#046
In the end, Jiwoon couldn’t walk more than a few steps before collapsing.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
Surprised Kyungjun and Choi Min shook Jiwoon’s shoulders.
Now it finally hit him.
It was over.
The tears he had buried flowed down along the surface. The tears that flowed from Jiwoon’s eyes leaked out beyond the palm that covered his face.
“Is this bastard sick somewhere?”
“Just wait and see.”
Kyungjun and Choi Min shielded Jiwoon from the passing students.
The classroom back door, hallway, cafeteria, store and parasol, annex building, music room, rooftop, the entrance they had just passed and this path laid out in front – all of it hurt.
Jiwoon was helplessly cut by memories. The tears that moistened the surface slowly washed away the bloodstains from where little Yechan had been torn away.
After a while, Jiwoon, who had been sitting collapsed with his shoulders shaking, slowly got up. Even Park Kyungjun was silent at the ominous atmosphere. Choi Min, who had been reading the situation, handed over a handkerchief.
Even while walking, Jiwoon kept wiping away the tears that continued to flow. When he inhaled, the sharp air of early winter filled his lungs.
Jiwoon exhaled. He kept exhaling.
This was a path he would never be able to walk again.
* * *
“Ah, isn’t the cafeteria food really too much?”
“Job’s tears rice with mushroom sweet and sour pork… There’s no meat.”
At Taehyun’s words, Minho muttered with a devastated face. Even though they were eating, it was a menu that didn’t feel like eating.
“Want to go to the store after eating?”
“I’m not going. I have jellies.”
“Then let’s eat those too.”
The three who had roughly finished their meal and gathered snacks sat huddled around Yechan’s seat, who had returned to the classroom first.
Taehyun’s eyes widened at the obviously luxurious tin case. He quickly grabbed a handful of jellies.
“Hey, it’s from England. Eat them little by little.”
Seungwoo slapped Taehyun’s hand and showed off.
“Wow, it’s fucking delicious. It looks expensive, where did you get it?”
“Earlier Jiwoon hyung, ah… um…”
Seungwoo, who had thoughtlessly blurted out the words, hurriedly checked Yechan’s reaction. Yechan’s hand, which had been unwrapping a candy to put in his mouth, stopped.
Yechan looked at Seungwoo and asked.
“You met hyung?”
“Huh? Uh… earlier this morning.”
“Why?”
“Ah… just, he told me to come…?”
Yechan continued to stare intently at Seungwoo’s face. At his attitude that seemed to say ‘tell me more,’ Seungwoo eventually surrendered.
“Fine! He messaged me to come so I went and came back, okay? He gave me this saying it was from England.”
“That’s all?”
“Yeah, yeah. That’s all.”
“Did he do well on the Suneung?”
“I didn’t ask about that… But his expression didn’t look bad.”
Seungwoo glanced at Yechan while putting jelly in his mouth. Yechan, who had been watching Seungwoo chew the chewy jelly, bit down and crunched the candy in his mouth.
Seungwoo, who made eye contact with such a Yechan, trembled. Yechan took out his phone and accessed the messenger app. The message he had sent in the morning was still unread.
His already anxious mood immediately plummeted to hell. All the third-years had already gone home.
“Hey, but when I went to the store earlier, I heard from the side. They said Lee Jiwoon hyung cried on his way home.”
“What? I didn’t hear that. When did you hear it?”
“I’ve always had good hearing, you know. I couldn’t hear the details, but it seemed like he was sick or something. They said he crouched down in front of the entrance for a while. The other hyungs were next to him asking if he was okay.”
“Really? Jiwoon hyung?”
“That’s what I’m saying. I can’t imagine it, but just in case. But they said his face after crying was fucking handsome, so the girls went crazy again.”
“Crazy…”
Yechan, who had been listening to Seungwoo and Taehyun’s conversation, quietly got up from his seat. Seeing Yechan leave through the back door, Minho scolded Taehyun.
“Taehyun. You seem like you have sense but you fucking don’t.”
“No, I didn’t know he’d react like that either. What’s wrong with Seo Yechan lately anyway?”
Taehyun, who showed both hands as if he was wronged, answered while mumbling.
“Are things between him and Jiwoon hyung really that bad lately?”
At Seungwoo’s words, Taehyun answered.
“It’s not just bad, it seems like they don’t contact each other at all? Him constantly looking at his phone is probably because of Lee Jiwoon hyung too.”
“Ah. Just shut up, both of you.”
Eventually Minho smacked both Taehyun and Seungwoo on the back. Ah! Why are you hitting me! Taehyun shouted while grabbing a handful of jellies.
* * *
“Hah…”
Yechan, who had splashed cold water on himself, shook the water off his face. He was going crazy with curiosity about why Jiwoon had cried.
Were his grades bad? Or was he sick? Seungwoo said Jiwoon had sent him a message. Yechan checked his unread message once more.
It became certain that Jiwoon was avoiding him. His mouth became bitter at the rejection he realized once again.
He had definitely eaten candy, but the taste of the candy was nowhere to be found. Yechan had been waiting obediently all this time. He had intended to have a proper conversation with Jiwoon now that the Suneung was finally over.
However, at this rate, it seemed difficult to even meet, let alone talk. His insides, which had been gradually drying up, finally began to burn.
