He was curious what expression Sungjin would make when he recognized him. When did he realize that the person he’d screwed over that day was a celebrity? Did he regret it after finding out? Yuwon wanted to see his face turn pale with shock, as if he’d encountered a ghost.
The business class section on a domestic flight doesn’t have much space. It’ll be quite a sight when he’s trapped in the seats side by side with no place to escape. Yuwon thought this as he finished checking in and boarded the plane.
However, reality differed from his expectations. Sungjin, who showed his boarding pass to the flight attendant and came in after him, approached without any sign of concern, put his luggage on the overhead shelf, then opened a book without even glancing at the seat where Yuwon sat. And throughout the short flight time, he kept his head buried in that book as if his face was buried in it, not moving his gaze.
‘Ha.’
It was absurd. Was he doing this on purpose? Because he wanted to avoid making eye contact with him? Whatever the reason, Sungjin got off the plane without giving a single glance to the seat next to him.
Even when Yuwon unconsciously crossed and uncrossed his legs, put his arm on the armrest and took it off again, doing all sorts of restless things in an attempt to somehow draw attention, it was useless. Later, he became stubborn and thought about deliberately bumping into him or tripping him, but doing that much would be too foolish. Anyway, they’d be meeting soon in a place where there was even less room to escape than inside the plane.
Let’s see if he can ignore me like this then too. Yuwon ground his teeth alone and headed to the hotel. Even at the hotel, all he could think about was Sungjin. He must be deliberately pretending not to know, right? It was certain that he avoided him because he didn’t know what expression to make when facing him head-on.
He intended to torment him throughout the filming so that he’d have no choice but to show a stupid, flustered appearance. It was the result of resentment and obsession accumulated during the long time he’d spent searching for Sungjin.
‘…….’
What was more irritating in the midst of all this was the fact that the face he saw again was still his type. The image that had been fading in the back of his memory became vivid all at once.
He had been rationalizing to himself that he was exaggerating that face in his memory because he’d been drinking too, and because it was regrettable that they didn’t go all the way, but the moment he saw him again, he felt like he’d been struck in the head.
In the years that had passed, his appearance had matured. From a young man who had just graduated from college to an adult who was beginning to adapt to society a little. To describe it in more detail, Sungjin’s appearance, which had grown closer to adulthood than before, still precisely struck Yuwon’s taste. As if he existed for him.
Rather, it seemed like it had gone up a level from that time. The moment Yuwon saw his face again after several years, he felt a strange emotion that couldn’t be described in words. Even though he wanted to hurt or torment a grown adult enough to make him sob, it seemed like he could do any crazy thing to see that stupidly easy-going face. To the point of continuing to act unnaturally to draw his attention, even knowing he’d look like a strange person.
This was all because his heated first love had left too intense an impact. The back of his head that got hit by him stung so much that he’d become broken, unable to feel normal romantic emotions. It seemed like he could only be freed from this curse after carrying out perfect revenge on Sungjin.
He should have at least gotten uglier. He thought the flutter from that time had disappeared and only resentment remained, but with just that stupid expression, it felt like he’d caught a fever again.
He must be pretending not to know, right? He couldn’t have failed to recognize me, right? He left an indelible, fatal wound on him, but what if there were more than one or two people he’d toyed with like that? Yuwon shook his head several times at the assumption he least wanted to imagine.
That can’t be. Throughout his life, there had never been anyone who forgot meeting him. At least in terms of appearance, he believed without doubt that he was at that level.
But what if it wasn’t the case for that person? He wanted to go to the set so badly that time seemed to pass too slowly. The reason he arrived long before filming started the next day was because he could no longer bear sitting still at the hotel waiting for time to pass.
And after a long wait, he appeared before him. In front of the camera where there was no longer anywhere to run or hide. He could finally confirm what expression he would make when he recognized him and became flustered. However, unexpectedly, Sungjin showed a completely unexpected reaction.
‘Hello, I’m Yoon Sungjin. Nice to meet you.’
