42.
#Alcohol Tolerance
“Are you really a senior from the broadcasting club?”
Ui-hyeon asked in surprise, pointing at Choi Yu-na.
“What a coincidence,” Dawoon said, dismissively summing it up. He shook his head, not wanting to say more, and Choi Yu-na also laughed it off lightly.
“I didn’t know we were in the same department,” Yu-na said, surprised to hear that Ui-hyeon was in the Business Administration department.
“Yeah, it’s a coincidence for me too,” Ui-hyeon replied good-naturedly. Although they didn’t have any overlapping classes due to being in different years, he said it was nice just to be in the same department.
“You didn’t come to the orientation, right? I don’t think I saw you at the recent department gathering either,” Ui-hyeon asked, saying he hadn’t seen her before.
“I’ve been busy with the broadcasting club,” she replied, explaining that she mainly attended broadcasting club events. Ui-hyeon expressed regret, saying he should have passed the broadcasting club test too.
“You two seem close,” Yu-na observed.
“We’ve been friends since middle school,” Ui-hyeon explained.
“Wow,” Yu-na exclaimed genuinely, glancing at Dawoon’s face. Dawoon had been quietly drinking while listening to their conversation. He had become even more silent since she joined them. He was already struggling with how to discuss last night’s events, and with Choi Yu-na joining them, he had completely clammed up.
“Is the broadcasting club tough?” Ui-hyeon asked.
Yu-na could only laugh, unable to deny it outright.
“Seems like it. Look at his worn-out face,” Ui-hyeon said, gesturing towards Dawoon with his chin. Dawoon wondered why he was suddenly being singled out. Yu-na’s gaze naturally turned to Dawoon’s face. Although the broadcasting club seniors were being strict, Dawoon hadn’t been specifically scolded, so she didn’t seem to fully agree with Ui-hyeon’s assessment.
“Did something happen in the department?” Yu-na asked Dawoon. Dawoon weakly smiled and shook his head.
“He’s exaggerating,” Dawoon replied, indicating nothing had happened.
Ui-hyeon frowned at this response. “What do you mean exaggerating? You called me out to drink first when nothing happened?”
Ui-hyeon knew Dawoon well enough. While he wasn’t wrong, Dawoon didn’t want to admit it in front of Choi Yu-na and gave him a slight glare.
“See that? He just glared at me. With that innocent-looking face!” Ui-hyeon exaggerated, seeking Yu-na’s agreement. It seemed he quite liked Yu-na. Dawoon shook his head, indicating he was too tired to say more, and refilled his empty glass with alcohol.
“You seem to be drinking too fast,” Yu-na said, taking the beer bottle from Dawoon’s hand, but it was already empty.
“Do you know your alcohol tolerance?” she asked, worried since he was a freshman.
“Yeah, do you know your limit?” Ui-hyeon also belatedly expressed concern, trying to check Dawoon’s alcohol tolerance. Dawoon hadn’t attended the freshman orientation or any department gatherings afterwards.
“Hey, have you even drunk before?” By this point, Ui-hyeon was really worried. Several empty beer bottles had already piled up on the table. Although Dawoon still seemed fine, and it was hard to imagine someone passing out from beer, considering it might be his ‘first time’, anything could happen.
“At a family gathering recently,” Dawoon replied.
“Family gathering? Ah…” Ui-hyeon remembered Dawoon had attended his grandfather’s birthday gathering and let out a long sigh before closing his mouth.
“It probably wasn’t a comfortable drinking situation,” Yu-na said softly. Ui-hyeon turned to her in surprise, as if wanting to ask how she knew that. Yu-na just smiled faintly at Ui-hyeon without adding anything more.
“It might not be bad to drink to your heart’s content today,” she said, now encouraging drinking when she had tried to stop him earlier. She opened a new beer bottle and placed it in front of Dawoon.
“Even if you pass out, you have a friend to take you home,” she said, pointing at Ui-hyeon. Dawoon smiled faintly and nodded. Although he couldn’t express all the thoughts swirling in his mind, he felt that Lee Ui-hyeon was definitely a friend he could trust even if he blacked out while drinking in front of him.
“How much have you had?” Ui-hyeon asked.
“Not much,” Dawoon replied. It seemed he had only drunk about two bottles of beer by himself. Realizing it really wasn’t much, Ui-hyeon let out a sigh of relief.
“Drink moderately. I’m not confident I can carry you if you collapse,” Ui-hyeon warned once more, just in case, before naturally turning back to chat with Choi Yu-na. As he listened to their light conversation, Dawoon stared at the glass filled with brown liquid. If he zoned out even a little, Hayun’s face seemed to flicker in his mind. The sensations Hayun had left behind also kept trying to resurface.
I don’t want to think about it. Don’t remember.
