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ara noticed how the blonde had been coming daily for the past week. he would do the same every day. he would arrive between 8:00 – 8:30 p.m and would order only a water bottle. then when everyone was gone, he would ask ara to cook him whatever she wanted and they would end up talking through a bottle of soju.

she realized that by 7:00 p.m she started longing for his visit and she would wonder constantly if he would come that day. taehyung never failed and showed up every day. his presence made ara feel at peace somehow. he wasn't like most of the young men she knew, this one was more mature and radiated an aura that made her feel contented and at ease.

"Hi." taehyung stood from the table and walked to the bar and took his usual seat. ara smiled as she cleaned the cold metal surface.

"Hi there, kim taehyung." he chuckled at her politeness. taehyung turned to look around and found a couple at the back. they were still eating and they looked in love. he turned around again and his eyes met ara's. they both chuckled at the same time.

"they're pretty in love." she said and he nodded. "the love at that age... it's like spring." he frowned as he looked at her carefully. her tired eyes somehow told him she had been in love in this life and now taehyung was curious about who was and if they were still together?

"ajumma... you speak as if you have felt it before." ara who was looking with lost eyes at the couple, blinked twice and looked at taehyung, swallowing hard.

"yah... what are you going to eat today?" she clearly avoided answering to his comment. taehyung thought that maybe she has been in love but it didn't work out. somehow this thought made feel taehyung happy inside. sure it was a selfish feeling but he couldn't help himself.

"i am not hungry today. i had a business dinner before, so i'll take the soju, please?" ara narrowed her eyes as she looked for bottle of soju from the fridge. she took a glass and brought it to taehyung. 

"so you just came for the soju? you could have had that in any bar." she tilted her head and stared at the blonde in front of her. he chuckled as he poured a shot.

"I don't think so."

"Why is that?" she inquired.

"in a bar... i wouldn't have these kind of pleasant conversations." he took the soju in a single shot and winked at the lady. she felt her cheeks burning and quickly turned around and grabbed a pot and started cleaning it.

taehyung chuckled mentally. he just proved he still had an effect, even in this ara too. he ran a hand through his hair just when she turned around. the view was pretty, she had to admit taehyung was a handsome young man.

he stretched and grabbed a small glass from the other side of the bar and poured a drink. "here ajumma, drink with me-

"Not tonight... i have to- she didn't have a good excuse, but seeing that couple on the back, sharing their food, smiling and drinking from the same glass just made her somehow realized that she'll probably give the wrong impressions to the customers if she's seeing drinking with a client and what is worse, a younger one.

taehyung noticed her worried face and immediately understood what was going on. he sighed and drank the soju he served. "Well can you give me another bottle, please?" she nodded but just when she was walking towards the fridge, the young couple called her.

he noticed how she walked to the cashier and after giving them the bill, she stared at them as they looked for the money to pay. taehyung have lived long enough to know that she was probably longing what they had. now more than ever he needed to know her status.

the blonde cleared his throat when she returned to the bar. he then poured the liquor in both glasses and flashed a squared smile. "come on ajumma." ara look at him and them hesitantly at the full glass now. she noticed how his dark eyes were eagerly waiting for her to take the shot so she did it, after all that couple was gone and they were alone now.

taehyung smiled widely and clapped. "Amazing."

"so... a business dinner? what do you do for a living?" ara had wondered this many times before but never dared to ask. since he has been coming non-stop the past few weeks, they were now on a more trusty ground. he shrugged.

"with a potential client. i am a lawyer." her eyes widened in shock and the cloth on her hands almost dropped. she never imagined he would be such a thing. her options were either an university student or a lazy guy that still lived with his parents and probably played video games through the night. 

taehyung noticed the woman's shock and laughed. "why? what were you thinking?" ara cleared her throat and shook her head.

"Uh... nothing." taehyung knew better and he knew she was probably lying. he let it go as he poured another shot to both of them.

"If you're a lawyer, why you eat in places like this?"

he smiled tenderly. "what's wrong with places like this?" ara swallowed hard. she knew that if he was a lawyer, he probably had money and if he had money, he could afford better places.

"n-noting, it's just-

"that's it. there's nothing wrong with this place ajumma... i enjoy homemade food. It warms up my heart." this was a white lie. by now he was used to eat in much more sophisticated places, even if he knew how to cook,  but he had found someone who looks exactly the love of his life that happened to have a restaurant and that he couldn't ignore.

ara thought this was probably normal since a lot of people liked familiar places because the food was homemade and somehow it reminded them to their mother's cooking. "and yours is the best in town." he added.

the woman felt her cheeks blushing for the second time. the blonde was audacious at giving compliments and they certainly had an effect on her.

"yah!" she hit him playfully with the cloth, he laughed out loud. he was sweet, she thought, of all the guys that had come to her restaurant he was the sweetest yet the most mysterious.

