Gi Siyoung’s home was always neat as usual. It was the kind of place that was squeaky clean as if polished with soap, and looked fragrant just from seeing it. Seungun changed into new socks as always and went inside. Instead of Gi Siyoung, who said his hand hurt, he set down the script he’d brought on the living room table while quickly looking for something to do.
He ran the washing machine with the few pieces of laundry and tidied up the sink where a single water glass sat instead of a salad bowl. After perfectly wiping away even the moisture from the sink, Gi Siyoung appeared from the dressing room, changed into comfortable clothes.
“Oh my, I thought she wasn’t coming but did she stop by?”
Gi Siyoung, who had been looking around the house that had become clean in the meantime, plopped down on the spacious sofa.
“I cleaned it.”
“Instead of just sitting there, order some delivery.”
“What kind?”
“Nothing spicy, sweet, or salty.”
“Ah, yes.”
Seungun took out his phone from his back pocket. He went into the delivery app and looked to see what there was to order besides spicy, sweet, or salty things. Hundreds of food listings appeared.
“Is salad okay? Or there’s poke too.”
Seungun stared intently at the screen, constantly scrolling with his thumb.
“Something healthy with a moderate amount of protein and not stimulating would be good.”
“Hmm. Then poke with one scoop each of salmon and tuna to supplement protein, and enhanced with savory flavor from slightly spicy sriracha mayonnaise and special homemade sauce would be good.”
Even with deliberately picky orders, he caught on like rice cake. In fact, Im Seungun had nothing to complain about when it came to work-related aspects. He was quick-witted and quick to act to a degree incomparable to the guys he’d worked with before.
“Yes, that one.”
Gi Siyoung smiled slightly and stretched both legs comfortably onto the table. Seungun finished the order. A notification came immediately.
“It says it’ll arrive in 30 minutes.”
“Okay.”
“Are you going to have tea or coffee by any chance? I’ll prepare it in advance.”
“Not right now.”
With Siyoung responding indifferently behind him, Seungun headed to the kitchen.
The kitchen, with everything built-in to match the modern interior, was neat without any clutter. Next to the sleek vase was a candle, and next to the sink was a coffee capsule machine. Colorful coffee capsules were neatly arranged inside the cabinet.
He poured water into a glass in advance and thought he’d touch the machine to make it easy to operate in case Siyoung wanted coffee later. Seungun’s hands were quite skilled, having used coffee capsules frequently at the company.
“Are you really not going to have any?”
“Then give me tea.”
He put water in the pot and boiled it while looking for tea bags. In the wide storage cabinet were loose tea leaves and a tea bag case. Seungun was clueless about tea. He didn’t really know how to steep loose tea leaves. In the end, he took out a tea bag. He removed the paper tag and string and dropped the tea bag into the mug. As soon as he put it in, brown water spread around the tea bag.
“Here.”
When he set down the teacup, Gi Siyoung looked up.
“You want me to hold a steaming hot mug with this hand?”
“You can hold it with the other hand.”
“Try holding it with one hand. See if it’s easy.”
“……”
Seungun had no choice but to sit next to him on the sofa.
“Blow on it to cool it down.”
“……”
He held the cup and blew on it. Hot steam formed on the bridge of his nose.
“See? You’re also having trouble holding it because it’s hot.”
“Should I mix in some cold water?”
“Then the original taste disappears. Haven’t you drunk tea before?”
“No.”
“……”
“So I didn’t know.”
“You really leave me speechless, but whatever.”
Seungun continued to blow on the hot tea. As he kept blowing, the initial heat subsided somewhat.
“It seems to have cooled down a bit. Do you want to try it?”
Gi Siyoung just brought his face forward and placed it against the cup. The temperature had dropped considerably from the beginning. He could see that the steam rising with vigorous boiling had also noticeably decreased. Seungun tilted the cup slightly. Gi Siyoung slurped down the tea.
“Can you hold and drink it by yourself now?”
He’s dying to get off work. Gi Siyoung thought to himself. But not yet. If he hadn’t stuck his nose into Kim Gyujeong’s business for no reason, this wouldn’t have happened. It was all Im Seungun’s karma. Just as he was about to tell him to keep holding it since his bandaged hand wouldn’t bend, the intercom rang. Before he knew it, 30 minutes had passed.
Due to building security, outsiders who hadn’t been approved in advance couldn’t take the elevator.
Seungun set down the teacup and quickly opened the front door and went out. Gi Siyoung let out a hollow laugh seeing the empty seat of the person who had disappeared faster than the wind. Im Seungun’s butt was far from heavy—it was light as a feather.
Left alone, Siyoung picked up the teacup with his injured hand. He slurped down the tea that had cooled to just the right temperature several times.
Click-.
As soon as he heard the door lock release sound, he quickly set the teacup back down. Because of that, the tea spilled slightly. It hit the back of his hand and wet the table. Before Im Seungun could notice, he rubbed his wet hand on his clothes and wiped the tea that had spilled on the table with his sleeve. Seungun, who had returned in a flash, set down a paper bag on the table.
