Live with your ex-boyfriend!
Copyright 2022 몬트 All rights reserved
I carefully lifted my eyelids. Memories of that day flashed through my mind in an instant, and I opened my eyes, staring blankly ahead. "Yes, I'll leave this memory as a part of my immaturity." I smiled slightly, but my eyes remained silent. I don't know why.
I felt like if I continued sitting like this I would get lost in old memories, so I quickly got up from the sofa.Where… Should I make something simple to sober up?Feeling relieved to have something to do, I headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge. Bean sprouts, green garlic… I think I'll need some Cheongyang peppers too… Having lived alone since college, I'm confident enough to cook at least one thing. So, I took out the ingredients and confidently started preparing breakfast.
This morning's menu was quite filling: refreshing bean sprout soup to soothe my stomach, fluffy steamed eggs, and ham as a meat substitute. I was busy preparing rice, making soup, and doing other things, so I didn't even notice Kim Taehyung's presence.Now all I have to do is set the table!
“What are you doing there?”
“Whoa! This is a surprise…”
“Why are you so surprised? Are you going to eat breakfast?”
Yeah, I made some bean sprout soup to sober up. You should eat some too.I was so absorbed in cooking that I didn't realize when Kim Taehyung had emerged from his room and been watching me. His sudden voice startled me, and I spun around to face him. It was Kim Taehyung, his hair wet, as if he'd just gotten out of bed and showered. Remembering how much he'd drunk the night before, he suggested we go hangover-free together.
“Okay, I’ll just dry my hair and come back.”
After Kim Taehyung went back to his room to dry his hair, I busied myself for no reason. It was a strange desire to have the table set before Kim Taehyung showed up. I scooped out rice and soup, placed each person's bowl on their own, and even arranged the steamed eggs, baked ham, and kimchi in a row. Finally, I neatly placed the spoons and chopsticks, and just in time, Kim Taehyung showed up.
"You're all set already? I was just trying to help..."
“All I had to do was prepare it, what was it?”
“You probably cooked it yourself.”
“It wasn’t that difficult. Just come and eat.”
I shrugged my shoulders at Kim Taehyung, who was standing there muttering, as if he was trying to help me. We sat across from each other, both picking up our spoons and sipping the soup without saying a word. Luckily, he seemed to like it and was eating well. I smiled with a proud heart, thinking that this must be what a mother's heart is like. I picked up the grilled ham with my chopsticks and placed it on Kim Taehyung's rice. Then, Kim Taehyung stopped using his chopsticks and stared at me, and since I had done it without realizing it, I was even more flustered and fidgeted than him.That… this,
“Does this kind of thing also apply to the friendships you mentioned?”
“No, I was so happy that you enjoyed the food I prepared for you that I didn’t realize it… I’m sorry. It was a mistake.”
“I don’t mind the apology, I had a great time.”
Kim Taehyung stared at me indifferently. His mood, so different from last night, briefly puzzled me. He couldn't have shaken everything off in that brief moment of dawn... Trying to figure out the reason for the change would only complicate matters, so I decided to just put my head down and eat. I lowered my gaze, scooped up a spoonful of rice, and munched. Then, Kim Taehyung gazed at my face for a moment before gesturing to me.
“Kim Yeo-ju, please raise your head a little closer.”
Suddenly, I raised my eyebrows and made a puzzled expression, wondering why he was doing that. Then, as he instructed, I brought my head closer to him, which must have been quite amusing. Kim Taehyung, too, slightly raised himself and reached out to my face, his large hand gently grasping the side of my chin.ㅁ, what are you doing…!I was on purpose in case my face turned red from Kim Taehyung's touchHe raised his voice.
Kim Taehyung's thumb brushed close to my lips. Even though it was only a slight touch, the moment it did, a tingling sensation coursed through my body, and I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Will you open your eyes?”
After a brief moment of silence, I opened my eyes, my body trembling slightly, when I heard Kim Taehyung's voice.…what did you just do?
“This keeps sticking to my lips.”
My face flushed bright red. The reason I was blushing now wasn't because of Kim Taehyung's actions earlier, but because of the white rice cake stuck to his thumb. Life, I felt like I wanted to hide somewhere, but I tried to act calm. My complexion wasn't at all calm.
“…From now on, just say it out loud. Don’t just do it for no reason.”
“Well… yeah, this was a mistake for me too. You and I both made mistakes, so it’s teacher teacher, right?”
For some reason, I felt like I'd fallen for Kim Taehyung's tricks. After calling him "teacher, teacher," he chuckled and started finishing his leftover rice, which made me feel a bit annoyed. But what was even more serious was that my flushed cheeks showed no signs of regaining their original color. I cupped them with both hands and even fanned them with my own, but nothing came back. I gave up and just kept my gaze fixed on my rice bowl as I finished my breakfast.
Fortunately, after that, we ate in complete silence. Seeing Kim Taehyung, who hadn't left a single grain of rice or drop of soup, made me feel even more proud than before. I, too, felt a pleasant sense of fullness as I leaned back in my chair. I should clean up quickly... It's annoying, but I have to do it anyway. I was about to get up when Kim Taehyung stopped me.
“Just sit there, I’ll clean up.”
“Huh? No! I’ll do it.”
“You already prepared breakfast, so what are you doing? Okay, go back to your room and rest, or just sit over there.”
But still… cleaning up is more of a hassle than setting up…I tried to step forward and help clean up, but Kim Taehyung grabbed my shoulders with both hands and held me down, forcing me back into my chair. He left me to sit, moved the dishes, wiped the table clean, and then walked over to the sink, rolling up his arms.Hey…! Hey, I’ll do the dishes!
“Stay still when I talk to you. If you keep getting carried away, I’ll hug you and put you in your room.”
"There are no rubber gloves here. My hands are unusually weak, and if I touch detergent for too long, I get eczema... You can do everything else, but let me do the dishes."
“…I remember everything.”
“You too, come out quickly.”
I wasn't just trying to dissuade Kim Taehyung. Ever since college, his hands have been weak, cracked, and often even developed eczema. So I always carried hand cream in my pocket, and it's become a habit. It's still in my left pocket at all times.Okay, let's go.
“Do you still carry hand cream?”
“…It’s because I got used to it. Even when I tried not to carry it around, I ended up carrying it around like a habit, without even realizing it.”
“That’s why habits are scary. Once you get into a habit, you’ll always remember it.”
We both shared bitter expressions. Kim Taehyung and I had known each other for so long, we knew so much about each other, and we still hadn't forgotten it. I hated this awkward silence, so I turned on the water in the sink. The water gushed out, and with a slosh, I began to wash the dishes.
"Kim Yeo-ju, is this really a friend? I don't think so."
My hands, diligently washing the dishes, paused for a moment. My heart completely agreed with Kim Taehyung's words, but my mind disagreed. We knew too much, remembered too much, to be friends.
*
[EPILOGUE]
Q. What if we met by chance instead of through a program?
“I’ve never really thought about it… I think I’ll just pretend not to know. There’s no benefit to pretending to know.”
"I'll catch it. I've regretted not catching it that day, so I'll catch it and not let it go."
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