Sweet Shot

#109

At the sudden proposal, Ha-min hesitated for a moment as if malfunctioning, then shook his head.

“With finals so close, a blind date? Really?”

Eun-soo, who had heard everything from behind, clicked her tongue at Woo-kyung.

“Hey, you and hyung are probably the only ones worrying about grades since freshman year.”

“Don’t whine later when you regret it.”

“Will one blind date ruin everything? How about it, hyung? Want to join us? No, you should join us. Please?”

Woo-kyung grabbed Ha-min’s arm and pleaded, shaking his body. Ha-min rubbed the back of his neck and expressed his refusal.

“Sorry. I started working part-time again, so I don’t have time…”

It wasn’t just about the part-time job; he was on the verge of overload right now. With hyung and the strangely acting Hee-gyeom, he couldn’t possibly attend a gathering aimed at meeting potential partners. Such events didn’t suit him at all. Someone like him who knew nothing about women would only ruin the atmosphere.

“I’ll find someone to cover your shift!”

“That’s not the only issue.”

“What else? Just tell me, I’ll solve everything.”

Woo-kyung boasted, rolling up his sleeves as if to say leave it to him. Ha-min couldn’t hide his discomfort at the overly enthusiastic attitude, but he continued to shake his head.

“Sorry.”

“Ah, why~~~ Hyuuuung. You’re really the only one left now.”

Woo-kyung clung to Ha-min’s arm with a crying face, persistently refusing to let go until it started to hurt.

“What do you mean hyung’s the only one left?”

A shadow fell over them as a deep voice came from behind, startling both Ha-min and Woo-kyung. With his back to the sun, Hee-gyeom stood there with a shadowed face. Whether he had just appeared or had been waiting, Hee-gyeom suddenly asked Woo-kyung:

“What are you talking about?”

“Ah, the blind date. You said you’re not going, so I’m trying to persuade hyung.”

At Woo-kyung’s casual words, Hee-gyeom’s gaze turned to Ha-min. Ha-min felt uncomfortable under that gaze for some reason and took a step back.

“…Is hyung going to the blind date?”

The situation felt even more awkward. The look directed at him was so aggressive that Ha-min’s neck felt stiff.

“I’m trying to convince him right now.”

However, Woo-kyung, completely oblivious to the subtle atmosphere, answered instead. Ha-min felt tired for some reason.

“Why would hyung go to a blind date?”

A hint of irritation in his voice was directed at Woo-kyung, who widened his eyes in disbelief.

“Why can’t hyung go? He’s single, isn’t he?”

“…”

“Why, are you upset that hyung’s going? Do you want to go instead?”

Thinking Hee-gyeom was just being petty, Woo-kyung grinned and playfully hit Hee-gyeom’s arm.

“I said I’m not going.”

At the stiff reply, Woo-kyung clicked his tongue and changed his target again.

“Hyung, if you go just this once, I’ll lend you money a few times.”

When begging didn’t work, Woo-kyung changed tactics to persuasion and tried to coax Ha-min. As he persisted relentlessly, Ha-min suddenly stopped walking. Woo-kyung’s face brightened, thinking he had succeeded, but Ha-min called out softly, “Woo-kyung.”

“Sorry, I can’t go.”

Ha-min expressed his opinion once more.

“I… have someone I like.”

And he added the honest reason for his refusal. He couldn’t go. It was the most honest reason of all. There were plenty of excuses he could make, but Woo-kyung was persistent, and more importantly, he felt Hee-gyeom should know this too.

Of course, he had mentioned it before, but that was different from now because he had added that he would give up. That there was someone he couldn’t give up on, no matter how much he tried. He had only recently realized that he was just running away because he couldn’t give up.

“…When you have someone you like, it’s rude to go to such events, right?”

Sorry. Ha-min expressed his refusal as if to console Woo-kyung and unconsciously looked at Hee-gyeom. Although he couldn’t see Hee-gyeom’s face clearly due to the sunlight, the seemingly cold atmosphere made Ha-min’s heart ache. Being honest was always difficult, and it was even harder if it hurt someone.

But he justified to himself that it wouldn’t be that bad, that Hee-gyeom’s feelings weren’t that deep yet. He thought that Hee-gyeom was probably just confused, that his heart was wavering due to sympathy.

After class, Ha-min headed straight to Tae-in’s studio. These days, Tae-in said he was always at the studio, not at school or the club room. He said he was so happy focusing on music that he was even considering taking a break from school or dropping out.

