* * *
After not seeing him all day, I had just met him again—I didn’t want to let him go.
I wanted a little more time together.
“Are you really busy? If not, just stay for dinner. Please?”
“Taehwan hyung, come in. If you leave like this, my brother won’t enjoy dinner at all.”
“Mmm…”
Go Eunyul! Well done!
When Taehwan looked at me with an unsure expression, I eagerly nodded.
I even put on the most pitiful face I could manage, as if I wouldn’t be able to eat a single bite without him.
Taehwan’s brows knit together.
It’s working. He’s thinking about it!
I looked at him with bright, expectant eyes, but his face didn’t soften easily.
“It’s been a while since your family’s all together… If I join, I’d just be intruding.”
“What are you talking about? You always came over for every family occasion anyway.”
“Eh? He did?”
That’s the first I’ve heard of Taehwan coming to our house.
I guess, since I was the common link, it’s not surprising he’d have some interaction with my family—but I didn’t expect he’d come over to the house.
Especially since our old place used to be just five minutes from his, whereas the new one is farther out.
And it’s not like we live in a busy area where he could casually drop by while out and about.
In response to my surprise, Eunyul nodded.
“Yeah. He came over often. Oh, and… he told me not to tell you, because you might feel left out. But now that you’re better… Anyway, Taehwan hyung helped out a lot.”
I turned to Taehwan with wide eyes, but he kept his mouth shut.
In his place, Eunyul continued his testimony.
“Things like our dishwasher or coffee machine? Every time there was some occasion, he took care of all that. Helped us install things and fix stuff too.”
“…I see.”
It was unexpected.
He never let on, not even a little, so I never imagined it.
‘If he came over that often, he doesn’t need to hesitate. Just come in already.’
Now that Eunyul had broken his promise and spilled everything without warning, he was watching Taehwan nervously—but Taehwan didn’t seem particularly fazed.
He just pressed a hand to his lips and fell into thought.
The silence dragged on. I wish he’d say something—anything.
“Hey, elevator’s here! Hurry up and get in!”
Eunseo had been next to Eunyul just a moment ago.
When had she walked off on her own?
She was waving from the entrance to our apartment’s building.
I hesitated—should I tell her to go ahead since I hadn’t convinced Taehwan yet?
But then her sharp gaze turned to Taehwan, and she shouted:
“If you walk away when my brother clearly wants you to stay, you’re seriously not even human!”
Her fierce scolding made even Taehwan’s face show surprise.
After shouting so loudly, Eunseo quickly turned around and disappeared inside, her face flushed in embarrassment when all eyes turned to her.
Eunyul burst out laughing and took off after her.
I hurriedly grabbed Taehwan’s hand.
“Let’s go, Taehwan.”
“…Haah. Fine.”
Just when I thought he was going to hold my hand back, he suddenly swept me up into his arms and briskly carried me toward the entrance.
‘I can run now, you know.’
Though flustered, I didn’t ask to be put down.
It wasn’t a bad feeling to be held by Taehwan again after so long.
And since no one was around, I might as well enjoy it while I can.
As soon as we entered the building, Eunseo—who had waited for us at the elevator—sighed in disbelief at the sight of us.
“Unbelievable. You clearly came because you wanted to be with my brother. Why even pretend otherwise? You’re so weird—mmph!”
“Ahaha, our Eunseo’s speaking nonsense again. Sorry about that, hyung.”
“It’s okay.”
Mouth covered by Eunyul, Eunseo narrowed her eyes and glared daggers at her twin.
Even after her hand was freed, she muttered complaints under her breath, but Taehwan didn’t pay much attention.
Eunyul still seemed a little worried, but I wasn’t.
I mean, Eunseo may act cold toward Taehwan, but just now, she was clearly trying to support us—telling him to come inside and everything.
She’s doing her best not to get in the way of our relationship.
Seeing that, I don’t think she actually dislikes him.
Even now, she kept sneaking glances at Taehwan’s face, her expression clearly betraying her thoughts.
She’d get annoyed at how composed he looked, then soften at how handsome he was, then get mad at herself for falling for his looks all over again.
She’s my sister, but seriously, she’s so cute it makes me grin like a fool.
Though I probably shouldn’t stare at her too much either.
Still… my friend isn’t being honest at all.
Is what Eunseo said true?
Did he come just because he wanted to be with me?
