By Zephyria 
The scorching sun beat down harshly outside, but it was manageable enough. Perhaps it was because he had been lounging for so long inside the house with the air conditioning running; he actually felt somewhat refreshed.
He wandered aimlessly and slowly through the neighborhood. He had no destination. No thoughts, either. He deliberately emptied his mind, fearing that if he didn’t, useless ruminations that would offer him no help in his current state would keep popping up.
Walking in a state of mindless void, sticking mostly to the shade, it was soon nearly noon. After a walk that had lasted well over an hour, the instinct to return home began to surge. He was hot, exhausted, and hungry…
Separately, he had no appetite. And it would probably be worse at home. As he imagined himself sitting alone at the dining table eating, his appetite plummeted instantly. It was just as he absentmindedly looked up, thinking he should grab a quick bite before heading back.
A shop caught his eye. It was one of the restaurants Eun-ha liked, located near his house. Knowing this well, Yeon-jun used to often get takeout from there and bring food to him. Eun-ha frowned at the figure who naturally occupied his mind, and he soon shook his head in an attempt to brush away the distracting thoughts. Ah. This was exactly why he had tried not to think of anything.
He let out a lackluster sigh and turned away. His appetite had diminished even further. He was trudging along, thinking he should just go home and go back to sleep, when it happened.
As if by some trick, a familiar figure entered his field of vision. Eun-ha spotted a man walking toward him from across the street in the distance and came to a dead stop. A gasp escaped him as a bonus.
Since they lived in the same neighborhood—and even the same building—it wouldn’t be strange to run into each other at any time, but…
Suddenly overcome by a sense of distress, Eun-ha pulled his ball cap further down over his eyes. He scanned the surroundings quickly, but finding no suitable place to escape, he hid himself behind a lamppost for the time being. It was a crude hiding spot, but he judged it to be sufficient. That kid must have a brain, too.
Even if he were discovered, he would probably take the hint and pretend not to notice.
Because they were no longer in a relationship where they should acknowledge one another…
The sound of footsteps approached. As the presence drew closer, he lowered his head further and pressed himself tighter against the lamppost. He stared intently at the ground, hoping the man would just pass by quickly.
At some point, the presence stopped.
However, he had definitely not passed by. No. That wasn’t it…
“….”
A strange silence fell. In a stillness where only the shrill buzzing of cicadas echoed from all directions, another person’s legs were clearly visible in his lowered line of sight. It was while he was stubbornly pressed against the lamppost, glaring fiercely at those legs.
“Hyung.”
“….”
“What are you doing?”
No, does he really not know and is asking…
Finally giving up on hiding, Eun-ha looked up with a somewhat sullen expression. There stood Yeon-jun, barely a step away, looking down at him. With his usual striking face.
Looking at Eun-ha as if observing something peculiar, he leaned in, tilting his head.
“Why are you doing this?”
“….”
“Aren’t you hot?”
“….”
“What about lunch?”
“….”
“I bet you haven’t eaten.”
Everyday words were delivered with extreme naturalness. Not a single part of this flow made sense. Eun-ha looked at Yeon-jun, who was behaving in a completely incomprehensible manner, as if he were a strange person. What on earth was this attitude?
Despite that look of bewilderment, Yeon-jun simply stepped a bit closer and leaned down. As if such a thing were only natural. He held out his phone screen in a posture as if they were looking at it together.
“How about here? It’s a new place that opened recently, and they say it’s good.”
“….”
“You like Korean food, Hyung.”
“…You.”
Eun-ha let out a voice of sheer disbelief and then immediately clamped his mouth shut. He didn’t know where or how to even begin speaking.
With his lips pressed tight, he looked up silently for a moment before pushing the other’s shoulder away. He finally shot words at the man, who blinked as he was pushed back obediently.
“…What exactly are you doing right now?”
“Doing what?”
‘Doing what,’ he says. I mean, what kind of reaction is that, why do you keep…
The most incomprehensible part was Yeon-jun, who was wearing an expression that suggested he, too, found the situation difficult to understand. Why was he acting like this?
Eun-ha’s lips quirked, and he finally spat out the unwelcome truth. While complaining internally about why he had to mention such a topic directly to the man’s face.
“We br… broke up.”
What was even more unwelcome was that he stumbled through the words stupidly. Of all times, his tongue had to get tied.
Feeling his pride momentarily stung, Eun-ha quickly composed a nonchalant face. He lifted his chin slightly and spoke coldly, as if defending himself.
“…So I’m asking what you’re doing, this.”
He wondered if this was some kind of malicious prank. That the man was acting composed on purpose just to make him feel distressed.
But the Yeon-jun he knew was by no means the type of person to lack the common sense to do such a thing.
Or perhaps, had he been in an accident in the last few days? You know, like in dramas, where someone hits their head hard and gets amnesia…
Having reached that line of thought, Eun-ha unconsciously scanned Yeon-jun. Like someone checking for injuries.
But that wasn’t it either. After confirming his outward appearance was perfectly fine, Eun-ha swallowed a sense of relief—if it could be called that—and just as his expression began to distort slightly again.
To Eun-ha, who could understand nothing, Yeon-jun spoke with a look of curiosity instead.
“I never said we were breaking up?”
Like someone hearing something for the very first time.
“…What?”
Eun-ha asked back, bewildered. A hollow laugh escaped him at the absurd answer. What, what in the…
As Eun-ha twisted his lips cynically, Yeon-jun made a vague expression, humming. Then, he smiled with a hint of awkwardness. As if he hadn’t expected him to think that.
“That day, you seemed a bit overwhelmed, Hyung. I thought you needed time to calm down.”
“….”
“I just let you rest for a few days… and there were parts where I was in the wrong, too.”
Over that face expressing embarrassment, the events of a few days ago played back dimly. A voice calmly soothing a person who couldn’t pull themselves together. A hand patting his back, telling him to go inside and rest.
An expression that hadn’t wavered in the slightest, even at the notification of a breakup.
“We didn’t break up.”
“….”
“Why would I break up with you, Hyung?”
It was a firm voice. As if he had never once considered such a thing. As if it were an impossible idea.
Soon, Yeon-jun reached out. His relatively cool back of the hand touched a cheek that had turned red from long exposure to UV rays. He rubbed it lightly, as if checking his temperature.
“Have you been outside for a long time? Your face is flushed…”
“….”
“And you hate the heat.”
The gaze looking into him was tender. Eun-ha looked up at Yeon-jun with a blank face, like someone who had been splashed with cold water. He stood there frozen, unable to even think about steadying his rapidly shaking pupils. Feeling an inexplicable surge of emotion as the pupils meeting his deepened with a slight hint of a smile.
Told that they should go inside somewhere cool and talk first, he was awkwardly led away by his ex-boyfriend, who had gripped his wrist.