“Why don’t you use it at least until the CSAT is over?”
Yi-hyeon didn’t particularly want to refuse an object so magical it could summon Han Jun anytime he wished.
“Then I’d really appreciate it. I’ll use it only until the CSAT’s over and then give it back.”
Han Jun pulled a tablet out of his bag and handed it to Yi-hyeon without hesitation.
“But you have to get into the Department of Theater and Film at Min-guk University. I’m really looking forward to the movie you’ll make.”
As if avoiding Han Jun’s gentle, smiling eyes, Yi-hyeon lowered his head and accepted the tablet. It was the latest model, customized with stickers perfectly matching Han Jun’s taste.
Maybe because it was something the person he liked had touched, just holding it made his heart flutter for no reason. His feelings for Han Jun had already grown uncontrollably large, so even this small kindness made Yi-hyeon’s heart swell as if it were about to burst.
***
The season when even breathing sent scorching heat pouring deep into one’s lungs, warming the entire body, had arrived in earnest.
Yi-hyeon hated summer. Hot, humid, unbearable.
When the rainy season came, his body felt more sluggish than usual, and minor illnesses cropped up more often. On top of that, if he ate food that had been left at room temperature and spoiled even slightly, he’d immediately get sick and end up at the hospital. That was why Yi-hyeon always felt fear creeping in whenever summer or winter approached—but this year, his mindset was a little different. It was thanks to the three-day, two-night trip he’d be taking with Han Jun.
He said Gangwon Province, right? The sea must be really beautiful.
Each time the number of cicadas screaming noisily in the hill behind the building increased, Yi-hyeon checked the date marked as “Fun Trip” in his phone calendar. As each day of waiting ticked away, his excitement grew along with it.
Just in case he’d booked the train tickets wrong, he constantly opened the railway app to double-check the two tickets he’d reserved.
After learning that Han Jun had booked an expensive place to stay, Yi-hyeon stubbornly insisted—adamantly—that he’d pay for the transportation at least. In the end, Han Jun had no choice but to surrender with both hands raised.
So, while basking in happiness and juggling part-time work with CSAT prep, the long-awaited morning of their promised trip arrived before he knew it.
Heart pounding, Yi-hyeon opened his eyes and immediately flung open his closet door. He pulled out a plain white T-shirt with a simple design. He was famous for rarely buying new clothes, but this was something he’d splurged on online a few days ago after steeling himself.
I should’ve asked the guys how to style my hair properly.
Thinking of Han Jun’s sleek hairstyle, Yi-hyeon smacked his lips and closed the closet door.
By the time Yi-hyeon finished bustling around from early morning and checked the clock, there was still an hour and thirty minutes left until they were supposed to meet. Wandering aimlessly around his room, he opened the bag he’d already packed three days ago and checked once more to see if anything was missing. When time still refused to pass, he finally decided to go to the station early and wait for Han Jun there.
Huh?
Arriving at the bus stop right in front of the station, Yi-hyeon spotted Han Jun already there. He smiled brightly and was about to walk over when he suddenly stopped. Han Jun was surrounded by several female students who looked about their age.
He was so tall that if his face hadn’t been sticking out above their heads, Yi-hyeon might’ve passed by without noticing him at all.
“Really? We’re going somewhere nearby too!”
“If the timing works out, we should hang out together. Give me your Byulstar ID—I’ll DM you.”
“Sorry, I don’t think our schedules will match.”
Han Jun rejected the request for his contact information cleanly and lifted his head—just in time to lock eyes with Yi-hyeon. Wearing an awkward expression, he immediately broke into a bright smile when he spotted him and waved.
“Yoon Yi-hyeon, over here!”
Han Jun was dressed just like Yi-hyeon: a white T-shirt and black jeans. He’d called the night before to ask what Yi-hyeon planned to wear, and seeing him show up in such a similar outfit sent a strange, swirling ripple through Yi-hyeon’s chest.
The fit was different, so the same style of clothes gave off a completely different impression, but to Yi-hyeon, it felt like a lovers’ trip where a couple had intentionally matched outfits.
“What? Why’d you get here so early?”
Looking up at the handsome man standing tall in front of him, Yi-hyeon asked cheerfully. Han Jun’s naturally styled bangs looked especially cool. Yi-hyeon, who’d struggled for thirty minutes only to completely ruin his own bangs before re-wetting them and flattening them over his forehead, suddenly thought that no matter how many lives he lived, he’d never be able to make his hair look that good.
“I was going to buy some food for the train. What about you—why are you here so early?”
Han Jun stepped closer to Yi-hyeon, looking in the same direction, and casually draped an arm around his shoulder.