* * *
“Well, have fun. I’ll come back late tomorrow, so don’t worry about us and just have fun. Son, you worked hard.”
As soon as he arrived home, Jiwoon said that his friends were coming over for what they called a farewell party. Upon hearing this, his mom and dad became busy.
What Jiwoon discovered after washing up was his parents who had already packed their bags and several fairly large checks placed on the coffee table. It was the effect brought about by Jiwoon’s Suneung scores.
His parents, who said they would stay at a hotel tonight so he could have fun to his heart’s content, smiled brightly. Then they immediately opened the door and left.
Jiwoon, left alone, thought he didn’t understand why they were leaving together when they would drive separately and use separate rooms anyway.
He took out his phone with a bored expression and took a photo. The empty living room was captured in the camera.
Me: My house is empty
Park Kyungjun: Hey fuck what are those checks?
Me: Park Kyungjun knows about checks too
Choi Min: I thought your parents were there
Me: They emptied it for us to have fun
Choi Min: Wow! I’ll leave a bit later
Park Kyungjun: Fucking cool… I’ll go with Choi Min too
Yoon Jukyung: Jiwoon-Jiwoon~ I’ll go by six~ Having deep talk with noona hehe
Park Kyungjun: Is Yoon Jukyung’s noona doing well?
Yoon Jukyung: ㅇㅇ ㄲㅈ ㄷㄹㅇ
Park Kyungjun: What are you saying
Choi Min and Kyungjun arrived around five o’clock. As soon as they entered Jiwoon’s house, they ordered food and snacks.
They sat on the sofa watching TV, received the delivery and spread it on the table, and just then Jukyung arrived. Jukyung was holding a cake from a famous hotel.
Jiwoon, who suddenly recalled the cake Yechan and the kids had bought when they went on a trip, picked up a fork.
“It’s delicious.”
Jukyung, who was chewing the cake, puffed up his cheeks and said. Along with saying that famous places are famous for a reason.
Choi Min, who was watching Jiwoon nod at the rich whipped cream filling his mouth, suddenly asked.
“Jiwoon. Why are you suddenly going to England?”
“Language study abroad.”
“Jiwoon-Jiwoon, you’re already good at English.”
“I decided to intern at dad’s company.”
At Jiwoon’s half-hearted response to Jukyung’s words, Kyungjun asked.
“Wow, are you already building your career?”
“You should please build some career.”
Jiwoon said to Kyungjun while drinking juice.
No, this bastard always picks on just me. Kyungjun, who grumbled briefly, shoved cake into his mouth.
Jukyung began to carefully ask Jiwoon about the curiosity that had been spinning in his head the whole time.
“When did you decide this? Also, why are you going so suddenly?”
“I decided to go before the Suneung. I finished talking with the school about everything.”
“You’re really not coming to graduation?”
“Probably not.”
“What about applications?”
“My parents’ company people will take care of it.”
“Jiwoon-Jiwoon. Do you think you’ll get into Korea University?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow, look at that confidence. I got goosebumps. Crazy. I thought this bastard did well on the Suneung.”
Kyungjun shouted with a flushed face.
“Then when you come back, set us up on blind dates.”
“When I come to Korea, I’ll go straight to the military.”
Jiwoon answered Jukyung’s words. A moment of brief silence passed.
“…Huh? What?”
“Are you fucking desperate to go somewhere?”
Choi Min and Kyungjun’s eyes widened. Jiwoon said calmly.
“Yeah.”
“Wow, no, why aren’t you using exemption?”
“That’s something you would use.”
Kyungjun gaped, not understanding Jiwoon who was speaking matter-of-factly with a calm face. Lee Jiwoon is fucking manly. Soon Kyungjun, who had muttered blankly, bit into chicken.
“Jiwoon-Jiwoon, at this point I’m starting to feel a bit hurt.”
“About what?”
“When you had all these plans in your head, you only tell us two days before leaving?”
“What’s the point of saying it beforehand?”
“Whew… Fine, what can I do. That’s just Jiwoon-Jiwoon.”
Jukyung, who had been pouting, gently stroked the back of Jiwoon’s head.
“I’m a bit hurt too. But when you go to the military, I’ll visit.”
Choi Min said while putting down his glass. Unlike his upright way of speaking, it was said with a heavily sunken nuance.
“Don’t come. I don’t accept visits from guys.”
“You’d be happy if we came.”
“Don’t come.”
At Jukyung’s words as he playfully poked his side, Jiwoon quickly answered. Jiwoon was serious. Memories starting from these people would surely lead to pulling up Yechan in a chain reaction.
Jukyung filled his glass without answering.
The conversation didn’t end until two in the morning. Bodies filled with too much good food stretched pleasantly. The time spent idly chatting about the past three years, the Suneung, and future prospects wasn’t too bad.
Jiwoon, who had roughly gathered the trash in one place, checked his phone. There was a notification that a new message had come from Yechan.
Jiwoon, who turned off the screen, threw his phone anywhere. Leaving Choi Min and Kyungjun who had fallen asleep sprawled in the living room, Jiwoon and Jukyung headed to the terrace.
The dawn air touching their skin was cold. At the feeling that his body, which had been slack from overeating and drowsiness, was waking up a bit, Jiwoon slowly blinked.
Jukyung stretched and asked.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
