Seonwoo spent the whole day with Seo Yeongyeom. Literally ‘the whole day’. The filming content itself wasn’t much different from yesterday. That was the problem.
“So Yeongyeom-ssi, what do you think about this?”
“I can’t touch this kind of thing more than I thought. Ugh…! It’s gross. And weird.”
“That’s unexpected. I thought you’d like it more than anyone. Don’t you think so? Yeongyeom-ssi.”
The two had an affectionate conversation over the spoon worm. Wasn’t it too affectionate? Yoonjo anxiously stomped his feet for no reason.
Here and there, Seo Yeongyeom’s manager made trivial jokes to Yoonjo, but he didn’t even give a proper reaction. He just followed his every move and gesture as if he had planted tweezers in his eyes to pick out the person called Ki Seonwoo.
The moment when Yoonjo’s anxiety reached its peak was from evening when the sun set. Seonwoo and Yeongyeom exchanged endless conversations throughout the meal, and sometimes the director also participated in the conversation. Yoonjo sat far away, half-eating or not eating his food while glancing at Seonwoo.
“You’re Ji Yoonjo-ssi, right?”
At the unexpected call, Yoonjo slightly raised his head. It was Seo Yeongyeom’s stylist. Unlike Seonwoo who only brought Yoonjo, Seo Yeongyeom’s side came with people trailing one after another. That guy knew how to subtly scratch at people in various ways.
Yoonjo, who tried hard to shake off thoughts of Seo Yeongyeom, chewed the meat in his mouth and nodded his head.
“How is it, the actor in charge?”
“…Hyung is, well…. good.”
“Is he completely returning to this field now? That would be good…. I was a real fan of Ki Seonwoo-ssi. To the point where seeing his face up close like this was my wish.”
By the end, it was almost to the point of whispering. Yoonjo roughly rubbed one ear. He had already put down his spoon.
This restaurant was definitely said to be a famous place, but what entered his mouth wasn’t meat but something like rubber with no taste at all.
“I don’t know that either. If you’re curious, to hyung… no, this kind of thing will get an official answer through the agency.”
“I don’t know why everyone says the same thing.”
The grumbling stylist propped up her chin and looked toward Seonwoo. Yoonjo’s gaze naturally turned to Seonwoo as well.
“They say the two were really close. So that’s why he decided to appear on this program this time…. I was surprised it was suddenly added to the schedule. They told me there would be something surprising and it really was. Looking at the two of them talking, they really seem to get along well. If it were me, I’d be a bit angry if a friend who suddenly disappeared for 5 years contacted me out of the blue…. But still, this evening….”
His chest stung. Not knowing where the pain started from, Yoonjo pressed down on his chest firmly. Then he looked at Seonwoo. Then naturally, Seonwoo’s words brushed past his mind.
‘So, Yoonjo-ya. Don’t worry. Don’t think strange thoughts either.’
Yoonjo, who had been blankly watching the two people, picked up the spoon he had put down. Yoonjo, who scooped up a big spoonful of rice and put it in, diligently chewed his mouth. It was work, how could he openly show he didn’t like it?
If Yoonjo interpreted the relationship between those two people in his own way, they were like team members for a group project the professor forcibly assigned. Thinking that way, Seonwoo’s current behavior was fully understandable.
“The meat here is really delicious.”
Yoonjo took a spoonful of rice and looked at Seonwoo’s face once. Again, took another spoonful of rice and looked at Seonwoo once. As if the claim of it being a famous restaurant wasn’t a lie, the rice went down smoothly.
Only after the meal ended did Yoonjo get to stay in one space with Seonwoo. Literally in a spacious van where no one could disturb them.
“Did you eat well?”
“I ate two whole bowls. They said it was a famous restaurant and it really was. It was delicious.”
Yoonjo, who answered brightly, wriggled and held Seonwoo’s hand, then intertwined their fingers. Then he smiled brightly enough to show his teeth and said.
“How was it for you, hyung?”
Seonwoo was silent, unlike himself. At that sight, Yoonjo moved his lips, then pulled Seonwoo’s hand over and rubbed it against his cheek.
“I didn’t misunderstand.”
“…I didn’t tell you in advance.”
“Well… hyung also found out suddenly, didn’t you? That’s why your expression wasn’t good earlier. I don’t know if it’s the same for hyung, but it is for me. When something shocking happens, I get confused about how to explain it.”
“I only create things to be sorry about.”
“Honest-ly, I was a little angry too. Ah, of course not at hyung but at that bad guy. That guy did wrong, so why is hyung apologizing? It’s okay. So you don’t have to apologize. There’s only one thing hyung needs to apologize to me for.”
When Seonwoo looked at him with eyes asking what that was, Yoonjo kissed Seonwoo’s palm and slightly curved his eyes.
“Saying you don’t like me, saying it’s a misunderstanding, pretending not to know, and running away.”
“…I think I have four?”
“Anyway. Hyung has already done two, so you only need to apologize when you do the remaining two.”
He said it was a misunderstanding and pretended not to know. He even did more than enough. Because that remained sulkily in one corner of his heart, Yoonjo repeatedly emphasized it, thinking he should nail it down. Then Seonwoo lifted Yoonjo and sat him on his thigh.
“Then I’ll never have to apologize for my whole life.”
