"I must have come to the wrong room."
Mi-mo, startled by the unfamiliar man, hurriedly tried to close the door, but a voice came from behind her.
"Mi-mo, you're here. Thanks."
Un-soo thanked her as he pressed the door open, placing his hand over hers on the handle.
"Hyung."
"You told me to come 20 minutes early, but you're the one who's late," said the unfamiliar man, frowning at Un-soo. Mi-mo followed them into the room. The large dining table was set with utensils, but something was off.
One, two, three... seven? Why are there seven?
This wasn't what Mi-mo had envisioned. She had imagined a romantic date, just the two of them sitting together at a table adorned with roses, sharing intimate conversations as he smiled at her, then perhaps, him making a serious confession.
But here, seven places were set at the table, leaving her bewildered.
"Excuse me."
She called out softly to Un-soo, confused by the situation, but he was too engaged in conversation with the man he called "hyung" to hear her.
She cautiously approached him.
"Uh…"
"Oh! Mi-mo, let me introduce you. This is my brother, Kang Jae-soo. And this," he said, looking at his brother, "is his girlfriend for the day, Han Mi-mo."
"What?"
Mi-mo looked at Un-soo in shock. Jae-soo stared at her, scanning her up and down.
"Not exactly girlfriend material, but she'll have to do for now. You, just don't say much. Judging by the way you're standing there, I can already tell you'd mess up if you spoke."
Jae-soo's cutting remarks barely registered. Mi-mo was too overwhelmed by confusion, needing to hear it from Un-soo's lips again to confirm what she'd just heard. She clasped her hands nervously, staring at him.
"Can you… repeat what you just said?"
"You agreed to be my brother's girlfriend for today, remember?"
"When did I…?"
Mi-mo was frozen in place, her body stiff as a statue, though her mind raced to figure out how this had happened. Then, all at once, it hit her.
"Ahhh!"
She let out a shriek, covering her mouth with both hands.
---
**The Day Before**
After returning home, Mi-mo took a shower and changed into pajamas. Still feeling chilled from the cold water, she shivered.
"So cold... I feel like I'm going to catch a cold for real."
She took some medicine from the cabinet and crawled into bed, pulling the covers up tightly.
"Ugh... so cold..."
She quickly drifted off to sleep under the influence of the medication.
In her dream, Mi-mo was being chased by a dark, shadowy figure.
"Help me!"
She screamed, but there was no one around. From the dark shadow, a long, black arm extended and grabbed her.
"Let me go! Let go of me!"
She struggled to free herself, but the grip was too strong. The black arm dragged her closer to the shadow, pulling her back as she fought to move forward. She was losing the fight.
"Let me go! Let go, you stupid arm!"
Just then, someone appeared in front of her — it was Kang Un-soo. He was wearing something similar to a Superman costume, though without a cape.
"I'll save you."
Un-soo used his strength to pry the black arm off of her and threw the shadow far away.
"Oh my, how cool!"
Mi-mo was instantly smitten. After defeating the shadow, Un-soo stood in front of her. She gazed at him with loving eyes.
"Thank you, my hero!"
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
"No."
She replied, blushing slightly.
"I'm glad you're okay. I have something to ask of you..."
"Oh, you do?"
"Actually, it's more of a request. Would you mind?"
"Of course not! I'll repay your kindness, just like the legendary magpie!"
"My request is…"
At that moment, the sound of a crow's cawing filled the air. Startled, Mi-mo opened her eyes briefly before closing them again.
"I'm a magpie… so why a crow?"
She mumbled sleepily, about to fall back asleep when…
Brrrr… Her phone vibrated on the bedside table.
Still half-asleep, Mi-mo reached for it.
"Hello…"
"It's Kang Un-soo…"
"Un-soo… thanks for saving me…"
Still groggy, she confused the dream with reality.
"Huh? Oh, no, I just lent you some clothes. Anyway, I wanted to ask you for a favor."
"Yes…"
"There's a family gathering tomorrow, and I need you to pretend to be my brother's girlfriend. Just for tomorrow, okay?"
"Yes…"
"Really? Thanks. I'll text you the details."
"Yes… yes…"
After responding in her sleepy voice, she hung up the phone.
Two hours later, she woke up and checked the text from Un-soo.
- Tomorrow, Gungjeon Korean Restaurant, 12 PM. See you there!
"Ah! Oh my gosh! It's a date with Un-soo oppa!"
She excitedly rushed to her wardrobe.
"What should I wear? Should I get my hair done at the salon?"
Mi-mo had completely forgotten about the phone conversation. She only saw the text and thought it was a date.
---
**At the Korean Restaurant**
Mi-mo stood stiffly in front of Un-soo and Jae-soo.
Brother… girlfriend… role…
Her brain slowly began piecing the conversation together. Memories from last night's phone call resurfaced, and she screamed again as they came flooding back.
"Why is she acting like that? Did she eat something bad?" Jae-soo commented, puzzled. Un-soo looked at Mi-mo with concern.
"Mi-mo…"
"Oh! I… I just remembered. But… can we pretend this didn't happen?"
"What? You came all the way here and now you want to pretend it didn't happen?" Jae-soo snapped.
Mi-mo stepped back.
"I'm really sorry. I just remembered… it's hard to explain, but I didn't come here for this…"
"What are you talking about?" Jae-soo said, irritated.
"Mi-mo!" Un-soo called her name, cutting off her rambling. She immediately stopped speaking at the sound of his voice.
"Please, just this once. Yesterday, you said you'd be like the magpie repaying a debt… you only need to be the magpie today."
Jae-soo pulled out a chair from the table and sat down.
"I don't understand what you're saying, but whatever. You!" He pointed at Mi-mo. "You're my girlfriend today. Don't even think about leaving."
Mi-mo swallowed nervously.
She was in deep trouble now — and stuck with someone awful. How could he talk like that when they'd just met? So rude! Girlfriend? Who said I was his girlfriend? The one I like is Un-soo oppa! I need to get out of here, now!
"I'm really sorry..."
She muttered an apology and turned to leave, but just then, the door opened.
Four more people entered, and she realized instantly — his family had arrived.
The first person to enter was a woman in her 50s, petite with a slender face and gentle features, suggesting she had been quite beautiful in her youth. Her alabaster skin... she must be their mother. Un-soo looks just like her.
Next, a man and woman walked in together. The woman, standing around 170cm tall, had an elegant, traditional beauty with her monolid eyes. The man, similar in height to Un-soo, around the early 180s, looked like a model as they walked side by side. Something in his face reminded her of Un-soo.
Is that his brother? The woman doesn't look related, so maybe she's his girlfriend?
Lastly, a young woman, likely in her 20s, entered the room and gently closed the door. She was about Mi-mo's height, wearing a body-hugging dress that accentuated her figure, her glowing skin radiating youth.
Who's that? She looks young… maybe a younger sister? Wow, I'm so jealous of that figure… and that glowing skin. She must be in her 20s.
The young woman walked straight to Un-soo, grabbing his arm.
"Oppa, I'm here!" she said in a playful, affectionate voice, her words dripping with aegyo (cute charm).
Mi-mo's expression changed from envy to fury.
Who are you!!