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" what ..? "
"Go down to the countryside for a while"
"Why all of a sudden?"
“Go and refresh yourself.”
"Where about a house? Where does a jobless person get the money to buy a house.."
“Mom has already prepared everything, so don’t say anything and just go down tomorrow.”
" her .. "
Suddenly, I was exiled to the countryside. I was 26 years old. I had graduated from college and was on track to find a job, but for unspeakable reasons, I had to quit, and now I'm a year into my unemployed life.
And now, under the pretext of refreshing, I have been exiled to the countryside, and I am destined to be kicked out tomorrow.
“When on earth did you get a house again..?”
My mom had suggested I move to the countryside before, but I'd never really done it like this, looking for a house... But I guess I could just laze around a bit as a freeloader?!
Of course, I know why my mother suggested I go to the countryside. But there's a difference between a recommendation and an order.
So I grumbled all evening, forcing myself to pack. I could just ask them to send it to me later, so I packed only the bare minimum. Actually, I was planning to come up right away, so I packed only a little.
The next day,
“It’s really going...”
"I wrote my home address on this piece of paper. You can come and visit me."
“..Do I really have to go?”
"...If you're going to keep doing that in the corner of the house, you should go. I can't stand seeing that anymore."
"Anyway, Mrs. Jeong, I'm really upset."
"If you're upset, come to your senses quickly and come back up."
" .. okay "
So I headed to a place I'd never even heard of, a place that would take about seven hours. I hoped it would be worth the seven hours.
After about five hours on the express bus and another two-hour bus ride, I could see the trees and grass growing thicker and thicker. At this rate, there probably weren't any movie theaters nearby...?
So I moved and moved again and arrived at the address my mom had written down. I opened the door half in doubt. Why knock when there was no one there anyway?
Knock knock,
" ..? shoes ? "
I opened the front door and stepped inside, and there was a display of men's shoes and sneakers. Could this be it? Just in case, I went back outside to check the address, and it was definitely here.
Finally, I took off my shoes and went inside the house, and the moment I was about to drag the carrier inside,
Suddenly,
” ..? “
“Oh.. you’re here?”
“ ..?!! ”
A man came out of a place that said bathroom, and judging by his wet hair, he seemed to have just showered. What the heck is going on..?!
And why is that guy so calm..?! Did he really know that the person coming in was a woman? No, wasn't this house supposed to be for me to live in alone in the first place..?!
“Man.. why are you here..?”
“..? Because it’s my house.”
“Then, by any chance… am I the one who is boarding?”
“That’s right. I guess you didn’t hear it properly from your mother.”
“Ha.. Mrs. Jeong, really..!!”
"Please give me the carrier. I'll put it there..."
widely,
"No..?! It's okay.. "
"Oh.. yes."
"Then.. where is my room.. "
"You can use the room next to the bathroom.. "
In a hurry,
As soon as I found out where the room was, I immediately ran and took refuge in that room. Only then could I breathe a sigh of relief. What on earth was Mrs. Jeong thinking, being with a man..!! Am I really her biological daughter..?!
“No matter what, how can I… be with a man…”
Living with a man is nearly impossible for me, having been through that. No, it's impossible. And yet, knowing all that, you deliberately put me in this situation...?
After suppressing my deep frustration, I immediately called Mrs. Jeong.
Ringing,
" hello .. "
“Oh, you arrived?”
“Mom, are you crazy?! No matter what, how could you be with a man..?”
"So what? I called him back then and he seemed like a decent guy."
“..But how can you stick with a man? Me”
“Then… how long were you going to stay cooped up in your room like that?”
" what ? "
“You should meet someone too.. and get married. At least you shouldn’t die alone.”
“What’s wrong with being alone..?”
“.. No. Even if you die, you can’t live alone.”
“.. This is really too much. Mom, live comfortably on your own.”
" what ..? "
“Hang up. Call back later.”
I just hung up the phone and tried to wipe away the tears that were flowing down my face.
After a while, I calmed down and opened the door slightly to check if the man was there, thinking I might get some water.
