82.
#A Chance Encounter
Photographer Choi Seon-gyeom approached and stood next to Dawoon. His gaze turned to the large LCD screen on the floor. His expression was quite gentle as he watched the slowly changing images. It seemed as if he was reminiscing about the time when he took those pictures.
“Where is this place?” Dawoon asked.
He turned his head to look at Dawoon. After a brief, peculiar expression, he soon smiled brightly.
“Do you know me?”
Dawoon nodded.
“I was curious, so I bought your autobiography before coming to the photo exhibition. Your picture was in it.”
He made an “Ah” sound as if he understood, then smiled even more deeply.
“I said I didn’t want my face in it, but the publisher insisted it had to be included.”
He seemed a bit embarrassed that his face was known.
“What I want to show are my works, not my face.”
His gaze returned to the large LCD screen on the floor. Looking at his neat profile, Dawoon thought he could understand the publisher’s perspective. His appearance was too handsome to be just labeled as a ‘photographer’. Based on what he saw in the autobiography, he should be in his mid to late 40s, but he looked no older than his late 30s. Even if he didn’t like the attention on his appearance, from the publisher’s standpoint, it would be tempting to market the autobiography with the label of a ‘handsome’ photographer.
“It’s the Bayin Buluke Grassland in Xinjiang,” Choi Seon-gyeom answered Dawoon’s earlier question.
“Xinjiang… is that in China?”
Somehow, the image was very different from the China Dawoon had imagined. It was during his first year of high school, wasn’t it? When Hayun’s business trip coincided with the vacation period, and he had accompanied him to Beijing. Even though it was the same country, Beijing and the place in the video were completely different.
“It’s fascinating,” Dawoon muttered, looking back at the video.
“Maybe it’s because the land is so vast, but it feels like a different world.”
“It has nothing to do with the size,” Choi Seon-gyeom replied.
Dawoon blinked, turning to look at him. Choi gestured with his head towards a frame hanging on the right wall. In the photo, there were several rocky peaks rising up, with sunset-tinted clouds hanging above them. Behind the rocky cliffs, layers of mountains could be seen, and half the sky was covered in blue while the half with clouds was covered in red, making it look more like a real painting than a photograph.
“That’s Maisan in our country,” he said.
Dawoon’s eyes widened at the words “our country.”
“To be precise, it’s the southern rock face of Maisan.”
Although Dawoon couldn’t say he had traveled much domestically, it was still quite different from the common views of Maisan.
“It changes quite a bit with just a slightly different perspective, doesn’t it?” Choi Seon-gyeom asked with a smile. Dawoon nodded as if enchanted.
“It’s the same with other places too. They’re not far from people’s everyday lives, but everyone’s too busy to turn their heads and look.”
His explanation reminded Dawoon once again of the exhibition’s name and the phrase that had appeared in the video.
Far, yet right by your side.
“Somehow… it feels abstract,” Dawoon said.
It wasn’t that the meaning was difficult, but for some reason, it felt abstract to Dawoon. Perhaps it was because even his own daily life right in front of him lacked a sense of reality.
He smiled bitterly, thinking that he couldn’t escape Hayun’s shadow even in a place like this. As he slightly bowed his head and wore a bitter smile, he didn’t realize that Choi Seon-gyeom was staring at him intently.
“If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?” he asked cautiously.
“Twenty-three,” Dawoon answered.
Choi made a strange expression at Dawoon’s answer.
“A student?”
“Fourth year in university.”
“Ah…”
Dawoon wondered why he was asking such things, but since they weren’t difficult questions, he answered straightforwardly.
“Perhaps…?”
“Jeong Dawoon?”
A voice from behind made both Dawoon and Choi Seon-gyeom turn around simultaneously.
“Wow, it really is you.”
Choi Yu-na approached them with a surprised expression, as if she hadn’t expected to meet Dawoon here. A beat later, she noticed Choi Seon-gyeom and hesitated before bowing slightly.
“Mr. Choi, I didn’t know you were here. Our Chairman was looking for you earlier…”
“I know. That’s why I ran away,” Choi Seon-gyeom said with a smile, winking one eye. Choi Yu-na looked troubled, as if she was unsure whether to inform the Chairman of his whereabouts.
“Pretend you didn’t see me. I’ll have to join them for dinner later anyway, even if I don’t want to.”
Indicating that he’d prefer to avoid any other work-related conversations, Choi Yu-na nodded with a resigned smile.
“Do you two know each other?” Choi Seon-gyeom looked back and forth between Dawoon and Choi Yu-na.
“He’s my junior from university,” Choi Yu-na answered first, gesturing towards Dawoon with her eyes. Although it was a neutral answer, it wasn’t quite accurate to call him a junior since they hadn’t crossed paths since his first year, and this was their first meeting in almost three years. But Dawoon remained quiet, as it would be awkward to say they didn’t know each other either.
