A Scorching Day Chapter 12

He pushed the key into the door handle and turned it; a rusty sound grated out. As he pushed open the old door, the thick scent of perfume that had settled inside wafted out strongly.

His mother must have left a little later today. Gawon set down his bag and took off his school uniform. The hot water hadn’t run well today. Shivering, he finished his shower, came out, and layered on two or three sets of clothes.

He did the dishes from his mother’s meal and boiled a full kettle of water for drinking tomorrow. Usually around this time, Gawon would have made do with ramen or a triangle kimbap for dinner, but today he didn’t need to. Thanks to the snack bar food he’d shared with Ki Joon earlier, his stomach was full.

Checking the clock, it was already a little past ten. Out of habit, he opened the secondhand marketplace app to see if there was anything worth picking up. He happened to spot a pair of sneakers that looked almost new and clicked on them eagerly.

However, the seller’s asking price was 40,000 won, and the money Gawon had available fell far short of that. In the end, he closed the app with a disappointed heart. The reason why his holey sneakers, which he’d always worn impassively even knowing others whispered about them, suddenly felt embarrassing was obvious.

‘Can I get your number?’

The smiling face, the deep dimples. The clear, pleasant voice. And the spring breeze that had blown at just the right moment, unsettling his heart.

“…Ha.”

Why had it been? Why had he so easily forgotten the countless misgivings he’d had about Ki Joon? Why had he impulsively handed over his number when asked for it?

Perhaps it was because the wind that blew in after the particularly cold winter had passed was so warm, because it happened to be near the library, which was considered the most beautiful spot in the school, and because Ki Joon had smiled at him so foolishly….

That must be why. Gawon blamed those things for no reason. Just then, his phone buzzed briefly with a wing. Startled, Gawon nearly dropped it.

Ki Joon

[Did you get in and study well?]

Seeing the name he’d saved earlier, his fingertips tingled. His heart started racing for no reason. Gawon blinked rapidly and, without thinking, flipped the phone over. But only for a moment; it took less than three seconds for him to turn the screen back on and read the message again.

What should I do? Should I reply? Since I readily gave him my number, it’s only natural to respond. After agonizing over such a laughably trivial concern, Gawon finally made up his mind and typed a message.

[Yeah. Did you practice well?]

…Having casually typed that, Gawon hesitated and couldn’t easily send it. Reading it over two or three times, it was just an ordinary conversation, yet his own message somehow seemed overly friendly. Gawon deleted the whole message and rewrote it.

[Yeah.]

Trying to reply simply, that now seemed too lacking in sincerity. What was the natural way to respond in this situation…. After racking his brain for a brief moment, Gawon finally added a single line. After agonizing, he hit send and read his message again.

[Yeah. You?]

This much… didn’t seem too insincere or too embarrassingly familiar. Reading it over two or three more times, it didn’t seem bad.

His heart was still thumping for no reason. It must be because it had been so long since he’d exchanged messages like this with someone his age—or, really, with anyone at all.

Gawon smiled wryly and was looking down at his phone when, not even a few seconds after he’d sent the message, a reply came.

Ki Joon

[I just finished practice and I’m on my way home now]

Ki Joon

[I’m hungry haha]

Gawon let out a small, involuntary laugh, heh. The same impression he’d felt earlier repeated itself exactly. This guy’s digestive power really was… at this rate, the idea of him happily chewing up a tank didn’t seem like an exaggeration. Unlike earlier, when he’d agonized and hesitated for so long, the second reply came more easily.

[Eat dinner as soon as you get home. What are you going to have?]

Ki Joon

[Hmm.. just whatever the lady made haha]

Smiling faintly as they exchanged messages, Gawon paused for a moment. Ajummoni… So there was a separate person who did the cooking.

His mouth suddenly felt bitter for no reason. Gawon looked up and surveyed the room anew. The old room where the chill seeped into his bones even in March, the dirty wallpaper spotted here and there with roach poison, and his one pair of holey sneakers.

Gawon unconsciously wiggled his toes. It felt like someone had thrown cold water on the heart that had been floating so lightheartedly for no reason.

[Eat well. I’m going to sleep now.]

After sending that message, Gawon put down his phone and closed his eyes. He felt foolish for getting excited alone and disappointed alone. Compared to Ki Joon, who only ever showed goodwill, Gawon was shrinking back, comparing himself and his circumstances to him.

Pathetic, Yoon Gawon…. No wonder there’s no one around you.

As if out of habit, he muttered to himself, turned off the light, and pulled the worn-out blanket up to his chin. The weight of the night, which he had to face alone, felt especially heavy today, bitter to the core.

