Chapter 41

"Um—" Park Ji-hoon pondered, staring into Park Min-ye's eyes, trying to discern a hint.

However, it was all in vain; Park Min-ye wasn't like the childlike Seohyun.

"Scarf?" After more than half a minute, he finally asked. It felt like it should be something like that.

"Ah!" Park Min-ye's eyes widened in surprise, and she let out a light exclamation.

"Is that it?" Park Ji-hoon raised an eyebrow.

"No! Guess again." Park Min-ye instantly regained her calm expression and said coolly.

Park Ji-hoon's lips twitched, and he reluctantly guessed again, "Gloves?" The gift she gave should be something she made herself.

"Ah!" Park Min-ye let out another light exclamation.

Park Ji-hoon's face darkened.

"Still not right! Guess again." As expected.

"Show me! I won't guess anymore." Park Ji-hoon reached out his hand directly.

"It's a scarf and gloves!" Park Min-ye playfully tapped his palm and said.

"Uh!" Park Ji-hoon was speechless.

Park Min-ye smiled and stood up, handing him a scarf and a pair of gloves she had knitted herself. Like the one around his neck, they were embroidered with a cute lamb pattern, beautiful and adorable.

"Since you've already prepared the gift, why did you ask me?" Park Ji-hoon asked, feigning dissatisfaction to get back at her for teasing him.

"If you had a gift you wanted, I wouldn't have given you this as a birthday gift." Park Min-ye pouted slightly and explained, "I have to give you something."

"Um." Park Ji-hoon put on the scarf and gloves and said, "They're very warm!"

Park Min-ye nodded with a smile and said, "When I'm not around, go out to eat by yourself. I'll be back soon." In a couple of days, she would return to Goyang to attend her high school graduation ceremony.

"You don't have to rush. You can play with your classmates for a few days." Park Ji-hoon said, "Three years of friendship, it's very likely that once you part, it will be for a lifetime. Cherish it."

"Um." Park Min-ye nodded.

"Who goes first?" Park Ji-hoon stretched and asked.

"Um—" Park Min-ye rolled her eyes and suddenly extended her hand, rolling up her sleeve, and said fiercely, "Rock, paper, scissors!"

"Okay!" Park Ji-hoon smiled slightly and extended his hand.

"Rock, paper, scissors!"

This small game became a form of entertainment for the two.

Park Ji-hoon won and went to take a shower, then rested. After all, Park Min-ye was a girl and already an adult, so it was more convenient for him to avoid her.

...

Without fan celebrations or media coverage, Park Ji-hoon's 27th birthday quietly passed.

However, the search heat for him online did not decrease. In the related keywords, "Seohyun" was added. The first time they met was too late and it was snowing, so almost no one knew, but the second time was different, especially in the afternoon at the amusement park, where many people uploaded photos to the internet.

Now, almost everyone knew about the news that he and Seohyun would appear together on "We Got Married."

Almost all the comments were in opposition!

In Girls' Generation, Seohyun's popularity wasn't high, but the fans of Girls' Generation mostly cherished this obedient maknae. With the precedent of Taeyeon, now after the "eldest sister" and "captain," the maknae was going to marry an "uncle," which naturally caused many fans to be dissatisfied.

Online, Park Ji-hoon was already being compared to Jung Hae-in. Although his appearance wasn't bad, as an artist, the most important thing was still popularity.

Even some ordinary netizens believed he didn't match Seohyun. The so-called "gold medal supporting actor" was only very famous within the industry, but outside, it was different. After all, most of the roles he played were not significant supporting roles, and even the number of times he played the male lead was few.

Especially recently, he frequently appeared on various variety shows, disregarding his image, and was criticized for discarding the dignity of an actor and being more like a comedian. There were many negative rumors.

Some people even dug up his past rumors with Taeyeon.

All these reasons combined led to the current situation, where their "We Got Married" had not yet officially aired but had already faced opposition from many people. Although the production team could not cancel their pairing before airing, there was still an impact. At least their filming was delayed, clearly preparing to see the situation before deciding the broadcast volume.

Ratings were always the top priority for the show.

"We Got Married" usually had three couples appearing together. Currently, there were two couples: Jo Kwon and Sun Jia-ren, and Hwang Yu-seul-hui and Lee Sun-ho. Especially the former, the "Adam couple," was very popular and hailed as the "national couple"! In comparison, it was easy to produce extreme situations.

Park Ji-hoon found it hard not to care! After all, due to S.M. Entertainment, the only variety show he could rely on now was this one. Before "Uncle" was finished, the higher his popularity, the better. Even one more fan would add to the box office in the future.

