“...I’m telling you to sit comfortably, okay....”
Perhaps because of the discontent in Yoon Tae-oh’s voice, Kang Seok-ho couldn’t make much of a protest. He simply sent one of his team members to another position to make room. As a result, the position that the general secretary had prepared for Yoon Tae-oh ended up being taken by someone else.
“Why are you eating the skin instead of the healthy parts?”
“...It looks like this, but it’s still edible. Dip it in soybean powder....”
“Is that hair, no way....”
Why is your eyesight so good for no reason? Actually, Yoon Tae-oh looks a little funny right now. In the middle of the round iron table, the shells are cooking on the grill. Soju, beer, and vegetables for wrapping are all mixed together, and nothing is in order. Yoon Tae-oh, sitting in front of him, is alone, as if he was composited into a strange background, and he doesn’t fit in with the scene.
“This is fully ripe, so try it.”
I moved the ripest, golden skin to Yoon Tae-oh's plate. But he didn't move at all.
“Oh, so you can just take a picture like this and eat it?”
I don't think he knows how to eat it, so I put some soybean powder on it and put it back on, but it's the same. Then he picks up his chopsticks. But the path of the shell is strange.
“...Why are you giving this to me?”
“Try it first, just once.”
이 개새끼! 여전히 이게 사람 먹는 음식이란 걸 못 믿는 거 같다. 그러지 않고서야 불판 위에 노랗게 익어 가는 껍데기를 계속 내 앞접시로 옮겨 줄 리가 없지 않은가.
“...Sir, this meat is to be shared with other people....”
“I’ll figure out how to eat it.”
No, you bring it as soon as it ripens, so what do the others eat? Kang Seok-ho and the security team members' crooked gazes are directed at me for no reason. The company dinner began with a mountain of shells piled up on my plate.
“Newbies, a toast....”
“Just eat comfortably.”
“Then, let’s go surfing....”
“Let’s eat comfortably.”
Ah, so that’s how the security team is having their company dinners. Kang Seok-ho tried to get people to drink in every way he could, but Yoon Tae-oh’s style was different. He didn’t force them to drink, but let them drink as much as they could. Of course, he didn’t even touch the drink. As a result, the drinking party, which had been quite stiff at first, naturally became more relaxed. The employees moved around the table and had drinks with people they were comfortable with, and I... .
“I can’t eat any more. It’s too much.”
He ate so much of the skin that the pig almost swallowed it. Yoon Tae-oh definitely has a keen eye. He watched someone roasting the skin for a moment and then skillfully copied him.
“Are you tired already? Then let’s grill some pork belly.”
“No, that’s not what I meant... I’m full, I can’t eat any more.”
“There’s still that much left?”
Eat it, you brat. Yoon Tae-oh only reluctantly ate what I gave him to eat, and didn't touch any more food. Well, I think Yoon Tae-oh did his duty just by staying in this position.
“Did you eat a lot?”
Just when I was thinking about having a beer, a person who I had been wondering when would come came. Choi Hyun-jin, with a bright voice, sat down in the empty seat. As he sat down next to Yoon Tae-oh, the other employees left their seats one by one, taking their time.
“Then let’s talk.”
As I watched the people standing up one after another, I wondered if I had been oblivious. When I got up to leave the room so that the last two people could spend time together, my wrist was pulled by a strong force and my buttocks hit the chair again.
“I told you I was grilling pork belly, so where are you going?”
Yoon Tae-oh gripped my wrists more tightly under the table as he placed a piece of meat on the grill that I had never asked to eat. Ah... I don’t think this kid even knows what pork belly is. What’s on the grill right now isn’t pork belly, it’s pork neck.
“I’ll do it. What if oil gets on your hands...?”
“Shouldn’t that have been said before baking the shell?”
I had tried to take the tongs from Yoon Tae-oh several times before, but he insisted on grilling them himself. I knew he would do the same thing now, but I just tried to pull my wrist away because it was awkward to keep holding on to it. Of course, I couldn’t shake his hand off with my weak strength. I had to quietly let him do whatever he wanted without worrying about Choi Hyun-jin sitting in front of me.
“Should I grill it? I’ve been working at that meat restaurant for a long time, so I’m really good at it!”
He is a difficult person, Choi Hyun-jin. Just a moment ago, he must have sensed that Yoon Tae-oh was ignoring him, but his expression was not the slightest bit flustered. He was as calm as if he hadn’t seen anything. He just grabbed the tongs from Yoon Tae-oh’s hand, and Yoon Tae-oh handed them over to him without saying anything.
“I heard you’re going to Seoul soon...?”
“...There are some things that need to be taken care of at headquarters.”
Choi Hyun-jin asked Yoon Tae-oh a question. But he didn't respond, so I had no choice but to answer.
“Seoul, can’t I come with you? Even if I stay here, there’s nothing to do since the resort hasn’t opened yet....”
This time, a straight ball without any cushion came flying. An awkward silence fell over the table again, but I couldn't open my mouth. I didn't have a decision to make, and I didn't have the authority to answer.
“I’m going to go get some fresh air. The alcohol is kicking in... It’s hot.”
