If anything, Namjoon had preferred to employ his seemingly last resort at the moment— which, very unsurprisingly, did not fall in line with the implication that Youngmi's words had sought to deliver.

At all.

Right after exiting the chamber, Namjoon had slunk and attached himself staunchly to one of the walls that stood adjacent to its entrance. He further craned his neck as though to affix his ear onto that wretched piece of wooden finesse called door, and unconsciously closed his eyes for what appeared like an attempt to zero in on the conversation that he was about to overhear— without the slightest trace of guilt in his heart.

To eavesdrop on someone had never felt so indispensable, so morally necessary. Even when he was aware about himself being inveigled by his curiosity into doing so, he could not smother it. His conscience had already been defiled anyway, and suspending the process midway would do no good anymore.

"I'm gonna have to take this to my grave. Yeah, right." Namjoon murmured to himself, his eyes blinking and lips pressing into a thin line.

The ethical conundrum may have begun to sink in, afterall.

"How amazing is it, that you turned out to be the one dentist who practices in this neighborhood? To be honest, I don't think amazing is the word I should've used," the male, as Namjoon had correctly figured out, took a brief pause before continuing, "because it looks more like the work of destiny to me."

"Oh Lord, I wanna puke." Namjoon hastily commented, retching soon after.

Fortunately, Namjoon could hear a scoff that may have engendered as a response to that hackneyed pick-up line, immediately ascribing it to the feisty female whom he was so utterly enamored with. However, puzzlement eclipsed his delighted visage when she attempted to gloss over her discourteous reaction.

"For your information, sir, I don't feel comfortable with the flirting since it's just the second time that we've, erm— practically run into each other. My emphasized usage of sir might have made it clear already but anyway, you can proceed with why did you feel the need to see a dentist in the first place." Youngmi finished, a tiny smile dancing on her lips, presumably to compensate for the offense that the apparent stranger might have taken at her addressal.

"As expected," Namjoon piped, "she's so goddamn cool!" And began to punch the air.

Namjoon had in fact reckoned at times, vis-a-vis the somewhat hysterical rooting that he wound up doing for Youngmi whenever she would render people tongue-tied with her uncounterable ripostes. As much as Namjoon's fanboying over her was undeniably questionable, that particular quality was, all jokes aside, one that he had always aspired to inculcate in his personality too.

Because, or as he had assumed, that would bring them on a similar footing. The certainty arising from the fact that maybe, Youngmi used to find his company a bit tedious.

Well, scratch that. He was way too much familiar with the truth to play the clueless card now.

If only he were a little more engaging, Youngmi would then have no reason to stall him.

"For starters, I'm sorry. I didn't realize I was coming off as intrusive. Moreover, I believe that one is never too late to stumble across the love of his life— Okay, I'll stop." The man abruptly cut himself off, his brandished pair of hands indicating that he also admitted to having crossed the line yet again. "I've just arrived from the States and am kinda new here—"

"This jobless man is just wasting her time. I wish I could go inside and instead kick him out of the clinic." Namjoon gritted his teeth, fist clenching simultaneously.

"Mr. Ewan Choi... Yup, your name makes that aspect obvious. But if you could just— Ah, forget about it. Please settle yourself here," Youngmi beckoned while still staying immersed in the patient file that her subordinate had sent. "I'll check for the irregularities myself."

"Ah, that dumbo's not worth the suspicion. I seriously can't believe I considered him a threat." Namjoon mumbled as he shook his head in disappointment, sauntering out of the clinic in an instant.

▪️

Namjoon could not remember the last time he had walked side by side with his muse. Both the doctors had become so caught up in their everyday duties that they rarely had time to spare from their busy schedules. The man was glad though, that an opportunity of relaxation did surface for them in the end.

A blessing indeed for the two people who had not caught a significant break in a long time.

Nevertheless, the major cause behind the sudden sprouts of elation that happened to spurt within Namjoon was that of Youngmi requesting him to be her date for the batch reunion that they were currently en route to. Out of all the wildest dreams that he had ever let his mind be occupied by, Namjoon had no inkling as to how being asked out was not as much distant as he had deemed it to be.

He was accompanying Youngmi as her date, as a matter of fact. However, the pinching question that still remained was whether this development was going to persevere, or prove to be evanescent— painfully akin to those of the past?

Namjoon's gaze darted towards Youngmi's empty hands that oscillated in the sides like a pendulum, wondering if holding them would provide a remedy to his miseries. The formerly pensive expression of his transformed into a dithering one, overlooking which he nonetheless advanced for the derring-do.

Youngmi immediately flinched at the unannounced contact, glancing at Namjoon wide-eyed. But before the poor male could put forth the requisite explanation, the lack of attention on the pavement in front resulted in a collision involving Youngmi and a passerby.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I should've been more careful— Wait, you?" Youngmi's outlook deviated halfway when she finally identified whom she had crashed into. Namjoon could not help but succumb to the intrigue that she had unintentionally piqued in him as he tore his vision away from her and followed her line of sight.

What in the world?

"Ew... an Choi, miss. It's a pleasure to cross paths with you again." The man, allegedly named Ewan, displayed an impish grin.

"I— What are you doing here? It's the third consecutive day that we've met. I mean, what are the odds?" Youngmi exclaimed, her arms moving feverishly to support her point.

Oh, the urge inside Namjoon to elbow the stranger's solar plexus before he could flash yet another coquettish simper of his. Sadly though, this time, he would have to content himself by digging his nails into his own pair of palms.

"I'm looking for an estate to kick-start my business, though I must say it's much harder to convert your thoughts into actions. I haven't chanced upon a suitable spot yet, you know, and I've been out for hours now! It's so frustrating." Ewan grimaced, soon thawing into a pleasing beam. "Anyway, what about the both of you? Are you headed for somewhere?"

"Ah, may I perhaps ask what gave it away?" Namjoon mimicked in a subtle manner, picking up, "Of course we're going somewhere, can't you see how we're dressed? Can we resume now, senior? We're already running late for the date."

Namjoon overdid the accentuation, there were no two ways about it.

However, he only acknowledged it after observing Youngmi shoot a disgruntled glare at him, to which he mouthed a sorry before frantically glancing in the other direction. The female created no delay in disclosing the reality, regardless of the now-saturnine countenance that Namjoon had come to adopt.

"It's a batch reunion that we're headed towards, yes, though I highly doubt if we'll be able to make it there in time. So Namjoon's sorta right there, we need to rush straightaway if we don't want to turn up in the middle of the party." Youngmi blurted out, hauling Namjoon along with herself before interrupting the sally for probably the last time. "You're gonna continue the visits, right? Don't forget to tell me on the next one about the estate that you'll end up acquiring, that is, if you do succeed at finding one by then." She snickered, gesturing Namjoon with her eyes to trail behind her.

"That's a given." Ewan's lips tugged at the corners in a lopsided manner.

▪️

a/n

hey loves! i hope the plot has begun to unfold for you and that too in an interesting way. i mean, you never know what's gonna happen in a story so all i can is that stay tuned to know what's in store for you in the further chapters!👀 you'll have a good time, i'll strive to ensure that. pls vote and comment if you liked the chapter. it boosts authors' confidence, not even exaggerating. and i, for one, am in desperate need of such boost. so pls be the sweethearts as you are and give me a reason to smile😊 have a great day, lovelies