Chapter 1: The Boyfriend Bluff

Chae Bora was two bites into her tteokbokki when her mother said the words that made her choke."There's a nice boy from church I want you to meet this weekend. His mother says he's studying dentistry!"Bora coughed violently, snatching her water and nearly spilling it. Across the dinner table, her brother Bonggu tried — and failed — to stifle his laugh. "Dentist this time? What happened to the accountant last week?""Too boring," their mother replied without missing a beat. "But this one is different. Very polite. Strong jawline too."Bora wiped her mouth, mentally preparing her escape route — but there wasn't one. Not unless she did something drastic."I already have a boyfriend," she blurted out.Silence.Even her father looked up from his newspaper."What?" her mother blinked."Yeah," she said, swallowing her panic. "We've been seeing each other for a while now. He's really sweet. Kind. And, um, tall.""Taller than Bonggu?" her mother asked suspiciously."Way taller," Bora said, even though she wasn't sure why that mattered. "He... he lives in our building."From across the table, Bonggu narrowed his eyes. "Who in our building?"Before she could spin more details, the sound of a door unlocking echoed from the hallway. Their apartment's front door creaked open, followed by a familiar voice calling, "Bonggu! I left my charger—oh."There he was.Han Noah.Neck-length yellow hair tousled like he'd just rolled out of bed, blue eyes gleaming with that irritating charm he always carried. He wore a loose hoodie and sweatpants, like the world was his runway and he'd chosen 'lazy chic' as his aesthetic of the day.He blinked at the room of people staring at him, then grinned. He greeted Mr & Mrs Chae."Dinner party? Where's my invite?"Bonggu groaned. "You're always inviting yourself."But Bora was frozen. Because in that moment, she saw something miraculous — a way out. And Noah, the infuriating flirt that he was, seemed to catch on fast. His eyes slid to her, and something sparkled in them."Oh," he said again, slower this time, walking toward the table. "Is this a bad time for the boyfriend to show up?"Her heart dropped. "Noah—"He slung an arm casually over her chair, leaning in close. "Hey babe," he said with a wink.Bora stared at him in horror, but her mother gasped delightedly. "He's the boyfriend?!""Yeah," he said smoothly. "Didn't she tell you?""You never mentioned he was so... handsome!" her mother gushed. "Look at those eyes! And such glowing skin!""Must be all the love," Noah said without missing a beat.Bonggu looked like he wanted to throw himself out the window. "You're joking, right?""Oh no," Noah said, smirking as he pulled up a chair beside Bora. "Totally serious. Aren't we, sweetheart?"Bora kicked him under the table."Very serious," she said with a pained smile."Well," her mother beamed, clapping her hands. "This is such wonderful news! No blind dates needed after all!"As Noah reached for a rice ball, whispering "you owe me big time" under his breath, Bora wondered what, exactly, she'd just gotten herself into.But when she glanced at Noah — smug, sparkly-eyed, and clearly enjoying this far too much — she couldn't help but feel a traitorous smile pulling at her lips.She was doomed.