By Zephyria 
[Do Ha-jin’s hickey, you did that, didn’t you?]
Eden’s movements froze. His brow furrowed deeply, displeased with his childhood friend’s unusually sharp deduction today. His crooked gaze turned back to Jeffrey.
[What if I did?]
The answer was dripping with annoyance. Jeffrey’s face flashed with shock, as if he hadn’t really expected it.
[…Are you out of your mind?]
Eden calmly replied, looking at Jeffrey’s beard, which had grown as thick as a bandit’s.
[Perfectly sane.]
[You crazy bastard. What are you going to do…!]
Jeffrey, his fist clenched, strode towards him like an angry bull.
[Are you even thinking? What are you going to do by messing with Do Ha-jin? Did you forget we’re going to our Maintenance Depot?]
[I didn’t forget, so don’t overreact.]
Jeffrey watched Eden’s usual nonchalant attitude, breathing heavily with agitation.
[Then what is it? Am I overreacting because it’s just a fling?]
Eden frowned, as if Jeffrey’s remark was unpleasant. Jeffrey, who had been keenly observing his reaction, rolled his large eyes and slapped his forehead hard with his palm as if he was going crazy.
[Looking at this bastard’s face, he’s serious about it.]
[I know what you’re worried about, but I’m sorting things out myself, so I don’t need you adding to the headache.]
[What are you sorting out? What is there to sort out? The answer’s already out. Do Ha-jin will stay here, and you’re going to America. There’s no other answer.]
[…….]
[Or is Do Ha-jin going to abandon his brother and follow you to America? You haven’t already talked about that, have you?]
Jeffrey, his eyes narrowed sharply, tapped the air with his finger as if pointing at someone.
[Eden, don’t you dare.]
[…….]
[If you say any bullshit about staying here with Do Ha-jin, you’re dead.]
After delivering the brutal warning, he slammed the bathroom door open and went outside. Eden watched Jeffrey’s retreating figure and sighed, releasing the breath he had been holding.
[That dirty bastard. He left without washing his hands again.]
❖ ❖ ❖
While Eden and Jeffrey were having a heated argument in the bathroom, Ha-jin, who had woken up late, looked around. He saw Mi-so in the distance, busily organizing something.
“Yun Mi-so, what are you doing?”
He asked in a hoarse voice, and she turned her head towards Ha-jin. Mi-so was holding several pieces of clothing. She seemed to be sorting out the clothes she would take with her.
“Oh, you’re awake? Sleep a little longer. It’s not even 6 o’clock yet.”
The light streaming into the store due to the early sunrise was quite bright. Ha-jin frowned and yawned widely.
“Heo-eom— but where did everyone go?”
“Jeong Tae-geon and Jeffrey went to the bathroom as soon as they woke up. Said they were going to wash up.”
Ha-jin glanced towards the front of the dressing room. There, Byeol was fast asleep with a peaceful expression. The boy was hugging Pie’s head and snoring softly. A harmless sight he hadn’t seen in a while brought a smile to his face.
“What’s so good that you’re grinning from the morning?”
“Just. I woke up and you’re here, and Byeol is here too. It feels like a dream.”
“Ugh. So cheesy, Do Ha-jin.”
“You were mumbling that it felt like a dream right before you fell asleep yesterday too. It was so cringey, you know?”
She retorted as if scolding him, and she burst into a dry laugh. But for some reason, Mi-so kept averting her gaze elsewhere even while talking to Ha-jin. He wondered if it was his imagination, but the fact that her focus was subtly off was suspicious. Moreover, she was hesitating and stalling, unlike her usual self, as if she had something else to say.
Puzzled by her subtle reaction, Ha-jin tilted his head.
“What’s wrong, Yun Mi-so? Do you have something to say?”
“Huh?”
“Why do you keep fidgeting since a while ago?”
He wondered if he had something on his face, so he tried to wipe his mouth with the back of his hand when he heard a small cough. Mi-so raised her hand and pointed to one side.
Ha-jin turned his head to where her finger was pointing. In the full-length mirror diagonally across from him, he met his own eyes, his hair sticking up in all directions.
“…….”
“…You’ve got a mess on your neck.”
Ha-jin’s face stiffened as she pointed out the fact in a low voice. Mi-so stopped putting on her hiking boots and sighed before turning to him.
“Do Ha-jin. I’m asking because I thought I might be mistaken.”
Ha-jin, who swallowed hard, looked back at Mi-so.
“That thing on your neck, is that a hickey?”
