MM 137

“……!”

Han Yu-young’s face lit up. He realized that Do-won had prepared to take a photo here, just for him. His heart warmed so much it almost brought tears to his eyes. The thought that Do-won had remembered his favorite photo and had gone through all this effort to take a picture in this place made him feel overwhelmed with gratitude.

Do-won slowly raised the camera. Without a tripod, he held the camera directly in front of his face and quietly spoke.

“Just relax.”

“Yes.”

Even as he answered, Yu-young stood still, somewhat stiff. All he could see was Do-won, the one taking his picture.

It was the first time he had seen Do-won holding a camera. It was exactly the image he had longed to see.

‘What’s this…? Seriously, how can he look so sexy?’

Yu-young swallowed hard, thoughts racing. The aura coming from Do-won’s movements was different from the charisma and dignity he exuded while leading the team. His focused expression, as he took the photo, was beautiful, skilled, and full of strength.

Click, click, the sound of the shutter echoed in the snowy field. Every time the sound of the camera cut through the quiet surroundings, Yu-young’s heart swelled with emotion.

Naturally, his stiff expression softened, and a smile spread across his face. Do-won didn’t miss this and captured it on camera. Lowering the camera, he placed it back in his bag and pulled out something else—a smaller Polaroid camera.

“I want to take one more shot.”

“Sure. Feel free to.”

Yu-young confidently responded, no longer shy, and added, “Then, please take one like this.”

Until now, he had only been standing next to the tree, but now he embraced it confidently. The awkwardness from earlier was gone. He had always thought that the lone tree in the endless white snow looked so lonely, even though it was beautiful. He had always wanted to hug that tree if he ever visited this place.

The dry, rough texture of the bark pressed into his arms, but it didn’t matter. Yu-young embraced the tree with all his heart, as if sharing his warmth. Slowly, he turned his head toward Do-won and smiled shyly.

“Heh, it just looked a bit cold.”

“….”

Do-won silently observed him, his expression the same as when he had tried to suppress his emotions before. After a moment of gazing at each other, Do-won approached Yu-young with the printed photo in hand, as well as a small box and a large envelope.

Yu-young raised an eyebrow, puzzled.

“What’s this, Team Leader?”

“These are things I’ve really wanted to give you, Assistant Han.”

Do-won smiled faintly and opened the small box.

“Open it.”

Yu-young froze when he saw what was inside—a ring case. His heart raced as he nervously looked up at Do-won, unsure whether to open it. After receiving a gentle nod from Do-won, Yu-young shakily opened the case.

Inside were two beautiful rings, shining brilliantly in the moonlight. They were identical in shape but differed in size.

“…Team Leader…?”

“I told you before, didn’t I? That rings like these should be exchanged with the person you love.”

His pale face showed a mix of emotions—surprise, excitement, and a bittersweet nostalgia. He remembered the time when Do-won had drawn a line, saying they were just in a contract relationship, a memory that still felt clear in his mind.

“The person I love now is only you. I’d be truly happy if you accepted it.”

With gentle words, Do-won lifted Yu-young’s hand and carefully slid the smaller ring onto his fourth finger. The ring slipped on smoothly, fitting perfectly.

Yu-young’s heart raced, almost as if it would burst. Afterward, Do-won picked up his own ring, smiling brightly.

“Would you put this on me too, Assistant Han?”

“Ah… Yes… yes.”

Yu-young’s voice trembled as he spoke, almost as if he couldn’t believe it. He had thought this trip was just a way to relieve stress with Do-won, not knowing there would be a proposal. The thought of getting engaged at such a beautiful place, with Do-won, was beyond his wildest dreams.

He carefully placed the ring on Do-won’s finger, matching his own.

“Team Leader… Thank you.”

Yu-young barely managed to speak, his voice full of emotion.

“I didn’t expect such a big surprise… I didn’t think you had this planned.”

“Did you like it? I was worried it might not suit your taste since I chose it alone.”

“I love it. Really, I do.”

Yu-young looked up at Do-won with flushed cheeks, as if he were still dreaming. To be proposed to in such a magnificent way, with such a wonderful person, felt surreal.

