A Start-Up Ending (Jidal version)

Chapter 1

Hello, everyone!

This is my first fic for JiDal (hopefully, I can move on now because I have finished writing my own version for his happy ending AND, I'm currently watching Catch the Ghost, where episode 1 was full of dashing Kim Seonho scenes 🤗).

I've read a lot of discussion and JiDal theories since the start and until the end of Start-up and I have also read a few fanfics here which I enjoyed a lot reading! Truthfully, they were a source of my motivation these days and also, my inspiration to write this work.

So, my purpose here is to just these words pour out from my head and hopefully, you got to enjoy reading this as much as I had, too. :)

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He took a seat in front of her.

She stood up to leave, but then he told her, "Please hear me out. I know you feel uncomfortable, but I have something to tell you."

She took her seat again as he prepared the utensils they would use to eat later.

"What is it?"

"The other day, you told me to be honest. There are other things that you don't know."

"Is there more?"

"Mr. Nam Do-san and I are not that close. To be honest, I don't really like him."

"I see."

"But I don't want you to get the wrong idea. He didn't do anything because I asked him to. Going to the networking party, giving you his business card, and asking you to be the CEO at Sandbox... he did all that because he wanted to."

The order arrived, and the two stopped talking for a while until the waitress left them.

"Well... I'd like to ask you something," she told him.

"What is it?"

"You became my friend back then because of my grandma's favor. So you don't have a pet dog named Mongsil and you didn't like me. Your first letter to me...and the rest of the letters... were all your words a lie?"

He paused for a while to think. "What I've written on my first letter to you - all of it isn't true. It's a stage I have written together with your grandma, an introduction to you as Nam Do-san."

"However," he continued, "I was happy looking forward for your letters. Some of the words I have written were true."

He placed the noodles he mixed in front of her. Then, he mixed his own.

"I guess I was the only one waiting for you for 15 years," she said.

He looked straight into her eyes, while searching for words to say.

It was true. He had almost forgotten about her. He was busy surviving and living his own life, sometimes memories about her and her grandmother flashing on his mind from time to time until that day - when they met again at Sandbox Relay Lecture, when he followed her and lead him to her grandma. Then all of those memories came rushing back to him in an instant.

He decided to be honest with her. She deserves that, at least.

"I have no friends in school back then, so your letters were my only comfort."

He paused for a moment. "Even after reading your letters, I didn't look for you for 15 years. I'm sorry."

He looked at her expression, trying to know how she feels. He knew that by saying the next words, he could lose his chance at Dalmi, but he decided to let her know.