Whatever they were talking about, the woman slapped Baek Sang-eun’s forearm and laughed like shattering sunlight. Baek Sang-eun returned a bright smile. After downing an entire 500ml water bottle, he crumpled it with one hand.
“Is she your nephew’s girlfriend?”
“Is that so?”
“You don’t know either, Sergeant-nim?”
“Am I the type to go around reciting my young nephew’s love life?”
Though he inadvertently scolded, his gaze kept going to Baek Sang-eun and the surf school woman. With her long braided hair and bronze-tanned skin rivaling Baek Sang-eun’s, she had an exotic image. At the sight of the woman naturally touching Baek Sang-eun’s forearm while laughing, Go Seok-jun twisted up one corner of his mouth.
Should I become a second love too?
Startled by the involuntary thought that popped up, Go Seok-jun looked around as if someone might have heard his thoughts. If he’d just stayed still it would’ve been fine, but while needlessly rolling his eyes, he made eye contact with Baek Sang-eun. He smiled brightly and stretched his arm up, waving it in greeting.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah, nothing. Let’s head back.”
My nephew’s having a beautiful romance with a woman his age, I should definitely support him. That’s what’s right as an uncle. Go Seok-jun nodded to himself even though no one had asked.
***
After returning to the substation, Go Seok-jun just waited for the end of his shift. Is it okay to spend time this leisurely? With no work, time passed terribly slowly. When he first saw the wooden plaque hanging behind the chief that read “Crime-Free Village,” he’d sneered, asking where in the world a crime-free village existed, but living here, it couldn’t be better.
The days when he was breathlessly busy with cases of prostitution, drugs, fraud, robbery, and various other incidents seemed distant like a dream. Every time Go Seok-jun complained of boredom, the chief warned him to wait until vacation season, saying dozens of fights broke out daily requiring even the coast guard to intervene. He pointed out that as it was starting to get warm, hadn’t they already gone to the beach today?
Still, if he had to choose between the frantic life in Seoul and his current leisure, Go Seok-jun would pick the former without hesitation. This was what—no sense of fulfillment, no fun. No overtime pay either. There wasn’t even anything to do so time didn’t pass.
Go Seok-jun wanted to go to Seoul—no, he didn’t even hope for Seoul. Even Yongju Police Station would do, or even the provincial police agency would be good. He only schemed about escaping rural substation life. This was a matter of pride.
“Crime-free village, salute!”
The replacement staff arrived one by one, and Seong Daniel, Go Seok-jun, and Lee Ji-yoon also got off work. Forgetting that they’d denounced him over sexual harassment talk, the chief and Lee Ji-yoon even gave Go Seok-jun encouragement to hang in there. Though he didn’t know why he suddenly needed to hang in there, he received the encouragement anyway and drove quickly to Misong Port.
When he opened the gate, the puppy was nowhere to be seen, but a delicious smell wafted through.
A house where the smell of cooking rice drifts. Go Seok-jun expanded his chest greatly and filled his lungs with the air mixed with food smells. It was a smell that reminded him of when he lived with his grandmother. Those days when tiny, young Baek Sang-eun would run toward him with small feet. His chest area tickled.
He’d thought that even approaching his late thirties, his heart wasn’t much different from young people, but seeing all the cells in his body react to the sensations of home, he supposed he had aged after all. His steps naturally quickened with joy.
The incandescent light illuminating the exterior of the main building glowed yellowish. Though it was turned on as lighting, it wasn’t very bright. Baek Sang-eun, sitting perched at the water tap, raised his head.
“Uncle’s here.”
“You’re back?”
Go Seok-jun rubbed his eyes, wondering if this was the same guy he’d seen in broad daylight. Looking again, it was the same guy. He had placed a large pot on a gas burner and was boiling something. As if doing gas-staring instead of fire-staring, he was glaring at that burner.
“What are you making?”
When Go Seok-jun lifted the lid, two abalone the size of a child’s palm bubbled and boiled in the pot. A savory smell spread in all directions as if he’d dissolved soybean paste in it. The radish that had turned transparent from long boiling, tofu soaked in seasoning, and things like zucchini looked neat and tidy.
“You made this?”
“Yes.”
Baek Sang-eun scooped a little broth with a ladle and handed it to Go Seok-jun. While Go Seok-jun tasted it, Baek Sang-eun’s Adam’s apple bobbed greatly. His face asked for a taste evaluation, so he seriously engaged in the critique.
“Mm……”
“Not good? Tastes bad? Too salty? Too bland?”
“Ah, Aunt Bong-seon should be nervous, huh?”
“I caught them. The abalone.”
Baek Sang-eun’s lips curved in a cute arc, enough to slightly push up the baby fat still remaining on his cheeks. When Go Seok-jun burst out laughing with a “Puha!”, Baek Sang-eun pointed at the inside of the pot with his index finger, telling him to look at the abalone more closely. They were so large and plump that it seemed wasteful to just eat them when they’d fetch good money if sold.
“Ah, we need to get our Sang-eun married off quickly.”
“When you become a divorcee, Uncle.”
Though he had no manners, he hit the mark again, so Go Seok-jun placed his hand on his waist and let out an artificial sigh.
