Just as Go Eunyeong had said, it was strange that he’d held onto it for so long.
Hyeon himself had forgotten about that day too. At the time, he hadn’t particularly set out to protect Yoon Seowoo, nor had he harbored any special feeling toward him. He’d simply disliked the ugliness that couldn’t coexist with something beautiful, and he’d corrected what was wrong.
And yet his uncle still hadn’t forgotten it — it was enough to stir feelings that hadn’t even existed.
In the end, what he’d done that day had effectively shielded Seowoo from Director Lee Wooseok.
Had it not been for his grandfather’s warning once he learned the full story, there was a strong likelihood that Wooseok would have pursued Seowoo far more relentlessly. In fact, Hyeon found himself wondering whether Wooseok might already know about Blue Giraffe and the child’s existence.
Turning over yet another fragment of the past, Hyeon thought about how strangely intertwined his and Seowoo’s circumstances were.
He couldn’t precisely pinpoint why Seowoo had chosen to have the child on his own without consulting him. But based on the chain of events, he could say with certainty that Seowoo must have decided there was no reason to tell him.
The week that followed was largely one of withdrawal. Hyeon shut himself in one of his studios and did nothing but lie still and let the hours pass. There was nothing particularly pressing to do in Seoul, but he deliberately chose not to return to where Seowoo was. His vision had gone completely dark, and it was harder to bear than before — yet he endured it, stubbornly, in a way that bordered on self-punishment.
Belated anger and hurt, unwanted imaginings and bitterness — they came at him one after another. What unsettled him most of all was that he couldn’t identify the nature of his own feelings, nor the reason for them.
***
[ Turn left in approximately 300 meters. Turn right after the left turn. You are entering a school zone. Please slow to 30 km/h or below. ]
They were on their way back after delivering the finished souvenirs. When the car came to a stop at a light, Seowoo, sitting in the passenger seat, suddenly spoke up.
“Donghyeok, let’s stop by over there for a sec.”
Donghyeok turned his head to look where Seowoo was pointing. It was the largest big-box mart in the area. Seowoo had been rushing him all morning, hounding him relentlessly because the photo shoot with Hyeon had been pushed back due to the delivery schedule. Which made this sudden detour all the more puzzling.
“Why there?”
“I need to buy something.”
Seowoo gave a vague answer and didn’t elaborate. Donghyeok looked at him with suspicion, but figured he must need something and flicked on the turn signal without protest.
Once inside the mart, Seowoo made a beeline for the furniture and home goods section without any hesitation. He walked right past the household items and food sections he usually frequented without so much as a glance, and Donghyeok hustled to keep up. When Seowoo finally stopped in front of the bedding display, Donghyeok narrowed his eyes at him.
Seowoo was fingering the edge of a pure white comforter, examining it with careful attention — his expression and eyes deadly serious. Donghyeok picked up a loud character-print comforter from the rack next to it and called out to him.
“Isn’t this more Dano’s style?”
The comforter covered in animal characters, flowers, and butterflies was remarkably similar to the one they had at home. Seowoo tilted his head to one side like something had short-circuited and gave an awkward little laugh.
“Oh, no, um……that’s not what I’m here for.”
“It’s not?”
“He said he doesn’t like that kind of thing anymore. And I want something nice for myself to sleep under too. It’s spring. Something, something bright and fresh.”
Donghyeok studied Seowoo with the exact same look Seowoo had given Hyeon when he’d bought that pale pink knit.
Seowoo needlessly refolded the white bedding into a neat stack and sidestepped over to pull out a similar product from another brand. Checking the fabric content — pure cotton, organic — and going through the item details with meticulous care was perfectly in character.
“Since when.”
Donghyeok tossed out the comment and asked nothing more. Seowoo quietly let out a small internal sigh of relief.
After picking out the bedding and loading it into the cart, the next stop was the pajama section. This time, Donghyeok’s eyes narrowed for real.
“Okay, what’s going on.”
“What do you mean, what’s going on.”
He answered casually, but his hands got busy for no good reason. He picked up a soft cotton pajama set, then put it back wondering if the color was too loud. Plaid is probably the safe choice. Or actually, maybe stripes are better. The one with the piped collar has a nice, refined feel……
Deep in contemplation over pajamas, Seowoo suddenly felt Donghyeok’s gaze boring into him, and quickly grabbed a children’s pajama set for Dano as well.
