The moment he agreed, Yoon Nam-hyuk regretted it.

Because that guy Qi Huai actually drove a Cullinan to move his luggage. He didn’t look like a poor student who couldn’t afford a hotel at all.

“How about beef hot pot for dinner tonight? Does Yoon Sunbae like this?” Qi Huai put the two suitcases into the second bedroom and then took out a mini fridge from the trunk of the car.

Inside the fridge were three boxes of hand-beaten beef balls, various bottles and jars of sauces, and other ingredients that Yoon Nam-hyuk couldn’t recognize.

“I love it…” Yoon Nam-hyuk stared at the three boxes of beef balls. “The housekeeper will come to cook tonight, so you don’t have to bother. You can just give the ingredients to her.”

“It’s no bother,” Qi Huai smiled. “Let’s just consider it a celebration of me moving in. At least let me cook once today, how about it?”

The beef balls were too tempting.

Yoon Nam-hyuk followed his heart and nodded in agreement.

An hour later, a sumptuous dinner was served on the table. The clear spring-like soup base bubbled, emitting a fragrance that was familiar to Yoon Nam-hyuk’s memory.

The soup base only had clear beef bone broth and white radish, simple but fragrant. The hand-beaten beef balls were springy and crispy. The white radish, when boiled to a certain degree, was so tender it melted in your mouth. Adding green vegetables at this time was the ultimate delicacy.

The dipping sauce was personally mixed by Qi Huai. He wanted to see if this heartless little fool would remember him after eating the familiar dipping sauce.

Unfortunately, no.

The beef hot pot is so fragrant…

Yoon Nam-hyuk was so full he kept burping.

Actually, Yoon Nam-hyuk had never told anyone that beef hot pot was his favorite food. Ever since he had it once in the United States on his high school graduation trip, he had been crazy about it.

Later, when he made a name for himself in the entertainment industry and had more time to himself, he would go to China every year to eat it. But strangely, he could never find the taste in his memory.

Perhaps it was the beautification of a distant memory by humans?

He had thought so before.

But at this moment, the beef hot pot made by Qi Huai actually tasted exactly the same as the one in his memory…

Yoon Nam-hyuk mumbled, stuffed a beef ball coated in mixed sauce into his mouth, and made a happy sound.

Qi Huai couldn’t help but laugh. “Eat slowly.”

Yoon Nam-hyuk blushed and licked the sauce off the corner of his lips. “It’s delicious… what’s in this sauce? You put something special in it, didn’t you?”

Why was it that only Qi Huai could make this taste? Could it be a variation of Chinese food that only exists in the United States? Can only people who have lived in the United States make it?

“Sunbae, you can guess. It wouldn’t be fun if I just told you, right?”

After saying this, Qi Huai thought to himself, little fool, since the taste is the same, have you ever thought that the person is also the same?

You didn’t forget me, did you?

The little brother who promised to marry you.

If Yoon Nam-hyuk had studied a little Chinese, he might have known that there is a saying called “it’s hard to guard against a thief from within.” But when the thief’s goal is to steal a heart, it’s hard to be discovered.

The “cohabitation” time began with a beef hot pot. In just three days, Qi Huai had figured out the most comfortable dual-living mode for Yoon Nam-hyuk.

Breakfast was between 8 and 10 in the morning. The specific time depended on Yoon Nam-hyuk’s schedule the day before. Qi Huai would work out before this and then check his work emails from the previous day.

After breakfast, the acting lessons began. They would read the script together, rehearse their lines, and find their emotions. Yoon Nam-hyuk would occasionally correct Qi Huai’s pronunciation of his lines.

“Press the tip of your tongue against the back of your front teeth to make the sound. See my tongue tip? Put it here.”

Yoon Nam-hyuk taught seriously and patiently repeated, completely unaware that his student was interested in the teacher’s tongue tip, which was why he would make mistakes in pronunciation from time to time.

After all, he’s a foreigner. It’s normal to mispronounce one or two words, Yoon Nam-hyuk thought, and Qi Huai thought so too.

In addition, the process of rehearsing was even more exhilarating for Yoon Nam-hyuk. He had read the character biography written by Qi Huai, and their understanding of the character was quite consistent. Therefore, there was no need to argue or express their own opinions. They could just rehearse one scene after another.

Qi Huai was very talented. He could grasp the emotions in a flash, and his facial expression management was even more impressive. This guy had an almost perfectly symmetrical face. If he messed up, it could only be on purpose.

