MERRY 41

It wasn’t a particularly funny response, but Jonas refreshed the conversation with an awkward laugh. My mother and I looked at him with faces that were strikingly similar and spoke at the same time.

“You’re wrong this time, Jonas.”

“We were just talking.”

Even a great poet like Homer makes mistakes. Even if his timing was off once, it didn’t change the fact that Jonas was an excellent mediator.

Sure enough, it didn’t take long for my mother and me to clash again. It was because she tried to order a dessert piled high with fruit, even though she had no intention of eating it. I tried to stop her, saying I was done with sweet desserts, and as our voices began to rise, Jonas stepped in. In the end, the dessert went to him.

I imagine someone like Jonas has already made wonderful retirement plans, but I sincerely hope he works with my mother for a long time. I don’t even want to imagine a world without him.

I’d rather Ethan Reed disappeared again—no, that would be fucking terrible in its own way, too.

Just thinking about it made irritation flare up. As I rubbed my face hard with my hands, my mother looked at me as if she were seeing a ghost and urgently called for Jonas.

“Jonas, could you show Somerset a mirror? Darling, take a look at your expression right now.”

Jonas pulled a hand mirror from his inner jacket pocket and held it out to me. My face, captured in the small circle, wore a bleak expression. I pressed down on my furrowed brow to smooth it out and asked:

“Mother. Do you remember Ethan? Ethan Reed. He lived next door for a little while. That incredibly pretty and handsome guy. He used to come over to the house often.”

“I think there might have been someone like that.”

“Jonas, you know him, right?”

“Yes, I remember. I was away from the house a lot back then, so I don’t recall meeting him in person, but I heard stories from the staff.”

“Do you know why he suddenly vanished?”

Jonas replied that he didn’t know. He remembered that I had gone around questioning the people working at the house at the time, but unfortunately, he knew nothing about the rumored visitor. Unlike him, who pondered it with me, my mother was indifferent.

“If I barely know the man, how would I know why he suddenly disappeared?”

My mother had a point. Even I, who thought I knew him well, didn’t know.

“That’s the thing. I don’t know either.”

It was a broken record in the end. I want to know about Ethan Reed. I want to pry his heavy mouth open. Aside from why he’s acting like a stalker, I was going crazy wondering why on earth he left me.

As I scratched my head and looked out the window, Jonas thrust the mirror in front of my eyes again. The wrinkles had formed on my brow once more. I forced a smile.

∞ ∞ ∞

The meeting came to an end after choosing an outfit suitable for my mother’s dinner appointment. Jonas, who got out first from the car parked in front of the apartment, opened the door for me.

“Happy birthday, Somerset.”

He waited for me with a gentle smile and a gift box.

“Thanks. I knew you wouldn’t forget, Jonas.”

“It would be wrong to miss a chance to repay someone who sends expensive wine as a birthday gift every year.”

When I opened the box, there was a folded linen tablecloth and a pale pink floral apron. I was puzzled by the unexpected gift.

“I think I’m going to need an explanation for this.”

“I thought it would suit you. Cooking at home has been my hobby lately, so I bought yours while I was buying mine.”

“A real man does shine brightest in the kitchen. Maybe I should take a commemorative photo wearing only the gift…”

“I will politely decline that.”

“Won’t you regret it? I’d look incredibly sexy.”

While we exchanged light jokes, my mother flicked her fingertip toward the outside and asked:

“Was it your birthday, and you managed to squeeze a gift out of him?”

I leaned down as if I were going back into the car to meet her eyes.

“Aren’t you happy? Thanks to me, you’ve become a mother who takes care of her son’s birthday.”

How kind of me. Preventing a regrettable situation like that. Of course, the great Deborah Quinn didn’t get embarrassed easily.

Without batting an eye, my mother began her justification.

“There are things that everyone possesses equally. Birthdays. Any being born into this world naturally has a birthday. If it were something I alone possessed, it might be different, but don’t place too much meaning on something everyone has.”

“It’s true that everyone has a birthday, but my birthday belongs only to me. It’s special. And to counter that, I didn’t place too much meaning on it. Receiving a gift isn’t some grand ritual.”

If she had just said “Congratulations” first, I wouldn’t have acted so childishly out of spite. I crinkled my nose and brushed back my hair, which had a texture similar to hers.

“Thanks for giving birth to me. Whether it was out of necessity or a strictly calculated decision, whatever the reason.”

As I gave my greeting as a son and straightened my body, my mother called out to me.

“Somerset.”

Reluctantly, I faced her again. And I heard an unexpected apology.

“I’ve been so busy lately that I’ve been out of my mind. I don’t know when I last looked at a calendar.”

It was close to an excuse, but for my mother, it was a significant drop in pride. Deeply surprised, my eyes widened and I let out a chuckle.

“It’s okay. It happens. Actually, I only realized it was my birthday today, too. I suppose the creation follows the creator, just like one of your works.”

I only checked the date after receiving several congratulatory messages this morning. I had been living a frantic life lately as well.

“It’s not good to let your guard down. You’ll look full of openings.”

“Is that how it’s going to be? Let’s not start another argument.”

When I asked for a truce, my mother gave a light shrug. As always, an arrogant aura surrounded her.

“By the way…”

I took a skeptical stance as my mother started to speak again.

“Isn’t it about time for a warm goodbye?”

“Consider this part of the goodbye and listen.”

Yes, as you wish.

“That young man you mentioned earlier.”

“Ethan?”

“If that young man disappeared, there must have been an unavoidable reason. I can’t understand it otherwise.”

Before I could ask why, my mother continued.

“Because my son is magnificent. One cannot simply throw him away or push him aside. To treat my masterpiece so recklessly? How dare he? Even a god wouldn’t be permitted such a thing.”

It was advice that blended sky-high confidence with its own brand of maternal love. I nodded promptly. It was such sound logic that I agreed entirely. Leaving me is a foolish thing to do. The worst kind of terrible fool.

“Mother, your artistic eye has improved considerably. I’ll admit that.”

To commemorate our rare agreement, I offered a handshake, and she accepted gracefully. Watching this, Jonas gave a light round of applause. He looked gratified.

After the two of them left, I headed home. My light steps, accompanied by a casual rhythm of footsteps, came to a dramatic halt in front of the door. It was as if someone had covered my ears, cutting off all sound in an instant. Or like a movie ending in a stifling tragedy, falling into silence along with the black-out. Like falling into a deep sleep on a very exhausting day.

You’ll probably appear in that dream. Ethan.

I moved my lips soundlessly and tousled my hair. An absurd and annoying sight was before my eyes. He hadn’t been seen all day because he was busy doing this behind my back. Damn it.

A bouquet woven with white flowers and a stiff paper bag were hanging on the doorknob. The flowers were similar to the ones the protagonist received from her fiancé in the movie Jaws of Christmas that I watched with Ethan Reed, and the paper bag contained a jacket I had eyed while passing a boutique in Soho.

Was this why he stayed out of my sight today?

Happy Birthday.

This damn stalker naturally knows my birthday. Did he get this information through investigation, or did he pull it from his memory? Either way, why is he trying to throw me into confusion with this? Bastard. You must have known I’d lose my composure. You did this cute little thing knowing exactly what would happen.

I kicked the door irritably. Thud! The halted sound revived, pulling me back to reality. Ethan Reed, who had filled my head in that short span, stabs at me relentlessly. Beyond mere displeasure, a surge of rage rises. Unknowingly, I clenched my fists and set my jaw.