Chapter 55
The news that the repairs were complete couldn’t have been more welcome. Ki Seo-jung drove his own car back to the X House after work for the first time in a while.
“It’s almost 9 o’clock already.”
It took quite some time to go pick up the car. After parking neatly, Seo-jung got out of the car.
“…Oh.”
Seo-jung blinked as he pushed open the gate, moving his stiff body. He saw a silhouette sitting on the yard bench suddenly stand up.
It was dark outside as the evening had turned to night. Even so, there was no mistaking who that large silhouette was. It was Cha Yoon.
Why is he in the yard at this late hour? Was he perhaps talking with someone else living in the X House? Having been thinking about Cha Yoon all day, Seo-jung felt somewhat awkward about facing him. He was about to avoid the situation when…
Long legs strode over, and like this morning, Cha Yoon stood like a stone blocking Seo-jung’s path. With his way suddenly blocked, Seo-jung’s gaze naturally moved upward. Cha Yoon looked around busily from the gate, like a detective searching for something.
“Did you come alone?”
“…Pardon?”
“I asked if you came in alone.”
“Yes.”
What kind of question is this? Seo-jung couldn’t understand the intent behind it. Cha Yoon’s expression, which had softened a bit at Seo-jung’s answer, narrowed his eyes again.
“You’re not lying, are you?”
“……”
“You didn’t come in at a different time after being with someone else, did you?”
While Seo-jung might be flustered at being interrogated out of the blue, Cha Yoon had his own reasons for his behavior.
After about a week of living here, Cha Yoon could more or less guess Ki Seo-jung’s work hours. Based on his data, Seo-jung should have arrived home by 8 PM at the latest today.
But for some reason, Seo-jung hadn’t returned even though he was well past the expected time. Moreover, Shin Da-bin, who had left with him today, hadn’t come home either.
These two facts caused suspicion to sprout in Cha Yoon’s mind, who had been waiting at home for Seo-jung to return from work. The suspicion that maybe Ki Seo-jung and Shin Da-bin were secretly meeting outside for a date without his knowledge.
Cha Yoon, who had been inside, took up position on the first-floor terrace. The bench where Cha Yoon sat was the first place one could notice when the gate opened from the X House.
After that, Cha Yoon never took his eyes off the gate, like a predator waiting for its prey. How much time passed like that? The gate opened, and the long-awaited Ki Seo-jung entered. So from Cha Yoon’s perspective, this was a perfectly reasonable action.
But even after waiting for a while, there was no notable response from Ki Seo-jung. As Seo-jung remained quiet, Cha Yoon’s eyes narrowed.
Could it be that he had hit the nail on the head? Contrary to his hope for an immediate denial, the lack of any real response from Seo-jung immediately brought anxiety.
Shit, what is it? Just say it’s not like that right now.
“Ki Seo-jung, aren’t you going to answer?”
Even at this urging, Seo-jung just quietly looked up at Cha Yoon. Suddenly, a memory of Cha Yoon from the past surfaced.
‘Hyung, do you really have to go out today?’
‘It’s Sang-hyun’s farewell party before he goes to America, so I can’t skip it.’
‘I still don’t want to let you go.’
‘I’ll buy you something you like on my way home instead.’
‘The only thing I like is Ki Seo-jung. Will you come home with a ribbon in your hair?’
‘…Cha Yoon, you’re being cheeky again.’
‘I’m serious. If you’re going to, come back with a red ribbon, make it pretty.’
‘Alright? I’m expecting it, hyung.’ Cha Yoon would say that and lean his large body in to hug him.
That Cha Yoon is gone now, it’s just a one-sided memory that only he has, no one knows and no one should know. Why does the Cha Yoon from then and the Cha Yoon now seem to overlap?
“Ki Seo-jung?”
At the voice calling him once more, Ki Seo-jung suddenly came to his senses. Cha Yoon was still looking at him with a grumpy expression.
Maybe that’s why. Even though he knew it was impossible, Ki Seo-jung harbored a foolish hope.
“Why are you curious about that?”
“It’s not that I’m curious, I’m wondering if you came back from a secret date by yourself.”
“Is it not okay for me to come back from a secret date?”
“What did you say?”
Like dry kindling catching fire, Cha Yoon began to flare up instantly. Seo-jung silently listened to Cha Yoon’s words. I knew it, you went on a date with Shin Da-bin, how could a man and woman be together until this hour – Cha Yoon boldly listed out his incorrect assumptions, none of which were true.
