Chapter 68: The Sea
Kang Dohyuk was suddenly standing right beside them.
“Is the meeting already over?” Director Choi asked, immediately rising from his seat. Instead of answering him, Dohyuk just stared down at Yeon. Yeon also stood up awkwardly, and Dohyuk’s fixed gaze followed him upward. A faint wrinkle appeared between his brows, as if something displeased him.
“You can go home now,” Dohyuk said to Director Choi while still looking at Yeon.
“Pardon?”
Director Choi asked in rare surprise. It was only 5 PM, so the instruction to go home was bewildering.
“Leave your car keys.”
Dohyuk held out his hand to Director Choi. Though confused, Director Choi obediently placed the car keys in Dohyuk’s palm.
“I’ll contact you if needed, so don’t call unless it’s urgent.”
In simple terms, he was telling him not to interfere. Director Choi excused himself and left the café.
“Is there anywhere you want to go?”
At Dohyuk’s question, Yeon just blinked with a blank expression. Watching him, Dohyuk let out a small sigh.
“It was stupid of me to ask. You probably don’t know many places anyway.”
“Why suddenly…”
“Does the reason matter?”
No one had ever asked Yeon if there was somewhere he wanted to go. He had always stayed within Muryeong, only venturing outside for assignments. During assignments, he followed his clients’ movements, and when the assignment ended, he had to return to Muryeong.
So even when asked where he wanted to go, it was difficult to answer. As Dohyuk said, he didn’t know any places, nor could he think of any.
“If there’s nowhere, I’ll decide myself…”
“The sea.”
The words popped out before he realized. And he immediately regretted it. The sea… It wasn’t a short distance to travel casually.
“The sea?”
Dohyuk repeated, seeming surprised. His eyebrows furrowed slightly, probably thinking that whether it was the East Sea or the West Sea, the travel time would be considerable.
“No, forget it. Pretend you didn’t hear that.”
Why had “the sea” suddenly come out? Embarrassed, Yeon walked past Dohyuk and left the café. But Dohyuk immediately followed and grabbed his arm.
“Let’s go.”
When Yeon turned to look, there was a faint smile on his lips.
“I said let’s go. To the sea.”
After this casual remark, he walked to where the car was parked, still holding Yeon’s arm.
“Get in.”
He opened the passenger door, and Yeon obediently got in, but watching Dohyuk walk around the hood to the driver’s seat felt strange.
“You’re driving yourself?”
Yeon had never seen Dohyuk drive before. For company business, there was always a chauffeur, and when there wasn’t, Director Choi would drive.
“You can’t drive, can you?”
Dohyuk started the engine and operated the gear as if no further explanation was needed. The car began to move more smoothly than expected.
“Judging by your expression, you thought I didn’t even have a license.”
“No, that’s not it…”
It’s just that you seemed so used to being served by others. Yeon swallowed the rest of his words.
The past and present were different. Even though the current Kang Dohyuk was in a position to rule over others, unlike the past, he had no servants or subordinates attending to him. Director Choi served Dohyuk, but he was just an employee who could quit at any time. This realization struck Yeon as oddly fresh.
“It just seems different,” Yeon finally said, feeling Dohyuk’s stare. But Dohyuk still didn’t understand what he meant.
Perhaps he was trapped in memories of the past, unable to see the present clearly.
Yeon looked down at the red thread tied around his hand. He had seen this red thread so many times in his past life that he naturally thought the thread intertwined now had continued from his previous life. Even while constantly reminding himself that Kang Dohyuk was different from the man in his memories, he hadn’t completely separated them.
But maybe they were different. Even if the man from his past life was Kang Dohyuk, wouldn’t it be correct to say they were different people, living in completely different times with different lives? And if they were different people, couldn’t the result at the end of this thread be different too?
He chuckled inadvertently at the thought. So this is how he had always held hope. That things would be different this time, that maybe this time it would be okay… Repeating the same mistake each time.
“Don’t tell me you’ve never been to the sea?”
“That’s right.”
Yeon answered casually, his gaze fixed out the window at Dohyuk’s question.
“Since there didn’t seem to be a TV at Muryeong, does that mean you’ve never even seen the sea? That’s incredible in this day and age.”
Dohyuk clicked his tongue in disbelief. Yeon didn’t respond. He hadn’t seen it in this life. Not once since birth had he seen or visited it, but he knew well what the sea was like.
The cold sea breeze had frozen his cheeks. It was a winter that chilled to the bone. But the warmth embracing him from behind made the cold imperceptible. The sound of waves made it hard to hear his voice. When he turned his head, he could see his face. He seemed to be smiling happily, but the sound of his laughter wasn’t audible. Only his expression was vividly etched like a photograph.