I stared openly at his face.
Taehwan, who had been expressionless as he looked at the elevator door, twitched his brow.
“What?”
“Nothing. Just.”
In truth, the answer was already clear.
Just by his expression, he might’ve looked like he was playing dumb, but when Eunseo spoke, the arms and hands wrapped around my waist had tightened.
He was holding on—as if afraid I’d ask to be let down because I’d embarrassed myself in front of my younger siblings.
A smile crept onto my face.
I wrapped my arms around Taehwan’s neck and gently rested my head on his broad shoulder.
As I closed my eyes, he began to softly stroke my hair.
His touch was so familiar—so natural—that it melted my body into ease.
‘Yeah… this is nice.’
I thought I’d been doing fine without Taehwan, but compared to how comfortable I felt now, I realized I’d been subconsciously tense all along.
I couldn’t believe how safe I felt just being with him.
Maybe the dream of being truly independent is still a ways off for me.
‘…If I told him I kissed a guy, would he be shocked…?’
When I was a kid, “gay” was mostly just a word kids used to tease each other.
If society still views it that way, and if I really am gay, then maybe Taehwan would feel uneasy about having me in his house.
We’ve been like family, but in the end, we’re not really related.
‘What should I do…? I should be honest, right?’
Once I started worrying, the thoughts just kept spiraling.
My head was getting all tangled up.
Still, it’s not like I’ve confirmed that I’m gay yet.
And Taehwan isn’t the kind of guy who would suddenly abandon me overnight.
I knew that, logically.
There was no need to worry just yet—but the worst-case scenarios kept playing out in my mind.
Before I even realized it, I gripped his neck tighter and pressed closer to him in fear.
“You…”
Taehwan stiffened, because he knew—I only did things like this when I was hiding something.
But before he could say anything, the elevator arrived at our floor.
The twins rushed out ahead of us, punched in the door code, and opened the front door.
“Mom! We’re back!”
“You’re home? Did you have fun?”
“Yeah! We had a great time. Oh, and Taehwan hyung came too!”
“Oh my, Taehwan’s here?”
I only heard her voice—didn’t see her.
Turns out Mom was in the kitchen.
She’d insisted earlier she wanted to cook dinner herself, and true to her word, she’d already filled the table with food.
She was struggling to take a large serving dish down from the top shelf of the cupboard.
“Let me help, just a second,”
Taehwan, after setting me down, strode over and easily reached for the dish, taking over for her just in time.
“Thank you, Taehwan.”
“Is there anything else you need?”
“No, this is good. Go wash up and wait just a bit. It’s almost done.”
“I’m sorry for dropping by so suddenly. I only meant to see Jaehee for a moment…”
“No need to apologize. I made plenty—it’s just one more bowl of rice. Since you’re here, why don’t you stay the night?”
“…Ah. Um… would that be alright?”
“Of course! Why wouldn’t it be?”
Taehwan looked at me again.
For me, it was an instant yes!
I nodded furiously and made all kinds of circles with my fingers, hands, even my arms to show my enthusiasm.
He let out a short laugh.
Maybe he’d finally sorted out his thoughts.
The heaviness that had shadowed his face lifted, and he said,
“Then I’ll stay just for tonight.”
✱ ✱ ✱
Dinner was kimchi stew packed with pork, seaweed soup with clams, thick rolled omelets, and a whole array of small homemade side dishes my mother had prepared.
It had been a long time since I’d had my mom’s cooking—and it was delicious.
To be honest, the mother I remembered wasn’t particularly known for her cooking.
You could say she didn’t have much ambition when it came to tasty food.
She could go half a year—or even a full year—on boiled eggs, plain salad without dressing, and a banana for breakfast.
Back when Dad was alive, he’d been the one mostly in charge of cooking, and Mom… thinking back, she was more of the “I’ll help!” type who ended up making things worse.
Which is why tonight’s spread was astonishing—a huge leap from thirteen years ago.
You could really feel just how much she’d been through raising the twins on her own all these years.
After the meal, maybe due to the exhaustion from cooking all day, Mom fell asleep before her weekend drama could even finish.
“Don’t wake her. I’ll carry her to her room.”
“Oh, okay. Thanks.”
“It’s nothing.”
Taehwan gently lifted Mom and carried her to her room.
Meanwhile, we started getting ready for bed in the living room.
* * *