Ha-min bought some snacks and desserts near the studio and entered the building, taking the elevator. Since he felt bad for going empty-handed last time, today he brought plenty of things for everyone to share. There were also things to be thankful for, so it was killing two birds with one stone.

As soon as he got off the elevator, he could see inside the practice room. Tae-in was using the entire floor, so no one disturbed them, which Chae-rin had said was nice. So when he immediately saw Chae-rin adjusting her guitar, he waved his hands excitedly. Chae-rin put down her guitar, opened the practice room door, and gestured for him to come in.

“Are you here to see Tae-in sunbae?”

Yeah. Ha-min nodded and held out his hands full of things to Chae-rin.

“Share these with everyone.”

“Why did you buy so much?”

“Just because I couldn’t bring anything last time. Maybe I should have bought a potted plant or something?”

Chae-rin shook her head seriously.

“No one here can take care of something like that.”

I guess not. Ha-min smiled faintly.

“Anyway, thank you. We’ll enjoy them.”

Chae-rin quickly scanned the contents with her eyes, while Ha-min looked around for Tae-in but couldn’t see him.

“Where’s Tae-in?”

“In the recording room next door.”

As Chae-rin rummaged through the bags, Ha-min’s head automatically turned to where she nodded. After confirming the location, he gently tapped Chae-rin’s arm and said with an innocent smile, “Practice well.” She nodded, thanked him once more, and then headed back into the practice room.

He wasn’t planning to stay long, but he thought he should at least see Tae-in’s face before leaving. As he was heading towards the recording room, he saw Tae-in coming out into the hallway and was about to greet him happily when—

“Mom says to answer the phone.”

Seeing Tae-in closing the door with his phone wedged between his shoulder and ear, Ha-min hesitated and quietly closed his mouth. Tae-in, unaware of Ha-min’s presence, leaned against the recording room door and continued his conversation.

“Now even I’m in trouble, you know? Seeing how upset they are, it seems like they’re about to fly to Seoul right away.”

Instinctively realizing that the person on the other end was hyung, Ha-min held his breath.

“So you’re saying you’re going to leave Korea with Hee-jae noona… No, I know, but they’re unnecessarily pestering me. What’s wrong with your voice?”

Tae-in, who had been speaking with an irritated voice, suddenly raised his tone in confusion. Ha-min, who was unintentionally eavesdropping, also glanced over with a puzzled look.

“Are you sick? Your voice sounds completely off.”

“…”

“This is what happens when you keep drinking all the time. Go to the hospital first.”

“…”

“You’re so stubborn… Should I at least contact the manager? Or should I come?”

“…”

“Fine, do whatever you want. When have you ever listened to me anyway? I don’t know, I’m hanging up.”

Tae-in sighed heavily as he ended the call. He seemed to be thinking for a moment, then scratched his head and turned around, finally noticing Ha-min standing there and widening his eyes.

“When did you get here?”

Tae-in approached quickly with a welcoming smile and stood in front of Ha-min, stuffing his phone into his back pocket. Ha-min found himself staring at that spot and responded somewhat absent-mindedly.

“Ah, just now… I bought some things. For you to eat while working.”

“Oh thank you, I’ll enjoy them.”

In the midst of the casual conversation, Ha-min, seemingly unaware that he was lost in thought, carefully asked as if in a trance.

“Just now… was that hyung?”

“Ah, yeah.”

“Is hyung… sick?”

The content of the overheard conversation swirled in his mind. Hyung is sick. Ha-min, as if malfunctioning, could only focus on that fact and looked at Tae-in anxiously. Tae-in, fully reading that gaze, glanced at Ha-min once and continued speaking casually.

“He says he’s fine… but his voice sounded really off.”

After stating the facts, Tae-in glanced at Ha-min again. His face clearly showed worry that he couldn’t hide. Tae-in, eyeing Ha-min from the side, added subtly:

“He was coughing a lot too, his voice really sounded sick…”

“Is he very ill…?”

Ha-min’s voice trembled slightly as he asked. He had been worried when he saw hyung’s complexion at the convenience store recently… Ha-min bit his lower lip, letting out a heavy sigh.

“Are you worried?”

Instead of answering, Tae-in stared at Ha-min intently, as if seeing through his heart, and asked. Then, without waiting for an answer, he added with a faint smile.

“If you’re worried, go see him.”

That simple answer, as if it were the most obvious thing, struck deep into Ha-min. It was such a simple and natural thing to say… But Ha-min was hesitating and wavering even about that. He was hesitating and endlessly wavering, making excuses that he wasn’t ready yet, that he hadn’t finished sorting out his thoughts.