Peninsula: From a supporting actor to the best actor in Chungmuro

Chapter 233 The Bathroom Movie Star and the Jealous Man in the Living Room

"Oppa...you mean this is the 'surprise' you were talking about?"

Kim Ji-won's gaze slid from Kang Jae-hoon's rapidly darkening face to the phone he was clutching tightly in his hand, though she couldn't make out the caller ID or contact name...

but!
She clearly saw the couple's profile picture featuring calico cats!
This undoubtedly signifies—

The caller must be one of the "three"!
therefore.

This question.

It was less about curiosity and more about venting dissatisfaction at being disturbed and a hint of jealousy.

"..."

Kang Jae-hoon was speechless for a moment after being choked by her untimely "humor".

At that moment, he couldn't care less about any surprises.

The vein on his forehead throbbed slightly.

He understood Kim Ji-won's little mood, but now was definitely not the time to comfort her or explain!
only……

When he glanced at the other person's seemingly magnanimous expression despite clearly caring, his heart softened a little.

"Sweetie, wait for me a moment."

As he spoke, he reached out and gently pinched Kim Ji-won's cheek:

"Sit down and rest for a while, watch some TV."

immediately.

Kang Jae-hoon gripped the buzzing phone tightly, turned around, and strode towards the bright and clean bathroom.

In the bathroom.

The light from the overhead light instantly filled the field of vision.

The man in the mirror still had the irritation and slight panic from the interruption of their passion lingering between his brows.

There was still a trace of coral lip gloss on her lips.

"Damn it!"

Kang Jae-hoon cursed under his breath.

He quickly pulled out a few soft cotton face towels from the box next to him.

She carefully wiped away the conspicuous evidence from her lips while looking in the mirror.

Once, twice...

Only after repeatedly checking under the light to confirm that there was no trace of suspicious color residue did he move his facial muscles and adjust his state.

everything's ready.

When the phone screen lights up for the Nth time and the video request interface flashes.

Kang Jae-hoon then swiped the green answer button in the center of the screen.

The video feed lit up instantly.

Yoona's pretty face and bright eyes instantly filled the entire phone screen.

The background is a bit shaky.

Judging from the angle, she was probably holding the phone herself.

Behind me were blurry, swaying lights and the noisy figures of the girls in the locker room.

Wow, so cute!!!

Kang Jae-hoon's performance switch was instantly activated!
Her voice was filled with surprise and affection, carrying a genuine feeling of being "instantly struck by the beautiful scenery before her," and her face naturally radiated an expression of admiration that was "cute."

This praise is by no means entirely false.

At that time, Yoona had obviously just come off the stage and had not yet removed all her stage makeup.

A faint glow of highlighter lingered on her cheeks, and her curled eyelashes and clear eyes, enhanced by stage makeup, exuded a more aggressive beauty than usual.

however.

The most visually striking thing is—

A fluffy rabbit ear headband was clipped diagonally onto the top of her smooth hair.

Adorably innocent and unguarded.

The relaxed laughter and chatter of the girls can be clearly heard in the background of the video.
"How about we go get some sukiyaki later? I know a place that stays open late..."

"...Let's just go get some ramen, I'm so hungry..."

"Yoona! Stop video chatting! Hurry up and get ready..."

Obviously.

They were in a state of extreme relaxation after the concert, and were enthusiastically discussing where to treat themselves to a late-night snack.

"Finally picked me up? I thought you'd left me stranded in Tokyo."

in the screen.

Yoona furrowed her delicate brows slightly.

Clearly, the repeated delays in getting through to the phone had displeased this young lady.

I didn't respond to that "cute".

She wants an explanation.

"How could that be! I just saw that my phone was on silent. Even if I were on the moon, I would still answer Yoona's call."

Kang Jae-hoon's face instantly switched to an innocent expression, and his brows furrowed into a perfectly measured arc.

The excuse of "forgot to turn on the mute" came easily to mind.

His tone was natural, his eyes were open and honest, and there was no trace of guilt or evasion.

As an actor.

Keeping your phone on silent during filming is a basic professional courtesy.

really.