Smooch—.
Seonwoo, who kissed the tip of Yoonjo’s lips, smiled gently. Yoonjo also smiled along. Seonwoo, who kissed Yoonjo again, said in a gentle voice.
“But I couldn’t tell you properly. Actually… I didn’t hear it accurately until the end. The filming director told me so I roughly guessed. I had a feeling, but I didn’t know that would immediately become ‘as expected.’ It’s probably because of me. What Seo Yeongyeom covets most is, as always, rumors and fame.”
“That person is really pathetic. Why does he keep trying to swing around our pretty hyung? I’ll block it all for you.”
Yoonjo, who cupped both of Seonwoo’s cheeks, kissed his lips several times. Like a bird eating food, smooch, smooch, rubbing lips several times, Yoonjo soon giggled.
“This is when you need a strong and sturdy younger boyfriend. Mm… this is a bit of a different story…. I want hyung to have just a little less sense of responsibility. Sometimes when you don’t like something, throw it all away. Or say something like ‘Hey, you bastards! Did you leave it to me! I’ll put a hole in your skulls!’ and release some stress.”
Seonwoo laughed palely. It was because he was grateful for Yoonjo’s effort to cheer him up. He quietly hugged Yoonjo’s waist and buried his face in his neck. Staying still like that, Yoonjo repeatedly patted Seonwoo’s back as if telling him to be reassured.
As if feeling the vibration Yoonjo was giving him, Seonwoo closed his eyelids. It seemed a bit better. It was because Yoonjo, who always orbited around him like a satellite, was there.
***
“It’s summer. So we also specially prepared a special feature for our viewers. It’s not difficult, we’ve hidden special gifts in various abandoned houses in this village. The person who finds the gift first wins! The gift goes right into that person’s pocket, and the person who fails will be disappointed but will only take memories.”
At the PD in charge’s words, Yoonjo’s eyes became as wide as saucers. It was because he hadn’t heard this story at all. Regardless, the camera was rolling, and there was no room for Yoonjo to intervene. Fortunately, Seonwoo was calm as if he had foreseen this situation.
“What’s the gift?”
“Is the gift important now? It’s an abandoned house! What if ghosts come out! Ghosts will come out. There’s no way the production crew would push people into a place with absolutely nothing.”
Seo Yeongyeom was making all the fuss alone. Yoonjo glared at Seo Yeongyeom, then shifted his gaze to Seonwoo. Seonwoo just rubbed his lips several times and responded quietly.
“It’s important. There’s nothing better than that to make people move. Something on my favorite items list is also a physical item, isn’t it?”
Seonwoo, who shrugged his shoulders, waited for the PD in charge’s answer. Fortunately, the PD in charge joked around and laughed.
“Of course. It’s naturally an important matter. We poured half of this production budget into the gift. Fortunately, the two actors here asked for very little appearance fee, so we were able to do it.”
Worried that those two people might end up going in holding hands side by side, Yoonjo stuck his head way out. Then, as if waiting, the camera turned backward.
More precisely, to where Yoonjo, Seo Yeongyeom’s manager, and stylist were. Seo Yeongyeom’s manager, who was drinking coffee, even spat out the drink he was drinking at the sudden situation.
“It would be disappointing for just the two of you to experience a cool summer! So we’ll give you one chance! You can choose only one person among all these staff as a companion. It can be the cameraman in charge, or a manager or stylist. You can choose anyone and go together. We’ll give you 30 seconds to hold hands! If you’ve caught someone, run right away! Only one person can find the gift!”
Murmuring sounds could be heard among the staff. Yoonjo unconsciously took one step forward. Like that, before even two steps, three steps, he stopped.
Just in case, if his existence became a nuisance to Seonwoo…. As soon as he thought that far, he saw Seonwoo going in a different direction. Precisely toward the cameraman in charge.
When he came to his senses, Yoonjo was holding Seonwoo’s hand and running toward a nearby abandoned house. Cool body temperature stuck to his palm.
A faint commotion spread from behind. Words like they caught the PD in charge, or it was invalid. Seo Yeongyeom seemed to have caught the PD in charge.
“I was going to go with the cameraman…?”
“What are you talking about! At times like this, you need to find a strong and brave manager!”
It was words that gave trust like solid roots. Seonwoo followed behind Yoonjo and laughed loudly. But that laughter completely disappeared as soon as they entered the abandoned house.
“Wow… how did they find a place like this so well.”
Yoonjo cleared away the spider webs at the entrance. It was gloomy, just like the abandoned house at his hometown. There at least you could hear insect cries, so it was better. But here, really no insects or anything, no sound could be heard at all, making it a bit more gloomy.
Passing the entrance and opening the door, a crying sound of ‘heuheuu~’ could be heard from not far away. Something black swaying in the wind could also be seen intermittently. Only then did Yoonjo realize that the box he had delivered to the assistant director during the day was a makeup prop.
“This much is, well…. Hyung, I think we can just go. Let’s roughly look around and go to the next house.”
“…Yeah.”
At the slightly delayed answer, Yoonjo tilted his head but soon moved his steps. With an indifferent air, he searched various parts of the abandoned house. There was nothing particularly special.
“Let’s go to the next house. There’s really nothing here. Ah… do you see that?”
