A Date That Wasn’t Meant to Be

After finishing their department store schedule, they even had a meal at the upper-floor lounge of a hotel.

It was nice to finally eat proper vegetable dishes again, but Garum couldn’t relax at all.

Everyone around them kept staring.

The weight of those gazes made his throat tighten several times, but he endured desperately.

Even he would stare if he saw two men holding hands, eating side by side.

And because their hands were still locked, Garum had to feed Jaehun directly.

Without a doubt…

It seemed likely that Jaehun had never dated anyone in his life.

“We’ll continue going on dates from now on.”

Absolutely not!

Garum dragged his exhausted body back to his room late that evening, feeling like a soggy cotton ball.

He needed a strategy—fast.

“Date?”

The next day, at the artificial farm, Garum asked Park Deokpal.

Park Deokpal was the only one who might know anything about dating.

“Yeah, or not even ‘dating’ specifically.
Just—how do couples normally act?”

“Don’t tell me you’re actually dating Lee Jaehun?
Why are you asking this?”

“Of course not!
He just has completely the wrong idea about what lovers do.”

“What did he do?”

With a very calm face, Garum explained everything that happened the previous day.

After hearing it all, Park Deokpal rolled on the ground clutching his stomach.

“Pff—Hahahaha!!”

“Stop laughing weirdly!”

“How am I supposed to NOT laugh?!
He really does have no idea what lovers are supposed to do.
Even clingy couples don’t go THAT far!”

“So I’m right, it’s all wrong?”

“So your goal is to fix his misunderstanding?”

“He wants to go out again, and I can’t keep doing this forever.”

At the very least, if he could leave the potted plant behind, both hands wouldn’t be occupied.

But Jaehun refused to let go of the plant—and refused to let go of Garum’s hand.

To others, they looked bizarre.

“Alright then.
I guess it’s time for me to help.
But I don’t work for free.”

“What do you want?”

“When harvest time comes, feed me until I’m stuffed.”

“Fine.”

“Deal!”

Straightening his back, Park Deokpal began lecturing him on the concept of lovers.

“Honestly, the date route itself wasn’t bad.
The problem is that neither of you can act.
You two are terrible at pretending to be lovers.”

“I wasn’t pretending.”

“Sure.
But here’s the thing—why not be the one to control it?”

Garum’s expression crumpled.

“I don’t mean cling to him.
I mean YOU should control when hands are held and when they’re let go.”

“Is that… possible?”

“Why not?
What, you think he’d hit you over a small mistake?
He hasn’t hit you before, has he?”

“He tried to cut off my leg once.”

“…Did you try to run away?”

“Yeah.”

Park Deokpal’s face softened into pity.

“I see.
We’re in similar situations.”

“But I’m a professional.”

Garum replied calmly.

“…Not wrong.”

Park Deokpal continued explaining a few more things couples often do.

Every item on the list was embarrassing, but knowing them might help someday.

Or so Garum hoped.

After that date, Garum’s daily life slowly changed.

People who used to annoy him every time they saw him now just passed by with displeased expressions—but without acting out.

“Hello.”

Someone even greeted him for the first time.

Could one date really change people’s behavior this much?

Strange—yet pleasant.

Even the occasional stomachache was gone.

So he must have been stressed without realizing it.

Garum decided to view the whole dating situation a bit more positively.

Though one question still lingered…

“Is it really necessary to go on dates this often?”

Showing themselves once seemed enough.

When Garum asked, Jaehun raised the corner of his mouth.

Jaehun smiling was always awkward—like it was something he wasn’t used to doing.

Well, he probably doesn’t actually like me anyway…

“There are idiots who forget after one time.”

Meaning they needed a few more rounds.

Fine.

They hadn’t seen the whole city yet anyway.

Might as well explore everywhere while they had the chance.

They were sitting on a park bench now, hands intertwined.

Passersby glanced curiously at them.

At first, Garum had lowered his head in embarrassment, but now he no longer cared.

“Can I ask something?”

“What is it?”

“Why do you carry that potted plant everywhere?”

“Because it’s precious.”

“Then wouldn’t it be safer to store it in a reinforced safe or something?”

“I don’t like that.”

“I see.”

Silence fell.

What kind of story did Jaehun have that made him cling to the plant like that?

Garum couldn’t even guess.

“How long do we have to stay here?”

“Until evening.”

“That’s long…”

Absentmindedly, Garum reached out and touched the pot.

“What are you doing?”

Jaehun didn’t look angry.

They interacted with the plant all the time anyway because of Garum’s skills.

“I’m checking if everything is fine.”

At that, Jaehun offered the plant to him willingly.

Anyone who knew him would have fainted at the sight.

Normally, touching the pot meant death.

“Thankfully, the plant is fine.”

“It should be.”

Jaehun stared at the pot with obvious affection.

As always, his love was directed toward the plant—not Garum.

He really IS handsome though.

While studying Jaehun’s profile, Garum suddenly heard him speak.

“Do I look strange to you?
My obsession with the pot?”

“It’s strange.
But everyone has something they obsess over.
Not my place to judge.”

Even if he looked crazy, he might have circumstances.

“I see.”

Jaehun smiled, this time much more naturally.

It startled Garum into staring.

“A long time ago, someone said something similar.”

“Who?”

“They’re gone now.”

Dead?

The answer made Garum drop the subject.

He changed topics.

“I have another question.
Can I ask?”

“What is it?”

Jaehun gently stroked a leaf of the plant as he listened.

“What is the Tower like?”

“A terrible place.”

A terrible place.

Those living outside always dreamed of awakening.

Some even longed to climb the Tower—the hope of escaping misery.

Garum once had those dreams too.

Back when he believed in hope, friendship, and trust.

Before being betrayed and sold off.

Before losing everything.

“What makes it terrible?”

“No matter how hard you struggle, nothing changes.”

“Is it true the world returns to normal when you reach the top?”

“I don’t know.
Most people believe that, though.”

Surprisingly bleak words from a ranker.

Before they knew it, the sun was setting.

“Done!”

Garum finally dropped Jaehun’s hand, which he had held until his palm was sweaty.

“Time to go back.”

“Yes.”

“And when exactly are you entering the Tower again?
You’re squeezing in all these dates because you’ll be gone, right?
Right?”

“In a week.”

Jaehun was scheduled to climb a new floor.