By Zephyria 
Eun-myeong stepped forward slowly, carrying a single paper bag.
‘…Ugh.’
His body felt like it had been completely wrecked. A tingling pain shot through his tailbone, forcing Eun-myeong to walk with a stiff, awkward gait. To anyone watching, it looked as if he had just come out of a circumcision surgery.
Moreover, it was a good thing he was covered by clothes, because underneath, it was an absolute disaster. When he dragged his aching body into the bathroom to shower, Eun-myeong thought he might actually faint.
‘Gasp!’
His reflection in the mirror was incredibly vivid. His entire body was covered in bite marks, looking like someone suffering from a skin disease.
The man had always liked biting and sucking on his neck and chest, but this time, it seemed he had intentionally focused on the most visible areas.
‘Y-you shouldn’t leave marks.’
Eun-myeong had clearly told him beforehand yesterday, but the man truly had a twisted taste.
Left with no choice, Eun-myeong had to pick the clothes the man bought for him instead of his own shabby attire. Fortunately, there was a turtleneck that covered his neck. After putting on the soft fabric that hugged his skin, he stood carefully before the mirror. The clothes certainly looked high-end.
The problem was that Eun-myeong’s face was a mess. It was in a state worse than a soggy steamed bun. His eyelids were so swollen he looked like he’d been beaten up…
“Sigh.”
Eun-myeong let out a deep sigh as he walked down the street. He worried he might look too pathetic on Yong-hee’s birthday. He didn’t even know what he was thinking, agreeing to come out to this appointment.
“Hyung!”
Across the crosswalk, he saw Yong-hee waving his arms frantically. Perhaps because it was his birthday, his face looked particularly polished and bright.
Even after sitting down at the establishment, Eun-myeong remained deeply lost in thought. With his eyes cast down, he stared at his own thighs.
“Hyung!”
Eun-myeong snapped his head up at a sound that felt like a slap to the forehead.
“Huh?”
As he asked blankly, Yong-hee was looking at him with a frown. Oh no, he’d been caught spacing out.
“Hyung, you’re not listening to me. I said I got a confession this time!”
“Ah, oh, sorry….”
When he quickly apologized, Yong-hee pouted his lips.
“Forget it, I’m done talking, just done.”
Yong-hee was in the middle of excitedly recounting the story of how he had been confessed to by a female friend. However, the story kept slipping through Eun-myeong’s mind without sticking. Thoughts of the man kept surging into his consciousness, cutting through Yong-hee’s words like a pair of scissors.
“I’m sorry, I’ll really listen now. So what happened? Did you accept?”
“I wasn’t really interested.”
Yong-hee lifted his beer glass. The yellow liquid sloshed inside.
Having just become an adult, Yong-hee had dragged Eun-myeong to a bar, claiming he had to fully enjoy this joy. It wasn’t a typical pub where middle-aged men go to reminisce, but a stylishly decorated bar.
Between the music thumping in his head and the flashy neon signs, most of the customers were well-dressed young people.
Actually, come to think of it, calling them “young people” was a bit funny. After all, they were probably around the same age as him. Eun-myeong secretly glanced at the menu attached to the wall. He hoped the money he had would be enough…
If he had known he was coming to a place like this, he would have prepared himself mentally. If there was any silver lining to the chaos on his body, it was that he was at least wearing nice clothes.
“Hyung, did you buy new clothes?”
As expected, Yong-hee recognized the quality of the clothes and praised Eun-myeong, saying he looked damn cool. He gave Eun-myeong a thumbs-up. Eun-myeong smiled shyly, showing his front teeth.
“But it’s my birthday today, is it okay for you to meet me?”
He was a boring person. He didn’t have many stories to tell like Yong-hee, and he didn’t know much about jokes.
As Eun-myeong glanced around, his eyes met several others. A few women were glancing toward their table. Or rather, not the table, but at Yong-hee sitting in front of him.
Yong-hee had come wearing a black coat today, and he looked incredibly cold. They say fashion is about dressing cold when it’s cold and hot when it’s hot.
As far as he knew, Yong-hee had many friends and was equally popular. Since he stood out wherever he went and laughed cheerfully, people couldn’t help but like him.
“Ah, I don’t know, I have no friends, I’m being ostracized.”
At those serious words, Eun-myeong’s eyebrows drooped. He felt truly sorry that such a thing had happened. That must be why he asked to meet him on his birthday. Only then did Eun-myeong begin to understand Yong-hee.
“Yong-hee, here.”
Eun-myeong fiddled with the handle of the paper bag he had brought. He felt a bit shy and embarrassed to give it here, but since he had brought it as a birthday present, he really wanted to give it now.
