446: Chapter 499 Even Even

The phone vibrated. Lee Ji-hoon looked down to see a red notification number next to Lee Tima's profile picture on KakaoTalk. He opened the chat, and messages popped up one after another like a rapid-fire barrage—"Oppa, Lee Ji-eun is being way too much!" followed by a long string of exclamation marks, each one feeling like an accusation.

"She made me write thirty-five episodes of the script, and I did; she made me check it, and I did; she made me revise it, and I revised it five times!" Another exclamation mark. "This morning she made me make breakfast, and I did; she made me make sandwiches, and I did; she made me pour milk, and I poured it and brought it right to her!" The exclamation marks were so dense it was suffocating. "Now she just said she only eats the tips of the strawberries! Only the tips! The tips!" At the end of this message, she added three angry emojis.

Lee Ji-hoon looked at the line "only eats the tips," and his lip twitched. He looked up at Lee Ji-eun; she was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, script spread across her knees, her finger tracing along the edge of the page. Her hair was still a mess, and she was still wearing that oversized white T-shirt, radiating an aura of "I am the queen of this house." He looked back down at the message on his phone. Lee Tima's profile picture was a cartoon puppy with round eyes and its tongue sticking out. Looking at that puppy, the image of her chopping onions in the kitchen flashed through his mind, along with the way her smile vanished the moment she turned around, and that expression of "exhaustion and resentment yet powerless to escape." The corners of his mouth slowly curled into an arc—not a smile, but a look of realization, as if saying, "I've seen right through you." Lee Ji-hoon clicked his tongue, a crisp "tsk" escaping from his lips. He thought to himself: This kid is definitely devious beneath that innocent exterior.

The phone vibrated again. A new message from Lee Tima: "I'm going to add salt to the strawberries in a bit. Oppa, come help me! Let's give Unnie a real hard time." An evil devil emoji was added to the end. Lee Ji-hoon stared at the words, his eyes darting around, his mouth slightly open but making no sound. Add salt? Lee Ji-eun hated salty things the most. Last time there was too much salt in the cooking, she spat out the first bite and demanded, "Who made this? Are they trying to kill me with salt?" If salt was added to the strawberries... the scene played out in his mind. Lee Ji-eun takes a bite, chews twice, her expression shifting from "enjoyment" to "confusion," then from "confusion" to "distortion," and finally from "distortion" to "fury." Then she spits it out and screams, "Who did this!" The thought made his lip twitch again. He glanced up at Lee Ji-eun—she was still reading the script, completely oblivious to what was happening over here. He looked back down, his finger hovering over the input box for a long time. He typed a few words, then deleted them; typed a few more, then deleted those too. Finally, he sent: "Huh?" Just a single question mark, one punctuation mark, no text. Lee Ji-hoon didn't even know what that "Huh" meant. Was it surprise? A question? "What are you saying?" Or "I don't dare"? Probably all of the above.

After the message was sent, he waited for a while. There was no reply. He looked up again, his gaze shifting toward the kitchen door. Lee Tima poked her head out, an apron still tied around her waist, wiping her hands on it—likely having just finished washing something. She didn't speak, just looked at him with a steady gaze, her chin slightly tilted. In that look, there was the inquiry of "do you agree," the command of "you must agree," and the threat of "if you don't, I'll do it myself." Three layers, progressing seamlessly. Before Lee Ji-hoon could react, she had already pulled back from the doorway. Then her voice drifted out from the kitchen, not loud, but every word was as clear as if carved in stone.

"Unnie, I ordered strawberries on my phone. Do you want some?"

Lee Ji-eun looked up from her script, her eyes—which had been immersed in Luo An's world just a moment ago—now held a hint of satisfaction at being cared for. She tilted her head. "I only eat the Strawberry Tips." Her tone was matter-of-fact, as if the whole world knew she only ate the tips, as if the tips of strawberries were naturally grown specifically for her lips. Lee Ji-hoon rolled his eyes, a big, slow roll that traced a complete arc from the top left to the top right. His lips puckered slightly as he silently mimicked her—"I only eat the Strawberry Tips~" His internal voice was high and thin, exactly like Lee Ji-eun's tone just now, only the volume was so low only he could hear it. He swallowed those words back down, and along with that earlier "Huh," they churned together in his stomach.

