Bombshell Statement (2)
Could he forget it without regret? Having broken trust over the issue he hated most, Tae Young-won might bring someone else home right away. Perhaps their relationship could end as suddenly as it had begun. After all, Mo Yeon had been planning to distance himself anyway, so he had partially wished for this.
However, the unfamiliar car that soon appeared simply passed by the officetel and drove away. Mo Yeon muttered to himself, finally realizing what he had just been like.
“…Wow, I was really pathetic just now.”
Partially wishing? That was nonsense. In truth, his heart had dropped at the thought of actually witnessing such a scene.
So this is what people become. Despite thinking he’d always kept their eventual separation in mind, facing it head-on revealed such intense pettiness that he couldn’t adjust to it at all.
Mo Yeon suddenly glared at the window.
Somehow feeling that even invisible things might be mocking him, he closed the curtains. He sniffled and pressed his arm against his eyes to wipe away the tears that still hung there.
He had thought that if only he couldn’t see ghosts anymore, he would have no worries.
But now, even without seeing ghosts, there wasn’t a day when his tears dried up. Despite having lived alone all his life, now being alone felt unbearably lonely. This was all because of someone, of course.
Mo Yeon finally leaned his forehead against the curtain-covered window.
Even though he should have stayed within boundaries, Tae Young-won had treated him too well.
At first, Mo Yeon had thought this was how other people normally interacted. Then he thought this was just how Tae Young-won treated people close to him.
And now, he didn’t want to delude himself into thinking he had become someone special.
Having no immunity to human warmth, he had surrendered his heart too quickly. That’s why returning to his proper place now was so painful. Despite struggling hard not to get hurt, nothing had gone well. Unrequited love without pain simply didn’t exist in this world.
It was then, as he was evening out his breathing with his eyes closed.
*Ding-dong.*
Near midnight, the living room was as silent as the darkness filling the house. The doorbell that had suddenly rung briefly was all the more jarring. Instead of moving, Mo Yeon held his breath for a moment.
“…!”
*Ding-dong.* After blinking his eyes, he heard the same sound again. Only then did Mo Yeon move.
Carefully checking the intercom, he saw a familiar face. He approached the door but somehow couldn’t open it right away.
“It’s me.”
A familiar voice was heard. Mo Yeon carefully opened the door. When their eyes met, Tae Young-won’s eyes widened slightly, and then he frowned.
“Have you been crying?”
“…”
“I didn’t expect that.”
Mo Yeon remained silent, staring at Tae Young-won’s chest. He was wearing a black suit. Looking down, Tae Young-won smiled awkwardly.
“I’ve been busy for the past few days. I was at a funeral. You weren’t answering your phone.”
“…”
Phone. Come to think of it, Mo Yeon didn’t have his phone right now. He needed to go find it, but…
After briefly glancing at his eyes, Mo Yeon’s gaze was drawn back to his chest as if pulled by a magnet. Actually, what had caught Mo Yeon’s attention wasn’t his attire.
“I couldn’t reach you, was busy all day, and then when I checked the date… I realized tomorrow is your birthday. How could I just let that pass?”
He raised his wrist to check his watch. His lips curved upward, and their eyes met again.
“It’s past midnight now.”
“…”
“Happy birthday, Mo Yeon.”
What he was holding was a lush yellow bouquet and a shopping bag from the watch brand he had mentioned liking.
“I thought about it again, and I think I overreacted back then.”
“…”
“As you said, nothing really happened, and if you had no intention of doing anything, I was just making assumptions. You’re right that I have no business interfering with your personal life.”
Mo Yeon hadn’t known his birthday was approaching. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had celebrated his birthday.
“I said we should reconsider, but I still want to stay together. Keep celebrating your birthday, going to school together, just like now.”
“…”
“Honestly, I’ve never met anyone like you, so I think I failed to maintain boundaries this time.”
Mo Yeon slowly exhaled the breath he had been holding. Even as he carefully regulated his breathing, his chest still felt constricted. His reddened eyes remained fixed on the flowers and gift in Tae Young-won’s hands.
