Sunshine Shower Chapter 83

Moon Seoyoon awkwardly lowered his head.

“You’ve come.”

With a pat on the shoulder, Professor Jung’s gaze shifted from Seoyoon’s back to Woo Yeonjae, who was standing behind him.

“It’s been a while since I last saw you, Professor.”

“Ha ha. Yes. It’s been a while since you’ve been to our house too, hasn’t it?”

Despite the lukewarm reaction when he said he would come with Woo Yeonjae, the welcome was as usual. Moon Seoyoon gave an awkward smile to Professor Jung, who stood beside him while his father chatted with Woo Yeonjae. She too seemed equally awkward, her smile tinged with embarrassment.

“I brought this for you, Professor Jung.”

Woo Yeonjae casually handed over the bouquet to her.

“Oh my.”

“I’m Woo Yeonjae. I’m Seoyoon’s childhood friend.”

“Thank you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“It’s already past lunchtime, so let’s all go in and eat first.”

Moon Seoyoon followed his father’s lead and moved towards the house.

The home that should have felt comfortable didn’t feel comfortable at all. In fact, Woo Yeonjae’s family home, which he hadn’t visited in years, felt more familiar.

“It’s been a while since I’ve had a meal at home, so eat a lot. Yeonjae, you too.”

“Of course. I’ll eat well.”

Despite the tight feeling in his chest, the meal began smoothly. Along with the belated lunch, light conversation took place over the table. These were trivial conversations that would not have occurred if Woo Yeonjae were not there.

Thanks to the intermittent conversation, Moon Seoyoon was able to relax a little. Even though he had taken digestive medicine, he preferred the occasional laughter and chatter over awkward silence.

“Oh, have you heard about Seoyoon studying abroad?”

“Studying abroad?”

The sudden topic made Professor Jung furrow his brow and gaze at his son, who was sitting next to the guest. With his look full of confusion, Moon Seoyoon shifted his foot as if to nudge Woo Yeonjae’s shin.

“Do you want to study abroad?”

“It seems you haven’t heard. My father suggested it.”

Before Seoyoon could answer, Woo Yeonjae snatched up the conversation. Moon Seoyoon glared at Woo Yeonjae, trying to avoid his father’s gaze. Although Woo Yeonjae seemed to understand the meaning, he only responded with a playful squint. It was unclear whether his furrowed brow was meant to ask why he hadn’t mentioned it or to indicate surprise that it hadn’t been mentioned.

At this point, Seoyoon felt a sense of resignation. He stopped trying to hint and swallowed a sigh.

“Did the chairman suggest this?”

Meanwhile, a conversation was progressing between his father and Woo Yeonjae.

“I’m planning to go with my father after I graduate, so I wondered if Seoyoon might be interested too.”

“I was planning to discuss it after thinking it over.”

Moon Seoyoon jumped into the conversation before his father could interrogate him further.

“You should have consulted with me about such an important matter. Can you just decide on your own?”

“There’s still some time before graduation… So, I didn’t think about it. I’m sorry.”

“I think it would be nice if we went together. Professor, please persuade him.”

“Hey.”

Moon Seoyoon couldn’t help but glare at Woo Yeonjae’s mischievous attitude. When their eyes met, Woo Yeonjae lowered his eyebrows and smiled playfully.

“Why? I want to go together.”

“You never said you wanted to go with me. You stayed quiet when the uncle mentioned it too.”

“I thought it would be better to say it in front of the professor.”

Their playful banter swirled around the table, as if they were teasing each other.

“It seems like a good opportunity. Seoyoon, you should think about it too.”

“…Okay.”

Moon Seoyoon answered with a sigh.

“When do you plan to come home?”

Noticing his awkwardness, Professor Jung naturally joined the conversation. Moon Seoyoon found himself subtly observing her. He showed the same nervousness as when dealing with awkward situations.

“I know Korea University is also ending its term today.”

“Yes. It’s vacation, so you should come home.”

His father echoed her words. Moon Seoyoon fiddled with his chopsticks and fidgeted with his lips. Though he already felt a tightness in his chest, leaving was not an option. Since he had lived in the dormitory for the past four months, he could manage for another two months.

“It seems the professor hasn’t heard this either.”

Thinking he should mention he was bringing the car, Moon Seoyoon was about to answer slowly when Woo Yeonjae unexpectedly interrupted.

“What else hasn’t he heard?”

Feeling puzzled, Moon Seoyoon turned his head towards Woo Yeonjae.

“Seoyoon is going to stay at our house during the vacation.”

When did I say that? This was news to him as well.