“Ha! Is this bastard cursing me now or what?”
“Why would I curse you, Uncle? It’s getting cool now that the sun’s set, so let’s eat outside.”
Baek Sang-eun lightly ignored Go Seok-jun’s antics, spread out a small dining table on the wooden bench, and placed the heavy pot on it with a thunk. Go Seok-jun sat down without even changing his clothes and received the meal.
Side dishes including well-fermented kimchi obtained from somewhere accompanied it. White rice with abalone in a refreshing and spicy stew—it suited Go Seok-jun’s tastes perfectly. It was a meal worth coming home from work for.
This time too, before eating, a camera shutter sound was heard. What the hell kind of pictures is he taking so many of? Was he doing it to send to his girlfriend?
Still, he waited quietly until the photography was finished. His friends his age weren’t the only SNS addicts. Of course, now it’s full of baby photos. It had been ages since Go Seok-jun accessed his own SNS account.
“Why are you taking so many pictures?”
“Just keeping records.”
Go Seok-jun waited for Baek Sang-eun to finish photographing, and Baek Sang-eun waited for Go Seok-jun to pick up his spoon. Unable to catch the timing, they just waited for each other for several minutes before Go Seok-jun cleared his throat with a “Hmm” and picked up his spoon. A dog barked in the distance. It was a peaceful evening at the port.
The white rice cooked in the electric pressure cooker was glossy and delicious. Plus the radish well-soaked in seasoning and the refreshing seafood flavor that seeped out from the abalone. At the meal that suited his taste perfectly, Go Seok-jun even clapped his hands and stuck out his thumb. Though he didn’t know whose kimchi it was, the kimchi fermented with cutlassfish was refreshing.
“Did you make the kimchi too?”
“No. I got it from the president.”
“Who’s the president?”
“The merchants’ association president. President Kang Hae-sook from the Pier Restaurant.”
Even after hearing the name, he couldn’t immediately recall who it was. When he scratched his head, Baek Sang-eun added, “The village head’s wife.” She ran the biggest Korean meal restaurant in Misong Port and had been famous for her skills since long ago.
“Delicious.”
Without much response, Baek Sang-eun took a big spoonful of rice and put it in his mouth. The taste of home after a long time. At that flavor MSG couldn’t imitate, Go Seok-jun’s chest swelled greatly.
His ex-wife, a Seoul native, said she got goosebumps seeing kimchi fermented with fish like cutlassfish or croaker inside. After that, Go Seok-jun only ate kimchi his mother-in-law gave him.
It seemed like he could eat a whole bowl of rice with just the kimchi that had a fermented smell. Even the abalone stew Baek Sang-eun had boiled was excellent.
He stretched his arms behind him and leaned back. Lukewarm wind brushed his nape. His body shivered as the sweat that flowed while eating dried. Feeling like they’d eaten only rice without talking too much as family members, Go Seok-jun intended to make some small talk.
“That woman during the day—is she your girlfriend?”
“Not girlfriend, she’s a part-timer at the shop.”
Baek Sang-eun answered curtly and took the empty bowl, scooping a full ladle and setting it down. Though his stomach was full, seeing the guy’s sincerity, Go Seok-jun picked up his spoon again. The puppy loitered beside them, coveting human food. It was a dog that had already eaten its share of dog food.
“Why? She was pretty. She’s your age.”
“I’m not interested in women.”
Ah. Our Baek Sang-eun who we raised so well became gay. No, maybe he was gay from birth. That’s why he kissed his same-sex uncle on the boat without a care. Go Seok-jun deduced in his own way.
“Ah. I’m not interested in men either.”
He added as if he’d noticed Go Seok-jun was convinced he was gay. Go Seok-jun corrected the thought he’d just had in his head. Our Baek Sang-eun who we raised so well became asexual.
“Haven’t you even dated?”
“No.”
Go Seok-jun looked at Baek Sang-eun with pitying eyes. He hadn’t dated a man, but anyway, how fun is a romantic relationship with sexual tension? He felt sorry for the guy who didn’t know such fun. Date someone, whether man or woman.
“Can’t forget the first love who gave you the doll?”
“Yes.”
“Then dude, why did you tell me to date you? When you say you can’t even forget your first love.”
“……”
“You’re really looking down on your uncle.”
After scolding Baek Sang-eun, he gulped down water. What, is he trying to practice with his pushover uncle before dating his first love?
The atmosphere became tense. Baek Sang-eun also had nothing to say either way, and Go Seok-jun was slightly offended. But what could he do? The lacking guy—while I have him here, I need to educate him strictly to become an adult.
The meal that started when dusk was falling ended only after the sun had completely set. Unlike in the city, the sky was studded with stars as if they’d pour down, and the crescent moon shone brightly.
“Should I clear the table if you’re finished?”
“Let’s clean up together.”
He stopped the guy who had prepared the meal alone and was trying to clean up alone too, and quickly got up. After moving the small dining table to the water tap, they crouched down side by side. After soaking the dishes in a basin full of water, Go Seok-jun handed them to Baek Sang-eun one by one, and Baek Sang-eun scrubbed and washed the dishes with a sponge. Their knuckles kept bumping.
