The next morning.
Lee Hyo-eun changed the few outfits she had several times, flustered and fussy.
“Why are you making such a fuss from the morning?”
Her mom, sprawled on the bed, asked in a picking-a-fight tone.
“Going to see a matchmaking prospect or something?”
“It’s not like that.”
Her mom ran her eyes up and down Hyo-eun and clicked her tongue.
“Well, who’d take you anyway. You look just like your dad so you’re no beauty, and it’s not like you’ve got a good figure either.”
Standing there taking in words that smashed her self-esteem as they were, Lee Hyo-eun bit down hard on her lips.
‘My mom is sick, sick.’
Repeating that, she picked up a small handbag to head out even though it was still early.
In a semi-basement one-room of a little over 6 pyeong, there was no room to run away from her mom.
Just then.
At her mom’s sharp question from behind, Lee Hyo-eun turned her head.
“Hey, aren’t you going to your part-time job today?”
“I go in this afternoon.”
“How about you add one more part-time job?”
Maybe because she’d come home after drinking herself silly until the morning sun rose, her shameless face was flushed red.
‘Don’t engage.’
No sooner had Hyo-eun steeled herself again—
“From the looks of it, you’ve got time to spare. Wouldn’t it be better to earn more during that time and chip in more for living expenses?”
In the end she couldn’t hold back and let out a complaint-tinged line.
“Mom, I’ve been working part-time without a single day off lately.”
Of course what came back were words sharp like an awl.
“Lee Hyo-eun, are you lording it over me now because you make money? So later when you get a real job you’ll look down on your mother?”
“No, that’s not what I meant….”
“Shut up! Get out right now, I don’t even want to see your face.”
Dodging the flying tissue box, Lee Hyo-eun hurried out of the house.
It’s fine.
Anyway, when she finished work and came back close to midnight, her mom would either be gone or sleeping soundly, drunk.
Thud-!
When she opened the door and stepped out, her eyes met squarely with the landlady, who was looking at her with pity in front of the iron door.
“Ah, hello.”
When she greeted her with an awkward smile, the landlady came closer, patted her shoulder, and spoke.
“Aigoo, why does your mom torment you like that? She really is your birth mother, right?”
Forcing a smile, Hyo-eun said, “Of course,” and was about to pass by the landlady when—
“This doesn’t seem like something I should say to you, but….”
With an abashed expression, the landlady continued.
“By any chance, when might you be able to pay the back rent? We’re in a pinch too right now because of our loan repayment….”
“Pardon? I definitely gave my mom the rent—she didn’t pay it?”
“Mm, whenever I run into your mom she takes off like she’s seen a ghost, so I haven’t been able to speak to her.”
Seeing the landlady, embarrassed at having not received money that was only natural to receive and making a request, a needless guilt washed over Hyo-eun and she hung her head low.
“I’m really sorry. It’s my payday in a week—could I give it to you then?”
“Ay, if you could do that, I’d be so grateful. You’re going through so much.”
The rough hand patting her back was so like her father’s hand that used to pat her when she was little that she almost choked up for a moment.
“Then, I have an appointment, so I’ll get going first.”
With that, Hyo-eun stepped over the old iron threshold and hurried her steps.
Really…
Will the day ever come when I can cross over the threshold of this house for good?
Because she’d arrived far earlier than the time she’d set with Hyunseung, Lee Hyo-eun went into the cheapest café right nearby.
Then.
Her thoroughly gloomy mood somehow lifted.
[ I got there a little early so I’m in a Baek Café right nearby! Text me when you’re almost here. Take your time, come carefully! ]
After sending Hyunseung a text, she took a seat by the window.
Beyond the glass, you could tell at a glance—people bundled up in expensive-looking, warm padded jackets were walking around.
Slide.
She lowered her head and checked her outfit; it looked too cold.
The 40,000-won coat she’d bought online when she turned twenty, after really making up her mind, was all piled up.
The 20,000-won knit she’d layered under it had a stretched-out neck.