“Huh?”
When handed the pink paper bag, Yong-hee stopped drinking his beer and let out a series of coughing fits.
“What is this?”
Yong-hee quickly wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and even rubbed both hands against his pants.
“It’s nothing much, but since it’s your birthday.”
“A birthday present? For me? Really? Wow, the sun must be rising from the west tomorrow. Are you crazy, seriously?”
He was reacting far too excessively. Eun-myeong worried that Yong-hee might open it and be disappointed.
“Okay, I’m opening it right now, seriously.”
It really wasn’t much. Seeing the expression of high expectation, Eun-myeong felt unnecessarily sorry. He felt a bit sad that, as a hyung, he couldn’t meet those expectations.
Yong-hee pulled the contents out. Then, he stared down at the item wrapped in plastic for a long time.
“They’re arm sleeves.”
The arm sleeves were so ordinary they were almost tacky. They had a green military camouflage pattern. He had put a lot of thought into choosing the gift, but under the bright lights of the flashy shop, they looked all the more shabby.
Is it really too bad? A small sigh escaped as he lamented his rock-bottom sense of style.
“I saw that everyone who becomes a captain wears these, otherwise their skin burns. The sun is really strong even in the early morning.”
Yong-hee placed the arm sleeves over his face and let out a groan. He slid down from his chair. Seeing him melt away like ice, Eun-myeong added softly,
“I’m sorry they aren’t something better.”
“No, it’s not that, ha….”
The mouth visible beneath the arm sleeves remained tightly shut.
“Hyung.”
Then, Yong-hee suddenly sat up. He hugged the arm sleeves tightly to his chest and leaned his upper body toward Eun-myeong.
“About the harsh things I said before.”
Yong-hee added slowly. Eun-myeong looked up. His gentle eyes reflected the other’s face without a hint of gloom. Looking at that face, Yong-hee sometimes felt his breath catch.
“I was fucking sorry, really, I didn’t want to say it like that.”
“Yeah.”
Eun-myeong was grateful to Yong-hee for apologizing. Up until now, he had no memory of living a life where he received apologies. Even if he were hit by a stone thrown by someone passing by, he believed it was entirely his own fault.
“Later, when I really become a captain, I’ll make sure you work in a really great place.”
With a face more serious than any Eun-myeong had seen recently, Yong-hee declared his ambition.
“A place where my hyung makes a lot of money, doesn’t suffer much, and isn’t looked down upon.”
Eun-myeong smiled slightly. Then, he nodded.
“Yeah, thank you.”
“No, I’m not just saying this, I mean it.”
Yong-hee playfully slapped the table, telling him not to take it lightly. To this, Eun-myeong shook his head.
“I’m not just saying it either, thank you, really.”
Eun-myeong had spent his life running forward, looking only ahead. Like a racehorse with blinkers on, he had lived rapidly, thinking only of debt, that he had to pay back the debt.
“Because of you, I can finally breathe a little.”
But as he walked slowly like this, he began to see the things embedded around him.
Aunt Jeong-hye, the supermarket Mister, and even Yong-hee. Every one of them was someone he was grateful for. People who had given him a place by their side and shown him warmth with nothing but a sincere heart.
Yong-hee looked down at him quietly. His face was at the intersection of a youth and an adult.
“Hyung.”
“Hmm?” Eun-myeong asked back.
“I really, truly have so much fucking to say to you.”
“Uh-huh,” Eun-myeong nodded. Internally, he wondered if Yong-hee was a bit drunk.
“But I can’t do it now. Because I have nothing.”
However, since he spoke with such a low, serious tone, Eun-myeong couldn’t say anything outright and simply nodded innocently.
“Just wait for me a little. Don’t get too far ahead, okay?”
Get ahead? Eun-myeong had never once overtaken anyone in his life. A life always stuck at the bottom—that was who he was, so what was Yong-hee talking about?
“Yeah, I understand.”
In truth, he didn’t really understand, but fearing that Yong-hee would be upset if he said so, Eun-myeong told a white lie. That he would. Since it was Yong-hee’s birthday today, he wanted him to just feel happy.
“Hyung, you really promised me!”
“Yeah,” Eun-myeong nodded once more, as if pushed along.
“Then let’s cheers, cheers!”
Yong-hee, now in high spirits, lifted his glass high. The loud music in the shop thumped. Accordingly, Eun-myeong’s heart seemed to throb harder and faster.
And so, one drink became two, and two became three….
Eun-myeong’s lips trembled. He soon became drunk and started giggling. Both his cheeks were flushed a bright red.