“I’m going to have a pajama party with Dano. He said he’s always wanted to do one.”
“Out of nowhere?”
“Yeah, yeah, he probably picked it up from a friend at daycare.”
“Growing up so fast.”
“Right?”
Donghyeok, watching Seowoo’s little performance, picked the largest size from the rack and added it to the cart. It was the same color as the one Seowoo had chosen.
“I’m joining the pajama party too.”
“Oh, yeah. Dano’ll love that.”
“As if I could be left out!”
“Sure, you can sleep over too. Bring snacks.”
“No drinks?”
“As if.”
Using Dano as a convenient cover, Seowoo felt a small prick of guilt on the inside. It wasn’t like he was doing anything reckless, and yet his ears went warm anyway.
‘Unstimulating, comfortable sleep environment’ — even the advertising copy on a product label was looking strange to him now. That was a sign things had gotten serious.
The restless feeling had mostly settled by the time they arrived in front of his house. Seowoo checked the time as he stepped out of the passenger seat. If he threw the new comforter and pajamas in the washing machine now and went to pick up Dano, the timing should work out just right.
Two comforters, pillows, and pajamas — it was quite a load. Donghyeok, having parked the car, and Seowoo each took as much as they could carry and walked toward the Hanok Guesthouse.
Inside the gate, Donghyeok’s mother was standing with four guests who had arrived to check in. Seowoo nudged Donghyeok’s shoulder with a gentle tilt of his body.
“Leave the bags here and go help your mom. I can make a few trips with these.”
“You sure?”
Donghyeok ran over and started hauling the guests’ luggage, and Donghyeok’s mother’s gaze turned to Seowoo.
“Oh, Seowoo. Actually, there’s someone in the annex.”
“Sorry?”
“You know, that……”
Wink, wink. The wink was nothing but ominous. He timidly craned his neck to peer toward the annex — and sure enough, a pair of long legs were stretched out beneath the wooden platform in the front yard. The upper half was hidden behind a pillar, but there was no question it was Hyeon.
Seowoo looked down at the mountain of shopping bags stuffed with comforters and pajamas and bit at his lip. The hesitation was brief. He set the bags down neatly by the gate and walked inside.
Before Seowoo’s footsteps could even be heard, Hyeon’s head turned sharply.
“Aren’t you going to be late picking him up?”
He tapped his watch, and Seowoo reflexively checked the time too.
“I’m not late. I always leave thirty minutes early, so I’ve still got plenty of time.”
“Alright then. Let’s go now.”
“Now? Together?”
“Let’s take a walk. Good thing you’ve got time to spare.”
Seowoo’s eyes flickered slightly. The bags he’d left by the gate flashed through his mind for a moment. There was no one around to take them, so they’d be fine, right?
“Okay, let’s go.”
Seowoo answered as though it was nothing and turned to take the lead. His eyes were pointed forward, but he was so desperate to gauge Hyeon’s expression that he felt his pupils might actually rotate to the back of his head.
As they crossed the courtyard side by side, they ran straight into Donghyeok, who had come back to deal with the bags. Right in front of both of them, Donghyeok tore open the packaging and shook out the brand-new white comforter. Flap, flap — impossible not to look.
Donghyeok spotted Seowoo and gave the white comforter another demonstrative shake.
“I’ll wash all of this and run it through the dryer. Should I just put it in the bedroom?”
The corner of Seowoo’s mouth twitched as he forced it into a smile.
“Oh, um……yeah. That’d be great, thanks.”
Washing the guesthouse linens had always been Donghyeok’s job. He managed the industrial washer and dryer in the main building, and he’d been doing Seowoo’s laundry for him all along too. So this was nothing more than him doing his usual work — perfectly ordinary, nothing to fault.
But Donghyeok didn’t stop there. He rummaged through the rest of the shopping bags and pulled out the bundle of new pajamas.
“I’ll throw these in with the wash while I’m at it.”
Seowoo squeezed his eyes shut right then and there. In that same moment, the scent from Hyeon standing beside him deepened. Sweetly tugging at his shoulder, that scent — Seowoo turned his head without thinking, and found Hyeon’s lips curving slowly into a smile.
“So that’s why you were late.”
“……”
“Did you buy new bedding?”
“Yes, well……it’s spring.”
“Ah.”
Hyeon smiled so deeply his dimples showed, then delivered the final blow.
“Thank you.”