Yoona's bright eyes lingered on his face for two seconds (obviously trying to discern the truth), and then the slight wrinkle of dissatisfaction instantly smoothed out as she accepted this perfectly reasonable explanation, one that she herself would also make.

She slightly pursed her lips: "Really..."

Seeing that she opened her mouth as if she wanted to ask something, Kang Jae-hoon spoke first:
"Was the stage amazing tonight? Were the fans' reactions incredible?! Tell me about it!"

Yoona was clearly taken aback by the sudden question, and the words she was about to ask were stuck in her throat.

"Well, it went pretty well."

She nodded, the fluffy rabbit ears on top of her head swaying gently with her movement, and answered his question:

"The fans in Tokyo were incredibly energetic, the atmosphere was super hot! The cheers were so loud they felt like they could lift the roof off!"

"Well... I jumped for almost three hours straight, and my legs feel like they don't even belong to me anymore. I feel lightheaded when I stand on the ground..."

Lim Yoona pouted slightly.

She was half coquettish and half genuinely complaining about the aftereffects of high heels and strenuous exercise.

Kang Jae-hoon's eyes instantly filled with almost tangible heartache, and his brows furrowed.
"Thank you for your hard work, our Yun baby. Quickly find a reputable foot massage parlor to soak your feet and let someone give you a good massage to relax."

"It's a pity... I'm not in Tokyo right now... otherwise, this job wouldn't have been done by those people outside..."

On the other side of the screen.

Im Yoona immediately recalled the scene of being "massaged" with a special purpose by those hands—

Certain overly private and "perfectly serviced" details instantly flashed into my mind, causing a faint blush to rise on my fair neck.

"abnormal!"

She spat lightly, her eyes darting away in embarrassment and annoyance before glaring back at him.

I'm really fed up with this person...

I don't know where they learned those weird tricks from, they make people feel both embarrassed and annoyed...

Just as Kang Jae-hoon was feeling a little relieved after the crisis had been averted, and was about to press his advantage with a couple of flirtatious remarks, he noticed that Im Yoon-ah on the screen suddenly narrowed her eyes, leaned closer to the camera, and carefully examined the background behind him.

"Wait... Kang Jae-hoon, where are you?"

"Hotel bathroom."

He "frankly" held up his phone and showed the tiled walls, faucets, and the separate wet and dry shower room and toilet behind them in the camera lens.

"I was just getting ready to take a shower."

talking.

Kang Jae-hoon deftly propped his phone up on the marble countertop of the sink, fixing it at the correct angle.
"Want to watch? Live broadcast?"

The words fell.

His shirt had been taken off in no time.

His well-defined abs and broad shoulders were instantly exposed in the shot.

Wow! Hey hey hey!

On the other side of the screen, Lim Yoona was clearly caught off guard by his sudden act of undressing. She quickly reached out to cover the screen, her eyes darting nervously left and right to her teammates beside her.

Fortunately, no one paid much attention to the content on her screen.

But this sudden scene still made her heart race, filled with both shame and anxiety. She lowered her voice and shouted into the phone:
"Stop!"

Kang Jae-hoon obediently stopped unbuttoning his pants, his bare upper body standing openly in front of the camera, looking innocently at his phone screen.

"Aren't you going to watch?"

He asked the question knowing the answer already, drawing out his words in a drawn-out tone:
"Really not going to watch?"

Even through the screen, you could feel Yoona's overwhelming embarrassment and anger, as well as the inner turmoil she was going through.

If I were alone now.

Let him strip naked, hold up his phone, and dance the samba... oh no... just watch is fine too!

But now, these guys behind me have ears sharper than Sherlock Holmes and eyes sharper than radar!

What if they catch even the slightest glimpse of it out of the corner of their eye...

finally.

After a three-second silence.

Lim Yoona glared at him fiercely:
"...Wait a minute...send the photos over!"

"Okay."

Kang Jae-hoon leaned lazily on the edge of the sink and smiled slyly:

"...The upper body? Or...the lower body?"

Yoona was so aroused by his increasingly explicit words that she felt like her head was about to explode.

The arguments among her friends about ramen and sukiyaki were practically the background music to her current state of agitation.