In the darkness, his phone lit up again. Short vibrations rang out in succession. His desire to see the message outweighed his deflated mood, so Gawon fumbled for his phone again and picked it up.

Ki Joon

[Good night, Gawon]

Ki Joon

[See you tomorrow.]

Gawon read the messages over and over. Was it because of Ki Joon, who followed him around like a devoted puppy no matter how much he refused and pushed him away? The image of his grinning face as he said that naturally came to mind.

Wing, wing. The notification of the two messages, the low and warm voice of Ki Joon contained within them, had lightened the weight of the dark, heavy night—Gawon held that fact quietly in his heart.

[Yeah, you too.]

He sent a brief reply. Gawon took a deep breath in the darkness and closed his eyes.

∞ ∞ ∞

Ki Joon, having put his phone in his pocket, started moving his feet again. Now that he’d even said good night, there was no more reason to look at his phone. While lightly jogging home to get some extra cardio in, he’d suddenly thought of Yoon Gawon and contacted him.

‘What’s up with that guy, why’s he grinning so much today?’

‘Coach, this kid is cracking up while hitting people. He’s like a psychopath.’

Throughout the afternoon, Ki Joon had to endure teasing that wasn’t really teasing. During sparring, hyung Seongjoon and hyung JoonJoon had made a fuss about how happy he looked today. Had he really been smiling like a fool? Ki Joon felt sheepish and rubbed his headgear with his gloved hand.

Actually, he must have been waiting. From the moment he’d gotten Gawon’s number near the library, all the way until now. For the moment to exchange messages with Gawon like this.

[I’m hungry haha]

Even he could see it was a silly thing to say. For Ki Joon, who had almost never made such trivial reports to anyone.

After finishing practice with the hyungs, even if he was really hungry, he didn’t bother saying so out loud. Though the hyungs tempted him countless times to grab a meal together, Ki Joon always stubbornly chose to go home and eat alone.

An empty house with no one in it had been as natural as air to Ki Joon since he was very young. Ki Joon was well aware that eating with the hyungs would be much less boring than holing up alone at home.

Nevertheless, the reason he always refused the hyungs’ offers was due to the obvious premonition that if he hung out with them outside the gym, he’d naturally be absorbed into their world.

In middle school, he’d been clueless and hung out with them a few times, but now that he was older and wiser, he’d decided that wasn’t the right thing to do. He didn’t want to prove through his actions that the world the hyungs played in and the world he’d belonged to since birth were fundamentally the same.

Drinking, smoking, racing bikes, swarming around like a pack of dogs and brawling—such behavior might still look cool to immature peer groups, but not to the current Ki Joon. Showing that side to his father would give him no advantage in the long, drawn-out struggle between him and his father.

And yet, he’d sent that kind of text to Gawon. Truthfully, there was a small hope hidden in those words. If Gawon said he was hungry too, Ki Joon planned to suggest they grab some late-night food together. Just like they’d eaten at the snack bar after school, the desire to spend more time with him had arisen.

[Eat dinner as soon as you get home.]

[Eat well. I’m going to sleep now.]

But Gawon drew a somewhat firm line. Ki Joon smiled wryly. Looks like I have no choice but to go home. He’d almost been pushy and suggested late-night food without reading the room.

Still, maybe next time I’ll suggest meeting up at night too. Gawon seems to study late, so wouldn’t he be hungry when he leaves school?

There’s a tasty cart noodle place near the gym. Or maybe I’ll take him to the burger joint near school. If he doesn’t like that either, we could just have coffee, and if not that either….

…Actually, I don’t even need to eat late-night food. Just being able to sit facing each other. If I could just sit and watch that face—the one that occasionally shows a faint smile with slight cracks forming whenever I say something pointless and joke around.

‘What on earth am I… thinking.’

Mid-stride in his steady run, Ki Joon abruptly took a sharp breath. The rhythm of his inhales and exhales suddenly faltered.

It was because he’d suddenly felt unfamiliar with himself. His own desperate eagerness to create even one more point of connection with that guy.

Come to think of it, had he ever wanted to get this close to anyone before?

For Ki Joon, human relationships were more than abundant—they were even bothersome. Even if he’d never felt his parents’ warm affection, he’d never been starved for people. There were plenty of light and trivial connections to pass the time with. Loneliness was something he could easily resolve.

Clinging to someone, being tenacious. Getting anxious because he wanted to see them even just one more time. And the fact that the motive for this had long since surpassed mere stubbornness and become a deeper, truer sincerity.

All of this was new to Ki Joon. So it felt unfamiliar and confusing, but it wasn’t entirely bad.