‘Nice to meet you?’
Even though he asked back sarcastically on purpose, Sungjin looked at him as if he were a strange person instead. At that moment, it felt like he’d become a fool. Was he acting on purpose? But judging by the tension constantly settling on his face, it didn’t seem like he was pretending to be calm.
Or was even that simple-looking change in expression all calculated? At first, he couldn’t give up on the possibility, but the subtle expressions he continued to show clearly revealed that he was someone unaccustomed to this kind of situation.
He was confused. Was I mistaken? Is he just someone who looks similar and I’m misunderstanding? But even after searching for years until now, this was the first time he’d seen someone who resembled him this much. Even the way his eyes curved when he smiled awkwardly was exactly the same. He was convinced that this had to be him.
He wanted to confirm it. He felt like he could tell if he undressed him up close, smelled him, and kissed that skin. Whether it was the same scent of his skin from that time.
Yuwon dug through his memory to recall the position of the mole engraved on his collarbone and the nape of his neck. He probably doesn’t even know himself. The fact that there’s a small mole positioned on the back of his neck as if asking to be sucked. He needed to confirm that first.
To do that, he needed to get close to him. Not many people readily show their neck. So he planned to continue suppressing the rising anger, become mission partners with him, spend time together, and interrogate him a bit more. After calming his heated excitement, there was no need for that. The background of having graduated from architecture proved that he was the same person he met that day. Yuwon had barely calmed down, but the moment he confirmed the partner matching results, he doubted his eyes.
Lee Yuwon – Im Jiyoon
Yoon Sungjin – Oh Harin
Yurim had blatantly separated the two. Sungjin, unaware of Yuwon’s feelings, moved to do the mission with the woman who had a rather unwilling expression, grinning broadly. It was absurd. When they talked a few years ago, he said he liked men, yet after becoming partners with a woman, he showed such relief and happiness. Was he bi? Various confusing situations tormented Yuwon. He felt frustrated, as if a stone had been placed on his chest.
“…….”
Returning to the mountain of sheets and towels piled up like a mountain again, Yuwon did laundry for the first time in his life while treating Jiyoon as if he barely existed. However, the problem was Jiyoon’s attitude.
“Wow, as expected, when a handsome person even folds laundry, the visuals are no joke. It’s like watching a pictorial.”
Jiyoon seemed to have little interest in whatever attitude Yuwon took. He also didn’t care how Yuwon thought of him. Anyway, isn’t Lee Yuwon the person who will receive the most attention early on in this broadcast? It seemed like he’d made up his mind to stick close to Lee Yuwon and secure as much screen time as possible.
“Don’t you see people from this industry often when you work as a model?”
Moreover, the two had something in common: being openly queer. Although their specific identities were different in that Yuwon was bi and Jiyoon was gay, that wasn’t a very important fact to Jiyoon.
Anyway, the key to a reality show is editing. Whether Yuwon had a sour face in front of him or not, wouldn’t the production team’s goal be to edit it plausibly and broadcast it to capture ratings and buzz? As long as he could throw out any comment and draw out even a little reaction from Yuwon, it didn’t matter.
“…….”
Yuwon frowned as if asking why he was asking him such a thing, then recalled the warning Yurim had secretly whispered at the moment they briefly paused filming earlier.
‘You know I was really troubled because you threw a fit, right? Keep acting like that. I can make you drop out midway.’
From Yurim’s standpoint, it was actually half a lie. Yuwon’s participation was a huge boon for the production team. Yuwon’s incredibly prickly attitude was somewhat the same. If Yuwon played the villain role and raised buzz, it would be very much appreciated from their standpoint.
So there was no way they could cut Yuwon in the middle. But as Yuwon’s uncooperative attitude continued, he could no longer just watch.
‘That bastard needs to do it in moderation, in moderation!’
When deciding on Yuwon’s appearance, the CEO of his agency strongly opposed Yuwon’s variety show appearance. It was a very rational decision.
