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Special Side Story: Come Back To Its Original Owner Episode 3

[Don’t think too much about it. Maybe I just had a hanbok fetish I wasn’t aware of.]

Choi Hong-seo burst into laughter.

“What is that even supposed to mean?”

Lee Hae-sung laughed along from the other end of the phone.

[I really have to go back in now.]

“Okay, I’ll message you when I’m done.”

Hong-seo shook his head, thinking Hae-sung was stolen contenthopeless, and ended the call. Unconsciously glancing at the mirror opposite him, [visit our site]he saw unauthorized copyhis own face completely relaxed and beaming with a smile.

He hadn’t realized he was grinning this foolishly.

It wasn’t as if someone was watching him just to tease him, but he felt suddenly embarrassed for no reason, so he quickly composed his expression and pretended to be indifferent, putting the straw to his lips.

However, perhaps because of the anticipation for the end of the year, it was difficult to hide his excitement.

This year-end.

Jeong Ji-in and Yi-han were planning to stay in Seoul.

It was an event Choi Hong-seo had waited for for a full six months.

An hour or two after Hong-seo’s pictorial shoot began today, the two of them departed from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. By now, they were likely flying over the European continent, somewhere above the Caspian Sea.

The plane carrying them was scheduled to arrive at unauthorized copyIncheon International Airport around 9 PM, [unauthorized copy]and [visit our site]Lee Hae-sung and Choi Hong-seo planned to go to the airport to greet them.

The two would stay for about five days, spending Christmas together at Hae-sung and Hong-seo’s home. Hong-seo had even personally and meticulously cleaned the guest room where they would stay.

This was the first time since he was born that he had looked forward to Christmas this much.

Lee Hae-sung had shown a hint of jealousy, saying that Hong-seo was waiting for Jeong Ji-in too eagerly, but it wasn’t just because of Ji-in.

It was because he could spend Christmas surrounded only by the people he trusted and loved.

Since childhood, Christmas and the end of the year had always been times when loneliness only intensified.

The more excited and happy other people seemed, the more acutely he felt the poverty of his own happiness.

Material things weren’t the problem. Even with a cheap cake from a neighborhood bakery or a single fried chicken, he would have been happy if there had been mutual affection and laughter. Unfortunately, however, Hong-seo’s home had lacked not only material wealth but affection as well.

The reason Hong-seo was waiting for them now was for that very affection, not for material things.

A warm and grateful year-end spent with people who shared mutual affection.

That was what he looked forward to.

Tomorrow was also the official release date of Dissolve, Song Hyun-soo’s first formal movie.

It was released at a great time, targeting Christmas and the year-end.

He had already made plans for tomorrow with Jeong Ji-in.

They planned to take a walk near their old residence in the afternoon, have a meal in the evening at an Italian restaurant called ‘Piano’ where Ji-in had worked part-time before becoming an actor, and then watch Dissolve together at the cinema.

Another big event awaited them on the weekend after Christmas.

He had decided to visit the bar in Daehak-ro where Song Hyun-soo worked, along with Jeong Ji-in.

Next weekend was Hyun-soo’s last day of work.

As he entered movie filming, he had gradually reduced his working days, and since around this spring, he had been going in only one day a week. Because of that, it had become rare to see him even when visiting the bar.

And from now on, he would no longer be able to meet Song Hyun-soo in the capacity of a regular customer at the bar.

He didn’t intend to reveal the truth on the spot upon visiting with Jeong Ji-in.

‘I am actually your dead friend, Choi Hong-seo.’ That wasn’t a story anyone could easily believe. He would be lucky if Hyun-soo didn’t get offended, accusing him of defiling a friend’s name, or treat him like a lunatic.

But perhaps, slowly, he could move the guy’s heart.

Perhaps the guy would feel something.

While it might be impossible alone, he [stolen content]felt Read on Read BL Novelshe could visit our sitebe a bit more courageous if he were with Jeong Ji-in.

The movie Dissolve was a work directed by Director Jung Joon-hee, who is respected by many in the film industry. Furthermore, it was the first movie appearance of Yoon Joo-ho, who could be called the most famous actor in South Korea. Despite his immense popularity, he had only appeared in dramas until now. Those two factors alone were already garnering tremendous anticipation from the public.

