After Min Hyuk and Jang Mi ended up taking a taxi together, Lee Hoo couldn't help but wonder what their plans were and why they were together. "Is he her boyfriend now?" he thought anxiously. "I mean, they did go on two dates, well, we can say a date and a half. What the hell is going on?" He debated whether he should text her but decided against it, fearing he might seem clingy. "Not before I confess my feelings properly," he resolved.
The confusion and uncertainty gnawed at him, making it impossible to sleep. His mind raced with thoughts and possibilities, each one more troubling than the last. "What the heck is going on?" he muttered to himself, tossing and turning in bed, unable to find peace.
Jang Mi actually did have plans with Min Hyuk. He was planning to ask his granny to intercede for Jang Mi to get an appointment with the famous shaman. However, the shaman was fully booked and couldn't make time for another person.
"What! You told me you would guarantee an appointment for me," Jang Mi said, frustration evident in her voice.
"I really tried my best, but I guess my granny isn't that close with her," Min Hyuk replied. "She was really close with her grandma, but after the old shaman died, her spirit helped her granddaughter become the new shaman."
"Are you sure she's that good and worth the trouble?" Jang Mi asked skeptically.
"Of course! You don't know how famous she is. She only gets paid in dollars, and people from all around the world call her. She's only taking small cases like this while she's in the country, but she will be going to the USA next week, this is your last chance"
"Okay! Let's do that," Jang Mi decided.
"Do what? My granny couldn't get the appointment," Min Hyuk reminded her.
"Did you forget? I'm lucky. Let's just go to your granny to get the shaman's phone number and address. I'll take care of the rest," Jang Mi said confidently.
"Ohhhh, I didn't know you were that cool," Min Hyuk said, laughing. Jang Mi joked back, matching his playful tone. They both shared a light moment before hailing a taxi to his granny's house.
In the taxi, Min Hyuk couldn't stop talking about the famous shaman and how accurate she was.
"You seem so passionate about it," Jang Mi said, smiling.
"When I was little, I found a book about the shaman profession. It was so interesting that I almost wanted to become one. It's not an easy job, that's for sure. I became more and more interested and looked up famous shamans and their stories," Min Hyuk explained, his enthusiasm evident.
"You look like a stan of shamans at this rate," Jang Mi joked.
Min Hyuk laughed. "It's nice to talk about this stuff with someone who actually takes me seriously, like you. People usually start making fun of me, calling me an old spirit."
Jang Mi chuckled. "Well, I guess I'm a fan now too."
Min Hyuk continued talking in detail about the famous shaman's stories all the way to their destination. When the taxi driver stopped, Jang Mi handed him her card to pay, but he said, "It's okay, today's ride is free. My daughter graduated, and I'm really happy, so I'm not taking any payments today."
Jang Mi thanked the driver and congratulated him as they stepped out of the taxi, acting as if nothing special had happened. Min Hyuk, still in shock, asked, "Hey, what just happened?"
Jang Mi smiled back and asked, "Where does your granny live again?"
Min Hyuk, surprised, said, "You really are something!" and started clapping. "Follow me."
They arrived at Min Hyuk's granny's house, where she welcomed them warmly and invited them in. She kept wondering if the girl with her grandson was his girlfriend. They denied it and affirmed they were just friends, but she kept teasing them.
Jang Mi asked about the shaman's number, but the granny told her that she had done all she could to get the appointment; it just wasn't working out. Suddenly, the phone rang. It was the shaman's manager, saying they could get an appointment but it had to be a quick one, just because she was a good friend of the shaman's grandma.
The granny was surprised by the unexpected turn of events.
"Are you sure you can't buy me a lottery ticket?" Min Hyuk asked, half-jokingly, half-hoping.
"Forget about the lottery. You should marry her instead," the granny responded.
In their conversation on the way out, Min Hyuk couldn't help but express his thoughts. "It must be frustrating being with Lee Hoo and having all that luck not working!" he mused.
To this, Jang Mi replied confidently, "Not at all. I like being with him. I've had luck all my life, but I never felt complete. There's always been something missing. I don't mind a little bad luck for once if it means exchanging it for the happiness I get with him."
Min Hyuk seemed skeptical. "Why are you working so hard to get the appointment, then?" he inquired.
"It's not for me. I want to make things right so he'll be better off being next to me," Jang Mi explained.
As she prepared to head home, she added, "I'm going. See you later."
Min Hyuk offered to accompany her, but Jang Mi declined with a smile. "It's okay. I'm lucky. Don't worry."
Jang Mi met Seo Ah at a restaurant and updated her on the recent events. Seo Ah was surprised by all that had happened. "For a girl who doesn't have a love life, you sure have a lot of drama," Seo Ah remarked.
"Seo Ahhh, help me here! What should I do?" Jang Mi asked in desperation.
