I'm in a relationship by chance
W. Dingdongdang
I was a little taken aback by the man's sudden question, but I quickly came to my senses and answered calmly.
At my words, the man's eyebrows shot up, causing two faint wrinkles to appear on his forehead.
“I’m really sorry to say this, but I think it’s almost 100% certain that you kidnapped Kim Do-jun.”
The man on the screen seemed to be upset by my firm words, and the corners of his mouth visibly turned down again. Did you think I'd fall for that expression?
Ugh, I'm not usually this type of person, but I have to bring out the angry side deep inside me to bring Kim Do-jun safely back to mom and dad's arms. But I really don't know how to be angry ㅠㅠㅠㅠ I barely managed to do it just now.
“So, quickly. Show me the room and I’ll see if you’re innocent or guilty.”
When I raised the "yo" at the end of my sentences by an octave and spoke a little louder, I felt a bit like a woman in a state of rage. The tearful story of a twin sister trying to rescue her kidnapped brother... This was a success.
“… How embarrassing it is to show your room to a woman you’ve never met before…”
The man stared at me for a few seconds, stroking his hair. Seeing no movement, he sighed deeply, pulled his face back from the screen, and switched the phone screen from the front to the back. Then, one by one, the scenes from the room began to appear.
The room, illuminated by the LED lights affixed to the ceiling, was much cleaner than I'd expected. I'd imagined it to be more than just Kim Do-jun's, as he'd described it as "dirty, dirty." But this was a room so clean and uncluttered that I almost thought it was a model home. Oh, maybe a housekeeper or something would do the cleaning. Otherwise, a house where people live wouldn't be this clean.
Putting aside my doubts about the unusually clean room, I began to carefully examine every nook and cranny. Right next to the tightly closed door, a school uniform hung on a hanger, crisp and clean, as if it had just been laundered. Next to it was a large desk with a laptop on it. The bookshelf next to the desk was filled with various workbooks. Judging by the workbooks, I knew she was a student who studied hard. Or was she just faking it? Whatever it was, I was certain she was better than me.
Leaving the neat desk behind, the screen moved to the other side of the room. There was a white bed with a neatly folded blanket. The blanket was perfectly clean, as if it wouldn't tolerate even the slightest wrinkle, as if it were a display bed. Across from the bed was a small table with a mushroom-shaped lamp emitting a yellow light, along with a small book featuring Winnie the Pooh. Even after looking through the room, there was no sign of Kim Do-jun anywhere in the man's room.
"The room is surprisingly clean. You said it was dirty earlier, so I imagined it would be even better than my room."
After the man showed me the room, I felt a sense of relief that he hadn't kidnapped Kim Do-jun, but also a sense of shame and guilt.
“I told you, I said no.”
Looking at the man's smiling face, thankfully, it wasn't a bad one. It was a slightly relieved, proud expression, perhaps, after clearing up a misunderstanding.
"If you're going to apologize, you don't have to. It was quite fun."
“Oh… Really? Still, I should apologize. I misunderstood. I’m sorry for the misunderstanding.”
The man smiled again at my apology, and with the most important matter resolved, I decided to hang up and call Kim Do-jun again using his proper number. Still smiling, I quietly said goodbye to the man, signaling the end of the call.
"I'm truly sorry about earlier. From now on, I'll be careful to dial the number correctly before calling. It must have been even more stressful because it was a video call, but thank you."
At my words, the man smiled and said again that it was okay. Then, with a tone that said he was a little sad to end the call,
"Next time, make sure to check the number carefully before calling. If you ask someone else if they kidnapped you, there'll be chaos."
He said and waved his hand.
“Ah, yes! I understand.”
“Oh, right-”
I wanted to hear the man's last words, but unfortunately, the call ended. My brain was in a rush. I was curious about what he had said, but there was no way to ask him again, so I had no choice. Why would I call him back just to ask him this one question? I decided to trust that it wasn't something significant.
After the call ended and my mind calmed down, various thoughts about the man began to cross my mind. He seemed to be the same age as me, or maybe a year older, and honestly, when I thought about it logically, I realized it would be impossible for him to kidnap a boy his own age. But Kim Yeo-ju, I guess I've gotten a little smarter these days.
Anyway, I felt like I owed him a sincere apology, so I cautiously left a text message to that number. I learned that in kindergarten: if you've done something wrong, don't hesitate to apologize first.
“Is this the right thing to do?”
I debated whether or not to include an emoji, but decided to. Not including one made it feel like I was 100% trying to apologize, but someone else was making me do it. It may seem a bit playful, but my determination is clearly evident. Besides, this is my natural way of speaking.
“Oh, that’s right. Kim Do-jun.”
After sending the text, I took my phone out of my back pocket and called Kim Do-jun. There wasn't any particular reason; I just wanted to tell him what had just happened.
“First of all, I need to save the number.”
I saved Kim Do-jun's number while talking to myself habitually.
"Just think of it as a lesson learned from today. Let's go home now!"
I ended the call, which was incredibly embarrassing for both me and the other person, without a hitch, and I apologized. I headed home with a light heart. Oh, and I stopped by a convenience store on the way and bought some jelly. I'll have some on my way to school tomorrow.
"But, that guy from earlier. It'd be hilarious if we just happened to meet him here. Wouldn't it be incredibly embarrassing?"
Even I can't help but laugh at the absurdity of the idea. The world is so vast. The population of South Korea is so vast, I can't even imagine. The chance of meeting that man again is probably less than 1%. If we do meet again, it's probably fate.