By Zephyria 
“No, Mr. Ha.”
Kim Hyun-gyu looked down at him with an incredulous expression.
“Don’t you know the more worked up you get, the more suspicious you look?”
Instead of answering, Haon stood up from his seat. He took several deep breaths in and out. He roughly ran his fingers through his hair, which was plastered messily to his face.
“Ha…….”
Only a long sigh escaped. Just then, Kim Hyun-gyu approached and perched on the edge of the bed.
“Just accept how things have turned out.”
Haon frowned.
“Accept what?”
“That you confessed to Jeong-won sunbae.”
Kim Hyun-gyu lifted his phone.
“There’s a saying, ‘truth in wine.’ Even if you try to pretend it wasn’t, you said those things under the influence of alcohol, so doesn’t that mean they were sincere?”
Thinking of the video Kim Hyun-gyu took yesterday made his stomach churn on its own.
“That’s not it.”
Haon shook his head vigorously.
“It’s not.”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s just……. Drunken rambling. Just drunk talk.”
His voice trembled slightly.
“It’s not a confession or anything. And liking that person separately……. Forget it.”
That wasn’t something he should speak of carelessly. Even if he said it, it wasn’t something anyone would believe.
Kim Hyun-gyu looked at Haon, who had closed his mouth, and tilted his head slightly.
“It seems real though…….”
“If you’re not going to believe me, then don’t even ask!”
Haon shouted, choking up, then grimaced as if his throat was suddenly blocked.
He wanted to be alone right now, but Kim Hyun-gyu kept talking to him, making him feel unbearably annoyed.
Kim Hyun-gyu watched Haon for a moment before changing the subject.
“Speaking of which, about Seo-jun.”
“Seo-jun? Cha Seo-jun?”
Haon reacted immediately to the name he had momentarily forgotten.
“He said he was disappointed you got so drunk yesterday. Did you call him?”
“Ah……. Right. I forgot.”
The face of Cha Seo-jun, who had been so delighted to see him yesterday, came to mind.
Normally, Haon would have also welcomed Cha Seo-jun and talked about how he’d been and many other things, but yesterday, he wasn’t in the right state of mind.
All his nerves were focused on Cha Jeong-won, so that was that.
“Yoon Haon, still the same. Give him a call, will you?”
“Don’t emphasize it.”
Just because he was troubled now didn’t mean he had forgotten Cha Seo-jun.
“Since we’re on the topic, do you know how hard I worked as the middleman to get you and Seo-jun to meet?”
Haon let out a faint sigh and looked up at Kim Hyun-gyu.
“Do you even know how much there is to worry about when planning a surprise event?”
“Why bother with a surprise?”
“I’m the one who got you two to meet. So I’m taking responsibility.”
The art academy for college entrance exams where he worked through Kim Hyun-gyu’s introduction.
He met Cha Seo-jun while working there. And Cha Seo-jun had taken a particular liking to Haon.
To the extent that he even wanted to have his career counseling session with Haon, who was just an assistant instructor.
He was a student he had looked after like that. Having not contacted him once since then, he didn’t even know he had been accepted to the same university.
Haon felt a bit awkward.
“Should I ask him out for a meal?”
Now that he had come to his senses, memories of how well Cha Seo-jun used to follow him around came back one by one. Yesterday’s meeting was a bit regrettable.
“Come to think of it, about that Cha Seo-jun.”
He came to the pub yesterday with Cha Jeong-won.
Normally, he would have been overjoyed and delighted to see a student he hadn’t seen for a while appear before him as a real freshman. It was just that the person he came with happened to be Cha Jeong-won, which distracted him, so he couldn’t properly show his happiness.
Haon clutched the blanket again and suddenly lifted his head.
“That Cha Seo-jun and Jeong-won sunbae are……, what exactly is their relationship?”
“What do you mean, what?”
Kim Hyun-gyu said with a matter-of-fact expression.
“They’re cousins.”
“……Cousins?”
“Yeah.”
Kim Hyun-gyu nodded.
The scene from yesterday of the two standing side by side replayed in his mind.
Straight nose bridges. Distinct facial features.
There were definitely similarities.
“……I did think they looked alike. So that was it.”
Haon muttered softly.
“What was?”
“Their faces.”
Haon said as if reluctantly admitting it.
“Their noses and eyes, the lines are similar. They’re both good-looking, though.”
He added grumpily at the end for no reason.
“But their personalities are complete opposites.”
“Is that so?”
“It’s like they copied and pasted the exterior, but put in the wrong personality file.”
Kim Hyun-gyu burst out laughing at that.
“Hey, that’s a really terrible way to put it.”
Even while laughing, he nodded.
