#14
After finally finishing work and leaving the café, Ha-min checked the time with a face full of self-reproach. He was an hour later than expected. He’d thought he only needed to clean up trash, but the second floor was more of a mess than anticipated. As soon as customers realized he was an employee, several expressed complaints: the tables were too dirty, they received the wrong drinks, when would their ordered desserts arrive? With the flood of questions, Ha-min had to handle all these issues before he could leave.
An hour. Although the delay was an hour longer than planned, it wasn’t too bad. Anticipating potential issues, Ha-min had scheduled generously. There were still more than four hours left until the restaurant reservation.
Ha-min regained his composure and headed to the department store. He had wanted to pick up the item days earlier, but worried his perceptive and alert hyung might find out, so he opted for same-day pickup. He decided it was better to have a busier schedule than to be discovered.
Ha-min typically used public transportation unless there was an emergency. Though he usually favored subways and buses, today he took a taxi. He thought a mere 20-minute drive would naturally be better than taking the subway or bus, but it was truly an arrogant assumption. He had severely underestimated the holiday traffic congestion in downtown Seoul.
“…This is driving me crazy, really…”
After a 20-minute journey stretched to 40 minutes, Ha-min finally got out midway and started running. The overnight snowfall had turned the streets into sheets of ice, but Ha-min ran regardless. His heart pounded with anxiety that if he delayed any further, his plans would fall apart.
Barely avoiding falls, Ha-min arrived at the department store, breathing heavily as he headed to the store where he had reserved the rings. These were couple rings he had saved for by carefully setting aside money from his earnings—a gift he had prepared.
Couple rings. He really wanted to be the one to give the rings. Although Tae-rim sometimes seemed impatient and tried to beat him to it, Ha-min firmly expressed that it was absolutely not allowed.
“Um… ha… Excuse me, I have a reservation…”
Ha-min frantically grabbed the employee standing at the entrance, bypassing other waiting customers. The department store was crowded due to the holiday. Even luxury stores had numerous waiting customers.
“What is your name, sir?”
“Song Ha-min, Song Ha-min.”
Ha-min replied clearly, trying to calm his labored breathing.
“Yes, I’ve confirmed your name. Would you please wait inside for a moment?”
Guided by the employee, Ha-min entered and sat in the waiting area. Checking the time, he found he was a bit late but still not too bad. Though relieved, his legs began to tremble slightly. Somehow, he had a persistent bad feeling. Everything was going differently than planned—from the part-time job ending late, to the terrible traffic jam, to now waiting for pickup.
Above all, what bothered him was how casually Tae-rim seemed to regard today. Suddenly, he wondered: would hyung be happy? Anxiety gave rise to all sorts of thoughts.
Perhaps due to the large number of customers, the wait began to take quite some time. Ha-min’s legs started to tremble more rapidly with impatience.
“Sorry for the long wait. Your reserved—”
“Yes, yes. That’s right.”
Ha-min grabbed the small shopping bag, almost snatching it, without even checking the item. He quickly bowed, saying, “Thank you, goodbye,” and left the store. Though he sensed the employee’s confusion, that was the least of his concerns now. Ha-min pushed through the crowd and rushed to the bus stop. Even on the icy pavement, he felt he had to run or his entire plan would fall apart.
“Ha… ah…”
Running with his heart about to burst, Ha-min failed to notice a protruding lump of snow and fell flat on the pavement. Unfortunately, falling on the asphalt left his palms, knees, and face scraped and wounded.
“Ugh—!”
Ha-min looked at his bleeding palms while gasping for breath. He could barely feel the cold or pain. Then he stared blankly at the shopping bag that had fallen to the ground. Due to the impact, the case had rolled into a puddle of melted snow and slush. Ha-min exhaled in disbelief as he witnessed this with a dumbfounded expression.
It was the worst.
But there was something even worse.
Just as Ha-min picked up the case to check the item, he realized his phone was vibrating. Unknown number. Yet sensing something ominous, Ha-min hurriedly answered.
“…Hello?”
-Hello, customer. You just picked up an item from the department store, right?
At the friendly but urgent voice, Ha-min slowly opened the case with a face that seemed to say “it can’t be.”
“Ha…”
A deep sigh flowed from between Ha-min’s lips. Inside the case were not the rings he had spent months carefully selecting, but a pair of earrings.
-We should have verified the item before giving it to you. If possible, could you please return to the store?
The employee’s voice felt distant. But soon, even the faint voice became inaudible. Ha-min looked down at his phone screen in bewilderment—it had turned off due to a dead battery.
