I Became an Artist in a Romantic Comedy Chapter 104

A lot happened, but sohow everything worked out.

I t my master, won the [Prize] twice in a row, and now that the managent of [Paradise] has stabilized, it feels like it's finally ti to take a break.

‘What have I even been doing for the past year?’

I’m not exactly the type to be this active, but this year I’ve been running around non-stop.

Well… most of it was for the sake of my paintings. No regrets there.

It wasn’t about gaining fa or recognition; it was just sothing I had to do.

If I had cared about that, I would’ve been flaunting my na in the dia long ago.

‘Not that it matters—people will find out soon enough.’

At this point, the world’s attention was on Teacher Lee Ah-Reum and [Paradise].

You could say they were at the eye of the storm, but in a way, that was fortunate.

"It’s good, huh?"

She was sitting right in front of , casually enjoying a piece of cake.

"I made it myself."

"...Ha-Eun, you made this?"

Teacher Lee froze, fork halfway to her mouth.

Then she squinted suspiciously and gently put the fork down.

What’s her problem? Didn’t she just say it was good?

"You didn’t spray air freshener or sothing on this, did you?"

"I’m not sure what kind of image you have of , but I wouldn’t stoop that low."

Not to ntion, she’d already eaten a bite. I decided to hold back the rest of my retort.

At my words, Teacher Lee sighed in relief and smiled again.

"Alright, then. Thanks for the food!"

Sotis I couldn’t shake the feeling that she looked like soone my age.

How was she supposed to be a teacher? She seed more like a stormy high school girl.

"That just ans I look young, doesn’t it?"

"That’s exactly right."

Damn it. Did I say that out loud?

"It’s written all over your face, kiddo~."

"Why not beco a fortune teller instead of a teacher?"

Please stop reading my facial expressions and jumping to conclusions.

Anyway, there wasn’t much reason behind this pointless conversation.

Teacher Lee had apparently taken care of everything regarding [Paradise], saying David had prepared so much that she didn’t really have to do anything.

So why was Teacher Lee hanging out at my house—specifically, my studio?

"Is your house cursed or sothing, Teacher?"

"It might be~."

First, her house burned down. Now, her boiler had broken.

What a string of bad luck.

Thanks to that, she couldn’t go back ho until the boiler was fixed.

And since it was winter… well, what can you do?

Why she ended up at my house instead of sowhere else, though? I had no idea. If I knew, would I be in this situation?

"You’ve eaten, so shouldn’t you head back now?"

"But Ye-Hwa has class today too, right~? Just let stay a few days~."

She’s 26 years old… Yet sohow, this situation made my mouth feel dry.

Sighing, I tilted my neck from side to side to loosen it.

Crack!

"...You’re not going to hit , are you?"

"Hit you? Why would I? There’s nothing but bones here anyway. Besides, I’d lose. I don’t engage in ventures where I’d take a loss."

Lately, cracking my joints had beco an odd addiction. The sound was oddly satisfying.

I wasn’t sure if it was good or bad for my body, though.

After a while, Hong Ye-Hwa showed up at my studio.

"...What are you two doing?"

And with that, our nonsensical banter ca to an end. Talking to Teacher Lee always made feel like my IQ was dropping.

"You’re here? Have you eaten?"

"I ate—actually, no, I haven’t."

She started to answer, but her gaze shifted to the leftover cake.

"...Did you make this, Eun?"

It didn’t exactly look store-bought, but it was surprisingly tasty.

"If you’re hungry, help yourself. I already ate."

Teacher Lee wiped her mouth with a tissue and stood up, heading to the canvas.

"I’ll just doodle while I’m here~."

Honestly, I’m convinced Teacher Lee got hired through so kind of backdoor recomndation.

Rubbing my temples to stave off the incoming headache, I turned to Ye-Hwa and asked casually.

"What about Uncle Hong Jin-Hoo?"

"Oh, Dad’s in the U.S. He said he had business with Atlantis."

Uncle sure lived a busy life. If he could spare so ti to visit his daughter, I bet Ye-Hwa would be overjoyed.

Why did I bring him up? Because apparently, Uncle Hong had also won an award at the Biennale.

I’d already congratulated him over the phone and sent him a small gift.

Nothing fancy—just so premium whiskey. Of course, being underage, I had to enlist Dad’s help to send it.

‘I’m jealous. I can’t even drink.’

Though my health was improving, that didn’t an I could drink alcohol.

The doctor had warned : "This would be the one drink you could have in your entire life." Basically, a death sentence in disguise.

You know, like those s about poisonous mushrooms. You could eat them, but it’s a one-way ticket to the afterlife.

Chilled by the warning, I’d just nodded silently. What else could I do?

Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t notice until Ye-Hwa held a fork up to my mouth.

"Say ah."

