Chapter 3
When Tae Igyeol moved out, Mo Eunje had wanted to help with the move, but since Igyeol had hired professional movers and a cleaning service, he’d ended up just watching—which was disappointing. The cleaning service and moving company did their jobs so well that there wasn’t a speck of dust, and they even arranged the books in order, so there was literally nothing left for him to do.
“Hey, moving stuff is supposed to be done together. What’s the point of having friends? We’re not even just regular friends, are we? We’re second-generation friends. Our moms are friends, our dads are friends, and they’re all alumni of the same university—can’t you help me pack one little move?”
“…I think it’s time we ended our friendship.”
Tae Igyeol plopped down on the bed and shook his head as if disgusted. He placed his palm beside his thigh, leaned his upper body weight on it, crossed his legs, and gestured with his chin as if telling Eunje to hurry up and pack.
“What are you going to do if we end our friendship?”
“Cut you off.”
There wasn’t a trace of hesitation in his ruthless answer. Before Tae Igyeol could leave in a fit of temper, Mo Eunje quickly pulled out a suitcase and opened it in the middle of the room.
“It’ll be quick, just wait a bit. I only need to pack clothes I’ll wear these days and my laptop.”
“What about the rest?”
“Things like books, the desk, and bed will be stored in the moving company’s warehouse until I find an apartment. They said they’ll take care of it tomorrow morning when Mom and Dad’s things are being packed.”
While explaining what he’d learned last night, he pulled clothes from the closet at random and tossed them haphazardly into the open suitcase. He used his foot to stuff in clothes that were spilling out. Even though he only took out short-sleeved t-shirts and sweatpants to wear at home, plus some spring clothes in case he needed to go out, it already looked like one 28-inch suitcase wouldn’t be enough.
Of course, he already had a few sets of sweatpants at Tae Igyeol’s place, so he didn’t necessarily need to bring more, but that would mean having to wash them frequently. Using Tae Igyeol’s huge washing machine—which pursued maximum efficiency in household appliances—for just a few items would be a waste of water and electricity.
“Wait a second. I need to borrow Mom’s suitcase.”
“Hey… Are you kidding me?”
The 193cm tall man stood up, took off his trench coat, folded it neatly, and hung it on the chair. Perhaps because Tae Igyeol suddenly stood up, Mo Eunje felt suffocated even though the room wasn’t particularly small. As Tae Igyeol approached, Mo Eunje instinctively took a step back without even realizing it.
“What are you doing?”
A question flew at Mo Eunje with a skewed glance, as if he found it absurd that Mo Eunje had created distance between them.
“Huh? I’m not doing anything.”
“…You’re always such a high-maintenance bastard.”
Sighing, Tae Igyeol took out all the clothes that Mo Eunje had crumpled and stuffed into the suitcase with his foot. Mo Eunje had anticipated this from the moment they’d talked on the phone yesterday about picking him up. It was comfortable and nice to have Tae Igyeol take care of things like this, even though he pretended it was bothersome.
“If you’re going to do this anyway, it would be so much better if you just agreed with a smile the first time. You always make me call you multiple times.”
“If I agreed right away, you’d misunderstand and think I’m doing it because I want to.”
“Do you ever do anything because you want to, other than trading stocks? We’ve known each other for more than a year or two—I wouldn’t misunderstand even if you agreed right away! I know you’re doing it reluctantly because it’s a hassle.”
“If you know that, then don’t ask in the first place.”
As he started folding each piece of clothing neatly and arranging them with precision, miraculously, the space became more than enough. Even after putting in underwear and socks at the end, there was still some room left.
“Wow. You’ve got magical hands.”
“Bullshit.”
“I’d like to put something more in that remaining space…”
Mo Eunje muttered, looking around the room. Since most of his things were already at Tae Igyeol’s place, it made more sense to put them in storage than to bring them. As he was contemplating what else to add while looking at the bookshelf, a thick forearm suddenly appeared over his shoulder.
“Shit, you scared me!”
When he reflexively turned his body in surprise, their faces were too close. Inadvertently, Tae Igyeol’s breath touched his skin. He was startled by the raw sensation and widened the distance. Unlike the flustered Mo Eunje, Tae Igyeol’s expression plainly showed his exasperation.
“Am I a cockroach? Why are you jumping like that?”
“Hey, at least cockroaches are small! You’re fucking huge. Your face was right in front of me—how could I not be surprised?”
“Aah…”
“Aah? Hey, please say something first. Did common courtesy of warning someone before acting die?”
“Listen to you talking about courtesy. You’re the one who clings to people whenever you feel like it.”
He wanted to make a cool retort and score a point, but it was too accurate to refute. Even normally, Mo Eunje initiated physical contact more than Tae Igyeol. Mo Eunje’s personality was naturally inclined to be clingy with close friends.
Feeling awkward, he fiddled with a perfume bottle, considering whether to bring it. But since Tae Igyeol had the same perfume at his place, and many more varieties, it didn’t seem necessary to bring it.
“Stop fiddling with useless things and pack these.”
What Tae Igyeol handed him were Mo Eunje’s first short story collection Castella and Gumbo, published three years ago with his debut work, his second short story collection Sunday Afternoon, published the following spring, and his first full-length novel Class Villa, published last year.
***
This son who has lost his home loves this apartment so, so much, but being an inevitable filial son to the bone who prioritizes his parents’ happiness, he leaves with tears in his eyes. May you be happy for a long, long time by the sea in Haeundae.