"Do you think I'm a genie who grants wishes? I'm not an expert. My love life is easy and simple," Seo Ah responded. "Well, if Lee Hoo finds out why you dragged him into your date, he won't like it for sure."
"I don't know what to do," Jang Mi admitted, feeling overwhelmed.
"Just eat and leave it for tomorrow," Seo Ah advised, offering a reassuring smile.
"At least you have the appointment now; let's hope it works this time. Hey, the more important thing here is, do you have a picture of him? I want to see how handsome he is and if he's worthy of our lovely Jang Mi," Seo Ah said with a mischievous smile.
Jang Mi spent the evening with Seo Ah, trying to have fun and forget about the mess her life was in. They drank and stayed out late, enjoying each other's company. The next morning, Jang Mi struggled to wake up, feeling the effects of the late night and the drinks, but she managed to drag herself out of bed and get ready for work.
As usual, Jang Mi arrived at the office on time, greeting everyone with a cheerful "Good morning."
"Good morning, our unlucky banda," Amy said teasingly.
"What?" Jang Mi asked with a clueless expression.
"You have dark circles under your eyes. It seems you didn't get enough sleep," Amy explained.
"It must be nice to be young," Name1 said to Amy, referring to what they had seen yesterday.
"Yeah, I didn't sleep much. I went out for drinks with my friend," Jang Mi explained.
"Yeah, you must have had fun with your new handsome boyfriend. We saw him come to pick you up after work," Amy added.
"No, no, it's not like that," Jang Mi protested, trying to explain the misunderstanding just as Lee Hoo entered and greeted everyone. As he came closer, Jang Mi started feeling nauseous. "I feel like I want to throw up. What is that?" Jang Mi said without realizing it.
"You said you drank yesterday. You must be hungover," Amy replied.
Jang Mi quickly ran to the restroom.
"What is going on?" Lee Hoo asked.
"Ahh, Jang Mi is a little bit hungover. She drank with her boyfriend last night," Amy responded.
Lee Hoo felt those words like a knife cutting into his heart. He headed to his office, slamming the door behind him, leaving Amy suspicious and surprised by his reaction. "Her boyfriend?" he muttered to himself in his office. "And what again? 'I feel like I will throw up'? Seeing my face makes her want to throw up?"
He paced back and forth, frustration mounting. "If she has a boyfriend, why does she keep flirting back? Why did she give me the concert ticket? Am I a joke to her?" he fumed, his emotions boiling over.
Meanwhile, Jang Mi was confused about why she felt hungover. She had never experienced a hangover before. "It makes sense; Lee Hoo was there, so there's no luck," she thought. Determined to push through, she encouraged herself, "We can do this. Fighting!"
Jang Mi returned to her desk, trying to act as if nothing had happened, but she couldn't help glancing at Lee Hoo's office, hoping to catch his eye. Amy noticed her behavior, but Lee Hoo didn't come out of his office all morning. During lunch, he passed by, excusing himself by saying he had plans. Jang Mi was a little upset that she couldn't have a moment with him.
In the afternoon, Lee Hoo headed to the kitchen to get his coffee. Jang Mi rushed to the kitchen, following him. He was preparing his coffee, ignoring her. "Can you make me coffee too?" Jang Mi asked politely with a smile.
"Make it yourself," Lee Hoo responded coldly. Jang Mi came closer to ask what was going on, but she felt nauseous again near him. Lee Hoo noticed. "Are you okay?"
"I'm okay, I just feel sick," she responded.
"Wait here for a moment," Lee Hoo said, heading to his office. He returned with hangover medicine. Despite being mad, he had bought it when he saw the advertisement at lunchtime, thinking of her.
"Here, drink this," he said, handing her the medicine. Jang Mi felt touched and happy.
"You didn't forget about our plans today?" she asked in a rush.
"Where do you want me to go with you? Won't your boyfriend be mad if I do?" Lee Hoo said.
"What boyfriend? I don't have a boyfriend. What are you talking about?" Jang Mi replied, confused.
"Min Hyuk isn't your boyfriend? We saw you leaving with him yesterday. Didn't you have plans with him?"
"I did have plans with him. He helped me with something as a friend."
"Oh, I see. You drink late with a male friend, go on dates with him, and invite others to see how your dates go," Lee Hoo said, referring to the last date with Min Hyuk when he was with them.
Amy walked in, interrupting their conversation. Lee Hoo left the kitchen in a rush. "What's with him today?" Amy asked. "He's been so mad since this morning. Hey, are you two dating?" Amy inquired.
"What are you talking about? We aren't," Jang Mi responded.
"You know I have eyes and I can see things. He was so mad since we told him you spent the night with your boyfriend drinking," Amy replied.
"I wasn't. I told you I was with a friend, and that man you saw with me isn't my boyfriend," Jang Mi explained with frustration.
