“Is it okay if I talk in detail at your house today since it’s a day off?”
“Eh?! Oh, sure! Got it!”
“If you send me your address, I’ll be there soon. I should arrive in about 30 minutes, so see you later.”
With that, the phone call abruptly ended.
After the call ended, Yoon Si-woo stood there dazed, only realizing the situation he was in after a moment had passed.
Wait, Scarlet is coming to my house? In 30 minutes?!
“Ugh?! 30 minutes?! Do I need to clean first? No, I just woke up, I haven’t even showered yet! Is a shower more important? Ugh, this is driving me crazy… What if there’s an odd smell in the house or something?!”
There were only 30 minutes left until Scarlet arrived.
Yoon Si-woo felt more flustered than he had ever been in his life.
If he had to recall a time when he was this flustered, it would probably be that one time he went to a rather questionable lodging facility with Scarlet.
But that was then, and this was now.
It wasn’t just anyone; it was the girl he had feelings for coming to his house.
As he panicked about what to do first, he decided to urgently start cleaning.
He opened the window to let in some fresh air and started tidying up the messy house.
Luckily, it seemed he wouldn’t be late given that he wasn’t the type to usually keep things messy.
In this situation, he was really thankful that Lucy was always with him.
Lucy had said it was natural for a healthy guy, but he couldn’t help but feel conscious about it, knowing that his house shouldn’t have any peculiar scents typical of boys’ rooms.
Just in case, he set up some unopened diffusers around the house.
If Scarlet came over and made a face at a weird smell, he’d feel like he wanted to die…
As Yoon Si-woo put more effort into cleaning than ever, Lucy muttered in a tone filled with disdain.
“Si-woo, watching you panic over such things is making me embarrassed. I can’t believe such a guy is my owner and family… what a disgrace…”
At Lucy’s words, Yoon Si-woo felt a momentary embarrassment, but he quickly shook it off and rushed to finish cleaning and grooming.
After what felt like a war-like 30 minutes, the doorbell rang, and Yoon Si-woo greeted Scarlet at the door with as natural a smile as he could muster.
“Wow, you came! Come on in!”
“Yeah, excuse me.”
He was so focused on the natural smile that he accidentally bit his tongue during the greeting.
His face turned red with embarrassment, but fortunately, Scarlet didn’t seem to care much and came in with a nonchalant expression after taking off her shoes at the entrance.
Scarlet is in our house…
With his heart pounding, unable to calm down, he heard Scarlet mutter softly as she scanned the room.
“… it’s cleaner than I thought. I thought you were the type to live a little messy.”
… I’m glad I cleaned up.
At that moment, the effort he put into not giving her the impression of being a messy guy paid off.
As Yoon Si-woo let out a quiet sigh of relief, he noticed the large bag Scarlet brought with her.
Now that he thought about it, her visit wasn’t just to see him.
Guiding Scarlet to the dining table, Yoon Si-woo sat across from her and swallowed hard before asking her.
“Um, you know? About what you said earlier, about living together… what does that mean?”
When that question had come up over the phone, his heart nearly stopped.
The request to live together he could only hope for.
He had heard about couples living in the same house before marriage.
If so, this could essentially be her confession that she wanted to be his girlfriend.
However, Yoon Si-woo thought.
Of course, he wanted to develop that kind of relationship with her too, but there had to be steps to that.
It might sound a bit conservative, but it did feel sudden to propose cohabitation when he hadn’t even confessed his feelings yet.
Of course, Scarlet had some unique traits that set her apart from ordinary people, so this question was his way of checking her intentions.
If that’s what she meant, then it would be time for him to properly confess his feelings to her.
As Yoon Si-woo was nervously waiting, Scarlet replied.
“What do you mean, ‘what does it mean’? It means just that.”
“That means…?”
“Yeah, I want to live together at your place; I want to be your roommate.”
Yoon Si-woo, who had imagined countless ways to confess if that was the case, paused for a moment after hearing Scarlet’s answer and asked dumbly.
“… Huh? A roommate?”
“Yeah, a roommate. Don’t you know? Students usually find it hard to pay rent alone, so they share to lessen the burden. The prices around here for renting are quite high, so living with you would ease that, right? Plus, it matched the conditions I was thinking of perfectly.”
Realizing that she had come to him purely for the purpose of finding a place to live, Yoon Si-woo felt embarrassed.
He was the only one getting all worked up over nothing.
His face turned red from embarrassment, but it was also her fault for making him misunderstand.
What kind of girl would choose a roommate of the opposite gender?
Unless she was completely clueless about the realities of the world…
As soon as he reached that thought, Yoon Si-woo realized something.
This girl was Scarlet Evande.
She was the kind of girl who would choose a motel for a quiet conversation with just the two of them.
Considering her past, it would be more natural for her to have an unconventional attitude towards relationships.
Feeling a mix of resentment and disappointment, Yoon Si-woo bowed his head, but Scarlet continued nonchalantly explaining why she chose this place.
“Anyway, you’re going to be out frequently because of work, right? So it would be nice to have someone to keep an eye on the house while you’re away. It’s a bit spacious for just one person. I can take one room, and it won’t be a big burden for you.”
“… Yeah, that makes sense.”
“Um, do you… not want to live with me?”
“… No, it’s not that.”
Responding somewhat absentmindedly due to some inexplicable regret, Scarlet seemed to take it as a sign that he didn’t like it and began glancing nervously at him.
That couldn’t be right.
He actually welcomed the idea of living with her.
But still, there was something he couldn’t quite put his finger on…
Scarlet panicked at his slightly ambiguous reaction and exclaimed.
“W-wait! Since I’ll probably end up hogging this nice house most of the time, I’ll pay a little extra for rent! And I’ll handle cleaning and laundry, and when you’re here, I’ll cook for you!”
“No, you don’t have to go that far…”
“No! Don’t worry about it! I want to! I want to repay even just a bit of that unreasonable request I made…! I’ll help with anything else you need too… okay?”
“Don’t feel burdened by that. Let’s go look for another place where you can live alone. I can help you find it…”
As he was momentarily tempted by her promises, Yoon Si-woo collected himself and subtly shook his head at Scarlet, who was nearly pleading.
With this, it seemed living with him would actually be a greater burden for her.
If he thought about her, it might be better to let her stay somewhere else.
However, upon hearing his words, Scarlet seemed shocked, bowing her head and trembling, before gently grabbing her sleeve with trembling hands and muttering in a small voice.
“… I don’t want to go anywhere else. I like it here.”
“… Why do you want to live here so badly?”
In response to that question, Scarlet lifted her bowed head and looked up at him slightly, replying.
“… Well, because it’s the safest place near you.”
“Ugh…?!”
He involuntarily made an odd sound as his heart raced madly.
Her words, about how his side was the safest, felt like something out of the Holy Sword of Truth, urging him to see the frailty of the girl who always seemed so strong.
Unable to refuse, Yoon Si-woo nodded his head.
“Thank goodness…”
Seeing her truly relieved smile, Yoon Si-woo desperately hoped that his heart would hold up.
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