When Hyunwon woke up the next day, he was the only one left in the room. Glancing over at his watch, he noted that it was only seven in the morning—a little on the early side.

After getting dressed, he stepped outside and took a deep breath of the fresh countryside air. One thing he liked best about this place was how the air smelled like dewdrops in the mornings, unlike the exhaust-filled air of Seoul. Looking around, his brows furrowed a little when he couldn't see any sign of Hyejin anywhere.

Where has that girl gone...

Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he sauntered down the pebble path in search of his delinquent mentee.

Before he managed to see her, he could already hearher. A loud burst of laughter suddenly erupted out of nowhere, followed by the excited chattering of a familiar voice. Following in the direction of the laughter, Hyunwon pushed open the small, wooden gate at the left perimeter of the church compound, emerging at a small vegetable patch that was used to grow a whole range of veggies for church-goers. When he wasn't too preoccupied with ministry, the priest spent his time at the vegetable patch together with some of the other church members, working hard to grow fresh produce for the community.

The first thought that crossed his mind when he saw her squatting in the middle of the vegetable patch yanking radish from the soil was that he was going to strangle her. Because she was wearing a blue and white checkered shirt with jeans... and that was exactly what he was wearing too.

"No damn way," he muttered angrily to himself, wondering if the Lord had put Song Hyejin on this earth to test his patience.

When Hyejin looked up and saw a shadow standing there watching her, she raised her hand to her shield her eyes from the sun's glare so she could make out who the person was. The first thing she saw was the unmistakeable scowl on his face—and then she noticed the uncanny coincidence that had resulted in that scowl.

"Did the two of you plan this?" Yubin, the church's hired help, pointed at the two of them and chuckled. The other old ladies helping out at the vegetable patch looked up and erupted in peals of delighted laughter.

Both Hyejin and Hyunwon immediately flushed a brilliant shade of pink, embarassed by all the attention that had suddenly been thrust upon them. Hyunwon walked up to Hyejin and dragged her up by her sleeve, pulling her to one side.

"Don't you have any other clothes to wear?" he hissed angrily.

Hyejin shook her head. "Nope. You only said to pack for two nights! I was going to wear this today and tomorrow."

"Then why don't you just wear what you wore yesterday!"

"I dirtied that outfit while I was washing the dishes last night," Hyejin said, slightly annoyed with Hyunwon's exaggerated response. "If it matters so much to you then why don't you go change then?"

"I don't wear the same set of clothes on two days. It's dirty," Hyunwon retorted, wrinkling up his nose in disgust. "Besides, this shirt is Armani. Why should I change out of it because of your pirated version."

Hyejin was mildly confused and it was clearly registered all over her face. Hyunwon took one look at that expression and was pretty much resigned to his fate. Waving his hand dismissively, he said, "You know what? Forget it. I'll just take it that today's a bad day and I stepped on dog shit."

Before Hyejin could open her mouth to say something in return, Yubin had shouted, "Leave the radishes to us, Hyejin! The two of you should stop by Granny Kim's shop and have some of her world famous fish stew! I had some myself this morning and today's seems especially tasty."

"Fish stew?" Hyejin's eyes immediately lit up with excitement, forgetting entirely about the fight that she was about to start with Hyunwon. "Where is Granny Kim's shop? How do I get there?"

Shaking his head, Hyunwon grabbed her knock-off shirt by the right sleeve and dragged her out of the vegetable patch, waving casually to the people they left behind as his way of saying goodbye. The sooner they got out of there, the sooner he could get away from the judging laughter and knowing winks that the veggie patch grannies were giving him. For a second, the thought of Seorin flashed through his mind followed by an inexplicable feeling of guilt—he quickly shook it out of his head. There was nothing that he should need to feel guilty about, he told himself. After all, Seorin was the one who left him for greener pastures and he was only wearing couple wear with another girl by pure accident. It shouldn't even be considered couple wear because they couldn't be further from being an actual couple.

Once they were out of sight, Hyunwon let go of Hyejin's sleeve and continued marching down the road, treating her as if she were invisible.

