Episode 8. He and She (1)
November 28, 2017.
Contrary to her worry that things might become awkward, Sejun came to find Hawon every single day after that.
Even though she had rejected him at his place, he planted himself at her doorstep every day as if the incident had never happened.
Introduction. Development. Climax. Like a romance—no matter what other topic they discussed or what help he offered, it always ended with a proposal to date.
“No.”
“You wouldn’t exactly be losing anything, though?”
“Why on earth are you doing this, asking me to date you? With your looks, there must be plenty of women willing to date you!”
“……Kissing those women doesn’t make my heart race.”
“That’s your problem.”
Hawon spoke firmly to Sejun, who kept coming back persistently.
“That’s right. It’s definitely my problem. But it’s yours too. Honestly, that kiss with me—it was good, wasn’t it? Wasn’t it special?”
“……”
At Sejun’s blunt question, Hawon was rendered speechless.
“Let’s acknowledge it. Neither of us are twenty-year-olds fresh out of high school with surging youth. We’re adults who’ve experienced everything there is to experience, right?”
“Well, that’s……”
True, but. Hawon swallowed the words she couldn’t bring herself to say.
“Adults being attracted to each other is perfectly normal. There’s nothing wrong with me being drawn to you, or you being drawn to me, is there?”
“……Don’t you like going through all the motions with women lightly and easily, no matter who they are? I can’t do things like that so easily.”
At Hawon’s words, Sejun pushed back the bangs that had fallen onto his forehead, looking frustrated.
“Where on earth have all the words I’ve said until now gone?”
“You have no shortage of women. You lack for nothing and can get along with anyone, anytime. Why go so far as to insist on me……”
“Because I’m attracted to you.”
Don’t just say things that shake a person’s heart like that!!!
“You said women are nothing but masses of pretension who only sing of love……”
“You said in dramas, women cry and wail over love until they go blind with runny noses, and it’s frustrating and annoying……”
“And?”
“After receiving a kiss that you said was filled with a pounding heart, I grew curious—how much more fatal would it become if ‘love’ were involved?”
“Dating is more complicated, childish, and annoying than it looks. I don’t think you’d like it.”
When Hawon glared at him with displeased eyes, Sejun met her gaze head-on and retorted.
“Well…… I wouldn’t know that.”
“And dating…… the emotion called ‘love’ is important. You’re not interested in that sort of thing, are you?”
Hawon emphasized her point with a frustrated air.
“Above all, I can’t believe what you’re saying. You look like an immature child rushing in without thinking, driven by nothing but curiosity.”
“Me?”
What returned at Hawon’s words was Sejun’s counter-question.
“You said you prefer instinctive relationships over love……”
“I’ve only experienced instinctive relationships. And I said I’ve never been in love, but I don’t think I ever said I wouldn’t fall in love. Think about it carefully.”
Had he?
Come to think of it, even in the contents of
Somewhat boring, but since it was the process of finding a way out of repetitive, formulaic relationships……
If he was the protagonist, then ultimately this man was himself.
“You’ve read my book, so you should know well, right? Don’t you?”
“What if we can’t reach ‘love’? Just because we’re attracted to each other now doesn’t mean it’s bound to blossom into love.”
As the wound from a year ago suddenly sprang to mind, Hawon took a step back and spoke.
“How do you live in this world if you run away because you’re scared without even trying? It’s exactly like whining that you can’t drive a car because you might die in an accident. Right?”
“……”
“Besides, you’re my senior who’s experienced love many more times than I have, aren’t you?”
And then, with a sly grin, he whispered in a languid voice into Hawon’s ear.
“So why don’t you show me for once? What sex based on the ‘love’ you so aspire to is like.”
At Sejun’s whisper, Hawon’s face flushed red and she screeched.
“Is that the only thing in your head? My answer is ‘no,’ so don’t waste your energy and just give up.”
To Hawon’s words, Sejun replied calmly.
“I’ve suddenly developed a competitive streak. I’m not giving up. Not until you do.”
* * *
“So? Are you going to keep rejecting him? Why on earth! You said he’s handsome and that he kisses well!”