"I want them all!"

After saying it, she realized that her request was too direct and explicit, and her cheeks flushed even more.

"puff--"

Kang Jae-hoon burst out laughing without any restraint, shaking his head and beating his head at the embarrassed beauty in the camera:

"Ms. Lim Yoona... let's have a serious talk... who's the pervert here?"

"..."

He left Yoona speechless for a moment.

Seeing that the conversation was about to veer completely into inappropriate territory, she forcefully extinguished the wild little dramas playing out in her mind, pulling the derailed train back onto the right track:
"Stop being silly! How's everything going on your end? Is filming 'A Violent Prosecutor' going smoothly?"

"The filming... was alright."

The filming process has indeed been going quite smoothly.

Kang Jae-hoon originally thought this movie would be a hardcore dark film like "The Unjust," which exposes the dark side of prosecutorial power.

She even worried that she wouldn't be able to handle that heavy sense of filth (afraid of getting into trouble with the prosecutor).

It turned out that once filming began, they discovered that the core of the film was actually a comedy!

Followed by.

His tone suddenly shifted, his voice becoming low and husky with a lingering, poignant quality:
"It's just... without you... nothing feels right."

"Tsk, so smooth-talking!"

Im Yoona felt a sweet warmth in her heart from his sudden sweet words, but she habitually scolded him.

"Oh right! Is that amulet still on you?"

"Of course I wear it."

To prove his point, Kang Jae-hoon immediately bent down, took out the black amulet from the inner pocket of the down jacket piled on the ground, and placed it in front of the camera.

The edges are already slightly worn, silently telling the story of the passage of time and the marks of being carried close to the body.

This amulet was something that Lim Yoona sincerely prayed for at the Asakusa Temple in Tokyo, a place of great religious significance, during her tour in Japan two years ago.

"It's time to go and fulfill our vow."

indeed.

This little amulet seems to have witnessed a miracle.

Two years ago, when he asked for it, Kang Jae-hoon was still a nobody struggling on the fringes of the entertainment industry.

And now.

He has already become one of the most sought-after actors of the new generation thanks to several works.

Holding two prestigious Best Newcomer awards—the Blue Dragon Award and the Grand Bell Award—she receives a constant stream of offers for high-quality scripts and advertising endorsements.

This unstoppable upward momentum.

No matter how you look at it, it truly fulfills the blessing carried by that amulet.

It is indeed time to go to the shrine to sincerely offer thanks and repay the gods for their blessings.

"Yes. I remember. Once this promotional period is over, I'll make a special trip to Senso-ji Temple to fulfill my wish. And while I'm at it... I'll also pray for a future one."

"Ok!"

Yoona responded with satisfaction, her eyes curving into beautiful crescent moons.

however.

Just as Kang Jae-hoon breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the phone call would end on a warm note, Lim Yoon-a's bright smile suddenly froze for a moment, and a strange glint flashed across her eyes:
"Hey? Wait...you...there seems to be something on your right cheek? It's a little red?"
She held up her finger and gestured the location on her face.

Kang Jae-hoon's heart skipped a beat.

(Was it not wiped clean?)
But his Oscar-worthy acting skills instantly took over all facial muscles and nerves.

His brows furrowed naturally, forming a confused arc, and he said blankly:
"Is there anything?"

At the same time, he very naturally raised his hand and casually rubbed his right cheek with his knuckles:

"It might be some dust I accidentally got on while filming, or some prop blood that I didn't wipe off properly. I didn't pay much attention."

just.

When he glanced instinctively at the gleaming mirror on the sink, his heart sank.

—My right cheek is smooth and clean, there's nothing there!

Clearly... we've been scammed!

in the screen.

Yoona's beautiful doe eyes took in his "inspection" and "face-rubbing" actions without blinking, and then she smiled brightly:
"Ah~ maybe I misread it, it's just screen glare or pixelation. It's alright now."

at this time.

A furry head suddenly and forcefully squeezed into the frame.

It's Sunny.

She had clearly just escaped from the hustle and bustle to find someone, unceremoniously taking up half of Yoona's face and smiling playfully at the camera:
"Hey! Haven't you been chatting on the phone for long enough?"

