By Zephyria Seo Jeong-won listened to Kang Da-hyun’s shouts with the phone pressed to his ear. He was angry, but even that was all words of concern for him. Still, it felt like he was pushing too hard, and for a brief moment, he wondered if he shouldn’t tell him where he was.
“You’re a crazy bastard… sniff!”
He seemed to be trying not to cry, but he was sniffling so much with his nose already blocked that it was impossible not to notice. Seo Jeong-won mumbled, telling him to calm down. Only after feeling his breathing somewhat regulated over the receiver did he give him the address. Kang Da-hyun said he would leave immediately without a moment’s hesitation.
“Aren’t you busy at the orchard?”
“Is being busy the problem? And it’s winter now.”
“That’s right, it is. What time will you arrive? My phone, well, this isn’t mine.”
“Then whose is it? Why don’t you have your phone?”
At the question, asked with another sniffle, Seo Jeong-won naturally glanced at Go Jin-hee. She looked bored, as if she had no interest in other people’s affairs, and was calmly looking around at the scenery. Seo Jeong-won, confirming her cheeks were pale from the wind and the tip of her nose was red, grabbed Go Jin-hee’s arm and started walking again.
“It’s a long story. Anyway, it’s not mine. Can you… can you find your way okay?”
“Yeah, I’ll leave within 30 minutes. I’ll be there by 6.”
Hearing the estimated arrival time, he vaguely thought he could have dinner with Kang Da-hyun. Seo Jeong-won ended the call, telling him to drive carefully.
“Noona, here you are. Thank you.”
“A friend is coming? Is he staying over?”
“Yes? Ah, yes. I think he probably will.”
“Is that so? Then come down for dinner together tomorrow.”
Go Jin-hee, with the same indifferent expression as usual, walked with him until they arrived across from the store, then nudged Seo Jeong-won’s arm.
“Don’t cross, just go straight up.”
“I’m thirsty. Can I have some water before I go?”
She knew that Seo Jeong-won’s answer was obviously a lie. He was worried about her having to cross the road alone, and she couldn’t not know that. Go Jin-hee chuckled as if to say it was okay, nudged Seo Jeong-won’s arm again, and checked all directions for oncoming cars.
“I’ll make something delicious tomorrow. Be sure to come.”
“You don’t have to bother. I can eat on my own—”
“It’s no trouble to scoop another bowl of rice. Eating out is tasteless. Just expensive.”
Before Seo Jeong-won could refuse further, Go Jin-hee hopped off the curb and crossed the road. She opened the locked store door and only turned her head to look at Seo Jeong-won. Then, with a blank face, she waved her hand.
“Go on, quickly. It’s cold.”
“Yes, I’ll come tomorrow.”
Only after getting an answer from Seo Jeong-won did she smile slightly and go inside the store. Seo Jeong-won felt grateful for her kindness in caring even for Kang Da-hyun, whom she had never met.
“It’s cold.”
On the way back home, he felt a mix of emotions. Seo Jeong-won stroked his bulging belly. Kang Da-hyun wouldn’t have changed, but he felt like he was the only one who had changed too much, and that bothered him.
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In the evening, when the sky had turned pitch black, the sound of car tires rolling over the gravel in the parking lot outside the gate could be heard. Seo Jeong-won, who had been pacing around the house, immediately opened the front door and smiled brightly as he saw Kang Da-hyun, who had practically jumped out of the driver’s seat.
“You found your way okay? I was worried you’d get lost.”
“I was more worried, you little brat. Why are you being like this?”
Kang Da-hyun, who had walked around the hood and strode up to Seo Jeong-won, hugged him tightly. Then, he was startled and quickly pulled away. His eyes darted around aimlessly as he looked at Seo Jeong-won’s face, which had lost a lot of weight in the past few months.
“Hey, you…”
“It’s cold, let’s go inside. Let’s go inside and…”
“Why is your stomach so—”
Kang Da-hyun trailed off. He couldn’t understand what was going on. Even at Seo Gyu-won’s funeral, Seo Jeong-won was, well, Seo Jeong-won…
“Seo Jeong-won, you.”
“…”
“I’m going crazy, what are you going to do? Ha…”
Seo Jeong-won lowered his head at the sight of Kang Da-hyun sighing and covering his face with his hands. There were no passing cars, so the only noise was the sound of the waves crashing. Kang Da-hyun’s breath, exhaled with a “Haaa,” turned white in the black air.
“Yeah, let’s go in. Let’s go in.”