Yuna had stopped by the president’s office to get documents approved from Hawon as soon as she arrived at work.
Seeing Hawon tearing at her hair with a haggard face, Yuna pried into the situation and clicked her tongue regretfully.
“If you don’t want him, should I try meeting him? As you know, I’ve got quite a nice body.”
When Yuna showed off her sensual figure, Hawon didn’t respond at all.
“A handsome man deserves a fair maiden. What do you think? Won’t you introduce that man to this friend?”
Then Hawon replied quickly.
“No. I’ll pass on that.”
Seeing Hawon answer so immediately, Yuna smiled mischievously and asked.
“From the way you immediately said no, it seems like you’re attracted to him too? No?”
“No. That sort of thing……”
“Of course it’s not. Even if the first kiss was an accident, the next time he did it to you, and the next time you went after him.”
At Yuna’s words, Hawon let out a sigh.
“I haven’t known you for just a day or two…… The fact that Gu Hawon showed that side of herself means she’s definitely incredibly attracted to that man.”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure.”
When Hawon spoke honestly, Yuna said with frustration.
“What’s the harm in dating him for a while? Why don’t you just go out with him, date, talk, and get to know him better?”
“……”
“He’s handsome, capable, and even kisses well—a perfect man. Why on earth are you refusing? Don’t tell me you still haven’t forgotten that crazy bastard from before?”
At the mention of her cheating ex-lover, Hawon waved her hands as if it were absurd.
“That’s not it. He has nothing to do with it.”
“Then what are you so afraid of, refusing like this? At this rate, all your dating cells are going to die.”
Honestly, Hawon was afraid.
That she might start dating recklessly out of impulsive attraction and curiosity, only to realize later that it wasn’t love.
And that it would eventually turn into self-loathing.
Because she had already experienced self-loathing for herself, who had mistaken the dating game for love when she witnessed her previous lover cheating.
“Give it a try once. Falling into a passionate love with sparks flying from the beginning is surprisingly not that common.”
Yuna spoke with her arms crossed as if giving a sermon.
“Meet him first. If the kiss was good, that means there’s not zero possibility of falling in love with him.”
“Is that so……”
“And who knows? You might be the one who awakens his capacity for love.”
“But……”
Even at Yuna’s persuasion, as Hawon hesitated, Yuna spoke like driving in a final nail.
“Don’t hesitate to love. We are at a beautiful age where we are meant to love. And remember—we won’t be thirty forever.”
Time never waits for us to fall in love.
You have to seize it.
Yuna brought the coffee in front of her to her lips and muttered aloud so that Hawon could hear.
* * *
After that day, true to his word, Sejun acted with sheer stubbornness, approaching Hawon relentlessly at every opportunity.
To the point where she wondered if the man next door had always had this side to him, Sejun had completely dropped his poker face and hovered around Hawon.
She didn’t hate such a Sejun, but he gradually became a nuisance.
She tried somehow to avoid him, but it was no use.
She hadn’t realized that living right next door could be so exhausting.
He flung open his door to greet her according to her commute schedule, and even stuck his head out when she went to take out the trash.
“Let’s go together.”
“I can take it out by myself. It’s right there.”
“I was heading out anyway. I’ll go with you to the disposal area. It’s dangerous for a woman to go out alone at night.”
“It’s fine……ack!”
However, Sejun ignored Hawon’s words and snatched the heavy garbage bag from her hand.
Looking at Sejun, who walked ahead and pressed the elevator button, Hawon fell into thought.
‘Don’t hesitate to love.’
It was as if Yuna’s voice could be heard right beside her.
Hawon’s gaze landed on Sejun’s broad back.
The day Sejun had collapsed, she had happened to see his body while changing his clothes.
A firm, masculine body full of virility.
She imagined that being held in Sejun’s embrace would be utterly euphoric.
‘What am I thinking right now?’
Hawon erased the uncontrollably growing delusions with effort and asked Sejun.
“By the way…… where are you going?”
“The mart. I need to buy some daily necessities.”
