We decided not to cross the line (Season 1)

Episode 6. Bucket List

The atmosphere had been good up until then.


But the moment I got coffee from him and sat down,

for some reason, he seemed cold.



It might have just been my imagination,

but I was flustered for no reason by the sudden drop in temperature.




Today, he only gave short answers to what I asked.

He didn’t ask me anything first, either.



'Did I do something wrong?'



"The lines I told you to practice from the last script

have you tried them?"




"Yes."




"Can I hear them now?"




"Yes."



Even as he answered, he wouldn’t meet my eyes.



But contrary to what I expected,

not only had he practiced the pronunciation, he’d even memorized

all the lines.




"Wow, your pronunciation is much more natural than last time.

Especially the accent and intonation,

probably because you really brought them out the way I explained..."




"Thank you."



Last time, he’d smiled like a child at one compliment,

but today, he only gave brief answers.




I didn’t know why,

but I wanted to ease the heaviness he seemed to be carrying.




"Since you’ve memorized all the lines...

should I read the other part for you?

That would make it sound a lot more natural."




"No, it’s okay. You don’t need to go that far.

It’s pronunciation practice. Not acting practice..."




"That’s true..."




It was an awfully cold reaction.

Feeling awkward for no reason, I thought I might even cry

and lowered my head.



That was when it happened.



"Um... do you happen to have time after class today?"



At the unexpected question, I looked up.



The truth was, I had translation work to do after class today.

So when I left home, I had my laptop and materials

all piled up in my bag.




"...Yes. That’s fine. Why?"


"The CEO recommended a film that’s similar in tone to the next project

he gave me...

and said to watch it for reference."



After a moment, choosing his words, he added,



"I was wondering if you could watch it with me."



"Me?"



I asked back at the unexpected suggestion,

and he gave a brief nod.




"If you have time... I’d appreciate it."



"If it’s something I can help with, I should."



Only then did his expression loosen just a little for the first time.




"Then please wait a moment while I set things up.

I left the projector in the car, so I’ll go get it.

I brought it to watch here after class today."



"Okay, do that.

Should I go down with you? If there’s a lot to carry back up..."



"No. It’s not much."



After hesitating for a moment, he added,



"I’ll be back in a minute."



His footsteps as he left the room seemed

lighter than before.

He looked so different from the cold person he’d been just moments ago.


His back looked like that of an excited child.



While he was downstairs, I organized the things I’d brought.

'I had a lot to do today...

Yeah, well... I can just do it late into the night.

Let’s think of this as an extension of class.'



Not long after, he came back, and

skillfully began setting up the projector and speaker

one by one.



As he connected the projector cables, he asked casually,



"You and the CEO... have you known each other for a while?'




"Huh?"




"No, I mean, I heard he sent you a coffee voucher.."



It sounded like an offhand question,

but strangely, his voice was a little stiff.



"I was introduced through a senior from school too, so...

I met the CEO for the first time there."




"...Ah"


His short reply sounded

a little softer than before.



"Then I’ll start the movie."




And finally, the movie began.

I hadn’t asked on purpose, but

I found an actor who seemed like a character similar to

the role he’d be playing.



As the movie played, I

if there were any lines that were tricky to pronounce, or

dialogue with lots of connected speech,

I quickly wrote them down in my notes app.



"Do you know where that is?"



"No. I’m not exactly sure, but...

it looks like Spain since they’re speaking Spanish."



"Have you been to Spain?"



"Mm... on a backpacking trip.

I went to see Gaudí’s architecture."



"How did it feel then?"

I looked at the screen for a moment before slowly speaking.



"Spain...

it’s like a bright, lively flamenco song.

For me, anyway."



I looked at the small village in the movie.



"That village... it’s really beautiful."

I think it would be nice to live somewhere like that for a few years."





"Wouldn’t you be lonely somewhere nobody knows you?"



I thought for a moment, then said,



"Just because there are a lot of people who know you

doesn’t mean you won’t be lonely.

Loneliness isn’t about how many people are around you...

in the end, it’s what I feel."


I went on.



"I’ve always had a fantasy about going somewhere where nobody knows me

and living there.

Focusing entirely on myself there,

while also making new friends...

I guess you could call it a bucket list."



He was silent for a while.

I thought he’d laugh it off like usual,

but he kept staring at the screen longer than I expected.




"...I’ve never... thought about that."



"I’ve been in the entertainment industry since I was young, so

I don’t have any memories of traveling somewhere by myself.

So I’m curious what it feels like, and it’s fascinating."




"You should try it sometime. It’s not that hard..."




"It is for me.

I’m always so busy, and

I’ve never gone anywhere alone, so it feels unfamiliar..."




"Ah... I guess that could be.

But you can try it in the future.

If you haven’t been able to do it until now,

you can still do it later."




After hearing me, he was silent for a long while.

I waited quietly until he finished thinking.

How many minutes had passed like that?



He suddenly gave a faint smile and looked at me.



"Something I haven’t been able to do until now."



After a brief pause, he said excitedly,



"But I just thought of something I can try right now."



"What is it?"



"Eating fried chicken at Hangang Park."



"What?"



Before I knew it, laughter burst out of me.



"Pfft..."



"What?"

"Are you making fun of me?"



"No... I’m not making fun of you..."



I said, barely holding in my laughter.



"It’s just so unexpected."



After thinking for a moment, I laughed too.



"But now that I think about it...

I’ve never done that either."



"Then should we try it today?"



His tone was so natural

that for a moment I thought I’d heard him wrong.



"I can’t do it by myself, so please do it with me, teacher."

He added with a playful expression,



"Your story was the starting point, so

you have to do this with me."



"No, I mean... I wasn’t asking you to do it right now..."



The instant his face pouted...



"Okay. Haha."



Then he jumped to his feet like someone who was really about to leave right then.

"Really?



Then let’s go right now!!

Teacher, hurry and get ready."

We stopped the movie we were watching,



hurriedly gathered our things, and headed to Hangang Park.

Thanks to that, I spent that night



working through my backlog until dawn.

I only managed to lie down in bed

after watching the sun come up.

But strangely,



even though I was tired, sleep didn’t come easily.

I kept laughing until I fell asleep.

The two of us secretly eating fried chicken in the car, wondering if someone might recognize us.



It felt like we were ditching class,

like kids sneaking out of school to have fun.

His face, with sauce on his hands, flustered,

but looking so happy,

kept coming to mind.

Was that really the same person who’d been so cold today?

But... why had he been like that.




"For anything related to class,

please contact me at my number. Teacher."