“…”
It had been a long time since he’d felt such self-loathing. Ha-min ran his hand over his face, feeling a deep sense of helplessness that made his neck stiff. At this point, it felt like the heavens were deliberately trying to obstruct him.
After being unable to move for a while, Ha-min clenched his fist again. Now it didn’t matter if his plans were completely ruined. He just hoped he could safely deliver the rings. If only he could accomplish that one thing successfully.
Ha-min turned back with earnest hope. Blood had spread over his scraped wounds, but he started running again with a face that showed no concern for his injuries.
**
A restaurant with a nice view located in Cheongdam. It was much cheaper and smaller than the hotel rooftop restaurant where Tae-rim took him when in a good mood, but it was still quite expensive considering Ha-min’s financial capacity. Making a restaurant reservation personally for his birthday showed that he clearly had prepared something special.
Tae-rim, whose hobby was observing and watching over Ha-min, had been well aware that Ha-min had been mentally preoccupied with something these past few days. He seemed lost in thoughts, and when Tae-rim heard about the sudden restaurant reservation today, he could make a rough guess. Ha-min must have planned some kind of event.
Tae-rim looked down at the window overlooking downtown Seoul and smiled faintly. It was adorably maddening to think about how hard Ha-min must have been preparing something on his own. Moreover, he had been so solemnly determined when he’d met Tae-rim after work today.
“Excuse me, sir.”
Pleasantly waiting, Tae-rim briefly frowned at the interrupting employee’s voice before turning to look at them.
“It’s almost last order time… Are you still waiting for someone?”
At this prompting, Tae-rim checked the time with a dispassionate face. The reservation time had already passed by an hour and a half. Tae-rim had been sipping only the wine that Ha-min had pre-ordered, waiting silently for a considerable amount of time. When he tried calling, he only heard the automated message saying the phone was turned off. He briefly wondered if something had happened, but then chose to simply wait patiently.
“Would it be possible to just rent this place after all the staff leaves?”
“…Pardon?”
“I’d like to request that if necessary.”
“But that’s…”
“Please tell the owner I’ll pay whatever price they ask.”
Tae-rim didn’t want to disrupt Ha-min’s plans if possible. It was certain there was a good reason. He had never seen Ha-min break an appointment time. Moreover, if something had happened, Ha-min would have contacted him somehow. There must be a reason for the delay, and imagining Ha-min frantically rushing over made Tae-rim unable to suppress his smile. He leisurely smiled and moistened his throat with wine.
Feeling joy in waiting was something Tae-rim first experienced while dating Ha-min. By nature, Tae-rim had never waited for anyone before. Waiting is something only possible for those who long for someone. The idea that he, who had never felt even a hint of yearning for another person in his life, would waste time for someone seemed preposterous. Of course, that was before meeting his current lover.
While Tae-rim didn’t mind waiting for Ha-min now, he was also becoming concerned. The delay was longer than expected, which bothered him. Since Tae-rim knew better than anyone that Ha-min wasn’t the type to be this late, he was planning to go looking for him if he didn’t show up before the restaurant closed.
That’s when it happened.
Ding-a-ling.
A bell sound fitting for the Christmas holiday rang urgently. Tae-rim instinctively turned his head toward the entrance.
“Ha… Haa… Ha…”
A man who had just entered the restaurant was bent over with his hands on his knees, gasping for breath as if he had been running for a long time. After exhaling roughly as if about to lose his breath, he quickly scanned the interior of the restaurant.
“Do you have a reservation?”
When the employee at the counter asked the man who had just entered, he nodded vigorously.
“Ha… Song Ha-min, Song Ha-min.”
His urgent and anxious voice loudly echoed in the quiet interior. Only then did Tae-rim realize the protagonist had arrived, and he stood up, pleasantly narrowing his eyes. From any angle, Ha-min looked like he had been running in a frenzy.
“Ha-min…”
Just as Tae-rim was about to greet him cheerfully, his smiling face gradually began to harden.
“I’m, I’m sorry.”
“…”
“I’m… I’m so late. I’m sorry. Really sorry…”
Ha-min kept apologizing restlessly. Beyond mere apologies, his face was close to tears, unable to fix his gaze in one place, and his hands were shaking.
“I didn’t… mean to be late…”
“…”
“There were too many people at the store, and the roads were so congested…”
Ha-min continued speaking urgently to explain himself. Unlike Ha-min who was trying to somehow smooth over the situation, Tae-rim’s face had cooled as if he had never been smiling, and he scrutinized Ha-min’s appearance with a long gaze.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