Kang Da-hyun nodded, looking at Seo Jeong-won, who was wearing thin clothes that exposed his neck without even a coat. He was actually confused, not knowing what to say. Was this right? Was this right? He kept thinking that. Maybe he was just wearing makeup to trick him. He wished it was that kind of prank.
Seo Jeong-won entered the house first. With Kang Da-hyun behind him, he went straight to the table to pour a glass of water, but his hand was shaking. He couldn’t pour the water properly, so he put the cup down. Kang Da-hyun, who had taken off his shoes, strode over and did it for him instead.
“You can’t even pour water.”
“…”
“Nice house. What is this place? Is this that, what was it, that person’s house from back then?”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t contact you.”
Seo Jeong-won took a sip of water and immediately apologized.
“I was out of my mind. I kept… I kept…”
“It’s understandable… yeah. It’s understandable.”
“Thank you for coming back then. I wanted to say hello, but things kept… overlapping. I lost my phone too, it was just all messed up.”
Kang Da-hyun nodded as he listened to Seo Jeong-won’s story, unable to make eye contact. Yeah, it must have been messed up. His Hyung died, and he had lived his whole life as a Beta, but suddenly he was pregnant. His own head was a mess, so how much worse must it have been for the person involved?
Kang Da-hyun understood him, but his thoughts jumped in a strange direction. Could that innocent guy have been scammed by that older man with only his looks to recommend him? Otherwise, there was no reason for him to be here alone, looking so pathetic.
“Did you perhaps… give that person a guarantee, or something like that, and you’re hiding?”
“Huh…?”
“Did you give him a guarantee? Or did you take out a loan for his business? Did you use a private loan? Are you a credit delinquent? Weren’t you scammed? Shit, I knew it…”
By the end, his tone was almost certain. Seo Jeong-won raised his lowered gaze and looked at Kang Da-hyun’s face. He was biting his lip with a serious expression.
“Shit, I should have known from the start when he was using Pheromones on a Beta like that. Did he get you pregnant and then ask for money? Damn… even if you’re sucking the blood from a flea, there’s a limit. Is that old man crazy?”
“No, no… what?”
“Are you here to escape loan sharks? That would make sense. You were already out of your mind after what happened to Hyung, and then you found out you were pregnant, so you must have been in complete panic. But because you’re so responsible, you’re trying to live somehow, but damn… that old man is just using you to suck your money dry and leave you stuck here! I shouldn’t have come here.”
Kang Da-hyun gnashed his teeth, saying he should have taken a pickaxe and stormed into the store where that bastard was the manager. Seo Jeong-won felt a sense of relief as he watched Kang Da-hyun, who was not blaming him but was instead raging that he should kill Kwon Tae-hee. His absurd assumptions were also funny.
“What, are you laughing? Are you laughing? Can you laugh in this situation?”
“No. It’s not that, it’s just that you have a very rich imagination.”
“That’s… not it? Really? You’re not hiding because of money? Then why are you here? And alone?”
“That’s not it. It’s hard to explain in detail. But it’s really not because of money.”
Seo Jeong-won straightened his shoulders, which had been hunched over as he was being cautious, and burst into a soft laugh. He suddenly imagined that it would have been better if he had been tricked with money, but then he shook his head, thinking that would be too awful.
“Anyway, that’s all not it.”
“Then this, the pregnancy. The pregnancy. What is this? I’m really shocked right now? But when I see you, I just… I don’t know. Can you see my hand shaking? I’m going crazy, really. But you really weren’t scammed, right?”
“Yeah, you don’t have to worry about that… There were just a lot of things going on. Seeing you, I don’t really know what to say and what not to say.”
Kang Da-hyun nodded at Seo Jeong-won’s voice, which sounded lost, then reached out a trembling hand and nudged his shoulder.
“Take your time. I’m overloaded right now too. I’m in a state where it’s hard to even accept the information I’m seeing.”
“…”
“Have you eaten? I saw a lot of crab signs on the way here. The ones with the really long legs. Do you want to eat that?”
Kang Da-hyun recalled the disgustingly detailed models he had seen countless times on the way here.
“That’s, that’s expensive, isn’t it? I’d feel bad.”
Seo Jeong-won exclaimed and waved his hand. He had never eaten it before, and even though he didn’t know the exact price of crab, he knew for sure that it was expensive.
“I’ve been rich since after Chuseok.”
“…”
“So let’s go, let’s go eat something expensive.”