Translator: Elisia
Editor/Proofreader: Wojo
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“…….”
Hmm.
It’s awkward.
Feeling somewhat at ease, and also because eating something sweet put me in a good mood, I half-impulsively called Yang Hye-in to my room.
Using So-hee’s work phone, I called her, and it didn’t take long for Yang Hye-in to come straight to my room.
It wasn’t so much that she was happy to come, but rather, she was used to moving like this as part of her routine.
Yang Hye-in was still one of my personal maids, and she had been doing this kind of work for several years already.
It seemed Yang Hye-in thought I called her because I had some task for her.
So-hee was technically also my maid, but since she was a minor, I didn’t assign her work after her official working hours.
Besides, because she was my friend, I didn’t deliberately make her work.
Isn’t that the right thing to do?
No matter how much it’s a maid and employer relationship, if I kept making her work and So-hee kept taking on the tasks, the relationship would inevitably break.
A sort of hierarchy would form between us.
So, if I had to choose between the two maids working under me as the “real, proper” maid, I would have to choose Yang Hye-in.
It wasn’t about whether So-hee was good at her work or not.
“…….”
The problem was, because of that not-so-warm relationship, the current situation felt extremely awkward.
I had called Yang Hye-in before I even finished eating the snacks.
If I finished eating and then called her, that would seem like I called her to give her a task, rather than out of consideration.
I had planned to clean up together, at least.
But I had never had a candid conversation with Yang Hye-in.
No, actually, no one here had ever had an open conversation with Yang Hye-in.
So, of course, with her here in this unexpected snack party, everyone felt uncomfortable.
……Ah, I feel like I’ve experienced this feeling before.
I just can’t remember when.
‘So, what should we do now?’
It seemed like Sara was feeling extremely uncomfortable with the situation too.
Yeah, what should we do about this?
“Do you dislike snacks?”
“No, I do like them.”
Only after I asked the question did Yang Hye-in mechanically move, pick up a snack, and put it in her mouth.
……Did she even look at what snack she picked before eating it?
Did she pick the one she liked best?
I hope she did.
Otherwise, I’d really feel sorry for calling her.
Ah, I remember now. I think I have a rough idea of what this situation is like.
This is just like when someone who doesn’t usually talk to their classmates suddenly finds themselves at a drinking party with the popular crowd at school.
The popular kids invited them because they’re classmates, but the outsider doesn’t really like drinking.
They’re not into karaoke either, and they don’t even know what “second round” or “third round” means.
Even when they talk, their hobbies and interests are completely different, so they don’t connect, or there’s nothing to talk about because they’ve never had a conversation before.
And there’s a reason why I didn’t immediately remember this situation.
Yeah, in my memory, that “outsider” was me.
Although I wasn’t unfriendly, I was still invited to group gatherings or project meetings, but I usually went home after the first round.
I didn’t really like alcohol, and I couldn’t drink much anyway.
I spent most of my time reading web novels, watching online broadcasts, or playing single-player games that others didn’t really play, so I didn’t have much to talk about with those kids.
……The reason I couldn’t immediately recall that situation is because my position is now completely reversed.
I’m still not exactly the popular one at school, but in this situation, I’m the one with the majority.
Thinking about it, I don’t know much about who Yang Hye-in is.
I bet it’s the same for Sara’s memories.
In all of the memories I’ve seen, Sara never had any personal conversations with Yang Hye-in either.
“So…….”
I slowly opened my mouth.
“The reason I called you here today, Yang Hye-in, wasn’t for any special reason. I just realized that we haven’t had a proper conversation up until now, and since we’ll likely be seeing each other for a long time, I thought we should at least know a little about each other…….”
I was going to say “I thought we should get closer,” but I quickly changed my words.
Saying I wanted to become friends seemed like it would be too much.
Honestly, even saying it felt a bit burdensome.
In reality, even though she was probably only a few years older than me, or perhaps even younger, my appearance at present was much younger than Yang Hye-in.
So saying “I want to be friends” felt oddly uncomfortable.
