Chapter 61
The sound of the door lock opening was followed by Seo-jung entering through the front door. Due to his late return, his face looked more tired than usual.
As he walked through the hallway into the living room, he saw Soo-ho and Da-bin engaged in conversation. They also seemed to notice Seo-jung’s presence, turning to greet him with welcoming faces. He naturally directed his steps towards them.
“Seo-jung, you’re late today?”
“I had the afternoon shift, so I went to work late. What interesting conversation were you having?”
“Oh, Da-bin said she bought some late-night snacks on her way here. I was feeling hungry, and it’s like she read my mind!”
“I was passing by the store, and Soo-ho’s face just popped into my mind.”
Soo-ho shook the bag in his hand, which he had somehow snatched from Da-bin. Da-bin’s face had a slight blush as she looked at him, finding his behavior cute.
“Da-bin, have you been drinking?”
“Just a little, not much. Why, do I smell of alcohol?”
Da-bin pretended to sniff herself, rubbing her body. Seo-jung chuckled and pointed at his own cheek.
“Not that, but your cheeks look a bit red.”
“Really? I didn’t drink much, why is this happening? If anything, I’m disappointed I didn’t drink more.”
“That’s why I bought this. It was actually meant to be a snack,” Da-bin whispered intentionally, lowering her voice. Of course, it was still loud enough for Soo-ho to hear. Soon, Soo-ho’s playful whining followed, asking if she had tricked him.
“Should we have a quick drink then?”
“I’m absolutely in favor!”
“What about you, Seo-jung?”
The conversation between the two had already reached the point of planning a late-night drinking session. As the proposal extended to him, Seo-jung shrugged and pointed at his attire.
“I haven’t even had a chance to wash up yet.”
“You can join us later. We’ll start drinking slowly without you.”
“That’s right, come join us after you’ve cleaned up!”
Despite his indirect refusal, the two didn’t back down and tried to persuade Seo-jung. He blinked for a moment, considering. Even if he lay down in bed now, he probably wouldn’t fall asleep easily. Instead of tossing and turning all night, it might not be bad to rely on the effects of alcohol to fall asleep.
“Alright, I’ll wash up quickly and come back. You two start drinking without me.”
At Seo-jung’s agreement, the two high-fived in the air. At the cheerful sound, he shook his head as if he couldn’t help it.
Watching the two head to the kitchen to prepare for the drinking session, Seo-jung turned and climbed the stairs.
As he entered the second floor, he recalled the last time he saw Cha Yoon this morning. The closed lips and stiff expression in response to the question of whether he liked him. Is he in his room? Continuing these meaningless thoughts, Seo-jung pulled the doorknob.
A sense of emptiness was felt through the open door. Seo-jung entered and looked around the room. Cha Yoon was nowhere to be seen. Realizing he wasn’t in the room, Seo-jung felt deflated.
If he’s not in the room, where could he have gone? Questions arose about Cha Yoon’s whereabouts, but he quickly dismissed them. It wasn’t his business where Cha Yoon was. Consciously cutting off these thoughts, Seo-jung entered the bathroom.
After finishing his shower, he went straight downstairs. He knew if he stayed alone, he’d be trapped in unnecessary thoughts.
The drinking session was in full swing in the living room on the first floor. Joo-ah and Min-ha had also joined at some point.
“Oh, Seo-jung is here.”
“Seo-jung, come quickly, hurry!”
Seo-jung naturally joined the group that enthusiastically welcomed him.
“The group has grown.”
“I called everyone to join as they came out to the living room.”
“Well done.” Seo-jung nodded lightly as he watched Da-bin answer while wrinkling her nose. Seo-jung’s face, mixed in with the group, showed no difference from usual.
“Now that Seo-jung is here, let’s all toast together, cheers!”
“Shall we?”
Led by Min-ha’s excited voice, everyone picked up the cans in front of them. With the sound of “Cheers!”, cans gathered from all directions and then dispersed.
“Seo-jung, what’s the occasion? You’re drinking it all.”
“As it happens, I have the afternoon shift tomorrow too. This is the time to drink.”
“Ah, I wish Seo-jung always had afternoon shifts. We could play like this every day.”
“That sounds nice just hearing it. But if it really happened, wouldn’t you pretend not to know me?”
“I’m not that kind of person!”
“I’m just kidding. Min-ha, eat some snacks while you drink.”
