Taesan: an ex-boyfriend we broke up with because of a misunderstanding
It had been a year since we broke up.
I thought we’d never run into each other again, but of all nights, I met him on a night when the rain was pouring down.
“……Noona.”
It was Han Taesan.
Even though his face looked a little more grown-up than before, the voice calling to me was still the same.
“Long time no see.”
“Yeah.”
A short answer.
Taesan stood next to me and, for a while, silently looked out at the rain-soaked street.
Then he looked at the umbrella in my hand and said,
“You still haven’t changed your umbrella.”
“How do you remember that?”
“I just do.”
Taesan smiled briefly.
“I don’t easily forget things related to Noona.”
For some reason, my heart felt strange.
I quickly changed the subject.
“Have you… been well?”
“So-so.”
“Do you have a girlfriend?”
Taesan’s expression hardened just a little.
“Yeah.”
“…I see.”
I thought I’d asked something unnecessary.
“Is she a good person?”
“Yeah.”
Taesan fell silent for a moment, then asked.
“What about you, Noona?”
“I do too.”
At that moment, Taesan looked at me.
“……Really?”
“Yeah.”
“What kind of person is he?”
“He’s a good person.”
Taesan nodded without saying anything.
Then he asked quietly,
“How is he? Is he better than me?”
“Taesan.”
“I’m just curious.”
He had his usual indifferent expression.
But he was gripping the umbrella handle in his hand too tightly for no reason.
“Does he treat you better than I did?”
“...”
“Does he make you smile more?”
“…”
Taesan nodded.
“..I see.”
After a long silence, Taesan said in a low voice,
“I guess he even erased all my memories.”
“…….”
“So you wouldn’t remember me at all, Noona.”
It was a forced smile, but it wasn’t funny at all.
“Still…”
Taesan took a brief breath and said,
“If you’re happy, that’s enough.”
I couldn’t say anything.
Then Taesan looked at me.
“……You thought I’d say that?”
“What?”
Taesan looked away and let out a small laugh.
“I’m not going to tell a lie like that.”
Only the sound of the rain quietly filled the space between the two of us.
“Honestly, I hate it.”
“…….”
“You being happy with someone else, Noona.”
Taesan’s voice was still calm.
That made it sound even clearer.
“I know I should congratulate you if you met someone better than me, but…”
Taesan stopped talking for a moment and looked at me.
“I’m not that good a person yet.”
And after a long while,
Taesan smiled very faintly.
“So for today, you can just… hate me a little.”
“Why?”
“Because I sound like a still-attached ex-boyfriend.”
Taesan gave a bitter smile.
“But that’s actually true.”
+Honestly, I like this one too..ㅎㅂㅎ
