“Euiju-ssi. What’s with the glasses?”
Gu Seungjin, who was in charge of Haeseong’s acting instruction, held out a vending machine coffee to Euiju. Euiju received it and smiled awkwardly.
“Do they not suit me?”
“No. It’s not that, but you look quite different.”
As if curious about the uncommon image transformation, Gu Seungjin’s gaze slowly scanned Euiju’s face. Euiju smiled awkwardly and turned his head to avoid his gaze.
Actually, he was wearing glasses to hide the swelling of his eyes, but it seemed there was no particular change in other people’s eyes. Seeing how everyone he met only asked about the glasses and didn’t notice the swollen eyes at all.
Since Euiju originally had good resilience, he quickly returned to his usual condition. However, he wore glasses because there seemed to be no way to hide the swelling of his eyes that had discharged tears full of salt, but it turned out to be a futile effort.
Euiju, who had sobbed and squeezed out tears in Euiyeon’s arms, had to make continuous efforts not to let his siblings, who were clinging to him more than usual, see his swollen face. He made efforts not to cause his siblings worry, such as deliberately exaggerating his movements while playing with them or playing tag wearing a strange mask.
Because he absolutely didn’t want to instill worry in the children.
Euiju, who had taken a sip of coffee, asked calmly.
“So, how does it look to you today?”
Haeseong was memorizing the script while lying sprawled on the sofa placed in one corner of the practice room. With one foot placed on top of his knee, wiggling his ankle back and forth, he looked thoroughly relaxed and indolent.
Even when they first met, his baby-faced appearance hadn’t disappeared, so he looked like he was standing at the boundary between child and teenager. Since he was small in height and had delicate features, there were quite a few times when others mistook Haeseong for a girl.
However, now it was not like that at all.
Since Euiju had already been working for nearly five months, and recently his skeleton and height had grown a lot and his bones had thickened, he now looked unmistakably like a male high school student. As his food intake had also increased significantly, his growth rate had become ridiculously fast.
Gu Seungjin, who had been staring at such a Haeseong, shook his head.
“Well, he’s improving every week, but… in my view, it still seems like he’s walking in place. The date strategy the director thought of was such a good idea, but it’s a shame how it turned out. It’s an age when he should be very interested in girls, and there are so many pretty girls around, but he acts like a block of wood.”
“……”
“Right. Now that I think about it, it’s funny. When the kid hates physical contact itself like that, what progress could there be just because he’s dating? Anyway, he’s a peculiar one.”
“Haha…… Ah, I suppose so?”
If he said that Jin Haeseong, who was like a block of wood, had roamed all over the house hugging Euiju’s waist before coming to the company, would Gu Seungjin believe him?
When he cooked for him because he said he wanted to eat the green onion ramen he’d made before, how annoyingly he clung to him. To the extent that it was more comfortable to cook while holding Roun in one hand, Haeseong terribly annoyed Euiju.
—Haeseong-ah. Move over a bit. Ahjussi is dying of heat.
—I’m not hot though.
—…….
Euiju, recalling the morning’s events, laughed as if embarrassed and gulped down his coffee.
“It’s the month after next, right? When filming for <A Languid Summer Afternoon> starts.”
At Euiju’s question, Gu Seungjin nodded.
“That’s true, but for now, today we’re practicing for the short drama that will start filming next week. Anyway, if you just take out the romance, the kid is incredibly enthusiastic and does well. Oh right, Euiju-ssi is also going down to Jeju Island together, right?”
“Yes. But I have circumstances, so I think I’ll go down about two days late.”
“…Oh my. Does Haeseong know that too?”
“Ah. No. I haven’t told him yet……”
Now rumors were rampant in the company that, beyond Haeseong following Euiju well, he only listened to Euiju’s words.
Above all, the staff didn’t welcome Euiju’s days off. Jin Haeseong was Jin Haeseong. Though it had decreased compared to before, without Euiju he became more sensitive and ferocious. The staff who stayed right next to him had no choice but to feel it firsthand.
“There’ll be another commotion. It’s really pitiful who will have to handle those two days.”
“Haha……”
Euiju smiled awkwardly and crumpled the empty paper cup.
After finishing about three hours of practice, they returned to Haeseong’s house. At Haeseong’s request that he wanted to eat beef, Euiju had ordered items in advance, and as soon as they arrived home, he grilled the meat deliciously for him.
While they were spending such a harmonious time, Haeseong, who had been silently staring at Euiju’s face, suddenly jumped up from his seat and approached closely. He suddenly grabbed the wrist of Euiju, who was roughly clearing away the dishes.
“Haeseong-ah. What……”
“I really tried not to ask. But I’m so curious I can’t stand it.”
