Now and for the Last Time

22 장

"Seriously? Anagrams?"

I looked around me, wondering if I'd misjudged how loudly Sehun had asked the question. Nope. Even Phone Lady, at a table a few feet away, had given us her attention, briefly pausing her own high-volume conversation.

"Yes," I said in a whisper, like this would compensate. "Aggressive ones. It was assassin."

"Whoa." The line inched forward, slowly. Lately, the coffee order had become Sehun's job, but with Jeon Somin and her mother back for yet another meeting, it was that much more important, so I'd come along for backup. "So I'm guessing the night did not end with a hot make-out session."

"No," I said flatly. "He barely spoke to me the whole dinner, actually. But then he asked for my number, which was weird."

"Why?"

"Why did he asked for my number?"

"No," he said, "I know that. You're a hot girl and he loves weird games. What I'm wondering is why you think it's weird."

I barely had time to process being referred to as "hot," which was a first, before answering. "Why would he want to see me again if he had no interest in me when I was right in front of him?"

"Well, I wasn't there," he replied as the line moved up a little, "but if I was a betting man, I'd say he had no idea you didn't have a good time."

"I think it was pretty obvious."

"Maybe to you. But some people - guys in particular - are oblivious. It's what makes dating so easy when you aren't that way. It's like having a secret power."

From behind me, I now heard Phone Lady talking about vet bills and robbery. "And that's you," I guessed. "Superman."

"No," he said, pushing aside his strand out of his face. "But the bottom line is, all anyone really wants from another person is their attention. It's so easy to give and counts for so much. It's stupid not to do it."

Hearing this, I thought about the times I'd seen Sehun leaning into a girl while she talked, his interest rapt and evident. Starting with that first night in the parking lot of the club when he was AWOL for his mother's wedding, all the way up to . . . well, moments earlier, when he'd made Hongjoo, one of the stationary store owners, blush when he complimented her dress. Would I have felt differently the night before if between word games Hyungsik had focused entirely on me? I couldn't say. But it wouldn't have hurt.

"I think I'm going to win this bet," I announced as we moved up the line. "If you give attention to every female you meet, there's no way you'll be able to keep a girlfriend."

"There's nothing wrong with attention," he said easily. "I just can't openly flirt. Luckily, I know the difference."

I turned, facing him. "Does this mean you've already met someone with possible life-partner potential?"

I was pretty sure he winced at the last part, but he recovered quickly. "First of all, my life is not seven weeks. Or at least I hope it isn't. Second, finding one person to be with for that time isn't as easy as a dinner date. It takes time and focus."

"Or," I countered, "you could just take the first girl you would have that one perfect first night and see if she can go the distance."

"True," he replied. "But the only girl I met last night was a total train wreck. I basically had to doge out of the back door of a club and walk. Long story."

"Was this before or after you gave her your full attention?"

He ignored this, instead moving up to the register, where he'd finally arrived. The same guy from before was behind the counter, in red-and-white plaid this time. "Long time no see," he said, giving me a nod. "Where've you been?"