MORE 40

Kwon Yuwon had no history of lying to me, so I believe his words that he will return in a month. I want to believe the story that he left simply because he felt stifled and wanted to travel, but…

Siyul sighed heavily until it felt like the table would collapse, then quickly changed his expression as the door opened with a tinkling bell. He put on a service smile and lifted his head.

“Welcome—… oh?”

I couldn’t finish the greeting. It was because the face of the person who opened the door and entered while chatting with friends was familiar. When the person saw me, he pointed with his finger and raised his eyebrows just as I had. Even though our first meeting hadn’t been wholesome, we had decided to be friends; we weren’t in a position to pretend we didn’t know each other.

“Woo Taeju?”

When I said his name, he smiled brightly. His friends tapped him on the shoulder and seemed to be asking if he knew me. Woo Taeju nodded vigorously and sent his friends to their table first. He himself walked with long, bold strides toward Siyul.

“Wow, you worked here? If I’d known, I would have come sooner.”

“What brings you here?”

“Ah, an older sister I know works here. I’d only ever said I’d come to visit, but I finally had the time this time….”

Woo Taeju’s friends, who had settled into their seats, were peering this way. They seemed curious about who Siyul was. Not wanting to be the center of everyone’s attention, Siyul urged Woo Taeju to go, telling him to hurry along.

“I’ll be there to take your order soon. Ah, if it’s okay, order the salmon. The chef hyung said the salmon is good today.”

“Is that a recommendation? I’ll go tell the kids right away. Thank you.”

Woo Taeju smiled broadly and returned to the table. It was sudden, but a welcome encounter. The heavy heart I’d felt since Kwon Yuwon disappeared was lightened, if only a little. Siyul picked up the menu with a much more relaxed expression.

Woo Taeju was acquainted with Manager Kang. Perhaps they had been in contact beforehand, as Manager Kang, who was supposed to be off today, came to the shop personally. He greeted Woo Taeju warmly, told the staff to give them plenty of complimentary dishes, and then left early, saying he had urgent business to attend to.

Woo Taeju drank as if there were no tomorrow. He was a natural-born drinker. His personality was bright, too. He laughed and chatted as if he were in his element, and even went up on stage to sing songs in turns with his friends. He was confident, with not a shred of shyness, even when holding a microphone in front of others. His very nature seemed optimistic and extroverted.

Because of that, Siyul was completely out of his mind. Between carrying food and clearing empty liquor bottles, he scurried around the hall until his feet felt like they were on fire, and time flew away with wings attached. Closing time was right around the corner.

All the other guests had left, and only Woo Taeju’s group remained. Seeing them sprawled on the sofa or slumped over the table, it looked like they were at their limit, too. Thinking they wouldn’t order anything more and that it would be fine to step away from the hall for a moment, Siyul picked up a trash bag.

As he was throwing out the trash in the back alley on the first floor of the building, a person who hadn’t been visible in the hall was there. When Woo Taeju saw Siyul, he held the cigarette he had been smoking between his fingers and waved with the slow, deliberate movements typical of a drunkard. He was smiling happily, revealing his neat teeth.

No matter how I looked at it, his smiling face resembled Woo Hyunse. If Woo Hyunse were a bit more fresh-faced, wouldn’t he look like Woo Taeju? Especially his build and the way the corners of his eyes curved when he smiled.

“I guess it’s almost time to close.”

Siyul looked at the cigarette and waved his hand through the smoke drifting toward him. Woo Taeju looked surprised, then quickly threw the butt on the ground and extinguished it by grinding it with the tip of his shoe. He scratched the back of his head and laughed as if embarrassed.

“Do you not smoke?”

“No. But it’s fine, you can just smoke. It’s a waste.”

“Ah, you should try not to smoke in front of non-smokers.”

“I have to go back inside. Keep smoking.”

“—Hey!”

Just as Siyul was turning his back, Woo Taeju called out. Siyul put one foot inside the door and looked back at him, leaning his upper body. Even though Woo Taeju had been the one to call out, he hesitated as if he’d forgotten what he wanted to say; but under Siyul’s direct gaze, he opened his mouth.

“Can’t you stay for a little while? Just for the time it takes to smoke a cigarette. No, I don’t mean I’m going to smoke a cigarette.”

“I have to close up.”

“I’ll help you. I got a lot of complimentary service, so as a way to repay that.”

I was hesitant because I really wasn’t in the mood. I was just going to refuse and go inside. Woo Taeju quickly grabbed the hem of Siyul’s clothes.

“Just 5 minutes. Just 5 minutes.”

He looked at Siyul with his eyebrows scrunched into the shape of the number eight. My heart wavered slightly at that appearance, which resembled Woo Hyunse. I wouldn’t see Woo Hyunse even if I got off work today. He said he had a busy day. So, there was no need to rush.

“Okay.”

Woo Taeju grinned widely, looking embarrassed but proud. Siyul checked the time on his phone and put his hand in his pocket.

