Neat hands folded back the sleeves that hung low enough to cover his entire hands with a few light tugs.
“…Thank you.”
Watching the two of them together, looking almost unbearably gentle, Na Seunghee spoke without thinking. He made no effort to hide the envy in his eyes, something close to jealousy surfacing beneath it.
“But does Mr. Go usually dress like that? I was seriously shocked when I saw him in the parking lot earlier. I almost didn’t recognize him. He looks way too young.”
“…Ah.”
“If he dresses like that, who would think he’s married? I would’ve believed he’d just started college.”
As though trying to ease the atmosphere, Na Seunghee tossed the comment out lightly toward Go Igyeol. So he really had been watching from upstairs. Even taking off the cap suddenly felt embarrassing now. Unable to answer, Go Igyeol only lowered his head as his face reddened.
“You look exactly your age.”
“What?”
Seo Dohyeon’s hand brushed lightly against Go Igyeol’s heated cheek before pulling away again.
“I figured you kept bothering Igyeol because you wanted someone to talk about your age. You should dress like that on your days off too. It suits you.”
Na Seonwoo’s gaze shifted toward the man whose behavior toward Go Igyeol looked casual on the surface yet somehow wasn’t.
If he took care of him like that, then maybe their relationship really wasn’t bad…
But did he actually know? Had Go Igyeol really told him?
Then why had it looked like that with Na Seunghee back then?
The memory wasn’t even old, which only made it stranger.
While Na Seonwoo drifted into thought, only Na Seunghee reacted dramatically.
“Why do you always make people feel humiliated like that?”
“You were making Go Igyeol uncomfortable too.”
“You really need to start dating someone. Seriously, you make people feel pathetic.”
“Then do it. If you wait any longer, you won’t even be able to if you want to.”
At the indifferent reply, only Na Seunghee continued grumbling under his breath.
Watching them, Na Seonwoo finally relaxed a little. Maybe the two of them really were just close friends.
He picked up his water glass.
“You were the rude one first. Why bring up his age?”
“What? Saying someone looks young is suddenly wrong now? Isn’t that a compliment?”
“If the person hearing it doesn’t like it, and nobody else hearing it thinks it sounds like a compliment either, then it’s not a compliment. Don’t say things like that. You’re supposed to be smart, so why are you this tactless?”
Even his younger cousin joined in scolding him, and Na Seunghee finally reddened with embarrassment, exhaling sharply through his nose.
With both Seo Dohyeon and Na Seonwoo saying he was wrong, it finally occurred to him that maybe what he’d casually said could actually have upset someone.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Go. I just… I really meant it as a compliment.”
“…It’s okay.”
“I’ll be more careful.”
“…Okay.”
After giving a small nod, Go Igyeol looked up at Seo Dohyeon and quietly thanked him in a voice barely audible to anyone else. Seo Dohyeon leaned down and whispered something beside his ear, and the small face immediately turned bright red before bobbing quickly up and down. His swollen lips pressed together nervously before parting again in a tiny reply only Seo Dohyeon could hear.
“Still, you must be worried lately since Igyeol hasn’t been feeling well.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“He barely eats properly and mostly just sleeps.”
Go Igyeol’s eyes flew open at Na Seonwoo’s words.
Shock came second. What overwhelmed him first was panic.
For a moment, Na Seonwoo even wondered if he had said something he shouldn’t have.
“I know he hasn’t been eating much lately, but I don’t really understand why that’s something you’re concerned about.”
“Na Seonwoo.”
Before Seo Dohyeon could finish speaking, Go Igyeol hurriedly interrupted. He shook his head ever so slightly, practically begging him to stop.
“…Seonwoo.”
“I… right. You’re right. It wasn’t my place to worry about it. I’m sorry.”
Anxious eyes trembled toward Na Seonwoo.
The atmosphere shifted strangely, and even Seo Dohyeon felt something sink heavily inside him.
What exactly existed between them that he didn’t know about? They were nothing more than old college classmates.
“Hearing about Igyeol from someone else is a pretty new experience for me. Sounds like we’ll have a lot to talk about once we get home. Thanks to you, Mr. Na.”
Even knowing the sharp edge hidden beneath Seo Dohyeon’s words, Go Igyeol could not afford to care.
Na Seonwoo had realized all of his lies.
Only Na Seunghee looked around in confusion, clearly wondering why the atmosphere had suddenly become like this. Even when he quietly asked Na Seonwoo what was wrong, Na Seonwoo only answered as if he had no idea what he meant, ignoring his persistent questioning.
As dish after dish from the course meal arrived and disappeared again, the amount that actually entered Go Igyeol’s mouth was so little that all three men noticed.
