"Yeoju, if you wake up, I'll eat with you all."
Our Yeoju readily responded to Jihyun's call. Jihyun's expression seemed to have returned, and Yeoju was in a good mood. Yeoju, who hadn't even washed properly, came into the kitchen to find Taesan, Seongho, Yeoju, and Jihyun there. It seemed like only these four were there, with everyone else gone.
"It looks delicious. Who made it?"
"Mr. Taesan"
"Oh, oh, it's delicious."
Yeoju, who received the answer "Taesan" to her question, felt a strange sense of relief. Despite her stiff response, the rice was incredibly delicious. The similarity in their cooking skills over the years certainly captured Yeoju's taste buds.
After a delicious meal, my heavy body feels a little lighter. Our Yeoju and Jihyeonyi laugh and chat for a while with a satisfied expression.
"Brother, you said you'd wake me up."
"No, I thought you slept late last night."
The sound of someone descending the stairs is urgent, and when I turn around, I see Unhak, with a sad expression, asking Seongho if he should wake me up. Yeoju greets Unhak with a slight wave. Unhak finally lets his shoulders hang loose and walks away. Yeoju notices Taesan looking at her, who is relieved to see Unhak back again.
Then Taesan-ssi's mouth shapeLet's talkI'll say that. Even though I wonder why, Yeoju, I willingly comply. The moment Jihyun gets up, Yeoju and Taesang also get up. Unhak is finally putting down his bowl, but three people leave at the same time, and Yeoju notices that too. For some reason, the arm holding the spoon feels lonely.
"The food is delicious."
And my body naturally settles in front of Unhak. Then Unhak asks if it tastes good and Taesan confirms that it was made by him. Then Taesan sees Yeoju like that.
That's exactly the expression on her face. At the suggestion to talk, Yeoju nodded slightly and got up, but in the end, without even being able to talk to Taesan, he sat down in front of Unhak again. It's not like Yeoju doesn't understand why Taesan has that expression on his face. But what can she do? Yeoju can't ignore Unhak, who is smiling and talking excitedly to her.
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When Unhak seems to have eaten enough, Seongho says he's going somewhere for a bit and looks at his phone before getting up. After saying goodbye, only Unhak and Yeoju are left.
"Oh, right, thank you for yesterday."
"You said I had no talent"
"You're a bit slow to show off your talents. At the time, I couldn't hear you, but when I lay down in bed, it was so moving."
"Really? That's a relief."
"Anyway, you're quite talented, so let's ask for some comfort sometimes."
"I'm a high-level person."
"It would be perfect if you didn't say that."
"lol"
Yeo-ju was a little disappointed that she couldn't do anything about Unhak's slumped shoulders, but fortunately, our Yeo-ju was happier than she thought that she was able to help Unhak. While talking nonsense with Unhak, she suddenly thought of Taesan and told Unhak to get up first and left.
I knocked on Taesan's room, but there was no answer. I wondered if it was okay to knock, but when I opened it slightly, Taesan was lying face down on the bed, as if he had intentionally not answered. Yeoju's radar was activated. When I recalled my memories, I saw that Taesan always looked like that after fighting with Yeoju. He would be on the sofa, but he wouldn't last even a minute and run over and tell her in a slurred voice that she shouldn't have said things like that, but he only touched Yeoju's hand, so even if they fought, it didn't last more than 5 minutes.
Anyway, the heroine had a feeling of unease in her heart, but thinking about it again, she felt there was no need to touch Guji's condition. She opened the door again with a face that said, "Well, whatever," and went out.
"I can't wait even for a minute"
"Oh, I thought you were sleeping."
"Anja, can you talk to me now?"
Taesan, who had been lying down earlier, seemed to have a blank expression on his face, but despite the obvious excuse that he thought he was sleeping, he suddenly got up with a bright face like before and asked if he could talk. Yeoju tried to ignore the poking from somewhere and said, "Okay."
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"But why did you come back?"
"Huh? No, I decided to talk to you."
"Oh, Kim Yeo-ju, you've got some thorns in you."
"Oh, there were a lot of thorns, so I didn't go in."
