Fortunately, the ride was filled with silence until they reached Zeno’s residence. Bobby parked the car in front of the insane amount of stairs and let out a deep breath.
Meanwhile, Zeno looked outside and sighed. He would have inevitably gotten drenched. He should have just taken the bus in the very first place.
He gently removed his headphones from Gaby before placing them inside his bag.
“Thanks,” he muttered before opening the door and going out into the rain.
“Zeno,” Bobby called out. “Take this umbrella—”
However, Zeno could see the slight glare in Seulgi’s eyes, so he merely shook his head. He knew he should have gone up to his unit, but instead, he stood in front of the window and gestured for Bobby to bring it down.
The older man frowned but did as he said.
“Did you forget anything?” he asked.
Zeno silently shook his head. Then, he sighed before walking closer to the two of them. He looked back at Gaby and saw her softly wave at him.
He pursed his lips before looking Bobby and Seulgi in the eyes.
“I know you two have your issues, but it’s never right to argue in front of a child.”
Bobby’s eyebrows raised while Seulgi’s expression relaxed.
“Children might be young, but they remember…,” he continued.
“I’m just telling this in case you fight again in the car. I’m guessing this is not the first time you’ve done this.”
Bobby looked at the steering wheel, unable to meet Zeno’s eyes out of shame. Seulgi, on the other hand, bit her lip in frustration, already appearing teary-eyed.
“Adults need to vent, but you should never, ever involve a young child in the crisis you have. They will carry it until they grow up,” he muttered.
With that, he bowed his head before running through the stairs, cursing under his breath because his shoes were already making a squidgy sound. He hated wet socks!
Fortunately, his stamina ability had gone way up after going up and down the stairs for the past few months, and he managed to arrive in front of his unit in no time.
Minji, who had just arrived at her apartment and was watching the rain through her window, gasped when she saw Zeno running through the rain.
She opened her window. “Zeno!” she exclaimed.
Zeno stopped under her shade.
“You’re going to get sick!” she said.
Zeno shrugged. “It’s fine. I’ve only been exposed for a short while.”
Minji sighed and shook her head. “Get dressed quickly and come here, alright? I’ll cook you some hot soup. The weather’s very unpredictable these days, so a lot of my office mates are even getting sick.”
Zeno pursed his lips before nodding. He could use some soup. He didn’t get to eat much at the fried chicken restaurant because Gaby seemed to have a really big appetite.
With that, she nodded with a small smile. “I’ll get the soup ready.”
Zeno hummed and went to his unit to take a shower. He grimaced when he removed the clothes stuck to his body. He cringed even more when he removed his socks.
He entered the shower and sighed in relief when the water cascaded down his back, providing him warmth. After that, he dried himself thoroughly before getting dressed in comfortable clothes.
His stomach growled while he was drying his hair, so he took that as a sign to go to Minji’s unit.
He went inside and there, he saw Minji already ladling the hot soup onto a bowl.
“Zeno? You came right on time,” she said. “I made some egg and crab soup.”
Zeno sat on the table as Minji placed the steaming bowl in front of him. “Thanks,” he muttered.
It wasn’t the most flavorful, but it was definitely comforting—like how a mom would make it.
Minji sat in front of him, placing her hands under her chin and looking at him with wide eyes.
Zeno paused mid-blow and raised one eyebrow.
“Do you need to say something?” he asked.
Minji absentmindedly spoke. “Why are you so handsome?”
Then, her eyes widened, and her cheeks reddened in record time as if she didn’t mean to say those words.
“I—I mean,” she tried to explain, but Zeno didn’t think too much about it.
“I know,” Zeno muttered.
He still looked ordinary among celebrities, but he was definitely more handsome than a normal citizen. It was getting harder and harder to go out without being recognized.
Minji couldn’t help but chuckle. She was glad that her friend was gaining more confidence!
“Did you do a good job in the audition?” Minji asked, changing the subject.
“Hmm,” Zeno hummed. “It was satisfactory.”
Minji smiled. “Then, you must have done a very good job,” she said. “When you practiced with us the other day, it was really great. I didn’t know you could act in such a way. It’s even better than some of the artists in our company.”
Zeno frowned slightly. “In your company?” he asked.
Minji nodded. “Yeah, in—”
However, before she could finish her statement, another item caught Zeno’s attention.
An old keyboard piano was perched on top of the couch along with other items.
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Hmm?” Minji turned her head to look at the clutter. She bit her lip from embarrassment. “Oh, sorry about that,” she said. “I was decluttering some items. I didn’t have the chance to organize it since I had to go to work this morning.”
Zeno kept looking at the pile, making Minji even more embarrassed. She stood from her seat to try and cover the mess, but Zeno spoke before she could do so.
“Do you plan on disposing of those?” he asked.
Minji snapped her gaze at him. “Not all of these,” she said. “I’m going to donate the clothes and other reusable items.”
“I am going to throw away this old thing, though,” she chuckled, patting the keyboard piano. “It’s been rotting in my room for too long, and it’s taking up so much space.”
“If you’re just going to dispose of it, then can I have it?” he asked.
A small frown graced Minji’s forehead, and she tilted her head to the side. “Why?” she asked. “I think it’s broken already. It wouldn’t be useful anymore.”
“What’s useless to one may be exactly what another needs,” he muttered, his gaze still fixed on it.
Then, he gazed at Minji, whose breath got caught in her throat with Zeno’s next statement.
“And nothing is ever truly broken; some things just need to be understood differently.”