“That’s strange.”
After thinking for a moment, he decided not to search the desk any further.
If he searched more than this, that would be a bit much.
Having lost his purpose, he didn’t leave the room right away. This time he approached the bed and sat down, stroking Hajin’s head as he slept soundly.
Pretty. Much more so. Looking again, Hajin was prettiest with his original hair color.
He was pretty even without doing anything, so what on earth possessed him to ruin his hair like that? Originally, looking inside Hajin’s head wasn’t exactly easy.
At least deciding to keep the perm reminded him of Hajin’s childhood when he was at his cutest. Until the lower grades of elementary school, Hajin had curly hair, so he stood out wherever he went and was very cute.
Back then he even became a child model for commercials, breaking through fierce competition, so this was absolutely not Yoo Jeongwoo’s subjective view. If he hadn’t stopped Hajin’s parents, the timid child by nature might have lived quite a hard life.
Now his hair wasn’t curly, but Hajin still had a striking appearance. His large, gentle eyes were harmonious with his features, making him pleasant to look at, and his light-pigmented hair created a unique atmosphere.
Seeing curly hair after a long time was nice, but if he said he’d get a perm again next time, he was planning to stop him.
Of course he knew that at twenty he’d long since finished growing, but lately he felt like he’d grown quite a bit. Of course, he also knew this wasn’t something to say while watching a twenty-year-old who went out drinking all the time.
However, at least his sleeping form—the child was exactly the same as when he was young.
His gaze, which held a smile in his throat, moved little by little. Hajin, who had a habit of kicking off his blanket while sleeping, was currently not covered by the blanket but had it crumpled underneath him.
His pajama shirt had ridden up well above his navel, perhaps because he’d tossed and turned severely. Looking at the flat stomach, he frowned.
“How much does he need to eat to get chubby?”
Muttering, he looked down at the area near Hajin’s navel for a moment. With his head tilted, his gaze moved slowly.
He’d definitely fed him until he was full today too, so why was it still the same?
The child ate a surprisingly large amount of food. But he didn’t gain weight proportional to the amount he ate. Even when he was young, only his cheeks were chubby while his limbs were thin, and that seemed to continue.
His gaze, which had been tracing the smooth skin continuing near the navel, gradually moved lower.
The hipbones where the pajama pants hung looked particularly prominent.
“……”
His staring gaze lingered for quite a long time. It was around the time the gaze seemed to have lasted too long.
Swoosh, a large hand grabbed the clothing and pulled it down.
The lowered pajama shirt hem carefully covered the navel and hipbones. After a moment, he coaxed Hajin not to toss and turn while pulling out the crumpled blanket underneath.
The entire process of covering him up to his shoulders afterward was extremely natural and familiar.
“Hajin-ah.”
He asked quietly to the soundly sleeping face.
“So, who is J?”
It was a name he’d seen on the bucket list before. The strange thing was that the name that was definitely there before had disappeared at some point. As if conscious of someone’s gaze.
The moment he’d pulled down the shirt just now, the image of Hajin kissing someone named ‘J’ flashed through his mind. Also the scene of the cheeky baby being curious about more than kissing.
Naturally, his mood was unpleasant. Since he was a cherished younger brother, it was a given that he wouldn’t like whoever the person was, no matter who they were.
So the thought that naturally followed was just who is J, such a question.
The room was quiet and only Hajin’s deeply sleeping breaths continued gently.
He stayed like that for a long while, then quietly turned off the light and closed the door.
***
- Be Careful with Red Ginseng and Wallets
Midterms were over.
Today, when morning classes were canceled, I ate lunch with hyung-nim and entered the cafe across from hyung-nim’s office. It was the very cafe where I’d sat eating donuts after deciding to run away from home before.
I sat by the window, opened my laptop, and opened an assignment file.
“An assignment right after exams end……”
Maybe because it was a weekday afternoon, the cafe was quiet. The shake in the glass was half-remaining, giving off a sweet scent. I’d definitely tried to concentrate, but my eyes kept drifting toward the window.
