By Zephyria 
Min Ra-hyeon paused for a moment. He hadn’t expected Seo Yi-kyung to go as far as opening the door just to kick him out like this. They had even gone to look at paintings together yesterday. On that day, Seo Yi-kyung had certainly maintained a favorable attitude toward him.
He had readily agreed to go see the paintings, and they had shared some conversations—albeit meaningless ones—in the car on the way there and back. Perhaps because of that, Min Ra-hyeon had mistakenly believed that the unpleasant feelings Seo Yi-kyung had harbored since their first meeting, when he had played a prank, had softened a bit.
Min Ra-hyeon shrugged his shoulders.
“That’s what I intended.”
The bickering was pointless. Moreover, Jin Seon-yu had been watching them for a while now. Min Ra-hyeon nonchalantly brushed past Seo Yi-kyung.
“I don’t have any other intentions, I just wanted to be… to Mr. Yi-kyung…”
Helpful. Min Ra-hyeon continued his sentence while looking back. At that moment, Seo Yi-kyung slammed the door of the painting studio shut.
There are people in this world who can never get along. Even if he might be a special person to Han Seung-jae, he was not special to Seo Yi-kyung. In particular, Seo Yi-kyung had absolutely no intention of accepting any kindness Min Ra-hyeon showed. If he had, he wouldn’t have asked Jin Seon-yu to paint in the first place.
“Shall we have a cup of tea first?”
Seo Yi-kyung moved toward the work table. Although he didn’t like the fact that it was the tea Min Ra-hyeon had left behind, he asked as if to change the atmosphere.
That said, he didn’t feel like calling the busy Butler Do to bring out a fresh pot. Jin Seon-yu, who had been standing in front of the canvas looking at the painting Seo Yi-kyung had drawn, turned around.
Jin Seon-yu took off his jacket and hung it on a chair. Seo Yi-kyung felt a deep sense of relief that Jin Seon-yu didn’t ask anything. While maintaining a neutral expression, he picked up the teapot.
Seo Yi-kyung poured a cup and handed it to Jin Seon-yu. As he took the cup, he brought up the conversation they had been having before Min Ra-hyeon had entered and interrupted.
“The painting you drew has a certain feel to it.”
Seo Yi-kyung had shut himself in the painting studio all day, painting incessantly. In the process, it felt as though the work was improving and getting worse at the same time.
“But the lines are a bit… it’s just that they aren’t refined yet. That will be resolved naturally over time.”
Jin Seon-yu offered advice on the painting, seemingly worried that Seo Yi-kyung might blame himself or get hurt if the painting didn’t turn out well.
“The painting over there looks okay; how about bringing that one to life?”
Jin Seon-yu set down the teacup after taking a sip. Seo Yi-kyung stared at the unfinished canvas he was pointing to. It faintly captured a scene where the sea was visible upon opening a window.
“If it’s a gift, I think they’d like it more if it were something you painted.”
That was a piece where Seo Yi-kyung had tried to imitate the painting of a languid afternoon he had previously received from Han Seung-jae. It didn’t have the same feeling at all. It was simply one more study added after trying to paint this scenery and that scenery.
“If you finish it, I’ll help you refine it from the side.”
It seemed Jin Seon-yu was more concerned because he knew who the recipient of the painting was. He could not forget the terrifying look in Han Seung-jae’s eyes when he had carried the injured Seo Yi-kyung out. If his second Hyung, Jin Seok-young, hadn’t appeared in time that day to block Han Seung-jae, Jin Seon-yu and Kwon Gwi-jun might have been slammed into the floor.
“No. I want you to paint it.”
Seo Yi-kyung shook his head at Jin Seon-yu’s words. He didn’t have much time. Furthermore, he had to admit that no matter how hard he tried, he could no longer paint like ‘Seo Yi-kyung.’
Jin Seon-yu turned his head away from the canvas. He nodded cautiously toward Seo Yi-kyung, who seemed somewhat anxious.
“Alright. I brought my tools with the intention of doing that anyway. But what should I paint? Have you thought about that?”
At Jin Seon-yu’s question, Seo Yi-kyung answered quickly.
“I’ll bring something for you to look at and paint.”
It was something he had been thinking about all along. Seo Yi-kyung moved and picked up a canvas located in the corner. The neglected canvas had scratches on its edges.
Seo Yi-kyung placed the canvas on a wooden easel. Beside it sat a pristine white canvas. Jin Seon-yu spoke confidently.
“I just have to paint it exactly the same, right? Don’t worry.”
