Time flew by, and seven days remained until the promised date. During that time, I hadn't gone out for two days. Besides contacting Chae-bin once a day, I hadn't contacted anyone. And I hadn't answered Dong-yeol's constant calls either.
Chae-bin wanted me to turn off my phone, but I couldn't. I just put it far away and watched it ring continuously.
The room was a complete mess, with bottles of alcohol, scattered pills, and medicine packets. Dongyeol would sneak over and clean my room even when I wasn't home. He would always say, "I feel like I'm the only real groom for you," making me feel embarrassed. As I reminisced, tears began to fall from my eyes.
At that moment, my phone rang again. It was, as expected, Dongyeol's call. I really shouldn't have been doing this, but perhaps because I was so emotionally invested, or perhaps because I felt pity for Dongyeol, who was so hung up on me, I answered the call I shouldn't have.
"....."
"Sister.."
"..."
"I called because I just wanted to hear your voice."
"....."
"I'm still in front of my sister's house... really."
"....ugh"
A sob came through the phone. She'd been caught crying. And then, as if Dongyeol had heard it, a sound came from the phone. A long sigh.
"Haa... why are you crying? If you're going to cry, come out and cry. I'll accept it all."
"..."
"You can vent your anger on me, just once, can't you come out to me?"
I was too weak for someone I wouldn't see tomorrow anyway, my last love. And so, my body finally moved toward him. As I hung up the phone and stepped out the door, I saw Dongyeol standing behind me, turning around, at the back of the alley.
"...Park Yeo-ju"
As soon as Dongyeol saw me step out the door, he ran over and hugged me tightly. The hazy emotions conveyed from Dongyeol's heart clouded my vision, and soon tears began streaming down my cheeks again. My breathing became increasingly rapid, and I tried to calm myself, but it didn't work. My breathing, mixed with sobs, echoed in Dongyeol's ears.
"Ugh...ugh.."
"...Now, cry your heart out in my arms."
"....ugh..."
"Because I'm enough with you in my arms."
Dongyeol whispered in my ear in a low voice. His voice soothed me more than any other words of comfort, but I was overcome with emotion and continued to cry.
"...Why...why...won't you let me go..."
The emotions that had been building up within me had finally spilled over into my true feelings, and Dongyeol stopped stroking my hair for a moment. Then, he quickly took my head in his hands and spoke.
"She's the one woman I swore I'd stay with, so why would I let her go?"
"I...kept pushing you away..."
Dongyeol covered my lips with his, preventing me from continuing. He quickly inserted his tongue, mingling it with mine. Perhaps sensing my breathlessness from the prolonged kiss, he pulled away.
"You can keep pushing. I'll keep going back."