Instead of asking first whether he had an umbrella, for some reason Kang-woo wanted to surprise him.
[Getting off at the station after next.]
If he got ready and left right away, the timing would probably line up with Seok-ho arriving at the station.
Kang-woo hurried into his room and layered on several pieces of clothing. Among them was the sweatshirt Jung-yeon had recently given him as a gift.
Standing in front of the mirror, he wrapped a scarf around his neck and pulled a hat down firmly over his head. After finishing his preparations, Kang-woo turned off all the lights in the house and headed to the entrance.
After putting on his sneakers, he grabbed two umbrellas from the shoe cabinet and left the apartment.
As soon as he opened the front door, cold air wrapped around his body. Shivering slightly, he called the elevator and got in. When he passed through the building’s shared entrance and stepped outside, the snow was still falling silently.
He opened an umbrella and carefully stepped out of the building. The ground, where the snow had not yet melted, was quite slippery. Tensing both legs to avoid falling made his back stiffen as well.
Kang-woo walked quickly toward the subway station.
The street was dark. Snow sparkled under the white glow of the streetlights. Beneath his feet, the snow made a soft crunching sound—crunch, crunch. With every step he took, neat footprints appeared behind him.
Whenever the distance between him and a passerby approaching from the opposite direction grew closer, he instinctively felt himself shrink.
Still, he didn’t want to turn back home.
Since he had already gathered the courage to come out, he wanted to accomplish the purpose of this outing.
When he reached the subway station, he shook the umbrella a few times before stepping inside. Water dripped steadily from the tip of the umbrella, soaked with snow.
Fortunately, perhaps because of the late hour, there weren’t many people inside the station. People heading toward their own destinations simply passed by Kang-woo without a second glance.
The underground air felt fairly chilly.
Hunching his shoulders, he fixed his gaze on the ticket gates. His eyes were sharply focused as they scanned the people tapping their cards and coming through.
It seemed Seok-ho hadn’t been on this train.
After the area grew quiet again, perhaps about five more minutes passed.
At last, the second subway train must have arrived. A few people appeared at the previously quiet gates.
Among them, Kang-woo spotted a familiar figure.
“Hyung!”
Kang-woo called out brightly, waving his hand from side to side.
After passing through the gates, Seok-ho stopped in surprise for a moment, then removed the wireless earphones from both ears. His jet-black eyes fixed on Kang-woo.
Walking straight toward him, Seok-ho gave a faint smile.
“What are you doing here?”
“I was waiting for you, hyung. I thought you might not have an umbrella, so I came to meet you. Did you bring one?”
“No. I didn’t.”
“I knew it.”
Though he replied proudly, relief flooded him inside. Thinking he had done well to come meet him, Kang-woo held out the umbrella.
“Thanks.”
Seok-ho accepted it.
They immediately walked up the station exit stairs and opened their umbrellas. But strangely, Seok-ho—standing beside him—couldn’t seem to open his. When Kang-woo looked closer to see what was wrong, it seemed the latch wouldn’t lock in place.
Watching from the side, Kang-woo blinked.
“It won’t work?”
“Yeah. It won’t.”
Kang-woo took it and tried himself, but the result was the same. Of all things, it seemed he had accidentally brought a broken umbrella.
“It must be broken…”
Kang-woo scratched his cheek.
Since he had rushed out, he must have just grabbed one randomly from the shoe cabinet. He should’ve checked it beforehand.
But regretting it now was pointless. As he looked up awkwardly, his eyes met Seok-ho’s.
“You brought this on purpose.”
“No, I didn’t. Why would I do that?”
“Because you wanted to share one with me.”
The shameless answer caught Kang-woo off guard. Normally he would’ve just laughed it off, but for a moment he was startled.
Did he… know that Kang-woo liked him?
But the suspicion quickly faded. The corners of Seok-ho’s lips were curled up mischievously. He was clearly teasing him.
“…That’s not it.”
Muttering under his breath, Kang-woo glanced down at the broken umbrella.
What should they do?
The decision didn’t take long. After all, there was only one option. Kang-woo held out the umbrella he was holding.
“Shall we share?”
Because of the height difference between them, if Kang-woo held the umbrella it might block Seok-ho’s view. It would be better for the taller Seok-ho to hold it from the start.
Perhaps thinking the same thing, Seok-ho accepted the umbrella without comment.
A cozy shadow fell over their heads.
“Let’s go.”
He stepped forward first, and Kang-woo followed.
The two of them walked side by side, matching their pace. Their steps were slower than usual. Maintaining a distance where their arms nearly brushed felt strangely ticklish.
The street was quiet.
Here and there, shops with their shutters down lined the road. From above, the soft sound of snowflakes settling on the umbrella could be heard.
Walking shoulder to shoulder under the narrow space of the umbrella made things feel oddly awkward.
While Kang-woo tried to consciously keep a little distance, an arm suddenly reached out and wrapped around his shoulders.
“Stay close. Snow keeps hitting your shoulder.”
Speaking in a casual tone, Seok-ho pulled Kang-woo closer.
Even after that, the arm around his shoulders didn’t move away. Warmth spread wherever their bodies touched.
Kang-woo’s body stiffened. His ears felt hot. Embarrassed, he glanced around.
This is ridiculous. Freezing up over such small contact.
Scolding himself internally, Kang-woo buried his face deeper into his scarf against the wind, then lifted his gaze slightly.
Suddenly, his eyes stopped on Seok-ho’s neck. The back of his neck, where the black tattoo rested, looked especially bare today.