Sunny's voice was loud and carefree, and in the background, you could almost hear other girls laughing and joking, urging her to leave.

"Your girl is going to be requisitioned by me! No, by us! We've collectively decided that we have to go to that super famous sukiyaki place tonight. Yoona is the mainstay of our late-night snack platter, she can't be absent!"

Sir, you are truly righteous!
Kang Jae-hoon almost wanted to kowtow to Lee Soon-kyu; this rescue came just in time!
But the self-discipline of the "Best Actor" allowed him to instantly control the corners of his mouth that were about to turn up uncontrollably.

I saw.

Kang Jae-hoon's face quickly showed dissatisfaction and jealousy. His eyebrows furrowed, and he "accused" Sunny in the camera's view:

"Hey! Lee Soon-kyu! How long have you two been inseparable? From Seoul to Tokyo, can't you let her come back to my place to work overtime once in a while after get off work? I'm so eager for her, I'm practically turning into a wife-waiting stone."

This aggrieved "jealousy" performance was just right, perfectly fitting the persona of a boyfriend in love, and no one could see through it at all—except for Kim Ji-won, who was eavesdropping in the living room.

Can……

The point is.

Kang Jae-hoon committed a major taboo!
If you call Lee Soon-kyu by her stage name "Sunny" or respectfully address her as "Noona," she'll crack a few jokes with you.

But when it comes to her real name, which she herself considers "rustic" (of course, only on certain occasions)—

Sunny immediately rolled her eyes playfully at the camera, retorting without hesitation:
"Hey! Kang Jae-hoon!"

"It's not like Yoona is your personal accessory. This is Girls' Generation's group time, individualism is prohibited!"

"Besides, if you miss her, why don't you buy a plane ticket and fly over right now? I'll reimburse your first-class ticket. Dare to come?"

"..."

The perfectly timed expression of jealousy on Kang Jae-hoon's face froze instantly.

This would happen under normal circumstances.

Provoked by Lee Soon-kyu's words, and driven by his genuine longing for Im Yoon-ah, he might impulsively book the nearest flight and head there.

It's not far anyway.

It's just sacrificing one night's sleep, isn't it?

At most, when he rushed back to the set the next day, Jin Dayuan would mutter a few words about him being "crazy".

but……

At this moment, Kim Ji-won was still waiting in the living room outside.

I wonder how long that video call made her wait, and whether she was in a good mood?
Kang Jae-hoon glanced unconsciously at the frosted glass bathroom door—though he couldn't see anything.

"Okay~ Unnie!"

crucial moment.

Im Yoona gently nudged Sunny's shoulder, speaking up to help Kang Jae-hoon out of the awkward situation:
"Stop teasing him... He's not made of iron... He has to focus on filming, it's too crazy for him to fly here and rush back..."

What if this guy really acts impulsively and actually buys a ticket and flies over in the middle of the night...?

Oh mo!

If you don't get enough rest and faint at tomorrow's concert, who will be responsible?
In the lens.

Kang Jae-hoon immediately seized this crucial opportunity, his face simultaneously adopting the pitiful expression described by Im Yoon-ah—the one of grievance at not being able to fly over Tokyo Bay immediately:
"Did you hear that? My Yoona feels sorry for me!"

"whispering sound--"

Sunny grinned at the camera, showing off her white teeth.

Just as I was about to say something more, I was interrupted by Taeyeon's "Kids, if you don't move now, your seats will be taken" and the other girls' "Hurry up! I'm starving!"

The screen shook for a moment.

It's obvious the sisters couldn't wait to catch someone.

Through the noisy background noise and swaying figures, when the phone was briefly and steadily pointed at Yoona's face—

Kang Jae-hoon clearly saw her eyes quickly glance around at her teammates who were laughing and joking (especially Sunny, who was pouting in dissatisfaction next to her), making sure no one was paying attention to her lip movements:
--"photo!!!"

Done.

Her beautiful face immediately returned to normal.

Kang Jae-hoon suppressed the urge to twitch his facial muscles and nodded slightly, his eyes conveying a complex message: "Your request is really something."

