Several nurses passing by stopped to check on Go Igyeol when they saw his face growing paler and paler. When they asked if he was all right, he nodded, then rose from his seat, thinking he could not stay at the hospital any longer.
It was a good thing he had come somewhere far from the house.
Go Igyeol sat at the bus stop and stared at the road, trying to sort through the chaos in his head. Amid the noise around him, he agonized over which choice would be better: having the baby, or getting rid of it.
He had definitely meant to look for a hospital that would perform a termination.
And yet—
The sound of that tiny heart beating so powerfully kept circling in his ears.
If he ran from Seo Dohyeon.
If only he could stay out of Seo Dohyeon’s sight.
If he left him before his belly began to swell.
Wouldn’t he be able to have the baby then?
Contrary to his first firm decision that he would get rid of it, Go Igyeol found himself growing frantic, trying to find some way—any way—to give birth. His eyes kept growing hot. Even when he rubbed hard at them in a rush of rising sorrow, they were wet again in moments.
Should he just beg to be allowed to have it?
No. If Seo Dohyeon were the kind of person who would let him have the baby, he never would have put that clause in the contract in the first place.
“Ha…”
“Go Igyeol? That’s you, right?”
At the sign of someone nearby, he turned his head and saw a soft handkerchief held in a large hand. When he lifted his gaze a little higher, a gentle face filled his vision.
“Fancy meeting you somewhere like this. It’s been a really long time.”
“……”
“Do you live around here?”
The man’s clean-cut mouth curved into a soft smile. Tears Go Igyeol himself did not even seem to realize were falling rolled down his pale cheeks. The man used the handkerchief Go Igyeol showed no sign of accepting and gently pressed it around his eyes.
He did not ask why Go Igyeol had been sitting at a bus stop crying. Instead, he only talked about how it was supposed to be spring but the weather was still cold, and asked whether Go Igyeol had eaten lunch even though it was already well past noon.
“I work nearby.”
“……”
“Over there. See the sign? The black one. Na Seunghee Law Office. I’m working part-time at my cousin’s office. Just until break is over.”
With a broad, easy smile completely free of awkwardness, he dropped into the seat beside him and offered the handkerchief again. Go Igyeol answered by turning his head away. The man stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket and opened his mouth once more.
“How do we end up meeting here of all places? Kind of amazing.”
“……”
“But aren’t your clothes too thin? You’re cold, right? Wait here.”
“I’m… leaving when the bus comes.”
Go Igyeol finally spoke. His voice was badly hoarse, and he said it as though a bus that had not arrived yet were going to pull up any second. The man simply smiled and answered, “Sure,” before running toward the convenience store.
His tall figure disappeared in long strides. A short while later, he came back and dropped into the seat beside Go Igyeol again.
“Hoo— I was faster than the bus, right?”
As he asked, he held something out. In his hand was a warm bottle filled with yellow liquid. Go Igyeol did not take it right away. He only looked down at it.
“You’re still good at making people feel awkward.”
With an embarrassed laugh, the man placed the bottle in Go Igyeol’s hand, scratched the back of his head, and pretended to look elsewhere. He stretched out his legs and crossed his ankles, then uncrossed them. He bounced one leg, stopped, then started again, restless enough to be distracting.
Go Igyeol’s gaze fell to the clean toes of his sneakers.
“If you have nothing else to say, you should go. …Na Seonwoo.”
“Wow, you remember? Honestly, I thought you’d forgotten my name. I was wondering if I’d have to introduce myself again.”
As Na Seonwoo brightened, the corners of his mouth lifting into a wide, refreshing smile, Go Igyeol, who had been watching him, let out a weak little laugh as well.
“How could I forget… the class rep?”
“…Go Igyeol is smiling.”
Na Seonwoo stared at him as if dazed. Then, at that single faint smile, he joked that becoming class rep had been worth it after all.
“Honestly, I thought I’d be hurt if you didn’t remember me. But then I figured I couldn’t blame you if you didn’t. We weren’t that close.”
“……”
“But I’m glad you remembered.”
Go Igyeol remained silent, while Na Seonwoo chattered on beside him. He talked about school, their professors, their classmates, how the part-time job was going, what kind of person his cousin was. Now and then, when his curiosity slipped out and he asked how Go Igyeol had been, Go Igyeol only smiled awkwardly.
“You’re still quiet.”
“…Sorry.”
“What are you apologizing for? You really are strange sometimes.”
Na Seonwoo chuckled. Go Igyeol had just managed to give him a gentle smile when someone behind Na Seonwoo tapped his shoulder in greeting.
“Hey, what are you doing out here instead of coming in?”
At the pleasant voice, Go Igyeol’s gaze naturally lifted as well. A man who resembled Na Seonwoo was standing there with a sulky expression. He had the same neat air about him, but his catlike eyes made him beautiful.
“Who’s this? A friend? Hello?”
“Ah… hello.”