"Understood, the Strawberry Tips are the sweetest—" Lee Tima's voice drifted from the kitchen, laced with a smile. "Just as sweet as you, Unnie." Her tone was so sweet it seemed soaked in honey. The corners of Lee Ji-eun's mouth curled into a very satisfied arc. "Tima really knows how to talk." She pulled her gaze back from the kitchen and let it land on Lee Ji-hoon's face. "Much better than a certain someone." There was no need to name names; everyone knew who that "certain someone" was.

Lee Ji-hoon opened his mouth, the retort "Since when do I not know how to talk?" swirling in his throat, but before he could speak, another voice drifted out from the kitchen. "Oppa is great too—" Lee Tima's voice carried a well-behaved quality, as if she were trying to smooth things over. "I'm just Unnie's God-Sister, but Oppa is her biological brother." Her tone was so sincere it seemed to come from the heart. Lee Ji-hoon's expression changed from "normal" to "stiff," then from "stiff" to "pale." He was screaming internally—Lee Tima! Stop talking! Are you trying to make me homeless?! He didn't dare look at Lee Ji-eun. Jieun didn't say anything, but he felt her gaze land on him, cold as a winter wind. She didn't say, "Yeah, a biological brother isn't even as good as a God-Sister," but that one look and her silence made him feel completely unwell.

The phone vibrated again. He looked down; a message from Lee Tima: "Oppa, I'm only giving you five seconds to choose." Followed by a smiley face with crescent eyes and an upturned mouth. Lee Ji-hoon jerked his head up toward the kitchen door. Lee Tima was standing there, her right hand emerging from her apron pocket with all five fingers spread. Her mouth slowly widened into a grin—an arc he had seen before. In that video of Karina stealing the pig's head, when she was counting down on her fingers, she had that same smile. Evil, composed, and carrying a certainty that said, "I know what you'll choose." She slowly pressed her fingers down one by one, starting with her thumb. The first one—thumb bent. Lee Ji-hoon's pupils dilated slightly. The second one—index finger bent. Lee Ji-hoon's breath hitched. The third one—middle finger bent. Lee Ji-hoon's phone slipped in his hand, and he scrambled to catch it.

Thank you so much, Lee Tima! He roared in his mind. You've given me a taste of what Karina felt! That fear of being dominated by a countdown, that tension of "something's about to happen in the next second," that despair of "I can't escape." He finally understood. He quickly typed a few words—"Adding salt, right? I'll help you." Sent.

The doorbell rang. Lee Tima ran to open the door and took a white foam box from the delivery man, cradling it in her arms as she walked back. The box was so large it covered half her face. She set the box on the dining table and opened it to reveal rows of neat strawberries, red and large, huddled together like red jewels. The droplets of water on their surface shimmered under the light. She washed a few, the largest and reddest ones, and then stuffed them into her mouth—not just a small bite, but the whole thing at once. Her cheeks puffed out like a little hamster hoarding food. As she chewed, red juice seeped from the corner of her mouth, and she stuck out her tongue to lick it clean.

Lee Ji-hoon stood by, blinking as he watched the plate of strawberries disappear at a visible rate. She ate two, then took a third, bit off half, and held the other half in her hand. She didn't look at him once, nor did she have any intention of sharing.

"Oppa, you don't eat strawberries, right?" Her voice was muffled, her cheeks still puffed. It wasn't a question, but a statement, carrying a confirmation of "you don't eat them, do you?" Lee Ji-hoon's inner self was roaring—I don't eat strawberries? Who told you I don't eat strawberries? I eat strawberries! I've eaten them since I was a kid! They're my favorite! Did you even ask me? When you were washing them, did you think of me? When you ate the first one, did you think of me? When you ate the second one, did you think of me? You ate all the biggest and reddest ones, did you ever think of me? He looked at Lee Tima's "you don't eat them, right" eyes and swallowed his roars. His mouth curled into a very forced arc. "Go ahead and eat, you eat them." His voice was very soft.

Lee Tima let loose and ate a few more. Lee Ji-hoon watched the plate go from "full" to "half-empty," then from "half-empty" to "nearly empty." He couldn't help but reach out and lightly tug her sleeve. "Hey! Are you going to eat them all?" His voice was urgent. "Is the plan not happening anymore?"