“Here. I deliberately didn’t check for spoons and forks. I’ll give you what’s in the house.”
Gi Siyoung, who checked the contents inside, furrowed his brow.
“What is this?”
It had looked oddly light from when he was bringing it over while it dangled. Sure enough, there was one poke bowl full of protein and vegetables. Just one.
Seungun, who had returned with spoons and forks, held them out and said.
“It’s poke. It has protein and it’s healthy.”
“I’m asking why there’s only one.”
“Should I have ordered one for myself too?”
Crack, strength went into Gi Siyoung’s jaw. If that person’s goal was to slowly irritate him, he was doing it properly.
“Common sense dictates that when there are two people, you don’t order just one delivery.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“It’s 6:30 in the evening now, and at this time, even if you’re not hungry, it’s mealtime so you eat. Did you think I told Im Seungun-ssi to order delivery just for myself?”
“If I’m not hungry but force myself to eat anyway, wouldn’t that be worse? If I eat a few bites and leave the rest, it’s a waste of the environment. It wouldn’t be good for my stomach either.”
Gi Siyoung lowered his head. He felt like he was talking to a wall. In his lowered line of sight, he could see his own sleeve wet in a circle. He brought him here to give him a hard time, but somehow he felt like he was the one getting it. Seungun continued in an aggrieved voice, saying he really didn’t know what was wrong.
“I’m really not hungry. I ate a lot of sandwiches and fruit on set, so I’m still full.”
“……”
Moreover, in Seungun’s bag were boxed lunches that would be discarded if not all consumed on site. They were ones no one had touched. Rather than sadly going to the trash, it would be perfect to take them home and use them for a meal. However, there was no need for Gi Siyoung to know such things, so he didn’t mention it.
“Haa. Fine, just clean it all up.”
Gi Siyoung answered coldly.
“You’re not eating it?”
“I’ve completely lost my appetite. Clean it up and bring those fan letters piled on that table and read them.”
Gi Siyoung, like a person who had prepared a list to make Seungun do things, instructed the next task. Really, Gi Siyoung’s appetite had completely disappeared. He wasn’t in the mood to eat alone in front of someone who wasn’t going to eat anything.
“Are you really not eating?”
“I said I’m not eating. Don’t make me repeat myself.”
“Then I’ll put it in the refrigerator, so eat it if you get hungry.”
Seungun hurriedly cleaned up the paper bag. He also returned the fork and spoon to their original places. Since he seemed to be in a bad mood, it would be better to quickly comply with his request and get out of the way. Gi Siyoung rubbed the back of his neck and leaned back.
“These are fan letters that haven’t been reviewed by the company yet, is that okay?”
“It’s no fun opening ones someone else has already opened, so I told them to just bring the letters as is from now on.”
On the dining table were several bundles of fan letters tightly bound with yellow rubber bands according to size. Some bundles of fan letters still had their openings sealed as if they hadn’t finished inspection. Gi Siyoung surprisingly had many considerate sides when it came to fans. He preferred letters where hearts were pressed in tightly over flashy gifts.
“Then I’ll read them one by one.”
“How long are you going to keep wearing that bag? Take off that bag first before reading. Is someone going to steal it?”
Gi Siyoung finally pointed to Seungun’s crossbody bag that had been bothering him since earlier. Seungun had no choice but to put the bag down under the sofa. He brought the bundle that caught his eye first.
On the outside of the letter paper, cute bear stickers were stuck here and there. When he opened the envelope, a pop-up card popped out! It was the most legible and cute handwriting he’d ever seen in his life, showing how much care went into it.
“Ahem….”
Seungun cleared his throat first.
“I’ll read it.”
“……”
“Oppa, hello. I’m an eighteen-year-old ㅇㅇㅇ attending Seoul 00 High School. Oppa, when I was a baby I saw the drama you were in and fell in love at first sight, and I’ve liked you ever since. I’m just a mere shrimp, but still, I always run to every event you’re at. What me and other fans always say is that we feel oppa doesn’t just think of us as fans. Even when we make mischievous requests at events, oppa always accepts them with a smile. Last time at the stage greeting when you gave a thumbs up after seeing the placard I brought, you don’t know how happy I was. That day, we took a selfie together too, but you probably don’t remember. But I’ll never forget that memory. My parents don’t like it when your movie opens during my exam period and stage schedules are set. Because I don’t study and just chase after stage greetings. Anyway, the reason I’m writing this letter is. As long as oppa doesn’t get sick of it, please act for these fans for life. Please film lots and lots of dramas and movies. I like everything. Oppa needs to be preserved.”
Although it was a somewhat creepy ending, it was writing full of a fan’s love. Gi Siyoung was listening with his eyes closed as if appreciating music. Had he lost interest from seeing this kind of content every day?
Seungun opened the next letter without delay. The letter after that also had writing blindly praising Gi Siyoung.
“Oh, this letter seems to be written by a male fan. Hyung! Hyung, I love you! You’re fucking cool even from a guy’s perspective. End.”
“Wait.”
