10: Chapter 10 Where is Home?

Hearing these words, Choi Sulli's body still crashed into Liu Zijun's arms.

In that instant, Liu Zijun's body also stiffened reflexively.

He could clearly feel the trembling of the little girl in his embrace.

In his previous life, crawling through hail of bullets, he had long grown accustomed to cold weapons and hard barriers; such a soft touch...

felt somewhat unfamiliar, leaving him at a loss.

He had just slept with the senior actress Son Ye-jin the night before last, so it wasn't as if he'd never touched a woman.

But at this moment, his heart still trembled, because he actually cared.

As for his feelings toward Choi Sulli, she was just a little girl, a younger sister.

And this clumsy act of caring for someone truly felt alien to him.

But since he had already decided to stay for the time being, he would try to treat this girl the way Choi Soo-myung would have.

After all, she's a sister!

He slowly raised his hand, hesitated for a few seconds, then gently placed it on Choi Sulli's back, his movements still somewhat clumsy.

He patted her lightly, the force very gentle, afraid that with just a bit more strength, he might shatter this girl who seemed as fragile as glass.

This made the narrowed eyes of Victoria Song and the others relax a little.

His voice remained low, yet it softened a few degrees more than before.

"Alright, don't cry. If Soo-myung saw you like this, he would definitely be heartbroken too."

Choi Sulli was quite tall, her head resting perfectly against his neck.

The girl's head nuzzled against his shoulder, her tears soaking his black shirt, yet she still refused to let go, as if this solid chest was the only hope she could grasp at this moment.

Liu Zijun felt somewhat awkward. He gently supported her arms, easing her out of his embrace.

Looking at the teardrops on her eyelashes, he still didn't fully raise his hand!

It was just that his slightly lifted hand accidentally brushed against the back of her hand.

His fingers had a thin layer of calluses, somewhat rough, but this touch and friction stirred an inexplicable warmth in Choi Sulli's heart.

"Let's go, go back. Your teammates must be worried."

Liu Zijun glanced sideways towards the stairwell entrance, where he could vaguely see the figures of Victoria Song and Kim Taeyeon and the others peeking.

Choi Sulli sniffled and nodded, but couldn't help looking up at him. Her eyes, red from crying, were like washed grapes, glistening.

"Mr. Liu Zijun... oppa, will you really stay with me like Oppa Soomyeong did?"

Without the slightest hesitation, Liu Zijun nodded.

"Mm."

This little girl was really a bit too trusting.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he said goodbye to Choi Sulli, then went downstairs and exited the SM Entertainment building.

Seeing this, the group at the stairwell hurried over.

Victoria Song was the first to step forward, pulling Choi Sulli into her arms, wiping her tears with a pained heart.

"Seol-ri, it's okay, it's okay. unnie is here."

Kim Taeyeon and Krystal Jung and the others also gathered around, while Im Yoona curiously studied Liu Zijun's retreating figure. The wariness in her eyes had faded considerably, replaced by a sense of inquiry.

"Sulli, what exactly happened?"

Victoria Song looked into Choi Sulli's eyes and asked softly, "Is this Mr. Liu Zijun really your Oppa Soomyeong's friend?"

Leaning against Victoria Song's embrace, Choi Sulli nodded and, between sobs, haltingly recounted the past events Liu Zijun had just told her.

When she mentioned Choi Soo-myung running all over Busan accessory shops to find her peach pendant, the eyes of Victoria Song and the others also reddened.

She knew Choi Soo-myung, knew that this brother of hers had protected Choi Sulli since childhood, treasuring his cousin like a real sister, far better than her own blood relatives.

When the news of Choi Soo-myung's car accident came, she had cried with Sulli for a long time.

She just never expected that a man like this would appear by Choi Sulli's side, carrying Choi Soo-myung's final wishes.

Kim Taeyeon gently patted Choi Sulli's back and said softly, "Our Sulli has really suffered."

She looked at Liu Zijun's retreating figure, the wariness in her eyes diminishing slightly, but her lamb-like eyes still narrowed a bit.

"Although I still think you're a bit strange, seeing as your eyes don't seem to lie, I'll hold off on calling the police for now. But no, I still need to have Manager Park check this guy's background again later."

The girls comforted Choi Sulli for a few more moments, then took her towards the cafeteria.

Choi Sulli walked a few steps, then looked back once more in the direction where Liu Zijun had disappeared, a faint smile appearing on her face.

That smile finally shed the previous terror and exhaustion, replaced by a sense of reassurance.

Liu Zijun exited the SM Entertainment building and glanced up towards the direction of the restaurant.

He raised his hand and touched the shirt dampened by Choi Sulli's tears, sighing softly in his heart.

Choi Soo-myung, do you see?

Your little Jinli finally trusts me now.

When he walked out of the SM Entertainment building, the snowflakes in Seoul had long stopped. The snow on the streets had been swept to the sides, revealing the wet asphalt.

His handsome face made many waiting female fans' eyes light up, thinking he might be a celebrity too.

But after looking for a while, they couldn't recognize which celebrity he was.

Liu Zijun hailed a taxi and headed towards home.

The car sped along the street, the scenery outside the window receding continuously.

Liu Zijun leaned against the car window, looking at this unfamiliar city, and an unprecedented sense of stability unexpectedly arose in his heart.

In his previous life, he had moved from country to country, with not a moment of peace amidst the hail of bullets.

Wherever the mission was, that was his "home."

And in this life, he came to Seoul solely to keep a promise to protect a girl, yet suddenly found himself wanting to put down roots.

If Emily and the others knew about this, they'd probably want to settle the score with Choi Sulli.

Arriving downstairs at the residential complex, Liu Zijun paid the fare and entered the duplex apartment building.

He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window in the living room, looked down at the traffic below, remained silent for a moment, then turned and went out, heading towards a nearby supermarket.

Since he was going to live here, he had to make the place feel like a home.

The supermarket was bustling with people. Liu Zijun pushed a shopping cart, navigating between the shelves.

He usually paid little attention to life's trivialities, but now he had to carefully select various items.

This kind of thing felt so alien!

He first grabbed several soft blankets and pillows, then picked out some toiletries, from toothbrushes and towels to shampoo and shower gel.

Everything he could think of went into the shopping cart one by one.

Passing by the food section, he remembered Choi Sulli liked peach-flavored snacks, so he casually grabbed a few packs. He also selected a few bottles of strong liquor and some instant meals for himself.

The human triple threat, the human peach, Choi Sulli, you really live up to your name.

When he pushed several carts full of items to the checkout, the cashier girl looked at him with a hint of surprise in her eyes.

The man before her wore an expensive, well-tailored black coat, was handsome with a cold, hard demeanor. He didn't look at all like someone who would personally come to a supermarket to buy these daily necessities.

Liu Zijun paid, then returned home first.

He waited for the supermarket delivery personnel to bring several large bags to his home before starting to arrange things bit by bit.

The style remained cold and hard!

By the time he finished all this, the sky had completely darkened.

He turned on the living room light. The warm yellow light spilled down, making the empty house feel much warmer.

He walked to the kitchen, poured himself a glass of whiskey, leaned against the bar counter, looked at the house gradually taking on the semblance of a home, and the corner of his mouth unconsciously lifted.

This was his foothold in Seoul.

Liu Zijun downed the whiskey in his glass in one gulp. The spicy liquid slid down his throat, yet made his heart grow exceptionally firm.

The Seoul night was dazzling with lights.

Liu Zijun looked at the nightscape outside the window and felt relatively at peace.