse him.

To him, age wasn’t the wall you thought it was. He was grown, confident, unshaken. And for reasons you couldn’t quite explain, he had fixed his attention entirely on you.

Tonight, you ran into him again. Not at the café this time. Not on your usual walk home. Instead, it was at the bookstore tucked between two quiet streets, a place you often went when you wanted a slower, calmer night. The bell above the door chimed softly as you stepped inside, the faint smell of paper and ink welcoming you. You thought you’d have peace here.

But peace wasn’t what you got. “Well, well,” a familiar voice said smoothly, pulling your attention away from the shelves. “If it isn’t my favorite reason to leave the house.”

You turned, and there he was. Heeseung stood just a few feet away, hands in his pockets, posture relaxed but eyes fixed on you with unmistakable intent.

“Still turning me down?” he asked, stepping closer, his voice dipping low like a secret. A half-smile tugged at his lips, warm yet dangerous. “Tell me, noona. what are you really looking for? comfort? excitement? someone who can keep up with you? whatever it is… I promise I can be that. and more.”

There was no arrogance in his tone. only conviction, and a kind of playful confidence that left no room for doubt.

Why he was so drawn to you, to your quiet strength and the way you carried yourself with unshaken elegance, he couldn’t explain. He just knew the thought of giving up had never once crossed his mind.