‘I should’ve borrowed clothes from a friend.’
Feeling that her getup was too shabby, she pointlessly flicked at her coat.
Somehow it felt like that semi-basement smell had soaked in, which put her in a bad mood.
‘They’re high schoolers.’
Just then she saw two students in uniforms beyond the window.
‘For some reason it reminds me of high school.’
Resting her chin on her hand, she looked at the two high schoolers for a bit.
“I’ll pretend I don’t see it.”
She slowly sank into recollection.
The first time she saw Hyunseung was on the day of the high school entrance ceremony.
“Hm?”
Coming back to the classroom after the ceremony in the auditorium, she saw a boy sleeping with his head buried on the very back desk.
‘Is he a delinquent….’
Then, when the homeroom teacher said he would assign seats and told them to come up one by one and take a slip, Lee Hyo-eun strode over and tapped the boy’s shoulder to wake him.
Tap, tap.
She’d always been nosy, and she wasn’t afraid of a delinquent either.
‘There’s no one scarier than my mom.’
After a long moment without moving, when she shook him awake again, the boy let out a groan, “Mmm,” and lifted his head.
“Uh….”
Between his haphazardly sticking-out black hair, a finely balanced face appeared.
‘Crap.’
In that moment, she really thought her heart would stop.
‘Insanely handsome.’
Thankfully she didn’t blurt that out loud.
“Th-the h-h-homeroom teacher is doing seat assignments, s-said to come draw a slip.”
Without a word, the boy stood up and, threading through the desks, walked toward the lectern.
Then all the students’ gazes moved to follow that boy.
Anyone could see, he had a strikingly handsome face.
‘Wow, damn, insanely handsome.’
For the first time, Lee Hyo-eun fell in love at first sight.
Of course.
That didn’t apply to just her.
When the girls gathered, they would often chatter with one voice about that boy. Even seniors from other grades came down every break to see Hyunseung.
Before long, the rumor spread even to nearby schools.
If there was any saving grace, it was that at break time he usually buried his head and slept, and on his way to and from school he always had his earphones in, breezily ignoring girls who tried to confess.
He didn’t even make male friends. Like a person left alone on an isolated island, he went to school very quietly.
She’d thought he was a delinquent.
But he was more like Student No. 1 who simply had no interest in school life and was very quiet.
‘Right, better that he just stays alone the whole time!’
Lee Hyo-eun couldn’t even dream of confessing. Right, a guy like that would never like a girl like me.
Not pretty, and her figure….
For the entire three years she simply watched from a distance, fervently hoping that Hyunseung wouldn’t get a girlfriend.
And then graduation day approached.
“Congratulations on graduating! You worked hard!”
With the homeroom teacher’s short words, her friends ran to their families and filled their arms with heaps of bouquets.
Of course.
There was no family to hand her a bouquet.
This isn’t the time to be sulking over something like this!
At least ask to take one photo.
‘Where is he?’
Telling her friends who asked to take a picture together, “Just a second!” Lee Hyo-eun hurriedly looked around for Hyunseung, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Did he already leave with his family?
Bolting out into the corridor, she saw a single head standing tall alone.
‘There he is!’
Ironically, there was no one next to the school’s celebrity.
Step, step.
Carefully, Lee Hyo-eun followed behind Hyunseung out of the school building.
She didn’t know what to say to him, so she just followed along.
How long did she walk?
Just when she thought she really had to say something and cleared her throat—
“Hey!”
A sharp voice pierced her ears.
Whip—.
When she turned her head, her mom was standing there with a face full of rage.
“Lee Hyo-eun! How could you do this to me!”
At the shout, Lee Hyo-eun hastily turned her head toward where Hyunseung was standing.
Sure enough, startled by the loud voice, Hyunseung was looking in her direction too.
‘Ah, embarrassing.’
I should’ve just not followed him. Even if she regretted it, it was already too late.
“Y-you, what is this! You trying to go to college?”
Her mom flung tuition loan papers in her face and bellowed.
Ah.