“Now that I think about it, we don’t even know each other’s ages. How old are you, Siyul?”

“Twenty-four.”

“Really? Liar. You look much younger than me…. Do you have an ID?”

Siyul laughed shortly, heh. It was because the word “ID” reminded him of Woo Hyunse. My ID still hadn’t managed to escape Woo Hyunse’s wallet. It felt like it would be stuck in that spot forever.

“It’s true. I don’t have my ID with me right now.”

“I’m one year younger than you. Can I call you hyung? No, I’m just going to call you that. You can speak comfortably to me, too.”

He decided for himself and called me hyung as he pleased. What did a title matter? Siyul let Woo Taeju do as he liked.

Thinking I would return to the shop soon, I hadn’t even worn a coat, so I felt chilled. I didn’t think I could last five minutes. Siyul hunched his shoulders, shivering, and looked up at Woo Taeju. Woo Taeju was staring intently at this side. Just like Siyul had done before entering the building earlier.

“I’ll go in first. It’s too cold.”

“Ah, I didn’t think about the cold. I’m hot because I’ve been drinking a bit. Let’s go in together, hyung. Sorry. I’m such an idiot.”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to call you an idiot.”

Woo Taeju followed Siyul like a puppy. He was a friend who had a lot to say, just as he had been at the motel. In the elevator, and even after coming into the shop, he stuck to Siyul and chattered like a sparrow.

Thanks to Woo Taeju, closing time finished much earlier than usual. Leaving Woo Taeju to look after his friends behind him, Siyul walked alone. I thought about calling Woo Hyunse, but feeling like I’d just be bothering a busy person for no reason, I lowered the hand holding the phone.

Just as I was about to put it in my pocket, the phone vibrated. I quickly checked the screen, and Woo Hyunse’s name was there. It seemed he had called right at the time I was finishing. Perhaps because the timing was so perfect, I hurriedly pressed the call button. My voice was filled with excitement when I said, “Hello?”

Are you done?

“Yes. Are you very busy?”

No. The busy part is mostly over. Should I come pick you up?

“Didn’t you say you couldn’t come today or tomorrow? I thought that was the case.”

I did. But I finished my work earlier than I thought.

My chest tickled. The inside of my ear where Woo Hyunse’s voice reached did, too. Not knowing where to scratch first, Siyul just bit his lower lip. Looking at the floor, he tapped the paving stones with the toe of his sneaker.

I’m leaving now.

The day was cold. Still, I could wait if it was for Woo Hyunse. Even if my feet were numb and my nose was frozen red. Siyul scrubbed his already flushed nose with his hand and pressed the phone tight against his ear.

“Come quickly.”

Hearing the reply, “Alright,” Siyul hung up first. The auricles of his ears had been red from the cold when he came out of the shop, but now they were flushed for a different reason.

As soon as he hung up, ding-dong, a text arrived as if timed on purpose. Wondering if it might be Kwon Yuwon, I hurriedly checked the phone.

It was so good meeting you today, hyung. Let’s make sure we eat together next time.

It wasn’t the person I was waiting for. My sparkling eyes turned sullen. Siyul read only the preview and let it be. Meeting Woo Taeju had been welcome, but there were no emotions beyond that. Because the people I truly wanted to see were someone else.

■ ■ ■

At the news that Kwon Yuwon had gone on a trip, Woo Hyunse took Siyul into his home as if kidnapping him. It had been an exhausting day, and I wanted to do nothing but lie down and rest, but the moment our lips met, one syllable was dropped from “no,” leaving only the “yes.”

In the end, the conclusion was the bed. Siyul was reduced to a pulp. Even though he said he’d been busy with work too, Woo Hyunse picked Siyul apart and devoured him. If I had been meat, there wouldn’t have been a single scrap left on the bone. No, if it were Woo Hyunse, he would have ground up and crushed even the bones with those sturdy teeth of his and swallowed them. That was how ravenous he was.

“Stay here until that friend comes back.”

It was hard even to lift my head. Siyul, who had been lying prone on the bed, barely managed to turn his head. Woo Hyunse was also lying down with his head at the foot of the bed, not the headboard. When our eyes met, he stretched out his arm long and tapped it.

Siyul, who understood perfectly that he was being told to come here, rolled over with a groaning sound. He rested his head on Woo Hyunse’s arm and buried his body deep into his side.

“I can’t. It’s a waste of monthly rent.”

“It would be better here than being alone.”

He was right. Unless Kwon Yuwon were there, I didn’t want to be left alone in the inn. I hated the loneliness I had to endure entirely on my own until Kwon Yuwon returned more than I hated the poor environment. But I couldn’t just rashly accept Woo Hyunse’s proposal. People must have some sense of shame.

“Still. Yuwon might come back early, too….”

I wondered if Kwon Yuwon had contacted me in the meantime; Siyul stepped on Woo Hyunse’s chest with his hand and reached his arm toward the table on the other side. Woo Hyunse turned his body sideways and blocked Siyul.