Once the movie was released, it was only a matter of time before Song Hyun-soo became a popular actor. Choi Hong-seo believed this with absolute certainty.

Because he knew how hard the guy had struggled, steadily building his acting skills from the bottom up. Because he had continued to watch him, even from afar.

Song Hyun-soo already had over 200,000 followers. This was because the top star Yoon Joo-ho, who had 50 million followers and had never followed anyone, was the only person following Song Hyun-soo’s account. That incident had caused a slight stir in the entertainment industry for a while.

However, Yoon Joo-ho’s following was merely a catalyst.

Soon, Song Hyun-soo would surely captivate the public with his own inherent charm. Once that happened, he would no longer be able to continue his part-time job making cocktails at a bar in Daehak-ro.

He wasn’t sad about it.

Rather, he looked forward to the guy’s future more than anyone.

It seemed this year-end would be a special season in many ways.

While he was lost in these various thoughts, a knock sounded at the door. The stylist General Manager peeked her head in.

“Hong-seo, can we start preparing for the next shoot?”

“Yes, General Manager. I’ll be right out.”

Taking one last bite of a Santa-shaped cookie, Choi Hong-seo hurried to get up.

■

In the dressing room, hanboks and various accessories were neatly organized.

Out of a total of twelve hanboks, only three remained.

The shoot, which had started early in the morning, was now nearing its end. It looked as though they would be able to finish the shoot safely before twilight fell.

As the General Manager provided them, Choi Hong-seo put on the pants and jeogori in order, then layered a kwoeja(1) with a beautiful purple tint over them. It was a different atmosphere from the hanboks he had worn previously.

The General Manager’s touch was meticulous as she shaped the ribbons and tidied his appearance. Influenced by her aura, he felt himself becoming calm as well.

While standing quietly and leaving his grooming to her, Choi Hong-seo’s gaze wandered through the air before suddenly stopping at one spot.

“General Manager, is that red pouch over there also a prop for the shoot?”

The General Manager, looking back where Hong-seo pointed, answered with a smile.

“That’s right. Isn’t it lovely?”

“Yes. My eyes were drawn to it automatically.”

The props were displayed one by one on a table covered with cotton cloth. The General Manager picked up the red silk pouch Hong-seo had mentioned.

“This is a hyangnang. It’s presumed to be an object from the late Joseon Dynasty.”

“A hyangnang?”

Choi Hong-seo showed curiosity at the unfamiliar name.

“You put medicinal herbs that emit a fragrance in here and carry it on your body. So that a pleasant scent would linger. The hyangnang played the role that modern perfume does. Since the herbs with good scents were expensive, they were naturally used mainly by the nobility. Men would attach hyangnangs to their belts, and women would attach them to norigae as decorations. So, as you can see, it’s very luxurious.”

The General Manager placed the pouch in Choi Hong-seo’s hand.

Though it was said to be an object from the late Joseon Dynasty, it had been so well-maintained that the touch of the silk against his hand was still supple.

A beautiful red, close to crimson.

And the gorgeous, delicate embroidery decorating it.

Choi Hong-seo was instantly and completely captivated by the small object in his palm.

“This pouch was probably part of a pair.”

“You mean there’s another pouch?”

Choi Hong-seo looked up at the General Manager. She pointed to the pouch and said,

“Look here, there’s a stork embroidered on it.”

As she said, an embroidery of a stork with wings spread wide sat at the very center of the pouch.

“Storks are one of the representative animals that, [stolen content]once they form a pair, [Read on Read BL Novels]stay with that partner for their entire lives.”

“Ah… I didn’t know that.”

“That’s why stork decorations, whether embroidery or painting, are usually expressed as a pair. But in this pouch, there is only one stork.”

“……”

“They probably split a pair of storks between two pouches.”

As he listened to the General Manager’s explanation, emotions surged ever more strongly within Choi Hong-seo. He felt as if he were standing on a small boat tossed by waves.

The General Manager added as if to conclude,

“It was probably a gift given to a lover.”

“To a lover…”

He repeated the words in his mind.

The stork, which keeps only one partner for a lifetime.

A pouch that would have been gifted while promising unchanging fidelity to a lover.

(1) Kwoeja: A sleeveless outer garment of the hanbok.