As he stood there with his mouth agape in surprise, Woo Yeonjae’s black pupils rolled lazily. When their eyes met, Woo Yeonjae’s eyes squinted playfully. The slightly upturned lips looked quite mischievous.

“What was that earlier?”

Moon Seoyoon grabbed Woo Yeonjae’s arm as soon as they entered the room.

“What’s the matter?”

Despite the somewhat rough action, Woo Yeonjae raised an eyebrow, seemingly not understanding the problem. It was puzzling why he was checking every little detail, given that nothing had changed much since high school or even before enlistment.

“Why would I stay at your house?”

“Oh, that.”

The persistent gaze near the desk finally came to a halt. Woo Yeonjae casually continued, as if it was no big deal, and walked towards that direction.

“I’m not suggesting you stay at the family home.”

So it was just something he said casually. Moon Seoyoon, unsure whether to feel relieved or to probe for clarification, heard a calm voice continue. It had the same nonchalant tone as before, as if he didn’t understand what the issue was.

“I’m talking about staying together in the officetel.”

“What?”

Moon Seoyoon, who had been trailing behind Woo Yeonjae, grabbed the arm of his childhood friend who had stopped in front of the desk again. The unexpected comment sparked a hint of incredulity. He roughly brushed his hair back to alleviate some of his frustration.

“What on earth are you talking about? Why would I stay at your officetel?”

“Is it really that disgusting? How awkward.”

“No, we’ve never talked about this.”

His disheveled hair slipped between his fingers. The depth of his disbelief seemed to show in his voice, and Woo Yeonjae slightly frowned. His nose also wrinkled in mild confusion.

“I was just trying to help because you looked uncomfortable.”

It was hard to argue with the fact that he looked uncomfortable. It was true.

But it probably hadn’t been noticeable to his father. As always, only Woo Yeonjae seemed to notice his discomfort.

“Even if I’m uncomfortable, there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s my home, so I have to endure it. And why would I live with you just because I’m uncomfortable?”

While staying at his family home would undoubtedly be frustrating, living with Woo Yeonjae wasn’t exactly a solution. The discomfort came from who, what, and how it was experienced, but the emotional burden remained the same.

“Did you really forget…”

“Forget what?”

“It seems the person who suggested living together when we went to college wasn’t you but someone else.”

There were times when memories came rushing back as if a light had been turned on. It was a memory he had completely forgotten, only resurfacing when the fuse was lit through someone else.

“When we were first-year students, you said it wouldn’t work out, so we postponed it…”

Moon Seoyoon’s lips merely moved as the forgotten promise came back to him.

“And then you went to the army as soon as we became second-year students.”

“Hey, that’s…”

“Suddenly you notify me you’ve moved into the dormitory without any contact?”

He was at a loss for words.

It was certainly a promise made with Woo Yeonjae. The problem was that it was a promise made thoughtlessly during middle school.

“I thought you were deliberately ignoring it, but seeing your reaction now, it doesn’t seem like that.”

The black pupils once again focused on the desk. Moon Seoyoon glanced at where Woo Yeonjae’s gaze was fixed. The only noticeable items were a few bottles of perfume he had received as gifts, which were almost unused and still like new.

“If that were the case, it would have been really sad.”

In front of a friend who spoke so flippantly about sadness, Moon Seoyoon couldn’t just dismiss the old promise as a mere thing of the past. He had nothing to say, biting the inside of his lip.

“Well, when I mentioned living together to the professor, it was because I thought you remembered the promise.”

“…Sorry.”

Only then did the structure of the officetel float into his mind. It was a high-end officetel with several rooms. He had assumed the unused rooms were left vacant due to the hassle of managing them, but apparently, that wasn’t the case.

“Why are you living in a dormitory, Seoyoon?”

He could now understand the openly wrinkled expression and mocking tone from when the dormitory was first mentioned.

“Are you really sorry?”

“I said I’m sorry. Anyway, it’s my fault for forgetting.”

“Then consider it.”

Woo Yeonjae reached out and picked up one of the bottles of perfume, turning it over to examine it.

“Consider what?”

“Living together. I had kept a vacant room for you from the beginning.”

Hearing that it was for his benefit made Moon Seoyoon feel even more sorry.

Moon Seoyoon hesitated for a while before carefully asking.

“Why didn’t you mention it earlier?”

“Just because.”

As if it were obvious, Woo Yeonjae’s gaze returned to the person in front of him. With a light thud, Woo Yeonjae set the perfume down and, with a playful tone, raised his voice.

“Just curious when you would bring it up?”