"ㅋㅋㅋNo, it's different"
"Oh, I want to go out"
Taesan, who doesn't seem to have much to say, is a little annoyed by Yeoju? In fact, it seems like Yeoju has become a little more gentle than before. When he hits the nail on the head and is about to leave, Taesan, who was sitting down, suddenly stands up and turns Yeoju around, who is trying to leave, causing Yeoju to gasp in surprise.
"What are you doing today? Let's play, Yeoju."
Yeoju, who forgot how surprised she was when she called to say that, lets out a small laugh, but she gently pushes Taesan away from her and refuses, saying she wants to rest. Yeoju doesn't want to fail in maintaining distance from Taesan.
"Should I wait?"
"I told you I'm not going?"
"I want to play with Kim Yeo-ju."
"Play with Unhak"
"I want to play with Kim Yeo-ju."
"Common sense tells me I can't meet you and have fun and relax. Just thinking about it makes me feel a little... offended."
I didn't want to say "I'm so pissed off," but it seems like words don't filter out well. Yeo-ju, who only watches Tae-san's reaction after saying something, is still being petty.
"What can I do to make you feel more comfortable around me?"
"I should go on a trip to the past."
"Think of it as a trip to the past."
"Is that okay?"
"No way? I'm trying to live in the past."
".....What good does it do to live in the past?"
"I'm doing this because I like it. I like being with you."
"I hate it. I'd rather not have a past."
Yeo-ju hates these conversations with Tae-san, wondering who keeps bringing up the past and torturing her. This place, which she thought would be filled with only curses, only leaves her with sadness and anger, and this place, which she came to under the pretense of pouring out her heart, only leaves her with wounds and a feeling of turmoil. Yeo-ju, feeling that further conversation is unnecessary, is the first to leave.
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I don't know how long I've been spending in the room, but I can't see Jihyun or Unhak, so I've been lying in the room for three hours. I can't sleep and there's nothing to do. I can't go out because I'm afraid I'll run into Taesan. I get up from my seat and pretend to open the door, then go back to bed. My body is itchy and wants to go outside, so after 10 minutes of thinking, I leave the room.
I go out and there's no one. It's just really quiet. I take a quick look around the first floor, but it seems like no one is there. I finally head towards the kitchen, but I hear voices. It seems to be Unhak, but I don't feel like I should go in. I wonder if he's talking to Jihyun, so I quickly grab some snacks and run up to the living room on the second floor.
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While watching TV, the first floor suddenly becomes noisy as if people have arrived. Only then does Yeoju go downstairs. It feels like she has been locked in all day. As soon as Yeoju goes down, she sees Jiye coming in with Taesan, Seongho sitting on the sofa playing on his phone, and Joyeon taking out a snack to eat.
Why are the two of them coming in together? Were they on a date? Did they go out to play? Who knows, seeing the two of them just coming in, Yeo-ju quickly goes back up. She doesn't even know it's annoying. Seriously, all the annoying emotions came pouring out at that moment. Yeo-ju, who is trapped again, is dizzy and going crazy. When she reaches the conclusion that she didn't go and went out to play with Ji-ye, her head fills with absurd thoughts.
"What are you doing, heroine?"
"Hey, unnie, you're here?"
"Yeah, what did you do?"
"I was just resting... Where were you, Unnie?"
"I went out to play with Taesan and ate a lot of delicious food."
"That would be nice"
"Oh my! When I asked him what he was doing, he said he wasn't doing anything and that I bought him food last time and that I would buy him some too, so he left."
"Oh, did you buy me food?"
"Oh, last time, you and Taesan went out together really often. 3 times, I think."
"You go out often."
"We're having dinner soon, let's go down."
"huh"
She became comfortable enough to eat with Ji-ye three times, but she wondered why he wanted to go out with her. Yeo-ju was alone all day, and she thought that both of them were the same in that they messed things up and didn't take responsibility, so she doesn't even want to eat now.
However, Yeo-ju's last pride is that she doesn't want to act like a loser even at a place where everyone is eating together. Even when she goes downstairs and they are all preparing together, she never goes near Tae-san. She stays next to Ji-hyun or helps Seong-ho. She doesn't even remember the conversation she had with Seong-ho. Because whenever Tae-san comes near, she quickly avoids him as if she were using the shrinking technique.