However, these were all things he couldn't control. He could only wait for the show to air and patiently read the audience's comments—hoping that some rational comments could help him.

He was already mentally prepared to endure all kinds of rumors.

A few days later, Park Min-ye returned to Goyang, and he resumed his solitary life.

He suddenly realized that without Park Min-ye, everything became unfamiliar. No one to cook, no one to clean the room, no one to greet him with a smile when he came home, no one to chat and joke, no one to give detailed instructions... It seemed like he had developed a severe dependency.

"Ah—" He regretted a bit, why did he let her come back after the New Year? The filming of "Uncle" was too urgent, and he only had a day off on New Year's Eve, and then a day off on New Year's Day, and he had to start work again on the second day. He would have to live alone for another four or five days, which was a bit of a headache to think about.

Park Min-ye's situation was completely different from his.

Thanks to the comments of three professors from Seoul National University, Park Min-ye's high school graduation ceremony received a lot of media attention, and there was even a live stream online.

After that, there were gatherings with a few close friends.

The emotions that had been suppressed for three years erupted after the graduation ceremony, and many boys started confessing to Park Min-ye—missing today, they might never have another chance!

However, all of them were rejected without exception.

Some boys were smarter and took the friend route, using the pretext of a farewell to invite her to dinner. Park Min-ye didn't hold back and always chose the location as her family's small restaurant.

She still had two close friends, one current desk mate, and one former desk mate.

Before they knew it, it was already February 11th.

At noon, someone was still treating them to lunch.

"Min-ye, having you as a friend is truly a blessing!" The two friends said playfully as they went to wash their hands.

"You two, don't always do this." Park Min-ye said with a hint of helplessness. It wasn't that she was intentionally teasing the boy, but the boy insisted on inviting her through the two friends. Choosing the location as her home could save the boy a lot of money.

Knowing she would refuse, many boys still kept inviting her, like moths to a flame—mainly boys from other classes.

"By the way, Min-ye, you're already an adult and have been accepted to Seoul National University, you should find a boyfriend!" Park Ji-hyun, her desk mate for the past two years, said.

"Right!" Kim Soo-ya, her desk mate in the first year, chimed in.

Park Min-ye smiled and shook her head, "After graduation." This topic had been going on for more than two years, and she could only use this reason to refuse.

Park Ji-hyun and Kim Soo-ya looked at each other and sighed helplessly, as expected!

However, Park Ji-hyun seemed to think of something and her eyes suddenly lit up, "Min-ye! If a boy who is exactly like your brother pursued you, would you agree?"

Park Min-ye was taken aback.

"Right!" Kim Soo-ya slapped her palm and looked at Park Min-ye with excitement. As friends, both knew that Park Min-ye had a brother and they had a very good relationship!

"Maybe I would try dating him." Park Min-ye hesitated slightly and said slowly.

"Really?" Park Ji-hyun and Kim Soo-ya exclaimed in unison, as if they had discovered a new continent.

"It's just a guess. It's impossible to have two identical people, so it's meaningless." Park Min-ye rolled her eyes. She was very casual with her friends.

"Min-ye! If you do this, your future boyfriend will be jealous!" Kim Soo-ya said earnestly.

"Then we'll break up!" Park Min-ye said nonchalantly.

"How can you break up with a boyfriend so easily?" Kim Soo-ya and Park Ji-hyun said in unison.

"Boyfriends can be changed, but there's only one brother!" Park Min-ye said to the two, "Okay! This non-existent topic, what's the point of arguing about it? Let's go back."

"We're worried that you won't find a boyfriend in the future." The two grumbled as they returned to the restaurant.

Speaking of the restaurant, it was actually the first room upon entering, with eight tables, a counter, and the kitchen next door, forming this small restaurant.

"Please sit!" The boy who was treating them brought two friends along. Seeing Park Min-ye and the two others come out, he pulled out the chairs and said politely. Two tables were pushed together. Although it was noon, it was close to the end of the year, so there weren't many people eating.

"Thank you." Park Min-ye didn't show any impatience but answered the boy's various questions politely.

Park Ji-hyun and Kim Soo-ya could only sigh for the boy in their hearts. They had already told him that Park Min-ye wouldn't agree, but this person insisted on trying once.

However, the boy clearly didn't understand Park Min-ye's character. Seeing her behave this way, he thought he had a chance and, after some small talk, started planning how to confess!

Just as he was about to speak, Park Min-ye's phone suddenly rang.

Seeing the caller ID, Park Min-ye quickly pressed the answer button, put the phone to her ear, and even before swallowing the food in her mouth, she called out, "Brother!" Her voice seemed to suddenly gain a burst of energy.