By Zephyria It was a terribly unfamiliar story. Why didn’t he tell me? I could have helped him enough.
“Is Tony okay? I guess he’s not staying in the same accommodation.”
“I applied because my family home is here, and Mina has her own place. Only Sirius, who urgently came in place of someone else, found temporary accommodation.”
He provided more information than I expected. New details kept falling out with just a little prodding. He seemed to have a loose tongue. How could he blab about other people’s private lives so easily?
When he dies, only his lips will be floating around. If it were me, I would have kept my mouth shut.
“Ah. So, he can’t find a place because of the overtime.”
This was a matter of conscience. I was the one who put that enormous workload on his shoulders. And what’s with getting bitten by bugs? How old is he?
Tony sighed deeply. He kept listing his worries about Yi-tae, saying he was very concerned. He also added how much he cared about him.
‘If you’re so worried, you could just live with him.’
I was filled with dissatisfaction. If Yi-tae was telling him about his situation, he could help him enough. Of course, I couldn’t say what I was thinking. Only the Yi-tae of the past had such shattered social skills. Worry without action is just hypocrisy.
Then, Tony sighed again and said,
“I’d like to bring him to my house if I could, but I haven’t been married for long. We’re already a long-distance couple.”
Cease fire! I almost fired on the wrong target completely. With those conditions, of course, it’s impossible. Besides, he’s good-looking too.
It was a reasonable excuse. I wouldn’t take that risk out of loyalty either. A husband who brings a colleague home when he’s in the honeymoon phase? He wouldn’t have a word to say even if he got kicked out of the house.
The anger that had been building up vanished in an instant. Hearing that he was married made Yi-tae seem like a reliable person to befriend. Especially considering his family values.
“That’s a really big problem. Doesn’t he think about changing to another hotel?”
“The head office support is a bit lacking. It’s like spitting on my own face, but unless you have a reason like Mina or me, there’s no need to come to this project. Even if it’s helpful for your career.”
Once Tony’s mouth was open, he rattled off everything he knew. Before I knew it, we were close to the company.
I put on a polite smile and thought about how to say goodbye appropriately. Tony also became awkward again and closed his mouth as the main topic came to an end.
In times like this, making an excuse was the best option.
“I’m going to buy a drink before going in, so go up first. I enjoyed the walk with you today.”
Tony’s face brightened noticeably at my words. How could someone be so transparent? He must be similar to Yi-tae.
“Okay. See you later.”
He thrust his fist out, looking as uncomfortable as possible. I’d seen him do it with Yi-tae often. Looking at it again, it seemed to be the company’s policy. So, he must have done it to me out of habit.
This person also had some cute aspects. I suppressed a laugh and bumped my fist against his.
“Goodbye.”
The impromptu meeting was very fruitful.
I bought herbal tea and went up late. After hearing the story, I felt sorry and bought one for Yi-tae too. Of course, I also got coffee for Tony and Ian separately.
As always, only the familiar faces were guarding their spots. Overtime was a case of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. How could something so unfair exist?
I put coffee on Ian’s desk, who was leaning against the backrest with his eyes closed, looking tired. He opened his drowsy eyes, as if he had been lightly asleep.
“Thanks.”
“Go in if you’re tired.”
“Just going to finish this.”
He rested his head on my arm for a moment before stretching his long arms. Even if it was just this, there was still a long way to go. I knew it well because it was the content I had reported today.
I set aside my share and headed to Yi-tae. So, the area under that long shirt was a mess of bug bites. It must be itchy, but he didn’t show any signs. He was one tough guy.
“Drink this while you work.”
I had become accustomed to speaking curtly after doing so for several days. That’s not how I meant to say it.
His tired eyes, which hadn’t gotten enough sleep, slowly looked up at me. Looking at his face made my heart soften. He seemed to have cut down on caffeine a lot too…
“Ah.”
Only a short exclamation escaped his lips. He didn’t even seem to be properly aware. Or maybe, he hadn’t expected me to talk to him first at all. His eyes wavered.
Looking at him made me frown involuntarily.
“Go home and sleep early for one day. You’ll die if you keep this up.”
“The company is more comfortable than the dorm…”
It was obvious that he had slipped up. He seemed to have said it by mistake because he was sleepy. He shut his mouth tightly and rolled his eyes. The Yi-tae I met again was especially trying to act stronger in front of me.
He wanted to add a further explanation, but he couldn’t seem to think of one, and his lips only twitched. Tony sighed deeply. Yi-tae’s body shrank even more. Seeing that made me lose the will to press him.
I passed by him and headed to Tony.
“This is a thank you for talking to me earlier. I chose coffee because it’s the safest option.”
I forced a playful tone and smiled. After seeing Yi-tae’s state, I felt terrible. I knew his parents too, so how upset would they be if their son was like that? Me too.
Tony smiled quite shyly and handed me a caramel. I felt Yi-tae’s gaze.
“Thank you. Caffeine is an essential virtue for developers.”
Tony seemed satisfied with his joke and laughed heartily. The rapid change made it feel like I had imagined him being shy just a moment ago.
There was herbal tea on Yi-tae’s desk. It seemed that Yi-tae was lacking in essential virtues because of me.
Tony’s gaze also returned to where I had been. He looked at the herbal tea and exclaimed in surprise. I made eye contact with Yi-tae.
“Sirius, why aren’t you drinking coffee these days?”
“Trying to take care of my health.”
“If that’s the case, then find a new place to stay first.”
Tony nagged like a worried parent. Yi-tae blinked his eyes but glanced at me. I already knew.
“I’ll take care of it.”
Yi-tae muttered awkwardly. I was uncomfortably concerned. He was a stranger. If I had to be specific, he was an ex-boyfriend I had broken up with on very bad terms.
“You can’t take care of it, that’s why. Did you put on medicine?”
“Let’s talk later.”
Yi-tae said, glancing at me again. Did he really not want to let me know? I was still the closest person to him among the people at the company. Why didn’t he ask me?
He had shown me even worse things, but he didn’t want me to find out about the bug bites?
It was obvious that he wouldn’t like the fact that Tony had told me about it without permission. But I couldn’t just pretend I didn’t know. It was so annoying that I couldn’t stand it.
“You still haven’t found a new place?”
It was right to act shamelessly like this in times like this. As long as I didn’t get caught telling who told me, it was fine. Of course, the only people who knew that fact were in the development team, but I could have heard it from somewhere else. Just like Yi-tae did.
Yi-tae blinked rapidly, as if he was flustered by my words. He had a look on his face that said he wanted to ask a lot of questions.
“How… No, not yet. I don’t have time.”
He stopped trying to ask and said with a resigned look.
This was a kind of impulse. Maybe it was because I had used all my self-control over the past year, but it had been like this lately. It was especially hard to resist when it came to things related to Yi-tae.
There was only one sentence I could say even after thinking about it. He was weak to me, and he moved according to what I told him to do. He didn’t have the strength to reject my suggestion.
“Let’s meet up this Saturday.”
“…Okay.”
Just like now. I wasn’t Yi-tae’s babysitter, and we were practically enemies, but doing this was meddling. I knew that very clearly, but my frustrating personality ruined what was right and wrong.
When I thought about it, Ian, who was a colleague at the company, had also helped me.
There were many excuses. Out of pity, because other people had done the same.
“That makes me feel a little better! This friend is not very reliable. He’ll probably be at the company this weekend too.”
“Don’t worry, Tony.”
I smiled brightly. Yi-tae’s opinion wasn’t included at all.
Suddenly, I remembered that I had other plans that day, but I brushed it aside. It didn’t seem that important.