Chapter 52
“I’ll drive, Da-bin,” Seo-jung said to Da-bin in a kind tone.
“That would be great, thank you,” Shin Da-bin smiled as she handed the car keys to Seo-jung without hesitation. The atmosphere was clearly comfortable, showing they had known each other for a long time. Cha Yoon frowned as he watched the two in their friendly mood.
“Is there some deadly disease you get if you don’t drive…?” Cha Yoon sneered deliberately, disliking the scene. Though Seo-jung heard his sarcasm, he got into the driver’s seat as if he hadn’t heard anything.
Ki Seo-jung sat in the driver’s seat. And next to the driver’s seat, the passenger seat was empty. Cha Yoon, who had quickly assessed the situation, swiftly walked towards the passenger seat. For some reason, he felt he had to claim the seat next to Ki Seo-jung.
Cha Yoon strode forward with his long legs. Just as he reached for the door handle of the passenger seat, a now-familiar face peeked out between the open door. It was Shin Da-bin.
What the… Cha Yoon reflexively frowned. Despite his scowl, Da-bin smiled, unfazed.
“You opened the door for me to get in, right? Cha Yoon, you’re so polite. Thank you.”
It was all a matter of timing. Shin Da-bin had reached the passenger seat first, and then Cha Yoon had opened the car door, so it looked like he had opened it for her, as she said.
Thanks my foot. The words “That seat is mine” rose to his throat. But the other person was the owner of this car. If he spoke his mind, he might face the worst-case scenario of not being allowed to ride in the car at all.
Cha Yoon’s mouth opened and closed, but in the end, he couldn’t say anything and closed the passenger door. Only the excessively loud bang expressed Cha Yoon’s feelings.
Sitting in the back seat, Cha Yoon took the most uncomfortable middle seat and stretched his neck to poke his head between the two in front. He was worried they might start talking about things he didn’t know, treating him like a sack of barley left behind. Ki Seo-jung watched Cha Yoon’s behavior through the rearview mirror and let out a long sigh.
“Cha Yoon, you should fasten your seatbelt.”
He meant for Cha Yoon to lean back against the car seat and sit comfortably. Right now, he looked uncomfortable to anyone who saw him. It was easy to imagine how cramped it must be for someone as big as Cha Yoon to sit in the middle seat.
However, Cha Yoon acted as if he didn’t care about such things, quickly fastened his seatbelt, and then leaned his upper body forward again.
“I did. Let’s go.”
Seo-jung forcibly swallowed the sigh that was about to escape between his lips. Now that Cha Yoon had even fastened his seatbelt, he couldn’t nag anymore. Alright, let’s not say anything. Seo-jung ran his hand through his hair and shifted his gaze to Da-bin.
“Da-bin, you’ve fastened your seatbelt too, right?”
It was just formal small talk with no particular meaning. He thought Da-bin might have felt awkward watching him and Cha Yoon growling at each other.
“Can’t you see? It’s clearly visible that I’ve fastened my seatbelt. You would have seen it if you had eyes.”
But it wasn’t Shin Da-bin who answered Ki Seo-jung’s question. The voice was too deep and low to be Da-bin’s.
Seo-jung looked at Cha Yoon, who had answered instead of Shin Da-bin, through the rearview mirror. His furrowed brows showed Cha Yoon’s firm resolve not to allow even trivial conversation between the man and woman.
The question of what exactly was the problem crossed his mind, but Seo-jung soon shook his head. Who could understand that mindset? It wasn’t a problem that would be solved by thinking about it.
The car, having left the neighborhood, had already entered the highway. Unlike the smoothly running car, the conversation between the three people was a bit bumpy.
The reason was, of course, Cha Yoon.
“Seo-jung, what time do you finish today? If you finish early, take my car.”
“Ki Seo-jung will probably finish after 6 PM today. Right?”
“…Yes.”
“See?”
Just like now, whenever Seo-jung and Da-bin threw a question at each other, Cha Yoon would invariably interject and disrupt.
Although Cha Yoon was the one who created the uncomfortable atmosphere, it was Seo-jung’s job to be considerate. What should I do? He rubbed the inside of his cheek with his tongue. He felt heavy-hearted, feeling like innocent Da-bin was caught between him and Cha Yoon for no reason.
