ID Chapter 18

“Isn’t that Endorphin?”

“I think it’s Ira from Endorphin…”

“And next to him is Kwon Su-han. An Adapter…”

The supermarket was quite crowded, probably because it was evening. Since I wasn’t even wearing a hat, all eyes were on me, but everyone just whispered; no one spoke to me or took photos. Still, I kept hiding behind Kwon Su-han, who, while tossing carrots into the cart, told me not to worry about it.

“There’s an Adapter-Exclusive Town nearby, so many famous people visit. An unwritten rule has emerged not to bother them even if you see them. Among those people whispering about us right now are Adapters and Aura Users. There are probably more famous people here, so you don’t need to worry.”

“Ah… okay.”

I know what he means. There’s a supermarket like this near Endorphin’s dorms. Since so many idol groups with Aura Users live nearby, people visiting that supermarket tend to just accept it when they see idols.

Kwon Su-han skillfully picked out bell peppers and onions from the vegetable section. Then he told me to wait here and bring him seaweed.

“Seaweed…”

I’ve never bought it before…

I couldn’t bring myself to say that, so I went to the vegetable section, but of course, there was no seaweed. I thought it would be in the vegetable section, but then I realized seaweed isn’t a vegetable. So I went to the fish section, but it wasn’t there either. As I looked around, a female staff member approached.

“What are you looking for, Ira?”

She called my name so naturally, I thought she was someone I knew.

“I’m looking for seaweed…”

“Seaweed is over here.”

The staff member found the packaged seaweed for me. It looked very different from what I imagined.

“Thank you.”

“Mmm-hmm, enjoy your shopping.”

The woman waved goodbye in a friendly manner and left. I took the seaweed and ran back to where Kwon Su-han was. When Kwon Su-han quickly glanced at the seaweed I brought, my heart inexplicably pounded. Fortunately, it seemed I bought the right thing, as he put it into the cart.

“Buy perilla seeds and abalone.”

“……”

He sent me on another errand. And this time, there was an additional item. Kwon Su-han’s back as he pushed the cart around the corner could hardly have looked more impudent.

Abalone was easy to find, but perilla seeds were the problem. Perilla seeds… where do I buy perilla seeds? Perilla seeds are perilla seeds, but…

“What are you looking for? Can I help you?”

As I wandered, unable to find my way, two people who looked like a couple approached.

“Yes… perilla seeds…”

“Perilla seeds…? Oh dear…”

One of them made a sound like “ooh ooh” and didn’t know what to do. The other person, for some reason, made a strange ‘phuh-kuh’ sound, bit their lip, then gave me an incredibly kind smile and directed me.

“Thank you…”

“You’re welcome. Be careful on your way.”

I didn’t know what was dangerous inside the supermarket that I needed to be careful of, but they were a grateful couple nonetheless.

Kwon Su-han carefully examined the abalone and perilla seeds, then put them into the cart without a word. Phew. I inwardly sighed in relief.

“Go buy beef. Over there.”

“Argh, why are you making me do everything?”

“Tell them it’s for seaweed soup and go buy it. Quickly.”

Doesn’t he have feet? I stomped off to the butcher shop in a huff, but by the time I arrived, I’d turned into a timid mess. The uncle looked at me with a big smile.

“You’re Ira from Endorphin, right? What kind of meat would you like?”

“I’m going to eat seaweed soup… and he told me to get beef…”

“Ah, okay. How much?”

“Two people will be eating.”

“Mmm-hmm, two people. Please wait a moment.”

Why is he dragging out his words like that? Since he recognized me, I watched him cut the meat with keen eyes, worried he might give me poor quality meat, but it didn’t seem to be the case. After all, someone else was eating besides me, so he wouldn’t dare mess with the ingredients, unless it was a finished dish.

I took the beef and ran back to Kwon Su-han.

“Okay, no more errands!”

“…You bought the right thing. Good job.”

A faint smile flickered at the corner of his mouth as he watched me huff and puff. That sight made me even more furious. After that, Kwon Su-han didn’t send me on separate errands; we shopped together. He even tossed in snacks and bread. He really must be rich.

