Place to Be Chapter 31

Seo Chiyoung suddenly let out a bitter smile that was like a sigh. He felt a bit of the tension that had stiffened his shoulders start to release.

He had come up here while telling himself that, unlike his fresh and naive days back then, he could now respond more flexibly to satisfying his carnal desires with a stranger, but there had been no progress. Just look at this now. He had been nervous without even realizing it.

Suddenly getting off the bus and coming up here had been nothing more than an impulse. A dark, sunken mood, a lonely heart, and the subconscious thought of occasionally wondering if he should visit again—which he had dismissed until recently—had all blended together in that moment, and before he knew it, his feet were climbing the stairs leading to the park.

And so, he had been sitting in this spot for a little over an hour, in a mood where he himself didn’t even know if he was waiting for someone or not.

His subtly wavering heart also slowly settled while he sat there alone. If by some chance someone approached, or if someone who caught his fancy caught his eye, would he spend the night like he had so long ago? The nervous feeling from such thoughts also began to fade.

Whether the location had changed over the years, the dark park where night had begun to settle was sparsely populated, and Seo Chiyoung let out a long sigh.

As expected, a person shouldn’t do things they don’t normally do… Let’s go back. It seemed better to go back, go to bed a little early today, and prepare for the new week starting tomorrow. From now on, he wouldn’t even be able to rest on weekends for a while, would he?

It was just as Seo Chiyoung was thinking that and trying to stand up from his seat.

A car that had come up along the winding road from below the hill stopped in a corner of the parking lot adjacent to the park. The engine of the car, which stood in a spot directly facing the bench where Seo Chiyoung was sitting, turned off.

While blankly staring at the sophisticated car body—which looked modest at first glance but was custom-detailed in subtle ways—and thinking that it would suit someone very well, the driver’s side door opened and a man stepped out. Just as he was about to turn around after locking the car door by pressing a button on the key, he caught a glimpse of this direction.

At first, he thought he had seen wrong. Or that it was someone who looked very similar.

However, that man also paused upon seeing Seo Chiyoung and stared with a look of surprise, and soon a familiar smile surfaced on his face.

It was Jang Wigeon.

Seo Chiyoung stared at him vacantly, even forgetting to speak. Mixing a smile into his surprised gaze, he strode toward Seo Chiyoung.

“I thought I saw wrong. I didn’t expect to run into you in a place like this.”

Seo Chiyoung couldn’t answer for a while to Jang Wigeon, who wore a smile as if he might break into laughter at any moment. It was Seo Chiyoung who hadn’t expected to run into him in a place like this.

“What are you doing here? Did you come to see a movie too, Chiyoung-ssi? Over there, the facilities are good, but there aren’t many people, so it’s nice and quiet.”

To Jang Wigeon, who was pointing toward the mall, Seo Chiyoung mumbled awkwardly, “Yes, well.” Jang Wigeon, who was looking down at the clearly flustered Seo Chiyoung as if he found it strange, suddenly looked around.

“But Chiyoung-ssi, if you sit in a place like this… Ah, it’s still not very late. It should be fine at this hour, but it’s a bit dangerous to sit here until late.”

“…Pardon?”

Seo Chiyoung tilted his head and asked back. Then, for a moment, Jang Wigeon seemed to be lost in thought with a subtle expression, but soon he looked at Seo Chiyoung and laughed as if he had realized a brand new fact, “Ah, right.”

“Right, now that I think about it, Chiyoung-ssi was on this side too. No, it’s nothing. Sometimes among normals, there are people who wander around where people from this side go without knowing any better and face embarrassing situations. I momentarily forgot that Chiyoung-ssi was also from this side…. Ah. By any chance, were you looking for a partner?”

Seo Chiyoung, who had been staring at Jang Wigeon as if he had lost his mind, gave a faint flinch of his shoulders. Jang Wigeon gave a bitter smile. He seemed to deliberate for a moment on what to do before opening his mouth.