The arc of Lee Tima's mouth slowly widened from a smile to a smirk, then to a "I knew you'd ask" grin. "Oh? Oppa—" Her voice slowed down, every word sounding as if it had been weighed on her tongue before being released. "Do you really want to help me prank Jieun Unnie?"

Lee Ji-hoon looked at her "I'm just messing with you" expression, his face practically screaming "what kind of nonsense are you asking." "Yes." Those two words came out of his mouth quickly and sharply.

The smile on Lee Tima's face grew even wider. Her movements were slow—her hand came out of her apron pocket, clutching her phone. Her thumb pressed the screen, and the stop-recording button popped. She turned the phone screen toward Lee Ji-hoon. On it was a recording, not long, only a few seconds. The waveform jumped on the screen like a restless ECG. Lee Ji-hoon's eyes bulged like copper bells, the waveform reflected in his pupils. His mouth opened and closed, then closed and opened again. His voice was trembling, every word feeling as if it had caught in his throat before being squeezed out.

"Tima... what... what... are... what are you doing?"

Lee Tima pulled the phone back with deliberate movements, like putting away a precious treasure. "Nothing much." She tilted her head. "Just making a guarantee. If Oppa dares to defect—" She stuffed the phone back into her apron pocket and patted it as if confirming it was secure. "Then I'll just have to release this recording... who knows when." Her voice was light, but every word carried weight.

Lee Ji-hoon's voice rose half a pitch. "Lee Tima! This is a lack of trust!" He pointed at the phone already tucked away in her pocket.

Lee Tima's expression didn't change as she looked at him. "Oppa, trust—" Her voice slowed down. "We'll talk about that after this collaboration." She paused, her mouth curling into an "I'm serious" arc. "Of course, if this collaboration goes smoothly, I'll consider deleting the recording."

[part:gemini-3.1-flash-lite]

Lee Ji-hoon looked at that face, looked at that smile, looked at those eyes that said, "I am being serious."

Devil, he said in his heart.

This is a woman even more cruel than that heartless Lee Ji-eun, he added in his heart.

Lee Tima took the remaining strawberries out of the box, placed those plump, bright red, dew-kissed strawberries one by one on the cutting board, and lined them up in a row.

She took that bag of salt from the seasoning cabinet, tore open the packaging, and the white salt grains poured down from the bag opening, into a bowl, piling up into a small white mountain.

She poured out about half a bag, added warm water, and stirred it with chopsticks.

The salt grains slowly dissolved in the water, and the water in the bowl turned from transparent to cloudy, like winter fog.

Then she picked up a strawberry, held a toothpick in her other hand, and started poking holes in the surface of the strawberry—one, two, three—dense and crowded, like pores on a face.

Every time she finished poking one, she put it into the bowl of salt water to soak.

Those tiny holes opened and closed in the salt water, as if breathing.

"This trick was taught to me by Zhiyu Oppa." Her voice drifted over from the direction of the kitchen counter.

"Sour—salty—sweet—" She held up her fingers to gesture.

"If you aren't careful, you will spit it out, oh." She said, a laugh emitting from her throat.

The laugh wasn't loud, carrying a kind of anticipation of "I have already foreseen the result." "Heh heh heh—"

Lee Ji-hoon stood to the side, watching that row of strawberries poked with countless holes soaking in the salt water, then looked at Lee Tima's "I am very satisfied" face, and then looked at Lee Ji-eun, who was still buried in her script on the sofa.

He remembered the scene just now of Lee Tima counting down on her fingers, remembered that recording, remembered those roars that disappeared into his stomach.

He reached a conclusion in his heart—what kind of sin did I commit today?

Lee Tima fished the strawberries out of the salt water and arranged them one by one on a white plate.

Most of the salt had already been absorbed by the strawberries, and some tiny white particles remained on the surface.

She picked up the plate and adjusted her apron; that crooked bow had been re-tied by her, and it was tied very straight now.

A smile hung on her face, a smile that was very sweet, very obedient, and very innocent.

"Hi hi hi~ The strawberries are here~" Her voice was crisp and bright.

The moment Lee Ji-eun put the strawberry into her mouth, the air in the living room seemed to be sucked away by something.

Lee Ji-hoon stood at the kitchen doorway, his back against the doorframe, his fingers gripping the hem of his clothes.

