He smirked as he looked at my face, then turned around.
“Sit down. It’s okay to eat the same thing, right?”
Looking at Yeon Woojeong heating up the pot, I obediently took a seat. It bothered me that I acted like a child, but I decided to not mind about it. He scooped out the rice and took out the side dishes. I chased after each of his movements. When our gazes occasionally met, he scanned me thoroughly. I only realized that I was still wearing a coat when the dinner was completely prepared on the dining table, then I took it off.
Yeon Woojeong sat across from me and stirred the soup. I also took a spoonful and tasted it, and strangely, it was tastier than when I ate it at breakfast.
“Why did you buy this?”
I asked because I felt awkward for no reason. I also got curious belatedly. Why was it gomtang out of all the things?
“It’s nothing. I just want to feed you something warm.”
Considering how he brought the scarf, did Yeon Woojeong actually plan to tell me while making me eat this? I looked at his face, then I took a big spoonful of rice.
“Then why did you choose the Beauty of Obsession? Was obsession beautiful?”
Yeon Woojeong asked with a lot of hints of playfulness. Chewing the rice that filled my mouth, I stared at him. I had nothing to say. I didn’t choose it because I had any reason. As I gave him no answer, he propped his chin and squinted his eyes.
“Why? Do you want me to be obsessed with you?”
“It’s not like that.”
“You always say no.”
It looked like he was determined to tease me today. I couldn’t get annoyed because I did something wrong, so I roughly stirred gomtang mixed with rice. Yeon Woojeong laughed alone, then continued his meal.
I took a shower after eating. When I finished showering, Yeon Woojeong was sitting on the sofa, sipping the beer. I stood in front of the bathroom and quietly stared at him, and he beckoned to me with his head. I approached him and sat next to him.
“Did you get some sleep?”
“Yeah.”
“What a lie. Your eyes are puffy.”
Yeon Woojeong suddenly pulled me. Before I knew it, I ended up laying down with my head on his thigh. I was tense for a moment, then I relaxed my body.
“What should we do on the weekend?”
“You’re not working?”
“Yeah. I shouldn’t. In the past, I used to work on holidays as well, but… someone at home is bothering my mind even when I am only working overtime.”
“…”
“Should I just quit?”
He suddenly looked down and smiled. It seemed like he wasn’t being serious. Someone who is so diligent at his work won’t be able to quit his work at once.
“Then what do you do to pay the bills?”
“Anything. What do you think I’ll be good at?”
“You should be a teacher.”
“A teacher?”
Yeon Woojeong would likely be good at teaching kids. Won’t it fit him because he also said he was good at studying? I’m sure the students would like it if there were a teacher like Yeon Woojeong. He would surely get popular as well.
“No, don’t do it.”
“What did you imagine?”
He drank beer and tapped my cheek. There was the smell of beer. The smell of alcohol. But strangely, I didn’t feel bad. That reminds me, the alcohol smell from him wasn’t dangerous at all. Does the smell mirror people?
I turned sideways, shoving my face on Yeon Woojeong’s abdomen, and wrapped my arms around his waist. He laughed weakly and caressed my head. I enjoyed staying like this. Though this was childlike behavior, even if I acted like a child, Yeon Woojeong indulged me, so I guess it wouldn’t be bad to be treated like a child at times.
“Let’s eat something delicious. Tomorrow.”
Yeon Woojeong’s hand patted my head. I nodded lightly and closed my eyes.
***
I heard noises. It was very rare for Yeon Woojeong to wake up earlier than me on the weekends. I opened my eyes and checked for the time. It was 10 o’clock. I remembered I fell asleep on Yeon Woojeong’s lap yesterday…
The blanket fell down as I raised my body. The living room view entered my sight. I looked around blankly, and Yeon Woojeong came out of his room. He was wearing a formal suit.
