#95
Those words rose up to his throat. How deeply… it affected him. He was about to say it, his throat burning. Just then,
“Oh? Oppa, you guys are here already?”
The kids burst into the bar as if they had been waiting. With their arrival, Tae-in and Ha-min tacitly ended their conversation. Tae-in signaled with his eyes to talk later, and Ha-min nodded with a stiff smile.
“Hyung!!!”
Among the kids who entered the bar, Hee-gyeom was the most excited to see Ha-min. He quickly approached with his large frame and claimed the seat next to Ha-min. Eun-soo and Woo-kyung playfully hit Hee-gyeom’s big body while jeering.
“Why does it feel like it’s been so long, really.”
His large puppy-like eyes, full of betrayal and hurt, wavered. Ha-min smiled awkwardly and quietly apologized, saying “Sorry.” At the easy apology, Hee-gyeom seemed embarrassed and playfully hit Ha-min’s shoulder.
“What are you sorry for? I heard you were sick.”
“Haha…”
It seemed Tae-in had made up some vague excuse to the kids, apparently saying that Ha-min had been sick.
“But how sick were you that you couldn’t even contact us once?”
When he had checked his turned-off phone, the most messages were from Eun-soo and Hee-gyeom. Since Tae-in knew the situation, they had exchanged messages, but Ha-min had nothing to say, feeling sorry for not responding to the other two’s one-sided messages. It was fortunate that Tae-in had covered for him by saying he was sick.
As soon as they sat down, drinks were poured according to each person’s preference. Knowing that Ha-min only drank beer, Eun-soo filled a glass with beer and placed it in front of him, saying to Hee-gyeom,
“Hey, I already asked that question earlier.”
At her tone suggesting he was being repetitive, Hee-gyeom pouted grumblingly.
Ha-min also made eye contact and greeted Chae-rin, who came in last. He could communicate with Chae-rin without big gestures.
“But oppa, your face really does look gaunt.”
Eun-soo, who had been staring at Ha-min, said seriously. At those words, Hee-gyeom, sitting right next to him, also examined Ha-min’s complexion. Feeling embarrassed by the sudden attention, Ha-min shook his head, saying it wasn’t true. In reality, he hadn’t even been sick, so he felt extremely awkward. Thinking that lying really wasn’t his forte, he quietly sipped his drink. That’s when Hee-gyeom suddenly gently grasped Ha-min’s arm.
“You didn’t have any troubles, did you?”
At the words whispered quietly from beside him while glancing at his wrist, Ha-min blinked stupidly. At those words, Ha-min burst out laughing.
“You’re worrying too much, Hee-gyeom. Hyung is fine, really.”
A deflated laugh escaped him as he suddenly thought Hee-gyeom was cute for his consistently cautious behavior. Hee-gyeom, seemingly embarrassed, touched his nape and mumbled quietly, “Well, I’m glad if nothing’s wrong.”
Ha-min smiled faintly and whispered thanks to Hee-gyeom. Hee-gyeom flinched and mumbled “It’s nothing” while stuffing a large amount of food into his mouth. For some reason, the tips of Hee-gyeom’s ears seemed to have turned slightly red. But thinking it was due to the red lighting in the bar, Ha-min turned his gaze away without much thought. And soon, the drinking party heated up.
**
Ha-min quietly checked the time. The old watch started working well as soon as the battery was changed, but it still occasionally stuttered, probably due to its age.
Ha-min strained his eyes to focus his swaying vision. After struggling to focus, he could finally confirm that it was past midnight. Ah… he had planned to leave before the buses stopped running. Ha-min staggered to his feet and picked up his bag.
The kids were drinking alcohol like water, oblivious to the passing time. Perhaps because they were all meeting after a long time, everyone was somewhat tipsy. Moreover, Ha-min had unknowingly downed so-maek (a mixture of soju and beer) with a 7:3 ratio of soju as a penalty drink, which had really done him in.
“Hey, Song Ha-min. You leaving?”
Tae-in’s tongue was also quite twisted. Noticing Ha-min getting up stealthily, Tae-in looked up at him with a reddened face.
“I think I should go…”
He had told hyung in the morning that he would leave before the buses stopped running. Of course, it was already past the time for the last bus, but for some reason, he felt a sense of urgency to hurry home. It was his first time living with someone who wasn’t family, so he felt it would be inconsiderate to come home late. Besides, he had even promised, albeit not seriously, that he wouldn’t drink to the point of getting drunk…
“Stay and play a little longer~”
“Ah…”
But apart from going home, he felt he couldn’t drink anymore because he seemed to have drunk too much. He felt like he might lose consciousness if he wasn’t careful.
