Sa-yoon, who was about to open the passenger seat door, suddenly froze.
“Hyung!”
Would it be possible to craft that face if you gathered all the sunlight in the world? It felt unfair that someone like that existed, yet at the same time, knowing that such a person was his lover made him feel a little proud.
“Uhh…”
But—what the hell is that?
They say light and shadow are inseparable, and just like that, the brightness in Sa-yoon’s eyes, which had been lively just a moment ago, instantly darkened when they landed on the outfit before him.
Where does he even find clothes like that? Who sells a black turtleneck with one sleeve made entirely of mesh—to a regular person, no less?
‘Do we need to fix the washing machine?’
‘Huh? All of a sudden?’
‘It tore all your clothes to shreds. Did you stitch up the ripped side yourself with yarn? It’s kinda cute, but…’
‘It’s new, though?’
‘You actually paid money for that?’
‘My mom bought it.’
‘Is she trying to make you an actor? Her fashion sense is truly unique. The kind no ordinary person could ever follow. That… Yeah, I can’t do this. Take it off, Shin-jae.’
‘Just me? I’d feel embarrassed being the only one undressing…’
As he reached to strip him, Sa-yoon found himself picturing the inevitable—his own shirt coming off, then his pants… Realizing where his thoughts were heading, he quickly shook his head to snap out of it.
Because of their history, he couldn’t just come right out and demand an explanation.
“Shin-jae.”
Instead, this time, he came prepared. Sa-yoon pulled a gray knit sweater out of his duffel bag.
“How about we wear matching outfits today?”
With that, he unzipped his padded jacket and leaned his upper body toward the driver’s seat. Startled by the movement, Shin-jae flinched and instinctively backed away, then lowered his gaze. His hand, which had been gripping the steering wheel, had moved up to cover his mouth.
“Ah… You startled me.”
At his overly sensitive reaction, Sa-yoon’s eyes darted about before he let out a chuckle.
“You didn’t seriously think I’d let you go on a trip dressed like that, did you?”
It seemed that the event from before had left quite an impression. Remembering how Shin-jae had jumped like a startled cat upon seeing his bare torso under the padded jacket, Sa-yoon couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Anyway, look at this.”
Only then did those clear eyes finally land on the gray sweater inside the jacket. The design and fabric were different enough that it didn’t scream “couple look,” but there was still an undeniable sense of coordination.
“Did you pick this out, hyung?”
“Who else would pick out our couple outfits if not me?”
At that, Shin-jae picked up the sweater without a word, absentmindedly running his fingers over the knit fabric.
Was it too plain for his liking?
Based on what Sa-yoon had gathered about his boyfriend’s taste, Shin-jae had a penchant for extravagance on top of extravagance.
The kinds of details most people would consider over-the-top, Shin-jae saw as statement pieces—like side slits, mesh sleeves, or even those ridiculous idol-stage outfit brooches. It was the complete opposite of Sa-yoon’s style.
One day, unable to understand his taste any longer, Sa-yoon had even asked which part of Chasa’s outfits Shin-jae actually liked.
“Everything you wear is exactly my style. It’s all so pretty.”
Then why the hell does his own styling look like that? And why does he wear such absurd outfits in real life, too?
Though, come to think of it, Shin-jae did occasionally wear normal, stylish clothes. There were days when he dressed like he had walked straight out of a department store display. Maybe he just had wide-ranging taste. Like a broken clock that somehow managed to be right twice a day.
At some point, Sa-yoon had simply given up on trying to understand his boyfriend’s aesthetic sense. But no matter how ridiculously handsome he was, a mesh turtleneck was absolutely unacceptable.
“Shin-jae, if you really don’t like this—”
“Wait… Are you giving me real-life outfit approval right now?”
Sa-yoon, who had been staring at Shin-jae’s hand resting on the sweater, lifted his gaze. The fashion-challenged clock had turned red at the tips of his ears.
“Uh… yeah?”
“I love it…”
Overcome with emotion, the look enthusiast clutched the sweater to his chest.
“Great. Change into it now.”
Before he even realized what he was doing, Sa-yoon had stripped Shin-jae out of the outfit he had painstakingly chosen for their date after much deliberation. Fortunately, the pants were normal enough to keep on.
And just like that, their travel outfits were complete.
Which is to say, their trip to Busan—the one they had planned for after winter break—ended up being moved up by a lot.
“Hyung, aren’t you cold?”
At first, he thought Shin-jae was just worried about him because he was sensitive to the cold.
“Winter is always cold. What else is new?”
“I heard the southern regions don’t get snow and stay warm all winter.”
Looking back, he should have realized it then.
“Hyung, have you ever seen seagulls eating snacks?”
Or at the very least, at this moment.
“They say listening to ASMR helps with stress.”
It was only after watching a looping video of waves crashing against the shore three times that Sa-yoon finally caught on to what his adorable, mischievous younger boyfriend was getting at.
“Hyung, have you ever tried mul-tteok?”
Once he noticed, he couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen it sooner.
Of course, Sa-yoon also wanted to go on a trip with his boyfriend, hold hands, eat good food, enjoy the scenery, and do other things in a seaside hotel room.
But if cherry blossoms symbolized midterms, then the first snowfall might as well have represented assignment hell. As if it had been orchestrated, an avalanche of coursework came flooding in.