Lee Tima stood beside the coffee table, holding the glass bowl containing the strawberries, with that "I am an obedient, cute, and sensible little sister" smile on her face.

Both of their gazes landed on Lee Ji-eun's face—her teeth bit through the strawberry's skin, and the juices exploded on the tip of her tongue.

First was the sweetness, the sweetness of the strawberry itself, that kind of natural, slightly tart sweetness that made one involuntarily squint their eyes.

The corners of her mouth lifted slightly.

Then the saltiness surged up.

It wasn't the kind of saltiness from "accidentally dipping a little salt," but the kind of saltiness from "soaking in salt water for several minutes," like someone had knocked over a salt shaker in her mouth.

Her smile froze, and her brows furrowed.

"Pfft—" She spat out the strawberry, and that half-strawberry traced a parabola in the air, landed on the coffee table, rolled twice, and stopped beside Lee Ji-hoon's phone.

Her complexion changed from "enjoyment" to "shock," and from "shock" to "anger."

That redness began to spread upward from the base of her neck; it wasn't shyness, it was flushed with anger.

"What is going on with this strawberry?" Her voice was sharp and urgent, her gaze sweeping from Lee Tima to Lee Ji-hoon, and then from Lee Ji-hoon back to Lee Tima.

Lee Tima's smile did not disappear.

That smile seemed welded onto her face, the curve of her mouth was just right, and the light in her eyes was sincere and innocent.

She tilted her head, putting on an expression of "I don't know what happened," and then looked down at the bright red strawberries in the glass bowl, picking one up to examine it carefully.

Her brows furrowed slightly, the arc of that frown carrying a kind of focus of "I am inspecting it seriously."

"Unnie—" She raised her head to look at Lee Ji-eun, her voice carrying a hint of the solemnity of "I have discovered a problem."

"Is this strawberry bad? How could the shop do this! I must report them! I want to post about them online!"

Her voice became increasingly excited, faster and faster.

"IU actually ate a bad strawberry! Cyberbully them! Let them know that Nations Little Sister is not to be bullied!"

Lee Ji-eun looked at Lee Tima's righteous indignation, looked at her face slightly flushed from "anger," and looked at her hands trembling slightly from "excitement."

She thought in her heart—cyberbullying someone over a strawberry will only bring me hate.

I am Nations Little Sister, after all; I have to maintain my public image.

Her brows relaxed, and her tone switched from "anger" to "magnanimity."

"Let's not do that.

Cyberbullying someone over a strawberry will only bring me hate."

She lifted her chin slightly.

"I am Nations Little Sister, after all; I have to maintain my public image."

Lee Tima's eyes turned red, tears shimmered in her eyes, her nose was red, her lips trembled slightly, and her whole being radiated an aura of "I am moved by Unnie's kindness."

She nodded forcefully and sniffled.

"Unnie—" Her voice was somewhat choked.

"You are the kindest, prettiest, and gentlest person in the world..."

Every time she said "the," her voice trembled, as if she was trying hard to hold back her tears from falling.

Lee Ji-eun looked at Lee Tima's red eyes, looked at her "I'm about to cry" appearance, and satisfyingly let out an "Mm."

She picked up another strawberry; that strawberry was bright red, with water droplets rolling on its surface.

She raised the strawberry to her mouth, just about to open it, when she suddenly remembered something.

Her teeth stopped on the strawberry skin, and she didn't bite down.

She put the strawberry down and placed it back.

Her gaze shifted from Lee Tima's face and landed on Lee Ji-hoon's face.

She squinted her eyes, sizing up the two people in front of her; it wasn't done by Lee Tima, so that means...

Lee Ji-hoon felt that gaze, like a knife held to his throat.

The cold sweat on his back went from one layer to three layers, his palms were also wet, and his fingers gripped the hem of his clothes even tighter.

His gaze shifted from Lee Ji-eun's face, landed on the half-strawberry that had been spat out on the coffee table, then shifted away, landed on the ceiling light, then shifted away again, and landed on his own toes.

He was putting on an appearance of "I am looking at the scenery," but the only scenery in the living room was Lee Ji-eun's face as she squinted at him.

"Noona, why are you looking at me?"

His voice was calm, his tone innocent, and a hint of a "I don't know what you are talking about" smile hung on the corners of his mouth.

Lee Ji-eun did not answer.

She picked up a strawberry—not from the glass bowl, but the one beside the plate that hadn't been soaked in salt water.