— From your only son, Eunje —
***
Mo Eunje wrote a memo in large letters on A4 paper and attached it to the middle of the glass inner entrance door. Whether Mom or Dad, as soon as they opened the front door, they’d have no choice but to read the text at eye level, whether they wanted to or not.
It felt strange to be saying goodbye to this home—where they’d finally settled after moving from one rental place to another—with just a simple memo like this after living there for sixteen years. Others said that moving was bittersweet, that they felt excited about their new home. Mo Eunje just felt sad and regretful.
But he couldn’t dawdle forever. If he delayed any longer, the guy who was already standing impatiently with his shoes on, looking at him askew, seemed like he’d shoot lasers from his eyes.
“Now we can really go. Let’s hurry.”
Mo Eunje put his laptop, tablet PC, wallet, and phone in an eco-bag, slung it over his shoulder, and put on his shoes.
“Ah, wait. I should pack some shoes too.”
As he was about to go back into the house to get a box for storage, Tae Igyeol grabbed the back of Mo Eunje’s neck with his large hand. Maybe because he had a low body temperature, a cool sensation spread from where his palm wrapped around, giving Mo Eunje goosebumps. He hunched his shoulders, became turtle-necked, and looked up with a protesting gaze, only to see Tae Igyeol looking down with lowered eyes and gesturing with his chin.
Shoes were neatly arranged in a large paper box. Tae Igyeol had packed them while Mo Eunje was showering. Each pair was even placed in a shoe bag. Since he’d never seen such shoe bags in this house, they must have been brought by the ever-prepared Tae Igyeol.
“You already packed everything? Oh my, pretty boy. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
Having escaped the cool grip, Mo Eunje tried to put his arm around the shoulder of the man who was 13.4cm taller than him. Of course, he didn’t succeed since Tae Igyeol shrugged him off.
“Now let’s really go.”
“…Is this all?”
“Hmm. I think so?”
“You now… with only this much luggage, you made me play chauffeur…”
Tae Igyeol couldn’t even finish his sentence, trailing off with a scoff of disbelief at how minimal the luggage was. Since Mo Eunje would only be imposing until he found an apartment, his luggage consisted of just one 28-inch suitcase placed next to Tae Igyeol, the box of shoes they’d just packed, and the eco-bag slung over Mo Eunje’s shoulder.
“That’s what friends are for. We help each other in times like these.”
“What do you mean ‘each other’? I’m the only one unilaterally providing free service here.”
“Right. Thanks, friend. I have no one but you.”
As he opened the front door and went out first, the elevator, which had been called through the intercom, arrived just in time and opened its doors wide. Mo Eunje quickly got on with the shoe box, put it down, and gestured as if to say “hurry up.” Tae Igyeol, who was dragging the suitcase, let out a sigh. After pressing the close button, he pressed B1.
“With this little stuff, you could have just taken a taxi, couldn’t you?”
“Stop being a grumpy giant.”
“Oh man, this is really…”
“It’s not even far, and even though there’s only this little luggage, I’m incredibly, immensely grateful that you came. Every cell in my body is going wild with gratitude for you. Look, can you see my forearm twitching?”
While the elevator numbers rapidly decreased from 31, Mo Eunje extended his arm with a clenched fist. As he tensed and relaxed his fist, his tendons visibly moved. However, Tae Igyeol’s eyes were full of disdain.
“…Whatever. I don’t know why I came all this way for…”
“Honestly, where can you find someone as pretty as me? Look high and low, see if you can find anyone as pretty as me.”
“Well, well. Look at the audacity.”
“You know that’s part of my charm. Oh, wait. Your shoelaces are undone.”
Mo Eunje crouched down and took hold of Tae Igyeol’s shoelaces. If only their shoe sizes were the same, there would have been no need to pack a box of shoes—he could have just shared Tae Igyeol’s shoes. But their shoe sizes were as different as their heights, so that was out of the question.
“Done.”
After neatly finishing with a ribbon knot and tapping the top of his foot, Tae Igyeol subtly extended his other foot as well. Although the laces weren’t yet undone, the knot visibly looked loose. Tae Igyeol was staring down at Mo Eunje’s crown as he neatly tied the laces with his tidy fingers.
“Why have your shoelaces always come undone so often since way back?”
“How would I know? They just come undone by themselves.”
Mo Eunje, who had tied another knot on top of the ribbon, stood up and dusted off his hands. His handsome face was reflected in the elevator mirror. Although he was slightly overshadowed by always being with the masculine, strong-featured Tae Igyeol, Mo Eunje had a cleanly handsome face.
“But you should use the right words. Mom said I’m not so much pretty as outright handsome. And you know that Uncle still asks me every time he sees me if I want to try acting because I have a refined, handsome face? My mom is a plastic surgeon, and your dad is the president of an actor management agency. Both of them have perfectly and completely objective eyes, you know.”
— Basement floor 1. The doors are opening.
Just then, the elevator stopped, and the doors opened. Tae Igyeol acted as if he hadn’t heard a word, completely ignoring Mo Eunje while striding away with the suitcase. As if they weren’t together.
“It’s like a walking fashion spread…”
A whispered comment escaped him, newly impressed that even from behind, this guy was absurdly perfect in both visuals and physique. It was especially noticeable today because he was dressed up. In the meantime, the elevator doors were about to close. Mo Eunje quickly extended one foot and placed it between the closing doors.
“Hey, wait for me!”
His steps were light as he carried the shoe box toward Tae Igyeol.
