After class ended, my friend grabbed me, asking me to go drink with them after a long time. I had no plans today anyway, so I readily accepted the offer. I trailed behind my chatty friend as they talked away. And then, when we finally stepped into an unfamiliar alley, a sense of unease began to well up inside me.
“It’s here.”
The moment I confirmed where my friend had stopped, I turned on my heel.
“I’m leaving.”
“Hey, wait a sec.”
My arm was grabbed. I took one more step, but my friend hooked both arms around mine and clung on.
“We came all this way, so where are you going! You said you’d drink with me today!”
“Is this the only bar in the world?”
“It’s supposed to be famous. They say the bartender is insanely handsome.”
I could tell who it was without even looking. Seriously, they’re no help to my life. Of all places, it had to be the one where that obnoxious jerk worked.
“Let’s go somewhere else.”
“No!! I waited for you to finish class so I could come here today~!”
“Ugh….”
My friend’s class ended around 2 p.m. today. I had class until 5. At the thought that they’d waited for me for a full three hours, I was at a loss for words. The instant the strength left my body as I tried to move forward, I lurched toward the shop.
“Yes! I’ll treat.”
Holding me with one hand and pushing the door open with the other, they went in. Familiar classical music and the scent of the bar hit me full on.
*
Even though it was a weekday, the bar was crowded.
From the moment we came in, it seemed like Sangwon had seen us, but he didn’t act like he knew us. After refilling another customer’s glass and handing something to an employee nearby, he went back to the tables.
That was a relief, at least.
My friend and I took seats in a corner of the bar. We were far from the bar table where Sangwon stood, too.
“So the handsome guy was him, Lee Sangwon.”
“Yeah. You’ve seen him at school too, so what are you coming here to see?”
“I didn’t know~ Still, it’s easy on the eyes. The rumors aren’t good, though.”
My friend chatted away as they opened the menu. After reading the cocktail names one by one and thinking for a while, they pointed at a cute pink cocktail and got up.
“I’m gonna run to the bathroom. Order mine for me~”
“Hey!”
They were gone before I could stop them.
Only two menus were left on the table. I looked around for an employee to call over. Just as I was trying to meet the eyes of another bartender standing nearby, a black shirt blocked my view.
Sangwon was standing in front of the table.
How did he know? More than that, I had no intention of ordering from him.
“An order…….”
“Look at this.”
Sangwon lifted one corner of his mouth in a smirk.
“You’re the one doing the stalking, apparently.”
“No, that’s not—”
“What, did you fall for me at first sight or something?”
I looked up at Sangwon, incredulous. At this rate, there was no way a sensible conversation would get through to him.
“You’re talking informally.”
“You like my face?”
“Just take the order.”
I raised the menu and pretended to smack Sangwon in the face with it. He leaned his head back, laughing.
I looked down at the menu again. Even reading the names, I still couldn’t tell what was what. I pointed at what my friend had pointed out earlier.
“This one, and that thing from before.”
“That thing from before?”
“You know, the one you recommended.”
Sangwon looked briefly surprised, then the corners of his eyes curved slightly.
“It was good, right?”
“What are you smiling for?”
“I’m not smiling.”
He said it while his mouth was still tilted up. Talk back, will you. He said, “Please wait a moment,” in a stock phrase, picked up the menu, and walked away. A little later, my friend returned to the seat.
“Did you order?”
“Yeah.”
“What did you get?”
“What I drank yesterday. You haven’t had it yet.”
“What? You came here before? So you know him too?”
“Know him….”
Not someone I’m on speaking terms with. I finished the thought and brought the cup full of ice water to my lips.
My friend turned to look toward where Sangwon was. He was standing in front of another table. Leaning forward slightly as he listened to a customer, he laughed with his eyes crinkled too.
“What a phony.”
The words came out before I knew it. Oops—by the time I realized it, my friend had already heard me and was staring at me intently. What? Their eyes got even wider in surprise as they looked at me.
“Yeoju, are you close with him?”
“No, not at all.”
“Huhh.”
“What?”
“You hate him?”
I picked up the cocktail glass the other bartender had set down in front of me and took a sip.
“Why would I like him?”
