If You Want Me - Episode 69
<Episode 69>
“I have no intention of going back.”
As Seo-won answered resolutely, a brief silence flowed between them. That short moment felt suffocating and stifling as if choking his throat.
Now… it must be over. Seo-won couldn’t bear the awkwardness any longer and turned his back on him.
“I have nothing more to say. Please go back now.”
“…”
Seo-won got up first and started walking, but Do-gyeom didn’t budge like a stone statue.
The gaze following the back of his head felt piercing. But Seo-won tried hard not to look back and left the field.
While going down towards the house, his heart felt so heavy and sad. Even though I’m the one who abandoned him, it hurt as if I had been abandoned.
The apartment I received from him… I’ll have to hand it over later through Secretary Bae. With that thought, Seo-won tried hard to calm his heart and looked up at the sky filled with dark clouds.
* * *
“Why did you come alone? Where’s the young man who went with you?”
When he returned home alone, Grandma, who had been in the yard with Secretary Bae, asked puzzledly.
It wasn’t just Grandma who was curious. Secretary Bae was the same. He didn’t ask directly, but his eyes were full of curiosity.
Come to think of it, even if only for Secretary Bae’s sake, Young Master should come back here too. It was embarrassing that he didn’t think that far and came down alone. Seo-won avoided his gaze and answered vaguely.
“Well… he’ll be here soon.”
“What if he gets lost?”
“We were talking at the field, so he didn’t go that far. He’ll find his way well.”
Seo-won assured them that they hadn’t talked that far away.
Although there was some distance to Grandma’s field, the path wasn’t complicated, so it didn’t seem like he would lose his way back. Grandma must have thought the same, as she just brushed it off saying “Is that so?”
Ignoring Secretary Bae’s gaze, Seo-won returned to the kitchen and continued preparing dinner.
However, Do-gyeom didn’t return until the pork was fully cooked. As if finding it strange, Grandma muttered with a serious look while plating the meat.
“Did he really get lost?”
“No way…”
Would he lose his way on that easy path…? He has a good memory too. While saying that, he couldn’t help but feel a strange uneasiness rising.
Just in case, he was peeking out the gate when he heard a rumbling sound. The sky was packed with dark clouds, and it seemed thunder had struck in the distance. He wasn’t that startled by the thunder, but his heart raced a bit faster.
For some reason, as he was getting more and more anxious and biting his lower lip, to make matters worse, the ground got wet too. Following the thunder, it started to rain.
It seemed to be drizzling a few drops at first, but in less than a few minutes, the rain got heavier and started pouring down completely. As if a hole had been poked in the sky.
As he was flustered, Grandma, who had been looking at the sky clicking her tongue, asked Secretary Bae.
“Oh my, why is the weather suddenly like this? Does that friend have an umbrella?”
“…No. I have one.”
Secretary Bae held up a foldable black umbrella as if to show.
At Secretary Bae’s answer, Seo-won’s head quickly filled with worry. Would he be getting rained on? Should I take an umbrella to him?
Secretary Bae wouldn’t know where the field was, so he thought he should guide him, and that’s when a large figure appeared beyond the gate.
“Director!”
Do-gyeom appeared completely drenched from head to toe.
Secretary Bae opened the umbrella with a startled face and hurriedly stood close to Do-gyeom’s side. Covering him with the umbrella was of no use as he was already soaked.
Seo-won felt his heart sting with guilt. He had just been late and got caught in the rain, but it felt as if he had left a person unfamiliar with the way alone and returned by himself, causing him to get drenched.
Even though it was that kind of atmosphere, should I have looked after him? As he stood there frozen like a stone, Grandma brought a towel from somewhere and held it out to Do-gyeom.
Grandma looked at him pitifully as if seeing a rain-soaked puppy and said,
“Tsk tsk, what to do, you’re completely drenched? Wipe yourself with the towel. I wonder if there’s anything your size to change into with that physique…”
“It’s alright.”
“If you stay like that in this weather, you’ll catch a cold. Seo-won, go see if you can find him something to change into.”
Do-gyeom declined, but Grandma paid no heed. Rather, she told Seo-won to do it.
No, why me…?
Seo-won, who was abruptly asked, glanced at Do-gyeom. Then their eyes met, so Seo-won rolled his eyes and went into the room as if running away.
“Sigh…”
Seo-won let out a sigh with his back against the door.
If this place were Seoul or the countryside house he stayed in before, they could have parted right away, but it wasn’t possible because it was an island village. He hadn’t even thought that far.
It was awkward to have to keep facing him after rejecting him. But recalling Do-gyeom’s drenched appearance, it did seem like he should prepare clothes for him to change into as Grandma said. It was a cool day since it was autumn, and with his clothes wet, his body temperature would drop quickly.
