[06.Intersection]
It was a Saturday evening in mid-April, the wind still full of cold air. After diligently moving about since morning finishing housework and even going to the gym, Chaehun finished preparing to go out. After checking himself in the mirror and fixing his hair, only one thing remained.
Chaehun boldly pulled out one of the boxes stacked neatly in his built-in closet. The watch was simple—black leather straps with gold plating. Without hesitation, Chaehun placed the watch on his left wrist. There was nothing particularly special about it except that the unfamiliar heavy weight felt strange on his left hand.
“It’s heavy.”
Chaehun stared at the sparkling watch and quietly muttered. It was the first time he was seeing Seunggeon in ten days since that day.
A promise was a promise, and Chaehun tried not to make too much of a fuss over something like a watch. Whether it was a watch worth hundreds of thousands or tens of millions of won, it would still be hidden under his shirt sleeve when checking the time.
Thinking boldly that the watch itself was innocent anyway, Chaehun put on his coat and waited for Kang Yeonghwan’s call.
Today, before meeting Seunggeon, he had plans to eat dinner with Kang Yeonghwan first. Kang Yeonghwan had insisted on treating him, saying he wanted to apologize for what happened last time. Chaehun said there was no need, but he couldn’t win against Kang Yeonghwan’s insistence.
Kang Yeonghwan had ordered him to dress up nicely since they were going somewhere fancy. Thanks to that, the expensive wristwatch didn’t feel out of place. He was thinking he should return the clothes he borrowed from Seunggeon and the empty containers later when Kang Yeonghwan called.
—I’m here. Come down quickly.
“Just a moment.”
7 o’clock. Right on time for their appointment. Chaehun quickly checked that there were no problems inside the house and went down to the first floor. The passenger window of the car waiting at the building entrance opened and Kang Yeonghwan waved his hand.
“Hyung. Over here. Get in here.”
Chaehun got in the back seat as Kang Yeonghwan called. The driver was, as expected, Kang Yeonghwan’s friend Kim Seongho. Chaehun greeted him, saying it had been a while and that they had only seen each other briefly at the family home last time. As soon as the car started, Kang Yeonghwan in the passenger seat turned to look at Chaehun.
“Hyung. You’re dressed too stiffly. Are you going to a job interview?”
“You told me to dress up.”
“Even so, you look too much like an old man. At least loosen your tie. That would be better. Hurry up and loosen it. And undo a couple of shirt buttons too.”
Chaehun was bewildered by Kang Yeonghwan’s urging. He told him to dress up, then told him to loosen his tie and undo his shirt buttons—it didn’t make sense.
“Where are we going that I need to loosen my tie?”
“I told you I’m treating you.”
“So?”
“Being too uptight isn’t good. Just loosen it.”
“Looking at how you’re acting, I don’t think we’re just going to eat a normal meal.”
“Our hyung has sharp instincts.”
Watching Kang Yeonghwan burst into laughter, Chaehun frowned. Looking at how he was talking, it really didn’t seem like they were just going to eat.
“Tell me where we’re going.”
“We’re going to a good place.”
Kang Yeonghwan’s excited eyes sparkled with anticipation. Chaehun knew that when Kang Yeonghwan said it was a good place, it really was a good place. But whether he himself could enjoy it there was a separate matter.
If it doesn’t work out, I’ll just leave.
Thinking comfortably, Chaehun loosened his tie and put it in his inside pocket.
“Oh, that’s a watch I haven’t seen before. Did you buy it? You don’t usually wear watches, hyung.”
Kang Yeonghwan, who had been watching Chaehun, pointed. Chaehun clicked his tongue at his younger brother’s sharp eye and answered nonchalantly.
“I got it as a gift.”
“It looks expensive. No, it’s actually really expensive. That’s at least in the 20-million-won range. Don’t tell me that rich old man gave it to you as a gift?”
“Yeah. After I paid back all the money to the investors last time, he gave it to me. He said it was his last gift. You heard too, right? That I can’t contact him anymore.”
The lie flowed out effortlessly. Changing Seunggeon into the building-rich old man was easy.
“Aw, if he’s going to help, he should help all the way—I don’t know why he’s stopping here. But still, you’re lucky, hyung. Getting an expensive watch as a gift too. Lend it to me later.”
Chaehun laughed watching Kang Yeonghwan, who didn’t hide his envy and even asked to borrow it. Lending it wasn’t difficult. The problem was what came after.
“No. You lose things you borrow all the time.”
“What have I lost?”
“Wallet, keys, phone, soccer shoes. Want me to go on?”