"Where are we going? Is this the way to Granny Kim's place?" Hyejin called out, keeping a safe distance behind him in case he turned around and decided to bite. As expected, she received no answer. Sticking out her tongue at him behind his back, Hyejin continued trailing along, her growling stomach hoping that he knew where he was going and that there would be some piping hot fish stew at the end of the road.

Hyunwon continued walking for ten minutes or so, winding his way down the familiar gravel paths. When he reached a little shop with a wonky sign that read "Kim's Delicious Stews", he stopped and frowned, sighing at how dilapidated the place looked. The door needed a fresh coat of paint, as did the walls, and there were cracks in the windows that would no doubt let the cold air in during the depths of winter.

Pushing open the creaky door, he stepped into the little restaurant and called out, "Granny Kim? Are you there?"

Following behind him, Hyejin looked around the place curiously, observing the antiquated chairs and tables that were scattered haphazardly around the place. Evidently business here wasn't the best.

"Granny Kim?" Hyunwon called out again.

"Minho, is that you?" a feeble voice replied from the kitchen. Seconds later, a little old lady dressed in a simple white and grey hanbok hobbled out into the main dining area, a smile lighting up her wrinkled face when she saw Hyunwon standing near the doorway. Reaching out her arms, she said, "I was beginning to worry about you. Why did it take you so long to get home?"

Hyejin turned to Hyunwon and mouthed the words, "Who the hell is Minho?"

Hyunwon shushed her with a glare, before turning back and walking towards the granny. "I'm sorry, Grandma, my train was delayed. How have you been? Has your rheumatism been acting up again?" he asked, with a gentleness in his voice that Hyejin had never heard before. She watched as he bent over and gave the old lady a hug, as though it was something that was second nature to him.

"I'm fine, these old bones are still holding up," the old lady chuckled. She placed her wrinkled hands on Hyunwon's cheeks, tears welling up in her eyes as she studied his features carefully. "You've lost weight! What did I tell you before you left? I told you to take care of yourself out there and make sure that you have your meals on time, have you forgotten Grandma's words?"

Smiling, Hyunwon replied, "Of course not. It's just that the food out there just can't hold a candle to your fish stew, Grandma."

Granny Kim clucked her tongue, giving him a stern rap on the forehead. "Even so, that doesn't mean you shouldn't eat well while you're away from home!" she said. Looking past his shoulder, she noticed Hyejin standing quietly in a corner and said, "Who is the pretty young lady you've brought home with you? Is there something you should be telling your grandma?"

"She's just a friend, Grandma. She's here to help out at the church. Her name is Hyejin," Hyunwon replied. "Care to show her just how good my grandma's fish stew is?"

"Of course!" Walking up to Hyejin, the old lady took hold of her hands and patted them kindly, saying, "Make yourself at home my dear, I'll be right out with some stew in a couple of minutes. It's not every day my boy brings a girl home."

When the old lady had shuffled her way back into the kitchen, Hyejin immediately ran up to Hyunwon and asked, "What on earth is going on? Is she really your grandmother? I thought your name was Hyunwon—why was she calling you Minho? Which is your real name?" Right now, she was utterly confused.

Hyunwon gestured towards a chair, asking her to take a seat. Once they were both seated down, he said in a hushed voice, "Granny Kim has a grandson called Minho. Ever since both his parents died in a boating accident out at sea when he was six, she's been looking after the boy on her own—he's pretty much all she has left in this world. Three years ago when he turned twenty, Minho left the village for Busan because he said there were simply no prospects here. After seeing what this place is like," he gestured at their surroundings, "I don't suppose you can blame him. Ever since he left, he's never come back to visit, not even once. Granny Kim has Alzheimer's, so her memory has been slowly degenerating as the years go by. She doesn't really recognise anyone now, so she thinks that every other man that walks in through that door and is approximately the same age is her grandson Minho."

"Oh..."

Hyejin pondered over Hyunwon's words for a couple of minutes, feeling a little sympathetic towards Granny Kim's plight. She could hardly imagine what it was like to slowly begin to forget the people and places around you, and to make matters worse, to have your only family in this world abandon you and never come back. She thought of her own father who was getting on with the years and made a mental note to give him a call the minute they reached somewhere with signal, so that he wouldn't need to worry about her. Then, her thoughts drifted towards Hyunwon and how he had played the role of the missing grandson so willingly—staring at his face while he looked out of the restaurant window, she suddenly thought he didn't look so irritating after all.

