“It’s delicious….”
How can it taste like this when it’s just grilled? This thing called Michelin really is amazing.
Did his admiration show on the outside? A low laugh brushed past his ear. It was from the right side where Song Hanyeong was sitting. Doubting his ears, he glanced over to see the man picking up asparagus with an indifferent expression. There wasn’t a trace of laughter on that face.
Must be his imagination. It wasn’t the first time he’d had misconceptions about Song Hanyeong. Maybe it was just a breathing sound that felt like laughter after passing through the ‘Song Hanyeong filter.’ Let’s not exercise unnecessary imagination—reminding himself of that, Surim focused on his meal.
The meal was extremely satisfying. So when Surim finished eating the entire course, he couldn’t help but regret it. Nausea that he hadn’t felt during the meal came rushing up, and his stomach felt awful.
The company dinner showed no signs of ending yet. Across from him, they started opening wine and champagne and other alcohols, and the additionally ordered shrimp and cheese were also sizzling on the iron griddle. It seemed he needed to visit the bathroom around this time.
It was when Surim, who had carefully gotten down from his chair so as not to break the atmosphere, was about to step back. Song Hanyeong snapped and caught his wrist. Surim didn’t notice that in that moment, a fleeting silence fell among the chattering researchers before disappearing like a lie. It was because he was an ordinary person.
“……”
“……”
As Surim, whose eyes widened like a startled rabbit, just gaped, Song Hanyeong tilted his head and asked slowly.
“Where are you trying to go in the middle of a company dinner?”
It was a leisurely voice, but somehow sounded sharp. The eyes staring at him head-on rippled with a surprisingly vivid color, and Surim unconsciously stared at Song Hanyeong in a daze.
“I’m asking you.”
Song Hanyeong gripped Surim’s wrist tightly and interrogated him again. Only then did Surim come to his senses and instinctively shrink his shoulders as he answered.
“The, the bathroom…?”
Bewilderment flashed in the eyes that had been coldly settled until just before. But it was only for a very brief moment. Song Hanyeong returned to an expressionless face and gestured with his chin toward the room entrance.
“Go ahead.”
Soon his hand was freed. Surim stared blankly at Song Hanyeong, who had turned his body back toward the bar, then hesitantly moved his steps.
Was he the type who wanted to know the whereabouts of his subordinates one by one? He’d heard there were bosses like that. The kind who checked why they were leaving their seat and how long they were gone every time they stepped away.
“…I’ll be back.”
Surim gave an awkward greeting and moved to the bathroom. He grabbed the sink and looked into the mirror.
‘What was that just now?’
Song Hanyeong suddenly grabbed him and then asked where he was going. It was a tone like interrogating someone who was running away. Don’t tell me he noticed I’ve been avoiding him these past few days?
He was so surprised that even his queasy stomach had settled down. Should he just go back? Surim shook his head at that thought. He’d feel nauseous again soon anyway. Even with all his efforts, he couldn’t stop himself from vomiting, so there was no way he’d be okay just because he was a little surprised.
As he was thinking such thoughts, self-loathing washed over him. How long would he have to be like this?
Actually, Surim had been to the hospital in the meantime. He thought perhaps he could break through the situation with the power of modern pharmacology. It only resulted in him vomiting up the medicine as well without any effect.
After a moment of silence, Surim decided to truly acknowledge the possibility he had been ignoring until now. This was a psychological problem. Perhaps after sending his hyung off alone, he himself could no longer continue in this world….
‘Maybe that’s why I’m obsessed with stalking too.’
Because while focusing on the spark, he could forget his loneliness a little. Surim bit his lip and lowered his gaze. As he was enduring something like that, he could suddenly tell that familiar footsteps were approaching. Since these were the footsteps he’d been avoiding by using them as a cat’s bell, there was no way he couldn’t know who it was.
Song Hanyeong, who entered the bathroom with a slow gait, glanced at Surim leaning his arms on the sink, then started washing his hands at the next spot. An awkward silence pooled between the two.
The person who broke that silence was unexpectedly Song Hanyeong.
“Are you alright?”
“Huh? What, what do you mean?”
Song Hanyeong turned his head to look at Surim.
“You look rather…”
“……”
“Not alright.”
Could it be that’s why he followed him?
