Place to Be Chapter 26

Perhaps it is because Jang Wigeon always passes by this area, just in case. There were times when he would enter the shop, muttering regretfully, “He’s not here today,” and drink just a glass or two of liquor before leaving. Yoon Junyoung did not know about such things.

Seo Chiyoung looked down at the nonchalantly murmuring Yoon Junyoung and wore a silent, bitter smile.

“You two really seem to get along well.”

Yoon Junyoung, who was pouring beer into a glass, raised his head. He stared at Seo Chiyoung fixedly without even a word or two of agreement. Encountering Yoon Junyoung’s black eyes, which stared with a face that hid his thoughts, Seo Chiyoung wore a slightly awkward, questioning smile.

After staring at Seo Chiyoung in silence for a while, Yoon Junyoung spoke up abruptly, as if he had suddenly remembered something, or as if the words had forced their way out of his throat against his will.

“Don’t you hate me?”

Seo Chiyoung fell silent. It was a question he hadn’t even considered.

Seo Chiyoung, blinking as he looked at Yoon Junyoung, replied, “I don’t hate you,” and Yoon Junyoung stared blankly at Seo Chiyoung with an unreadable expression before muttering like a monologue, “I see.”

“If I were standing in front of the person who took the one I loved, my vision would turn bright red, but I guess you aren’t really like that, Boss…. Well, it was like that in the past, too.”

Yoon Junyoung nodded as if convinced and muttered to himself. Seo Chiyoung, whose face instantly turned peculiar, stared intently at Yoon Junyoung with that same expression. It was because the meaning of those vague words had faintly come to mind. Yoon Junyoung spoke casually, hardly looking at Seo Chiyoung’s face.

“You did look familiar from the start… but a few days ago, while I was thinking about this and that, I remembered. It’s because your expression is identical, more so than your face. Things like the way you look at someone, too.”

“…”

Seo Chiyoung just stood there blankly, staring at Yoon Junyoung. Yoon Junyoung said, “Ah, right, I’ll give you this,” and rummaged through the bag he had set down beside him. Then, he pulled out a smallish envelope and held it out.

“I received it today… but I have no intention of going, so I don’t need it. If you’re okay with it, just go and have a meal. That serves as a meal ticket. Seeing as it reached even me, they must be handing them out to anyone anyway, so since you’re an alumnus, it should be fine for you to go.”

Seo Chiyoung, who took the envelope with a bewildered look, hesitantly pulled out the contents and fell silent upon seeing the white card that emerged. It was a wedding invitation. Kwon Kanghee—having confirmed only that name engraved on the inside, he closed the card again.

“He suddenly dropped by today to have lunch together, then left this behind. Wigeon will probably get one soon, too. You two should try going together…. If you don’t want to mention that you’re an alumnus, I’ll just say I sent you to eat in my place.”

The voice of Yoon Junyoung as he spoke was no different from usual. It was quiet and calm as ever. Seo Chiyoung held the card in one hand and watched Yoon Junyoung silently. Seeing Seo Chiyoung like that, the other man frowned slightly.

“There’s no need to look at me with such a distressed, pitying face. My head is a bit cluttered because of various thoughts, but I’m actually more okay than I expected. It’s a bit surprising to me, too. It doesn’t quite feel real…”

“…”

“But while thinking about things from the past and things lately, it occurred to me… perhaps the way I kept coming to this shop with Wigeon was unintentionally bullying someone…. I had no ill intent; it was just because the intestines were delicious.”

Yoon Junyoung’s usual nonchalant face somehow looked a bit dejected. A hint of apology flickered in the gaze he turned toward Seo Chiyoung. Having said that much, he silently began to move his chopsticks.

Seo Chiyoung looked down at the white envelope in his hand. He pushed that envelope, which he could neither return nor keep, quietly between the dishes under the prep table so it couldn’t be seen.

You knew. Probably from a very long time ago, from those days that even Seo Chiyoung was beginning to forget.

“…As for me, I liked it, too…. Your friend… Mr. Wigeon… he only truly opens his heart and laughs when he is with you, Mr. Junyoung. That kind of face, you can’t see it if you’re not there, Mr. Junyoung.”