"Okay, okay, don't get so defensive. By any chance, do you know if that guy is single?" Amy asked curiously.
But Jang Mi left Amy alone in the kitchen without an answer. Instead, she texted Lee Hoo: "Let's meet on the company roof in 10 minutes. We need to talk."
"Does she think I'm her dog, I'll do whatever she says? Who's bullying who here?" Lee Hoo muttered sarcastically when he read the text. Two minutes later, he was already on the roof waiting for her.
Lee Hoo kept waiting for her, and when she arrived five minutes late, he remarked, "You said 10 minutes, not 15."
"Well, Amy kept an eye on me, so I couldn't come sooner. I'm sorry," Jang Mi apologized.
"What do you want to tell me?" Lee Hoo asked, sounding indifferent.
"I just want to clarify that yesterday, I drank with my friend Seo Ah, not with Min Hyuk," Jang Mi explained.
"Why would I care?" Lee Hoo responded, avoiding eye contact.
"There's so much misunderstanding, so I'll clarify everything now and today," Jang Mi said, determinedly, while Lee Hoo looked at her with curiosity, having no idea what he was getting into.
Jang Mi took a deep breath and began, "I want to clear something up first. Do you remember when I told you I'm a lucky person? I wasn't joking. I am lucky, in an unexpected way." Lee Hoo looked puzzled and replied that he felt lucky sometimes too when things went his way. She shook her head, trying to make him understand. "No, you don't understand. Things always go my way. I am really lucky. I don't expect you to believe in that, but can't you just believe in me?" Lee Hoo, still confused, said, "Let's say you are lucky. I still don't understand this situation."
Jang Mi sighed and explained further, "The thing is... I have this belief, or maybe it's a fear, that I have terrible luck when it comes to my love life. It never works well, and terrible luck follows me." Lee Hoo found it hard to believe and said so, but Jang Mi insisted, "It is true. Terrible things happen when I'm with someone I'm interested in, but everything worked so well on my first date with Min Hyuk because you were there. At least, that's what I thought. When you're around, my luck changes. Things go smoothly."
Jang Mi explained further, "To sum things up, when I'm alone, I have huge good luck. When I'm with someone I like, things go badly. But when I'm with you and Min Hyuk, things go as they should again."
Lee Hoo's eyes widened in realization. "And that's why you asked me to go with you on your date and made me look like a fool who bullied you?" he asked, hurt. Jang Mi apologized, her voice trembling. "I am sorry. I didn't do it to hurt you or to play games; I was just curious." Lee Hoo, still processing everything, asked, "Did you think I'm your good luck charm that you can bring on your dates?"
"Is that all I am to you?" Lee Hoo said with frustration. "I thought we had something here." He left her standing there and walked away, but Jang Mi followed him and blocked his path.
"No, it's not that. I discovered I had good luck with Min Hyuk even without you," Jang Mi said. Lee Hoo furrowed his eyebrows and added a sarcastic smile. "Oh, congratulations, Miss Jang Mi. You don't need your good luck charm to go on dates now," he said, continuing to walk away.
Jang Mi hurried after him and stood in front of him again. "I'm telling you, I have good luck with Min Hyuk! And I always have bad luck when I'm with you," Jang Mi said. Lee Hoo grew angrier. "I understand. I won't get close to you again, don't worry," he retorted.
But Jang Mi grabbed his shirt, desperation in her eyes. "No, you don't understand. I only have bad luck with someone I like, and I have bad luck when I am with you."
A look of realization appeared on Lee Hoo's face. "What are you saying?" he asked, his voice softening. Jang Mi shouted, "I like you, Lee Hoo!"
"You like me?" he said, a huge smile spreading across his face. Jang Mi, all red and embarrassed by her sudden confession, kept her gaze fixed on the floor. Lee Hoo gently grabbed the hand that had been pulling his shirt and pulled Jang Mi even closer to him. His face came so close to hers that she felt lost in his eyes.
"You don't mind having bad luck following you when you're with me?" Jang Mi asked hesitantly.
"I don't mind, because I already feel so lucky to have you by my side in the first place," he said softly. Then, without another word, he leaned in and hugged her.
As they got lost in their moment, a flock of birds suddenly flew overhead and bombarded them with their droppings, splattering them unexpectedly.
Jang Mi stopped for a moment and started laughing. "See, I told you," she said, looking at a droplet on his shoulder.
Lee Hoo's eyes sparkled with determination. "I don't mind at all," he murmured, pulling her closer with a confident grin, and capturing her lips in a passionate kiss. Suddenly, the sky darkened, and rain began to pour down heavily, drenching them both. It was an unexpected summer storm, making it feel as if they had started a war against the world. But they didn't care. They continued kissing under the storm, the rain pouring nonstop, lost in the moment and the intensity of their connection.