He must be cold, Kang-woo thought.
His gaze then shifted to the hand holding the umbrella handle. Both his fingers and the back of his hand were flushed red from the cold.
Without realizing it, Kang-woo pulled his hand out of his pocket. He gently covered the back of Seok-ho’s cold hand.
The skin beneath his palm felt extremely cold. And beneath it, he could feel the solid structure of bone. He stayed that way, warming the chilled skin with his own body heat. Then he felt a gaze.
Kang-woo unconsciously lifted his head. Seok-ho’s eyes were staring intensely at him. The teasing expression from earlier had completely disappeared.
For a moment, Kang-woo had the strange illusion that heat was burning inside those dark pupils. It felt as though his vision had been captured. His mouth suddenly felt dry.
“Hyung, your hand is cold.”
Kang-woo whispered, tightening his grip slightly.
Seok-ho’s eyes gradually darkened. But the turbulent, clouded look in them vanished instantly when he blinked.
He spoke in a calm voice.
“It’s fine. It’s cold, so put your hand back in your pocket.”
It was a polite refusal. Only then did Kang-woo realize what he had done, and he quickly withdrew his hand.
“I guess it’s really cold because of the snow.”
Stuffing his now-empty hand back into his pocket, he sniffed awkwardly.
Seok-ho continued walking in silence. As Kang-woo moved his legs beside him in the quiet, self-reproach filled his mind.
What had he just done? Had the feelings he failed to hide reached Seok-ho too plainly?
Regret arrived a step too late.
But then… what had that been?
Just for a moment, there had been something in Seok-ho’s eyes as well. Was it simply his imagination? Yes. That must be it. Hadn’t he always known? False hope only harmed both body and mind.
Don’t assign meaning to every little action.
Having reached that conclusion, Kang-woo hunched his shoulders even more. After sharing his warmth, his own fingertips now felt cold.
***
Water bubbled noisily in the kitchen. The coffee kettle, which had been glowing with an orange light, soon stopped operating and fell silent.
Kang-woo grabbed the handle and lifted it.
He brewed marigold flower tea in the mug Seok-ho had given him as a gift. The soft, subtle fragrance unique to flower tea seeped into his nose.
Watching the water gradually turn yellow as the petals steeped, Kang-woo wrapped both hands around the warmth and walked toward the window.
Usually snow disappeared within a day or two, but because the weather had grown so cold, it had remained unmelted for several days.
The lakeside, which had once been colored with bright reds, was now covered in white snow—transformed into a white world.
December had already reached its middle, and Christmas was approaching.
Would this year finally bring a white Christmas? Had it snowed last Christmas?
His memory was hazy.
After standing by the window lost in thought for quite a while, Kang-woo finally began preparing to go out.
Just a few days ago, he had gone out alone to meet Seok-ho, so he felt less nervous than before.
Kang-woo stepped out of the officetel with determined strides. Not long after, he arrived at a department store one subway stop away.
There was only one reason he had come here today. To buy a Christmas gift for Seok-ho.
He had searched the internet for several days but hadn’t been able to find anything he liked. Thinking it might be easier to decide after seeing things in person, he had decided to come out.
Kang-woo busily looked around.
Passing the stores lined up across the first floor, he walked slowly. Perfume, gloves, shoes—various products caught his eye.
Then, a gray scarf drew his attention.
Standing in front of it, Kang-woo touched the soft fabric.
Naturally, the image of Seok-ho’s bare-looking neck surfaced in his mind.
The wind had grown much colder lately, yet Seok-ho’s clothing remained thin. After giving his own scarf to Kang-woo, Seok-ho had continued walking around with his neck exposed, and that kept bothering him.
Kang-woo checked the price tag.
It cost slightly more than the budget he had set, but it was the one he liked the most among everything he had seen so far.
It was a bit expensive, but Seok-ho had helped him so much, and Kang-woo hadn’t even been able to give him a birthday gift. On top of that, he had received the mug.
Wouldn’t this be okay?
“Do you like that item?”
While he was hesitating, a staff member approached and spoke to him. Kang-woo was momentarily flustered but nodded.
“Yes. The scarf is pretty.”
Once he responded positively, the employee smoothly continued explaining.
“It’s made in Italy, and the entire muffler is cashmere, so it’s very soft and won’t irritate the skin much. You can wear it with both formal and casual outfits. You could try wrapping it around your neck if you’d like—would you like help trying it on?”
“Oh, no. It’s not for me. It’s a gift.”
“Ah, I see. It’s a great item for gifts too. It has a clean style but is also warm, so a lot of young people buy it.”
Listening to the employee’s explanation made him want it even more. After touching the soft scarf a few more times, Kang-woo carefully asked,
“Could you wrap this for me?”
“Of course. That’s no problem at all. You’re welcome to look around at other items too—would you like to go with this one?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll help you with the payment.”
“Um… is cash payment possible?”
“Yes, of course. Please come this way.”
With a bright smile, the employee nodded and guided Kang-woo to the counter inside the store.
Opening a long drawer behind the counter, she rummaged through it and pulled out a plastic-wrapped item.
“This is a brand-new product. Please confirm that it hasn’t been opened.”
Perhaps it was part of the store’s procedure, because after showing him that it was new, the employee began wrapping the gift.
The lid of the box closed, and a neat ribbon was tied around it.
“It looks like you’re preparing a Christmas gift.”
“Ah… yes.”