Even when eating, it's not much different. Ji-ye is always where Tae-san sits, and Yeo-ju sits last, as far away as possible. She forces herself to eat the rice that won't go down, perhaps fearing that if someone asks, "Yeo-ju, what's wrong?", her annoyance will leak out. Her mind is elsewhere, but her body moves quite naturally.
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After finishing my meal, I felt so full that I could only describe it as "full." I waited for Jihyun to come upstairs, but then, feeling absolutely disgusted with Taesan, I went up to the second floor. Only after leaving the stairs did my stomach feel a little better. Yeoju, who had no other thought than to lie down, lay down on the bed, wondering why she was being like this.
(dripping)
I tried to wake up at the sound of knocking for a moment.
"Are you inside, heroine?"
It's Jaehyun. When Yeoju answered yes, Jaehyun came in and gave her some medicine. He said he saw her eating and her expression didn't look good, and asked if she was okay. I thought I was smiling as much as possible, but it was the same on the first day we met. Jaehyun was the only one who noticed that her expression wasn't good.
"...I'm really so touched..."
By the time you realize your eyes are hot, it's already too late. You only realize they're tears when something has already fallen.
"Oh.. Are you really that touched?"
The tears that flow quietly, dripping down, speak to Yeo-ju's feelings. Only then does Yeo-ju realize that these tears are regret. She simply thought, "Why did I do it there when Tae-san said I should have left?" Yeo-ju's heart and this situation—that Tae-san is always open to leaving, and that Yeo-ju is trapped on a deserted island, where Ta-san has set sail and is waiting for her—remain unstoppable. Knowing this, Yeo-ju can't stop crying. Only then does she speak to Jae-hyun, who is fidgeting.
"I want to go out"
Jaehyun, who had been hesitating, waits until Yeoju stops crying. After waiting for a while, the tears finally stop flowing. Then Jaehyun gives Yeoju some water and brings a chair in front of her to speak.
"Why do you want to go out?"
"...I took this situation too lightly."
"so do i"
"I did it because Jaehyun told me to do it the way my body moved, but now I don't even know what I want."
"Is X a mountain?"
"....Wow...you're really quick on the uptake..."
"Taesan asked me what I should do if someone changes 180 degrees and approaches me. That was the day after I talked to you, so I thought, 'Just in case.' And the two of you went out yesterday too."
"There's nothing to lie about anymore."
"Taesan seems to want to reunite with you, but you don't?"
"I don't know, today he said he likes to live in a haunted house and that he likes being with me, so he went out to play with Jiye."
"Han Tae-san has never talked to me about him. I always hear about X doing this and that, and you all day long. He always laughs when he talks about you, and he gets frustrated because of you. All of his emotions change depending on you, but I think it's worth believing in him for once. Since you don't know anything yet, let's leave it unsolved."
"You know what? Taesan only looks at you when he's eating."
Jaehyun smiles and says that he can't hold back his laughter when Taesan talks about him anymore. Our Yeoju chews on Jaehyun's words with swollen eyes. Jaehyun's words become more convincing as she thinks that it's really the best of the best and that they need to try various methods.
"Trust me, now it's your turn to decide."
While telling Jaehyun to think carefully, take his medicine, and rest, he warns her that today is the last day he will force her to eat. She feels embarrassed for no reason and says, "I know!" to relieve her embarrassment a little.
What Jaehyun said is right. There must be a reason why Taesan Han, whom I don't know, acted that way, and the fact that she is now trying to trust Taesan, whom she has never trusted before, is also Yeoju's will to step back a little.
That night, I had a dream. I was worried about Taesan Han, who had been sick and went to the infirmary during high school, so I made up all kinds of excuses to skip class and go to the infirmary and hug Taesan Han. Taesan Han, as if he had forgotten that he was sick, hugged Yeoju. Maybe he thought Taesan was sick enough to die, but from that day on, I checked on Taesan all day long and Taesan liked Yeoju like that, so one day, I pretended to be sick and laughed in that dream.