8-1
by Han Yong-un
The next evening.
Sun-young had a desire to visit Dae-cheol again.
However, it was not something she could do every day as if she were sneaking out.
Moreover, recalling how Dae-cheol had acted coldly the night before made her think that there was no need to bother unnecessarily.
Yet, her heart did not settle down easily.
She was curious.
What thoughts might that person be having right now?
It was then.
“Sun-young, we have a guest.”
She heard San-wol's voice.
If it were any other day, Sun-young would have thought it was just a drinking guest and would have gone out indifferently, but today she unconsciously asked first.
“What kind of guest?”
“I don't know. It's a guest I haven't seen before. Probably a drinker.”
“Is it an old person? A young person?”
Sun-young's heart raced at the mention of a 'guest she hadn't seen before.'
“It's a young person in a suit, tall and slender.”
“Oh… really?”
With a hopeful heart, Sun-young hurried outside.
And—
“Ah! How did you come, Teacher Kim?”
As soon as she saw Dae-cheol waiting, she stopped speaking with a surprised expression.
“How have you been?”
Dae-cheol couldn't hide his delighted expression, yet he smiled awkwardly.
“Yes…”
Sun-young paused in her response and looked around once.
What if someone was listening?
She spoke cautiously.
“Please come into the room.”
Dae-cheol silently followed her into the room.
Sun-young was the first to speak.
“You must have had a hard time last night? There must have been guests sitting for a long time after I came…”
“Not at all. The guests left a little while after. The reason I couldn't sleep wasn't because of that… I just couldn't seem to fall asleep for some strange reason.”
Dae-cheol smiled while looking at Sun-young.
“Why is that?”
Sun-young, as if she had caught on to the meaning of his words, asked deliberately as if she didn't know.
“Well, I was wondering if Sun-young managed to walk the dark path alone... and while thinking about that, I dozed off. When I came to my senses, it was already dawn.”
“Oh, thank you. I can't believe you thought of me that much. I fell asleep as soon as I lay down.”
“You must have. You must have been tired from coming all the way here.”
“Do you think I slept soundly without even thinking of you, teacher?”
“Until I heard that, to be honest, I was only thinking about you, Sun-young. I didn't even think about how you were doing.”
“Is that so? But if you couldn't sleep because you were worried about me... then I might not have been able to sleep either, worrying about whether you were sleeping well, right?”
Sun-young lowered her head after finishing her words.
Dae-cheol looked at her for a moment and quietly said.
“Thank you. I wanted to come right away last night, but... considering your situation, it wasn't easy to come. I thought you would be busy during the day today, so I came late.”
He then looked around and asked.
“I hope I'm not being a bother?”
Sun-young sat for a moment with a thoughtful expression, then opened the sliding door.
“Honey, please set the table for the drinks.”
She then smiled slightly at Dae-cheol.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
Once she left and Dae-cheol was left alone, he felt a strange sensation.
It wasn't that he asked for the drinks first, but he felt a bit guilty that Sun-young was the one preparing the drinks, and on the other hand, he couldn't help but feel uneasy, wondering if she was trying to sell him drinks.
However, he tried to erase such thoughts and waited quietly.
After a while.
“Oh, have you been waiting long?”
Sun-young came in carrying the drink table herself.
“I was a bit late because I wanted to do it myself.”
She politely set down the tray and smiled.
“Have you been waiting?”
“I have been waiting, but it’s not because the drinks were late.”
“Oh really?”
Sun-young looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“I was waiting because I couldn’t see you, Sun-young.”
“Oh dear, teacher… that’s an unnecessary thing to say…”
Although she said that, a clear look of joy appeared on Sun-young's face.
“Why do you say it’s unnecessary? Everyone has different standards in their hearts, don’t they? You may not know how I feel about you, but I find myself waiting if I don’t see you for even a moment.”
Dae-cheol spoke quietly without a smile.
Sun-young awkwardly turned her body and gave a shy smile.
“Please have a drink.”
She cautiously offered him a glass, as if trying to change the atmosphere.
“I just had dinner, so I’m not really in the mood for drinks.”
Dae-cheol looked at the drinks and spoke deliberately slowly.
Sun-young seemed to understand the meaning behind his words and chuckled softly.
“When was the last time you had dinner? It’s already late at night.”
Then she raised the glass and handed it to him, saying.
“If what you said earlier is true, even if you don’t like alcohol, you should enjoy the drink I offer, shouldn’t you?”
Dae-cheol eventually smiled and accepted the glass.
“Well, I can’t refuse the drink that Sun-young is offering.”
He slowly took a sip of the drink.
“But teacher, why do you drink so slowly?”
Sun-young stared at Dae-cheol as he drank and cautiously asked.
“It seems like you’re forcing yourself to drink something you really don’t want.”
“Not at all. I usually drink like this.”
Dae-cheol laughed as he set down the glass.
“At first, everyone thinks I can't drink. But once I start to drink a little, it’s not like that later on. Just wait and see.”
He raised his glass again without touching the side dishes.
“Drinking alone is no fun.”
Then he extended his glass towards Sun-young.
“Sun-young, why don’t you have a drink too?”