It was when he glanced over to check on Da-bin’s mood. Contrary to expectations, Da-bin seemed to find the current situation amusing, biting her lip and desperately trying to hold back laughter.
“Seo-jung, why?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
Da-bin asked in an amused tone, apparently having noticed Seo-jung’s gaze. Seo-jung lightly shook his head.
Cha Yoon, who had been on edge listening to their conversation, pounced immediately.
“What is it now? What are you talking about? Why do only you two know? I’m in the back, so I don’t know if you don’t tell me.”
Stop excluding me. Cha Yoon kept chattering, asking what was going on. Well, it was understandable to find it funny after seeing this behavior for 30 minutes straight. At least it was fortunate that Da-bin didn’t seem to be in a bad mood, whatever the reason. Let’s just take it as a good thing. Seo-jung thought as he turned the steering wheel.
Due to Cha Yoon’s desperate efforts, the conversation – although it was too broken to really call it a conversation – centered around Cha Yoon. It was because Cha Yoon kept intercepting the responses.
“Seo-jung, didn’t you used to go to that gelato shop near the school a lot? Even though you don’t even like sweet things.”
If the three of them had been complete strangers, it might have been different. But since they had the connection of being ‘university alumni’, the conversation naturally shifted to old stories. Cha Yoon leaned his body even further forward at Shin Da-bin’s words.
“That was a place I liked. He probably went there because of me, I think.”
“Ah… is that so?”
“Yes, if it weren’t for me, Ki Seo-jung wouldn’t have even known there was a gelato shop there.”
Since seven years of memories had completely vanished, there was no certainty in the first answer, but the last statement was true. In fact, when he was twenty-one, not long after meeting Ki Seo-jung in the club, it was he who had introduced the gelato shop to him.
Cha Yoon nodded, seemingly satisfied. Shin Da-bin turned to look at Cha Yoon with a peculiar expression.
The way he intercepted every conversation, the burning look in his eyes. Every aspect of Cha Yoon’s behavior was interesting. How should she put it? It was as if he was providing ironclad defense to prevent anyone from approaching Ki Seo-jung.
“Cha Yoon, you’ve always been very interested in Seo-jung, haven’t you? Both then and now.”
Shin Da-bin blurted out something she had been thinking for a very long time. Even in the past when she was dating Seo-jung, she often felt similarly.
While most people who knew Cha Yoon and Ki Seo-jung would remember the two as being exceptionally close, Shin Da-bin’s memory of them was a bit different.
When Cha Yoon first joined the club, he was exactly like this.
He would torment Seo-jung as if he was desperate to bother him, but if anyone else tried to get even a little closer, he would puff up his large body and block them. This applied even to Shin Da-bin, who was his girlfriend at the time.
From the grumpy tone to the sulky expression. Until she saw Cha Yoon’s behavior when she first entered the X House, Da-bin had thought the two had fallen out.
But the more she watched, the more she realized that wasn’t the case. Cha Yoon seemed to crave Seo-jung’s attention with all sorts of petty acts. Just like when Da-bin first saw him.
Encountering this behavior again, which had been buried somewhere in her memories, gave her a strange sense of nostalgia. Despite his sharp edges, it wasn’t unpleasant but rather fascinating, like a pine tree.
In any case, Shin Da-bin didn’t view Cha Yoon’s behavior negatively. As she had said at the drinking party the night before, she was someone who liked consistency. However, what worried her a bit was…
Da-bin silently turned her gaze towards Seo-jung. Seo-jung, who had been looking straight ahead while holding the steering wheel, noticed her gaze and looked at her. His eyes held a questioning look, so Da-bin quietly shook her head.
“Who says I’m interested? Are you crazy? And what are you two talking about again? Didn’t you hear me say not to talk just between yourselves?”
Don’t you think what I’m saying makes sense? Cha Yoon’s voice kept coming from the back, but Da-bin lightly ignored it and turned her head. In the distance outside the car window, Incheon Airport could be seen. Thinking that it had been a rather enjoyable journey despite the chaos, Da-bin smiled contentedly.