I didn’t know when I came to this cafe last time, but this seat was like a prime spot in many ways.
I could see the office where hyung-nim worked in the building across the street.
It was a little above my line of sight on the 5th floor. Beyond the glass window, I could see people busily coming and going, and occasionally people moving around with documents. It hadn’t been long since they officially started the law firm, but unlike when I went before, it seemed like they’d hired a few more employees.
I glanced at that scene, then turned my gaze back to the laptop screen.
That’s when it happened.
“Huh……?”
Precisely at hyung-nim’s office window, the blinds covering the inside went up with a swish. The moment I was standing there with my mouth open blankly.
My eyes met hyung-nim’s.
As if our eyes met unexpectedly, hyung-nim, holding a phone in one hand, paused.
‘Hyung-nim!’
I was blank for a moment, then quickly waved my hand. With both hands, as big as possible from my sitting position.
The corners of hyung-nim’s mouth, who had been saying something as if on a call, moved slowly. As always, it was an attractive smile. I was momentarily spellbound.
Wow.
When hyung-nim looked at me and smiled, it felt like the whole world stopped. It felt like there was only hyung-nim and me in the world.
I barely came to my senses and waved my hand once more. And hyung-nim, still with the phone to his ear, also waved his hand slightly.
“Hehe.”
A stupid sound came out on its own. But then hyung-nim’s lips seemed to move a little bigger this time. Could he be talking to me?
What is he saying? It was the moment I narrowed my eyes.
“Your as… signment? Huk.”
I could tell just from the shape of his mouth.
I erased the smile from my lips and quickly looked at the laptop screen. I also ostentatiously placed both hands on the keyboard.
My nose suddenly tickled, so I coughed once with my head lowered.
“Geez, I don’t want to do it.”
Though I quickly straightened my posture thinking that hyung-nim was watching, looking at the laptop screen made me sigh immediately. On one side I had a page from an English literature novel in its original language. I had to write a report about this novel by today.
Just how many more reports do I have to write before graduating?
I hadn’t even finished one semester at university yet, but I felt like I’d already submitted more than five reports. Even though midterms ended last week, an assignment report right away.
I really had to at least pretend to concentrate.
I fixed my gaze on the laptop screen and pressed the keys. There was a tap-tap-tap sound, but not a single line entered my eyes.
But, could it be that hyung-nim raised the blinds on purpose? That thought suddenly occurred to me.
I muttered to myself and a smile leaked out.
“That can’t be.”
Hyung-nim would have only just now realized that this cafe was visible from the office.
After sitting like that for a while, I glanced up at the window again.
But unfortunately, hyung-nim didn’t appear at the window anymore. Only my appearance full of lingering attachment reflected in the window.
I took a sip of the shake and stared at the laptop screen again.
When I pretended to concentrate, the content gradually started to enter my eyes. What a truly amazing thing.
And so I really began to concentrate on the assignment.
My fingers tapped the keyboard, and letters stacked up neatly on the screen.
Of course, sometimes, very occasionally, I looked toward the window.
***
Around 4 PM, my phone vibrated. When I at least pretended to concentrate while being conscious of hyung-nim, I really finished the assignment in just an hour and a half.
Yoo Jeongwoo hyung-nim
I’ll be down in 5 minutes, do you want to wait in the car first?
Yes!
(Emoticon)
After sending an emoticon of a bear saluting, I got up from my seat.
I closed the laptop, gathered my bag and came out, and it was already time for the sunlight to slant.
“Huh?”
Bzz. As soon as I got into hyung-nim’s car, it vibrated again. It was a call from Jeongyeon after a long time. I answered the phone.
“Hello?”
– Ya! Why did you make your account private? The video was deleted too?
“Ah, that, just…… I was embarrassed so I asked a friend to delete it.”
– Ah, if it were me I would have never deleted it. I’d let the followers keep increasing!
“Hey, it didn’t even increase that much.”
Actually, after the video Seyeon uploaded, I had to experience a small commotion, or not quite a commotion, at school for the past few weeks.
It was still ongoing, but it would die down with time, so I was waiting quietly.