“Ah… I think I’m going to throw up…”
Ha-min quickly stumbled out of the bar. The heat inside the bar seemed to be making his nausea worse. After leaving the bar, Ha-min staggered and crouched down by the railing in front of the establishment. He felt like he needed to sit quietly and get some fresh air. Perhaps because he was in a good mood after a long time, the alcohol had gone down easier than usual, and consequently, he had gotten drunker. Heu, Ha-min let out a foolish laugh and tucked his knees into his arms as he crouched.
He wanted to go home but didn’t want to at the same time. He had really cleared his mind, but he was worried that his feelings might waver again if he kept seeing him. He thought he could handle it well, but as he got drunk, his heart suddenly weakened.
He couldn’t trust his own heart. Suddenly, he felt more inclined not to go back. He suddenly felt angry at hyung. His lips protruded in anger at hyung who only shook him up and then pretended not to know. As his mind wavered, his emotions started to jump around too. Maybe I should just go to the gosiwon and sleep tonight…
The one-room apartment area was near Daehakro, so it wouldn’t take long to walk there from here. Having decided on his destination, Ha-min stood up abruptly. Due to the sudden movement, his legs wouldn’t support him and he staggered. At that moment, two arms caught him from behind. Ha-min blinked his eyes and turned his head at the strength that supported him just as he was about to fall.
“Hyung, are you okay?”
The owner of the worried voice was Hee-gyeom. Thanks to Hee-gyeom’s athletic physique, Ha-min could comfortably lean on him.
“Ah… yeah.”
“Hyung, sit down again. I don’t think you can walk right now.”
“No, I’m fine… I’m fine.”
Hee-gyeom let out a laugh as if finding Ha-min’s nonsensical talk quite funny, and forcibly made him sit down again.
“Where’s your home? I’ll take you there.”
“Ah…”
Home. Home is…
“…I don’t have one.”
“What?”
“…I don’t have a home.”
Ha-min mumbled with his head lowered. He didn’t want to go home. He didn’t want to go.
Hee-gyeom’s brow furrowed at Ha-min’s whining mumbles.
“What should we do…”
Hee-gyeom muttered in bewilderment at Ha-min’s disoriented state. Not just Ha-min, but everyone inside was lost in drunkenness and unable to come to their senses. Even Chae-rin, the most composed one, had a red face and was talking nonsense. Hee-gyeom scratched his face and stared at Ha-min’s side profile, who was unable to control his swaying upper body with his head deeply lowered.
“Tsk.”
After a brief thought, Hee-gyeom crouched in front of Ha-min, placed Ha-min’s limp arms around his neck, and skillfully piggy-backed him. At the sudden floating sensation, Ha-min struggled to lift his heavy eyelids, but couldn’t move easily according to his consciousness. Feeling his consciousness sinking, he rested his face on the broad shoulders without any hesitation.
“Hyung, tell me if you feel like you’re going to throw up. Okay?”
Hee-gyeom spoke in a worried voice, concerned that Ha-min might vomit on his back, but there was no response. Ha-min’s eyelids were quietly closed as if he had fallen asleep. Hee-gyeom let out a deflated laugh at the sight of Ha-min peacefully asleep so quickly. The light laughter buzzed in Ha-min’s ears. At that moment, he suddenly remembered hyung’s words to call him if he got drunk.
But it was just a fleeting thought, and he had neither the will nor the strength to act on it. Ha-min mumbled an apology to Tae-in who was carrying him, his body completely limp. Then, Tae-in’s playful voice correcting him, saying “It’s not hyung, it’s Hee-gyeom,” was heard faintly from far away in his hazy consciousness. That was the last of his consciousness.
**
Ha-min suddenly opened his eyes wide. As soon as he opened his eyes, instinctively feeling something was wrong, Ha-min abruptly sat up. Due to the sudden movement, his waist and head throbbed, but only for a moment. Realizing he was in a completely unfamiliar space, his mind went blank.
Where is this…? It definitely wasn’t Tae-in’s house, and of course, it wasn’t his gosiwon either. And now it was morning. The sunlight coming through the small window and the chirping of morning birds were more certainly announcing that it was morning than ever before.
“Oh? You’re up.”
At the sudden voice, Ha-min turned around with a startled face. There, he saw Hee-gyeom who had just finished washing up. As soon as he saw Hee-gyeom, Ha-min got up hurriedly with a flustered face.
“Why am I…”
“Wow, look at you not remembering. Do you know how hard it was for me to carry you here?”
He couldn’t remember not only how he got here, but anything from the moment he left the bar. He had clearly said he would drink only to the point of not getting drunk. He had definitely said that before leaving…
“Ah, sorry… I, I’m crazy. Really crazy… How did I drink that much…”
Moreover, how come he couldn’t remember anything at all… Ha-min felt more bewildered than flustered.
“It’s not that big a deal. Anyone can pass out after drinking, you know.”
“Still…”
“I even slept on the street once when I got drunk at the beginning of last semester.”
Hee-gyeom said casually while drying his wet hair with a towel.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