“But I admit. When the two of them stand together, it does feel exactly like that.”
Haon burrowed back under the blanket.
Kim Hyun-gyu added bluntly.
“He said he really missed you.”
＊ ＊ ＊
Only after Kim Hyun-gyu left did the surroundings become quiet.
While he finally felt like he might survive, now that he was alone, all the thoughts he had been putting off until now came rushing in at once.
First of all, the biggest problem was that he kept getting entangled with Cha Jeong-won.
Of course, yesterday was just him drunkenly clinging to Cha Jeong-won. It would be easier if he could just leave it at that, but his mind refused to clear up.
‘Sweet room, confession, truth in wine, pheromones…….’
The words came one after another, eventually stopping at one scene.
That object he remembered just before leaving Cha Jeong-won’s house.
“I’m busy sorting out my own life right now.”
Pulling the blanket up to his chin, a long sigh leaked out.
If he had been drawn into Cha Jeong-won’s misfortune and ended up at his house, then it was actually best to avoid getting involved as much as possible.
Even though there was a year left until graduation, he needed to start preparing his graduation project early. He had to meet with his professor soon, and the graduation project committee would be formed, so he was going to get busy quickly.
Was that all? In trying to avoid Cha Jeong-won, he had incurred unplanned expenses. So now he had to pour some hours into a part-time job during the semester.
“All those part-time jobs near the university are probably taken by now.”
I shouldn’t have quit the one I had during the break.
And on top of that, there was Cha Seo-jun yesterday.
“Aww…….”
Even though he could think it was nothing, he had made a complete fool of himself while drunk. He had thoroughly embarrassed himself in front of a former student.
“I should at least call him.”
He pulled his arm out from under the blanket, fumbled for his phone, and hesitated for a moment.
Would calling now be a nuisance, or would this timing actually be better?
If he kept putting it off, he would obviously miss the right timing again.
He pressed the call button and held the device to his ear.
After a few rings, a bright voice was heard.
[Teacher?]
Along with the familiar title, the tone held a hint of caution.
“Yeah, Seo-jun-ah.”
Haon cleared his throat unnecessarily.
“Yesterday……. You got home okay, right?”
[Yes. I was more worried about you, Teacher. You seemed really drunk yesterday.]
When the other person expressed worry first, awkwardness surged up.
“You were calling me sunbae just fine yesterday.”
[I was hoping you’d recognize me. You did know.]
Since his memory of yesterday was fragmented in places, the parts filled in by imagination were even more embarrassing.
“And since when did you call me Teacher like that? Call me comfortably like before.]
He said it, remembering that Cha Seo-jun had called him ‘hyung’ when he quit the academy, and a quick reply came back.
[On-i hyung.]
He didn’t know why he specifically used only the last syllable of his name.
“Thanks for helping me yesterday.”
Haon forced a light, laughing tone.
[Ah, it was nothing. I’m just glad you got home safely because of me.]
A small laugh was attached to the end of Cha Seo-jun’s words. Even over the phone, he could imagine the expression with upturned eyes.
Feeling his ears grow hot for no reason, Haon quickly brought up the next topic.
“So, what are you doing today? If you’re free, come out. I’ll buy you a meal.”
It happened to be the weekend. Cha Seo-jun happily latched onto Haon’s suggestion.
[Sure. I wanted to talk with you too, hyung.]
Hearing that, his heart felt a little lighter.
[Let’s go eat something delicious.]
Haon lay down completely on the bed and pulled the blanket up to his chin. Then, with the phone pressed to his ear, it didn’t slip even if he didn’t hold it.
Good posture. Haon’s face, now more relaxed, muttered in a languid voice.
“Didn’t we eat jjukdduk often?”
Memories of eating spicy soup with cheese melted and stirred in came flooding back. It was a menu that touched both nostalgia and taste buds.
A short silence passed. The breathing on the other end of the phone stopped very subtly, then resumed, which he could feel.
[I’d love that.]
Cha Seo-jun immediately chimed in with a soft tone. The purely welcoming reaction made Haon’s mood improve as well.
“I wonder if the owner there is still around.”
Haon muttered as if talking to himself.
“Then let’s meet there. I’ll tell Hyun-gyu.”
[Hyun-gyu……, is he coming too?]
When a slightly awkward voice came from Cha Seo-jun, Haon couldn’t just let it pass.
“You call me Teacher, sunbae, but you call Hyun-gyu hyung right away?”
When he pointed that out, the silence lasted a bit longer this time.
“Seo-jun-ah?”
[……But I’m closer with On-i hyung.]
Then he quietly called him ‘hyung,’ and for some reason, his fingers felt itchy.
What’s the big deal about ‘hyung’?
“Then see you later. What time should we meet?”