"Are you done staring at me? I know I'm good looking, but you're giving me the creeps," Hyunwon remarked drily. He thought turning away to look out the window would make her stop staring his way, but clearly it wasn't working.

Hyejin blinked a couple of times before his words finally registered in her mind. "Oh! Sorry," she said quickly. "I wasn't staring, I was just lost in my thoughts that's all." Her cheeks were starting to flame a little, embarrassed that she had been caught looking at him a little too intently. "Do you always stop by here and pretend to be her grandson then?"

"I stop by whenever I can, although I do get a free bowl of fish stew in return so I can't really say it's entirely altruistic. Like Yubin said, Granny Kim's fish stew is the best you'll ever find."

A tiny smile crept across Hyejin's face as she observed Hyunwon's apparent nonchalance. He obviously dropped by to do a good deed and offer some kindness to the old lady, yet here he was still trying to keep up with his cold appearance. It made her wonder if his usual stern and harsh exterior was merely a facade to hide the warmth and tenderness that was within.

"Here you go darlings," the old lady came hobbling back out of the kitchen, bearing a tray with two bowls of piping hot stew. "Hyejin dear, you have to try this and let me know what you think. This is Minho's absolute favourite! When he was a child, he would badger me to cook this for him every other day. He never gets sick of it!"

"Of course, Grandma," Hyunwon replied with a smile. "There's nothing else that tastes quite like it."

Hyunwon was quite right—that bowl of fish stew was possibly the best ever bowl of stew that Hyejin had ever tasted in her entire life. It was no wonder Yubin had insisted that they leave the radishes alone and come down for a bowl of this for breakfast. Perhaps it was from the freshness of the fish or the unique mix of spices that Granny Kim used, but every mouthful of stew that she put into her mouth just made her hungry for more. Within minutes, she had already gulped down the entire bowl and was scrapping the bottom of it regretfully wishing that she hadn't finished it so quickly.

"What are we going to do today?" she asked. "Same as yesterday?"

"No, slightly different. Today we'll go on house visits to give haircuts to the residents who are house-bound for various reasons. Since they can't leave the house we'll just have to go to them. Most of them are elderly folk who are bedridden due to illness and old age."

After they were done with breakfast (and Hyejin insisted on helping Granny Kim wash up before they left), Hyunwon and Hyejin bid farewell to the old lady and headed back to start off the day's work. House after house, they visited each and every resident from a long list that the church had given to them, and with every new haircut they gave, Hyunwon patiently imparted something new to Hyejin—how to handle hair with natural curls, how to cover up bald spots, how to create more volume for someone with thinning hair—until she was confident enough to carry out the haircut herself.

When Hyejin placed the finishing touches on the hair of an old lady who had lost the use of both her legs after gangrene set in, she turned around to look at Hyunwon, as if waiting for him to correct her mistakes. To her surprise, he just nodded his head and said, "Pack up, let's call it a day."

Hurriedly packing all their equipment back into her carry-all, she bid a hasty farewell to the old lady and dashed out of the house after him. "How did I do back there? Was it ok?" she asked. "I wasn't sure if the length of the innermost layer was correct, it seemed a little too short but you didn't say anything so I just carried on... It was too short, wasn't it?"

"If you thought it was too short, why did you snip off two inches right from the beginning? If you had started off a little more conservatively and slowly worked your way up, then you wouldn't have needed to worry about whether or not it was too short, am I right?"

Hyejin nodded her head slowly. "I'm sorry. I should have—"

"It wasn't too short," Hyunwon cut her off. "Trust your instincts. The best hairstylists don't depend on this," he pointed to her head, "they depend on this," he pointed to the left of his chest. "People don't judge appearances by psychoanalysing every single detail. What matters is the feeling that's triggered the moment the person walks in through the door."

It took Hyejin a good couple of minutes to realise what he was trying to say, and by the time she was done, Hyunwon had already walked on far ahead. "Wait for me!" she called out, a broad smile spreading across her face as she chased behind him once again.

