#21. Between Friends (7)
Why did he want to meet me?
I felt puzzled, but I couldn’t ask the reason directly. It was because I didn’t know his intention.
Fortunately, Bae Dojin’s attitude was friendly and refreshing.
“It’s because of curiosity. In a positive sense. Ah, the rumors I heard are also in a positive sense.”
He pushed a plate of food toward me and continued.
“I heard that each of the Arcus juniors is an outstanding talent……”
“……”
“I heard they were formidable, but I didn’t hear that they were harmonious.”
I looked to the side with a puzzled expression. Hapil Jae and Joo Lee Seon were standing side by side grilling meat, and Ahn Haesol was having a conversation with a Days member with a quite serious expression.
‘Is that so?’
Aren’t we quite close, even if not to the point of being inseparable? Everyone is sensible, kind, and even cheerful when we’re together.
No, by my standards, we were even excessively harmonious. I don’t know how many group activities with the word “welcome” in them there have been since I started dorm life. Welcome party, welcome dinner, welcome walk, welcome meeting, welcome practice, welcome gift ceremony…….
“You look like you can’t agree at all.”
Bae Dojin, who understood the meaning of my gaze, said with a smile.
“I heard it wasn’t originally like that. The period of training together as trainees wasn’t long either, and there was even a member who was insincere not just in group life but even in dorm life.”
“……Ah.”
I think I know this. It was about Maki, who didn’t even know the heating wires were broken, let alone show any signs of living there. That was definitely severe.
Well. Hapil Jae is cheerful but has clear likes and dislikes, and Joo Lee Seon has an individualistic personality. Na Jihan probably had never stayed overnight anywhere other than our house either.
“The staff had many concerns from the time of project formation. So, unanimously, they brought in Ahn Haesol as leader.”
“Brought in?”
“Yes. It happened to be when ‘For Stadium’ broadcasting had just ended.”
So that’s why articles about Ahn Haesol’s transfer and project joining came flooding out as if they had been waiting for that moment. He was the oldest among peers, and it would have been a choice made because they needed a focal point to bind together people with strong personalities.
However, there are limits to what leadership can solve. That’s why Han Seonggyeong brought up the roleplay story.
“We thought there was homework to solve for Arcus to become not five outstanding individuals, but one excellent group…… To be honest, we were quite worried. But it was resolved surprisingly smoothly.”
“……”
“The reason would be you, Yoon Seowoo.”
I thought for a moment and answered.
“That I was helpful might be somewhat true. But it doesn’t seem as tremendous as you’re saying, sunbae. I’m not that great.”
After thinking for a moment, I added a word.
“Still, thank you for looking at me favorably.”
Then Hapil Jae approached and set down a plate piled high like a mountain with grilled shrimp, mushrooms, vegetables, and pineapple.
“Why isn’t the food here decreasing? Seowoo hyung, your chopsticks are too idle? Should I put them in your mouth one by one myself?”
“……Are you free?”
“As you can see? Warm food tastes better, so give me that and eat this. I saw earlier and if this doesn’t decrease either, I’ll tell it all to Jihan hyung. Try at least one of each type.”
“Pineapple……”
“Do you have a pineapple allergy? Ah, then that won’t work. Lee Seon hyung! That plate without pineapple over there for a moment……”
“No, no!”
I hurriedly stopped him and took the plate.
“I don’t have an allergy, I just don’t eat it much. It’s too sour.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. Pineapple becomes sweet when grilled.”
“That’s also not really……”
“Oh my, young master Seowoo. Should I hold your nose while you eat?”
“You hurry up and go!”
“I’ll go if you eat. Just one bite. Just one bite. I grilled this with care, stitch by stitch.”
“Fine, I’ll eat it……”
While Hapil Jae and I were bickering, Bae Dojin, who had been sipping his highball and watching, finally burst into laughter.
“Pfft, haha, ahahaha.”
“……”
“That picky Hapil is acting like this, but you still say you’re not great, junior?”
“Well, yes……”
I eventually couldn’t resist Hapil Jae’s momentum and ate the pineapple, then grimaced. It was too sweet, sour, and hot, making my tongue feel like it was screaming.