This feeling of meeting a soulmate made Yoon Nam-hyuk extremely excited. He felt that the time spent honing his acting skills every day passed too quickly. He, the teacher, had become the one who was left wanting more.

Qi Huai would laugh at him. “Don’t be an acting fanatic. This is just a job. Being too immersed is not good for your health. What if you become Park Seok-jin in the drama? You might not be able to fit into the costume you wore when you first debuted.”

“…Don’t talk nonsense.”

Yoon Nam-hyuk’s face turned red. He thought to himself, I don’t have the hobby of using teaching as an excuse to seduce students and do it a lot.

After lunch was their respective free time. Qi Huai had his own work to do, and Yoon Nam-hyuk would usually read a book or go out for his schedule.

But in order to prepare for the new drama, he had pushed back a lot of his schedule. At first, he had almost one every day, but later it was only one a week.

So for the next period of time, Yoon Nam-hyuk would be curled up on the sofa reading and watching movies, watching those sci-fi and thrillers that made his adrenaline soar.

From this point of view, he and Qi Huai had similar tastes.

“Are these English original books? They must be out of print, right? The hardcover is so exquisite,” Yoon Nam-hyuk held the book that Qi Huai had placed on the coffee table and couldn’t put it down.

Qi Huai smiled. “You like them? You can have them, senior.”

Yoon Nam-hyuk was stunned. “Aren’t you going to keep them for your collection?”

Qi Huai: “These were all given to me by a friend. I have them at home. They don’t know, and it’s a hassle to take them back. They’re very heavy.”

He added, “Just consider it as my tuition fee for learning acting from you, senior, okay?”

Yoon Nam-hyuk pursed his lips and smiled. “Thank you, I’ll keep them well.”

At night, when Qi Huai finished his work, it was their completely free time.

At this time, Qi Huai would name a few dishes that Yoon Nam-hyuk had never heard of and say he would eat them for dinner.

Yoon Nam-hyuk was embarrassed to let Qi Huai work alone, so he would go into the kitchen to help wash vegetables, open a bottle of wine, cut some fruit… After a while, he had even learned a few signature dishes, such as scrambled eggs with tomatoes, blanched green vegetables, and cold cucumber salad.

Qi Huai praised Yoon Nam-hyuk for having a talent.

Yoon Nam-hyuk said, “Like your acting talent?”

Qi Huai just smiled. “It seems that perfect people like us have no shortcomings, right, senior?”

Yoon Nam-hyuk was speechless. “Right.”

Watching a movie while eating dinner was simply the happiest thing in the world, especially those movies that Yoon Nam-hyuk had wanted to watch but didn’t dare to watch alone. This time, he finally had company.

Yoon Nam-hyuk couldn’t help but think, Mom was right, it’s not so bad to have another person at home.

If married life could be like this, it would be quite… stop.

Yoon Nam-hyuk patted his forehead in horror. This thought was very dangerous. What was he thinking?

That’s a 22-year-old outsider. He has his own family and life in the United States. Korea is just a temporary business trip for him. After this drama is filmed, he will say goodbye to everyone. It would be good enough if he just wishes you a Merry Christmas on KKT occasionally in the future.

Don’t think nonsense.

Stop it.

But what can be done?

Love is like a cockroach. The more you suppress it, the more it spreads. By the time you notice the signs, it has already run rampant in a corner that no one pays attention to.

Just like that, Yoon Nam-hyuk gradually became Qi Huai’s observer. He began to discover more and more of the other’s good points, from admiration to liking, from liking to having a crush…

The exhilarating acting classes became a sneaky way to express his true feelings through the lines of the play. The dinner and movie time that he originally found most comfortable became a time to actively get close to his crush under the pretext of being scared.

I’m so despicable…

Yoon Nam-hyuk thought to himself.

Before long, Director Baek called and said that all the actors had been cast, and each of them was a perfect fit for their role. As long as there were no major mistakes, the drama would be a hit when it aired.

If the movie started shooting, Qi Huai could no longer stay at Yoon Nam-hyuk’s house, because even Yoon Nam-hyuk himself had to move to a hotel near the set.

Qi Huai only had two suitcases and a car. It didn’t take much effort to move. He could pack up in less than two hours.

The toothbrush cup was taken away, the towel was put away, and the clothes hanging on the balcony were also packed… Qi Huai packed in front, and Yoon Nam-hyuk followed behind him, pretending not to be obvious, like a small pet who had learned that its owner was going on a business trip. He was just short of asking Qi Huai when he would be packed up too.

Qi Huai was very bad.

