#7
“…How did you know about this place…?”
When Ha-min casually let those words slip, Tae-in’s brow furrowed slightly beside him.
“Yeah. How did you know to come here?”
As Tae-in asked with a suspicious look, Tae-rim’s forehead wrinkled in displeasure.
“You guys.”
“…”
“What are you two doing here?”
He asked Ha-min gently with a forced smile, but his piercing gaze couldn’t be hidden.
“What do you mean? We were just eating.”
When Tae-in answered for him, one of Tae-rim’s eyebrows twitched.
“No, I’m asking how you knew to come here.”
Although no words had passed between Tae-rim and Ha-min, Tae-in failed to notice the atmosphere and bluntly asked again.
“Did you tell him already?”
When Tae-in nudged Ha-min with his question, Ha-min shook his head with a troubled expression.
“It wasn’t you? Then who… No way.”
As Tae-in pondered in confusion, he pulled Ha-min’s phone from his pocket.
“…Why do you have that?”
Tae-rim asked in a chilling voice. Barely acknowledging the question, Tae-in scrolled through Ha-min’s apps with a stunned look.
“Don’t tell me you installed a location tracking app?”
“…”
“Wow, that’s insane.”
Tae-in stared at Tae-rim with utter disbelief. Taking their silence as confirmation, Tae-in couldn’t close his mouth in shock.
“Hyung, are you crazy?”
“Lee Tae-in.”
“Seriously, are you monitoring him? Why would you—!”
“That’s enough.”
Unlike the agitated Tae-in, Tae-rim cut him off with a calm voice.
Ha-min quietly watched him. He had known about the location tracking app since the early days of their relationship. He had suggested deleting it, but Tae-rim had convinced him to keep it in case something happened, and they agreed he would only use it in emergencies. Ha-min never dreamed he would use the app after less than a day of no contact.
“Hey, Song Ha-min. See? Eun-soo and I won the bet.”
“…”
“That guy is even worse than we thought.”
Tae-in, beyond surprised and utterly appalled, continued glaring at Tae-rim.
“…Tae-in.”
Ha-min, who had been silent, called him softly. Seeing Ha-min’s downcast demeanor, Tae-in sighed, handed back the phone, and patted his shoulder.
“Alright.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll head back inside first.”
Ha-min smiled faintly in gratitude at Tae-in, who understood without needing further explanation.
Before going back inside, Tae-in shot one last comment at Tae-rim.
“Geez, man.”
He shook his head as if Tae-rim was hopeless, but Tae-rim ignored him and kept his eyes fixed on Ha-min. Only after Tae-in disappeared into the restaurant did he finally speak.
“…Do you know how worried I was?”
Tae-rim knew Ha-min’s entire daily schedule. Though it wasn’t originally his personality, when dating Ha-min, he needed to know everything to feel at ease. Which classes he took, how long they were, when he ate lunch, what part-time job he had afterward, who he met—he knew it all. They also contacted each other frequently throughout the day, and he would only call when he knew Ha-min could answer.
But today was strange. No replies to his messages, and no answer to his calls. It was definitely a day off from Ha-min’s part-time job, but he wasn’t at home, nor had he gone to his parents’ house. Just in case, he had contacted Tae-in, but Tae-in hadn’t answered either.
Tae-rim always had an inexplicable anxiety underlying everything. Perhaps because of what happened to Ha-min when he was young, he tended to be overly protective. That’s why he had kept the location tracking app.
“Why didn’t you answer my calls?”
Tae-rim asked with a face full of frustration. He was suppressing his anger as much as possible.
“…Hyung, we had an agreement.”
“…What?”
“The location tracking… we agreed to use it only when absolutely necessary.”
“…You’re the one who didn’t respond all day, Ha-min.”
He had expected Tae-rim to be worried, but he didn’t think he would come looking for him so quickly. While it was partly his fault, the bet with his friends and what they had said were starting to feel shockingly accurate. He was beginning to realize how excessively Tae-rim was controlling him.
“…It hasn’t even been a day…”
“If you were with friends, you could have just let me know with a single message.”
“Hyung…”
Ha-min bit his lower lip, seemingly upset at Tae-rim’s accusations.
“Why didn’t hyung tell me…?”
“What?”
“…About Tae-in.”
