By Zephyria Well, it’s probably because he’s Sung Se-han’s friend… I thought, and then covered my head with one hand.
“Wow, that’s an honor. I really wanted to meet the Breeze Sunbaes too. I’m a really big fan.”
Ah, why am I so twisted today? Get a grip, Lee Tae-kyung.
A warning light flashed, warning that my Inferiority Score could skyrocket today.
“But I have something to talk about with Se-han, so I’ll say hello a little later.”
It’s best to finish quickly and disappear before that happens. I finished calculating busily and faked a relaxed smile.
“Then Tae-kyung, let’s definitely do the finale together!”
Hanna Sunbae waved her hand gently and went down the stairs. I couldn’t take my eyes off her retreating figure because her high heels were so precarious.
“Lee Tae-kyung.”
I inadvertently turned my gaze and met brown eyes.
Sung Se-han, leaning against the railing, gave me a kind smile.
“Is Hanna Sunbae your type?”
“Watch your mouth. She’s a Sunbae.”
I’ve never had a good ending after giving my heart to the girlfriends around me. I never look at the women near Sung Se-han.
“How dare you evaluate what my type is.”
It was a fairly relaxed reaction, even to myself. Sung Se-han’s gaze left me and went down the stairs. Hanna Sunbae’s retreating figure had already disappeared.
“You’ll probably get close to the Breeze Sunbaes as you work on songs together.”
I put my hands in my jacket pockets and said nonchalantly. Ah, I shouldn’t have said that. I regretted it the moment Sung Se-han looked at me.
“You know. I don’t have any business being close to women.”
I think I know why that smile lingering in his brown eyes is unsettling.
“Unless I’m dating them.”
“Ah, right.”
Even I thought my way of speaking was idiotic, and I wanted to bang my head against the wall. I ended up hearing words I didn’t need to hear and plunging my feet into an unknown emotion.
“Se-han, the music video was really cool. I was impressed all over again.”
My voice became a little louder due to the reaction of my heart sinking to the bottom in an instant. I had to be careful not to make my expression too exaggerated.
“I told you it would be a hit, right? Should I tell you again? You’ll probably get number one on the year-end charts with your solo song?”
This was just my thought, but anyway, I was doing my best to pretend to be cheerful.
“I even looked up the showcase video while I was busy. You performed on stage wearing this suit, right? The showcase stage was really amazing too…”
What was floating around in my head right now was Sung Se-han and Hanna Sunbae working happily in the recording studio. There was no need to say that the two, who were the ultimate in visuals, looked fantastic together.
The fact that it made me feel like garbage made it hard to even smile.
It was really strange.
It’s not like I like Hanna Sunbae as a woman. I just admire her as a fan, so why…?
“Our Tae-kyung is getting talkative.”
Unlike me, Sung Se-han’s tone was relaxed.
I clenched the fist I had hidden in my jacket pocket tightly. Looking at it now, it looked like Sung Se-han was leaning against the railing and watching my show.
“What, you punk?”
At the same time as my expression crumpled, he stepped away from the railing.
“Let’s go. If you came to congratulate me, you should have a glass of champagne.”
“Sung Se-han.”
Sung Se-han, who was heading to the living room, turned to look at me.
Actually, I should have mentioned not only the music video and showcase but also the B-sides. As a creator, he would naturally want to hear how a close person evaluates his songs.
But, only twisted words were swirling in my twisted insides.
Sung Se-han, there are so many stories I don’t know about in your album.
When were you planning to tell me about your Grandmother… Ah. Let’s stop.
I was already exhausted because I had been consuming too much emotion for the past few minutes.
I didn’t want to argue with Sung Se-han, and I didn’t want to suffer any more because of my sordid emotions. I just wanted to finish the quest quickly and go back to a comfortable place.
“I came because I have something to say. I have to go back to the company soon.”
When I checked my phone, it was already close to 11 o’clock.
“Se-han, I…”
“Should we go somewhere quiet if you have something to say?”
Sung Se-han, who had changed direction to the right, passed by me.
“No, Se-han. It’ll only take a moment here…”
I sighed as I stared at his back as he walked away, ignoring my words.
