Chapter 29

"OPPA, take these tofu and mushrooms with you." After dinner, when sending Park Ji-hoon off, Yoo Ri handed him the prepared gift and said.

"Thank you." Park Ji-hoon nodded in gratitude.

"How do you plan to go back, OPPA?" Yoo Ri knew he didn't have a chauffeur.

Park Ji-hoon glanced in a certain direction.

Following his gaze, Yoo Ri noticed that Nicole was standing there, as if waiting for someone.

"With Nicole?" She was quite surprised. When did they get so close?

"Um-hmm." Park Ji-hoon nodded and said, "I asked her during dinner."

Yoo Ri pressed her lips together. The words she had wanted to say to dissuade him couldn't come out. She whispered, "Take care of yourself, OPPA."

"You too." Park Ji-hoon couldn't help but add, "I'm leaving, Nicole is waiting."

"Um-hmm." Yoo Ri waved, watching him and Nicole get into the car before turning back.

In the courtyard, she saw Hyoyeon, who was also about to leave, accompanied by Sunny.

"When did he and Nicole get so familiar?" Hyoyeon asked Yoo Ri. Although she was angry at Park Ji-hoon's behavior, if he had asked, she would have agreed to give him a ride. But he chose the less familiar Nicole! At least until December last year, she had never heard of them knowing each other.

She was a bit unhappy.

"Probably from appearing together on 'Family Outing.'" Yoo Ri explained for him.

"Oh." Sunny and Hyoyeon responded simultaneously, as if they had more to say but hesitated to speak. Asking about Park Ji-hoon and Nicole's relationship was also a way to probe Yoo Ri and Park Ji-hoon's relationship. But since Yoo Ri didn't explain, they didn't press further.

"I'll explain to everyone when I get back." Yoo Ri understood their meaning and said proactively when seeing Hyoyeon off. It wasn't just the two of them, so how could they not notice?

"Oh." Sunny and Hyoyeon nodded in response.

On the other side.

"Thank you." Park Ji-hoon thanked Nicole again.

"You're welcome." Nicole smiled brightly. Her short hair, slightly messy bangs, and beautiful crescent-shaped eyes gave her a warm and approachable aura that didn't belong to an idol.

Park Ji-hoon nodded and fell silent, not asking too many questions.

On the contrary, Nicole became curious. Having only met twice, he had asked her to give him a ride back to Seoul. She thought he might have a crush on her! Moreover, she was curious about his background and the stark contrast in his behavior.

"Ji-hoon OPPA, you're really good at speaking!" Nicole praised him.

Park Ji-hoon smiled and said, "I prepared beforehand."

"Oh—" Nicole nodded but then shook her head, asking, "Wasn't it live?" She saw that Hyomin and Kim Shin-young were asking questions on the spot, and he couldn't have planned it with them in advance! Sunny was also involved.

Park Ji-hoon smiled helplessly but still answered patiently, "I prepared beforehand, so I could perform well live." Generally, new acquaintances would keep their questions to themselves, but she asked directly.

She was really straightforward! Maybe because of her American education.

But it was precisely because of this character that she agreed to his somewhat abrupt request.

Nicole had never met such a laid-back senior actor before and asked many questions out of curiosity. After arriving in Seoul, they even exchanged phone numbers.

Park Ji-hoon took a taxi to the filming site alone and had to stay up all night.

...

Around 1:30 AM, in the Girls' Generation dormitory.

Recently, their individual schedules were scattered, making it hard for all nine of them to gather. Often, one member was rushing to a schedule while others were sleeping. They could gather today because Hyoyeon had specifically notified everyone that Yoo Ri had something to announce, which was related to Park Ji-hoon. So, some members delayed their rest.

Although his name had become a taboo within the group, keeping suspicions would only lead to misunderstandings.

Tae-yeon was also there. She didn't want to listen but was dragged over by Tiffany.

Each of them had a look of undeniable fatigue on their faces.

"Cough! I didn't mean to keep it from everyone." Yoo Ri cleared her throat after the members gathered and said, "At first, we didn't know either. It was only when my mom asked him to bring something for me... I thought it wasn't necessary to explain, so I didn't tell anyone."