“But Mr. Go barely ate last time too, and now again today. Was Seonwoo right? Are you sick somewhere? Did Dohyeon invite you out without realizing?”
“It’s not like that. Seonwoo and I had a really filling lunch.”
“Ah, right. Seonwoo did eat late today. I kept him at work too long. You were the one who kept debating whether to eat more or not. Don’t act so petty over one dinner.”
Na Seunghee pouted as he complained toward Seo Dohyeon. Muttering that he had no idea why Seo Dohyeon had become so stingy after getting married, he kept talking until Na Seonwoo smoothly stepped in.
“He called while we were eating, so we didn’t eat any more after that. But we’d already eaten a lot by then.”
Answering naturally, Na Seonwoo turned to Go Igyeol.
“Right?”
Go Igyeol, who had just put a bite of salad with citron dressing into his mouth, nodded quickly.
“Ah… yeah. That’s right.”
“You really like that udon shop.”
Na Seunghee asked what was supposedly so great about that shabby place.
Shrugging lightly, Na Seonwoo met Go Igyeol’s eyes.
“It tastes good.”
“You’re seriously strange. You went there too, didn’t you? That time you said it was too filthy to keep eating and walked out.”
“I remember. I didn’t like it. The food or the hygiene. So Mr. Go shouldn’t go there anymore either.”
The suggestion sounded gentle, but it was no different from an order.
Go Igyeol slowly lifted his eyes from the salad and met Seo Dohyeon’s gaze.
“…What?”
“It’s dirty. Messy. It bothers me. You keep going to places like that.”
For a moment, Go Igyeol genuinely wondered if he had heard correctly. But with so many eyes watching, all he could do was nod obediently.
If Seo Dohyeon disliked it, it wasn’t somewhere he could keep going.
Even if he wanted to eat there sometimes.
“Does getting married mean you lose your freedom?”
Watching Go Igyeol comply so meekly, Na Seonwoo smiled faintly as he asked Seo Dohyeon.
“What exactly do you mean by that?”
“I mean, if he wants to go somewhere, he should just go. But you’re controlling even something like that. Makes me wonder if marriage means needing your spouse’s permission for every little thing.”
At the openly mocking tone, Na Seunghee startled and immediately smacked Na Seonwoo’s shoulder repeatedly. He muttered that he had no idea what had suddenly gotten into him, scolded him for his attitude, and even apologized to Seo Dohyeon on his behalf.
“Well, you’ll understand once you experience it yourself. Marriage is about adjusting to even trivial things like this.”
“……”
“Dating and marriage are different.”
“I’m curious about this thing called marriage.”
Na Seonwoo answered with a smile, then checked the time.
The course meal was already over, they had driven there, and nobody was drinking. The gesture made it obvious he saw no reason to stay seated any longer.
“Uh… should we get going too?”
Na Seunghee noticed Na Seonwoo’s intention first. He awkwardly raised a hand toward the server, handed over his card, and stood from his seat.
“I’ll pay today. I’m the one who asked everyone to eat together. Seonwoo ate too.”
“Fine.”
Seo Dohyeon answered indifferently while draping the coat the server handed him over Go Igyeol’s shoulders.
Without even offering a goodbye first, he grabbed Go Igyeol by the wrist and pulled him along.
Then—
“Igyeol.”
At the sound of the voice calling him, both Go Igyeol and Seo Dohyeon turned toward Na Seonwoo.
“I’ll call you.”
“…Ah, okay.”
“Get home safely.”
“You too. Goodbye.”
Go Igyeol bowed politely toward Na Seonwoo and Na Seunghee, who awkwardly waved beside him.
Then he simply followed where Seo Dohyeon led.
The pace was so fast he practically had to jog to keep up.
Watching the two descend the stairs, Na Seunghee jabbed Na Seonwoo sharply in the side with his elbow.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you? Do you have some kind of issue with Seo Dohyeon?”
“Wasn’t he the guy you were seeing?”
“Seeing? What are you talking about? I was just the one who liked him! And don’t you dare say weird things like that in front of Mr. Go, got it?”
Na Seonwoo only gave a vague nod to Na Seunghee’s stern warning. Even as he slipped his cardigan back on, his gaze remained fixed outside the window.
“What are you staring at out there?”
“What would there be? Just your friend and my friend.”
“Are you really close with Mr. Go?”
“Not really.”
Na Seonwoo frowned faintly at the sight outside the window.
Seo Dohyeon was helping Go Igyeol into the passenger seat, automatically lifting a hand over his head out of habit.
“They came together?”
“Of course they did. You have no idea how shocked I was when he suddenly said you and Mr. Go were joining too.”
“Then why do you want to have dinner alone with a married man? Trying to have an affair?”