“I’m really going crazy.”
Sung Se-han, who opened the nearest door, beckoned me with a nod. Okay. Let’s finish it quickly in a quiet place. The place Sung Se-han opened the door to was a study filled with antique furniture.
When Sung Se-han closed the door after I entered, the voices that had been heard from afar were cut off.
Sung Se-han completely pulled back the curtains by the window while I was looking around because the dark lighting with an orange tint was unfamiliar.
Unlike before, the splendid night view outside the window didn’t catch my eye. It was because Sung Se-han, sitting on the window seat, was staring at me.
“What do you want to say?”
Ahem, ahem. I cleared my throat and approached Sung Se-han. First, I grabbed his hand tightly…
“Se-han, your solo debut… uh!”
The moment I tried to grab his hand, he pushed mine away. My right arm, momentarily flustered, flailed in the air.
“Don’t hold my hand.”
Sung Se-han, tilting his head, smiled gently. I could only blink blankly.
“Uh, uh…?”
“Just say what you want to say. Don’t keep grabbing other people’s hands as you please.”
Ha…! I was so dumbfounded that a hollow laugh escaped me. I could think of dozens of curses right away, but I decided not to waste any more emotions today.
“Sung Se-han, I don’t have time to play with you right now.”
Instead, I confidently held out my hand in front of Sung Se-han.
“Here, hold my hand and listen carefully.”
However, Sung Se-han only stared at me with a smile.
“Why are you trying to get it for free?”
I couldn’t understand what he was saying, so I frowned involuntarily.
“What? Get what for free…?”
“If you’re going to hold my hand because of a mission, I need to get something in return, Tae-kyung.”
I was definitely exhausted. But Sung Se-han was the kind of guy who could draw out even the hidden energy.
“Sung Se-han. Cut it out, seriously.”
I felt like steam was rising from my head, so I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand.
“Is it that hard to live normally?”
I was ready to do anything to save Sung Se-han. Nothing was more important to me than that.
So, I didn’t ask him anything. I buried all the questions and resentments like, why, how?
So, this bastard shouldn’t be acting like this.
If he had even a shred of guilt, he shouldn’t be kicking away me, who was jumping in to save him.
“Sung Se-han, did I ask you for something big? I’ve put up with all your unreasonable demands so far, so shouldn’t you have some conscience? Huh?”
Sung Se-han crossed one leg over the other and took an even more comfortable posture.
“Our Tae-kyung doesn’t know anything.”
“What?”
As if enjoying the sight of the lines forming on my forehead, Sung Se-han stared intently at my face.
“If I had a conscience, I shouldn’t have met you like this in the first place. If I had a conscience, I should have ended our relationship when I left the company, leaving you alone.”
W-what did you say…?
I couldn’t breathe from the shock, as if I had been punched in the solar plexus.
Sung Se-han, you were thinking of ending things with me?
As my breathing became rough, Sung Se-han reached out and patted my thigh.
“But, Tae-kyung. Thanks to my shamelessness.”
Then he lightly grabbed the tips of my limp fingers.
“We get to meet like this every day, fight over nothing, hate each other, and so on. How great is that? Conscience? It’s just annoying between us. What good is it?”
“Hey, Sung Se-han.”
My neck tilted with a creaking sound.
“What did you do so well that you hate me? In your position?”
Even if I dismissed it as nonsense, I couldn’t ignore it. He should be groveling on the floor, so how dare he say he hates me?
“I’m sorry, but, Tae-kyung.”
I grabbed Sung Se-han’s right hand, which was shamelessly fiddling with my fingertips, with both hands. I was planning to quickly finish today’s quest as it was. But Sung Se-han lightly shook off my hand.
“I told you, it’s not free.”
“Ah, damn it!”
I felt frustrated and impatient at the same time. If I just wasted time like this, I might fail today’s event. Then the risk of an accident….
“Just give me your hand! We can talk about other things when we have time. Why don’t you listen…!”
What should I do with this frustrating guy who doesn’t even know what’s important? I can’t just push him down with my strength….
“Lee Tae-kyung, don’t touch my body recklessly from now on.”
“You crazy bastard!”