A stretch of silence passed. The expression on Won-hyeok’s face, which had been focused on Han-gyeom’s injured hand, turned cold.
“What… do you mean by that?”
“Ah! S-sorry. Whether you come is up to you, sunbae… just please pretend you didn’t hear that.”
Han-gyeom fumbled the words in apparent panic and pulled his hand free from Won-hyeok’s grasp. Won-hyeok looked at the hand that had suddenly been taken away, then tried to speak to Han-gyeom again, but unfortunately orders started pouring in right after that.
All Won-hyeok could do was look at Han-gyeom with a faint sense of unease.
***
These days, Kang Han-gyeom was acting strange. He had done plenty of strange or embarrassingly surprising things even before, but lately he was strange in a different way.
“Han-gyeom, are you listening to me?”
“Huh? Ah… what did you say?”
It wasn’t just once or twice that he’d been mentally absent in the middle of a conversation. If someone asked whether he was listening after he’d zoned out, only then would he startle and awkwardly laugh it off.
It was the same on their dates. He used to beam brightly and say anywhere was fine, no matter where they went, but these days, even when they ate something delicious or went somewhere nice, he didn’t smile much. He looked like someone whose mind was somewhere else. So Won-hyeok asked whether something had happened.
“Huh? No, it’s nothing. Nothing’s wrong with me.”
That was all Han-gyeom would say, smiling as he glossed it over. Kang Han-gyeom was bad at lying. It was probably just how he was by nature. So it was easy enough to see through his claim that nothing was wrong.
And there was something else bothering him too. Those words telling him not to come to the place where he worked part-time kept ringing in his ears. Why? Why had he said not to come? He was the one who had wagged his tail like a puppy greeting its owner every single time Won-hyeok came, so why now?
It was strange. Strange, and unsettling. The fact that Han-gyeom wasn’t like he used to be made his heart wildly anxious. Why? There had to be some reason, some trigger.
[Anyone can tell his feelings are gone.]
The moment Won-hyeok entered the house, the sound from the TV lodged itself right in his ear. Do In-seok, who had come over to the house yet again without ever seeming to get tired of it, was sitting comfortably on the living room sofa, picking at fruit.
Some variety show about relationship counseling or something was playing on the screen. Viewers sent in stories, and the panelists read them and gave advice.
[His behavior changed? What else could that mean?]
At that moment, In-seok, looking bored, picked up the remote. He stretched it out as if he was about to change the channel.
“Touch that channel and I’ll kill you.”
“Ah, fuck… you scared the shit out of me.”
Apparently he hadn’t even noticed Won-hyeok come in, because In-seok nearly launched himself off the sofa in a full-blown panic. He’d already been waiting for Do Won-hyeok because last time he hadn’t gotten to ask about the gift, and now he started awkwardly clearing his throat and watching Won-hyeok’s mood.
[If someone’s behavior changes, that means their feelings changed too.]
“Fuck, what a load of shit from someone who doesn’t know a damn thing.”
As Won-hyeok swore at the innocent panelist on the screen, In-seok stared at him like he was out of his mind. His face looked so vicious that if that panelist had been standing in front of him, he definitely would’ve taken a swing.
“What do you think?”
“About what?”
Instead of answering, Won-hyeok pointed at the screen. The panelist who had gotten unfairly cursed out by Won-hyeok was still earnestly laying out his opinion.
“Well… if your feelings change, of course your behavior changes too.”
In-seok answered indifferently, and suddenly Won-hyeok reached out and grabbed him by the collar.
“Hey, you fucking psycho!”
“I’m saying that’s impossible. Han-gyeom’s feelings are gone? Fuck, what kind of bullshit is that….”
Why was Han-gyeom coming up here? Even with his collar being grabbed, In-seok’s brain worked furiously. Come to think of it, since when did Do Won-hyeok care about relationship shows like this? The old him probably would’ve cursed out both the person who sent in the story and the whole concept of the show, saying he couldn’t understand why anyone would publicly air their relationship problems on TV.
“Did something happen with Han-gyeom?”
In-seok squeezed his eyes shut and threw it out there. If he guessed wrong, he was definitely going to get hit a few times; if he was right, he’d live. He shut his eyes tightly without realizing it, but strangely enough, the pressure around his neck disappeared. He carefully opened one eye and saw Won-hyeok let go of his collar and drop heavily onto the sofa.
The murderous look on his face, like he was about to beat someone half to death, had also gone back to normal.
“Have you been going to that café lately?”
“Huh? Not often, just once in a while, really? Hae-jun hyung is fully back now, so there’s no reason for me to go every time anymore.”
But then Won-hyeok stared at In-seok. Narrowing his eyes as if deep in thought, he looked at him so intently it felt like he was boring a hole straight through him, and In-seok had no choice but to naturally put a bit of distance between them. He really wanted to avoid getting grabbed by the collar again.