She raised the strawberry to her mouth and took a small bite.

Sweet.

She chewed and swallowed.

Then she picked up another one; it was still sweet.

She picked up another one; still sweet.

She compared that salty strawberry with these sweet ones—the appearance was identical, bright red, with water droplets rolling on the surface; one couldn't tell the difference.

But the taste was different, a huge difference.

It wasn't the shop's problem; someone had tampered with the strawberries.

And the person who tampered with them wasn't Lee Tima—Lee Tima's reaction was too sincere; the anger, the grievance, the desire to seek justice for Unnie, didn't seem faked.

That meant...

Her gaze landed on Lee Ji-hoon's face once again.

"Ji-hoon-ah." Her voice was neither high nor low.

Lee Ji-hoon's body stiffened for a moment.

"Nae?"

"You've worked hard these past few days."

She picked up a strawberry from the glass bowl; that strawberry was bright red, with water droplets rolling on the surface.

She took a look—she didn't know if it was salty or sweet.

"Here, eat a strawberry." She held the strawberry out in front of him.

Lee Ji-hoon looked at that strawberry, his pupils dilating slightly.

He didn't know if this one was salty or sweet, but he knew that regardless of whether it was salty or sweet, he couldn't eat it.

Eating a salty one was equivalent to admitting that he knew the strawberries had a problem; eating a sweet one was equivalent to telling Lee Ji-eun "I know which ones are good and which ones are bad."

His mouth was faster than his brain—"I won't eat it." Those three words were short and hard.

Lee Ji-eun's eyebrows raised.

"Don't be shy."

Her voice softened, and the corners of her mouth curved into an "I'm doing this for your own good" arc.

"Noona will feed you personally."

Lee Ji-hoon sprang up from the sofa.

The speed was as fast as a bolt of lightning, the hem of his clothes slipping from his fingers.

"I suddenly remembered a classmate invited me out to play."

His voice was urgent and fast.

"I'm leaving first."

He turned and walked toward the door, his pace fast as if running away, his slippers making "patter patter" sounds on the floor.

His hand had already grasped the doorknob, twisted it, the door opened, and the cold wind poured in from outside, blowing so hard he shivered.

"Ji-hoon-ah—" Lee Ji-eun's voice drifted over from behind, neither high nor low.

"You haven't eaten the strawberry yet."

Lee Ji-hoon didn't turn back, his foot already stepping out.

"Next time, next time!"

The door closed.

The living room quieted down.

Lee Ji-eun looked at that closed door, the corners of her mouth curving into a very dangerous arc, and placed the strawberry in her hand back into the bowl.

Lee Tima stood to the side, still holding that glass bowl, a very light, very faint arc hanging on the corners of her mouth—not an "obedient" smile, not an "innocent" smile, but a "plan succeeded" smile.

Lee Ji-eun turned her head to look at her.

"Tima-ah."

"Nae~"

"The strawberries, they are delicious."

Lee Tima's smile didn't change.

"As long as Unnie likes them."

Lee Ji-eun stood up from the sofa, picked up the script, and walked toward the stairs.

She walked two steps, then stopped.

"By the way, that kid Ji-hoon is timid.

Don't scare him."

Lee Tima tilted her head, "Nae?"

Lee Ji-eun didn't explain and went upstairs.

Her footsteps "tap tap tap" on the stairs, then disappeared.

Lee Tima stood in place, still holding that glass bowl containing the strawberries.

She looked down at those bright red strawberries in the bowl, picked one up, took a bite, and it was sweet.

She chewed and swallowed.

She took out her phone, opened KakaoTalk, and found Lee Ji-hoon's chat box.

"Oppa, the strawberries are delicious.

Let's eat together next time."

Send.

After a while, her phone vibrated once.

Lee Ji-hoon's reply was only one word—"Get lost."

Lee Tima looked at that "Get lost" word, and the smile on the corners of her mouth grew even wider.

She put her phone back into her pocket, picked up the glass bowl, and walked into the kitchen.

The bowl was placed on the kitchen counter, the apron was untied and hung on the wall, her ponytail was let down, and her hair hung loose.

She walked to the window and looked at the persimmon tree in the yard.

The winter sun shone on those shriveled fruits.

The corners of her mouth curved into a very light, very faint arc.