We decided not to cross the line.

Episode 93. Detective Hoonji

We were sitting across from each other at the table.

We stared at each other in silence for a while.





Meeting again like this

and being together in the same place felt unreal.





Miguel seemed not to want to disturb us

and quietly set a warm cup of coffee down on the table.





I met Miguel’s eyes and thanked him.





"You’re still the same..."





"Huh? What is?"





"No, nothing."





"Before you start bombarding me with questions...

 can I keep looking at Hunji a little longer?"





He gave a quiet nod instead of answering.




Then he lifted his hand over the table

and, with his palm open, gestured for me to give him my hand.





Carefully, I placed my hand on top of his palm.





"What if this is a dream?

 I think I’d be too disappointed when I wake up..."





"Want me to pinch you?"





"Pinch my cheek."


I offered him my cheek.






"Ah! No, why are you pinching so hard?"


My cheek stung.






"I mean... I was trying to make sure you knew

 this wasn’t a dream...

 Then, want to pinch my cheek too?"






He laughed playfully

and offered up his own cheek.





"Ah... it hurts... I’m even tearing up...

 I don’t know if Hunji’s cheek will go red, though."


He jumped in surprise and pulled his face back.





"Come here, quickly.

 Give me your cheek."





"I know for sure this isn’t a dream, so

 I don’t need to be pinched.

 Do you know how hard it was to get here...?"





At that moment,

I thought about how much he must have worried,

prepared, and struggled to get here.




As soon as I thought that,

I was flooded with guilt.





"And yet you suddenly start staring at me like that?"




Embarrassed, he took a sip of coffee.





"I only said Spain...

 How did you know it was here?"





"Well... this place...

 It’s where we first saw that movie together, right?"





"...That’s right."




"Back then, while we were watching the movie,

 you said you wanted to live somewhere like that at least once.

 And... after that, I saw several photos of this village

 pinned to the board on your officetel desk."



"At first, I had no clue where you’d gone...

 but once I heard you were in Spain,

 the pieces finally started clicking into place."






"Seriously... you came here all the way to find me?"

 How could that... be possible?

 What if you came all that way and I wasn’t here...?"





"I came here with almost 100% confidence."


He smiled innocently.





"How did you know about this café?"





"If you tell me that too,

 I think I’ll be so touched I’ll cry...

 Can I even say that here?"






"There must still have been

 a lot about Hunji I didn’t know."






Even hearing his words directly, I still couldn’t believe it.

If I were Hunji...

would I really have been able to go this far...?






"By the way, what about filming and your schedule?

 It must have been hard to make time..."






"As expected... you worry more about my work than I do..."

"But...

 if I kept making you wait any longer, I thought I’d lose you."






He went on quietly.

"Someone told me this: life is all about timing."
 





'Yeah...

 if I hadn’t taken your class then...

 if we hadn’t gone to Hangang Park and eaten chicken together...

 if we hadn’t watched that movie together...

 there wouldn’t be a us now.'






"What do you mean, let’s do what? Are you crazy?"