Sejun carefully took out a piece of paper with necessary items written on it from his pocket and showed it to Hawon.
“……Ah.”
“Want to go together? Don’t you have anything you need to buy?”
“I do, but……”
She remembered that one of the fluorescent lights in the entryway had gone out.
“What is it?”
“A fluorescent light. It’s burned out, so the entryway is dark. Eojjeo waits there every day, so I need to change it quickly……”
“Then let’s go together. If you buy light bulbs, I’ll replace them for you.”
At that, Hawon fell into a dilemma.
Go together? Or not?
However, she didn’t want to be with Sejun while her heart remained undecided.
“I’ll buy it next time. I’m fine.”
“I’m bored, so let’s go together. Anyway, with my arm like this, it’d be much smoother if you helped me with the shopping.”
Sweet words of temptation reached the ear of the deliberating Hawon.
“I’ll buy you the ice cream you like.”
In the end, Hawon, who had completely fallen for the ice cream bribe, came to her senses already holding ice cream in her hand.
“Newlywed~ try this!”
A promotional lady at the mart offered Hawon some dakgalbi that smelled savory and spicy.
“It’s made with domestic chicken, so it’s very delicious. Go ahead, try it.”
Unable to refuse the lady’s hand extending the dakgalbi as if placing it in her hand, Hawon blankly accepted it.
“Mm…… it’s delicious!”
And why was the dakgalbi so delicious in the midst of all this.
Hawon gave a thumbs up and showed a happy expression.
“Right? Many of our company’s customers love this dakgalbi~ To the point where people even come from the Middle East to buy it after falling for the taste~”
As Hawon smiled at the unexpectedly delicious dakgalbi, the lady said.
“Newlywed, how’s the taste? It’s very good, right?”
“Yes. But I’m not a newlywed……”
“I’ll give you a special 1+1 price just for you, newlywed! Don’t go around telling people I did this!”
At the lady’s words that she would give one free if she bought one, Hawon quietly shut her mouth, which had been about to say she wasn’t a newlywed.
Another lady nearby said to Hawon.
“Newlywed, have your husband try it too! Here, feed this to him!”
When the lady handed a piece of dakgalbi to Hawon, she hesitated for a moment.
Seeing that, the lady laughed heartily and said.
“Oh my~ the young bride must be shy! It’s fine! Feeding each other is something you’ll do hundreds and thousands of times while living together, so you need to get used to it!”
“What are you doing? Hurry up and feed me.”
Even Sejun approached with an impish grin, opening his mouth nonchalantly.
‘Sigh…… if only I hadn’t really fallen for the dakgalbi.’
Hawon awkwardly stretched out her arm and put the dakgalbi in Sejun’s mouth, which he gobbled up.
“The bride has found herself such a handsome husband! He looks exactly like our husband when he was young~! You look good together!”
“Ha, haha…… thank you.”
The lady naturally packaged the dakgalbi and placed it in the cart, saying.
“Oh my~ I’m jealous. When we were young, we couldn’t even dream of going grocery shopping side by side with our husbands like that! I’m jealous and it looks so good!”
Only after thanking the lady for her compliments were Hawon and Sejun finally able to escape from that spot.
“Sigh…… I’m tired.”
A throbbing pain shot through her temples.
Then at that moment, Sejun called Hawon to a stop.
“Wait a minute.”
“……?”
He suddenly stretched out his hand and began to smooth around Hawon’s mouth.
Suddenly, in a place like this……?
At the thought that he might try to kiss her again, Hawon’s eyelashes trembled.
She was perplexed by the contradictory mass of emotions: while conflicted about dating him, she still wanted to taste his lips.
As cool fingers gently brushed Hawon’s lips, Hawon shouted in panic.
“What are you doing right now!”
Hawon backed away, clinging to her reason.
“……This.”
Sejun, who had removed his fingers from Hawon’s lips, showed his hand to Hawon.
“I wiped it for you. So clumsy.”
The moment she saw the red dakgalbi sauce on Sejun’s finger, Hawon’s face flooded red.
‘Damn it! How can I survive like this!!!’