The sea Yeon remembered was from his previous life, not this one. It was the only peaceful and warm memory. It was so different from his other memories that he sometimes wondered if it wasn’t a memory at all, but an illusion created by wishful thinking.
That must have been why the sea came to mind when asked where he wanted to go.
Turning his head, Yeon could see Dohyuk’s profile as he faced forward while driving. What would this person be like at the sea? Would he smile warmly like in his memories?
Warmly… a word that didn’t fit Kang Dohyuk at all. But that man had been like that too. Although he was usually far from warm, there were times when he was gentle to Yeon.
Lately, Yeon had been overlapping Kang Dohyuk with the man from his past more and more. He found himself the hardest to understand. What did he intend to do with Kang Dohyuk going forward? If he could safely sever his ill-fated connection, would he know the answer then?
The future still felt stifling, like it was shrouded in fog.
“Don’t think idle thoughts.”
Perhaps because Yeon was blankly staring at him, Dohyuk warned in a cold voice. Yeon wondered what he meant, then realized Dohyuk was warning him not to touch the ill fate while he was driving.
It was truly incomprehensible.
“Wouldn’t it benefit you if your ill fate were severed? It doesn’t really matter whether bad energy seeps into me or not.”
Considering Dohyuk’s business methods, it was even more puzzling. A man who would exploit even the weaknesses of others for his gain—why would he forbid only this?
“Well. Does disliking something need a reason?”
“But it’s not like you’d be harmed, right?”
“I know. The problem is that I still don’t want it.”
It was frustrating trying to persuade someone acting stubbornly without reason, like a child.
“It’s strange. You’re the one who would be harmed, not me, yet I don’t want that.”
Dohyuk muttered, seemingly unable to understand himself.
“Anyway, you’re no longer by my side on an assignment, so give it up.”
“Then why keep me by your side?”
If he couldn’t use his abilities as a shaman, he was of no help to Dohyuk. If anything, he would just be troublesome and cumbersome.
“I’m curious about that too. Why do I feel at ease with you by my side?”
With the conversation circling back to the same point without an answer, Yeon sighed and turned his head to the window.
“Just sleep quietly. It’ll take about 3 hours to get there.”
After checking the time on the navigation system, Dohyuk advised Yeon to sleep rather than trying to sever the ill fate. Three hours. It was a long drive. Still, he didn’t feel sleepy. His mind and heart were too complicated.
***
The sea began to appear through the window. Due to the setting sun, the horizon wasn’t visible, but thanks to the lights on the fishing boats floating on the water, it was clear where the sea was. Although Yeon had said he wanted to go to the sea, until they actually departed, he’d thought it was a silly thing to say and hadn’t felt any anticipation. But now, as the smell of the sea breeze entered through the wide-open window, he felt excited.
After parking in the beachfront parking lot, Dohyuk went to a convenience store and bought warm canned coffee. He tossed a can to Yeon, who was waiting in front of the car, then walked toward the sea. Yeon silently followed behind.
As the asphalt ground changed to sandy beach, his feet sank with each step. Familiar with mountains but unfamiliar with beaches, Yeon’s body wobbled with each step. Watching this, Dohyuk raised the corner of his mouth as if amused.
“If it’s too hard to walk, take off your shoes. It’ll be easier.”
Following Dohyuk’s advice, Yeon took off his sneakers and stood barefoot. After a few steps, he found it was indeed much easier barefoot. Swoosh—a strong wave surged up to where Yeon was standing. His feet were submerged, then revealed again as the wave receded. Since his feet were already wet, he took a few more steps toward the sea. With each incoming and outgoing wave, his ankles were submerged.
Forgetting that the hem of his pants was getting wet, he was absorbed in the sensation of water and sand sliding away. He couldn’t take his eyes off the white waves rising on the pitch-black sea.
“It would have been better if we’d come during the day.”
At the sound of Dohyuk’s voice, Yeon turned to look at him and felt his heart pound. Kang Dohyuk was smiling. Yeon had seen him smile a few times before, but those were always closer to sneers. However, the smile on his face now was much gentler and felt more affectionate.
Was he confusing memory with reality? There was no way Kang Dohyuk would look at him with such eyes.
As Yeon stood still, unable to take his eyes off him, Dohyuk stepped forward toward him. He didn’t care about his expensive shoes and suit getting wet.
“How should I…”
He muttered in a low voice as he leaned in, lowering his head. Yeon knew what he was going to do but couldn’t avoid it. No, he didn’t want to avoid it.
“Make you smile like you did earlier.”
His lips touched Yeon’s. They seemed to brush and withdraw, but then drew close again, enveloping Yeon’s lips completely.