“Don’t tell me… you were so excited about traveling with me that you couldn’t sleep?”
Han Jun laughed loudly, refreshingly, and there was a scent about him Yi-hyeon had never noticed before.
Just as Yi-hyeon was growing curious about the faint fragrance layered over Han Jun’s usual shower cologne, Han Jun suddenly pressed his face close to Yi-hyeon’s cheek. “Huh? I was right, wasn’t I?” he urged teasingly.
The soft texture of Han Jun’s skin rubbing warmly against his cheek made Yi-hyeon instantly self-conscious. He curled his lower lip between his teeth and had no choice but to duck his head down.
Having lived a life full of baggage and never really traveled before, Yi-hyeon found the scenery outside the train window unfamiliar and fascinating. Everything felt like a continuous string of excitement.
His gaze stolen by the lush green reflected in the river, Yi-hyeon stared out the window in silence for a long while. Then—thump. Feeling a heavy weight against his shoulder, he turned his head. Han Jun, apparently tired, was dozing off while borrowing one side of Yi-hyeon’s shoulder.
The eyelashes he’d always had to look up to see were now resting near Yi-hyeon’s jawline. They were long and beautiful.
All of a sudden…
Glancing around, Yi-hyeon relaxed when he realized no one was paying them any attention, and he quietly studied Han Jun’s face. Then Han Jun stirred in his sleep and crossed his arms, as if he were cold.
Yi-hyeon reached up and adjusted the air conditioner vent so it blew toward himself instead. As he moved, Han Jun’s head slipped slightly. Startled, Yi-hyeon quickly corrected his posture, caught Han Jun’s head with his hand before it fell forward, and carefully set it back on his shoulder.
“Ah… I’m hungry.”
Thirty minutes before reaching their destination, Han Jun woke up, blinking sleepily, and started rummaging through the hamburger bag they’d picked up together before boarding the train.
Seeing such a big guy wake up and immediately search for food was so endearing that the corners of Yi-hyeon’s mouth lifted, refusing to come back down.
Han Jun pulled out a hamburger stacked with two beef patties and handed it to Yi-hyeon.
“You’ve got such a small mouth—why’d you buy something this big?”
“I like lots of meat.”
Grabbing it eagerly, Yi-hyeon peeled back the wrapper and took a huge bite. As if he’d been waiting for it, Han Jun held out his palm, catching all the vegetables that spilled out the back.
“I knew this would happen the moment you picked the thick one.”
“Ah, what do I do? I got sauce all over your hand. I should’ve just left it.”
“If you’d left it, you would’ve ruined your clothes.”
Han Jun dumped what he’d caught straight into his mouth without hesitation. Alarmed, Yi-hyeon hurriedly opened his bag, pulled out some wet wipes, and snapped a few free. He started wiping the sauce smeared all over Han Jun’s hand—then froze.
He’d just realized belatedly that he was absentmindedly kneading Han Jun’s hand. Yi-hyeon’s face flushed red as he crumpled the tissue in his grip.
“Go wash your hands. This won’t do.”
“Why wash them again? As long as they’re not sticky, it’s fine.”
Han Jun sniffed his palm once, then went back to eating his hamburger like nothing had happened.
“By the way, you’re really well-prepared. Not tissues—wet wipes. I used to carry them around a lot too, because of Louis.”
“I get nosebleeds a lot. Once it dries, tissues don’t clean it very well.”
“Ah.”
I see. Han Jun nodded, taking a big bite of his hamburger. Yi-hyeon, who’d just been fiddling with Han Jun’s hand moments ago, stayed beet-red as he took small bites of the now vegetable-less burger, chewing quietly.
When they arrived at a quiet seaside town somewhere in Gangwon Province, Yi-hyeon asked where they were going, but Han Jun just smiled and told him to follow along. Yi-hyeon wanted to hurry and drop off their luggage at the accommodation since they had so much, but when Han Jun said there was somewhere they needed to stop by first, Yi-hyeon silently followed behind him.
Once they got into a taxi, Han Jun’s expression disappeared entirely. Yi-hyeon could only steal careful sideways glances at him.
Why did his mood suddenly change? Did I mess something up?
Yi-hyeon, who’d once heard that even people traveling together for the first time could clash—that sometimes you only realize you don’t actually get along once you travel together—couldn’t help but feel anxious at Han Jun’s sudden shift in mood.
He’d been fine when Yi-hyeon spilled hamburger, when they bumped into each other getting off the train, even when Yi-hyeon said he needed to use the bathroom—so where had things gone wrong?
After driving for a long while along a quiet road, the taxi rounded a large cliff by the sea. Then it stopped near a secluded wooded hill.