I remembered what he said yesterday as soon as my gaze met his. He asked me to go to have delicious food, yet it seemed like he had work. The disappointment rose even before I could get excited. He smiled lightly and approached me as I stared at him absentmindedly.
“A friend. I suddenly remembered it when I was about to sleep yesterday.”
“Did you forget your friend’s wedding?”
“At this age, there are more than one, two people around me who get married.”
Yeon Woojeong explained himself shamelessly while tightening his necktie. If it’s a wedding, then at what time will he go back? I thought about what I would do while he was out.
“Do you want to tag along?”
I had no reason to go to Yeon Woojeong’s friend’s wedding. But I indeed was curious. What kind of people his friends are.
“Is it okay for me to go?”
“It doesn’t matter if you pay for the meal. How about eating there, then taking a walk?”
It wasn’t bad. If it’s a wedding, it’s usually a buffet. I nodded, and he signaled with his chin.
“Alright. Wash yourself and change your clothes.”
When I walked out after washing up, Yeon Woojeong was sitting on the sofa with his eyes closed. The person who should have slept sluggishly woke up early, so it was understandable that he was tired.
I went upstairs and was about to change my clothes, but then there were steps walking upstairs. Yeon Woojeong scanned my outfit, then he opened the closet.
“Why don’t you wear this?”
Yeon Woojeong took out a pink coat. It was strange that he didn’t know the reason I didn’t wear it. He put the coat on the bed, then he took out the knit tee, shirt, and pants one after another. Except for the coat, all were quite achromatic colors, but the coat stood out too much.
“You’ll be pretty.”
He took the coat again and brought it under my face. The eyes looking at me were earnest. I didn’t really want to wear it. I had never worn clothes of such a color, and it would obviously be ridiculous. But since it was his day off, I decided to just listen to him.
First, I took over the coat and put it down, and I was going to take off the clothes I wore. Feeling an intense stare, I looked back at him. Even though I looked at him, he looked like he had no plan to go down.
“Go away.”
“Privacy, huh?”
Smirking, Yeon Woojeong approached me and grabbed the hem of my clothes. I strongly grabbed the hand that tried to pull my clothes. I met the eyes that came closer.
“It’s upsetting if you’re acting innocent.”
I really had no idea what he was talking about. I wanted to bite his lips heartily. Yeon Woojeong’s gaze licked all over my face, then left me.
“We have to go. Change your clothes and go down.”
He tapped on my cheek and then left. I took a look at the stairs where Yeon Woojeong disappeared from, then I slowly changed.
It was stiff because it was new clothes. Touching the bright-colored coat for winter, I went downstairs. Yeon Woojeong, who put on his coat and held the car key in his hand, flinched as he saw me.
His gaze slowly went down from my head to my toes. It was quite bearable now that I had become immune to his intense gaze.
“Told you, right? You’ll look pretty.”
Yeon Woojeong extended his hand. Looking at that, I guessed his intention, then I slowly grabbed his hand. He held my hand and walked. I followed him, fixing my gaze on his hand that was holding my hand.
.
.
.
The wedding venue was a wedding hall in Gyeonggi-do. Even though the parking lot was packed and busy, Yeon Woojeong skillfully found a spot to park.
There were a lot of people inside the wedding hall. I hated crowded places, but I couldn’t help it. I stuck behind Yeon Woojeong and chased after him.
“Here is it.”
Yeon Woojeong pointed to the information board.
[Groom Kim Sarang
Bride Joo Miyeon]
The man’s name was Sarang. Seems like this name was indeed a trend back then. We followed the information board to the second floor. There were also a lot of people on the second floor, but it was better than the first floor.
In front of the door, a man wearing white gloves and a suit was greeting people with a soft smile. Yeon Woojeong walked that way. The man turned this way, and his eyes were opened wide as he noticed Yeon Woojeong.
“Hey, dude. Woojeong!”
The man hugged Yeon Woojeong. People who thought that there was only such a way to show happiness were generally not for me.