“But Mr. Choi, did you know him?” Choi Yu-na asked, finding it strange that Choi Seon-gyeom was with Dawoon.
“A chance encounter,” Choi Seon-gyeom replied with a smile. Dawoon glanced at him at the word “encounter.” What an easygoing person, he thought. It was surprising how he could use the word “encounter” without hesitation when talking about someone he had just met.
“An encounter?”
Choi Yu-na also seemed to find the expression strange and was about to ask further when her eyes met Dawoon’s, and her expression slightly hardened.
“I didn’t say anything. Running into you here was also purely coincidental,” Dawoon said.
At this unexpected statement, Choi Yu-na finally realized what Dawoon was concerned about. When Choi Seon-gyeom mentioned “encounter,” she worried that Dawoon might suspect her of talking about his family background. She seemed to be reacting more sensitively due to past incidents that made her feel guilty.
“I know,” Dawoon replied calmly, and Choi Yu-na’s tense face finally relaxed.
“Mr. Choi!” A voice called out for Choi Seon-gyeom from afar.
“Ah, it’s the department head,” Choi Yu-na said, turning her head as if to avoid the situation. She seemed to want to avoid being accused of not bringing Choi Seon-gyeom back despite knowing his whereabouts. Choi Seon-gyeom, who had made eye contact with the man calling for him, smiled awkwardly.
“I guess I can’t run away anymore. Let’s pretend I never ran into Choi Yu-na,” he said.
Before the department head could approach, Choi Seon-gyeom moved towards him. Choi Yu-na, who had been standing with her hand covering her face, let out a sigh of relief only after Choi Seon-gyeom had walked away with the department head.
“So, what really brings you here?” Choi Yu-na asked Dawoon again.
“Na-eun brought me a ticket,” he replied.
“Ah… That wasn’t really meant for you.”
Choi Yu-na muttered with a troubled expression. Dawoon smirked, thinking she must really not want to be suspected.
“Na-eun said the same thing,” he replied calmly, shifting his gaze back to the artworks in the frames. His attitude suggested he had no interest in her whatsoever, causing Choi Yu-na to stare at him before letting out an audible sigh.
“Are you still single?” she asked.
Dawoon looked back at her.
“I don’t need to hear the answer. You’re still the same. That transparent wall of yours, I mean.”
Dawoon tilted his head, wondering what she meant.
“You have this wall that seems to say, ‘Don’t come near me!'”
Ui-hyeon and Na-eun had said similar things before. He felt a bit wronged, as he had never actively pushed people away, just lacked sociability. No, he had definitely pushed Choi Yu-na away. At least she had the right to say such things.
When Dawoon remained completely silent, not saying anything about himself, Choi Yu-na frowned slightly and checked her watch.
“Are you busy?” she asked.
Although he wasn’t, Dawoon kept his mouth shut, unsure of how she would react if he said he wasn’t busy. Choi Yu-na exhaled shortly, as if she had expected this response.
“I’ll be done in 30 minutes. It’ll take about that long to finish looking around. Wait for me. Let’s have dinner together.”
Something was a bit different from before. Back then, she always made suggestions, but now it was closer to a command.
“Make time even if you don’t have any. It’s been three years since we met, so this much should be fine. There won’t be any entanglement with the adults. So you don’t need to be unnecessarily cautious.”
Dawoon let out a small laugh at her last words. Certainly, after that day when they had run into each other at his family home, his grandfather had never mentioned an engagement with her again. It was clear that Hayun had stepped in and properly derailed the situation. Choi Yu-na’s grandfather also had his pride and dignity, so he wouldn’t have brought it up again to a family that had rejected them.
“It’s not like I did something so wrong to you that we can’t even be college seniors and friends.”
Her words weren’t wrong either. Even if she had other intentions three years ago, she hadn’t really done anything wrong. It was just that he had been uncomfortable with the situation where his grandfather had gotten involved.
***
“Ms. Choi Yu-na.”
As she was preparing to leave work, Choi Seon-gyeom was standing at the office entrance, though she wasn’t sure when he had arrived.
“Didn’t you leave with the department head?”
Choi Seon-gyeom had a dinner appointment with her company’s Chairman, who was sponsoring this photo exhibition.
“We decided to go separately. More importantly, was that friend’s name Jeong Dawoon?”
Choi Seon-gyeom was trying to confirm Dawoon’s name. Why is he suddenly showing interest in Jeong Dawoon? Finding it strange, she stared at him blankly, unable to answer right away.
“Ah, it’s nothing serious. He was just watching the video so intently. But when I talked to him, he had this subtle expression, you know? It bothered me. I was curious about what he was thinking while looking at my work, but I missed the chance to ask when you arrived.”