Thinking that, he rummaged through the drawers, but there were no clothes Do-gyeom could wear. That was because originally, it was a house Grandma lived in alone before he came in. There was quite a size difference between him and Seo-won, so his clothes didn’t seem like they would fit.
After pondering, Seo-won took out gray sweatpants and a black t-shirt Grandma had bought for him last time she went to the mainland. They were the biggest clothes he had.
“Would he wear them if I give them…?”
The size seemed roughly right, but he had never seen Young Master wear such cheap and shabby clothes.
The thought that he might be displeased if told to wear them slightly crossed his mind, but if he stayed in wet clothes, he was bound to catch a cold. Thinking it would be better than a cold even if he lost a bit of face, Seo-won took them out for now.
Closing the door and coming out, Do-gyeom was waiting right in front, wiping his hair with a towel. Looking around to see where Grandma had gone, she was chatting with Secretary Bae in the kitchen. Had they become close in that time…?
Having rejected his confession earlier, it was terribly awkward being left alone together. Seo-won couldn’t even properly meet his eyes and held out the clothes to him.
“These are the only clothes that might fit you. Wash up and change.”
“…Thanks.”
“The ba-bathroom is over there.”
Even while explaining the location, Do-gyeom’s gaze clung persistently. Because of that, Seo-won couldn’t take his eyes off the floor as if he would burrow into the ground.
After staring at him for as long as it was burdensome, he finally moved his steps to the bathroom after a long time. Only when he closed the door and went in did Seo-won inhale and feel relieved.
Stop, stop being conscious of him… He’ll be going back soon.
As Seo-won thought that and moved towards the kitchen, he overheard Grandma and Secretary Bae’s conversation.
“By the way, the boat might not run tomorrow because of the rain?”
“Ah… then what do we do?”
At Grandma’s words, Secretary Bae’s face turned pale as if at a loss. At that, Grandma tilted her head as if curious.
“Why, do you have urgent business?”
“There’s an important meeting tomorrow. The director must attend, but… does the signal work well here?”
“It varies depending on the weather. When it rains like today, it doesn’t work well.”
“Sigh…”
Hearing that even the signal didn’t work well, Secretary Bae made a devastated expression as if he had lost the world.
Overhearing the conversation, Seo-won became a bit flustered. No way… he had such an important thing tomorrow, yet he came down to see me. The sky was gloomy, so it seemed it would keep raining recently, what was so urgent that he came down? He could have come after it cleared up…
Was it because his heart was rushing due to the imprint? Even though it happened because he had imprinted on him one-sidedly, he couldn’t shake the thought that this happened because of him.
The guilt snowballed. As Seo-won stood still like a ghost, Grandma must have sensed his presence and looked back. Seeing Seo-won, she lightly asked,
“Did you prepare the clothes for him?”
“Ah, yes…”
“Then let’s get ready to eat dinner. I thought I made too much pork and wondered if we could finish it all, but there are many guests.”
“Ea-eat together?”
Guests? As Seo-won asked in surprise, Grandma asked back as if it was obvious.
“Of course? You said they’re your guests.”
“That’s… true, but…”
“Then let’s prepare. The table is small, so we’ll need to take out two.”
“…”
They are my guests, but not the guests I invited…
As Seo-won hesitated, Grandma said as if it couldn’t be helped.
“There’s no restaurant to buy food either. I made a lot, so tell them to eat before leaving.”
“…”
That was true. And it was Grandma’s prepared food, so it was hard to refuse, and besides… Secretary Bae in front of his eyes looked so hungry as if he would drool.
Seo-won had no choice but to go into the room and take out two dining tables. The tables were so small that it was tight for two people, so they had to split into pairs and eat.
It would have been perfect to eat the pork on the pyeong-sang, but it wasn’t possible as the rain got heavier as time passed.
The table was ready by the time Do-gyeom finished washing up. Seo-won secretly hoped that he would eat with Grandma and Secretary Bae and Do-gyeom would eat at the other table, but there was an unexpected variable.
“Grandma said she’ll… eat with Secretary Bae?”
“This young man is more decent than I thought and I like him. I want to introduce him to our daughter.”
“Introduce…?”
What is that all of a sudden…? And as far as I know, there’s a big age gap between your daughter and Secretary Bae…?
But Secretary Bae either didn’t know Grandma’s intentions or was distracted by the pork. Grandma seemed to have no intention of switching seats and even started the meal.
This is awkward… As Seo-won hesitated standing by the seat, Do-gyeom, who was sitting alone at the table, asked looking at Seo-won.
“You’re not going to eat?”
“…I’ll eat.”
He considered skipping a meal and just letting it go, but he was hungry and today’s menu happened to be pork. He hadn’t eaten much meat on the island, so it looked even more delicious.
…This is really because of the pork. Having reached that conclusion, Seo-won reluctantly sat across from Do-gyeom.