He felt as if he had everything he could ever ask for. He embraced Do-won’s warm and familiar presence, inhaling deeply and closing his eyes.

After a while, Do-won gently pulled Yu-young away from his embrace. Yu-young looked up at him in confusion as Do-won handed him the envelope.

“Open this too.”

“What is this?”

“This is something I’ve wanted to give you for a long time.”

Yu-young was puzzled. What more could there be, after receiving the rings? When he held the envelope, it felt heavier than expected, not just like simple documents.

He slowly opened it, his eyes widening when he saw what was inside.

“It’s….”

It was the photo book by Won, the one Do-won had handed him. It was a hardcover edition with Won’s large signature on the cover.

Yu-young couldn’t mistake it. He had several copies of Won’s photo books at home, the same size and texture, so he immediately recognized it even before seeing the signature.

His hands trembled, unable to believe what he was seeing. The thought of this photo book existing without his knowledge was astonishing. But the fact that Do-won had it made it even more surreal.

“This… this is Won’s photo book…! Where did you… no, when did this come out?”

“Open it.”

Just like when Do-won had brought him a special postcard and photo book before, he smiled faintly.

Yu-young felt his hands shaking as he carefully peeled off the wrapping. Holding the photo book gently, he couldn’t believe his eyes.

Trying to calm himself, he breathed deeply, thinking that Do-won might feel jealous, considering how much Yu-young admired Won’s work. As he opened the cover slowly, Yu-young’s hand froze when he saw the first photo inside.

It was the photo of the tree, the one he had dreamed of seeing. Sunlight shone through the leaves, making them sparkle like jewels.

It was different from the photo he had. The one he had called “Star” glowed with a brilliant light, captured from various angles, each photo in the book shining with its own beauty.

Even though the photographer, who had always insisted on black and white, had a different style from usual, the photos in this photo album were all in color. For Yu-young, who had been accustomed to the traditional photo albums, this fact felt strange, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but feel emotions he hadn’t experienced before.

It was overwhelming vitality. It wasn’t the static grandeur that had been confined to the quiet, neat frames of the past. It was a cry of life, a joy born from it. It was awe for the vivid life force.

Then, as Yu-young turned to the next page, he couldn’t help but hold his breath.

The scene in the photo was clearly from his own home. The still-life photograph, captured with a quiet and peaceful gaze, featured items that he used with Do-won. Two mugs, two toothbrushes—those kinds of things. There was even a photo of Yu-young’s shoes placed adorably next to Do-won’s large shoes.

As Yu-young turned the pages, he saw things he cherished dearly. A basket full of round bath bombs, the scented candles he had made and collected over time, and the photo albums neatly stacked on the sofa.

“Team Leader. This… what is this?”

A dazed voice escaped his lips. The next page had his own photo. Yu-young, asleep on the sofa, his profile focused on something, his back turned as he looked out the window in the mountain cabin cafe where he had fought with his family, and a scene of him outside, catching snowflakes in his palm.

The first page, the second, and the next. Although the subjects in each picture were different, there was only one person being referred to in all of them.

Every page was a song, a confession, directed at one person. The precious subject captured was Yu-young.

“…?”

However, when he reached the final page, Yu-young turned his gaze to Do-won in confusion. The last page was completely empty.

Soon, Do-won’s finger slowly landed on it. He was holding a Polaroid photo of Yu-young. Pressing it gently onto the empty page, Do-won closed the photo album and handed it back to Yu-young.

“Thank you, Assistant Han, for loving my photos.”

Do-won’s face broke into a warm smile.

“Team, Team Leader, what… what is this…?”

What was Do-won saying right now? Could it be that he was the photographer…?

“…Really… Really? Is what I’m thinking… right?”

Yu-young, with wide eyes as if he had seen a ghost, stammered, but Do-won gently wiped away his bewildered expression, nodding slowly. His gaze was full of deep kindness, as if capturing Yu-young’s face with his eyes.

“That’s right. Watching you, Assistant Han, love my photos made me truly happy.”

