# Chapter 27
Actually, beyond her being my reader, I was also curious about what kind of person Shin Dael was. She was someone Tae Iden approved of as his future sister-in-law, and the woman liked by Tae Igyeol, who seemed to have no interest in dating—I couldn’t help but be curious.
“They both seem happy together, and I don’t want to be that pathetic guy who ruins the mood by throwing cold water…”
“Hey, if it was that serious, you could have at least given me a hint.”
“…She’s naturally radiant, but seeing someone sparkle with such liveliness is rare… She’s drop-dead gorgeous, how could I possibly ruin that…”
Come to think of it, Mo Eunje had also thought Shin Dael was quite full of life during their conversation today. Though not to the extent of seeing her sparkle radiantly or finding her drop-dead gorgeous like someone with love goggles on.
“I was so caught up in my excitement that I didn’t realize you were thinking that way. Even if you had thrown cold water, no one would have thought you were pathetic.”
“Being pathetic would be better.”
“Hmm?”
“I’m afraid… she’d be disappointed in me for being jealous and preventing even innocent conversation when we’re not even dating…”
“…”
“…I’m scared she’ll be disappointed in me.”
He really seemed to care about making a good impression. Tae Igyeol didn’t need to try so hard—he was perfectly lovable just as he was. In any case, alcohol must be quite powerful, because words that Tae Igyeol would never say even if he died and came back to life were now pouring out like a broken dam.
“Seeing you laugh and enjoy yourself more than usual made me happy too…”
“Yeah.”
“But I kept feeling jealous.”
“…”
“No, fuck, I just kept feeling fucking jealous, it was irritating.”
His feelings must be quite large and deep. This guy who was usually indifferent and rarely showed interest in anything was exposing his emotional depths. If Mo Eunje had known Tae Igyeol would struggle this much, it would have been better to keep postponing the meeting with the excuse of writing a new book.
“I’m sorry. I was completely oblivious.”
“…Ha, Mo Eunje. You’re really clueless, seriously.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
Though he prided himself on being sharp and perceptive, Mo Eunje just nodded in agreement. He’d gotten so excited talking about his book that he failed to consider Tae Igyeol’s feelings. He hadn’t realized Tae Igyeol would be this jealous.
As he let out a small sigh, his stomach ached. It was probably from eating too much spicy food.
“That… throw it away.”
Tae Igyeol nodded toward the bag containing the castella next to Mo Eunje.
“Igyeol. You seem too drunk to think straight, but the castella is innocent. You’ll be punished if you carelessly throw away food.”
“Haah…”
*Fuck.*
The quietly muttered word registered clearly in his ear. Though Mo Eunje understood Tae Igyeol’s anger at his friend receiving a gift from the woman he liked, Mo Eunje had no intention of throwing away the castella he loved so much, no matter how much Tae Igyeol cursed.
Moreover, this wasn’t a gift between a woman and a man, but between a novelist and a fan—and not just him, Gye Minho had received one too. Tae Igyeol’s jealousy seemed somewhat misplaced, but since he was drunk, Mo Eunje let it slide. For now, it seemed best to accommodate Tae Igyeol in everything except throwing away the castella, to improve his mood.
“I won’t meet with Shin Dael again. I’m sorry.”
“…Keep your promise.”
“Yeah. I’m incredibly good at keeping promises, aren’t I?”
“That’s why you showed up today. Haah… unnecessarily considerate bastard.”
*That’s why I…*
Tae Igyeol muttered something as he lowered his head and rested his forehead on Mo Eunje’s left shoulder as he crouched in front of him. He spoke in such a tiny voice that Mo Eunje couldn’t hear what followed “That’s why I…” But even if he had heard it, it was just drunk talk, probably nothing significant. Mo Eunje stroked Tae Igyeol’s broad back with an apologetic touch.
“Igyeol, is your stomach really bad? Do you want to throw up instead?”
“No.”
“Are you okay? Can you stand up?”
“The ground keeps… moving…”
It would probably be better if he closed his eyes, but Tae Igyeol, with his forehead pressed against Mo Eunje’s shoulder, seemed to be looking at the ground with his eyes open. Mo Eunje turned his head toward Tae Igyeol and spoke softly near his ear to avoid making his head throb.
“I’ll support you, want to try standing?”
“Just a moment… Eunje, let’s stay like this for a moment.”
“…”
“I think I’ll feel better that way…”
His voice, with its unclear pronunciation, gradually slowed down. Perhaps they should have just walked slowly home instead of calling a substitute driver, leaving the car behind. Walking in the cool spring night air might have sobered him up a bit and eased his dizziness. Mo Eunje worried that Tae Igyeol would complain of a stomachache tomorrow.
&
His head throbbed painfully. Tae Igyeol frowned as he opened his eyes and habitually turned onto his side. The dignified face that should have been there wasn’t visible. Despite grimacing momentarily at the woodpecker-like headache and looking again, the spot beside him where Mo Eunje should have been sleeping was still empty.
It was the first time since middle school that he’d woken up later than Mo Eunje. On days when they slept together, he always woke up first and had his fill of gazing at that clean face asleep, so he wondered what was going on. Actually, since he started investing in stocks, he’d never woken up after 8 AM except on weekends. He quickly checked the stock market, and seeing no significant issues, closed it with relief.
“Ugh…”
He raised his upper body while pressing his temples. He vaguely remembered the substitute driver arriving yesterday and hazily recalled the process of entering the house, but no matter how hard he tried, he had no memory whatsoever from the moment they entered the front door until he fell asleep.