While I was barely managing my expression, Bae Dojin stared at me intently to an uncomfortable degree.
“Lee Seon grilled the meat and Hapil brought it, so why would I be great?”
“Your reaction is cute.”
The respected first-tier senior from the same agency seemed competent, handsome, kind, and had decent insight…… but his taste seemed somewhat strange, no, quite unique.
Bae Dojin cheerfully clinked his highball can against mine and asked.
“Shall we see each other often? Us.”
“……Cough.”
I almost spilled what I was drinking. I wiped the corners of my mouth with the back of my hand and watched his reaction.
“I’ve become curious about Seowoo.”
“So, why am I……”
“Wouldn’t it be nice to hang out together?”
What’s nice about it? Hang out with people from your sunbae’s group. You’ve all been discharged now. Of course, I couldn’t say my inner thoughts out loud, so I just smiled awkwardly.
Fortunately, before I could find an appropriate answer, a familiar voice came from behind me.
“What’s the occasion for drinking?”
Na Jihan, who reached out from behind, tapped my cheek with the back of his hand and bent down a little more. His hand overlapped mine that was holding the can.
“Just one sip for me.”
Bae Dojin gestured toward the large ice box beside him.
“There are new ones over there, should I get you one?”
“No. This is fine.”
What I was holding was snatched away in an instant. Na Jihan turned the can he took from me this way and that as if wanting to gauge what flavor it was, then looked at the bottom part and narrowed his eyes.
A little later, when the drink was returned to me, its contents had decreased by almost half.
“What, you drank a lot. How is this one sip?”
“If I put my mouth to it once, that’s one sip. And I left an appropriate amount, so just drink that.”
I tilted my head back to look up at him. Na Jihan’s handsome face against the backdrop of Jeju Island’s dark night sky filled my vision completely.
“Want more if that’s what you wanted to drink?”
“That’s enough. I need to talk to Hyeonjun hyung about tomorrow’s schedule for a moment……”
Na Jihan gestured over my shoulder.
“Eat variety.”
“Why are you talking like I’m a picky child?”
“Yoon Seowoo doesn’t do picky eating. The problem is you don’t eat variety. You don’t get a puffy face from eating and sleeping a bit, so eat plenty.”
“Don’t nag all the way to Jeju Island and just go to Hyeonjun hyung quickly. Either eat something while talking, or finish talking quickly and come back to eat together.”
“Yeah.”
As soon as Na Jihan moved away, Bae Dojin quickly asked.
“What’s your relationship?”
“We’re friends.”
“……Friends?”
What’s with that suspicious questioning tone?
“Our mothers are close, so we practically grew up together since childhood.”
“Ah. So that’s why you’re so close.”
“Jihan is especially attentive.”
Bae Dojin answered with a voice full of laughter.
“I was talking about you, junior. Do you treat people so attentively when you become close?”
I don’t know where he felt attentiveness from me, not from Hapil Jae or Na Jihan. The two of them were the ones who brought food and nagged before leaving, not me.
I fiddled with the much lighter can and answered.
“You’re a respected sunbae, and now we’re eating from the same pot, so we’ll see each other often as you said, sunbae. Then we’ll become more comfortable than today, but……”
“Still, not as much as how you treat Jihan?”
“Probably not, yes.”
“Is it the weight of time? Well, if you’ve known each other since birth, it would be difficult to have ordinary friendship.”
I smiled slightly and lowered my head, pretending to drink the highball.
No. It’s not the weight of time but the weight of feelings. It’s not ordinary friendship but special affection. So whoever enters my life, whatever relationship we become, we can’t be like us.
Because Na Jihan is unique to me.
I was thinking that when.
“Still, Na Jihan can’t be the only special one in Seowoo’s world.”
“……”
“So, let’s definitely see each other often.”
The moment I heard Bae Dojin’s words, I felt a strange premonition. That it would turn out as he said, whether I wanted it or not.
I couldn’t know what that meant yet, but…….
‘He doesn’t seem like a bad or sinister person.’
I decided to hope for the good side.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