“Lately, this vicinity isn’t very good. First of all, almost no one comes here, and since most of the people who do come come solely for that purpose, it’s dangerous regardless. There are diseases, and sometimes bad quality people too.”

“…”

Seo Chiyoung slowly lowered his head. Jang Wigeon already knew why Seo Chiyoung was sitting here. Indeed, there was no way he wouldn’t know. Since Jang Wigeon would also know what kind of spot this was and knew Seo Chiyoung’s sexual preferences, that clever man couldn’t possibly be unaware.

Why did he have to meet this man here of all places? In the spot he least wanted to meet him, showing the side of himself he least wanted to show.

As if he knew what the bowed-headed Seo Chiyoung was thinking, Jang Wigeon scratched his head while looking at him with a somewhat troubled face. Hm, after a short throat-clearing, he paused for a moment and then asked.

“Or would you rather… there’s a bar I go to sometimes, do you want to go there? I just went there now and was on my way back because there was no one who really caught my eye. It’s okay. It’s a place people go to through word of mouth, so there aren’t any very strange people. It’s perfect for playing safely.”

Seo Chiyoung hurriedly shook his head as if shivering.

“No, no. I’m not in a position to go to places like that anyway. I hardly ever go…. Just today… only today…”

It was no good. The more he spoke, the more it sounded like an excuse. Even though there was no way to dress it up or excuse himself for loitering in such a secluded place looking for a one-night stand.

In the end, a silent gaze fell over the head of Seo Chiyoung, who had fallen silent with his head bowed. However, soon Jang Wigeon smiled brightly and shrugged his shoulders.

“I’m sorry. I must have meddled unnecessarily. Well, right now—it’s still a bit early. It’ll be at least another hour or two before you see some people. It might be a bit cold to wait until then, so maybe go look around somewhere else and come back…. Well then, I’ll be going now. See you later.”

Jang Wigeon gave a light wave of his hand and, perhaps out of consideration for Seo Chiyoung, turned away without waiting for an answer. Staring only at his feet as he readily moved away, Seo Chiyoung slowly raised his head. He watched from afar as Jang Wigeon crossed the parking lot without looking back once and headed down the stairs attached to the side of the building from the top of the hill.

Any other time would have been fine. He would have been glad to run into him accidentally at any time, but why did it have to be now?

Seo Chiyoung dropped his gaze from watching him and looked at his own feet. In fact, there was no reason at all for him to be discouraged. It wasn’t as if his being gay had been newly discovered—and besides, Jang Wigeon’s sexual preferences were the same—and whether he looked for a one-night stand or not, Jang Wigeon wouldn’t care at all, nor would he look at him with contempt. On the contrary, hadn’t he even given him kind advice before leaving? Therefore, this bitter feeling belonged entirely to Seo Chiyoung alone.

“…”

I shouldn’t have come.

Seo Chiyoung firmly applied pressure to his clasped hands. It was then.

“Are you okay? Are you hurting somewhere?”

Before he knew it, a person was standing a few steps in front of him. Perhaps he had just gotten out of a car, as an unfamiliar car was parked a short distance away. Hanging a keychain on his finger and making it go jingle-jingle, a man who looked slightly older than Seo Chiyoung was staring at him. However, contrary to his words, meeting eyes that were closer to curiosity than worry, Seo Chiyoung quickly waved his hand.

“No, no. I’m fine.”

“Ah, ye-es…”

“Ye-es,” the man trailed off as he peeked at Seo Chiyoung. The moment he met that subtle gaze, though no one had told him, Seo Chiyoung suddenly realized. That this man, who was dressed sophisticatedly to the point of being a bit flashy, was of the same kind. And the man also seemed to realize that Seo Chiyoung had noticed. His eyes curved roundly.

Why was it? Just as when you go to a meeting place after making an appointment to meet a stranger and you recognize that person even without being told, the way they instantly recognized each other as the type of person they were looking for.

“Hmm… It was so early I was thinking of watching a movie and then slowly starting to look… Are you waiting for someone?”

The man approached with a slow smile. For a moment, Seo Chiyoung looked at him, not knowing what to say.