TGMND 45

Thud!

“Crazy!”

As soon as he pressed the button, the head of the umbrella flew into the distance, and the man couldn’t hide his embarrassment that his shoulders trembled.

“…”

“…”

Before going to pick up the umbrella, the mab first noticed Yeo-woon’s gaze. When their round eyes met, a faint chuckle escaped. As the corners of Yeo-woon’s mouth slowly turned up, the man’s eyes began to waver slightly, and soon his ears turned red. It seemed like the man felt quite embarrassed just by looking at him

He bit his lip, then belatedly rushed into the rain to embrace the wide-open umbrella head. It was comical to see him picking up the umbrella and placing it over his head as he re-entered the building. He tried to evade the rain under the building and attempted to fix the long rod back into the umbrella, but it only dangled unsteadily. Eventually, he looked at the umbrella falling to the ground with a helpless expression.

“Is your umbrella broken?”

“Ha… Don’t you know it when you see it?”

The man touched his forehead at Yeo-woon’s question. He seemed to be trying to fix the broken umbrella several times, but as it didn’t work out as he wished, he let out a long sigh. Yeo-woon, staring at the man with his shoulders soaked in rain, unfolded his own umbrella and tilted it over his head.

“Do you want to share it with me?”

The man narrowed his eyes at Yeo-woon’s words. He’s really sensitive.

“What kind of trick is this again?”

“Huh? It’s just the same direction we’re heading.”

“It’s fine, whatever. I’ll buy a new one…!”

“Why bother buying a new one when it’s nearby? It’s a waste of money.”

“…!”

His eyes widened in surprise as Yeo-woon walked right up next to him. Yeo-woon grabbed the strap of the bag he was wearing and stepped out into the rain, the man who had stumbled after him blinked dumbly, holding a broken umbrella in his hand.

Tik, tik. The falling rain glided across the umbrella. There were still 15 minutes until the town bus arrived. Deciding it was better to walk, Yeo-woon passed by the bus stop without stopping.

“…Please give me the umbrella.”

The man who had been walking in silence spoke for the first time. Yeo-woon turned his head to the right and looked up at him. It was quite sudden, but it was the first time Yeo-woon had faced him so closely. The black dot under the man’s left eye was particularly noticeable. Yeo-woon, distracted by the eye-catching face, stopped and stared at him. Then the man waved his hand with a puzzled face.

“You want my umbrella?”

An umbrella? Yeo-woon looked at him suspiciously, pulling the hand holding the handle closer to his chest.

“Excuse me? My umbrella… Why? It’s mine.”

“No, I’ll hold it for you.”

“…?”

“Because it’s uncomfortable.”

Only then did he realize that the man, who was taller than him, was slightly hunched over. Yeo-woon, who didn’t know that fact, let out a small exclamation and obediently handed the umbrella into his hand. Their hands briefly touched as the damp palm met his. The momentarily hesitating man looked ahead again and started walking. With water pooling on the ground, he felt like his feet were sloshing every time he stepped on the ground. There were also high school students running with their bags over their heads in response to the sudden rain.

Yoe-woon’s shoulder was damp. Since the umbrella wasn’t that large, one side of his shoulder was completely wet.

‘…No, wait a minute.’

This bastard. Could it be that he’s using the umbrella for himself rather than to shield them from the rain? Yeo-woon raised his head with reasonable suspicion and quietly closed his mouth when he saw the man’s shoulder, which was wet over a wider area than his. Rather, the umbrella was tilted more toward him. The man noticed his gaze and glanced at him.

“Why.”

Huh? He has nothing to say? Yeo-woon shook his head without saying anything. He put his hand in his pocket and found some candy. It’s been a week since he had been carrying it around in his pocket because he always forgot to put it in his office drawer. Yeo-woon unwrapped the candy and put it in his mouth, then slipped another one into the man’s pocket. The man jerked his head in surprise.

“It’s candy.”

He looked down in bewilderment at the lingering voice speaking with one cheek bulging and then asked.

