While walking home in a daze, it seemed like several people were trying to talk to Yeonwoo. Then he remembered that he wasn’t wearing his hat. The hat he always wore during his commute and work was currently drying along with his blanket.
Eventually, he was caught midway. The man who suddenly spoke to him was quite persistent. If he had known this would happen, he would have worn his hat even if it wasn’t completely dry.
After barely shaking off the man, Yeonwoo found himself running. Arriving near his home while panting and out of breath, he needlessly looked around the area. But the person who had come to deliver the item would already be gone. Besides, it wasn’t Ho Munbeom himself.
“Haah…”
His legs trembled as he climbed the stairs, even though he hadn’t run that much. Wiping away the sweat streaming down his face, he hurriedly quickened his pace. Upon arriving at his front door, he found a black shopping bag placed there.
Since he had already heard about this from Secretary Kang, he picked up the shopping bag without hesitation and went inside. Placing the shopping bag on the dining table, Yeonwoo bit his lower lip.
What did he want to give him?
As he opened the shopping bag with a hardened expression, Yeonwoo’s eyes trembled slightly. Inside the shopping bag were a beautifully wrapped box and two round medicine containers.
He immediately recognized what they were because he had seen them before. When he met Munbeom after being hit by Seongho who had suddenly visited, the bruise on his cheek hadn’t faded, and this was the medicine that Munbeom had personally applied to him at that time.
On the way back, Munbeom had deliberately given him an extra one, telling him to apply it well, but Yeonwoo, reluctant to use up what Munbeom had given him, used it only a few times before putting it in the refrigerator. He thought it probably wouldn’t keep well at room temperature.
“…If I had known I’d get more like this, I would have just used it all up.”
But even if he had known more medicine would come, he wouldn’t have been able to use it all. And these newly received ones would also likely be preciously kept rather than properly used. Because he needed something small to remember Munbeom by when the day came that he could no longer meet him.
Yeonwoo recalled Munbeom who had last seen him off.
The atmosphere, which had seemed fine even during their meal, changed the moment he broke the dish. Although he thought they could spend a little more time together after finishing the meal, Munbeom suddenly said he had something come up, and his expression had hardened.
Since he was originally a busy person, it was possible for him to suddenly have an appointment or work. But at that time, it felt a bit different. His attitude and expression toward him had clearly changed. And because of that change, he thought it might become difficult to meet that person.
“…”
Yeonwoo held and fidgeted with the round medicine container he had taken out of the shopping bag.
It had been sudden from the very beginning. So it wouldn’t be strange if it ended like this. They were never meant to cross paths to begin with. Even if it was disguised as coincidence, he should be grateful that he had met the man a few times—a man with whom the possibility of meeting, let alone brushing sleeves, was close to zero in his lifetime. He should be satisfied with that and not be greedy for more.
Thinking that far, Yeonwoo soon laughed dejectedly.
“…Liar.”
The words he had told himself many times about not being greedy were, in fact, showing his true feelings well. Perhaps he had been greedy from the moment he had mixed bodies with that man. Chairman Ho Jaejung, who had seen through this, had suddenly called him out to reveal his reality. He had shown him how rock-bottom he was compared to Ho Munbeom. Kindly so.
Yes, he was truly a kind person.
When the day came that he could no longer meet Munbeom, the chairman had kindly prepared him by telling him various things so that he wouldn’t be thrown to the bottom empty-handed. He had let him know in advance how painful and difficult his reality was, so that when he later realized it, he wouldn’t be too shocked.
The new things he had learned were things that Yeonwoo couldn’t solve anyway. But there was a difference between knowing nothing and knowing something. He no longer needed to grovel and endure those people like Lee Jonghoon. At the very least, he shouldn’t let them touch his face anymore. If a bruise were to form, he would have to use this precious medicine.
Yes, to avoid wasting the medicine, he should avoid getting hit from now on.
Having composed himself, Yeonwoo took out the box that had been placed at the bottom of the shopping bag. It wasn’t light. Wondering what it could be, Yeonwoo carefully unwrapped it, trying not to damage the wrapping paper. As he finally opened the luxurious black box that was revealed, chocolates appeared inside.