Jeong Tae-geon, that bastard, really. He barely swallowed the curse that rose from within and clenched his fist tightly.
“It’s a bug bite.”
“Don’t try to fool me, Do Ha-jin.”
“…….”
How much did she notice? Did she also know that Jeong Tae-geon was the one who left this hickey? Or maybe….
“It was too dark to see well yesterday, but it was really noticeable when I woke up this morning.”
Mi-so sighed again and got up from her seat and approached Ha-jin. Crouching down, she finally made eye contact with Ha-jin. Ha-jin’s heart was pounding with anxiety.
“Tell me honestly.”
“…….”
“Is it Chun-beom or Jeong Tae-geon?”
Silence followed.
When he could only stare with a stiff expression without saying anything, Mi-so narrowed her eyes and stroked her chin.
“No matter how much I think about it, I can’t figure it out. The only people who hung out with you were Jeong Tae-geon and Park Chun-beom, right? You couldn’t have met someone new in between.”
“…Huh?”
“Then is it him? It can’t be him, right?”
In the distance, Pie was drooling as he slept. Ha-jin, who had been tense, suddenly felt relieved.
“Hey. No matter how unbiased you are… how unbiased are you?”
He could only blink, feeling pathetic that he couldn’t correct the misunderstanding about the dead Chun-beom, even as he reflexively chuckled at Mi-so’s absurd joke, as if trying to ease the atmosphere.
At that moment, the entrance door of the store opened wide. There stood Jeffrey, with a flushed expression for some reason.
“Jeffrey. Are you all washed up?”
He didn’t answer Mi-so’s question and strode into the store. The way he rushed straight to Ha-jin was no different from an angry bull.
“Ha-jin.”
A low, subdued voice called Ha-jin’s name. Ha-jin, whose shoulders were grabbed in an instant, couldn’t even think about covering his red neck and awkwardly met Jeffrey’s gaze.
Jeffrey said as if declaring something.
“Me, not hate Ha-jin.”
“…Excuse me?”
“But, Eden no, Eden friend.”
He tilted his head at the nonsensical words that he couldn’t understand at all, and he shook Ha-jin’s shoulders violently as if he was frustrated.
[I would have supported your love as much as possible if it weren’t for this damn situation. I wouldn’t have cared if you had sex or fell in love. Because I care about Ha-jin as much as I care about Eden. But Ha-jin? Look at the situation now.]
Ha-jin could barely understand his words because he was spitting out English quickly, mixing in slang. It was almost like he was rapping. However, his face could only turn pale at the words ‘love’, ‘sex’, and ‘Eden’ that caught his ear in between.
[I don’t want either of you to make a choice you’ll regret. Am I overreacting like Eden said? Is that it?]
Mi-so, who had been watching with a puzzled face, left the excited Jeffrey behind and asked Ha-jin.
“Hey, Do Ha-jin. Why is Jeffrey like that? What is he saying? It’s too fast, I can’t understand a word.”
“…Uh, well, I can’t understand it either.”
Jeffrey, who had been muttering and rapping like a madman for a while, was grabbed by Eden, who had belatedly entered the store, and then he stood up.
[Let go, Eden!]
Eden dragged Jeffrey outside and explained to the dazed Ha-jin and Mi-so.
“Jeffrey didn’t wash his hands after using the bathroom. I’ll go wash him again.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Mi-so threw the clothes at her feet at Jeffrey as if scolding him.
“Ugh, you human, go wash up!!”
❖ ❖ ❖
The group, having left the outlet, set out on the road again. Thanks to Ha-jin’s knowledge of the map, the speed started to increase significantly compared to before, and smiles bloomed on everyone’s faces. The group walked in step, boasting an even stronger camaraderie than before.
In the middle, they happened to find a car with the car key stuck in the ignition on the road, and they got the windfall of driving about 40km until the battery ran out. It was like earning an extra day.
However, even in a situation where bright smiles were exchanged, the secret glances observing each other were endlessly entangled like a tangled spider web.
Ha-jin, who had a navy blue handkerchief he had salvaged from the store around his neck, glanced back at the stinging gaze on the back of his head. The four pairs of eyes that had been walking together were all looking at him at once. They seemed to have a lot of questions to ask. The curiosity was probably directed at the hickey on his neck.
He then turned his gaze to Eden, the culprit of the incident. When their eyes met, he smiled languidly while holding Byeol.
‘…Annoying.’
Ha-jin felt a slight annoyance at Jeong Tae-geon, who had left a hickey on his neck without permission, and at himself, who couldn’t help but think that Jeong Tae-geon was handsome.