By Zephyria 
“No, seriously, fuck, I clearly said I wasn’t going to that 5-on-5 blind date, right?”
Eun-myeong let out a small “mm-hmm” in response. Eun-myeong was on the quiet side, but there was never a lull in the conversation.
“But my friend kept insisting that we had to match the numbers, so I went.”
Yong-hee was so talkative that he didn’t stop for a second; Eun-myeong felt as if his ears were about to bleed.
“And then, get this, all the girls picked me.”
The beer bottles on the table were nearly empty. Even while tipsy, Eun-myeong was busy calculating the cost in his head. The appetizers were twenty-three thousand won and there were four bottles of beer, so…
Sigh. Eun-myeong let out a breath internally. Cold sweat dampened the back of his knees. He kept glancing at the prices on the menu.
Fortunately, he had brought extra money just in case, but since it was his first time spending such a large amount, he felt a bit nervous.
“Hyung, look at this.”
He had tried his best not to show it, but it seemed his anxiety had leaked through. Noticing Eun-myeong’s gaze, Yong-hee quickly pulled out his wallet to show off.
“My dad gave me a ton of allowance for my birthday today! Just order whatever you want, don’t worry about it!”
There really was a lot of money stuffed in the wallet. However, Eun-myeong felt that he absolutely had to pay for today’s meal.
“No, I’m paying today.”
As he finished speaking, Eun-myeong let out a small hiccup. His shoulders jerked upward and then slumped. A flush of heat rose in his body as if he had a cold, and the corners of his mouth kept losing strength.
“You’re my Hyung, so I should be the one paying. I make money too.”
He began to smile vacantly. The elbows supporting him on the table kept slipping and collapsing to the side. Yong-hee stared intently at Eun-myeong.
“Hyung, my ass. With a face like that…”
“Huh?” When Eun-myeong asked back, having not heard clearly, Yong-hee shook his head and said it was nothing.
“…Anyway! If he didn’t want the girls to be stolen from him, he shouldn’t have looked so fucking ugly. Fuck, he looks like a potato with cock hair on it.”
How can a potato have pubic hair? That makes no sense, Eun-myeong thought, giggling.
He realized this was why people drank. How could it be this enjoyable to do absolutely nothing? Just sitting there, picking at appetizers, drinking yellow liquid, and listening to Yong-hee’s stories made him incredibly happy.
Thanks to this, he could set aside the hardships of life for a moment. And even the thoughts of the man that he had intentionally buried in a corner of his heart.
“…….”
As soon as his thoughts drifted to the man, the smile vanished rapidly from Eun-myeong’s lips.
Eun-myeong, who had been smiling like a deflating balloon, suddenly slumped his shoulders as if all his energy had drained away, prompting Yong-hee to ask what was wrong.
“Why? Did something happen?”
A lot had happened. But there wasn’t a single thing among them that Eun-myeong could comfortably share. His stories weren’t as cheerful or interesting as Yong-hee’s. They only brought a sense of depression.
“No.”
Eun-myeong slowly shook his head, saying it was nothing. Then, he was startled by a vrrr-vrrr sound.
“I think it’s yours, Hyung.”
The vibration sound from his cell phone was still unfamiliar. Remembering the man’s words—telling him to answer within one second if he called—Eun-myeong hurriedly grabbed the phone from the sofa.
By then, the vibration stopped. Eun-myeong was shocked.
18 missed calls.
The music in the restaurant was very loud, and Yong-hee’s stories had completely distracted him, leaving him unable to hear the vibration. Had something happened? He had clearly told him he would be late…
The time displayed at the top of the phone already pointed to 10 o’clock. It was about time he headed back anyway.
“Yong-hee, I have to go now.”
Yong-hee’s eyes widened.
“Already?”
“Yeah, I have to work tomorrow.”
Yong-hee grumbled as if he couldn’t help it and stood up.
“Does that damn job have you going in every single day?”
Eun-myeong felt sorry for ruining the mood. He apologized softly and stood up unsteadily. As he was leaving, he bumped into the corner of the table and let out a sharp groan.
“Hyung, are you drunk?”
Yong-hee chuckled. His own eyes were red, yet he was making Eun-myeong the only target of ridicule. But Eun-myeong just felt good and let out a silly laugh.
When he went to the counter to pay, the employee pointed to Yong-hee behind him.
“That gentleman already paid.”
Eun-myeong’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Why?”
He had said he was going to the restroom for a moment; had he paid then?
“Hyung, you celebrated my birthday with me.”
Yong-hee quickly threw an arm over Eun-myeong’s shoulder, urging him to leave. Eun-myeong was dragged out, stammering.
“Why did you pay? I wanted to treat you.”
“Ah, I don’t know, I don’t know. As long as today was fun, that’s enough. You can just buy me chicken next time.”
Eun-myeong felt an uncomfortable tightness in his chest. If his circumstances were better, he could have accepted the treat without worrying. He let out a heavy sigh.
Unaware that he was walking in a zigzag pattern, Eun-myeong looked down in distress.
“It’s your birthday, so I wanted to buy,” Eun-myeong muttered.
