# Chapter 11
When I arrived for my shift at the PC bang, Manager Cha was there for once.
“Why are you here, manager?”
“I’m the manager, can’t I come here whenever I want?”
“Well… of course you can.”
To be honest, it’s a bit uncomfortable when the manager is around.
“I said we’re having a company dinner today.”
“Huh? That was today?”
“What’s this? Joo Yeomin completely forgot about the company dinner.”
Manager Cha looked at me in disbelief. I was shocked at myself too.
I was the type who would starve myself from lunch in anticipation of eating a lot at company dinners… This is all because I’ve been so preoccupied with Seol Jiho.
Even during lunch today, I was supposed to go to school, but suddenly there was a problem with the water supply and I was completely freaked out.
If I had been alone, I would’ve just washed up roughly at school, but of course Jiho was in the middle of showering when the water cut off, so I had to call the landlord and it was a whole mess.
‘Aren’t you a student living alone?’
‘My friend is staying over temporarily because of some circumstances.’
‘I thought the garbage was increasing lately, and the water bill is higher too. You know if more people live there, you have to pay more for utilities, right?’
As if things would change that much with one more person in that tiny place. The stingy landlord was clearly showing his displeasure.
Even while explaining that Jiho was only staying temporarily and would leave soon, I felt miserable.
“Joo Yeomin, customer’s here. Payment.”
“Ah, yes! That’ll be 1,800 won.”
Manager Cha watched me as I belatedly attended to the customer.
“You’re so out of it. Is something going on at home? Have your parents contacted you?”
I shook my head.
‘Nothing’s wrong at home, it’s just that there’s something at my place… something that shouldn’t be there…’
Soon a wave of customers arrived and I got busy again. During a brief lull in work, I checked my phone.
There was a message from Jiho from an hour ago.
[Sundoli: When do you get off work?]
[Sundoli: What should we eat for dinner?]
[I have a company dinner today]
As soon as I sent my reply, the “1” notification disappeared at frightening speed. Is he just staring at his phone at home?
But he barely looked at his phone when he was at my place. I’d almost stepped on it more than once as it lay on the floor. I was so worried about accidentally breaking his new phone.
[Sundoli: Company dinner? With who?]
[With the manager and other part-timers]
[Sundoli: Then what about me ㅠㅠ]
Can’t I go to a company dinner without considering Seol Jiho? Or does he want to join the dinner too?
But that’s absolutely out of the question. He’d make a scene like he did when I ate with Taeyang last time.
Just imagining it made my blood pressure rise.
[There’s food in the refrigerator, help yourself]
[Sundoli: What time will you be back?]
[I don’t know]
[Sundoli: Come back soon]
Why should I? No way. I’m going to eat until I burst!
[Sundoli: Or should I come pick you up after your dinner ends?]
I sent a short reply.
[I’ll come home by myself]
Manager Cha openly watched me texting. Feeling his gaze, I made a disgusted expression.
“Why are you looking at my phone?”
“You just looked so serious.”
Manager Cha seemed embarrassed. Then he suddenly counterattacked.
“Joo Yeomin, are you dating someone?”
“…”
If only it were that… I wouldn’t feel so wronged. If I was getting scolded for being distracted by romance during work hours, I’d gladly take that criticism.
But my fresh youthful days were filled with part-time work, school, and cleaning up after Seol Jiho—24 hours a day wasn’t enough.
“What dating? When do I have time to date?”
“Saying you don’t have time for dating is just an excuse.”
“I don’t have money, and I don’t have the will either.”
Despite his young age, Yeomin had quite a pessimistic side. A personality without any romance or idealism.
Manager Cha corrected him.
“It’s not that. It’s just that you haven’t met the right person. Time and money aren’t problems when you find someone you want to date.”
Here we go with the lecturing. Yeomin pouted.
I haven’t met that kind of person until now, so who’s to guarantee I’ll meet them in the future?
Yeomin wasn’t expecting anything at all.
* * *
The company dinner was at a sushi restaurant near the university. The two part-timers’ eyes widened at the expensive menu items that were hard to eat except at company dinners.
Manager Cha was cool about opening his wallet without hesitation.
And he was equally unhesitant about making us drink.
“Thanks for your hard work, drink up everyone.”
“Yes, sir!”
Of course, Yeomin had never turned down free alcohol either. I mentioned before that I like free food and free drinks, right?
Yeomin gulped down the beer and soju mixture.
“Ahh—”
The alcohol tasted so sweet. It was like the day’s fatigue was being washed away with the fizzy carbonation.
“Thank you for the meal!”
“Order more if you want anything else.”
“Then I’ll have the steamed octopus and seafood pancake.”
“As expected, Yeomin is great at ordering.”
Yeomin decided to go all out today. Nobody can stop me! He proceeded to stuff his mouth with sashimi washed down with alcohol.
“Chew and swallow properly.”