“…”
Why? The moment he saw the chocolates, he suddenly felt like he might cry. Suppressing his tears forcefully, Yeonwoo took one from the edge and put it in his mouth. The soft, gentle sweetness lingered in his mouth for a long time.
It was so delicious that it would be a shame to simply describe it as tasty.
Even after finishing it, Yeonwoo closed his eyes, feeling the sweetness that still remained in his mouth. He wanted to be intoxicated by this comfort, erasing his complicated thoughts even for a moment. But as if to disturb that, his phone screen suddenly began to light up. The number that appeared on the screen was one he had never seen before.
***
It was the first time he had gone out alone on a Saturday evening.
In his previous home, he had to stay indoors once the sun set. Perhaps because it had become a habit, even after coming to Seoul, he rarely went out during late hours unless it was for his part-time job. That’s probably why he hadn’t known until now that Seoul was such a bright and noisy place.
Upon arriving at the entrance of the club, his destination, Yeonwoo took out his phone.
The day before, he had received a call from Seongho. He had some matters to settle with Seongho anyway. Regarding that matter, Seongho should have had nothing to say even with ten mouths, but as expected, his tongue was long.
‘Hey, hyung was busy so I’m calling late, okay? You know why I called, right? No need for long talk, just come to where I am by 9 tomorrow. I’ll send you the address by text, and if you’re late or tell Dad, you know what’ll happen. I’ll burn that thing right away.’
Yeonwoo stood there for a long time holding his phone that had been hung up before he could say anything.
A thief acting so righteously.
Well, that was just like Seongho, Yeonwoo thought as he called the number he had received yesterday. Seongho, who finally answered on the third try, immediately became irritable. Blood doesn’t lie, it seemed.
[Hey! If you’ve arrived, just come in! I was having a good time…]
Ignoring the noisy chatter that followed, Yeonwoo walked over to the club guard who had been glancing at him. The guard then pointed at the hat Yeonwoo was wearing with his chin.
“You need to take off your hat to enter.”
“I’m just meeting someone I know and leaving right away.”
“Still, you have to take off your hat.”
Being a club doorman meant dealing with all kinds of strange people. What Yeonwoo said was something he heard several times a day. He was thinking of telling him to get lost if he kept refusing, but Yeonwoo slightly lifted his hat to show his face.
Seeing Yeonwoo’s face under the entrance light, the guard blinked quickly. Then he immediately stepped aside and bowed.
“Where is your party? Is it a room? Do you know which number?”
“…Lee Seongho.”
At the name Yeonwoo tentatively dropped, the guard immediately made a short sound, “Ah.”
“I know where that is. Follow me.”
The guard, whose attitude had completely changed, leaned his head toward Yeonwoo and asked in a gentle manner.
“You have a face that’s hard to forget, but is this your first time here? Looking at you, you seem to have just become an adult. You’re not a minor, are you? Of course, for a guest like you, I could arrange something, but I’d need to know in advance, right?”
“…No, I’m not.”
“That’s good for us. If you don’t like hanging out with your party, just tell me. I know a lot of well-mannered guys who know how to have fun. I also know many big brothers who train celebrities. If you become friends with me, you can have fun at any club around here. Hm? Are you listening to what I’m saying?”
Unlike the quiet outside of the building, the sound of music began to be heard loudly from somewhere as they passed through several doors. It seemed like the rooms were in the basement, and the upper floor was expanded to accommodate many people gathering to have fun.
Feeling tense in the unfamiliar place, Yeonwoo just nodded, barely listening to the guard’s words. Then the guard, who had been staring at Yeonwoo strangely, lowered his voice and asked, “By the way…”
“What kind of relationship do you have with Lee Seongho? I don’t usually say this, but I’m a bit worried. That type tends to have messy fun here… Don’t tell Seongho I said this, okay? Apart from his messy behavior, he tips well.”
“…”
“With a face like yours, you could be welcomed anywhere, so I’m wondering if you really need to hang out with Seongho. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”
He seemed to have sensed that Yeonwoo was unfamiliar with this kind of place. To the words that were spoken as if coaxing a child, Yeonwoo just nodded again. The guard, who seemed like he wanted to say something more, turned his head forward.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