"so what can you tell me about yourself ajumma?" ara turned quickly and met taehyung's big eyes. his hands resting crossed on his chest, a slight smirk on his handsome face. ara wondered if he had a girlfriend since he looked like a model.

"i – i... there's not much to say to be honest."

"anything you have to say it's okay."

she swallowed hard and started cleaning all the glasses. taehyung stared at her the whole time, seeing her doing stuff like these, reminded him of han ara.

"i was born in jeju – the blonde tilted his head, his heart racing at the mention of the word jeju. he remembered that han ara was born there too. his head started to fill with troublesome thoughts. it was curious how these two women who look exactly the same, with different ages, can be and look so similar at the same time even with more than 100 years apart, and how they shared the same birthplace was something extraordinary.

"jeju?" his voice cracked as he whispered. ara left what she was doing and frowned at the boy. she couldn't figure out his face, but she knew he was surprised somehow.

"why? don't i look like i am from there?" taehyung shook his head, trying to apologize. even 100 years after, this ara made him nervous still. 

she chuckled and started washing some vegetables. taehyung cleared his throat as he poured another soju and took it in one shot. he needed it, he needed the courage to keep this conversation going because he needed to know more about her.

"i lived there until i was a teenager, then my parents sent me to study in the capital... i stayed here after college. i decided to go to the university here and started studying medicine but never got to finish it." taehyung noticed how her voice was full of shame and regret. he wondered the reason but thought it would be rude to ask.

she sighed as she recalled her life. ara thought she would be a doctor someday, after all both of her parents were but it was too much for her and her mental stability. she cringed when she remembered those times she fainted at the faculty due to stress.

taehyung eyed her carefully, waiting for her to keep going with her story. she noticed and cleared her throat. "i was always a fan of noodles, my grandma taught me how to cook them and i enjoyed doing it that's when i decided to have my own noodle restaurant."

the blonde nodded in understanding. "did you ever return to jeju?" she closed her eyes in sorrow, she was hoping he wouldn't ask that question.

"N-no... i had a lot of work to do here." she said pointing at her surroundings. but this was not entirely true. the real reason why she never returned to jeju was because she felt she was a disappointment to her family since she couldn't graduate in medicine just as her parents did. truth be told, she couldn't even look at her parents after that.

a heavy heart she had since, she hasn't spoke to them in a while. the young man noticed she didn't want to talk about jeju so he let it go and changed to subject.

"i am sure. you did a great job." he said smiling tenderly at her. he would have preferred a much nicer and elegant place, but he was so fond of ara that suddenly he felt like all the choices she made had a reason and he supported them.

she smiled gratefully and nodded. "Yes... i saved a lot of money and worked three jobs to pay for this..." she sighed and her happy expression changed. taehyung worried and followed her with his eyes.

"what's wrong ajumma?" she looked at the blonde and shook her head. "It's nothing. more soju?" he nodded but still felt weird knowing that something was clearly bothering her.

"what about you?" her voice took him by surprise. he didn't expect her to ask about him. his hands started sweating when he thought about the answer. his life has been really crazy and she wouldn't believe him if he tells the truth, but he didn't want to lie to her, not now that he's just meeting her again.

"my life?... it has been... pretty... magical?" he hesitated but ara found this statement funny so she laughed. she thought about the boy's audacity on choosing his words.

"magical?"

"Mmhm... you wouldn't believe it." he wasn't lying, technically.

"try me." taehyung looked up, meeting her eyes, he felt a warm breeze filling his body. the spark was there, on their eyes, between them. she was defiant, like han ara used to be. he kept feeling surprised with everything she did, it was like seeing his ara all over again, but aged.

he chuckled nervously and shook his head. "i... i was born in daegu. i moved here with my mom when i was a kid. i grew up here..." he said looking down at his hands. thinking about his adolescence. he obviously avoided talking about all those times he had to move in order to prevent people from knowing about his condition.

what could he say? he met someone who looked exactly like her and that someone changed his life forever and she's the reason why he's here, 130 years later and still alive.

"i attended the university and graduated in law thanks to the help of someone who paid for my tution." ara smiled tenderly. in that moment she thought about how lucky taehyung was, and how generous that person was to him.

"i worked hard just as you, studied a lot and now i have my own law firm." ara couldn't hide her surprise. she almost couldn't believe the young man's words. she thought the ceo's of law firms would be old but this one somehow didn't look like a typical young man to her neither.

"no family, no pets, no allergies." he said now looking at her, pressing his lips together in a thin line. his heart filling with sadness, realizing once again he had a lot of things but lacked the thing he wanted the most.

"a lonely life if you say." he added finally. ara felt bad for him, he had said this before but she didn't believe him. she pictured his life more like a youngster life, filled with friends to hang out on nights, parents to visit on weekends, a cat, a girlfriend, so it was definitely sad and strange that looking like he did, he was still lonely.

