Min Ho couldn’t focus on the screen and instead, kept stealing sideway glances at Shin Hye. The first episode of City Hunter was but an introduction to the drama – so there was nothing too dangerous there… yet. Shin Hye was absorbed in what she was watching, her hands going in and out of the bowl of popcorn. She hasn’t spoken a word since the episode started.

Min Ho turned back to the big screen and saw himself running away from some thugs in Thailand. He’s the type of actor who really doesn’t mind watching himself, but today, he felt more conscious than ever. He looked down at the laptop that was connected to the TV and had every intention of hitting the stop button. But he knew Shin Hye would just swat his hand away, or ask him awkward questions about why he refused to let her watch this drama. He sighed in defeat and decided that playing it cool was the best option for him.

‘How long did you film in Thailand?’

Min Ho looked at Shin Hye who didn’t take her eyes off the screen. Okay, a harmless question.

‘Uhh, a couple of weeks?’ He answered.

‘Mmm,’ she hummed before staying silent again. Min Ho wondered if it was some sort of trick question or if she was just really curious.

‘Remember when we went to Thailand?’ She asked.

He did. It was for an Etude CF shoot. Back then, they were still very shy around each other. Apart from exchanging a couple of words during the shoot, their conversations never really went beyond exchanging pleasantries.

‘Of course,’ he replied. ‘Four years ago, right?’ He reached inside the bowl of popcorn and put some in his mouth.

‘Uh-huh,’ she nodded. ‘I remember there were fans crowding the beach – mostly yours. You even flirted with some pretty Thai girls in swimsuits.’

Min Ho literally choked on the popcorn. He coughed for a few seconds – a few fake ones added in as he tried to stall so he can think of a response to what Shin Hye just blurted out of the blue. He glanced at her and her eyes were still glued on the screen. She was clearly playing it cool, too.

‘Really? Maybe you mean interacting, not flirting,’ Min Ho clarified, his voice a bit unstable. He doesn’t recall exactly what happened then, and he wondered how Shin Hye can remember something from so long ago.

‘Anya, you were definitely flirting. I can sense when guys are flirting with me so yeah, you were flirting. It’s okay. It’s in the past,’ she said nonchalantly as she grabbed more popcorn and popped them in .

Min Ho opened his mouth to say something back but changed his mind and kept mum. He refused to dig his own grave. The less he spoke, the more he can avoid mistakes. So instead, he inched nearer Shin Hye and hoped that a little skinship would ease the tension brewing. His threw his arm around her shoulder and snuggled close.

Shin Hye looked up at him and smiled widely, her eyes reduced to arched slits. He took that as a good sign and leaned his head on hers. He turned back to the screen. It was already the scene when his onscreen fake father was reprimanding him from saving a Korean ahjussi from the Thai thugs.

Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. He knew exactly what the next scene was. The screen flashed a close up of him stuffing food into his mouth as if he’d been starving for days. The Korean ahjussi he saved in the drama turned out to be a former chef.

He heard Shin Hye giggle at the sight. ‘Oppa, you should eat the food I cook like that so I’d feel good,’ she said. ‘Ahhh, giyowo.’

Min Ho let out an awkward laugh that sounded more like his throat was vibrating. And then came the part he dreaded.

Drama Lee Min Ho grabbed a photograph from drama ahjussi’s pocket. It was a picture of a girl. Park Min Young. Drama Lee Min Ho stared at said photograph and excitedly blurted out that she was so white and pretty and refused to give it back to the ahjussi.

‘You have good taste in women,’ drama ahjussi said to him.

Min Ho fidgeted a little as he gave Shin Hye another glance. If she was even slightly bothered by the scene, she didn’t show it at all. She had on a poker face. Min Ho wasn’t exactly sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. The episode went by without any more words exchanged between them, and with Min Ho blankly staring at the screen, wishing for it to just end. He wasn’t paying attention anymore and was just thinking about how he will deal with a few more hours of watching him and his ex interact on screen while his girlfriend watched.

The episode reached the its last minutes, drama Lee Min Ho was now in Korea, and Park Min Young made her first appearance within the same vicinity -- a clear sign of the love story about to blossom in the drama. When it ended, Min Ho let out a big breath he'd been holding. He wasn’t sure how he survived that one.

Shin Hye bent forward and closed the laptop. Min Ho’s eyes widened. Is she not going to watch anymore? At this point, Min Ho thought he must have gone crazy. He felt relieved that he doesn’t have to sit through any more episodes that would surely just add to the awkwardness, but he was scared that Shin Hye was bothered so much that she doesn’t want to continue watching anymore. His throat felt so dry he thought swallowing would hurt.

He didn’t realize how his body was so stiff that he didn’t even move the slightest. Shin Hye turned to him and smiled. ‘That was really good,’ she said.

Is she playing mind games right now?

‘Mmm,’ he responded. He couldn’t make out words quite yet. After a while, he spoke. ‘Are… we not going to watch anymore?’

She continued to look at him and shook her head.

Min Ho furrowed his brows. ‘Why?’ The moment he said it, he immediately regretted it. YOU BABO. IT WAS YOUR CHANCE TO ESCAPE AND NOW YOU’RE BRINGING IT UP?

‘Because you were feeling uncomfortable,’ she replied.

‘Ehh?’ Min Ho squeaked.

‘You obviously didn’t want to watch it. You should have just told me, you know.’

‘BUT I DID,’ Min Ho’s tone was disbelieving.

‘No, you didn’t. You suggested that we make out. Never, at any point in our conversation, did you say that we shouldn’t watch it.’

Min Ho thought back to an hour ago and scratched his head. ‘Because you might think that I’m making a big deal out of… you know.’

‘What?’ Shin Hye asked.

Why is she pretending? She definitely knows what I’m talking about.

Shin Hye narrowed her eyes as she crossed her arms. ‘Park Min Young-ssi?’

Min Ho locked gazes with Shin Hye. There was no escaping this conversation so he might as well take the plunge. He nodded his head slightly.

‘Hmmm.’ Shin Hye leaned back on the chair. ‘I know it’s not a big deal. Don’t worry. Besides, I was the one who insisted on watching City Hunter. Sorry if it made you feel uncomfortable,’ she said.

Min Ho sighed in relief when he realized Shin Hye wasn’t planning on asking anything more about him and Park Min Young. Assa. Dodged that bullet.

‘Should we watch TV instead?’ He smiled as he reached for the remote control. ‘Is there anything you want to see?’ He flipped through the channels as he waited for Shin Hye to respond. When she didn’t, he looked to his side and saw Shin Hye blankly staring at the screen. He scanned her face and he knew that she was tuning everything out, the way she usually does when she was deep in thought.

Min Ho had an inkling about what was on her mind. Frankly, he could choose to let it go, or he could ease her worry. He decided to do the right thing and turned off the television. Shin Hye didn’t even blink.

He turned to his side so he was facing her. She was still out