eomma ✕ lee jooheon

Chapter 1

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"Eommaaaa~ Have a good day, okay?" Waving the six year old off, I cut our sweet embrace short. I watched Sora run over to her group of friends and let a sigh escape my lips once they finally set their tiny feet into the school building.

I turned around and walked back over to my old ass BMW. Yeah, I get the car's extremely old and doesn't work as well as it used to, but this baby has seen me through some hard times and served me well throughout the years. Plus, I really can't afford to buy a better car right now.

I turned the key and crinkled my nose as the car briefly chortled, then began to purr. I was honestly so scared that the car would fall apart right then and there but at least, it would actually be a good excuse to get a new car.

I work at this Newspaper company, Daesung, named after the CEO's youngest son and the heir to the company. He was the kindest man ever and even gave me a day-off after he noticed I wasn't feeling too great. I'm still recovering from the mean prank my beloved Co-worker, Eun Ji, decided to pull. My face was extremely swollen from the shitload of almonds she buried in my cupcake and I was instantly rushed to the infirmary. It wasn't a pretty sight and my face still feels a little bloated.

I soon arrived at the grocery store, quickly parking my car... or what was left of it. I didn't really do much, most of my time was spent having playful banter with the nice ahjumma who sold those delicious cakes by the grocery store. And the employees always seemed to look at we weirdly when I passed the free samples and ever-so-delicately snatching a piece from the tray and thanking them with my mouth full.

I pushed my cart towards the food section and scanned the shelves for the Oreo O's cereal my daughter loves so much. Realizing it was too high up the shelf, I groaned but of course, not loud of enough to draw attention to my frustrated self. I reached out to the box on my toes, jumping slightly.

"You're pretty short y'know."

I stumbled back in surprise, my back hitting the person behind me. He chuckled softly making his chest vibrate against my back. I saw his arm reach out and grab the cereal box so I took the chance to catch a glimpse of the man. He was pretty pale and had bright red hair that was hard to miss. But he was actually really handsome.

I stepped aside and hung my head low to hide my face that had probably turned a bright shade of crimson,"Kamsamnida..." I said softly as he handed me the cereal box."You're very welcome," He replied. I dumped the cereal in my cart and slowly rolled my cart to the checkout. I expected the man to walk the other direction, but he didn't. Instead, he trailed behind but didn't seem to actually notice.

I placed the cereal on the counter and watched how the checkout lady checked the price,"Ma'am, that's ₩6, 980." She said. I rummaged through my bag for my wallet and dug into the wallet once I found it. The only thing I found in my wallet was my ID, a picture of Sora, a candy wrapper and the moths that were probably flying out of her wallet.

"Um... I, uh... do you— do you accept candy wrappers?" I asked awkwardly as I offered the candy wrapper to her. She rose her eyebrow and I sighed, stuffing the wrapper back in my wallet."Ma'am, if you can't pay for it, please take it back to the shelf."

"No need, I'll pay for it." The man said behind me. I stared at him with wide eyes and watched as he handed the woman the money with a smile. I gotta admit, his dimples were pretty cute. The checkout lady packaged the cereal box in a plastic bag and handed it to me.

I grabbed the bag and raced towards the exit but forcefully turned around when a hand grabbed my wrist, pulling me bag."So I don't get a thank you or something?" He asked, leaning down slightly."Uh, ne. Kamsamnida..." I bowed. With a light chuckle, he let my wrist fall out of his grip and stuffed his hands in the pockets of his hoodie."Better. I'll take my leave now. Have a safe ride back home." I bowed once again and bid him goodbye.