DI Ch 33

“The cherry blossoms are already in bloom here. They’ll be in full bloom tomorrow.”

“You’ll be blinded by them. Do you like them that much?”

“No, not really… I mean, I don’t particularly like them, but there’s no one who hates flowers.”

It’s embarrassing and evasive, but it’s probably true. It would be stunning. I watched the pink petals fly by as I leaned against the window. I didn’t want to blink and miss the flowers’ beauty. I didn’t know if the cherry tree was this beautiful in real life, but this moment was so beautiful that I wanted to save it somewhere.

Nowhere in my one-page description mention what the original me liked. There must have been something that a dull person liked, but I doubt the author could have written something so trivial. Anyway, it’s not that important, but I was wondering if he would have liked flowers.

I couldn’t take my gaze away from the pink light with my head held high even after I arrived at the sea. When I saw Tae Seong-je beckoning me, I walked toward him with a sideways glance, mesmerized by the flowers. As I admired them, he quickly grabbed my hand and started walking.

“If you do this, how long will it take to arrive.”

I turned my eyes here and there before standing stiffly in my tightly gripped hands and following as I was pulled. It’s not strange to like someone who can take your mind off things and make you feel lighter. I’m sure that’s why my heart keeps beating.

“Look closely.”

I suddenly realized that nature is so beautiful when it’s dark, but it looks so blue when the sun comes up. I took a deep breath of the salty air and looked at him with anticipation. However, Tae Seong-je shook his head after glancing at the deserted surroundings.

“Just stay here.”

“There’s a bench up ahead…”

“Forget it, you’ll get sand in your shoes.”

What a sweet explanation. Even if I went in, it would only be a short distance to the bench, and I would only be able to go in so far… My heart tickled to see if the busy guy had entered while I was holding my breath in my regretful heart. The looming black sea crashed onto the sandy shore, white foam rising and falling as it approached. The lighting made the wet sand visible, but anything beyond that was difficult to see. I smiled as I looked at the foam of the waves.

There were sashimi restaurants all along the brightly lit beach until dawn. Tae Seong-je said that there was nothing better than eating sashimi while watching the sea at night, but it was true. I couldn’t hear much of what he said because of my grip on his hand, but I knew that eating something while watching the sea wasn’t bad.

When we got to the second floor, there was a room where we could take off our shoes and go inside. Through the large window, I could see the black night sea and the illuminated cherry trees. The atmosphere was so good that it wouldn’t be strange if a drama was being filmed downstairs.

A message arrived as soon as I placed my phone on the table. I couldn’t help but notice as the screen was flickering even though it was silent. Tae Seong-je appeared to be aware of it as well. He asked casually while wiping his hands with a wet towel.

“Who is this?”

“My sibling.”

“Are you not replying?”

“I can do it later.”

“Your sibling is going to sulk.”

I gave him a disinterested look and tried to sound thoughtful, but it didn’t convince him.

“It’s okay, he’s a boy.”

“Oh.”

“Why?”

When I tilted my head because the reaction was strange, Tae Seong-je tilted his head in the same way and shrugged.

“No. I thought you’d have a younger sister.”

When I heard that, I was surprised to find out that Tae Seong-je had not yet searched for my personal information. Well, this is normal.  Even so, I was confident that I wouldn’t be horrified if he copied my phone. Tae Seong-je is a cunning and devious person. Though he’s currently more on the smart side than the cunning side…

“Is that so? You seem like an only child.”

He seemed to have a bit of an only child’s temperament. As I was nodding my head alone, Tae Seong-je suddenly pulled my ankle and started tickling the soles of my feet.

“What does that mean? Huh? Does it mean something bad?”

“Uwaah, I mean well… Ack, it tickles! Ah, wait. Ah, really don’t!”

As I laughed out loud and fell backward, Tae Seong-je stared at me as I lay down.

“You know how to laugh like that.”

Is he making fun of me? I felt a little embarrassed at his scrutinizing gaze, so I pushed my shirt down and sat up straight again. An ambiguous silence suddenly fell between me and Tae Seong-je, making the atmosphere strange. Maybe it was because I was the only one who cared and exerted myself that it felt strange.

While I was wiggling my fingers, Tae Seong-je, who had been looking at me with an ambiguous look from earlier, said bluntly.

“Shall I show you something interesting?”

“Something interesting? What is it?”

