episode_0146

“Hey. Can I stay at your place for a while?”

The moment Siwoo heard those words, a myriad of thoughts raced through his mind.

What?

Is she suggesting coming over to the house and seducing me in person now?

Is she trying to make it a fact that we can’t resist until we become adults?

Or is she waiting for me to give in to my impulses and come running?

“Uh… all of a sudden?”

Truly a strange and suspicious turn of events.

After returning from the couple ring shopping day, the next day, and the following days.

There was no mention of anything related to this, and now suddenly bringing up the TSVID topic.

“Could it be… Chaewon?”

Has she fallen for the TSVID trap?

Is this really a crisis of becoming a man?

…No way.

“No… I can’t?”

Chaewon clung to Siwoo as if pleading.

It was a display of affection not much different from usual, but the problem was—.

“Um, Chaewon. This is… a public place.”

The café owner had been staring at the two of them with bulging eyes since a while ago.

It wasn’t that he disliked the hug with Chaewon.

No matter how much you’re in a relationship, anyone would feel this way with someone watching.

“Oh. Yeah. Sorry.”

As if suddenly coming to his senses, Chaewon straightened her body from the 45-degree angle she had been leaning in.

“Ah… sorry. I’m sorry.”

She was restless. She couldn’t sit still.

Occasionally messing up her hair, she would try to say something, but ultimately couldn’t finish the words and gave up.

“It’s okay. Take your time and tell me. What’s wrong? I’ll listen to whatever you have to say…”

Could it be the story she wanted to tell when they went to the pension before?

The story that had a lingering scent of something, but was never completed.

Finally, a decision had been made to tell it.

Whether it had become a situation where it couldn’t be left unsaid.

Today was the opportunity.

It was time for her to release the anxiety and worry she had been carrying.

“…. Let’s go to my place for now.”

“Our place… you mean?”

“Yeah. Not here….”

Chaewon glanced towards the counter. Even though she seemed to pay no attention, she couldn’t help but feel the intense gaze.

“I’ll go to the restroom.”

“Yeah. I’ll wait outside the store.”

As Siwoo was left alone, the café owner who had been watching from the counter approached. His expression showed that he had many questions.

“What’s wrong?”

He seemed like someone who was not afraid to speak his mind. But he asked so directly.

“Oh, nothing. It’s nothing.”

After brushing it off, his response was shocking.

“It’s not nothing. You look like someone going to their death.”

“… What?”

“Oh my. I’m sorry. That person always warned me to be careful of the disastrous group you’re always with.”

“The person you mentioned… is it your late husband?”

“Yeah. He had a terminal illness. Like the ones that often appear in dramas… that kind of thing.”

“Ah….”

“I didn’t expect him to leave so early. Just after we got married, he suddenly went to heaven alone.”

She didn’t go into details, but it was clear that the café owner’s husband had lost his life in his early twenties.

With a bitter smile, she murmured a superstition well-known among those in the entertainment industry.

“The heavens don’t leave geniuses alone. It couldn’t be helped…”

Could it be that those few words of superstition, dismissed by some as mere mental victory, gave her the strength to live alone for a long time?

Siwoo quietly waited for her next words.

“I don’t remember when my husband told me that story. It was about half a year before he passed away. That’s when he told me.”

It was enough time to gather her thoughts, but not enough to accept fate.

“I don’t know how much I cried. The human heart, you know. You tell yourself not to cry. Don’t cry. Even if you think about it 500 times before going on a date, just seeing that person’s face makes tears flow~. Oh dear.”

“Every time we met, I cried. My husband comforted me. I wasted time like a fool… until the day before my husband passed away, the tears finally stopped.”

“So… as I watched him lying on his deathbed, no tears came. My husband, who had always made me laugh, cried for the first time seeing me like that.”

“You look the most beautiful when you smile… with those words as the last, he became a star in the sky. It’s been almost 20 years already.”

It’s nothing special.

It must be a joke.

There’s no way something like that could happen to Chaewon—.

Her self-justification, carefully maintained, shattered, revealing hidden anxieties and worries.

The warmth Chaewon had shared with Siwoo was slowly fading away.

The inner selves of Siwoo, silent until now, coughed incessantly. The terribly cold winter was returning.

No.

Chaewon is going to die?

At such a young age?

Why?

How?

Why does Chaewon have to die?

Who decided such a fate?

If Chaewon is going to die, I’d rather be a pathetic person like me—.

“Student!”

Thump.

Her hand, burning with fever, gripped Siwoo’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have talked about this…”

The owner furrowed her brows, worrying that she had needlessly troubled Siwoo.

“… No. Thank you. If you hadn’t told me, I would have been shocked without any mental preparation.”

Siwoo reassured her with a smile.

Then he stepped back slightly, bowing his head.

“You still don’t know anything. Tell me everything. It might not be a big deal. If my story didn’t help… I hope it’s nothing.”

“Yes. I hope so too.”

“Wait a moment.”

The owner rushed to the counter and started stamping the coupon card.

Thud thud thud thud thud.

The wooden table vibrated noisily for a moment. Soon, a coupon card with ten leaf stamps was handed to Siwoo.

“I’m sorry. This might not be enough… I only have this to give.”

“Oh, no, it’s okay.”

“Is this not enough after all…? From now on, just come to our cafe every day and have a free drink. Just come.”

“No, it’s really okay.”

The owner, feeling sorry for saying unnecessary things, bowed her head apologetically.

“Tell me everything. It might not be something serious… That’s how it should be. I don’t want another person to be as sad as me.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll bless you like this.”

Trembling, the owner clasped her hands tightly and murmured a prayer.

“And most things can be solved together. Understand? It’s hard alone, but together, you’re strong.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Chaewon, who had just come out of the bathroom, looked at the two and smiled.

Her face, previously worried until she went to the bathroom, now seemed strangely calm and indifferent.

As Chaewon rushed over to the ajumma, she asked, “What’s wrong? Your expression…”

“Oh, it’s nothing. She said she had a stomachache. You were waiting in the bathroom.”

“Oh, really? I’m sorry. Please go take care of your business quickly.”

When Siwoo winked at the ajumma, she nodded and hurried to the bathroom.

“I guess I picked the wrong time to go to the bathroom.”

Chaewon laughed heartily as if to say, “When did that happen?”

“The husband who always made me laugh cried for the first time that day.”

Siwoo’s heart ached at the sight.

“What’s wrong? Let’s go home quickly.”

“Just a moment ago, you had a serious expression. Why are you okay now?”

“What? What did I do?”

Min Chaewon tried to fix her expression and make it seem like nothing had happened.

But she couldn’t keep it up forever.

She couldn’t keep deceiving herself.

Even if Min Chaewon deceived herself, she wanted to be a boyfriend who could figure it out.

“Let’s go home first.”

Siwoo reached out his hand to Chaewon, palm facing up.

As if she had been waiting for it, she placed her hand on top of his.

Before they could feel the warmth of their clasped hands, Siwoo suddenly exclaimed, “Oh. Oops.”

He pulled Chaewon’s body towards him.

“Hey, hey. You’re falling!”

“Let’s go quickly.”

“Why, why are you suddenly like this?!”

As a flustered Chaewon struggled, Siwoo let go of her hand completely—

“Ugh. Oops? Hey! Hey!!”

He lifted her up, carrying her like a princess.

“Are you crazy?!”

Chaewon’s hand repeatedly hit Siwoo’s back, but it didn’t hurt at all.

The pain now was in Siwoo’s heart.

It was the pride of a boyfriend who wasn’t trusted.

“I must be crazy for you.”