Seo Chiyoung spoke haltingly. He started to say “your friend” as usual, but since he knew they were alumni, it felt uncomfortable to call him that, so he corrected it to his name; yet, in a state where the fact of being alumni existed but the recognition did not, calling him only by his name felt awkward, so he ended up attaching an ambiguous honorific.

However, as if the title didn’t matter, Yoon Junyoung stared intently at Seo Chiyoung. Seo Chiyoung scratched the back of his neck awkwardly as he continued.

“Because Mr. Wigeon… really likes you, Mr. Junyoung…”

But Seo Chiyoung stopped mid-sentence. This was not for him to say. Even if Yoon Junyoung actually knew the truth, he was not the person to voice it out loud. The only person who could say those words was Jang Wigeon.

Yoon Junyoung, who was watching Seo Chiyoung stand there in silence, let out a short breath.

“You truly have a difficult personality… you like him, yet you help him…. I couldn’t even mimic that.”

Muttering to himself, Yoon Junyoung set down his chopsticks. Instead, he picked up his drink and spoke in an indifferent tone.

“Wigeon is a no-go. Because he’s like a real brother. It’s impossible to feel those kinds of emotions for a brother. No matter how much effort I put in.”

From Yoon Junyoung’s brief words, Seo Chiyoung guessed. Even if it was during a time Jang Wigeon hadn’t noticed, perhaps Yoon Junyoung had, in his own way, made an effort to respond to Jang Wigeon’s heart. There was no way he wouldn’t have known that would be a much easier and smoother path.

But it hadn’t worked.

Actions can be controlled by reason, but emotions cannot.

Seo Chiyoung stared at his feet. In front of Seo Chiyoung, who stood blankly with his head bowed gloomily, Yoon Junyoung, having emptied his beer glass, suddenly murmured.

“If it had been you, I might have seriously considered dating you at least one more time.”

Seo Chiyoung raised his head involuntarily. When he looked at Yoon Junyoung with bewilderment in his wide, startled eyes, Yoon Junyoung smiled faintly for the first time that day. Realizing he had made a joke with a face that made it impossible to tell if it was a joke or the truth, Seo Chiyoung let out a sigh and returned the smile.

But it was then.

“It sounds like you’re talking about something dangerous…—.”

The sound of words spoken with a pleasant laugh approached.

Thump. Seo Chiyoung, clutching his racing heart, turned his head toward where Jang Wigeon was walking over.

“What’s this, is the Boss hitting on Junyoung?”

“Oh, there are no seats,” said Jang Wigeon as he looked around the shop, while Seo Chiyoung widened his eyes and shook his head vigorously.

“No, that’s not it, well, no really, …—.”

He was so momentarily flustered that the words wouldn’t come out properly. He felt that this stuttering way of speaking might make him even more suspicious, but the more anxious he got, the more his words stalled.

Jang Wigeon, who was looking at Seo Chiyoung with narrowed eyes, let out a low laugh.

“You said you were on my side. Don’t covet him.”

Only after hearing the warning mixed with laughter did Seo Chiyoung realize it was a prank; he remained frozen with his mouth open for a moment before letting out a sigh. When he muttered, “I’m definitely not coveting him,” Jang Wigeon laughed again.

“It’s exceptionally crowded today. Is it some special day?”

“Pardon? Ah… no, it’s just how it happened… Um, there’s a vacant seat inside, so please move over there and sit down.”

Seo Chiyoung pointed to a spot inside the shop that was hidden by a wall from the prep table and wasn’t easily visible. Jang Wigeon picked up the plate, glass, and chopsticks that were in front of Yoon Junyoung and moved toward that spot, and Yoon Junyoung followed behind him.

Only after the two had moved to the seats that hadn’t been cleared yet did Seo Chiyoung pick up the tray and cloth he had briefly set down and hurry over there to begin clearing the cluttered table. As he gathered the plates with leftovers, bowls, and cups onto the tray, Jang Wigeon took off his jacket, sat down, and asked Yoon Junyoung as if he had just remembered.

“Now that I think about it, Kanghee said he wanted to see me tomorrow. Did he say anything to you?”