I shook off Yoon Tae-oh, who was still holding my wrist. Then I left the shabby store, leaving them alone. Whenever I saw Choi Hyun-jin endlessly pushing at Yoon Tae-oh, I would suddenly feel annoyed. It was a feeling of inexplicable agitation.
The sight of the two of them together is a very natural scene. After all, it's the people who are meant to be together. When I think about it that way, my heart feels better, but at some point, I start to hate seeing that sight again.
“What’s with the weather again? It’s so damn cold.”
It was an unusually cold winter night, as if the midwinter cold wave had finally reached Jeju Island. Feeling helpless, I couldn't even move, so I sat down on a bench on a deserted sidewalk.
“It’s natural that I’m cold since I’m not wearing any outerwear.”
“Oh, shit...!”
I almost swore at the voice that came from the quiet place.
“What the fuck?”
“Oh, no? I was just surprised... But why is the CEO here....”
Yoon Tae-oh, who had been following me for some time, came closer, closing the gap between us that had been a few steps away. My mouth closed again at his subsequent actions.
“It’s hot after walking. Bring some clothes.”
He took off my coat and put it around my shoulders. After the warm clothes wrapped around my body, I realized that the weather wasn't much different from usual. I don't know what I was thinking when I came out without even taking an outer garment.
“I told you not to come. You’re not even an employee of the head office. And why would I call someone like that when Secretary Kim is here?”
Yoon Tae-oh sat down on the bench first and brought up the unasked question. Secretary Kim's story resurfaced.
“I don’t mind.”
“Really? I said that because I thought you cared.”
“...Why me....”
I sat down next to him again, feeling somewhat awkward. A little while ago, I thought it was a midwinter cold spell, but now, strangely enough, it feels like spring is just around the corner. Can wearing just one piece of clothing make such a big difference?
“Well then, I guess you were concerned.”
"...yes...?"
“I guess I was worried because Si-eon was running away like that.”
It was late at night, so most of the stores had their lights off. Only the yellow streetlights were shining, and beyond that there was only darkness. Yoon Tae-oh stared straight into the darkness without even looking at me.
“Please don’t call me a poet... it’s weird.”
What an unlucky kid. I wonder if he knows what kind of feelings my words and ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) actions, which I sometimes throw out like that, make the other person feel. I expressed my dissatisfaction in a rude voice for no reason.
“It’s Si-eon right now, not Secretary Baek.”
“What’s different?”
“It’s different. That too, very much.”
When he’s working, he’s Secretary Baek, and when he’s not, he’s Si-eon. I gave up on trying to understand Yoon Tae-oh’s mental world. After all, if he doesn’t want to explain, I won’t be able to hear the difference directly. Yoon Tae-oh’s mouth closed, as if he didn’t want to talk anymore.
“Be careful, General Secretary.”
“Is there anything wrong?”
“That... I have a feeling. It feels like they’re preparing something. There’s no proof, but....”
Actually, I'm pretty sure. The general secretary will do something soon. It was the same in the original, and I'm also concerned about what he said to me last time. It's something he said when he was in love, which was nice to see. It's not nice to see him blinded by love and not paying attention to the consequences. Since he's the type who focuses all his thoughts on one person, if he's going to do something, Yoon Tae-oh in that state would be the easiest to deal with.
“I have to be careful.”
“...Do you believe it so easily...?”
“If that’s what Si-eon said, then it’s probably true, right?”
Today is a strange Yoon Tae-oh. No, Yoon Tae-oh has been strange lately. I can't say for sure, but he just seems... a bit affectionate. Maybe that's why this time of staring blankly into the darkness together feels a bit uncomfortable. To be exact, my feelings toward him are uncomfortable.
“Shall we go in? Sir, it seems cold....”
“That doesn’t sound like something the person who stole my coat should say.”
“The CEO gave it to me...!”
“I didn’t give it to you, I lent it to you.”
... Yeah, kid. I don't intend to steal something that doesn't fit.
Still, thanks to getting some fresh air outside for a bit, I felt much more at ease and got up to head back to the company dinner venue.
“It’s true that someone came in during the rut.”
As I turned my back, Yoon Tae-oh's voice continued to speak against the back of my head. What? Wasn't that a finished story?
“That’s Choi Hyun-jin....”
“No. I think differently.”
As I walked and gave a formal answer, I had to turn around at the sound of Yoon Tae-oh’s soft voice. My chest instantly became uncomfortable at his words. Unlike when he had mentioned this matter before, his voice was quite confident.
“That’s not him.”
This winter seemed to pass him by. Yoon Tae-oh, who stopped one step ahead of me, seemed calm, as if he didn't feel any cold at all. His expression was just a little more stiff than usual.
“No matter how much I think about it....”
It was a moment. Pure white grains settled on Yoon Tae-oh’s chest. Then, white snowflakes touched his shoulder, cheek, and nose, then melted and disappeared. They were unusually large snowflakes that fell softly and silently.
“I think that’s a poem.”
Suddenly, snow began to fall, as if it was fluttering in the wind on a spring day.