“Then let’s go inside for now. Let’s go in and talk.”
“That’s what I said, for you to come in.”
“Would it be okay for just me to go in, right now? Tell her to come in together. It’s already midnight. The hallway here echoes a lot, so even if you talk quietly, everything can be heard. Let’s not be a nuisance to the neighbors and please go inside and talk.”
Kang Sehyun, who let out a sigh, finally listened. It seemed the word “please” had worked.
When Kang Sehyun went inside, the woman looked me up and down from head to toe, then quickly went inside. I felt an uncomfortable feeling for some reason.
I felt like I should go in too, so I moved my feet. As expected, the atmosphere between the two people in the living room was cold. I went straight into the guest room.
“Is that him? Your great friend?”
Before I could even close the door, a sharp voice stabbed into my ears. And an even more brutal statement followed.
“I’m warning you in advance, but you’d better watch what you say. I won’t tolerate it like before.”
While the two were in the living room, I didn’t step out even once. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t curious, but no matter what, I didn’t lack conscience enough to eavesdrop. However, regardless of my will, I could hear bits of their conversation intermittently.
“Weren’t you curious about why I did that?”
“When you say let’s break up, what other reason could there be?”
“That was my way of confirming your feelings. You knew I wasn’t saying those things because I really wanted to break up. But did you ever say you didn’t want to break up even once when I said let’s break up?”
“So are you saying you did well, or are you trying to blame me?”
“……”
“Whatever reason you give, the result is the same. I won’t be able to say those words in the future anyway.”
I still clearly remember the day I first met Kang Sehyun. He had said sweet words to the lover across from him, unlike his blunt impression.
I couldn’t believe that Kang Sehyun from that time and the current Kang Sehyun were the same person. That’s how surprisingly calm and cold Kang Sehyun was, no matter what the other person said.
What would it feel like?
I suddenly became curious about the other person’s feelings. What would they think if a lover who had only been affectionate suddenly turned cold in an instant?
They’d probably be hurt. They might feel frustration or regret. But the biggest thing would probably be resentment.
“If you were going to do this, why did you accept it until now?”
“Then should I not have accepted it?”
“You really—”
“So now I’m not going to accept it. Because it’s annoying.”
Heartless bastard.
But I understood Kang Sehyun’s feelings too. I’d watched him get exhausted every time they fought. I knew better than anyone that Kang Sehyun had done his best for the other person until now. So much so that even though I’m a man, I envied the other person.
“You bastard.”
“If calling me that makes you feel better, then do it as much as you want.”
If I’d known this would happen, I should have gone into the room where I watch movies. The guest room close to the living room had better sound than I thought. At least the fortunate thing was that I hadn’t heard any crying sounds yet.
What the hell is this situation?
Thinking about it, it was a funny situation. Even though it was the fault of the uninvited guest who suddenly came in the early morning, anyway, the most foolish one right now was me, hiding in a room to avoid the fighting lovers.
That’s why I said I’d just leave.
After several loud voices and shouts repeated, it suddenly became quiet. As I sat awkwardly on the bed reading internet articles, footsteps coming from somewhere gradually got closer.
Knock knock-.
“Yeah.”
Through the carefully opened door, Kang Sehyun poked his head in.
“Come out now.”
“Is it over?”
“Yeah, she’s leaving soon. So come out.”
“……What, leaving? At this hour?”
The clock on the wall was pointing to 1 a.m.
“Didn’t she come from New York?”
“That’s right.”
“But where would she go at this hour?”
“Hey, Kang Sehyun—”
The other person who appeared just then suddenly interrupted our conversation. Kang Sehyun’s head, which had been facing me, slowly turned.
“Are you really just making me leave? What am I supposed to do at this early morning?”
“You came in the early morning on purpose, so what should I do about it?”
At the words he tossed out, the other person let out a hollow laugh as if dumbfounded.
“Ha. You should have known me that well when we were dating.”
Ah, that last one was a bit much.
How well does Kang Sehyun know you? I almost stepped forward to say that.
Ignoring the other person’s words, Kang Sehyun spoke to me again.
“What about what you bought? You said you were buying snacks.”
“Here.”
“Put it in the kitchen. That’s why I asked why you were in here.”
That’s not the problem right now, is it?