“You’ve been putting things like this in my pocket before. Is this a habit?”

“It’s not a habit, is it? I’m just giving it to you…”

A faint sigh reached his right ear.

“Why do you keep giving me food whenever you see me?”

“…?”

“You suddenly gave me candy on Thursday, and now again today…. Do you do this to others too? Your… or rather, to those you brought to your house on the moving day?”

My friends? Why is he suddenly bringing them up? Yeo-woon was confused but nodded.

“…This time, it’s just for you.”

“I see.”

The man, who was left speechless by Yeo-woon’s calm answer, looked at Yeo-woon for a while and muttered as if he was annoyed, “You look perfectly fine.” What does his appearance have to do with giving candy?

“Well, it’s not good to eat alone, right? Why? Don’t you like sweets?”

The man hesitated for a moment, then turned his head sideways.

“But I brushed my teeth earlier so I’m not going to eat now?”

“I see…”

Then eat it later. Yeo-woon nodded his head roughly, humming to himself as he listened to the sound of a song coming from a store he was passing by. The man kept licking his lips to himself as Yeo-woon showed no interest in what he had to say.

Yeo-woon tried to talk to the man several more times about how it’s the finals season for college students lately, but the man dismissed all his words with just one sentence: “Don’t worry about it.” And before he knew it, the two of them had reached the front of the house, not entering the building but heading towards the café nearby.

“That, um… please wait here for a moment.”

“…?”

The man, who had forcibly led Yeo-woon towards the café, handed him the umbrella and then opened the café door and stepped inside. Those inside the counter waved at him, and a middle-aged woman lightly slapped the man’s shoulder.

Why was he asking him to wait? Yeo-woon waited patiently for him, even as the toes of his shoes splashed in the puddle. Not long after, the cafe door opened again. When he looked up at the jingling sound, a man wearing a brown shirt and black apron was standing in front of him.

“Take this.”

Yeo-woon suddenly reached out his hand and took what the man handed to him. Inside the transparent plastic were two solid shell-shaped madeleines.

“What’s this?”

“Lemon madeleines.”

“Wow….”

“I didn’t make it, so don’t look at me like that.”

How did he look at him?

“But is it okay for part-time workers to give things like this as they please?”

“I’m not a part-time worker. My card was taken away and I was forced to work… This is my mom’s cafe.”

“Wow…!”

Then he might as well give a free coffee. That would be nice. As Yeo-woon inadvertently looked into the cafe, the woman who had been hitting the man earlier smiled faintly and nodded. Although she did not resemble the sharp-faced man at all, based on the circumstances, it was possible to guess that she was the man’s mother. The man seemed to resemble his father.

“But don’t be mistaken. I’m not giving it to you because I like you.”

“As a thank you?”

“Yeah, a thank you… Huh?”

“Aren’t you giving it to me as a thank you for the umbrella?”

The man pursed his lips and answered.

“… T-That’s right. Thanks… for… the umberella…”

Seeing him struggle even to say thank you, avoiding eye contact and bowing deeply, with his ears turning bright red, he seemed so young. Watching his actions made it feel like observing a younger cousin just entering adolescence, and it was almost endearing.

“I’ll eat well, Yoon Ji-gu-ssi.”

“Whatever… Huh? …How do you know my name?”

Yeo-woon knew it would be like this.

“You didn’t sneak a peek at my mailbox, did you…!”

“It’s on your name tag.”

“…!”

When Yeo-woon responded by tapping his chest, his eyes widened. He was able to find out thanks to the name tag affixed to the apron. The man hurriedly raised his hand to cover his chest, but there was no way to make him forget what he had already seen.

“T-This isn’t my name!”

“Yoon Ji-gu, come in quickly!”

“Oh, Mom!”

“Go!”

Yeo-woon gently waved as he watched the man being dragged by his mother’s hand. The man turned his back on Yeo-woon as he watched him walk away with a still embarrassed look on his face. He took the elevator up to his apartment, looked at the door next door, and suddenly thought.

Ji-gu? It’s a unique and pretty name.