If it happened naturally, it’d be different.
“I see.”
Yang Hye-in responded politely.
…….
Before I knew it, she had clasped her hands together and was listening to me attentively.
Of course, she had also stopped eating the snacks.
It would feel awkward to tell her to eat snacks on purpose at this point.
She might actually be someone who doesn’t really like this kind of thing. There are people out there who don’t like sweets after all.
“…….”
“…….”
Silence again.
Ah, is she waiting for me to ask something?
But what should I ask?
Maybe I should ask about hobbies?
“Ah, senior!”
In the end, it was So-hee who couldn’t bear the situation and spoke up first.
“Didn’t you say your hobby was cross-stitching?”
The words that came out of So-hee’s mouth were quite surprising.
“Ah, we’ve had a lot of chances to talk.”
When I looked at So-hee with wide eyes, she smiled and said that.
Well, until recently, the two of them used to go down to the first floor together every morning to prepare for work.
They must have talked about something while working, instead of keeping their mouths shut.
“Do you do cross-stitching?”
Anyway, I couldn’t let the opportunity So-hee made for me go to waste, so I quickly asked.
“Yes, I do a bit whenever I have some free time.”
Yang Hye-in looked a bit flustered by my eager reaction.
That’s understandable.
Until just recently, I hadn’t shown any interest in her personal life.
In fact, I really hadn’t been interested.
It was only now, because I considered her clearly on my side, that I had these thoughts.
“Cross-stitching…….”
I tried to continue the conversation, but it stopped again.
Right.
Cross-stitching, huh.
I had never met anyone who had cross-stitching as a hobby before.
Actually, I had never met anyone who had it as a profession either.
All my friends were people who only had video games and comics on their minds.
……No, even if I had a girlfriend, I doubt her hobby would be cross-stitching.
Was cross-stitching ever that mainstream of a hobby?
My interest in cross-stitching was even smaller than my interest in Yang Hye-in.
If I had to express it in words, I’d say my knowledge was limited to “something like that exists.”
“Is there a reason you started cross-stitching?”
In the end, I could only ask a cliché question you’d hear in a craftsman interview.
Fortunately, after thinking for a moment, Yang Hye-in answered,
“It helps me pass the time calmly. When I focus on one thing, time seems to fly by without me realizing it.”
“Time, huh?”
“Yes. After Miss goes to school, I don’t really have a set schedule.”
“Ah…….”
So, it seemed that this hobby developed after she started working in this job.
But, weren’t there other ways to pass the time?
Like the internet, watching dramas or movies…… even reading books was an option.
I mean, I’m not saying cross-stitching is bad or anything.
……My gut was telling me.
This person must not have been an ordinary person even before she became a maid.
“Then…… Do you have a favorite food by any chance?”
Seeing that I was stuck, Ha-neul quickly jumped into the conversation.
“Favorite food…… Well, I don’t really have a particular favorite, but I prefer light and clean-tasting food.”
Yang Hye-in answered earnestly once again.
……While we had these extremely sweet and salty snacks sitting right in front of us.
Could it be that she really wasn’t picking up the snacks because she doesn’t like them?
“Do you have a favorite singer or song?”
This time, it was Soo-ah who asked.
“I don’t really listen to music.”
“…….”
I tried to imagine what Yang Hye-in would be doing while waiting for me in the mansion.
Sitting in the servants’ break room, without turning on any music or TV, working on her cross-stitch alone.
All while wearing her maid uniform.
……Strangely enough, it was a scene that fit her perfectly.
Once I imagined it, I couldn’t bring myself to criticize it.
“…….”
And silence again.
Since Yang Hye-in wasn’t picking up the snacks, we somehow felt guilty about eating them too.
It started to feel like I had bought snacks that she didn’t even like and called her here just for that.
What would I have to bring to make her really enjoy something?
I thought I should seriously think about this.
……When I first came here, I didn’t think I’d face this kind of situation.
I had no choice but to reluctantly admit that Choi Na-kyung was incredibly skilled at selecting people.