“Wait a moment, let’s talk separately for a bit.”
“About what?”
“It’ll just take a moment.”
When I pulled at the body standing blankly in front of the door, the long legs moved easily. I closed the door and lowered my voice.
“Kang Sehyun.”
“……Why.”
The voice that came a beat late was completely subdued.
“Still, sending her off alone at this hour doesn’t seem right. It’s not like she’s going back to New York right away. She should at least get some sleep.”
“That’s why I told you to leave. The hotel is right next door and it’s less than 5 minutes by taxi, so what’s the problem?”
“No, I’m not arguing about the distance, but no matter what……”
“If she puts her mind to it, she could even rent out an entire hotel floor.”
“That’s not the point right now.”
“Then what is it?”
“Still, sending her off alone by taxi at this hour doesn’t seem right. There’s no guarantee that a taxi is safe either.”
“……So you’re saying to let her sleep here?”
I recalled Kang Sehyun’s earlier words that she probably came in the early morning on purpose. Kang Sehyun really looked disgusted. In this situation, neither I nor Kang Sehyun could stand being in this house together with Kang Sehyun’s ex-girlfriend.
“You take her.”
“Why should I?”
“As you said, it’s less than 5 minutes away. I don’t know how you two broke up, but you dated for a long time, so you can do that much. Right?”
“……”
“Do it for my sake at least. I’m asking you. That way I can drink comfortably.”
“Haah……”
Kang Sehyun, who let out a deep sigh, turned around without answering. That meant my request had worked once again.
I went out to the living room through the wide-open door. As I passed by to put the snacks I’d bought on the kitchen shelf, Kang Sehyun, who was standing at the entrance, called me.
“Sungha.”
It was an affectionate tone that was hard to believe came from the same person as before.
“I’ll be right back, so don’t go anywhere and wait. If you’re sleepy, get some sleep.”
The person standing behind Kang Sehyun glared at me. I couldn’t say anything in the middle, like someone who had done something wrong.
“Why aren’t you answering?”
“Huh? Oh. Yeah. Have a safe trip.”
The piercing gaze followed until the moment the door closed. What did I even do?
I wasn’t the one who actually kicked her out, but it felt like I had, and it seemed like I was the one who had interfered with everything from the start. It was as if…… I’d become Kang Sehyun’s new lover.
* * *
It was needless worry.
The various concerns I had before going to Kang Sehyun’s house were unnecessary from the start. I didn’t need to worry at all about the empty space that would be created after breaking up with a long-time lover.
Because the role of filling that space all fell to me. Thanks to that, I ended up seeing even more frequently the face I was already seeing almost every day anyway.
“You’re here?”
Friday night, 11:38 p.m. When I arrived at the apartment after finishing frantically busy work, an uninvited guest sitting on the living room sofa greeted me. Kang Sehyun was fiddling with the TV remote, searching for a movie.
“Go wash up. I bought nachos and beer. The new movie by the director you like is supposed to be good.”
My place on Fridays, Kang Sehyun’s officetel on Saturdays, and back and forth frequently during the week. We hadn’t made any advance plans to do anything in particular, but somehow we’d been spending time like this for three weeks now.
At this rate, isn’t he really a new lover?
From the sink at the entrance to the bathroom, I could see things that weren’t mine. And inside the bathroom were new items I hadn’t put there. In the drawer too, there were two or three unopened bottles of shampoo and body wash of the same brands I used. Kang Sehyun kept buying things every time he came, as if it were compensation for me filling his empty time.
Even this was nothing. I was surprised when he sent a sofa as a housewarming gift at first, but recently he sent a TV. The TV in the living room right now was exactly that.
When I came out after showering, Kang Sehyun brought out beer with perfect timing. On the living room table, nachos topped with yellow cheese and salsa sauce were already prepared.
Cool beer to face after a shower and snacks to match. Plus a movie I liked. In a word, it was perfect.
“Here.”
A low voice reached my ear. Following the long fingers offering the beer, I looked up to see a handsome face looking down at me.
Ah, why am I getting all fluttered?
Humanly speaking, with that level of looks and this much care, wouldn’t it be strange NOT to feel fluttered?
I rationalized myself thinking that way. It seemed that if he got a girlfriend, the one who would be disappointed wouldn’t be Kang Sehyun but me.