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The villagers insisted that they joined in for dinner, and so they did.

After a seafood barbecue feast that contained enough food to feed a person for an entire year, Hyejin and Hyunwon sat out on the steps at the back of the town hall with two cans of beer in their hands. Despite how tired she felt, there was a deep sense of satisfaction within Hyejin after having been here for the past two days, and there was no better way to end it than to be out here looking at the peaceful night sky. Away from the glaring city lights, the stars seemed to sparkle all the more brightly.

"We'll head back to Seoul first thing in the morning. Get as much rest as you can tonight and don't embarrass me at the assessment tomorrow," Hyunwon said.

"I'll try my best," Hyejin replied honestly, "although I don't think my skills are anywhere close to the rest yet. After all, they've had years of formal training..."

Out of the corner of his eye, Hyunwon could see her kicking at the gravel beneath her feet with a sullen expression on her face. Taking a swig out of his can, he said, "Trying your best isn't enough—you either be the best or be nothing at all. I don't take kindly to mediocrity." When she didn't respond, he continued, "It's not about how many years of formal training you have. Sometimes, what's more important is having a bit of luck. Some people can train for decades and still not be as good as someone who was simply born with a good eye."

Hyejin let his words steep slowly in her mind. It was odd how they didn't sound the least bit comforting (in fact, he was being as unforgiving as he always was), yet somehow that cloud of insecurity that surrounded her dissipated significantly after listening to what he had to say.

She turned to look at him, once again a little curious about the sort of person that he really was. On one hand, he had an abrasive attitude and acidic tongue which made him seem like the most hateful person on earth; on the other hand, once you got over the initial sting, you'd come to realise that his underlying intentions might not actually be that bad.

One thing she was certain about though: he was one good-looking asshole.

Hyunwon suddenly cleared his throat. "You're staring again," he said bluntly. "I think you need to correct that habit of yours."

Hyejin immediate looked in every other direction, awkwardly bringing her beer can to her lips (even though it was already empty). "So, when's the next time we're coming back here?" she asked, trying to distract herself from her own embarrassment.

"We?" Hyunwon arched an eyebrow. "I'm probably coming back in three or four months, whenever I can find the time."

"It's really great, what you're doing," she said, "helping all these elderly folk and the villagers. When my grandfather was still around, he used to give free haircuts to the senior citizens in our area too. They would offer to pay but he'd always say no. My father initially didn't understand why he did such a thing, because business wasn't good and we had a whole family of mouths to feed, but now he does exactly the same."

"Do you know why I became a hairstylist?" Hyunwon asked. When he saw her shake her head, he said, "Because this world is too superficial. People judge others just by that first glance and nothing else matters after that. It's not who you are or what you do, but what you look like. But it's not just the rich and famous who want to make a good first impression—everyone does, including each and every one of those people that you gave a haircut to today. Everyone deserves a chance to have people know them for who they really are, but the sad truth is that they won't get that chance unless they look the part. If we do our job well, we give them that chance."

Hyejin chuckled, amused by how depressing that seemed. "Aren't you being a little too pessimistic about human nature?" she said. "Not everyone judges a book by its cover."

"Enough people do—that's why the Cutting Edge is so successful," Hyunwon replied. "You've met Ji Eun—she's far from the nicest person you'll find, but look at the legions of fans that she has."

"Then why do you work for the Cutting Edge when you know the profile of its clientele? These customers that walk into the salon every day, they don't seem like the type who need someone else to give them a chance."

Hyunwon fell silent for a while, then he sighed. Standing up, he took the empty beer can from out of her hand and said, "Come on, let's head back. If you have time to chit-chat, then you're better off getting an extra few minutes of sleep. Tomorrow's a big day."

As Hyejin watched him walk away, she could sense the air of melancholy that surrounded him. He tossed the two empty cans into a nearby garbage bin and then stuffed his hands into his pockets, shoulders sagging ever so slightly as if there was something weighing them down. The more he didn't want to give her the answers, the more curious she was about him—about why someone like Hyunwon had joined the Cutting Edge, about why he was so good at what he did yet seemed so out of place at times, and about who this man truly was inside.

Judging a book by its cover... Maybe I'm guilty of that as well.

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