“Well, this road has always been the toughest. I’ll just sit quietly without saying a word. We’re all on the verge of becoming zombies, holding on with mental strength. Please don’t say unnecessary things.”
“I feel like we might really become zombies if you don’t talk.”
“I’d prefer that. It would be nice to have some peace and quiet.”
The mountain road was always the biggest challenge. I should just sit quietly without saying anything or doing anything. Just silently.
Ignoring the bickering between Jeongeun and Hyunsu, I leaned my face close to the small window in the car and chased the passing scenery at a steady speed.
The sky and the sea seemed to be on friendly terms today, with the sea showing a clearer, bluer color than usual. If it continues to clear up like this, someday the boundary between the sky and the sea will disappear, and the two will become inseparable.
“Iharu, do you feel like laughing?”
Hm, my expression quickly hardened. In response to Jeongeun’s entirely unkind voice calling me, I hurriedly turned my gaze to the opposite side. Seeing Jeongeun’s cold expression, my shoulders already slumped.
The desire to go back to my own cozy time surged up again.
“Noona, so if they picked my story, it would have been great. If my story had been chosen, I could have just gone to the high school 20 minutes away from the broadcasting station and quickly filmed it. Why go through all this trouble?”
“Kim Hyunsu, stop talking about what’s over. Do you know that your story didn’t even pass the first screening? No matter how close it is to the broadcasting station, the people there didn’t want to go and film. Because the picture didn’t come out.”
“Honestly, where is a man who waits for his first love for 9 years like Kim Director? It’s because they only pursue such unrealistic stories.”
Hyunsu, without any thought, blurted out words that came to mind as if sent away by the wind coming through the window gap. But, a little while ago, my chest began to surge with emotions from Hyunsu’s words.
A man who waited for his first love for 9 years. If I hadn’t gone to meet Jun by chance, Jun’s wait might not have stopped after just 9 years.
So maybe he remained a man waiting for his first love for 10, 11 years, or even more.
Now, I’m much closer to where Jun is than when I was in Korea. Even though the distance between Jun and me has narrowed so much, my heart has become more impatient, and the longing has only grown.
How did I spend the 9 years without Jun by my side?
Perhaps, more than the fact that I unknowingly waited for Jun for 9 years, the fact that I spent those 9 years without meeting Jun and somehow got through them might be more unrealistic.
Really, that’s how it was.
“Oh, it seems like we’ll arrive soon.”
I’ve never heard that Mijeong knows Japanese, so the words she just spoke must have been the taxi driver’s Korean interpretation of what he said a moment ago.
Well, even if you don’t know the meaning of “we’ll arrive soon,” you just have to get off when the car stops. When the car comes, get on, and when it stops, get off. It’s really simple.
“It looks like only you and Iharu noona are getting off here. Probably because of what he said earlier, our luggage was placed on the top of the trunk.”
We were now slowly realizing the meaning of what the taxi driver told us more than an hour ago.
“That building in front of us seems to be it. The gray building.”
Since words weren’t getting through, it seems like we’ve become more attentive. Jeongeun, matching the slow movement of the taxi, was deducing where we would get off by matching it with the appearance of the building seen in the photo.
Soon, the taxi driver said a few words in a warm voice, and as always, we responded with a warm smile. Even if we understood what he said, we wouldn’t have been able to respond properly.
“Hyunsu, Mijeong, you worked hard today. Rest well, and see you at the shooting location tomorrow.”
Hyunsu and Mijeong, thanks to deviating from the mountain path and running on a somewhat straight course for a while, responded brightly to Jeongeun’s words with revitalized faces.
Thunk, thunk, making a sound, two similar-sized suitcases came out of the trunk. The taxi disappeared on the opposite side. As soon as I found my suitcase and looked around, Jeongeun pointed to the left road first.
“Haru, as I said. Since Kim Director’s place to stay and your accommodation are close, go that way, then turn left once more. Visit the accommodation first, then go straight to Kim Director’s house.”
“Yeah, thanks. I’m really thankful, Jeongeun. So much that I can’t express it.”
“You should be thankful, then. And Haru, whether it’s gratitude or love, you have to express it. On time. If you miss that ‘on time,’ the piece of emotion you couldn’t convey becomes a hole in your heart, and it easily becomes hurtful, you know?”
Jeongeun might have said these words thinking about me, and the incident where I awkwardly suggested to Jun that he should date Jeongeun without any plan came to mind. That’s why I couldn’t respond coolly.
“Then go on. Time is passing even now. It might be hectic when shooting starts. It’s still daytime, but well, have a good ‘tto-bam.'”
“Tto-bam? What are you saying, Seo Jeongeun?”
“Well, I can’t help you with that part, so figure it out yourselves.”
“It won’t come to that.”
“So coordinate it well on your own. I’m leaving.”
“Ha… Alright. Take care, Jeongeun. Anyway, thanks for today.”
Watching Jeongeun’s cool departure, I conveyed the gratitude that I hadn’t expressed yet. Then I turned my steps in the opposite direction of the path Jeongeun walked.
A quiet seaside village. Only the sound of Jeongeun pulling the suitcase was audibly distant; the people in the seaside village seemed to be diligently playing hide-and-seek or something, and there was not a single sign of life.
The second house that comes out when you turn left here.
Although it was an easy statement, because it was a foreign country, I cautiously took steps one by one. Determinedly not to miss the second house that comes out when you turn left.
Just as I turned the corner, when my gaze was about to face the familiar second house.
Suddenly, I felt a tightness around the neckline of my hoodie. Instinctively frowning and reaching my hand behind, I grabbed my hat and turned around. Just as my eyes and mouth unexpectedly grew in size.
“Iharu, where are you going?”
Whether it was because of the sunlight, or it was a protest against me trying to sneakily go into the accommodation without noticing and entering, Jun, with an unsatisfied expression, was looking down at me.
My heart pounded.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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