“Oh dear, Teacher. Do you think I know how to drink?”
Sun-young hesitated even after accepting the glass.
“But what’s the fun in drinking alone? If you don’t drink, then I won’t either.”
Dae-cheol crossed his arms and looked at her.
Sun-young hesitated for a moment but eventually smiled and said.
“Then I’ll just have a little. Whether it’s a lot or a little, drinking is the same.”
She brought the drink to her lips just a little.
Then she looked around, wondering where to pour the remaining drink, and suddenly laughed.
“But Teacher.”
“Yes?”
“If you’re bored drinking alone, you can drink one for yourself… and one for me, right?”
Sun-young lowered her head, trying to hold back her laughter.
“Then wouldn’t that mean we’re drinking together?”
Dae-cheol chuckled softly.
“That’s a very clever answer!”
He leaned forward.
“I heard someone say that one bottle is for drinking and the other is for side dishes… Your logic is quite similar to that.”
Then he extended his hand.
“Then please give me that glass first.”
“No, I’ll throw this away and pour you a new one.”
Sun-young looked around the table for a suitable container, but there was nowhere to pour out the remaining drink.
Then Dae-cheol said with a smile.
“Then let’s just consider my mouth as air.”
“Yes?”
“If you think of the alcohol that Sun-young left behind as being thrown into the air, it makes sense, right?”
He said playfully and almost snatched the glass from her hand.
“Here, this is for the air.”
And then he downed it in one go.
“Now, pour me a real drink.”
“Oh dear, really, teacher…”
Sun-young poured a new drink with a smile on her face.
The number of glasses had already exceeded five or six.
After a moment.
Sun-young cautiously opened her mouth.
“By the way, teacher.”
“Yes?”
“Last night, after I left… you talked a lot about me, didn’t you?”
She finally brought up the question she had been curious about all along.
Dae-cheol set down his glass and said.
“I doubt there was much to say.”
“But didn’t you say even a word about me?”
“A little came up.”
“What did you say? You must have said something bad.”
Sun-young asked with a sulky face.
“If you think that way, is there really a need to ask?”
“I’m still curious. Please tell me how you talked bad about me.”
Sun-young made a face as if she was intentionally being jealous.
Dae-cheol looked at her and quietly laughed.
“Who would talk bad about you? Is there anything to criticize about Sun-young?”
“……”
“While we were talking, your name came up, and Jeong-soon praised you highly. I just listened.”
“Jeong-soon?”
Sun-young's expression changed instantly.
“What did she praise me for?”
“I can’t convey everything exactly…”
Dae-cheol continued speaking slowly.
“Not only beautiful, but also kind-hearted, polite, good at saving… she praised you in many ways.”
“Oh dear, that’s really a lie.”
Sun-young laughed, blushing.
“She said I’m beautiful? Where is such a lie?”
Yet, a satisfied expression could not be hidden from the corners of her mouth.
“It's obvious to anyone who looks at your face.”
“Then how pretty should one be to be considered pretty?”
Dae-cheol quietly looked at her.
“I've seen many women while going around, but I've never seen someone who has everything like Sun-young.”
Sun-young covered her face with both hands.
“Oh dear, teacher. Please don't tease me. I'm so embarrassed…”
“I'm not teasing you.”
Dae-cheol's voice was rather calm.
“Just as everyone has different preferences for flowers, everyone has different tastes in people.”
He continued while rolling the wine glass with his fingertips.
“Some may call a woman ugly, while others may call her a beauty.”
Then he looked straight at Sun-young.
“At least in my eyes, that's how it is.”
Sun-young lowered her eyes in silence.
Dae-cheol continued to speak.
“I'm not someone who says things just to win Sun-young's favor.”
“……”
“You might say otherwise now, but every time you look in the mirror, you must smile inside saying, ‘This is good enough…’”
Sun-young eventually burst into laughter.
“If I respond, you'll only tease me more, so I'll stay quiet.”
While saying that, she almost brought the wine glass to his lips.
“Just have a drink.”
“I should.”
Dae-cheol smiled and accepted the glass.
“If I don't drink on a day like today, then when will I?”
He gulped down the drink in one go.
“I mean someone like Sun-young…”
He smiled after pondering for a moment.
“If I say beauty, you'll get angry again. But I don't want to call you ugly either. Let's just say Sun-young.”
He looked at her with slightly intoxicated eyes.
“Just receiving a drink from your hand is a great honor for me.”
And then he slowly exhaled.
“This is the first time I've enjoyed drinking like this.”
He extended his empty glass.
“Please give me another drink.”
“……”
“Since I drank this one for myself, I should drink the next one on behalf of Sun-young.”
Sun-young just smiled, not knowing what to say.
“Oh dear, really…”
Countless emotions were mixed in that short phrase.
She quietly filled her glass to the brim.
“This is for me.”
In that moment, it felt like Sun-young was truly pouring all her feelings into the glass.
There were no boundaries left within her now.
Daechul seemed to sense her feelings and sat silently for a moment.
And after a while—
He quietly opened his mouth.
“By the way, I heard you saved quite a bit…”
He leaned forward slightly and asked.
“How did you manage to save money in this situation?”