“…”
“…That he’s going to America.”
Somehow, he had sensed that Tae-rim intentionally wouldn’t tell him.
“So what.”
“…”
“…You’re saying you didn’t contact me because of that?”
Tae-rim exhaled in disbelief and ran his hand through his hair again.
“I don’t understand why I should personally tell you something so trivial.”
“…”
“Is Tae-in that important to you?”
“…”
“Important enough for you to be angry at me?”
Tae-rim couldn’t suppress a scornful smirk. He simply couldn’t understand why Ha-min would be upset with him over such a thing.
“I’m not angry…”
“Ha-min.”
“…”
“I’m really upset right now.”
“…”
“I was worried all day. I left work early without finishing, and I even went to your parents’ house.”
“…Hyung, I…”
“And this kind of protest just because I didn’t tell you about that…”
“…”
“…You know I wait for your calls all day.”
Tae-rim expressed his hurt feelings openly. Ha-min somehow felt like he was being swept along by Tae-rim’s reasoning. The main point of this conversation seemed off. He was upset and hurt, yet somehow he was gradually being made to feel like the guilty one.
“…You know Tae-in is my best friend…”
“Hah. I don’t know why that guy keeps coming up in conversation.”
He sighed deeply, clearly uncomfortable with the continued mention of that name.
“…It’s important to me… why do you keep… acting like it’s nothing…”
“…”
“I don’t understand… why you talk like that.”
Ha-min continued speaking calmly despite his stammering.
“Tae-in is my closest friend… and you know that better than anyone…”
“I know.”
“…”
“That’s why I don’t like it.”
Tae-rim cut him off firmly. His eyes, which usually held a gentle smile, were frighteningly cold.
“Why…”
“You never know what might happen with people, Ha-min.”
“…Huh?”
“Just like how you and I met again and started dating.”
“…”
“You never know what’s in someone’s heart, or how things might turn out.”
Ha-min’s face gradually hardened at Tae-rim’s inexplicable words. No way, no way…
“Hyung, you don’t mean… me and Tae-in…”
“…”
Ha-min exhaled in disbelief, his lips parting stupidly. What Tae-rim was saying implied that he was suspicious of Ha-min and Tae-in’s relationship, worried about what might develop between them.
“…That’s ridiculous…”
It was absurd, but looking back, he had done this before. Before they dated, when they were just partners, he had definitely been suspicious of Ha-min and Tae-in’s close friendship. But he never dreamed this suspicion would continue until now.
“Hyung, Tae-in and I… we’re not like that… Tae-in only dates women…”
“So did I.”
“…”
“I only dated women too.”
“…”
“You know that.”
Tae-rim stared directly at Ha-min as he continued.
“But… Tae-in and I like that…”
“…”
“That’s… really not, not right.”
Ha-min took a step back, unable to understand Tae-rim’s preemptive suspicion.
“Ha-min.”
Tae-rim took a step forward following Ha-min’s retreat, but Ha-min still stared at him with a confused expression.
“…Listen, hyung.”
It seemed to be a matter of trust from the beginning. Did he appear that fickle? Well, his first time with Tae-rim hadn’t been entirely innocent either. Was that why? Was that why he had these absurd suspicions and tried to control him?
“I… I thought… that we had that much trust between us…”
But within a day, he had tracked Ha-min’s location, hidden the fact that his friend was leaving, and viewed their friendship in an unwholesome light. Even after all this, Tae-rim’s eyes didn’t waver. His face was resolute, showing no recognition that his actions were wrong. What was this, how could he…
“This isn’t about trust.”
Tae-rim frowned with all his might at Ha-min’s gradually retreating attitude. The affection that had always enveloped him was slowly disappearing.
“Is it wrong to ask you to maintain proper boundaries?”
“…I’ve never crossed any boundaries…”
“Because I didn’t let you.”
“…”
“It’s not just Lee Tae-in. It’s anyone.”
Perhaps it was because he had only seen Tae-rim’s infinitely gentle side for years. This persistent and resolute version of him felt particularly unfamiliar. Ha-min couldn’t understand why he would link him romantically with anyone, and it made him uncomfortable. Unable to hide his bewilderment, Ha-min struggled to finish his thought despite his stammering.
“…S-so, why are you being so…”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