“Aw, those aren’t a big deal. I don’t lose expensive things. That would be terrible.”
“You know you’ve lost things more than once or twice even saying that, right?”
“Hyung.”
Kang Yeonghwan called out desperately, but Chaehun shook his head. There were more than one or two things Kang Yeonghwan had borrowed or just taken and lost. With this watch, the issue wasn’t the money but the fact that the person who gave it was Seunggeon. For at least a year, he absolutely had to keep it himself.
“You have good things too, you know. Just use those.”
“Aw. Fine. I won’t borrow it if you’re going to be petty.”
Kang Yeonghwan grumbled heavily and turned his body sharply forward to show he was sulking. Chaehun clicked his tongue inwardly. Having things that didn’t suit him caused situations like this.
Chaehun felt the heavy weight of the watch once again.
* * *
The party was a huge success.
The lights filling the hall were flashing, the alcohol placed on the huge event bar overflowed, and the DJ pumped up the atmosphere with fast-beat music. People were gathered in small groups, chatting and having a good time.
Chaehun couldn’t fit in anywhere and just stood in a suitable corner sipping beer. The place Kang Yeonghwan had brought him was a club hosting a vodka launch party. As Kang Yeonghwan had boasted—that it was a members-only club, that invitations were hard to get, that famous people would be coming—the party was indeed splendid.
But it wasn’t to Chaehun’s taste. He didn’t like loud, crowded places. He could brazenly walk around unfamiliar places, but only when he felt like it.
Occasionally people would approach asking if he was alone, but he appropriately brushed them off. The beer was free, but the flimsy food wasn’t enough to satisfy his hunger. Just as he was thinking he should say something and leave, checking the location of the exit, he made eye contact with an unexpected person.
It was Park Gwangho.
The first thing that came to mind was wondering why he was running into him here. And that seemed to be the same for Park Gwangho as well—he made a surprised face, then said something to the people next to him and headed this way. It was clearly a gesture showing he intended to meet Chaehun.
Don’t come over here.
Chaehun cursed inwardly. But unfortunately, there was nowhere to avoid Park Gwangho.
“Oh, we meet in an unexpected place. Assistant Manager Kang.”
“Indeed. Park Gwangho-ssi.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to call each other by name? It’s weird calling you ‘-ssi’ in a place like this. But should I still call you Assistant Manager… nim? More than that, I don’t suppose you know Sunny. How did you get here?”
Chaehun and Park Gwangho had a big verbal fight once last winter and were now barely-greeting, distant acquaintances. But right now, Park Gwangho was smiling broadly and acting smooth. From the way he casually switched to informal speech, revealing his inner thought that he had the upper hand in this place, Chaehun swallowed a bitter smile.
He had read in the pamphlet that the name of the CEO of the company launching the vodka was Sunny. Deliberately mentioning the name Sunny and asking how he got here was all childish.
“I don’t know anyone named Sunny. I came with my younger brother.”
“Younger brother? You have a younger brother? This is the first I’m hearing of it?”
“Everyone who needs to know knows.”
“Well, that’s not the only thing I don’t know. People really do live differently at work and outside, I guess.”
Chaehun felt Park Gwangho’s gaze land on his wrist holding the beer bottle. The expensive wristwatch seemed to have caught Park Gwangho’s attention.
No matter how clueless one might be, he could roughly guess what he was trying to say. Acting so strict at the office, but outside wearing expensive watches and going around partying—that’s what he meant.
“There are various ways of living in this world, aren’t there? Some people bring the same leaky gourd from outside straight inside. It’s better to do social life properly, at least.”
Chaehun smiled and retorted. Having had such a hard time in university life, he was confident in verbal sparring. The corners of Park Gwangho’s confidently smiling mouth crumpled.
“Hyung. I’m here. Hello.”
Breaking through the moment of silence, Kang Yeonghwan intervened. Chaehun greeted him warmly and looked at Kang Yeonghwan standing beside him. Even knowing the atmosphere was tense, Kang Yeonghwan patted Chaehun’s waist.
“Hyung. Aren’t you going to introduce us?”
“This is Park Gwangho-ssi, who works with me at the hospital I go to. Park Gwangho-ssi. This is my younger brother. Kang Yeonghwan.”
“Hello. I’m Kang Yeonghwan.”
“I’m Park Gwangho. I didn’t know Assistant Manager Kang had such a handsome younger brother.”
Chaehun introduced the two with a reluctant feeling. Then they smiled at each other and shook hands smoothly. It looked nice. But suddenly Park Gwangho pulled his hand back as if burned and stepped back. On the other hand, Kang Yeonghwan smiled brightly.
