“Ah, yes. ‘Until the Day I Confess Again.’ Is that the one you’re looking for?”
“Yes.”
“But you’re unusual. People don’t usually look for unfilmed screenplay manuscripts like this. We only got one copy in too. Actually, we didn’t put it up for sale thinking there’d be no demand, but somehow one copy came in.”
It was information I couldn’t understand at all, but I carefully asked, making sure my voice didn’t tremble.
“…A screenplay manuscript.”
“Yes. An unfilmed screenplay manuscript.”
“Not a web novel?”
“There seems to have been confusion with the section back then. The cover looked like a web novel…. That’s why we put up a photo then, but it was a mistake on our part.”
“Can I take a look at it first?”
“Yes.”
The employee brought the book from the display and handed it to me. The book had the exact same cover as in my memory. In the center of a brightly designed background, the back view of a man was faintly drawn. This picture was Eun Haejin, who was right next to me now, looking at me anxiously. Even though you couldn’t see his face, it was the back view of someone with black hair.
Since the book was wrapped in plastic, I couldn’t open it right away.
“Shall I help you check out?”
“Yes.”
I searched my pockets to pay for the book. But I must have left in a hurry—I didn’t have my wallet. While I was flustered, fumbling in my pockets, a card was suddenly thrust out from beside me.
“Yes. That’s 35,000 won.”
“Thank you.”
After Eun Haejin finished paying on behalf of flustered me, he handed me the book. The price was damn expensive too, of all things.
“Here.”
“…Thanks.”
“Let’s go and you explain.”
I couldn’t give any answer to Eun Haejin’s words. How could I explain when I didn’t even know?
Eun Haejin and I headed straight home. The whole walk home, I didn’t say a word, and Eun Haejin walked silently beside me without trying to make conversation.
As soon as we arrived home, I tore off the plastic wrapping the book and opened it. Since it was a screenplay manuscript, you could immediately see who was speaking. So it was easy to notice the protagonist who made up most of the dialogue—in other words, the owner this script was pointing to.
Kang Seojin (Na.): It was a daily life of repetition. However, even in moments when everything felt meaningless, there was meaning. That summer, I became a broadcast writer.
…It was me.
To be precise, me before I entered Lee Hyun’s body.
“Hey.”
At Eun Haejin’s voice, I quickly looked up. Clear worry was evident in Eun Haejin’s furrowed brow.
“…Are you okay?”
“Huh?”
“I asked if you’re okay.”
“Yeah.”
I checked the book’s author. The author’s pen name hadn’t changed. Is this… really possible? I wanted to contact the author right away, but the author’s personal contact information wasn’t in the book. Instead, it was a system of contacting through the publisher. I immediately sent an inquiry email to the publisher.
Even though I knew I couldn’t check right now, I couldn’t stop refreshing my inbox.
“You crazy bastard!”
Eun Haejin snatched the hand I’d been unconsciously biting. Blood was slowly seeping from my hand. I definitely wasn’t in my right mind. Eun Haejin forcibly snatched the book that had been held in my hand and shoved it into a bag.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but calm down first. Is it something bad?”
“No.”
Eun Haejin just kept looking at me despite my answer.
“It’s really nothing.”
“I’m saying this because you weren’t acting like it was nothing.”
“…Got it. Let’s think about it later.”
Only then did the reason we’d met today vaguely come to mind.
“Congratulations on getting the job.”
“…Ha. Now you say that?”
“Sorry. I really didn’t mean to do this today.”
“Are you really not going to tell me?”
Of all people, I couldn’t tell Eun Haejin. Instead of explaining, I just repeated my apology once more. Eun Haejin looked at me with a complicated expression, then just pulled me into a hug and awkwardly patted my back. He seemed to want to comfort me by patting gently, but all his actions were awkward, making it even a bit funny. It was more similar to patting the back of someone with an upset stomach.
But somehow, I thought that was more like Eun Haejin. I obediently relaxed my body and leaned on Eun Haejin. When I ended up in a position hugged by Eun Haejin, I felt his body flinch, but I didn’t bother to call him out on it.
I could only hear what seemed to be Eun Haejin’s slightly fast heartbeat.
***
After a while, I staggered up, cleaned up the drinking spot, and lay down. I asked Eun Haejin if he wanted to go home, but he refused. I seemed to be in bad shape. Honestly, I was in bad shape, so I didn’t refuse Eun Haejin’s kindness. My room didn’t have anything like a bed—I just laid out blankets to sleep—so it was definitely cramped for two guys who weren’t small to lie side by side.
“Tell me when you can tell me what’s going on.”
“I don’t really know either.”
“What? Whether to tell me or not?”
“No…. What the situation is.”
It would sound like an excuse, but it was the truth. Even after turning off the lights, I kept my eyes open, and I felt a large hand cover my face.
“Sleep.”
Eun Haejin’s hands were white enough to be clearly visible even in the dark room, so I unconsciously thought his hand temperature would be cold, but the hand covering my eyes was actually warm.
There was no novelistic allowance of falling asleep immediately, but as time passed, fortunately my eyes slowly closed. In my sleep, I felt the hand fall away. I couldn’t know how long Eun Haejin had been covering my eyes, but I could guess it had been quite a long time.
***
When I woke up, my mind was a bit clearer. Thinking about it, there was no need to be that urgent. Of course, I wanted to know right away, but separately from that, learning the whole story a day or two earlier wouldn’t change anything. I carefully got up without waking Eun Haejin and took the book out of the bag.
After reading about a third of the book, Eun Haejin woke up.
“…What?”
“You’re up?”
Eun Haejin frowned, then forced his eyes open, discovered me reading the book, buried his face in the pillow, and sighed.
“What are you doing first thing in the morning….”
“Building up mental nourishment.”
At my answer, Eun Haejin raised just his upper body again to check on me and rubbed his face hard with his hands. Sitting up and forcing his eyes open, he asked me.
“You seem a bit better.”
“Huh…? Me?”
“Yeah. Yesterday I really thought you’d gone crazy.”
“I’m totally fine now.”
I turned my eyes back to the book. Honestly, seeing my life written as a scenario was interesting. I’d never thought about looking at my life through a third party’s eyes.
Anyway, did they say this wasn’t released? I think I know why it wasn’t released… Just writing down a person’s life story made it completely uninteresting.
I refreshed my email several times, but there was no reply from the publisher. I roughly folded a piece of paper and stuck it where I’d been reading.
A person who could get me answers from the unresponsive publisher came to mind. It was mainly thanks to my firm belief underlying everything that most things could be solved with money.
Hyung. Do you have any free days this week?
Jung Yoonseo’s reply came about an hour later.
***
Is the purpose food? Or drinks?
To be precise, the purpose was neither food nor drinks but the conversation itself, but…. I thought for a moment, then replied.
Meeting you.
The message was sent and the read receipt appeared, but Jung Yoonseo didn’t reply. Since it was a weekday, he seemed too busy to reply. I stopped staring at my phone and just leaned my head against the wall.
Eun Haejin, who’d watched me spend a full hour getting up, reading the book, and checking my email, stared at me for the first few minutes as if to check my condition, but soon got up and started moving around—showering and cleaning my place on his own. He must have been quite stiff. I knew from experience that Eun Haejin was far superior to me in terms of cleaning, so I didn’t stop him from being so diligent.
“Why’s your fridge like this?”
“Like what?”
“What do you eat?”
“Convenience store….”
At my words, Eun Haejin looked at me as if dumbfounded. No, it’s not like he didn’t know, but of course people who cook every day would say cooking is cheaper, but for guys like me, it was more convenient to just buy food.
