THE manager of the manga cafe couldn’t help but to frown while staring at a certain customer. The said customer then put down the manga that she was reading (upside down) and suddenly smiled when her eyes landed on something. The manager followed where the customer was looking and found her employee, Joohyun, who just came back from cleaning a private room. Her frown deepened. 

“Joohyun-ah.” Hyoyeon, the manager, called the attention of her employee. Joohyun quickly put the dishes in the sink first before responding to the manager/cafe owner. 

“Yes, Unnie?” Joohyun said while wiping her hands on her apron. The owner gave a gentle smile to her favourite employee before frowning again. “I-Is there something wrong?”

“Come closer, little one.” The manager asked her to sit beside her before docking a bit. She then pointed at the certain customer that has been staring at Joohyun whenever she comes into sight. “Do you even know who that person is? She keeps looking at you.”

Joohyun’s eyes looked rather disinterested. She let out a deep sigh. “She’s a junior from university.”

“And…?” Hyoyeon looked at her with right eyebrow raised. 

“And?” Joohyun repeated, confused.

“And nothing more? Just a junior? Are you sure she is just a junior?”

Joohyun was taken aback. “W-What do you mean, Unnie?”

“Hey girl, I know there’s something more. I can see it right through you!” She pulled Joohyun’s seat closer before looking at the said customer again. “She’s been coming here for three consecutive days, sitting on the same spot, reading random books. Sometimes I don’t even know if she’s really reading because I’ve caught her holding the books upside down a few times. She’s here from opening until closing as if she lives here. And, most importantly, she’d always smile whenever you come into sight! I know there’s something fishy here, young lady! Who the hell is that attractive blondie?”

The attractive blondie suddenly smiled which made the two flinch. She then casually rotated her upside down book as if she heard the conversation of the two who were almost whispering. It’s also very impossible for them to be heard since they were far away. 

Joohyun just rolled her eyes as her shoulders dropped. “It’s quite a story.”

“Is it long?” The manager asked. 

The employee looked rather surprised at the question. “I-It isn’t. It was just the prologue…”

“Then tell me! I have a lot of time!”

With no other choice, Joohyun told the story of how she was asked to become a pet by her richest classmate. Of course, as a sane person, Joohyun turned down the offer but this Kang Seulgi won’t just let her go like that. The junior started coming to her part time job but she didn't say anything. She would just be there as if letting Joohyun know that her offer still stands and she won’t be giving up until she agrees to be adopted as a pet.

The manager started frowning once again after Joohyun finished her story. “So she said that your ultra rich classmate will take you in for a year with free food, free lodging and even free clothes and all you have to do is to be with her? And, she would be even paying you at the end of your contract with twice the amount you earn for a year?”

“Uhm?” Joohyun thought for a second. “Y-Yes, she did say that she would also pay me for the talent fee of being her pet.”

“Then why did you refuse the offer!?”

That sudden shout of the manager caught the attention of the customers. The lady immediately stood up and apologised before quickly going back to Joohyun. She held the younger girl by the shoulders and started shaking her. 

“That’s a good offer that you refused, young lady! If it was offered to me I would take it straight away!”

“U-Unnie!” Joohyun freed herself from the earthquake simulator. She fixed her uniform and then sighed. She took another look at Seulgi who now looked rather invested in whatever she was reading. “W-Why would I agree to that!?”

“And why should you not agree to that!?” The manager asked, putting her hands on her waist. “Ask her if it’s okay for someone else to take the role. I am willing to take it!”

“Unnie…” Joohyun’s shoulders dropped even lower. “What if she’s going to harm me?”

“Harm you?” Hyoyeon crossed her arms and looked at Joohyun from head to toe then back to her face. “Aren’t you the one who got cut off from work for actually doing a jiu jitsu move to a customer who d you? Oh, didn’t you also lose that convenience store job because you headbutt a drunk customer who was harassing you? Ah, do you also remember—”

“Please stop, Unnie…” The smaller girl raised her hands up in surrender. “I know I am a bit physical. I can’t help it. I learned that kind of survival in the orphanage.”

“Do you get my point now, Joohyun-ah?” Hyoyeon went back to her seat. “Do you really think anyone could harm you physically when you’re like a little incredible hulk?”

“Do you really have to say little?” Joohyun pouted. 

Hyoyeon looked at Seulgi again as if she was trying to figure out what kind of person the blonde is just by her looks. “Does she have a bad reputation at school?”

“Uhm… No? She sleeps at class but she’s still getting good marks. She doesn’t seem to have any enemies but she doesn’t seem to have any friends at all either. She’s very quiet and she never joined any party until the last one.” Joohyun’s eyes narrowed. “Now that I think of it, she seemed like she had a good relationship with the seniors and the professors.”

“Oh~” The manager nodded her head, looking a bit disappointed. “I thought she’s a player or something. I mean, just look at her visuals! She’s just sitting there but it’s like she’s having her own photoshoot.”

“Well, she’s indeed a bit popular…” Joohyun then remembered how the first years reacted when they saw Seulgi. She could still remember how her classmates told her that if she got the hearts of the freshmen boys, Seulgi grabbed the hearts of the freshmen girls and locked them in a vault. She could still remember how Seulgi’s admirers were doing a funeral for their expectations when the said senior didn’t attend the MT.