Seo-jung, smiling with curved eyes, pushed some cut fruit towards Min-ha, who was vigorously shaking both hands. Soon, words of thanks followed.
After drinking beer while chatting about various things, he had already emptied one can. While tidying up and crushing the cans that the other cast members had drunk, he suddenly felt his crown getting hot. What’s this? As he rubbed the top of his head and looked up, it happened.
“……”
Seo-jung flinched for a moment and gripped his hand tightly. It was because he discovered Cha Yoon looking down at the living room, holding onto the second-floor stair railing. As if reflecting Seo-jung’s feelings, the empty can in his hand crumpled, creating an unpleasant noise.
He wasn’t anywhere in the house before, where did he appear from? Seo-jung thought as he looked at the simmering eyes.
As Seo-jung’s eyes stayed fixed upwards for a considerable time, Soo-ho and Da-bin, sitting on either side of him, sensed something strange and glanced at him. What’s going on? The two also turned their heads towards where Seo-jung was looking.
“Whoa! Cha Yoon, what are you doing there?”
“……”
“I thought it was a horror movie. You know ‘The Ring’? It was like that. It’s really scary when you look down at us like that!”
“……”
“How long have you been standing there? Were you preparing there on purpose to surprise us?”
Of course, it was Soo-ho who made a fuss among the two. He clutched his chest and called out to Cha Yoon.
Despite Soo-ho’s words, Cha Yoon didn’t even blink. As if the only thing he could do was look at Seo-jung. As always, he only stared at Seo-jung.
“If you’re not going to sleep, come down and drink with us.”
“That’s right. The more people at a drinking party, the better. Come down, Cha Yoon.”
Da-bin, sitting nearby, agreed with Min-ha’s gesture. While everyone chimed in with a word or two, only Ki Seo-jung remained quiet. He acted as if Cha Yoon didn’t exist, as if the eye contact just now had been a lie.
“Da-bin, drink this with some water.”
“As expected, only Seo-jung takes care of me.”
Although he felt the blind gaze on his cheek, Seo-jung paid no attention and only filled Da-bin’s empty water glass. Cha Yoon’s expression became even more grim. Amidst the noisy voices of the other cast members, only the voices of these two seemed to pierce his ears clearly.
Shit… Cha Yoon barely swallowed the curse that was about to burst out.
‘I didn’t know, but you really like me, don’t you, Cha Yoon?’
At the same time, the voice that had already been repeated hundreds of times echoed in his ears once again. That one sentence that had tormented Cha Yoon all day. His hand gripping the railing tightened. The railing creaked under the tremendous force.
It was Ki Seo-jung sitting right there who had thrown out that nonsensical statement this morning, turning his insides upside down all day. And now, as if nothing had happened, he was busy flirting with his ex-girlfriend. He couldn’t shake off the thought that he had fallen for Ki Seo-jung’s prank.
More than the rising anger, what affected him more was the sense of shame. He felt ridiculous for dwelling on words that Ki Seo-jung didn’t even care about. Unable to bear that emotion any longer, Cha Yoon turned around. With each step towards the room, a loud thud echoed.
“Doesn’t Cha Yoon’s footsteps sound like a dinosaur?”
“It does kind of sound like that.”
Ignoring the voices coming from the first floor, he was about to move away from the railing when he suddenly stopped in his tracks. What held Cha Yoon’s steps was Ki Seo-jung again. More precisely, it was the sight of Ki Seo-jung smiling at Shin Da-bin that put the brakes on Cha Yoon’s actions.
The thought of Ki Seo-jung having a good time with Shin Da-bin in his absence was unbearable. After ruining my entire day, you’re going to end yours happily? For whose sake, damn it. No way.
Cha Yoon turned around again. His legs moved unstoppingly towards the stairs. As the loud, thundering sound approached, the cast members on the first floor turned their eyes to the source of the noise.
As if energized by the eyes fixed on him, Cha Yoon quickly approached the living room.
“Move in a bit.”
“Oh, Cha Yoon, are you going to drink?”
“Yes.”
After replying, Cha Yoon, seemingly unwilling to wait even for a moment, pushed aside Joo-ah, who was looking up at him with a furrowed brow, and squeezed into the tight space to sit down.
Despite hearing Joo-ah mutter “Oh, geez…” at his forceful action, Cha Yoon didn’t even glance at her and reached out towards Seo-jung.
“Give me a drink too.”
