Jisoo was shifting her legs one after the other as she stood outside waiting for Mino. It’s almost 8:30, and he’s still not here.

She checked her phone again, and when she looked up, Mino was already in front of her, making her heart skip a beat.

“Eight o’clock isn’t too early, huh?” She rolled her eyes at him as she turned towards the entrance of the art gallery.

“I slept at 4AM, Sooyah. 8AM is ing too early for me now.” Mino cursed as he sped up next to her.

“Who told you to sleep at 4 ing AM?” She asked him, equaling his crass attitude.

“My brother.” He simply answered while stifling a yawn.

Jisoo turned to him. “Is this about the doctor?”

Mino nodded and Jisoo grimaced. “I knew that doctor is a problem.”

“Tell me about it. Apparently, he was Dara noona’s childhood best friend, even before Kwon Jiyong came into her life.” Mino told her.

“You make it sound dramatic.” She was grinning at him.

“I’m only quoting my brother.” He said while stifling another yawn.

“You know, you don't have to be here if you wanted more sleep.” Jisoo cornered him.

“I wanted to be here, so shut up. I heard there’s a gourmet coffee cart around here. That’ll fix things.” Mino gestured for them to start walking through the crowd.

“Lead the way then, grumpy guy.” Jisoo .

--------

“What are you doing in Daejeon?” Mino asked her as they ate their lunch sandwiches at a cafe outside the gallery.

Mino got himself a couple of sketch drawings and a really cool alien figurine dressed in hanbok.

“Parents.” She answered simply as she stuffed the chicken sandwich she ordered to . “This is really good.”

“I can tell.” He smiled at her. “What time does your train leaves?”

“12:40” She continued to wolf down her sandwich.

“Are you going with Jaewon?”

She looked up to him for the first time since their sandwich came. “Nope. He’s got some work thing. He’ll be there tomorrow.”

Mino leaned back in his chair and looked outside. "We should get going then. It looks like it will rain."

Jisoo grabbed her sandwich and orange juice. "Ok. Just drop me at the train station and you're Jisoo-free now."

Mino laughed as he opened the door for her.

--------

"Holy ing hell."

Jisoo cursed as the sign on the train station informed them that the trip to Daejeon is cancelled for the rest of the day.

Mino winced as another string of curses escaped . "What the hell, Sooyah. You've probably recited all the curse words known to mankind."

She turned to him with teary eyes. "I can't miss mom's birthday."

"Why don't you just join Jaewon tomorrow?" Mino asked.

"Today is mom's birthday."

"Why is Jaewon coming tomorrow then?" He asked her.

"Because he's the evil twin." She pouted her lips as she started to walk away from the train station.

Mino looked at his watch. It's still around noon and Daejeon is just a two-hour drive. He doesn't have anything planned for the day anyway.

"Let me drive you there."

Jisoo's face lit up in excitement and her eye smile made him feel warm.

"You're not kidding? This is not a joke? You're 100% sure about this?" She asked him.

"Get in the car before I change my mind." He turned away from her to hide his smile.

"Road trip!" Jisoo ran ahead of him and waited for him outside his car.

"Let's go, grandpa!" She called him as his steps slowed down.

"Damn you, woman."

--------

"So, what's your family nickname?"

Mino asked Jisoo ten minutes in to their drive. She sat in the passenger seat with a box of donuts on her lap and a tub of popcorn on top of it.

"They call me Haru." She answered as she ate a handful of popcorn.

Mino glanced at her and saw the pieces falling at the floor of his car. "Can you try to make less crap in my car?"

Jisoo looked down on her feet and grinned at the mess she made. "Oopsie."

"Shouldn't we get your mom something?" He asked as he continued to drive.

"Mom hates flowers, she's allergic, and we're baking her cake when we get there. It's kind of our thing, you know." She told Mino as she picked the pieces of popcorn off the floor.

"How about wine?" He asked again.

"Maybe. You really don't have to bother, Mino." She smiled at him. He suddenly felt warm again seeing her face that he quickly got his eyes on the road.

"I'm just used to bringing something whenever I visit a new house for the first time." He said as he casually brushed the back of his neck.

"Well, you're bringing me to them. That should do it." She grinned at him. "Can I eat the donut?"

Mino laughed at her question. "No need to ask me for permission, Sooyah. I bought that for this trip."

"Yeah, but you bought it. It's only right I ask for your permission." She said while checking the flavors inside the box.

"Go ahead, Haru." He .

Jisoo flinched and shot him an angry glare. "Never call me that again."

His smile disappeared as she remained serious while glaring at him. "Yes, ma'am.”

"Now what do you like more, chocolate or honey glazed?"

Mino shook his head in disbelief at her sudden change of mood. "Damn this woman."

--------

They pulled up to a quiet household after an hour and Jisoo couldn’t help but ran out of his car the moment he killed the engine.

“MOOOOOOOOOM!”

Mino reached at the back of his seat for the wine and whiskey they bought along the way for Jisoo’s parents.

As he stepped out of his car, he saw Jisoo hugging a seemingly younger woman to be her mother. She definitely has Jisoo’s intense set of eyes that warms up when she smiles. They broke away from their hug and that’s when she noticed him.

“Who’s the handsome guy, sweetie?” He heard her mother say. Jisoo snorted and asked him to come closer.

“He’s a friend from work, mom. This is Song Mino.”

Mino bowed before her and offered his gifts. “Jisoo told me it’s your birthday today.”

“Oh, I like wine! Do you like my daughter?” She suddenly quipped at him, making him feel awkward.

“This is the part you introduce yourself as Kang Hye-jung, mom.” Jisoo nudged her mother.

“Sorry, I got carried away. I’m Ha---Jisoo