Luckily, the man was nowhere to be seen, so I quickly headed to the kitchen and drank some water.
“Ha.. I think I’ll survive.”
at that time,
“Did you all cry?”
“..!! Surprise..!! ”
Clang,
“Oh my... This is it”
“N.. I was so surprised.. that.. “
Parrr,
As expected, my whole body is shaking like crazy and my breathing is getting faster. This is why I don't want to be with men...
I tried to bend down with my trembling body to sort out the broken glass,
Swish,
“ ..!! “
"Don't touch that glass."
widely,
” ..!! “
"A.. Don't touch me. Do whatever you want"
I instinctively shook off the hand that was grabbing my wrist, and the man stared at me with wide eyes, startled. Of course, it was a favor, no matter how you looked at it. To a normal person...
Because it was obviously a favor to anyone who saw it.
But not to me. To suddenly grab my wrist like that is neither kind nor considerate; it feels like an attack.
“That’s… so”
"I'm sorry. But please leave that glass alone for a moment."
” … “
The man went somewhere and came back with a broom and newspaper, swept up the broken glass bottles, and went outside.
As soon as the man left, the shaking subsided as if by magic and I was finally able to breathe a little.
After a while,
Knock knock,
“Are you feeling better now?”
"Ah.. yes."
As expected, my body starts shaking again, but I'm not out of breath like before. I guess it was worse earlier because I was surprised...
Still, I felt I had to apologize. From that person's perspective, I knew they'd never understand me, and that was generally true.
“Just now.. I”
at that time,
"I'm really sorry about earlier. I was rude."
" yes ..? "
Apologize first..?
“I was so anxious that I was afraid you might get hurt, so I put my hand out first.”
" ah .. "
“I’ll be more careful next time.”
“ … “
I really didn't think I'd be the one to apologize first. But, if anyone were to look at it, shouldn't I be the one to apologize?
" therefore .. "
” ..? “
“Stay with me. Here.”
" yes ..? "
"I honestly heard you on the phone with your mother earlier. No, I heard you. But... I couldn't pretend not to hear you."
" ah .. "
Yeah. For some reason, he asked me earlier if I cried all the time.. Crazy, then he even told me all about that guy and all that..?
Rather, I was more rude...
I'm even more speechless. No matter what, right now, that person is A and B is me...
“I’ll be out all evening anyway, so it’s probably no different from being alone.”
" ah .. "
“You can just eat dinner and things like that by yourself..! It’s okay to live here as if it were your own home.”
” … “
At this point, I have a question. Why does this man want me so badly in his home? Honestly, it's strange. A grown man with a grown woman...
“Excuse me.. Can I ask you one thing?”
" yes yes. "
“Why do you want me in this house?”
" .. that "
“ ..? ”
“I’ll tell you when you come home.”
" .. her ? "
“You can take your time deciding. Until then, it would be nice if you could stay at my house.”
“ … ”
“Can I ask you one thing I’m curious about?”
“Ah.. yes.”
“What is your name?”
“Didn’t you hear from your mother?”
“Yes. Ask your mother yourself...”
“Ha.. That was really reckless.”
They didn't even tell me the name of the person entering...
“..so what’s your name?”
“..It’s Yeoju. Jeong Yeoju.”
“Jeong Yeo-ju.. what a pretty name.”
“..who is the owner?”
“Ah..! My name is.. ”
“ ..? ”
"My name is Choi Yeonjun. I'm 28 years old."
Choi Yeonjun... It was a name that felt strangely familiar. I'd heard it somewhere... I can't remember. Well, he's not the same age as me. He looks a bit young, so I thought he'd be younger or the same age, but he's actually two years older...
at that time,
"I guess you've relaxed a bit now. Your hands aren't shaking."
” ..!! “
"Thank goodness..? This is right, right?"
” … “
It was true. As I talked with Choi Yeonjun, I noticed that my hands and body tremors had subsided, and my body tremors had also significantly decreased. What the...
"I don't know how long it will last, but..."
” ..? “
“Take care. Us.”
” … “
No matter how much I think about it, I don't think my mom sent me anywhere. That's for sure.