“Hmm…” Hyoyeon pressed her lips together. This was just a big deal for her. “Then, why do you think that she gave you that offer? Let’s say that she really heard you say that you want to live as a pet, she gave you the offer and you rejected. She did say she was advised to get a pet but why do you think she’s this persistent over you?”

“I don’t know.” Joohyun took another peek at Seulgi. “I didn’t really talk to her after that.”

The manager let out a sigh. “How about try talking to her about it again? Who knows? It might really be a legit good offer?”

Joohyun just stayed silent. Hyoyeon gave her an assuring smile before placing a hand on her shoulder. “If it’s really a good offer, you can give it a try. If you think it’s not for you then you can always come back here. I just think you getting spoiled is not bad at all.”

Hyoyeon then dismissed her and had her go back to work but Joohyun’s mind was now filled with the thoughts of Kang Seulgi and that strange offer. They were both induced with alcohol back then but the other girl is still going for it. 

“I guess it won’t be bad to actually talk about it.” Joohyun murmured to herself as she washed the dishes. “I can always headlock her if she actually tries to hurt me.”

WHEN Joohyun came out of the building where she was working, she was actually expecting for Seulgi to be there waiting for her just like the other days but the girl was nowhere to be found. It was already late when she realised that she’s actually looking for her.

“What am I even thinking?” Joohyun asked herself as she shrugged her shoulders. “Am I really considering that silly offer?”

The lady then went straight to the bus stop, trying to take Seulgi out of her head. She couldn’t help but to blame her boss for all the things she planted in her head. 

Yes, Joohyun can blame anyone for it but the fact that she’s actually wondering how it would feel to be actually taken care of is something that she won’t be able to deny.

Back in the orphanage, she got involved in fights a lot of times, that's why she was the only one who didn’t get adopted from her batch. The caretakers actually gave up on how feisty she was. Younger kids came and she was tasked to look after them since she was the oldest.

When she started attending school, she was also late for one year, that's why her classmates were all younger than her. Taking care of people younger than her was already imprinted to her so the same things happened in school.

Of course, nothing changed after she started living alone. It was always her looking after herself. Her university classmates might be nice but she’s still the one taking care of them most of the time. 

“How can a girl younger than me take care of me anyway?” She murmured to herself while waiting for the bus. “That’s just absurd. She seemed like she is the one being babied by whoever her guardian is now.”

“There’s none.”

Joohyun almost shrieked when she heard someone talk behind her. She didn’t jump away from the person but instead gave them an elbow blow by the stomach. The next thing she knew was that Kang Seulgi was coiling in pain in front of her. 

“S-Seulgi!” Joohyun immediately came to her aid. The people by the bus stop were looking at them.

“I-I’m sorry for startling you, Sunbae.” Seulgi said with a smile trying to cover the pain. “B-B-But I don’t think I deserve to be treated like this…”

“I-I’m sorry!” Joohyun worriedly said while checking Seulgi.

“I-If you’re sorry then can you please spend a bit of your time with me?”

“Huh?”

Joohyun’s eyebrows twitched. She just looked at Seulgi’s face whose smile was now tainted with mischief. The older girl’s eyes were then covered with disbelief before she softly pushed Seulgi back to the ground.

“S-Sunbae! Don’t—“

“Stand up.” Joohyun dusted her knees. “I also wanted to talk to you. Let’s go.”

Seulgi smiled at that invitation. She then directed Joohyun towards her car and asked her out for dinner. Joohyun just agreed but she didn’t know that she would be brought to a sujebi restaurant. Knowing how huge Seulgi is, she was actually thinking they would go somewhere fancy but it was a very humble restaurant.

“Is there anything wrong?” Seulgi asked when they were finally seated. 

“N-Nothing…” Joohyun answered as she looked around. Seulgi just watched her for a bit before pouring her a glass of water and prepared the utensils.

“What do you want to talk about anyway?” Seulgi asked, wasting no more time (since they wasted quite plenty of it during the awkward car ride).

Joohyun looked back at her straight to the eyes. “I was actually wondering when you will stop coming to my work place.”

“Is that it?” The blonde said with a hint of disbelief.

“That’s it.” The older girl answered with stress. “My manager is already getting suspicious of you. Also, I already turned down your silly offer. I am not doing it so just leave me alone.”

“Hmmm…” Seulgi crossed her arms and comfortably leaned on her chair. “You won’t change your mind anymore?”

“No.” Joohyun also crossed her arms before looking away. “Why can’t you let go of the idea anyway? I was just rumbling about that because I was a little drunk. That’s all!”

“I see…” Seulgi pressed her lips together while looking blankly at the table. She popped her lips which made quite a sound. “I just really need a pet.”

“And I am a human, Seulgi.” Joohyun’s shoulders dropped.

“But you said you wanted to be a pet?” Seulgi innocently answered.

“Come on…” Joohyun almost slid down to her seat. “How many times will I tell you that—“

“I will take good care of you.”

Joohyun was silenced with that one line. Seulgi slowly looked back at her with those serious eyes. “W-What?”

“I said I will take good care of you.” Seulgi said as she lifted her chin up. “I have the confidence to take good care of you. I’ll give you everything you need.”

Please Subscribe to read the full chapter