"Alright, alright, we really have to go!"

Im Yoon-a waved to the camera in a seemingly casual manner:

"Take care of yourself too!"

Sunny's face forced its way back into the frame, getting closer to the camera:

"Hang up! Men, step aside!"

The screen suddenly went black amidst Sunny's energetic voice and a background of girls shouting "Let's go!"

In the bathroom.

Suddenly, all was silent again.

Kang Jae-hoon stood there holding his phone for a full three seconds before slowly exhaling the breath he had been holding.

"call……"

Only then did I realize that my back was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat, which felt a little chilly when exposed to the warm air of the bathroom.

He raised his hand and rubbed his cheek, completely erasing all traces of emotion, before turning around, pushing open the bathroom door, and walking out.

The sudden change in light made Kang Jae-hoon squint.

After the eyes adjust—

However, Kim Ji-won was already dressed neatly and sitting upright on the sofa, even her cashmere scarf was wrapped tightly around her neck again.

The television was playing a late-night variety show silently.

Her eyes were fixed on the television screen, but her mind was completely elsewhere.

Kang Jae-hoon had just opened his mouth, but before he could utter a single syllable—

"Ding-dong-"

The doorbell rang crisply, interrupting his prepared opening remarks.

The food delivery has arrived.

He had no choice but to open the door, pay the bill, and take the heavy food bag.

Turning around, he laid out the still-steaming noodles with soybean paste, sweet and sour pork, and other foods on the coffee table, and the aroma of the food instantly filled the air.

"Are you hungry? Have something to eat first, it won't taste good if it gets cold..."

Kang Jae-hoon forced a smile, trying to ease the tension.

The words have not yet fallen.

The figure wrapped up tightly on the sofa suddenly moved.

It's not about welcoming them.

But -

Tilting their little heads in the opposite direction.

That rounded back of the head clearly conveyed one message—

I'm angry!

very angry!

As for how to appease him? You can figure that out yourself.

Can't soothe them?
I immediately left home in this fully armed state!
"..."

Kang Jae-hoon's hand, which was about to lift the lid, froze in mid-air.

This silent reaction alarmed him more than a direct question; it clearly indicated that the person was not easily appeased.

It comes down to it.

This is indeed his problem.

Countless calculations.

I never expected that Yoona's video check-in would be timed so precisely at this crucial moment!
He had planned to spend the evening coaxing his little goldfish, but instead, he left her feeling incredibly awkward and neglected in the living room, listening to her sweetheart hide in the bathroom to undress for a phone call—

Although environmental limitations are a temporary measure, this image automatically forming in any girlfriend's mind is nothing short of torture.

Even if you're angry, you still need to eat, right?
Kang Jae-hoon picked up the box of spicy rice cakes and fanned it towards her.

however.

Kim Ji-won remained completely still.

Even the way he tilted his head to stare at the TV screen didn't change in the slightest.

Body language clearly declares:

I can't be appeased with a plate of spicy rice cakes!
"..."

It seems food is no longer an effective way to entice people; it's time to upgrade our strategy.

Kang Jae-hoon gritted his teeth and simply walked around the coffee table, squatting down next to Kim Ji-won.

The posture is a half-kneeling position.

Looking at that little face that was deliberately stern, trying hard to project an icy aura but looking exceptionally cute, Jiang Zaixun felt a surge of affection and excitement.
"Aigoo... How come Jiwon looks so cute even when she's angry? Her little lips are so pouty, you could hang an oil bottle on them~"

He reached out and touched Kim Ji-won's tightly pursed lips with his finger. Seeing that she didn't open them immediately, he continued with his ultimate move:
"Let me take a closer look... These eyebrows look good even when they're furrowed, and they look good when they're wide open. Even the strands of hair are much prettier than other people's! Tell me honestly, Oppa, have you been this pretty since you were three years old? Hmm?"

Every single sentence was so cheesy it was almost unreasonable.

Yet, strangely, he possessed a unique, irresistible charm that made it impossible to truly get angry at him, coupled with a focused admiration.

(End of this chapter)