Surim looked at Song Hanyeong with wavering eyes. The moment their eyes met as Song Hanyeong tilted his head toward him in silence, Surim somehow felt his mouth go dry. Song Hanyeong’s gaze wasn’t demanding anything nor was it oppressive, yet strangely he felt like he should say something. His heart beat rapidly with impatience.
“……”
“……”
He wished Song Hanyeong would say something. Anything was fine. Even something like asking why he kept staring, or whether he knew why the cup he’d been using had disappeared. Of course it would be awkward. It would be awkward, but it would be better than now.
In the end, unable to endure the pouring silence, Surim opened his mouth with a start.
“When I was young, I talked about this restaurant with my hyung.”
Once he opened his mouth, words poured out without thinking. These were words he hadn’t said to anyone until now. He didn’t want to talk about anything regarding his hyung, so he hadn’t even informed the company about the funeral.
But strangely, to this unfamiliar yet familiar man, the stories he’d hidden came surging out. Was it because the one-sided intimacy he’d built up alone, as befitting a stalker, had broken down the walls?
“We wondered if it would really be delicious since it received a Michelin star. Let’s go together and eat someday. Let’s evaluate it together. Those kinds of conversations.”
“That’s cute.”
“Pardon?”
Surim, doubting his ears, asked back, but Song Hanyeong just gestured with his chin as if to continue while wiping the water off his washed hands with a paper towel.
“…I was troubled because I thought my hyung would be disappointed if he knew I came alone.”
“How was your relationship with your hyung?”
“Extremely… good.”
“A good hyung?”
“Yes, extremely.”
“Then he’d be happy to know his dongsaeng is eating well.”
Surim stared blankly at Song Hanyeong. His hyung was a good person and loved his dongsaeng very much. So he would want him to do well. He wasn’t the kind of person who would ever be disappointed that he ate something delicious alone. It was such an obvious fact, so why hadn’t his thoughts reached that far on his own?
Only then did Surim realize that the person who was disappointed wasn’t his hyung but himself. He was disappointed by the fact that he came alone to the restaurant they had talked about together. He was unbearably disappointed in his hyung, who could no longer come to the restaurant with him. Couldn’t he have endured just a little longer? They’d received a progress report saying he might be able to be discharged soon if they just held on a little more, but not long after that he left in such a way….
Surim hung his head low and glared at the floor.
“I wanted to keep the promise. I wanted to come together….”
Surim choked up without realizing it, then looked at Song Hanyeong in embarrassment. Even though a subordinate was suddenly choking up in the bathroom, there was no particular change in Song Hanyeong’s expression. But even if he seemed fine on the outside, there would be no one who would welcome such a heavy story from a dispatched employee they’d met less than a week ago.
Surim, flustered by himself alone, hastily made excuses.
“He, he’s studying abroad! So we couldn’t come together….”
Song Hanyeong, who seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, opened his mouth.
“I had a good relationship with my father. When I was young, I thought my father would be by my side forever, but that wasn’t necessarily the case.”
“Your father….”
“He’s on a business trip now.”
“……”
Surim looked at Song Hanyeong as if absurd, as he continued the story with the exact same speech pattern as Surim had just used. An expressionless face, the corners of his lips slightly twisted. It could be read as a sneer if one wasn’t careful, but considering the current situation… did he play a joke and enjoy the reaction?
“Talking helped at times like that.”
“Talking…?”
“Yes.”
There was no way he could talk with a dead person. But when Song Hanyeong said it like that, somehow it felt like it would work. Surim nodded as if entranced.
“I’ll try it.”
“Then let’s head back.”
Song Hanyeong, who had moved to the bathroom entrance, stopped and looked back. It was as if he was waiting for Surim.
“You, go ahead….”
Surim, who was about to tell him to go ahead first, hesitated. Somehow he no longer felt queasy. The pain that had been gripping and shaking his stomach had also stopped. It seemed like he’d be okay without vomiting.
Surim looked at Song Hanyeong standing at the door for a moment, then carefully approached to the side. Only then did he start walking again.
“Manager-nim….”
After hesitating for a moment, Surim continued while carefully gauging his reaction.
“I thought you disliked me.”
“…Honestly, I wasn’t too pleased that Jin Surim-ssi came to my lab.”
“Huh, so you really do dislike me…?”
“But I changed my mind.”
“What? What do you mean….”
