【Episode 22 – What Happened at the Freshmen Party (2)】
“Uueeeh—”
“Oh my! Hey! Sein!”
As Jeheon had predicted, their drinking session ended early. However, the reason was different.
It was because Sein, who had been feeling nauseous in the taxi on the way from the freshmen party venue to Donguk’s house, had vomited the moment she entered the apartment.
“I’m okay, Unnie.”
“What do you mean, okay? Oh my, what do we do. It’s all over your clothes.”
“I’m okay. We should drink more.”
“In this state, what more is there to drink? Donguk, could you bring some water?”
The remaining three, sobered up in an instant by Sein’s vomiting, were busy cleaning up the mess she had caused, and by the time everything was sorted out, it was already close to midnight.
“Sujeong, what are you going to do? What should we do about this?”
“I’m fine.”
“Want to go home now? Donguk, take Sujeong home and come back. I don’t feel right about sending her off in a taxi alone at night.”
“No, it’s okay.”
“No, if I send you off like this, I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep. Donguk, go with her and come back. Okay?”
“I will. Sujeong, come with me.”
“I’m really fine.”
“No, no. Go with Donguk. You said your house is in Chelsea, right?”
“I really am fine… Unnie, instead of that, can I just sleep here tonight and go in the morning? I feel bad leaving Sein behind. If it’s okay with you and oppa, I can leave in the morning.”
“Really? We don’t mind at all. Donguk, is that okay?”
“Of course.”
“Then I’ll go later.”
“Really? I’d love that. Sujeong, then let’s have Donguk sleep in the room, and the two of us have another glass of wine, simple like that?”
“That sounds great!”
---*---
Eleanor, who had rushed over from the party venue in Tribeca, looked around inside the shop.
“El!”
The first to greet her was Clemens, who had graduated from UCLA with Eleanor.
“I heard you weren’t coming, but here you are?”
“Yeah.”
“There were more people earlier, but some have left now. Only the real party people are left. We’re planning to clean up soon and go to round two; wanna come?”
“Didn’t Heon come?”
“Heon?”
“Yeah.”
“Ah… I think he came.”
It wasn’t that he seemed to have come—he had. Heon was clearly in the photos Clemens had posted on Twitter from the freshmen party.
“Oh, right. He just asked where Michael was and went up to the second floor.”
Having gotten the information she wanted, Eleanor went straight up to the second floor of the ‘Rabbit Hole’ and found the person she was looking for.
“Looks like you could use some help?”
“Eleanor?”
“Hi, Heon.”
---*---
Sujeong changed into comfortable clothes that her unnie had given her.
Donguk had gone into the room earlier, and while Sujeong was changing clothes in the bathroom, Goeun had made the living room into a very cozy space.
As if she had never made such a disgraceful scene, Sein was asleep on the sofa, snoring softly, and to be considerate of her, unnie had turned on a few candles instead of the electric lights.
Snrrk— Snrrk—
If one had to nitpick just one flaw, it was the sound of Donguk oppa’s snoring coming from the room, but—
“Sorry. I guess oppa was tired today. Want to listen to some music?”
When unnie put on a quiet ballad, it became truly perfect.
“It was really fun today, after a long time.”
“Me too, Unnie.”
“No, that’s not true. You go to Parsons, so I bet a lot of interesting things happen. Honestly, I’m jealous of you, Sujeong.”
“I’m jealous of you, Unnie.”
“Me? Why me?”
“Because you married an oppa who cherishes you like that.”
Snrrk— Snrrk—
“So I even put up with snoring like that. Keke. He’s a good person.”
“How did you marry oppa, Unnie?”
“I confessed first.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I dropped so many hints, but this guy couldn’t take a hint, so I asked him to go out with me.”
“No way— really?”
“Yeah.”
“What did oppa say then?”
“What did he say, you ask? He spouted a bunch of nonsense like, ‘I had no idea,’ ‘I don’t know if I can date properly with all the lawyer work,’ and so on…”
“And then?”
“I brought him to the house where I live alone.”
“Wow— Unnie, you’re bolder than you look.”
“I’m not usually like that, but this man was so clueless about those things that it was frustrating. But you know what? That man slept like that even that day.”
Snrrk— Snrrk—
“Keke— snoring like that?”
“Yeah! But back then, that sound sounded so good.”
“Don’t you still like it?”
“No way. These days I plug his nose. So it got better. Kekeke. But sometimes, very rarely, when I hear it, how should I put it, I feel safe. Do you know what I mean?”
Sujeong nodded her head.
She didn’t know, but somehow she felt like she understood.
---*---
Thud.
“Whew—.”
I laid Michael down in the guy’s room at Hayden dorm.
He wasn’t a big guy, but it wasn’t easy moving around with him going completely limp over my shoulder.
It was somewhat easier thanks to Eleanor helping me.
After laying the guy down, I checked the clock and saw it was already well past twelve.
“Thanks, Eleanor.”
“No problem.”
Mia had made a special exception and extended my curfew until midnight, but even if I caught a taxi now, it was clear I wouldn’t get back until past one.
As I was thinking about just going in and apologizing tomorrow morning, my eyes met Eleanor’s.
‘Ah, right, she was here.’
She had seemed to help because of me, so I couldn’t very well say I was just going to leave.
“Want to go somewhere for coffee or something?”
“Coffee? At this hour?”
“Is coffee a bit much?”
I had been doing research at school all day and then came to the party. I desperately needed coffee. Otherwise, I felt like I would collapse and sleep on the sidewalk.
“Then drinks? Want to go back to the Rabbit Hole?”
“No.”
“Then what should we do? Is there anywhere you want to go? I don’t mind even if it’s far. Anyway, I can’t get into my house since my curfew has already passed.”
“Curfew?”
“Yeah. The apartment I’m living in now has that kind of rule.”
“That’s interesting.”
······
A brief, awkward silence.
“Then… want to go?”
“Sure.”
“You don’t even know where.”
“Anywhere. It doesn’t matter.”
“You said it doesn’t matter.”
“Yeah. Where?”
“Home.”
“Home?”
“Where I live.”