Kwon Su-han’s house was in an Adapter-Exclusive Apartment. It was my first time visiting an Adapter-Exclusive building, and it was a luxurious apartment I’d never seen before, with only one home per floor. With marble floors in the living room and a chandelier on the ceiling, it was truly a chaebol’s home, like something I’d only seen in dramas. However, the spacious living room only had a sofa and a TV sitting by themselves, making it clean, almost too clean. At least the kitchen had a few more household items. Five different types of newspapers were folded on the dining table, all in different languages. There was also a TV in the kitchen, making me think this person watched a lot of TV.

“First, wash your hands and feet thoroughly and come out.”

“Am I really making it too?”

“Yes.”

“I’m so hungry and I have no energy…”

“Don’t act cute. Go wash up quickly and come out.”

What a heartless person. I grumbled and went into the bathroom. It was less of a bathroom and more like a bathhouse.

After washing my hands, he gave me a carrot and a knife and told me to cut it. I carefully observed the shape Kwon Su-han had cut and followed it exactly. The carrot was hard and thick, making it not easy. After barely managing to cut it, this time he gave me a green onion. The green onion was easier to cut than I expected. As I was preparing several ingredients, I let my guard down at the very end and ended up preparing my own finger along with them. My thumb was slightly cut, and blood flowed out. I quickly pulled out a tissue, wiped it, and finished preparing the ingredients.

“There. I’m done.”

“Okay, now for the abalone… Did you cut your hand?”

“Yes, I think I need to rest now…”

“Tsk.”

Kwon Su-han clicked his tongue, washed his hands, and went somewhere. A moment later, he returned with ointment and a bandage in his hand. Without a word, Kwon Su-han washed my finger, applied the medicine, and put on a bandage.

“Alright, next, we’ll prepare the paprika.”

“Excuse me. I cut my hand, you know? I cut my hand!”

“It’s fine. That kind of cut is normal. The bleeding will stop in 5 minutes, and there will be no trace of it in a few days.”

I’m the one who got hurt, but he says it’s fine. Absurd…

As soon as the table setting was complete, Kwon Su-han placed the braised short ribs in the center. Multigrain rice, abalone seaweed soup, and various side dishes were served. Looking at the glistening dishes, I felt hungry. Finally, Kwon Su-han brought out water and said, “Let’s eat.”

I knew that braised short ribs usually had to be marinated for a long time, but I didn’t know what trick he used, as the seasoning had thoroughly permeated the meat, making it very delicious. The seaweed soup also had a deep flavor.

Since these were dishes I had just made myself, after feeling ashamed doing errands and even bleeding, I swore I’d eat every last grain of rice.

“Eat slowly. No one is going to take it away.”

“It’s really delicious.”

“Please, eat slowly and chew thoroughly.”

“Yes, Dad.”

Kwon Su-han pleaded with a poker face, so I slowed down. No, actually, my mouth was so sore and raw that I couldn’t eat quickly. Still, it suited my taste overall, and with the thought of eating as much as possible, I finished two bowls of rice.

Kwon Su-han handed me something as I was trying to suppress a burp from being full. I was genuinely surprised, as I hadn’t expected such a thing.

“If you’ve finished eating, you should clean up.”

“…But I hurt my finger…”

“That’s why I’m giving you this.”

He’s truly cold-blooded. I looked up at him piteously, but this cold person eventually made me wear pink rubber gloves. I stood there awkwardly, with rubber gloves on both hands.

“Heh…”

“Why are you laughing?”

“Do you know what happens if you put shoes on a cat?”

“Well, it’ll just walk, I guess.”

“You should definitely look it up. That’s exactly what you look like right now.”

Ugh… I glared sharply and stood in front of the sink. No, wouldn’t it have been better if we had just gone to a restaurant? Why go shopping at the mart, cook ourselves, and even do the dishes? Someone who makes so much money should just take me to a restaurant… I grumbled, scrubbing the sponge vigorously. I scrubbed until the detergent suds overflowed from the sink, and eventually, Kwon Su-han scolded me, asking if I was a child, and then finished up himself.

Dessert consisted of the breads and tea bought earlier from the mart. The bread with condensed milk on its surface was soft and sweet, melting in my mouth, but I was so full I couldn’t possibly eat it.

“Why aren’t you eating?”

As I put down my fork, Kwon Su-han asked.

“Because I’m full.”