“How long will it take?”
In contrast, Seo Yi-kyung asked with an uneasy look in his eyes. Jin Seon-yu answered thoughtfully.
“Oil paints take time to dry… but if I paint as fast as possible, fifteen days.”
When Seo Yi-kyung unfolded and handed him a neatly folded apron, Jin Seon-yu looped it around his neck and tied it tightly around his waist. He then took the bag he had placed on the marble floor and opened it on the work table.
Standing beside him, Seo Yi-kyung looked down at the painting tools inside the bag. Some were stained with paint, and some showed signs of long-term use.
“Hmm.” Jin Seon-yu studied the old canvas for a while. He examined every corner and carefully touched it with his fingertips. The canvas had worn-out edges and the colors had faded due to poor storage.
Watching this, Seo Yi-kyung began to meticulously clean the tools Jin Seon-yu had taken out of the bag.
Then, Jin Seon-yu lightly massaged his shoulders before stepping in front of the white canvas. Finally, a single line was drawn.
* * *
Before he knew it, Seo Yi-kyung had put the polished tools back into Jin Seon-yu’s bag and closed it. Because he had cleaned them with such care, the dried paint had been wiped away cleanly. Since Jin Seon-yu planned to come again tomorrow, he decided to leave the bag as it was.
“Why are you moving that?”
Jin Seon-yu, who had taken off his apron and placed it on the work table, watched Seo Yi-kyung take the old canvas off the easel and return it to its original position. Seo Yi-kyung looked at the row of canvases before turning around. All the paintings around him were landscapes.
“So that no one notices even if they come in.”
“Who would come in here? And what would they do?”
Jin Seon-yu, who was wiping paint off his hands and putting on his jacket, asked curiously. Seo Yi-kyung shook his head.
“I wonder.”
It wouldn’t be to appreciate the art; would it just be curiosity? Wonder? Or perhaps a personality that simply couldn’t stay still.
As Seo Yi-kyung was leaving the painting studio, his eyes met those of Min Ra-hyeon, who was just stepping out of his room. Seo Yi-kyung brushed past him as if seeing Jin Seon-yu off.
When Seo Yi-kyung reached the front door, Jin Seon-yu stopped him, saying there was no need to come out any further. This was because a cold winter wind was blowing outside.
“Get home safely. Thanks for coming.”
Jin Seon-yu waved. Only then did a small smile appear on Seo Yi-kyung’s lips. He felt the anxiety in a corner of his heart subside slightly, replaced by a sense of ease. It was just as Seo Yi-kyung turned away from the door where Jin Seon-yu had disappeared. Seo Yi-kyung’s expression darkened rapidly.
How long had he been standing there? Min Ra-hyeon uncrossed his arms. He called out to Seo Yi-kyung, who was trying to pass by.
Yi-kyung, look at me.”
Seo Yi-kyung’s advancing steps slowed to a stop, and he turned only his head to look at Min Ra-hyeon. Min Ra-hyeon spoke with a sigh, sounding troubled.
“Are you still not over your anger toward me?”
Min Ra-hyeon seemed to believe that Seo Yi-kyung still harbored resentment because of the prank he had played when they first met.
“I thought you’d cooled off a bit after we went to see the paintings yesterday, but I guess not. I want to get along with you, Ms. Yi-kyung.
“…….”
“What can I do to make you stop being angry? I’ve already spoken to Seung-jae about your family’s difficult situation. But you know as well as I do. Seung-jae doesn’t just help anyone.”
Seo Yi-kyung knew that well. In Han Seung-jae’s life, there were two types of people: those who were beneficial and those who were detrimental. He treated people with a distinction as clear as black and white. He kept those who were useful to him by his side and ruthlessly discarded those who weren’t.
‘Han Seung-jae is that kind of person.’
So, what kind of existence was the Min Ra-hyeon standing before him now?
Seo Yi-kyung simply continued walking.
Yi-kyung.
However, Seo Yi-kyung did not look back. Because of this, Min Ra-hyeon couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being ignored.
He seemed to head toward the sofa in the living room, but then he looked around. After confirming that no one was passing by, Min Ra-hyeon took a wide stride.
It wasn’t as if he wouldn’t know just because Seo Yi-kyung didn’t tell him. He could just go in and see for himself. Min Ra-hyeon entered the painting studio.
He stared intently at the canvas. Min Ra-hyeon tilted his head.
“A mountain?”
No matter how he looked at it, the outline drawn on the canvas was a mountain.