He smiled without saying anything, just seriously packing his luggage, pretending not to see.

When he was done packing, the only things left of Qi Huai were the few books he had given to Yoon Nam-hyuk, lying lonely on the coffee table in the living room.

He didn’t even take them all, Yoon Nam-hyuk thought.

The day he moved to the hotel near the set, because it was on the way, Yoon Nam-hyuk didn’t ask his manager to take him. Qi Huai took him there.

The two of them were particularly silent on the way. Especially Yoon Nam-hyuk. Even when Qi Huai mentioned the movie they had watched last night, he was absent-minded and just answered with a few “um”s and “ah”s, looking quite unenthusiastic.

“What’s wrong, senior?” Qi Huai asked. “You don’t look very happy. Is something on your mind?”

Yoon Nam-hyuk opened his mouth. “Mm…”

Qi Huai: “If you’re in trouble, maybe I can help you think about it.”

Yoon Nam-hyuk thought for a long time and finally gave up the “I have a friend” formula, just saying, “It’s nothing. I always can’t sleep well before joining a crew. I might be a little anxious.”

“Is that so?” Qi Huai smiled, his eyes emotionless, looking not very happy.

But Yoon Nam-hyuk didn’t notice.

The two of them were almost the last to arrive at the hotel. Before long, Director Baek organized the actors to read the script together and visit the filming location.

All the actors were very professional. Qi Huai and Yoon Nam-hyuk had almost memorized the script backwards and forwards. The script reading progressed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was dinner time.

At night, Director Baek organized a dinner party for everyone as usual. It was still the same two-piece set of barbecue and soju that Yoon Nam-hyuk was very familiar with. Although there was nothing new, it was lively.

Qi Huai and Baek Soo-kyung, the two youngest new actors, were undoubtedly the object of everyone’s “affection.” Unfortunately, Baek Soo-kyung had just come of age, so it was not good to let him drink too much. The only young man who was truly “loved” was Qi Huai.

Director Baek added fuel to the fire. “Aigoo, look how much everyone loves you, Actor Qi. Have a drink. You have to toast to thank Actor Yoon for tutoring you for so long, right?”

At first, it was just soju, but later it became a bomb shot of a small glass of soju dropped into a large glass of beer.

Qi Huai’s face was flushed from drinking. Because it was hot, he had unbuttoned two or three buttons on his chest, revealing his smooth muscle lines. His drunken eyes were slightly narrowed, making him even more charming.

Yoon Nam-hyuk, who had just drunk a glass of bomb shot, stared at him for a while and also began to feel hot.

In this kind of gathering, it was no fun to just get one person drunk. So Qi Huai, who was the first “lucky one,” was soon abandoned, and everyone found a new object of “affection.”

Qi Huai sat there, leaning against the wall. Because it was a tatami seat, his long legs had nowhere to go, and his upper body was swaying and kept leaning towards Yoon Nam-hyuk, making him nervous. He didn’t know whether to catch him directly or find him a cushion.

Baek Soo-kyung saw Yoon Nam-hyuk’s troubled expression and misunderstood, thinking he wanted to join the drinking game. So he said considerately, “Yoon Sunbae, I’ll take care of him. You can go chat with the director. Don’t worry about us.”

After he said that, he put a cushion behind Qi Huai. It was a miracle how he found the right angle to stabilize Qi Huai’s upper body.

Yoon Nam-hyuk stared at the cushion.

Baek Soo-kyung smiled embarrassedly. “My dad is a drunkard. When he’s drunk and can’t sleep comfortably, he makes a lot of noise. My younger siblings are still young and have a lot of homework. In order to keep my dad quiet, I’ve always been the one to take care of him. Practice makes perfect.”

A newcomer with a pitiful background.

Yoon Nam-hyuk’s expression softened. He nodded. “Director Baek said you did very well in your audition. You’re a newcomer with potential. Use this drama to develop your strengths and learn more. You’ll have more and more works in the future. Don’t be impatient.”

Baek Soo-kyung, who was praised by his senior, blushed. “Thank you, senior. I’ll work hard. I—”

Before he could finish his sentence, Qi Huai, who had been sitting steadily, suddenly tilted and completely lay on Yoon Nam-hyuk’s shoulder, clutching his stomach and saying uncomfortably, “Sunbae… I want to go back to my room.”

The tip of his nose brushed against the side of his neck, and the hot breath also sprayed on it. Yoon Nam-hyuk couldn’t help but shiver and hugged Qi Huai’s shoulder. “Oh, I-I’ll take you back.”