“Can’t a boy in his prime eat this much? Your stomach must have shrunk from not eating enough.”

“Didn’t you see me eat a lot of rice earlier?”

“You eat one meal a day, and even then, you often throw it up, don’t you?”

Well… As I nodded, Kwon Su-han’s brows furrowed. It was comfortable in front of this person, not having to hide even throwing up. It felt like I finally had an adult to whom I could complain about that secret.

“Your stomach lining and esophagus are probably quite damaged. You need to get a proper check-up at the hospital. Doesn’t your company provide regular health screenings?”

“They don’t do things like that.”

“Next time we meet, we’ll have to get a health check-up. Of course, I’ll ask someone I know to ensure it doesn’t leak out, so don’t worry.”

“…Alright.”

He’s the only one who knows my secret that I can complain to… and the only one who worries just about me. It almost gives me goosebumps… and makes me laugh. I feel good, but we didn’t meet today just to talk about these things. There’s a clear purpose.

“Now tell me. About the Apple Juice.”

“…Before you say that, open the internet first.”

“Why?”

“Just open an internet window without another word and search for ‘apple seeds’.”

Ugh… I grumbled and opened the internet, and on the first screen, there was a composite photo of me and a chick. I grinned widely as if I hadn’t just been grumbling.

“Kwon Su-han, do you want to see this?”

I proudly held out my phone to Kwon Su-han.

“A fan combined these images and uploaded them.”

“…….”

“It’s cute, right?”

I quickly hoped Kwon Su-han would affirm it, but he had a “Good grief…” expression.

“I didn’t know you had such an admirable personality that you could find yourself cute.”

“Huh? No, not me. Why would I say that? It’s sickening. The fan who wrote this post is cute, aren’t they? To find all these chick photos and combine them and upload them… Look at this post too. They say they want to put me in their pocket and carry me around. Isn’t that just too cute? The emojis are super cute too… I just think they talk so cutely.”

“…….”

Kwon Su-han looked at me steadily, then nodded.

“Cute.”

“Right? Right? Hehe.”

I felt so happy receiving praise that my fan was cute. Especially since it came from the mouth of such a cold person.

Even if I have an army of ten million anti-fans, I still have fans who post things like this. Smiling broadly, I excitedly entered the portal site.

“What was I supposed to search for? Apple seeds?”

“…Yes.”

As soon as I typed “apple seeds” into the search bar, seeing the related search terms, my excited mood instantly plummeted. I bit my lip tightly. Kwon Su-han, seeing my expression, spoke as if making an excuse.

“Apple seeds naturally contain a small amount of toxic compounds.”

“…It’s okay. I expected it. How much poison was it? Was it meant to kill me? Or just cause an upset stomach?”

“My brother said it causes vomiting and dizziness.”

“So it wasn’t meant to kill me.”

I said it with a bitter smile, but I actually thought it was meant to kill me. Because at that time, I was about to perform on the Sky Singing Stage. Feeling dizzy in the air five stories above the ground, and on top of that, if the Windy Shoes malfunctioned, there would be a significant risk of an accident.

“Listen to the end. It wouldn’t have been intentional. Read the article. The most recent one.”

At Kwon Su-han’s words, I went to the news tab and found an article in bold letters.

It was an article stating that a certain brand of apple drink product had been found to contain more than a certain amount of toxicity from apple seeds, leading to a full recall. Fortunately, it was recalled within a couple of hours of being released to the market, so there were no major accidents.

“They probably bought it unknowingly.”

“So they bought it after seeing this article.”

We spoke simultaneously. It was funny how Kwon Su-han’s and my reactions to the same event were polar opposites. Would it have been better if I had just thrown it away without checking, as I usually did? Then I wouldn’t have felt this disappointment.

Reading the fan’s post with the composite chick photo, I realized. Perhaps I had some misunderstandings. That’s why I wanted to find out the truth.

I thought I hadn’t harbored any expectations when I handed over the Apple Juice. Whether it contained toxic substances or not, I just wanted to be sure, but it seems I ended up expecting something without realizing it…

“There was absolutely no intention. It seems the timing was bad. Unlike the fan’s intention.”

“I wonder.”

I smiled bitterly and turned off the screen. It would have been better if I hadn’t known. No, I’m glad I know. I’ll have to be more careful from now on…