Even with the warning from beside him, Yeomin kept putting two or three pieces of sashimi in his mouth at once. Wrapping it was a luxury. Sashimi is meant to be eaten only with soy sauce.
While Yeomin was eating passionately like a competitive eater, his phone kept ringing endlessly.
There was no need to check who it was.
‘Must be Seol Jiho. I wondered why it was so quiet.’
He didn’t bother checking the messages. Actually, he tried not to check, but the content appeared in the pop-up notification so he couldn’t help seeing it.
[Sundoli: I cut my finger while using a knife]
[Sundoli: I’m hurt, when are you coming home?]
[Sundoli: I think I need to go to the hospital]
There was even a picture of the injured finger in the chat. It was just a small cut with a bit of blood. Actually, at first glance, Yeomin thought it was chili sauce.
Yeomin interrogated him via message.
[Why were you using a knife? What were you trying to cut?]
[Sundoli: Tofu]
‘How can you get hurt like this cutting tofu? Did you think your finger was tofu?’
Still, Yeomin was a little impressed that Jiho had taken tofu out of the refrigerator and was using utensils to try to cook and eat.
It was just yesterday that he annoyed Yeomin by eating ramen dry because he was too lazy to boil it.
‘It’s not like his finger was cut off or anything…’
Yeomin coolly replied:
[There’s probably no medicine at home]
[They sell medicine at the convenience store, use first aid]
It looked like the kind of cut that would stop bleeding if you just pressed a tissue on it for a while… But well, he is the precious bloodline of the Ian Group.
[Sundoli: Come and do it for me, hyung]
[I don’t know when I’ll be home]
[You want to wait until then?]
Then Jiho went silent.
‘Is he sulking?’
But dealing with a sulking guy wasn’t as important as the rare sashimi in front of him. The seafood pancake that arrived just then was enough to distract Yeomin’s attention.
Manager Cha, now in high spirits, suggested:
“After we finish this first round, how about chicken and beer at Yeomin’s place for round two?”
“No way.”
Yeomin rejected the idea in a split second. Normally, he would have immediately shouted “Deal!” at the mention of chicken and beer.
“Why not?”
“Anyway, my place is off-limits.”
“Be honest, Joo Yeomin. What are you hiding at home? There’s something there, right?”
“There’s nothing.”
Yeomin ignored him and tore off a piece of pancake to eat.
Actually, there is. There’s something quite tremendous at home… A very troublesome burden who whines about cutting his finger a little, who needs more attention than Sundoli the dog.
Maintaining his poker face, Manager Cha filled Yeomin’s glass again, saying, “Then you wouldn’t mind if we went over anytime?”
“Of course not.”
Yeomin didn’t refuse and accepted the drink readily. Instead of having chicken and beer at Yeomin’s place for the second round, they went to a beer place right next door.
With clam soup and spicy sea snail noodles that Yeomin loved. His stomach felt like it was about to burst.
The generous Manager Cha packed a chicken for Yeomin when they parted ways.
“Eat it tomorrow or whenever.”
“Thank youuuu!”
Yeomin even gave a deep bow on the street. He was too drunk to feel embarrassed. Manager Cha, equally drunk, called a driver and left.
After the other part-timer Mingyu left too, Yeomin trudged toward his studio apartment. The weight of the chicken in his hands felt good.
‘Seol Jiho will like this.’
It was like the feeling of a breadwinner coming home with chicken that his child loves… though it wasn’t bought with his own money.
As Yeomin climbed the hill with drunken steps, he stopped abruptly in front of the convenience store near his home.
[Sundoli: Come and do it for me, hyung]
Come to think of it, Seol Jiho said he was hurt. I told him to go to the convenience store and buy medicine, but there’s no way he listened to me.
Yeomin was drawn into the convenience store as if pulled by some force.
“Where’s the ointment and bandages?”
“On the shelf at the far end.”
He must be quite drunk because the letters looked like wiggling worms. Yeomin could feel the convenience store clerk watching him cautiously.
Yeomin fumbled around and grabbed something that looked like ointment.
‘Ah, I need bandages too!’
Yeomin also grabbed a rectangular box that came to hand and went to the counter.
“I’ll pay for these.”
“That’ll be 11,500 won.”
Yeomin took out his debit card to pay and carefully gathered the bag. As he was leaving the convenience store, he bumped into the umbrella stand and apologized to no one.
“Oops, sorry…”
The ground seemed to be swaying and felt soft, which made him realize how drunk he was. It had been a while since he’d been this drunk, which actually made him feel good.
“Hehe…”
Laughing meaninglessly and walking like a drunk, Yeomin tripped over his own shoelace. Or rather, he almost tripped.
“Whoa!”
He should have felt the hard surface of the ground, but… what’s this? Feeling his arm being pulled, Yeomin reflexively turned his head.
His wrist hurt from being caught by someone’s hand.
“You should be careful.”
“…Seol Jiho?”
His blurry vision gradually became clear, and a pale face came into view.
It was Jiho, with his hood pulled over his head.