*You’ve lost it, Tae Igyeol.*
It was the first time in his life that he’d blacked out. He wasn’t originally weak to alcohol—to the point where he suspected his family genes contained alcohol-decomposing DNA—nor had he ever mindlessly drunk until blacking out. Above all, he’d always been careful, extremely careful, not to reveal his suppressed feelings toward Mo Eunje while intoxicated. But blinded by petty jealousy, he had failed to control his pace and drank soju too quickly, resulting in this disaster.
“Haah…”
A sigh escaped involuntarily. Wondering if there might be any clues to help recall his memories, he looked for his phone. It was placed on the side table, connected to the charger. Probably Mo Eunje’s doing. Though he had a somewhat careless disposition, he was also quite attentive.
Ban [Broke up with my girlfriend]
Ban [Don’t ask why, let’s just drink] 12:08 PM
The message had arrived an hour ago. Ban Hajun’s dating and breaking up happened so frequently that it wasn’t even surprising anymore. This time, Tae Igyeol had thought the relationship might last since they’d been dating for 6 months, but it was the same as always. Ban Hajun, who entered relationships easily for trivial reasons, similarly repeated breakups for insignificant reasons.
Eunje [Tae Igyeol completely passed out]
Eunje [I thought my back was going to give out yesterday]
12:13 PM
Eunje [No more alcohol giants for a while]
12:14 PM
Ban [I said I broke up with my girlfriend?]
Ban [How can you say such a harsh thing as no alcohol?]
12:14 PM
Eunje [Just as there is meeting, there is parting]
Eunje [And just as there is parting, there will be new meetings]
Eunje [There’s a reason wise sayings exist]
Eunje [I give it a week at most]
12:14 PM
Mo Eunje really had a way with words, befitting a novelist. Ban Hajun’s longest period as a single person was two weeks, so this level of response was mild. Judging from one unread message, Gye Minho, who had enthusiastically joined in yesterday, seemed to still be passed out.
Below, there was a long string of messages from Ban Hajun about this and that, but Tae Igyeol turned off the phone screen without reading them. There was no need to read more, and the letters seemed to keep moving, making his stomach queasy and further reading impossible.
But there was one message that wouldn’t disappear from his vision:
Eunje [I thought my back was going to give out yesterday]
12:13 PM
It was a sentence that clearly explained how he had been transported from the entrance to the bed when he had lost his memory. He roughly tousled his hair and threw off the blanket. All the clothes he had worn yesterday were removed, and he was only wearing a pair of tight black boxer briefs. This was probably also Mo Eunje’s handiwork.
*Did I vomit or something?*
A rational yet ominous feeling made his spine shiver. But he soon shook his head. No matter how much he drank, Tae Igyeol had never vomited. Rather, he had been the one to pat Mo Eunje’s back a few times when he overdrank.
“Oh? You’re up? I was just about to wake you.”
The door swung open and Mo Eunje entered. He was wearing an H-shaped apron in a bustier style. Mo Eunje only knew how to cook dishes with kimchi as the main ingredient—kimchi stew, kimchi fried rice, kimchi pancakes, kimchi soup, and braised kimchi—so an apron was essential. Already dealing with a rather explicit morning condition, Tae Igyeol subtly pulled the blanket back to cover his lower body.
“Where did you buy this? It’s totally my taste, I thought I bought it myself.”
Mo Eunje had thrown away the previous cream-colored apron because kimchi soup stains wouldn’t come out even after washing, and it seemed he was quite taken with the colorful floral patterned new apron. Up until the moment before payment, Tae Igyeol had considered buying a simple, neat, single-colored apron, focusing only on its purpose, but somehow the image of Mo Eunje in a gaudy, colorful, and flamboyant floral apron kept lingering in his mind, and he couldn’t pass it up.
“I’ll send you the link.”
“Our Igyeol’s taste is becoming more refined. I really thought I had bought it myself.”
It was astounding how even such an incomprehensible and tacky color combination suited Mo Eunje so well. It wasn’t just about having a fair complexion—when dressed in vibrant primary colors, Mo Eunje looked lively; in pastel tones, he appeared intellectual and gentle; and in achromatic, subdued colors, he looked pure and elegant.
“How’s your stomach?”
“Feels like death.”
“You foolish mortal.”
Mo Eunje clicked his tongue and shook his head. It was more of a pitying look than a contemptuous one.
“Just wash up and come out. You need a hangover cure.”
“Umm… But why am I undressed?”
“Well, after you crashed onto the bed, I undressed you to make you more comfortable, but you know, you’re quite big? It was impossible to get pajamas on you.”
Fortunately, it wasn’t the worst reason he’d been worried about.
“I wiped your hands and feet with wet wipes because I know you’d be stressed if you realized you slept without washing.”
Mo Eunje, who seemed like the type to abandon someone passed out on the street without a care, was incredibly considerate at times like this. The thought that he might show this delicate affection to someone other than himself made Tae Igyeol’s eyes roll back in rage, his anger boiling just thinking about it.
“I did my absolute best, even between your toes. So don’t stress about not showering last night.”
“Yeah. Thanks for the effort. I’ll wash up and come out.”
Tae Igyeol gestured for Mo Eunje to leave. Though he would use the bathroom attached to the bedroom, he wanted Mo Eunje to leave so he could remove the blanket without creating an embarrassing situation. It was a completely different issue from just being seen in boxer briefs.
“Come out within 10 minutes. Otherwise, I’m eating first.”
Mo Eunje casually turned around. If he had first chatted about what happened yesterday in detail, Tae Igyeol might have been able to find and loosely piece together the fragments of his blackout memory, but Mo Eunje was unnecessarily considerate and excessively polite, the type who would let things slide.
“Haah…”
Another sigh escaped between Tae Igyeol’s lips. The furrow between his brows deepened at the thought that he might have said something he shouldn’t have or made some mistake.
