***
(Highway)
As Doyeon drove through the rain-soaked road, the soft rhythm of the wipers filled the car. The headlights cut through the darkness while droplets of rain slid down the windows like tiny rivers. Beside him, Ha-eun had been strangely quiet for a while now… but her eyes kept drifting toward him.
Not just once.
Again.
And again.
Doyeon noticed it from the corner of his eye.
After the fourth time, he finally sighed and glanced at her without turning his head.
"What is it?" he asked.
Ha-eun immediately stiffened.
"(・–・; )ゞ N-no… don't worry about it…"
Doyeon narrowed his eyes slightly while keeping both hands on the steering wheel.
"No." He glanced at her again with a suspicious side-eye. "Tell me. ಠ_ಠ"
Ha-eun hesitated for a moment before shyly raising one hand to cover part of her face. Her cheeks were faintly red as she awkwardly looked away.
"Earlier… you said you didn't want anything from me… but…"
Her finger slowly lifted and pointed forward through the rain-blurred windshield.
Far ahead, barely visible through the heavy rain, a shabby two-story motel building appeared beside the road. Its giant neon sign blinked lazily above the entrance, glowing red and reflecting off the soaked parking lot like a suspicious beacon in the middle of the night.
Doyeon followed her finger.
Then his brain processed it.
Then—
"(￣□￣;)!!! W-WAIT!!!!"
His hands jerked slightly on the wheel.
"We're just going there bec—!"
"N-no, it's okay," Ha-eun cut in quickly, still looking away with an embarrassed expression. "I understand…"
Her voice became quieter.
"There's no way someone would help a stranger for no reason…"
"WAAAAAIT!!!" Doyeon practically shouted, making Ha-eun jump in her seat.
"I SWEAR that's not it!!" he blurted out, nearly sounding like a malfunctioning robot. "T-there's a convenience store right beside that motel building!! T°T"
He pointed forward desperately.
"I was just going to stop there so we could call your parents!! That's IT!!! I swear!!"
His dramatic panic filled the entire car.
For a few seconds, Ha-eun simply stared at him.
Then slowly… Her hand dropped.
And a mischievous grin spread across her face.
"Lolol (≧▽≦)"
Doyeon looked at her and blinked.
"I'm just teasing you."
She giggled softly, clearly enjoying the chaos she had caused.
"Guess acting might actually be one of my talents."
Before he could react, she casually placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned slightly closer, smiling brightly.
"I know you're not that kind of person."
Doyeon froze instantly.
His entire body stiffened the moment he felt her hand on his shoulder.
"W-why do you like teasing me…" he muttered nervously. "We literally just met earlier…"
"No reason."
Ha-eun pulled her hand back and turned to the window again, watching the raindrops race each other down the glass.
"You just look cute when you're nervous."
Doyeon almost choked on air.
The car fell quiet for a moment as the rain continued to fall outside.
Then her voice spoke again, softer this time.
"Still… thank you," she said while staring at the window. "I didn't expect someone to help me."
Doyeon cleared his throat and focused back on the road.
"Yeah… well… don't talk too much right now." He tightened his grip on the wheel. "It's hard to concentrate."
The moment Ha-eun heard that word—
Her head snapped toward him instantly.
"Concentrate?" she repeated with a mischievous sparkle in her eyes.
She leaned slightly closer, covering her mouth with one hand while grinning.
"You can't concentrate? Why is that?" she teased. "Is it because you have someone pretty in your car? ( •̀ ω •́ )و"
Doyeon didn't even turn his head this time.
He simply glanced sideways at her for a brief moment before returning his eyes to the road.
"I mean… yeah," he said calmly.
Ha-eun blinked.
Doyeon spoke again in the same steady tone, as if he were stating something completely obvious.
"I do have someone beautiful in my car."
The windshield wipers slid across the glass with a soft shhk— shhk as the rain continued falling.
"So of course I can't concentrate."
For a moment, the car went completely silent.
Ha-eun froze.
Her confident grin shattered instantly as her brain struggled to process what he had just said.
"W-w-WHAT?!" she stammered. "A-are you hitting on me?!"
Doyeon immediately panicked.
"W-what?! N-no! I'm not!" he protested quickly, scratching the back of his head. "I'm just being honest!"
Ha-eun's head snapped toward the window so quickly it was almost mechanical.
For a second she just sat there, frozen.
Then her cheeks exploded into color.
A deep blush spread across her face all the way to her ears as she hurriedly lifted one hand to her hair, pulling a curtain of damp purple strands forward to hide her expression.
She turned her face further toward the glass, pretending to be very interested in the rain sliding down the window.
"I… see…" she muttered quietly under her breath.
Her fingers tightened around the ends of her hair as she used it like a shield.
"You're probably a womanizer…"
She crossed her arms defensively, though it only made her look more flustered than anything else.
"That was… smooth."
The words came out much quieter than before.
After that, neither of them spoke again.
The car filled with an awkward silence as the rain continued tapping softly against the windows.
Doyeon focused on the road ahead, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter than necessary, while beside him Ha-eun kept her face half-hidden behind her purple hair, stubbornly staring out the window.
Every now and then, however—
Her eyes would secretly glance toward him.
Then immediately dart away again.
Her face still burning red.
And the tension in the car kept growing.
***
(Parking Lot – Motel)
A few minutes later, the car slowly rolled into the motel parking lot.
The engine stopped.
The rain continued to fall outside.
And inside the car… Two extremely embarrassed people sat in complete silence.
"So…" Doyeon muttered awkwardly.
Ha-eun immediately spoke at the exact same time.
"You first."
They both froze.
Then looked at each other.
Then immediately looked away again.
Their faces were both red.