Of course, breaking the rules just once wouldn’t create that much karma, but since the only thing supporting Eunha’s daily life was Eunha’s willpower alone, it was better not to give any leeway from the start.
“Oh. You’re here, boss.”
“Yeah. Hi.”
After parking and entering the café, Jeongho greeted him as always. He had been mopping the floor with a mop and made a tearful face.
“That troublemaker customer from opening time came again today.”
“Ah. The old man who asks you to open the door?”
“Yes. Ah, seriously. He kept banging on the door asking for just one cup of coffee, saying it’ll only take a moment, yelling and making a fuss outside, so I’ve been stressed since morning……. I did my best to appease him and send him away though.”
“It’s impressive that you managed to appease him and send him away again.”
“I can’t get angry with him. He’s an elderly person.”
“I told you. I don’t care. If he acts like a dog, just act like a dog too.”
“What if he leaves a bad review? What if there are rumors that the part-timer has no manners?”
“It’s my store. I said I’m fine with it.”
“It’s precisely because it’s your store that I can’t do that.”
Saying pleasant things, Jeongho wiggled his shoulders sulkily. How cute. He was really good at social life. Even in the midst of fatigue, a smile quickly formed. Showing a faint smile, he began to head up to the second floor.
“Call me if you’re busy.”
“Yes.”
Climbing the stairs and arriving at the terrace, Eunha looked at the neighborhood spread out beyond the railing for a moment before moving. He familiarly crouched down in front of the space lined with large pots. After carefully checking their conditions first, he went over the things he needed to do today one by one, and also added new parts that needed to be taken care of, storing them in his head.
Bringing management tools from the storage and taking care of his to-do list one by one, Eunha suddenly drooped, limply bending his neck while still in a crouching position. Perhaps because he hadn’t slept well for several days, his physical condition wasn’t good at all. He had no energy and his eyes hurt. His head felt hazy as if the inside was completely empty. There would be several solutions. Alcohol, medication, sex.
He didn’t want to rely on alcohol if possible, and although he had prescribed medication, he was as reluctant about it as alcohol because of the side effects.
Actually, it’s a simple story. It would be quickly resolved if he acted as usual. He could grab just anyone and go to a hotel or officetel and roll around. After that, sleep would pour over him like a lie. He wanted to do that. He wanted to turn on his phone right now and contact anyone. He wanted to be frantically pounded. He wished someone would bind his entire body hotly.
Yeonjun’s face suddenly came to mind. Clean pupils filled with different colors. A gaze focused straight ahead. The resonance of the voice calling him hyung. The warmth transmitted through his wrist.
That face that couldn’t hide his inner feelings of being happy just because they got to meet a few more times.
……How could he do that while leaving that kid behind? It wasn’t like he couldn’t do it if he wanted to, but he still really didn’t feel like it. It probably wouldn’t be right to him either.
Who should he blame? His thought was to quickly clear his karma. He quietly raised his head to receive more of the warmly shining sunlight. Still, being outside like this and receiving fresh sunlight seemed to ease his fatigue a little.
The world’s noises transmitted through the air. In the midst of that, embracing his knees, Eunha enjoyed the peaceful time for a while before continuing his tasks leisurely again. Then when his limbs became stiff, he stood up from his spot.
It was when he was moving his body to stretch. Eunha casually turned around and gasped at the unexpected scene. He squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his chest with both hands. Because he was so startled. His heart that had dropped with a thud was beating rapidly.
When he calmed down and opened his eyes, the scene was similar. Yeonjun was sitting at a nearby table seat. With his chair turned toward Eunha, with a notebook placed on top of his folded leg.
The one who had been leisurely there opened his eyes wide toward Eunha.
“You startled me.”
“I’m sorry. You seemed to be concentrating.”
“……”
“I didn’t want to disturb you……”
He raised his eyebrows as if he hadn’t known his heart would come out as if it was about to fall. Thanks to that, Eunha, who had reflexively tried to shoot a remark at him, had to swallow his words back. Because he wondered what he could say. He was even younger than Jeongho, who was cute like a puppy. He only let out a light sigh.
“When did you get here?”
“A little while ago.”
“…What’s that?”
When he gestured with his eyes at the notebook placed on the thigh of his folded leg, Yeonjun, who said “Ah” and twirled the pencil at his fingertips, looked up at Eunha with very clear eyes.
“Can I draw you, hyung?”
“It seems like you were already drawing.”
“I’ll draw you prettily and give it to you.”
It was a tone exactly like he was addressing a customer. I didn’t order anything though.
“Is it not okay?”
“…Do as you like.”
An answer came out automatically at the pitiful-sounding question. Well. It probably didn’t matter either way. Yeonjun showed a slight eye smile as if responding, then lowered his gaze. He began to sketch something on the notebook.
Watching that face concentrating while gradually losing its smile, Eunha suddenly felt confused. But, why is he infiltrating so naturally like this?
He said he’d give him a few more meetings like yesterday, but he never said he’d spend daily life together. He couldn’t find the timing to chase him away and it just flowed past like water.
Is this right? Should this also count as that date? Eunha, who had been puzzled, soon gave up and did light stretches. His condition wasn’t good enough to fall into worry. Whatever that kid did, if he considered it all just a process going toward a predetermined ending anyway, trivial details didn’t seem to matter much. Whether he drew a few pictures, whether he spent some time at the café…
Come to think of it, he thought it had been quite a while since they encountered each other at the café. The day he got drunk and was carried away. It was the first time since he woke up at his house and declared severance. That was already a month ago.
Having various thoughts and finishing his stretches, Eunha crouched down at his spot again. He continued the work he had been doing. Watering, inserting nutrients, cutting branches that hindered growth.
They were each quietly doing their own things. The faint sound of a pencil scratching could be heard from behind.
“I didn’t know you grew plants here.”
“That’s right. You never came up to the second floor. Even when I was here for a long time.”
“……Coming up to look around and such would make it too obvious that I like you. It seems a bit suspicious.”
What kind of talk is that? Eunha turned around, dumbfounded.
“Then you, when you came here all this time, you thought it wasn’t obvious?”
Yeonjun opened his eyes blankly. It was a face that firmly believed so. He became more dumbfounded.
“You were extremely obvious. Every time you came.”
“……Really?”
“You’re obvious now too.”
“Now? Me?”
“Then who else is here besides you?”
Yeonjun, who had turned the notebook face down on the table, picked up his phone. Tilting his head back slightly, he looked at himself through the black screen.
“I’m just normal though……”
The sight of him earnestly checking by turning the phone’s angle this way and that was funny. Like a child with only a big body.