At Haeseong’s sudden action, Euiju just blinked his eyes as if flustered.
“What?”
“Take off your glasses.”
“……”
As if frustrated by Euiju staying still, Haeseong reached out his hand and removed Euiju’s round glasses. Thanks to that, Euiju’s bare face was fully revealed.
“Did you cry?”
“N-no?”
“Then why are your eyes like this? They’ve been swollen since this morning.”
Haeseong’s thumb carefully swept over Euiju’s plump eyelids that were slightly swollen to a degree others wouldn’t notice. Thanks to that, Euiju ended up inadvertently winking.
‘…What?’
Was it because their eye levels had become roughly similar now? Even though it was a simple action, Haeseong suddenly seemed mature. Moreover, since only Haeseong had noticed the subtle change that no one had recognized all day long despite going around, it felt even more so.
He was just a kid he saw every day, but it felt like he had suddenly grown up. Euiju, who had become awkwardly self-conscious at the strange feeling, pushed Haeseong away awkwardly.
“Sometimes when my condition isn’t good, they swell. I guess today is one of those days.”
Euiju, who had made up a rough excuse, pulled out his caught wrist and began clearing away the dishes. Haeseong followed behind such an Euiju.
“Then don’t go home today. Your body isn’t well either, and if you go home you’ll suffer terribly again.”
“What? Suffer terribly?”
Euiju’s laughter burst out at the absurd words Haeseong had uttered.
To call merely doing housework or playing with his siblings suffering terribly. He couldn’t help but laugh since the very person who truly made him suffer was saying such things.
Of course, being with Haeseong itself had become very comfortable, but with his grown bulk, the level of him clinging to him was even more than Roun, and how much he called him over even the smallest things. If it was suffering terribly, being with Haeseong deserved to be called more of terrible suffering.
Euiju, who had playfully ruffled Haeseong’s hair, said with a laugh.
“The Jeju Island business trip is in a little while. I’ll be away for several more days, so until then I should go home diligently.”
Since they were words he couldn’t particularly refute, Haeseong’s lower lip stuck out in a pout. Seeing that, Euiju burst into laughter once more.
“Then I’m going. See you tomorrow!”
Even while making a sulky expression, Haeseong came out to see Euiju off all the way to the entrance. Euiju patted his shoulder and left the house without lingering.
After calling a taxi, just before getting in, Euiju stopped his movement with an “ah.”
“Ah, right.”
‘I didn’t tell him I can’t go down together.’
Haeseong had been looking forward to the schedule in Jeju Island very much, knowingly or unknowingly. Haeseong, who was deeply jealous, very much liked days when he monopolized Euiju.
If they went down to Jeju Island, he could monopolize Euiju alone for about a week without being disturbed by people around him, so anyone could see he was excited. Because of that, it was difficult to bring it up each time.
Still, he had definitely intended to tell him today……
Euiju, who had been standing in place for a while, turned around and looked up at the tall building. He looked at the top floor where Haeseong would be.
“…Well, it’ll be fine if I tell him tomorrow.”
For now, since Roun was desperately waiting for him to come, he put the thought aside. Euiju quickly got into the taxi.
***
The short drama <Basalt> was a drama whose main characters were a boy living in a quiet seaside village and the golden retriever that always followed him. The dog ‘Wood’, who had been abandoned by a tourist who came to play in Jeju and had been wandering around the beach starving, is coincidentally saved by meeting ‘Taeyang’. Taeyang was a boy who didn’t particularly like dogs due to bad memories from childhood. However, after experiencing Wood’s blind affection, he eventually opens his heart. ‘Wood’ with the wound of being abandoned, ‘Taeyang’ who has many wounds and doesn’t easily open his heart. It was a warm and heartwarming short drama that captured the process of the two becoming family.
Although his body had grown considerably, his face still had a youthful aura, so Jin Haeseong was fully suitable for the role of the boy ‘Taeyang’ full of refreshing charm, and his still beautiful looks matched perfectly with the setting of Jeju Island.
Jin Haeseong, who took on the role of ‘Taeyang’ full of refreshing boyish charm.
Such a person had a frightening face as if he would kill anyone who got in his way. To the extent that anyone seeing it would feel their hair stand on end.
“At this rate we’ll be late for the flight, Haeseong-ah!”
“……”
Kim Jaeho opened the van door and urged Haeseong. The arm freed from the cast was now perfectly healed, and with that arm, Haeseong stood with his arms calmly crossed, sharply glaring at the figure sitting in the driver’s seat. Only Kim Jaeho was anxiously stamping his feet outside the door.
“Traitor.”
At those words, Euiju let out a troubled laugh.