Everything was expensive and time-consuming in his major. Filming and editing short videos meant pulling all-nighters in the blink of an eye. Naturally, there was no time for dates—he barely had time to eat and sleep at the department building while grinding through his daily workload.
“Let’s go on a date once I finish this.”
“Just this one last thing, then I’ll finally have time.”
“I just need to get through this edit…”
But just like in a video game, clearing one stage only brought out another boss-level assignment. They just kept spawning. The blessing of taking on a full 24-credit semester felt never-ending.
While Sa-yoon was drowning in work, it was Shin-jae who had to wait.
He had expected constant messages, playful whining about missing him, or at the very least, some complaints. But no—Shin-jae never came unless Sa-yoon called him first. The only exceptions were when he played chauffeur or dropped off late-night snacks.
“Hyung, I can wait for you as long as it takes.”
One late night, when he had dozed off in the car, Shin-jae had gently woken him up and said that. That he was fine. That he could wait forever.
Holding Sesame, who was giving him a light paw-punch for coming home so late, Sa-yoon went ahead and booked a hotel in Busan on the spot. A very expensive one. His bank account took a hit, but thanks to some recent income, he was covered.
When he told Shin-jae about the reservation, his boyfriend’s eyes widened before breaking into the brightest smile. Even more endearing, he insisted on planning the itinerary himself since Sa-yoon was so busy.
And finally, two days before their trip, Shin-jae proudly presented his carefully crafted one-night, two-day plan.
“So… You want to visit Gwangalli, Haeundae, Huin-yeoul Village, Nampo-dong, Yonggungsa, and Yeongdo… all in one trip?”
“And the capsule train, too!”
“Ohhh, of course! We have to ride the capsule train!”
“And then the cable car, and after that, grilled clams. Oh, and I heard you have to eat fresh sashimi when you go to Busan… And there’s that famous pizza place you can only find there. Oh, right! There’s also a huge jjimjilbang!”
With just a little nudge, Shin-jae started rattling off Busan’s famous spots, must-try foods, and hidden gems like an overflowing sausage link of tourist attractions.
Sa-yoon rubbed at the small beauty mark under his eye as he glanced at the tablet. Even if they tore through the map at video game speed, it was physically impossible to hit all these spots in just one night and two days.
But looking at Shin-jae’s bright, expectant face, who in their right mind could tell him his schedule was way too packed to be doable? Sa-yoon certainly couldn’t.
Honestly, if he had the choice, he’d just throw his boyfriend over his shoulder and spend a full week there, taking him everywhere, showing him all his favorite places, feeding him every good thing. If only winter break wasn’t so damn far away.
Clearing his throat, he spoke.
“Baby.”
Shin-jae’s head snapped up. His face, caught between confusion and mild suspicion, was priceless. It was that classic why is this man suddenly acting out of character expression.
Sa-yoon just shrugged like it was nothing and continued.
“How about we go to Busan again next year? And Jeju, too—we can do a tangerine-picking experience together… Oh, and we need to go bakery hopping, you haven’t tried flat dumplings yet either. Ah, and dak-galbi! We definitely have to go for that too.”
Instead of protesting, Shin-jae’s face lit up at the unexpected pink-tinted future.
“So let’s save some of these places for next time.”
Sa-yoon didn’t waste the opening—he quickly revised the itinerary on the tablet, crafting a realistic plan that factored in travel distances and accommodations. He neatly listed the spots they’d visit next year in a separate section.
“Alright, baby…”
Shin-jae murmured softly, eyes fixed on the tablet. The endearment came out in a near whisper, but there was no hesitation in the hand that reached under the table to grab his.
Sa-yoon chuckled, watching his boyfriend’s expression melt like ice cream left out in the sun.
And just like that, they managed to finalize a travel plan without breaking anyone’s heart.
***
“Ugh… Now I can finally breathe.”
Sa-yoon groaned as he sprawled out across the massive hotel bed, arms and legs spread wide.
The plush comforter was so soft that he felt like he could sink into it and fall asleep instantly.
But they couldn’t just spend the first night of the trip like that.
“We already ate at the rest stop, so it’s a bit early for dinner, right? How about checking out the lounge? They’re serving champagne right now.”
Sa-yoon blinked up at the pristine white ceiling, waiting for a response. None came. When he lifted his head slightly, he spotted Shin-jae standing by the closet, looking unusually dejected—like a cat that had just gotten caught knocking something over.
Sa-yoon sat up.
“What are you doing over there?”
“…Because of this.”
“Huh?”
“We got here too late.”
Saturday afternoon. The Gyeongbu Expressway.
It hadn’t taken long after their departure for Shin-jae to realize something was very wrong. The traffic was absolutely horrendous.
“I was the one who was busy, so you planned everything… why would that be your fault?”
There were exactly two things Shin-jae had enjoyed about traveling by car.
One was when he sneakily kissed Sa-yoon’s fingers after being fed a piece of stale walnut pastry—earning himself a “cute” in response.
The other was Sa-yoon absentmindedly humming along to every single song that played on the radio.
“Still… If we had taken the KTX like you said, we would’ve gotten here so much faster.”
“They were all sold out by the time we checked. We didn’t have a choice.”
But the consequences were undeniable. Their already short trip had been cut even shorter—nearly half of it gone before they had even begun.