The eight members looked at her, their spirits lifted. What did she mean? Her mom asked Park Ji-hoon to bring something for her?

"Relative?" Sunny couldn't help but ask.

"No, a neighbor in the same neighborhood!" Yoo Ri explained, "When I was young, he used to tutor me." She didn't dare to use Park Ji-hoon's name, fearing it would upset Tae-yeon, so she used "he" instead—just for some psychological comfort.

"Really?" Sunny and the others were all surprised, their mouths wide open. This was too... They couldn't describe it, but just thinking about Park Ji-hoon being Yoo Ri's neighbor and tutoring her when she was young gave them a strange feeling. No wonder she invited him on 'We Got Married'—they were practically family!

They then remembered that both of their hometowns were Goyang, Gyeonggi-do! The first time they met, they had even joked about whether they knew each other, but both said no, so they didn't ask further.

"At that time, we really didn't know each other! They moved away later, and it was from a long time ago, so we didn't even remember each other's names." Yoo Ri emphasized.

"Then why did your mom let... let him bring things for you?" Tiffany asked.

"Uncle Park bought back the old house to commemorate his deceased wife and opened a restaurant. He happened to see my mom on the street and greeted her." Yoo Ri explained everything she knew, "His childhood was very difficult! My mom told me that Uncle Park liked to drink and wasn't good at managing, so they lived in poverty, and he had a bit of a temper..." She tried to use gentle words. Was Uncle Park just a drinker? He was a heavy drinker, had a bad temper, and liked to hit people... Before marrying his second wife, he was the epitome of a "bad man"! And Park Ji-hoon was the "bad kid" in the neighborhood.

"Was he the school's top fighter?" Even Tae-yeon was taken aback. It was hard to associate the gentle, quiet, and somewhat soft-spoken Park Ji-hoon with the title of "top fighter."

"In fourth grade, he once beat up two sixth-graders by himself?" Seul-hyun found it hard to imagine what Park Ji-hoon was like as a child. Inevitably, she felt more concern for him, after all, he was her "husband."

"I didn't experience it, but my brother knows!" Yoo Ri nodded confidently, "I asked my brother about him last time. My brother said it was true. When my brother was in high school, he was bullied by a few people. He just said, 'I know him,' and those people quickly helped my brother up and apologized before leaving! By then, he had already stopped fighting."

"Also, you should know that there are often middle school students who extort money from elementary school students, but in our neighborhood's elementary school, this hasn't happened in over ten years. My brother said it was because he once led the boys from the first to third grades to fight the middle schoolers!"

Jessica and Seul-hyun were stunned. Many of them couldn't imagine such a scenario.

"So... impressive!" Hyoyeon almost swore, then forced herself to ask, "What about after elementary school?" She never expected Park Ji-hoon's childhood to be so "legendary"! But how could such a person be invited by Yoo Ri's mother to tutor her? There must be more to the story!

"After elementary school?" Yoo Ri seemed to recall something, her face suddenly showing a mix of nostalgia, admiration, and respect, without any attempt to hide it.

Tae-yeon's brows furrowed. Seeing Yoo Ri's expression, she felt a pang of jealousy. She didn't know about Park Ji-hoon's past, as he rarely talked about his school days.

"Cough!" Tiffany suddenly coughed loudly.

"I'm not targeting him!" Yoo Ri snapped back to reality, seeing the strange looks from the members, and quickly said.

"Then who?" Tiffany and the others were stunned, asking curiously.

"A perfect woman!" Yoo Ri said sincerely and solemnly.

"A perfect woman?" Everyone in the dorm was stunned, even the usually aloof Jessica widened her eyes in surprise and doubt.

Who would dare to describe someone as "perfect"?

"When he was in sixth grade, Uncle Park remarried." Tiffany and the others noticed that Yoo Ri's expression and tone had changed, showing genuine respect for that woman.

"My mom said Uncle Park had divorced once, which is why he became a heavy drinker and had a bad temper." Yoo Ri, knowing Park Ji-hoon's identity, had asked her mom and brother many questions about him, "His second wife was a frail woman with a daughter..."

"Daughter?" Tiffany and Tae-yeon were struck by lightning, suddenly calling out in unison.

[Happy birthday to book friend "Huluwa"~~~]

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