Since it was a one-room there was nowhere proper to hide things, so she’d stuffed them deep in a drawer—looks like she found them.
“Like your father, you going to walk out on this house too? Huh?”
Just like her mom said, she’d wanted to get away from her mom using a dorm as an excuse.
Anyway, with a household that was woefully short, she’d only looked it up and hadn’t even managed to think of going.
“Th-that’s not it. I was just looking.”
“You wench, lying? Where are you trying to run off to!”
Judging by the reek of alcohol spilling from her mouth, she’d been drinking again.
Right.
‘Mom is sick, sick.’
While fretting to calm her mom down, Lee Hyo-eun snuck glances at Hyunseung.
For some reason.
Hyunseung stood there stock-still, not seeming to plan on leaving.
‘Why, of all times….’
When Lee Hyo-eun scrunched her face like she might cry any second, her mom exploded even more at the sight.
“You’re making faces while your mom is talking?”
Her mother’s hand rose high.
Clench-.
By instinct, Lee Hyo-eun squeezed her eyes shut.
“….”
But what she heard was only her mom’s scolding voice.
“You, you—what are you! Let go of this!”
When she opened her eyes, Hyunseung was standing in front of her, blocking her.
“H-Hyunseung. Why are you….”
“Are you her boyfriend?”
“N-no! A classmate.”
“Let go. Right now.”
Hyunseung slowly released his grip on her mom’s hand, which he’d been holding.
“Hey, the kids have been telling you to hang out to celebrate graduation.”
“Huh? What are you….”
All of a sudden, he grabbed her wrist and tugged her back toward the school.
No, a kid with no friends—what graduation celebration, exactly….
Still, it wasn’t enough that he’d spoken to her first for the first time—he even took her wrist, so she followed quietly.
‘It really made no sense.’
He let go of her wrist at the moment they passed through the school gate.
And all he said was, “Go on now.”
That’s it, the end?
This time, she grabbed the wrist of Hyunseung, who was turning to go.
“Why?”
At his question asked offhandedly, only turning his head, she just ground her lower lip like a fool.
“I’ll pretend I don’t see it.”
With that casually tossed line, Hyunseung quickly disappeared from her sight.
That was the last image of Hyunseung she remembered.
After that., because she lived working without a break, she tucked “Min Hyunseung” away as nothing more than a person who was indifferent yet kind.
Then, while she was working, a very suspicious-looking man came into the café.
“One venti iced Americano, please.”
A voice way too familiar.
“I’ve got your card.”
The name engraved in English on the card.
It was definitely Min Hyunseung.
While she tidied the nearby tables and watched for a moment—
Screech-!
Hyunseung sprang up from his seat, and when he unwound his scarf, the lower face revealed was exactly the face in her memory.
‘This time, for real!’
She mustered her courage and spoke to him.
But what came back was….
“Who were you again?”
So it really must have been a memory only she had.
Still, couldn’t they at least remain as friends?
Tap, tap, tap.
She plucked up courage and asked for his number; after showing a moment of discomfort, he soon enough, as if he couldn’t help it, keyed in his number for her.
Right, this is something.
On graduation day, she hadn’t been able to say a word of thanks for saying he’d pretend not to see it, or say goodbye.
This will do.
Comforting herself like that, this time it was Lee Hyo-eun who first turned around to leave, when—
“Let’s get a meal sometime soon.”
Just like then, Hyunseung tossed out the words offhandedly.
“I’ve got something to talk about.”
What on earth is he going to talk about? You really can’t tell what’s inside him. How am I supposed not to be nervous like this!
Calm down, calm down.
As she continued her recollection and was taking deep breaths to steady her heart that was trembling again.
Knock, knock.
Startled, at the sudden knocking sound right next to her, she whipped her head around.
“You didn’t even notice someone came. What were you thinking so hard about?”
Just like on the day of the entrance ceremony, Hyunseung was leaning over the table, looking at her.
“Your surprised face right now is really funny.”
Still.
“I’ll pretend I don’t see it.”
Cool.
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