30

JAKE POV

Her hug last night left me stunned. I couldn't breathe for a moment.

It came out of nowhere, and her words lingered in my head long after she walked away.

Had she heard what I said to Yurim at the hospital?

No. That would be impossible. There was no reason for her to visit Yurim.

Then why did she cry in front of me like something had broken inside her?

—

I lay on my bed after a shower, scrolling through social media. The news about Jina and me had already blown up.

Some comments were harsh, calling me a cheating husband. But surprisingly, others still supported me.

I didn't care much about the backlash.

Only Jina and I knew the truth about our marriage, and that was enough.

A message suddenly popped up.

"Jake, I want to eat your homemade cookies. Can you bring them to me tomorrow?"

It was from Yurim.

I smiled instantly, my heart lifting at her message.

"I can buy them from the bakery. They taste better than mine." I replied.

"I'll give you my answer about your confession, if you bring your cookies tomorrow."

My heart skipped a beat.

So she was really considering it.

—

I woke up early the next morning just to bake cookies for her. But I'd never made them from scratch before I always just bought them.

I looked at a recipe on my phone, staring blankly at the flour bags.

"Which one is wheat flour?" I mumbled to myself.

"Why are you up so early?" Jina's voice made me flinch.

She was in glasses and pajamas, hair tied up. She looked soft. Like someone I didn't want to look away from.

I quickly turned my eyes back to the counter.

"Mind your own business," I said, clearing my throat.

But she walked over anyway, pretending not to hear me.

"Are you trying to bake cookies?"

I didn't answer. I just kept following the recipe and cracked some eggs into a bowl.

"No, no—this is wrong." She reached out and stopped my hand. I froze under her touch.

"You need to cream the butter with brown sugar first. Here, let me show you."

"I can do it myself."

She leaned in closer and whispered,

"Do you want to burn the kitchen then?"

I gave up and sighed. "Alright. Just tell me what to do."

She smiled like a teacher, guiding me through each step. I followed her instructions, mixing ingredients slowly while she stood next to me.

At some point, she dipped a finger into the batter and tasted it.

"This is good."

"You can't just eat raw cookie dough,"

I scolded, but she giggled, that beautiful, carefree laugh of hers making my chest tighten.

"You try it too."

She fed me a bit of dough, looking up at me with bright eyes.

I couldn't move. I just stared, lost in her face.

"How is it?" she asked, breaking my trance.

I coughed. "It's a waste of time."

She laughed, then stepped closer, and I accidentally dumped too much flour into the bowl. Some of it spilled onto the floor.

"It's a mess now," she said, amused.

I didn't even care. I was still looking at her.

She scooped up a handful of flour and held it out. "Look what you did."

Without warning, she blew the flour at me.

"Han Jina!" I wiped my face and scowled. "What are you doing?"

She burst out laughing. "I'm sorry! You look like an alien now."

I scooped up flour in return and threw it back at her harder.

She shrieked and stumbled back, rubbing her eyes.

"It's in my eyes! Jake!"

I laughed out loud as she waved her arms around like a zombie. "This is revenge."

"It stings! Are you happy now?" she pouted.

I stepped forward and gently took her face in my hands, brushing the flour away and blowing softly near her eyes.

She stopped moving, letting me help her.

"My eyes..." she mumbled again, like a sulking kid.

"It's okay. Stay still," I said as I continued.

"Thank you."

She opened her eyes slowly, meeting mine with a soft smile.

Before she could pull away, I wrapped my arm around her waist, holding her still.

She blinked up at me, stunned.

"You're messing with my feelings, Han Jina."

She looked confused. "What?"

I stepped closer.

"Stop driving me crazy."