"taehyung... i am sure you worked hard too. having a law firm by yourself tells a lot the type of hardworking person you are." she nodded.

taehyung thought that even in this life she was still amazed by the most trivial things, somehow he loved that about her. he found himself feeling flustered by her words and had to remind himself that this wasn't his ara, otherwise he would probably have jumped already to hug her. 

"Thank you." he was truly grateful for her words, after all he's been craving them for over a centenary and having them back on his life made him feel like everything was colorful now in some way he didn't expect.

she smiled tenderly, that familiar smile that sent shivers down his spine. "you don't have a girlfriend?" she asked now pouring a glass of soju for herself. he looked at her surprised, he didn't expect her to talk about his more private life.

"i don't." he blinked twice, knowing how weird that would sound to her, but she just smiled tenderly. for a unknown reason she felt relieved after knowing this. he thought that since she asked about his private life, this was the right time for him to do the same.

"ajumma- he started when someone started banging on the door. they both jumped in surprised and taehyung turned to look at her walking to the entrance. she opened it but a man stumbled inside, almost pushing her away. the blonde felt the anger crawling up his body, in a swift move he stood from his chair and approached her.

"a-ajussi..." she started. taehyung stood next to her in a protective mode. he looked at the man in front of them. he wasn't as tall as taehyung was, he was slim and had a big pointy nose and glasses. he didn't look too old but he must be since she's using honorifics.

"yah... do you have my money?" ara seemed desperate, she shook her head. the blonde who had sharp senses, immediately realized the man was drunk. his aspect in general was pitiful and he wondered in what kind of business ara was involved with him. somehow that made him feel angry inside.

"No... you just came last week, you can't charge me like this. these payments are done monthly-

"shut up you witch! where's my money?" he exclaimed, pouncing on the cashier. taehyung who was taller and stronger, grabbed the man by his shoulders and pushed him away. the man stumbled but didn't fall, instead he looked around, searching for the woman but instead he looked his way up only to meet a pair of dark eyes that were in flames right now.

"You're being really disrespectful with the lady. she just said she paid you so please go away, we're closing." he said pointing to the door. even if his words were polite, a clear anger was present all over his face and body talk. he had his jaw clenched and his eyes remained steadily on the man in front of him.

"taehyung-" ara rushed to stop him but he gently pushed her behind him and crossed his arms on his chest.

"aish... who the fuck are you?" the drunk man complained. the blonde rolled his eyes and took a step towards him. she was nervous about this situation, she didn't want taehyung to get beaten for defending her.

"please ajussi... go home, you're drunk-

"i am not drunk!" the man lifted his hand to punch taehyung, but the young man was faster and had sharp senses, enough to catch his hand in the air, grabbing it tightly, applying a key that left the drunk man motionless. his voice complaining because of the pain, echoed inside the small restaurant.

"Please stop!" ara exclaimed with her hands on her mouth. she was surprised with how the boy managed to immobilize the man in such an easy way, she couldn't help but wonder if he has received training before. now that she looked at his well formed arms, she thought it would make sense for her, since he really looked fit.

"Let's go." he said to the man, leading him out of the restaurant. he threw him on the streets and looked down at him with disgust, between mumbles, he walked back inside, cleaning his hands.

"I am really sorry taehyung- she started but taehyung looked at her with serious eyes. he stood on the door frame, his hands now on his pockets, his towering figure intimidating her.

"what business do you have with that man?" he spoke freely to her, she noticed he didn't use honorifics but she let it go. she sighed and shook her head.

"he's the landlord of this place... his wife left him and he has been drinking since then... he comes at least once in a week by this hour to ask for the rent money... but i pay on time every month and the right amount. i can't give him more money... it's not fair." taehyung sighed in relief as he closed his eyes. the pain that was bothering the back of his head was gone now. for a moment he feared she was into some shady business with that man but it was only a stupid problem that he obviously could fix.

"don't worry... he won't be bothering you anymore." he said smiling now at her. ara tilted her head not knowing exactly what he was talking about. she opened her mouth to ask but soon his deep voice stopped her.

"look at the hour, it's late. i should go now." he said taking $50 from his pocket and putting them on the cashier as he smiled widely. ara looked at him confused.

"Hey, you're overpaying me, again." she said gently pushing him away to give him his change but he moved his arms, shaking his head.

"No, no... i pay what i feel i should pay."