Finally, Mo Yeon muttered with a sigh.
“You shouldn’t have brought these things…”
Had he ever received such things before? Had anyone ever prepared something for him before midnight? Had there ever been someone who understood him despite his constant disappointments and disliked behaviors?
Instead of bringing someone else in his car as Mo Yeon had irresponsibly hoped would help him detach emotionally, Tae Young-won had come with a bouquet of flowers. Along with an apology for his own shortcomings.
It was really too much.
“So now can I share cigarettes and joke around with other people in front of that bar, and then go back inside?”
“Why would you say that?”
“You said you failed to maintain boundaries. So will you understand now?”
“If that’s really what you want to do, I’ll have to understand.”
At that, Mo Yeon couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.
Mo Yeon knew better than anyone how much Tae Young-won disliked this issue. Tae Young-won was someone who was wary of even strangers who had no interest in him. Though he acted like he was joking, honestly, it never seemed 100% like a joke.
But now Tae Young-won was saying he would give that up. It was the first time since they’d known each other that he had volunteered a sacrifice.
Why? Why was he doing this? Why go this far when it wasn’t like him?
In a way, Mo Yeon felt himself falling into temptation again.
What if they tried once more? Just one more time. What if they pretended a little longer and maintained this life…
Then his eyes fell on the flowers. Mo Yeon’s expression gradually distorted.
“…How can you bring these things to deceive me again?”
One of the two conditions he had set remained.
Mo Yeon didn’t want to be confused anymore. The moment Tae Young-won offered to sacrifice, Mo Yeon felt he could no longer deceive him.
Having made his decision, Mo Yeon’s face relaxed. He opened his mouth and spoke.
“I like you.”
His usually cold face spoke in a flat voice.
“I actually like you, sunbae.”
“…What?”
Tae Young-won asked blankly, frozen like a stone.
“I wished it wasn’t true, but I really like you. I’ve tried hard to move on as you said, but I don’t think I can.”
Silence followed. For Mo Yeon, that time felt like an eternity at first, but gradually he let it pass without much thought.
Tae Young-won remained motionless for so long that Mo Yeon waved his hand in the air. Due to the lack of movement, the entrance light had turned off.
Even when the light came back on, Tae Young-won remained frozen. In his hands were the beautiful bouquet and gift. Anyone else seeing him would think he was someone who had just been rejected while trying to confess. Of course, the reality was the opposite.
If someone could press a pause button in his mind, this is probably what it would look like.
Mo Yeon’s confession must have been like a bomb dropping on him. Though expected, his reaction showed even more shock than anticipated. Mo Yeon smiled bitterly.
“Ah…”
He finally began to speak. Mo Yeon silently waited for the death sentence that would fall on him.
“I’ve been having headaches a lot lately. I thought you were just unusual, but I kept finding your behavior more and more incomprehensible. But… if that’s the case, it makes more sense.”
“…”
“Ah… what is this feeling?”
From what Mo Yeon had heard, a partner’s confession of love was essentially equivalent to a breakup for Tae Young-won.
Mo Yeon was prepared for him to take back the gifts he’d brought, to be utterly disgusted. He was ready to hear complaints about why things always ended this way, and although it might hurt a little, he was willing to listen. That was the level of preparation he had made before making this confession.
“…”
But Tae Young-won was smiling. Mo Yeon pondered what that smile meant.
A smile of relief.
“Sorry. I feel relieved without even realizing it…”
Yes, that was a smile of relief. Though Mo Yeon stared at him blankly, he still couldn’t believe his eyes. At the same time, Tae Young-won took both of Mo Yeon’s hands and spoke.
“I didn’t expect this, but honestly, it even makes me feel good. It’s really strange.”
He thought he had prepared for everything. He was ready to silently accept it if Tae Young-won suddenly turned cold, as if becoming a different person.
“What kind of crazy bastard is this?”
But he had never prepared for this irritating response.