The more he tried to push it away, the deeper it seemed to burrow into his mind. He kept drinking, wanting to forget even a little, but the more he drank, the more vividly the memories seemed to materialize before his eyes.
Wasn’t drinking supposed to make you black out? Why can’t I forget?
Would it be better if I just told Ui-hyeon everything? But… it’s weird. No matter how I think about it, it’s not normal.
His thoughts kept going in circles. The circling thoughts made it hard to breathe.
It was all because of Jeong Hayun. Why did he do such a useless thing? But did his brother do the same? Did his brother learn it from someone like that too? If so, it’s somewhat sad…
He couldn’t tell anymore if he resented Hayun or felt sorry for him, imagining he might have gone through the same experience.
“Hey, Jeong Dawoon! Hey, man!”
Ui-hyeon’s voice sounded strangely distant. It sounded muffled, as if hearing it underwater, and then gradually faded away.
“Hey! Wake up!”
In his blurring vision, Dawoon saw Ui-hyeon standing up and approaching him. But before Ui-hyeon’s hand could reach him, everything went black.
Ui-hyeon sighed as he looked at Dawoon, who had collapsed and fallen asleep on the table. He hadn’t expected the guy who seemed fine just moments ago to go down so suddenly.
“He definitely doesn’t have a high alcohol tolerance,” Choi Yu-na said, also looking surprised. Yet, there was a gentle smile on her face as she gazed at Dawoon. Ui-hyeon watched her profile with narrowed eyes. Her gaze remained fixed on Dawoon, not moving. If she were just a senior, she might have found this situation ridiculous, but there was no sign of that at all.
She definitely has feelings for Jeong Dawoon.
Although both Dawoon and Choi Yu-na had denied it, Ui-hyeon was sure. Moreover, Dawoon’s behavior towards her seemed a bit different from usual. On the day he spilled his drink, he had flatly refused and walked away, but today when she asked if she could join them, he had sought Ui-hyeon’s agreement.
Jeong Dawoon isn’t pushing her away. That alone is quite meaningful, isn’t it?
As he was wondering how to get Dawoon home, Dawoon’s phone on the table started vibrating.
“Ah… trouble,” Ui-hyeon grimaced, moistening his dry lips with his tongue as he checked the caller ID. When Choi Yu-na asked what was wrong, he indicated the caller with his eyes.
“His brother?” Yu-na asked.
Ui-hyeon swallowed a groan and picked up the phone, pressing the answer button.
“Hello,” he said.
There was only silence on the other end after that one word.
“It’s me, Ui-hyeon,” he clarified, realizing immediately that the caller knew it wasn’t Dawoon.
[I know.]
Why did such a simple response send chills down his spine? Although they had met a few times, they had never really had a long conversation. Yet, the fact that he recognized Ui-hyeon just by his phone voice was somehow frightening.
[Where’s Dawoon?]
Hayun asked why Ui-hyeon was answering Dawoon’s phone.
“Well…” Ui-hyeon hesitated.
He collapsed while drinking. If I say that, this person won’t kill me, right? Even though I didn’t suggest drinking, and I didn’t force him to drink, why am I so nervous?
[It sounds noisy there.]
Hayun seemed to hear the music and chatter of the bar through the phone.
“We’re at a bar,” Ui-hyeon replied.
[A bar?]
The voice that repeated the word was laced with coldness. Ui-hyeon swallowed hard and looked down at Dawoon, who was slumped over.
Jeong Dawoon. Let’s not drink together anymore in the future.
He regretted not having clearly understood Dawoon’s alcohol tolerance beforehand, but it was too late now.
[Tell me where.]
Ui-hyeon realized that parents who would nag, asking what kind of bar, if they were crazy, and telling them to study instead of wasting time, would be preferable. He learned for the first time that someone who speaks quietly, saying only what’s necessary, could be scarier than someone who scolds.
“I’ll text you the address,” Ui-hyeon replied, moistening his lips with his tongue.
The call ended abruptly without another word. After seeing the call end screen, Ui-hyeon took a deep breath and quickly texted the bar’s name and address to Hayun’s number.
“Is there a problem?” Choi Yu-na, who had been watching, asked.
Ui-hyeon turned to her and smiled awkwardly.
“Senior, I think you should leave soon,” he said.
Not understanding why he was suddenly telling her to leave, she tilted her head in confusion.
“Someone’s coming to pick up Dawoon. His guardian,” Ui-hyeon explained.
“Guardian… you mean his brother?” she asked.
For some reason, she seemed to know various things about Dawoon. It was strange, as Dawoon wouldn’t have told her directly, but now wasn’t the time to question that.
Ui-hyeon remembered Hayun’s eyes when he looked at Na-eun in high school. It was different from concern for a sibling. Although it had seemed strange at the time, what Ui-hyeon had clearly felt was hostility.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