Why on earth do I always start off well only to slip like this!
Regrettably. ……Huh?
Did I just say regrettably?
Gu Hawon, are you crazy? What exactly is regrettable?
Even in that brief moment, all kinds of thoughts tormented Hawon.
“Look over there.”
Sejun pointed to the right with his finger.
Following his finger with her gaze, she saw a large full-length mirror covering one wall.
“What do you think?”
“W-what?”
“Us two. Do we look good together?”
“Uh……”
The man and woman reflected in the mirror looked quite good together.
Their moderate height difference and the atmosphere they gave off matched rather well.
But unable to say so, Hawon maintained her silence.
“The ladies earlier said we look good together.”
“So…… what’s the point you’re trying to make.”
“Even I think we look good together.”
“……So.”
“So……”
Sejun’s Adam’s apple bobbed greatly.
“Let’s date.”
At Sejun’s appearance of bringing up dating as if he’d been waiting for this, Hawon let out a short, exasperated laugh as if unable to stop him.
“It’s gotten quite late. Stop talking nonsense and go home.”
When Hawon grabbed Sejun’s arm and pulled him, he surprisingly began to follow obediently.
The two walked about ten minutes and arrived home.
However, Sejun didn’t enter his own house, but Hawon’s.
“Why are you coming into my house?”
“You said the light was out. I’m going to change it.”
Thanks to his tall height and long arms, he easily changed the fluorescent light without needing a chair, unlike Hawon.
Watching that figure, she thought that having a boyfriend would be nice at times like this.
“How is it.”
Sejun, who had been pressing the switch to check if the light came on properly, asked Hawon.
“I like it. Thank you.”
“No, not that.”
To Hawon, who was expressing her thanks, Sejun shook his head and said.
“If you dated me, I could easily change a hundred of these for you. How about you stop running away now and date me.”
At Sejun’s serious gaze, Hawon’s heart began to quiver.
“Changing light bulbs, moving furniture, anything that requires strength—I can do it all for you. If you want, even in bed.”
At the last words, Hawon’s face burst into flames.
“Oh, really! Just go home already!”
Hawon pushed Sejun out of her house as if shoving his back.
Only then, finally alone, Hawon sank to the floor with her back against the front door.
“You wretched, misbehaving heart…… why do you keep trembling like this……”
It seemed sleep would evade her again tonight.
* * *
A few days later, Hawon came to his house to help with Sejun’s work.
Entering Sejun’s studio, she recalled the incident where she had covered his lips first, and gave a dry cough to compose herself.
Whether he knew her heart or not, Sejun began staring at Hawon with an intense gaze the moment she arrived.
“……Aren’t you going to work?”
“I am. I am working.”
“What’s with staring at me? Stop staring. I feel like a hole is going to be drilled in the back of my head.”
“Then I’ll stare from beside you.”
At that, Sejun adjusted his posture and began staring at Hawon from beside her.
“What on earth is this? What are you doing right now?”
“This is me courting you to be lovers.”
This man might have a handsome face, but his actions were truly no different from an impulsive child.
“Have you been possessed by a ghost who died without ever dating? Why on earth are you suddenly acting like this toward me?”
“I’ve become interested in you.”
Not even feelings of liking, but interest. Ha!
“Sigh, please stop doing this.”
Hawon was overwhelmed just by company work alone and was in a sufficiently exhausted state.
After work, unable to rest and having to deal with Sejun, she was gradually reaching her physical limit.
On top of that, her heart pounded every time she encountered him, saying it didn’t dislike Sejun, so her mind was going crazy from the inability to calm down.
Hawon buried her face in a pile of papers and let out consecutive sighs.
As Sejun stealthily approached behind such a Hawon, sensing him, Hawon jerked her head up and shouted.
“I told you to stop!!!”
“What did I do. I didn’t do anything.”
Sejun said shamelessly, pulling out a book from above Hawon’s head.
“Not. Yet.”
“Oh, seriously! This person!”
Hawon’s huffing and Sejun’s snickering laughter mixed and scattered in all directions.
#Private collection