I wondered what kind of joke he was making when he said he wanted to show me something interesting with his nonchalant attitude. Tae Seong-je took out his phone without saying a word, unlocked the lock screen, and placed it on the table. I tilted my head in curiosity and followed his fingertips.

I saw Tae Seong-je’s wallpaper. He seemed to like the car, but I didn’t expect him to like it so much that he’d make it as wallpaper, so I thought it was cute. I stifled a laugh and focused on his fingertips. I stopped laughing and stiffened when Tae Seong-je opened an app.

French translation app?

French, huh? French translation app? I  felt like I’d been slapped in the face. As I shook with shock and an unknown sense of betrayal, Tae Seong-je started laughing by hitting the table as if showing off his bad personality. Feeling unfair, I grabbed his phone and busily fumbled through the apps. I wrote in Korean and it turned into French, and French turned into Korean.

It was so good that I didn’t need a translator, and I stammered in embarrassment.

“Hyung. Did you lie to me?”

“I didn’t say anything. You just assumed it by yourself.”

Tae Seong-je continued to laugh.

“You seem to have a habit of doing that. Assuming things.”

“No, I thought you were doing it for real, so I wanted to do it like you, and so…”

The longer I spoke, the more his face softened. I kept my mouth shut after speaking gibberish, and Tae Seong-je lightly flicked the bridge of my nose with his finger and said,

“Common sense, how can I read and write sentences right away when I haven’t learned it for a month?”

“Because it’s you hyung, I knew you can do it…”

My mouth twisted in a pout as my words trailed off in despair.

“You’re saying that on purpose.”

“What…”

Tae Seong-je ruffled my hair while silently laughing. I didn’t realize what was going on until the sashimi arrived. I assumed he was fluent in French and thought how talented he was. I had to dig deep into the book to try to follow Tae Seong-je. My shock didn’t go away until the food arrived. I became grumpy for no apparent reason, so I only took a few bites before looking up.

“So hyung, you’re lying about studying?”

“No, I did study. You’re still thinking about that? Ah, Okay. I’m sorry, eat this. It’s not available at this time of year, so you can’t eat it even if you want to.”

Tae Seong-je explained what it was and how delicious it was, but it just appeared that way. It didn’t look particularly appetizing, so I didn’t want to go out of my way to find it and eat it. I normally eat everything like a machine, but this was something I didn’t want to eat, and it made me act like a picky eater.

I was told not to play with the food and to eat it gratefully, so I just put one in my mouth and ate it quickly, and while the texture was strange, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. He gave me amusing compliments like ‘right, good,’ as if I were a well-behaved puppy. I hesitated before taking another piece.

“You eat well. Is it delicious?”

I wasn’t sure about the flavor, but it wasn’t particularly bad. After eating another piece, I nodded my head without speaking. Eating it makes me feel good. Tae Seong-je was satisfied, whether it was because he caught me laughing slightly or because he saw me eating with interest.

He pushed the plate toward me and said.

“Next time, try beef tartare. Have you ever eaten it?”

“Nope. Is it good?”

“It’s delicious. You haven’t had it, what have you been eating this whole time. Let’s see, they sell it here, but… no. Next time I’ll take you to a good place and you can try it then. This place doesn’t sell them.”

Next time. Next time… He seemed to like me. No, but really, why was he being so nice? It felt strange as if I were being treated like a proper lover. Of course, we’re formally dating, but Tae Seong-je will never like me. I had no idea what was going on. It’s not terrible, but…

When Tae Seong-je noticed that I wanted to drink, he quickly ordered soju and the two of us emptied a bottle. Even though it was sweeter than the alcohol I drank in the evening, it couldn’t have been better. When the soju emptied out, I dug through my backpack for my wallet. This time, I’ll have to pay for it. However, Tae Seong-je was already paying for it, so I rushed over to him and pulled out my card.

“Hyung, I have money.”

“I have it too.”

“No, I…”

“Do I look broke enough to get food from a kid?”

“That’s not it. Hyung, you told me to treat you once before.”

Tae Seong-je took the card back from the store owner and picked a lime-flavored mint candy from the candy box. There were other flavors available, but he chose the lime flavor. Unlike me, who doesn’t have any particular flavor preference, he seemed to like sour.

“Seung-won-a. It was just a trick.”

Tae Seong-je shrugged as I stood there dumbfounded, not understanding what he was saying.

“I was just trying to have a meal with you.”