*
My friend surprisingly accepted that easily and moved on to another topic. It was all petty stuff—what happened in class today, who broke up with whom, how the kid we’d once drunk with had badmouthed us behind our backs.
I answered casually and drank. I wasn’t in a bad mood. As I smiled and listened, Sangwon, behind my friend, kept catching my eye now and then. And every time, somehow, I ended up making eye contact with Sangwon. I should’ve sat on the opposite side. He’ll think I’m staring at him again. I turned my head away and drank, when my friend’s phone rang.
“Oh, I need to take this. I’ll be right back.”
My friend took their phone and went out toward the entrance. I waved my hand vaguely and took out my phone. It hasn’t even been an hour yet. Guess I’d need to knock back at least three more before they’d let me go home. As I was thinking that pointless thought, a shadow fell over my field of vision. It was Sangwon.
“What?”
“Your glass is getting low. Would you like anything else?”
A snort of laughter escaped me.
“You don’t have to pretend.”
“Oh, is that so.”
Sangwon stretched lazily, extending his arms. His shoulders lifted, then dropped with a thump.
“I didn’t ask you to stretch.”
“Did you not? For some reason, this place feels comfortable.”
Amused, I let out a short laugh and shook my cocktail glass. The sound of ice melting and clinking rang out.
We’ve only just met, so why is he so comfortable around me? He’s got no eye for people either.
Sangwon rubbed one cheek with his palm, then pressed at the corner of his mouth a few times.
“My face is going to start twitching.”
Maybe because he’d been laughing nonstop. I let that last comment slide. Even if his face was dead serious, it looked better than forcing a smile. No, but seriously, why is he messing around in front of me? At a bar, isn’t the bartender supposed to be the one listening to the customer?
“Is business that hard?”
“I get a lot of customers who come to see me.”
“It must be hard living while hiding that personality.”
“It’s fine if I don’t have to hide it in front of someone.”
Sangwon stood up. Those shortened words from earlier reached my ears again. Well, they didn’t bother me.
“If you’re done resting, go work.”
“You’re a harsh customer.”
Sangwon answered expressionlessly and turned away. A few steps later, when he met another customer’s eyes, he smiled as if nothing had happened.
He really does smile easily.
Soon my friend came back to the seat.
“Sorry. It was my mom on the phone.”
“It’s fine.”
“I’m going to order one more, Yeoju, what about you?”
“Me too. Anything.”
My friend raised a hand right away. The moment the other bartenders looked our way and were about to come over, Sangwon quickly took our front with those long legs of his. Wow, he really must not want to deal with women….
“We’re about to order. I’ll have this, and for her, I’d like a recommendation.”
I was scanning the drinks on display listlessly when I got a shock. Hey, when did I say I wanted a recommendation!
My friend was pointing at me, jabbing a finger at me. Sangwon followed the tip of that finger and snickered.
“Your friend seems like a handful.”
“Yeah, well…. She always says she’ll have anything, but she’s actually pretty picky.”
“I know, I know.”
What does he know? I looked at the two of them nodding their heads back and forth with a tired expression. Soon Sangwon gave a slight grin and leaned down toward me.
“What would you like this time? We have something similar to the last one, but with a deeper flavor.”
“Then bring that.”
“You’re very polite.”
“Her?”
I was so genuinely annoyed I wore a look like I was about to explode, then pointed at that jerk, Lee Sangwon, with my finger.
Sangwon laughed and folded my finger down.
“‘Her’? What’s wrong with me?”
I glared at him, and he said, “I’ll bring it right over,” before leaving.
“Since when were you two so close?”
“We’re not close.”
“Maybe it’s because the two of you are similar?”
“You mean trash sticks together?”
My friend didn’t answer and just tossed the remaining drink into their mouth. As we exchanged a few more words, the two drinks we’d ordered arrived. Another bartender set the full glasses in front of us, gave a light bow, and left. My friend started talking about Sangwon again.
“He seems like a bad boy.”
“Not seems like—he is.”
“But I think his real smile was better than that business smile.”
Sangwon was smiling again as he set a glass down in front of another customer. When the woman said something, he lowered his head with a practiced smile.
I stirred the ice in my new drink with a straw.
“Well, I think it’s better than pretending.”