"but $50? that's too much for two bottles of soju-

"ajumma...it's not even enough for what i owe you... let's go." he said flashing a wide smile as he winked at her. this was entirely true though, he felt like he owed her so much, especially for his life in the past. he was the man he was because of her, or at least someone who looked exactly like her.

she frowned, not knowing what he meant but his eager eyes waiting for her on the entrance, soon made her forget what was bothering her. she smiled tenderly and nodded. rushing over the kitchen, ara turned off the lights and checked the gas. once everything was in order she smiled nervously as she grabbed her coat, glancing at the door, she noticed the tall blonde was still there, standing out of the door, looking around the street, moving his leg anxiously as he waited for her.

ara didn't know why he was still there but it was a pleasant feeling. somehow she felt protected by him tonight, the way he defended her and kicked out the landlord, caused feelings in her that she did not know existed. she breathed heavily as she walked out of the restaurant. he was leaning on the wall but when she stepped out of the door, he stood straight and cleared his throat.

taehyung changed with the years. he used to be a hyper boy but he was now a fully grown up man even if he looked 21 on the outside. he waited patiently for her to close the store and smiled once she turned around to look at him.

"thank you taehyung." she bowed. on his experience, he knew exactly why she was thanking him. he hoped he could confess to her why she shouldn't be thanking him or even bowing to him. he owed his life to her, at least to the previous her.

he liked to think that this ara was somehow a reincarnation of his han ara. seeing her so lonely, vulnerable and unprotected, made him feel in debt with her. "you don't need to thank me." the woman thought he had charms but they were new to her, nothing like she has seen before, everything about him was new yet felt familiar deep inside.

"ajumma...where do you live? i'll take you home, let's go." he said moving his hand, pointing to the black car parked across the street. ara swallowed hard when she realized it was an imported car. she was now realizing that maybe all the things that taehyung said about being a lawyer and having a law firm weren't all lies.

"no, it's fine. i can walk home." she didn't want to be a burden for him. ara takes the same road every day, she's used to it by now, but judging by the blonde's eager stare, she realized it was better if she complied.

"i insist ajumma... it's late and it might be dangerous. that drunk man might still be around... also i'll feel much better to know you arrived safely home." his deep voice echoed in the small alley. ara noticed this was true so she agreed with a soft nod. taehyung showed his bright teeth as he led the way towards his car that was parked across the street on his usual spot.

it excited him spending more time with the woman, especially because she had agreed to be taken home by him, so spending time with her outside of the restaurant was definitely a progress in their new relationship.

taehyung opened the door for her and invited her to sit on the passenger's seat, up front, next to him. she was amused with the young man's attitude and manners. she thought he was really a gentleman and somehow this made her cheeks blush. thinking about it made her feel stupid, she was way too older to be flustered like this.

she heard the pilot's door open and taehyung sat comfortably on the seat next to hers. he put on his seatbelt and turned on the engine. "so... where do you live ajumma?"he asked but his eyes widened when he realized the woman haven't' fasten her seat belt like he did.

"you should- he started as he leaned closer to her, this took ara by surprise since he came really closer to her, his arm around her, pulling the belt. her eyes were widened as she witnessed the scene. just now she realized he had a pleasant smell, definitely like an expensive perfume and aftershave lotion. she found herself closing her eyes, inhaling his overwhelming aroma due to the closeness they were sharing but soon a cold breeze made her realized that taehyung had already fastened her seat belt and returned to his seat.

embarrassed, she opened her eyes and cleared her throat. "ah right, it's just i am not used to use this, thanks." she said bowing her head. taehyung chuckled and started driving. it was fun for him seeing the older woman being flustered by his presence and actions. he's been living around for so long, and he knows exactly the effect he had on women.

what made him happier was the fact that the one he wanted, apparently felt the same way. it always terrified him not being loved or accepted in return, after all he have had much of that in the past, except for ara, she was always the exception of everything.

after a couple of minutes and directions from ara they arrived a small house in a neighborhood around the center. taehyung has never been in this part of the city since he lives more at north, around the suburbs.

"this is it." ara's sweet voice echoed in the car. taehyung smiled tenderly at the woman. he cleared his throat and sighed.

"see?... you arrived safely." ara chuckled.

"that's right, thank you for bringing me home tonight." she bowed her head and he did the same. just when she was about to open the door, taehyung locked the door, preventing her from going out. she widened her eyes as she turned around to look at him. taehyung had his lips pressed in a thin line but his eyes were soft, he didn't want to scare ara.

"ajumma... is there anything i can do to help you with your landlord situation?" his voice was honest and ara breathed in relief when he spoke these words. for a minute it scared her the fact that she didn't know well taehyung and a possible kidnap was already fixed in her mind.

she smiled tenderly and shook her head. "no, it's okay... please don't worry, i'll manage. thanks for everything." she said now as taehyung unlocked the door. she stepped outside and smiled once more before going inside her house.

even if she had said no, taehyung was stubborn. he was determined to help her solve this situation. he hated the fact that some drunk man will be bothering her. he closed his fists around the wheel as his jaw clenched, his mind working in tons of directions, thinking about what is going to be the strategy to stop this man from bullying do ara.

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