Ki Seo-jung quietly observed Cha Yoon, who was practically doing a knife dance. Because the emotion flickering in Cha Yoon’s eyes seemed exactly like jealousy.
“What does it matter to you what I do outside, Cha Yoon?”
“Well!”
Cha Yoon, who had started shouting from the beginning, hesitated. Even you think it’s strange, Yoon-ah. Why you care so much about my every move. Even though we’re not at all close enough for that. Ki Seo-jung was curious about the answer that would come from Cha Yoon. At the same time, he felt a little tense.
A moment of silence fell over the yard. It was when Ki Seo-jung, waiting for Cha Yoon’s answer, ran his hand through his hair.
“…I just don’t like seeing you do well.”
An answer completely different from what he had hoped for. Perhaps it was a natural answer for Cha Yoon, but the moment he heard it, Seo-jung felt all the strength drain from his body. While not avoiding Cha Yoon’s gaze, which was looking down at him with a confused expression, Seo-jung tried to maintain a calm face.
Ki Seo-jung often missed Cha Yoon even when looking at him. Was it because the Cha Yoon in front of him now felt unfamiliar? Was it because he once again realized that the Cha Yoon who had been his lover no longer existed in this world?
“I see.”
A pleasant baritone settled over the yard. Seo-jung suddenly recalled Cha Yoon right after losing his memory. Those fierce eyes that had demanded how it could make sense that he had dated a man. He struggled to maintain his composure as his expression threatened to crumble.
I had such strange thoughts. At this moment, Seo-jung felt utterly worthless and ridiculous. How could I have such an absurd expectation? Something like Cha Yoon falling in love with Ki Seo-jung again… would never happen. A sigh-tinged laugh escaped between Seo-jung’s lips.
“I suppose that’s how it is for you, Cha Yoon.”
It was a low voice that sounded almost like he was talking to himself. Ki Seo-jung’s long eyelashes fluttered lightly each time he blinked. What could he be thinking to make such a worrying expression again? The date must not have gone well. Cha Yoon’s head tilted slightly as he looked down at Seo-jung.
Ki Seo-jung sometimes wore an expression lost in deep thought. And when his face became like this, he would quickly run away. As if he didn’t want anyone to notice his sadness.
But today, at this moment, Cha Yoon didn’t want to let Ki Seo-jung pass by him like this. Waiting had always been Cha Yoon’s role. Hadn’t he gone all the way to Incheon Airport this morning just to have a conversation with Ki Seo-jung? He didn’t want to let Ki Seo-jung enter the X House like this.
“I was late because I had some work to do after getting off.”
In the end, it was Ki Seo-jung who spoke first. It also meant ‘move aside now’. But Cha Yoon still didn’t seem to have any intention of letting Seo-jung go.
“What work? It wasn’t a date?”
“It wasn’t a date, so you don’t need to worry about it.”
Cha Yoon didn’t seem to believe his words, but there was nothing Ki Seo-jung could do about that. Ki Seo-jung walked past Cha Yoon.
“I’ll go in first.”
That figure looked somehow so lonely that Cha Yoon, contrary to his resolve, couldn’t stop Ki Seo-jung. He seems to have lost some weight… He chewed over the image of Ki Seo-jung’s thin back as he stared at the closed front door.
“…What am I thinking right now.”
Cha Yoon, quickly frowning, messed up the back of his hair. There seemed to be an emotion hanging in the air that he couldn’t quite define. Cha Yoon wasn’t ready to end his conversation with Ki Seo-jung yet. His strides were wider than usual as he entered the house.
“Oh, uh…”
Unlike how boldly he had opened the door and entered, Cha Yoon hesitated momentarily when he saw Ki Seo-jung just coming out of the bathroom. Cha Yoon turned his head back to check if anyone was in the hallway and then firmly closed the door. Ki Seo-jung also paused for a moment, but he tried to act nonchalant as he moved past Cha Yoon towards his bed.
“This won’t do.”
It was then that Cha Yoon’s voice was heard. Is he talking to himself? If only it were just talking to himself. He didn’t have the energy left to deal with the 22-year-old Cha Yoon anymore today. Seo-jung pretended not to hear Cha Yoon’s muttering and started tidying up around his bed.
“I said this won’t do.”
Cha Yoon’s energy hadn’t run out yet, it seemed. Swallowing a sigh that threatened to escape, Ki Seo-jung turned to face Cha Yoon.
“What won’t do?”
Cha Yoon took a step towards Seo-jung, as if he had been waiting for this.
“Tell me your schedule.”
“Pardon?”
“You’ll have a weekly schedule, right? I’m asking you to tell me that schedule.”
