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Just as he was about to protest, bzzt. His phone rang.
> [Uncle: Is my baby awake? You said you’d come today, when are you heading out.]
He’d mentioned coming yesterday, so his uncle seemed to be gently urging him now. As if shaking off the suddenly heavy atmosphere, Han Jaekyung casually walked past Moon Yeonu and left the room.
“So noisy. I really can’t today. I have prior plans. You should hurry up and leave too.”
“Wow, you really know how to make someone feel bad. Han Jaekyung, how can you do this?”
Despite grumbling, Yeonu followed obediently. The shoulders that always stood proudly tall seemed unusually drooped, as if deflated, which bothered Jaekyung somewhat. While tapping his phone screen to call a taxi at the entrance, Jaekyung finally let out a slight remark with a voice mixed with a sigh.
“Moon Yeonu. Can you just shut up and drive?”
“Huh? Oh. Absolutely, absolutely yes.”
“I’ll give you the address, so just drive.”
His uncle had always wondered if Jaekyung had any friends besides “Young Master Yeonhu,” curious about his only nephew’s social life… He would surely like Moon Yeonu, who shamelessly called himself a friend despite showing up after ten years.
It didn’t seem so bad to supplement his pathetically empty human relationships once Jang Yeonhu was removed from the equation.
“Well… if you have time, you can drive me back too.”
Jaekyung snorted and left through the front door first. The sneakers he wore for once felt light as if they might fly away. Unlike yesterday’s gloomy feeling.
“Jaekyung, hey! Let’s go together!”
The sound of Yeonu’s dress shoes hurriedly following behind was noisy. The weekend had only just begun.
* * *
“I’m sorry, lunch service is over… Jaekyung!”
“Ugh, I can’t breathe, wait, Uncle, Uncle!”
“Why has it been so long? And why have you lost so much weight when I told you to eat properly?”
Ah, I shouldn’t have brought him. Unlike Jaekyung’s slender frame, his uncle had a sturdy build with visibly firm muscles, and as he grabbed and shook Jaekyung, Jaekyung immediately regretted bringing Moon Yeonu.
His uncle’s rough touch examined his thin cheeks and slim wrists. Maybe it was his imagination, but he could swear he heard suppressed laughter from behind, making him instinctively on edge.
“Uncle, wait. I didn’t come alone today. I brought a friend, let go of me.”
“What…! Jaekyung brought a friend? Other than Young Master Yeonhu?”
“Yeah. Someone besides Jang Yeonhu.”
It must be surprising since his nephew, who had always acted as if he didn’t have a single acquaintance even if desperately needed, had brought a friend for the first time after turning thirty. His uncle’s narrow, single-lidded eyes widened impressively. Yeonu stepped forward tactfully, bowed his head politely and said, “Hello, nice to meet you. I’m Moon Yeonu.”
“Moon… Yeonhu?”
As expected. The pronunciations were difficult to distinguish by just hearing them.
His uncle seemed suspicious that Jaekyung had brought someone with the same name as Jang Yeonhu, and instead of accepting the greeting, he just mumbled quietly, “Yeonhu… Moon Yeonhu?”
“No, Uncle. Not Yeonhu but Yeonu. The ‘u’ like in ‘udon’!”
“Ah! Aah, I’m sorry. I was just surprised because the name is so similar to Jaekyung’s other friend.”
“It’s okay. Many people got confused since high school.”
“Were you and Jaekyung high school classmates?”
“Yes. Please speak comfortably.”
“No, I won’t. Wow, this is amazing. So Jaekyung did have other friends when he was in school…”
His uncle’s trembling voice sounded as if he was truly moved. He didn’t seem to be this way before, but Jaekyung felt increasingly embarrassed by his uncle’s sentimental reactions that seemed to grow more childish by the day.
“Let’s not stand here! Come in quickly.”
His uncle embraced Yeonu’s shoulder and hurriedly went inside the shop. Since lunch service was already over, there were no other customers in the shop.
“Our late sleeper probably just woke up anyway.”
“Uncle.”
“What, am I wrong? How about you, Yeonu? Have you eaten lunch? Wait just a moment. I’ll make you something delicious.”
His uncle, who was as cheerful as anyone, and Moon Yeonu, who was more extroverted than Jaekyung, seemed to hit it off well. Throughout the late lunch and helping with the dinner service, they kept pulling up all sorts of trivial conversations. Jaekyung’s ears were burning to the point of being unbearable. It was even more so because the only common topic of conversation between these two people who had just met today was about Han Jaekyung.
“Oh, it’s been a while, handsome boy. Are you here to help your uncle?”
“Yes…”
Regular customers recognized Han Jaekyung, who hadn’t been around for a while, and often approached him with friendly greetings. The spicy smell of soju mixed with the sizzling sound of frying oil.
Moving frantically and chatting with the customers in the shop, with his uncle, and also… with Moon Yeonu. As they talked about trivial topics, giggling and laughing, the unrest in his heart had miraculously subsided. He had definitely made the right choice to come here instead of staying at home.
“Your uncle has a really nice personality.”