As he spoke, his fingers slowly pressed the keypad.
[Did you call?]
He had to be extremely cautious when pressing the question mark.
After struggling to send it, there was no reply from the man. After the flood of calls, they had suddenly stopped. He felt an urgent need to return to the hotel immediately, but Yong-hee walked slowly.
Even though he wanted to call the man, he felt conscious of Yong-hee being next to him. Yet, he felt too guilty to rush him home, since today was Yong-hee’s birthday.
Sigh, what do I do. Eun-myeong let out a deep sigh internally. Unaware of Eun-myeong’s feelings, Yong-hee changed the subject.
“But looking at you like this, Hyung, you’re really small. You’re like a total baby.”
Yong-hee stretched his neck up and pressed down on Eun-myeong with his arm.
“You’re more of a baby.”
Feeling his pride wounded, Eun-myeong tried to stand on his tiptoes, but Yong-hee’s arm strength was far superior. Eun-myeong was pressed firmly down. Indeed, the lean muscles of people who worked as fishermen were not to be underestimated.
“Hyung, want me to read your palm?”
Yong-hee grabbed Eun-myeong’s hand. He spread it wide and looked down.
“What does it say?”
Asking the question, Eun-myeong leaned toward Yong-hee. Their shoulders bumped. However, Yong-hee was simply staring blankly at Eun-myeong’s hand.
“Why is it so white yet has so many scars?”
“Just because.”
Embarrassed, Eun-myeong tried to pull his hand away.
“Now, let’s see if you have the palm of a king.”
Yong-hee kept a firm grip on Eun-myeong’s hand, rambling about the life line. After rubbing the palm a few times, he made a fuss, claiming that the life line, wealth luck, and marriage luck were all naturally gifted and that he was destined to be a general.
Then, he started mentioning again how much their hand sizes differed, which secretly bothered Eun-myeong.
“I think you’re just a fraud,” Eun-myeong muttered grumpily.
He wanted to maintain his dignity as a Hyung, but since he kept being made to feel small, he had no place to stand.
“Hyung, what time do you leave tomorrow? Want me to give you a wake-up call?”
Eun-myeong blinked.
“I think I’ll wake up better than you.”
He had clearly heard Yong-hee’s father nag several times about how the boy was always late for school because he overslept, rushing out without even eating breakfast.
“Damn, getting hit with facts by a face that looks that innocent really hurts.”
Yong-hee clutched his side as if he had been physically struck. Soon, he giggled and draped his arm over Eun-myeong’s shoulder.
After walking for a while, the moment came to part ways at the intersection. Eun-myeong felt relieved, thinking he could finally call the man.
“Let’s go to your place now, Hyung. I’ll walk you home.”
Yong-hee suddenly blurted out something unexpected.
“Me?”
Eun-myeong flinched. He almost sobered up instantly.
“T-there’s no need for that,” Eun-myeong mumbled.
“We’re going in different directions anyway.”
“If you go home this drunk, your mom will smack you on the back. I just want to sober up a bit. I’ll take you. It’ll be nice to talk while we walk.”
Ah, that was truly very problematic. Yong-hee was a child who had grown up seeing only the good things in a harmonious home. He didn’t want to show such a child the harsh world he lived in.
Inevitably, Eun-myeong revealed the truth.
“Yong-hee, I actually don’t live there anymore.”
Yong-hee blinked slowly. A strange silence fell between them. The air surrounding them gradually turned chilly.
“Then where do you live?”
When Eun-myeong couldn’t find an answer, Yong-hee shifted his weight from one leg to the other. Then, the question changed subtly.
“Who do you live with?”
Perhaps it was just his imagination, but the boy’s expression became sullen. His tone was accusatory. Eun-myeong was speechless, his lips merely twitching. Yong-hee leaned his head down toward the smaller Eun-myeong.
“And Hyung, about that cell phone.”
Yong-hee lowered his voice significantly. Eun-myeong swallowed hard. A peculiar tension flowed.
“I mean, about your phone…”
Yong-hee trailed off several times. What on earth was he trying to say? Then, suddenly, Eun-myeong felt something from his peripheral vision. He slowly turned his head.
A car was gliding toward them from the opposite side. Long and sleek, with a cool luster like the skin of a black snake, it was a car that didn’t fit in this quiet, quaint neighborhood at all.
It was also the car he had waited for several times at the sashimi restaurant.
It was the man.
The front door swung open, and a large silhouette stepped out. The man was wearing a long black coat that reached his knees.
As a cold wind swept through, the long hem of the coat fluttered. Standing in the darkness against the wind, the man looked somewhat like a goblin that summoned death.
“Ah…”
Eun-myeong felt a sudden chill and hunched his shoulders. The thought of greeting him didn’t even enter his mind; he simply froze like ice. It was because of the bleak atmosphere the man emanated.
Suddenly, the man muttered something, his lips moving. He didn’t blink once. Because they were standing at a distance, Eun-myeong couldn’t be sure, but it seemed to be…
‘Should I just kill him?’
A cold shiver ran through his entire body.