“Hey. Run an errand for me.”
“An errand?”
“Go to that café. Go and help Han-gyeom out with work a little, and check how he’s doing.”
“Why? What’s going on?”
“He’s been kind of… strange. He’s not like before. Even when I ask, he says nothing’s wrong, but maybe he’d tell someone else. So I’m telling you to ask him.”
Won-hyeok’s voice sank so low it seemed to stick to the floor. In-seok’s mind immediately began turning. First he got angry watching a relationship show, then he got mad talking about Han-gyeom’s feelings, and now he was telling him to sound Han-gyeom out.
“…Did Han-gyeom say he’s fallen out of love with you?”
“You want to smell incense from behind a folding screen that badly?”
At Won-hyeok’s sharp glare, In-seok flinched on instinct.
“No, I mean, is there nothing you can think of? If Han-gyeom’s acting strange, there has to be a reason. He wouldn’t be like that for no reason.”
“There’s nothing.”
That was the part driving him the craziest. Kang Han-gyeom was usually so transparent that you could pretty much tell what he was thinking inside, but these days Won-hyeok couldn’t figure out a single thing about what was going on in that boy’s head, and it was driving him up the wall. If he at least knew why Han-gyeom’s attitude had suddenly changed, he could do something about it—but he didn’t even know that, so he couldn’t lay a finger on the problem.
What the hell was it? Had Han-gyeom somehow remembered the time he’d revealed his true nature? The way he’d beaten someone without hesitation in the alley by the chicken place after the club dinner? Or if not that, was he regretting now that he’d gone all the way with him during rut?
“Fuck, it’s not like I can just lock him up.”
“Hey, fine. I’ll ask him. I’ll look into it.”
In-seok had originally come because Han-gyeom had asked him to subtly find out what Won-hyeok might want for his birthday, but instead of learning anything about Won-hyeok’s tastes, he’d somehow been saddled with yet another assignment. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d gotten wedged right in the middle of an annoyingly troublesome couple.
After In-seok came by, Won-hyeok cut down on going to the café. Han-gyeom wouldn’t have told him not to come for no reason.
Since the boy refused to show what he was thinking no matter what, Won-hyeok at least didn’t want to do something Han-gyeom would dislike. But that didn’t mean he was going to stop checking on him.
Right now, Won-hyeok was parked in front of Café Onwol in one of the less flashy cars from his parents’ garage. He had parked roughly where he could see inside well enough.
He rolled down the window and looked into the café. Right then, Han-gyeom came into view, cleaning the shop. He wanted to go in immediately, look at that cute face, and hear his voice. He wanted to see with his own eyes whether the wound had gotten better.
They had still been contacting each other regularly even on days they didn’t meet, but that alone didn’t ease anything. Just then, someone approached near the window.
“Why are you sitting out here like that instead of coming inside?”
It was Cha Hae-jun, the café owner. The moment he blocked the view and Han-gyeom disappeared from sight, Won-hyeok frowned instinctively. Hae-jun was holding a heavy white garbage bag in one hand, probably having come out to throw it away.
“…Ah, I just happened to be passing by and stopped. It’s fine.”
But he quickly smoothed his expression back out. Hae-jun, having caught that swift change, looked at him in silence for a moment.
“So it’s really just like In-seok said.”
“……”
“Isn’t it exhausting, living like that while hiding your real personality?”
At those words, the smile vanished completely from Won-hyeok’s face. No wonder something had felt oddly off. Even last time, when Han-gyeom had hurt his hand and the two of them ended up talking alone, this owner had looked at him with suspicious eyes.
As if he were probing him.
It had annoyed him and felt like a hassle, so he’d deliberately acted even nicer just to make a point. So he had done that because he knew something.
“You must be pretty close with that bastard, huh? Close enough to have conversations like that?”
“Calling your cousin a bastard is a bit harsh. In-seok did tell me some things, but I’ve also seen and heard quite a lot myself.”
Come to think of it, hadn’t he been Do In-seok’s middle and high school tutor? Back when they were students, the two families had interacted far more than they did now, so they must have crossed paths a few times. Besides, back then Won-hyeok hadn’t been nearly as skilled as he was now at hiding his personality.
“Are you planning to come in?”
“Why? Do you, as the owner, pick and choose your customers?”
“Yes. In-seok is here right now, actually. If you come in, Won-hyeok-ssi, In-seok will get stressed, and I don’t like that. Don’t bully him.”
“Bullshit.”
Won-hyeok shot back shortly, but Hae-jun didn’t erase his smile, as if he had no intention of backing down either.
And then Han-gyeom, who was inside the shop, happened to witness the two of them standing face to face and talking.