They were taking a breather and washing the accumulated dishes after handling a wave of dinner customers. Moon Yeonu, who had just finished clearing the tables, stood right next to Jaekyung and whispered secretively as if sharing a big secret.
“Your uncle.” It was a title that made him feel good just hearing it.
It wasn’t a casual “Mr. Song” as if addressing someone beneath him, but a respectful title that made Jaekyung’s shoulders unconsciously perk up with pride. Jaekyung nodded with satisfaction and curled the corners of his mouth.
Tall height, broad shoulders, firm muscles, and tanned skin. Even though they didn’t look much alike, his uncle had always been Jaekyung’s pride. While to some, he might have been just a driver running errands for their grandfather or father, to Jaekyung, he was always a Superman far cooler and more impressive than any movie actor.
‘Are you Jaekyung? I’m sorry I’m late. I’m… I’m your uncle. I’m really sorry. Your uncle came too late.’
From that moment when he first met his uncle who had come to take him from that stuffy orphanage director’s office, which was sweltering even in midsummer because they rarely turned on the air conditioning, there had never been a single moment when that wasn’t true.
“You think he just has a nice personality? My uncle is also great at sports. Plus he’s handsome, good at cooking, has a strong character…”
Han Jaekyung, who immediately became excited and chattered about his uncle, didn’t look like the accomplished lawyer in his thirties but more like a twelve-year-old kid on summer vacation. Moon Yeonu just nodded his head and quietly listened to useless information about a middle-aged man he wouldn’t have cared about if not for Han Jaekyung.
This might be the first time seeing such a bright and innocent side of Han Jaekyung. He wanted to keep this image in his eyes for as long as possible.
But Yeonu’s wish couldn’t last long. The sudden vibration of a cell phone quickly returned Jaekyung to his usual self.
With rubber gloves on, Jaekyung’s hands weren’t free, so he casually mentioned that his phone was in his back pocket and asked Yeonu to take it out for him. While he was happy they had become this close, Moon Yeonu felt strange when he clearly realized that Jaekyung didn’t have even a speck of tension toward him.
The title of “boyfriend” he had held since high school was merely a facade, and since he hadn’t been willing to risk an unwinnable battle, he had never actually confessed until now. To Han Jaekyung, Moon Yeonu was at best a classmate he’d met after a long time, an annoyingly persistent friend… just about that level of position.
“What are you doing? Take it out already.”
“Okay, just a second.”
At the urging voice, Moon Yeonu scattered all the thoughts cluttering his mind. Meanwhile, the vibration remarkably continued without stopping. He quickly pulled the mobile phone from the back pocket of the jeans. The caller was Choi Eunseong.
“…It’s Choi Eunseong.”
“Ah. I was wondering if he’d call. He’s starting at our office from Monday.”
“Choi Eunseong? Why?”
“You don’t need to know. Just answer the call, put it on speaker.”
The way Jaekyung was suddenly insisting on cutting ties with Jang Yeonhu, and the fact that Choi Eunseong, who was properly interning, would be going to Jaekyung’s office… It was clear that some event had occurred in the relationship between the three, but he couldn’t gauge what kind of incident it was. For now, it would be better to stick to Jaekyung as a replacement for Yeonhu and gain reflected benefits rather than charging blindly ahead… What on earth was going on? Moon Yeonu narrowed his eyes as he listened to Choi Eunseong’s voice coming through the speakerphone.
-Attorney Han, hello.
“…Yes.”
-Um, I’m late with my greeting… I heard from Yeonhu hyung. Thank you for your consideration. I think I misunderstood you a bit.
At the other party’s confession that they seemed to have misunderstood him, Han Jaekyung could only chew on his lips without saying anything. The impulse to ask what kind of misunderstanding it was, and if the answer was that he thought Jaekyung liked Jang Yeonhu, to retort that it wasn’t a misunderstanding at all, flared up like a lighter flame. But that was no longer the path Han Jaekyung had chosen.
-…Attorney Han? Are you listening?
Finding the quiet on the other end of the phone strange, Eunseong asked a few more times.
“I’m listening. I’m outside right now… so it’s difficult to talk. Ask Jang Yeonhu about the office since he knows. Come by 10 AM on Monday.”
-Thank you. Actually, even after firmly telling hyung, I was at a loss for what to do immediately. It’s almost vacation season so it’s hard to find part-time jobs—
“That’s enough. I didn’t do this to hear thank-yous from you.”
-Yes… I was too noisy this time too. Then I’ll see you on Monday. Thank you!
As the call continued, Jaekyung’s face grew strangely pale. By the time Choi Eunseong ended the call after his thanks, Jaekyung looked as pale as a mannequin in a shop window. Successfully suppressing the urge to kiss the trembling eyelashes, Moon Yeonu took off the tacky pink rubber gloves Jaekyung was wearing and spoke.
“There’s not much dishwashing left. You’ve been working so much that you probably haven’t talked much with your uncle. Go out and chat a bit. I’ll finish the rest.”
When he pushed Jaekyung’s back firmly, Jaekyung walked into the main area of the shop without resistance, like someone in a daze. Once the shop closed, Yeonu planned to tempt him to have a drink.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