Yu-young’s heart raced, as if it might burst. His lips trembled with surprise, but he could only stare blankly at Do-won’s gaze and touch, unable to speak. Staring at Yu-young, who could only open his mouth in silence, Do-won met his eyes with a warm look.

“I was going to put down my camera. I couldn’t find a reason to keep taking photos. The reason I decided to start again was entirely thanks to you. You became someone I wanted to capture with my camera again, and you gave me a reason to continue taking photos. Thank you.”

“…”

“Assistant Han really cherishes the photo he left on the desk. The photo of this place, I mean. Watching you love my photos consistently made me feel grateful and happy. But to be honest, I’ve never felt attached to the photo of the winter landscape.”

In the silent snowy field, Do-won’s voice echoed softly.

“Winter was a season I couldn’t love, no matter how hard I tried. No matter how much time passed, I couldn’t escape the thought that it was the season that took my mother away. As the days grew colder, I always felt this emptiness inside.”

Listening to Do-won’s slow words, Yu-young felt a dull pain in his chest for some unknown reason.

How desolate must it have been? How much must he have lacked someone to lean on? The life with his stepmother, who would shout cruel words at the little boy who only wanted to keep the photo of his dead mother… How deep into his body and soul must he have felt the cold and shivering whenever the season of his mother’s loss returned?

Hot tears began to fall on his cheeks. He wasn’t even aware that he was crying. Warm tears streaked down his face as Do-won gently wiped them away. He then held Yu-young’s hand again.

“However, when I met you, Assistant Han, I no longer hated winter. I was happy when we saw the first snow together.”

“…”

“Since then, whenever I see the white snowflakes, I think of you. Pure, precious, and beautiful. I started thinking that I might come to like this season more if I could see such beautiful snowflakes.”

Do-won smiled, a smile as white and transparent as the snow. It was the smile that Yu-young had always found beautiful, the one only he knew.

“Perhaps I was desperately waiting for someone to fill the emptiness I couldn’t fill for my whole life. I thought the answer to that was love. That’s why I wanted to marry someone I truly loved.”

The snow began to fall softly from the sky, as if timed perfectly. The snowflakes gently landed on their skin and melted into small droplets. In a moment that seemed to stop in time, the snow fell like the scene inside a snow globe.

Do-won held out his hand to catch the snow. It quickly melted in his palm, but more snowflakes kept falling onto his hand, continuously.

“Assistant Han, you came to me like this.”

A slow smile spread across his beautiful face. In the white snowy field, their hands held together, Do-won’s confession had the power to stop time.

“Thank you, Yu-young. Thank you for coming to me. And I love you so much.”

Unable to hold back anymore, Yu-young pulled Do-won in and kissed him. For some reason, tears kept flowing. But there was no sadness or anxiety—only pure joy, like the snowflakes themselves, in those tears.

His lips, frozen in the cold winter air, slowly began to thaw from the warmth of their kiss. Though the tears wet his lips, it didn’t matter. The breath they shared, their gazes, every small gesture was creating this unbelievably perfect moment.

“I love you, Team Leader. I love you so much.”

In the warm silence, the confession of one person harmonized with the willing response of a lover, creating a perfect union. Their embrace, under the moonlight, continued to shine.

Soon, with a playful laugh, the two bodies tumbled into the snow. Yu-young, flailing like a child, made Do-won laugh, and once again, the sound of the camera’s shutter filled the air. Yu-young’s face as he looked at the stars, his laughter as he threw snow, and the photo of the two of them together were all captured by the camera.

The lonely tree no longer appeared lonely. The four seasons, unchanged, would wrap the strong life force within the tree’s solid shell, completing it.

In the barren branches, buds would bloom in spring, and in summer, countless leaves filled with vibrant life would rustle in the wind, glistening like stars. In winter, the tree would stand tall and beautifully, adorned with the snowflakes, just like now.

Under the sky that belonged only to the two of them, where the stars shone brightly, the golden words written on the back cover of the photo album, which couldn’t be put into the bag, also shone with the starlight.

[To the one who completed my four seasons,

My snowflake, my winter.]