The moment the man’s eyes curved into crescents with his smile, his entire atmosphere changed. Unlike Go Igyeol or Na Seonwoo, he felt like a mature adult, one without a trace of clumsiness.
His hair fluttered lightly in the wind. In the fragrant scent carried on the breeze, Go Igyeol sensed faint pheromones the man had failed to hide.
An omega?
But he had smelled this scent somewhere before. Once he thought that, the man’s face seemed familiar too.
Was it just his imagination?
“So Seonwoo actually has friends. Nice to meet you. But you—lunch break is already over. What are you doing here?”
The man, holding a takeout carrier from a chain coffee shop, asked Na Seonwoo with a smile that concealed his annoyance. Even so, his gaze remained on Go Igyeol. As if trying to remember something, he tilted his head and ran his tongue along the inside of his mouth, making one slim cheek bulge.
Go Igyeol avoided his gaze and lowered his eyes again. Only then did the man’s attention return to Na Seonwoo. He handed over the carrier he was holding and muttered that he had no idea why it was still so cold.
“We were talking for a minute.”
“I told you to speak politely while you’re on the clock.”
“You don’t either…!”
He had said he was working part-time at his cousin’s office, so was this man Na Seunghee?
Feeling for no reason as if he had become an unwelcome guest, Go Igyeol rose from his seat. Rather than wait endlessly for a bus that would not come, he decided it would be better to take a taxi home.
“Seonwoo. I’ll go first.”
“Oh, then give me your number. Let’s eat together sometime. For real this time.”
“…All right.”
Go Igyeol entered eleven digits into the phone Na Seonwoo held out, returned it, then waved an arm toward an approaching taxi. Fortunately, the taxi did not pass him by. It stopped right in front of him.
Before opening the rear door, Go Igyeol turned back and waved, saying they should meet again. Just then, the man standing behind Na Seonwoo suddenly murmured, “Seo Dohyeon?”
“Right?”
At the question, Go Igyeol did not answer and got into the taxi.
Na Seunghee, Na Seunghee.
Sitting in the back seat, he turned the familiar face and name over in his mind, trying to remember when and where he had met him together with Seo Dohyeon.
*****
Go Igyeol faced the man he had struggled and failed to remember only a few days after his hospital visit.
Seo Dohyeon contacted him to say they had dinner plans and told him to get ready in advance. Go Igyeol had barely been able to eat proper food for days because of the nausea churning in his stomach, so he did not want to go out. But he was not in a position to refuse.
If he had known he would meet Na Seunghee again here, like this, he thought he might at least have tried pleading that he felt too unwell to go.
“It’s been a long time, Seo Dohyeon.”
“Say hello. This is Go Igyeol. You saw him before the wedding.”
“So we meet again.”
Na Seunghee, who had been seated, rose to welcome Seo Dohyeon and Go Igyeol. A small, pale hand was extended toward Go Igyeol.
“Have you been well?”
“…Hello.”
“Did you get home safely that day?”
At the soft question, Seo Dohyeon’s gaze shifted to Go Igyeol. When he asked whether the two of them had met before, Na Seunghee casually said, “A few days ago,” and let the words trail off.
Only Go Igyeol felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles.
“Wine?”
“No.”
“You don’t look well. Are you really all right?”
Seo Dohyeon turned toward him and brought his lips close to Go Igyeol’s ear, asking with concern. At the closeness, Go Igyeol’s cheeks reddened, and he nodded. His heart thudded hard.
“I really am all right.”
“If you’re sick, don’t endure it. Tell me.”
“…I will.”
Na Seunghee, seated across from them, watched the two of them and smiled. He said they looked good together and acted envious, but Seo Dohyeon responded indifferently.
“By the way, when did you two meet?”
“Us? When was it again? We met near my office. Turns out Igyeol is college classmates with my cousin.”
“Your cousin?”
“I have one. A kid. He had nothing to do over break and was just loafing around, so I’m making him organize some documents for me. He’s clever. Cute, too.”
As he said it, Na Seunghee looked at Go Igyeol and smiled. There was a look beneath it, as if he were looking at someone much younger.
“Our Seonwoo is such a child, but Igyeol doesn’t seem like that at all. It’s kind of fascinating.”
“Watch your mouth.”
Seo Dohyeon looked coldly at Na Seunghee, who had been saying things that grated on his ears.
“You’re embarrassing me. If that offended you, I’m sorry. I only meant that maybe because he’s married, unlike Seonwoo, he seems more mature.”
“It’s fine.”
“But there’s something I’m curious about too. Why were you there that day? Seonwoo said you were crying.”
“Crying?”
Both of their gazes turned to Go Igyeol at the same time. Seo Dohyeon even turned his body toward him, as though telling him to explain properly. Under the weight of their attention, Go Igyeol bit his lip and answered that it was nothing, but that was not enough of an answer for Seo Dohyeon.
“Which friend? I don’t recall you telling me you went out.”
“I met him briefly in the morning. He’s a friend you don’t know, Seo Dohyeon.”