"...Ah."

Is she starting to mimic Ha Soo-Yul from hanging out with her too much?

I wasn’t hungry anymore, but I could manage one bite.

The sweet taste of whipped cream and strawberries lted in my mouth.

Yes, the cake I made was a strawberry cream cake. Why did I bother making it? Because my sister wanted so.

Ordering it for delivery felt boring, so I figured I’d try making it myself. To my surprise, it turned out pretty good. Mom helped a little, but I did most of the work.

—"The sponge isn’t rising evenly—hey, why!" —"Soo-Yul loves sponge cake, doesn’t she?" —"I’m sorry, okay!"

At one point, my sister almost gave the cake to Ha Soo-Yul, but I held onto it for dear life and managed to keep it.

The three of us—Mom, Yoon, and I—each ate a slice, leaving Dad’s share for later. Then I brought the remaining two slices to the studio for Ye-Hwa and Teacher Lee.

"It’s delicious!"

"Glad to hear it."

After giving a bite, Ye-Hwa ate the rest herself. Every ti the fork entered her mouth, she reacted with such joy that it lifted my spirits.

‘Maybe I should make another one later. I could give so to Ye-Seo and Soo-Yul too.’

Seeing everyone’s positive reactions made feel proud.

Should I switch careers to beco a chef? Maybe I have a knack for it.

Then, a mory resurfaced.

—"This isn’t food, oppa." —"That hurts to hear, sis." —"But it’s true, oppa." —"Hmm. Dad said it was good, though." —"Dad didn’t even chew. He just swallowed it…" —"You’re misunderstanding, dear daughter."

Rembering that conversation, I quickly discarded the idea.

Yeah, it’s better to stick to one path. Trying to do too many things at once leads nowhere.

‘Still, I thought it tasted good…’

Wait, was tteokbokki supposed to be brown? The ones at the market were red.

Mine was sowhere between brown and black.

‘Next ti, I’ll use dium heat.’

That’s not the issue here. I could practically hear Yoon shouting next to .

Anyway, my days of lazing around like this were numbered.

It was winter, aning the end of the sester and the beginning of vacation.

I was about to beco a third-year student.

‘Maybe I can take it easy in my final year?’

The major fires had been put out for now. Aside from [Angel], there shouldn’t be any more problems.

Unless they ca out into the world, but that was a problem for another day.

I just needed to enjoy school life for now and plan a trip to France during sumr break.

‘Tsk. What about [Dragon], though?’

The painting had burned away, and the dragon inside had taken refuge with the youngest.

Handling the two of them on my own seed like too much.

So…

[Oh? What’s this? You’re calling first?] "It’s nothing urgent right now." [You’re making nervous. What are you getting at?] "Could you help , just once, later?"

We’d end up in the sa place anyway. Surely my master wouldn’t refuse his disciple, right?

[Tsk. Is this about [Angel]? I told you—] "I know. It’s just… it’s scary dealing with the two of them alone…" [Unbelievable. Scared of your own paintings, are we?] "That’s a little harsh, don’t you think?"

After so bickering, my master finally agreed.

[When will you be here? Winter?] "It’s winter now. I’ll probably go during sumr break."

Wait… now that I think about it…

"Are you in France right now?" [Sharp as ever. How’d you know?] "Why are you there?" [Had so business to take care of. Anyway, is that all?] "Yeah… pretty much."

With that, he hung up before I could say anything else.

"Your master is such an old man, Eun."

"Drop the 'old.' He’s just old, plain and simple."

Chewing on cake, Hong Ye-Hwa muttered as she peeked at curiously.

Watching her, I raised a hand and squished her cheeks.

"Mmfft."

A strange noise ca out, but thankfully, none of the cake spilled.

"...Die."

Of course, I’d have to face her wrath afterward.

‘How didn’t it burst out?’

Usually, that much pressure would’ve sent it flying.

I thought about this as I took the hit.

***

"Wow..."

"Ryoi-!"

Before Yoon could yell sothing out in a crowded area, I quickly clamped my hand over her mouth.

Thankfully, no one had heard, so I sighed in relief.

Ignoring her sharp glare, I t her gaze with a smirk.

Then suddenly—

Lick.

"Hey!"

Yoon licked my palm and quickly darted behind Dad, giggling mischievously.

That little brat. She’s getting cheekier by the day.

Pulling out a handkerchief from my pocket, I wiped my hand and looked around.

There’s sothing winter wouldn’t be complete without.

"So, this is my first ti at a ski resort..."

At Choi Ye-Seo’s muttered comnt, I nodded in agreent.

Today, Choi Ye-Seo’s favorite idol was holding a concert here.

And that concert was happening at this huge ski resort.

‘But isn’t that concert happening at night?’

It’s going to be freezing...

But maybe I was just overthinking it.