Chapter 19
It was market day. Heena and Yohan, carrying makgeolli and samgyeopsal respectively, shuffled around the market in their slippers, taking advantage of their trip to town to browse the stalls.
After filling their bellies with tteokbokki, sundae, and fish cakes at a snack bar, they each held a jjujuba (frozen juice pop) and headed for the village bus stop back to Jinhong-ri.
Up until this point, Heena hadn’t felt any strange sense of harmony. It felt comfortable, perhaps because it was a common occurrence before she graduated high school.
However, as they sat side-by-side at the bus stop, waiting for the bus that might never come, she suddenly thought,
‘Why am I here with him?’
They were definitely exes. They had been comfortable as older sister and younger brother until Yohan turned twenty. After he moved to Seoul, they met often because she was happy to see him, and somehow, they became lovers. They dated for about seven years, fighting terribly, and then broke up.
Heena stared intently at Seo Yohan, who was sucking on a jjujuba next to her.
“I clearly said you have to pay to look at my face.”
“…You’re going to become a chaebol (conglomerate) at this rate.”
“Are you going to look at it that much?”
“That’s not it. I’m saying that because you’re trying to squeeze money out of me for everything.”
Yohan slowly nodded and tapped the end of Heena’s jjujuba with his fingertip.
“Stop talking and eat it quickly. Bus drivers don’t like it when people eat these on the bus.”
“Nag, nag, nag!”
Heena, seemingly fed up, crunched on her jjujuba and messed up her hair with her hand.
✦⋆🍒.₊ ⊹
As they approached the village hall where Mr. Park and the bean sprout lady lived, Heena hesitantly pushed Yohan forward. She was prepared, but not mentally prepared. She felt awkward and wasn’t keen on going in first and greeting everyone cheerfully.
Yohan glanced down at Heena hiding behind him and clicked his tongue.
“You’re an adult on the outside, but inside, you’re more of a child than me.”
“Just go in already.”
“Have you thought about what you’re going to say to Mr. Park?”
“I’ll just follow my instincts. What’s there to prepare?”
“You’re still as clueless as ever.”
Yohan started walking ahead. Heena cleared her throat and followed him with quick steps.
“It looks like the other elders have gone home.”
Yohan, who had entered first, placed the bag full of samgyeopsal on the table and said.
“Oh my! What is all this? Meat?”
The bean sprout lady, who had been watching TV in the main room, asked as she saw them enter.
“Oh, you didn’t have to buy this. And why so much? Is it someone’s birthday today?”
“It’s not a birthday. We thought we’d have a drink with you and Mr. Park…”
Heena, peeking out from behind Yohan, chuckled and shook the bag of makgeolli.
“You felt bad about what happened earlier?”
“Well, honestly… yes.”
The bean sprout lady smiled kindly and patted Heena’s shoulder.
“Why would you worry about that? There’s no need. It wasn’t Mr. Jeong’s granddaughter’s fault.”
“I think so too, but…!”
“Where did Mr. Park go?”
Yohan interrupted Heena before she could be too honest.
“Oh, he’s in the field. He went to pick lettuce, so it’s perfect timing. Sit here and wait a bit.”
Heena sat down on the leather sofa the lady pointed to and leaned back, once again feeling a sense of unease about Seo Yohan sitting next to her.
Aren’t they spending too much time together lately? They seemed to be spending more time together than when they were dating. Especially now that they were living under the same roof.
It’s strange, so strange.
“You really are trying to make me a chaebol, aren’t you?”
Yohan leaned slightly towards Heena and whispered.
“My face is going to get worn out.”
Heena sneered, pulling up one corner of her mouth.
“I really want to wear your face out.”
Yohan chuckled and turned his attention back to the TV.
“Who’s here?”
Mr. Park, just entering, saw several pairs of shoes at the entrance and poked his head in, asking. But his expression turned icy as soon as he saw Heena and Yohan sitting in the living room and turning to look back at him.
Heena awkwardly rose from her seat, but she still found it difficult to meet his eyes.
“You’re here?”
“Ahem!”
Mr. Park responded to Heena’s question with another cough. The bean sprout lady pointed at the two large bags on the table.
“Look at that. These young people are so thoughtful, they brought this for you and me to have a drink.”
Mr. Park grumbled, looking back and forth between the two and the table.
“You think that’s going to make me feel better? Hmph!”
Petty old man…. Heena thought to herself.
“Oh, come on. I went to the brewery myself and bought your favorite makgeolli, so please cheer up.”
“…What, what kind did you buy?”
“The one you bragged about last time, saying it was precious. It was more expensive than I thought.”
“Of course it’s expensive. I didn’t call it precious for nothing.”
Mr. Park, a big fan of makgeolli, took a bottle out of the bag with the brewery’s logo and exclaimed in admiration.
“Mr. Jeong’s granddaughter went through all this trouble, wouldn’t it be petty to stay mad because of that Park Donghan boy?”
“Yes.”
Heena answered immediately without taking a breath. Yohan nudged her with his elbow.
“What?”
He frowned and gave her some kind of warning, but she couldn’t understand what he was saying. It seemed like he was telling her to appease the old man.
“I’ll handle it,” Heena replied in a small voice.
✦⋆🍒.₊ ⊹
As they set up a table on the platform in front of the village hall and started grilling samgyeopsal, the elders gathered one by one. The setting sun shimmered through the leaves.
The bean sprout lady brought out the lettuce that Mr. Park had picked from the field, freshly washed. Mr. Park was once again ranting about the makgeolli Heena had bought.
“That show-off is at it again.”
“Oh, leave him be! My ears are calloused from hearing it.”
“If you can’t hear, I’ll shout it in your ear. This, you see! It’s so precious because…!”
The lady, hearing Mr. Park’s shouting, rubbed her ears and moved to sit next to Yohan and Heena, who were diligently grilling the samgyeopsal.
“Did that man get over being sulky about the blind date and all that?”
Heena smiled and nodded.
“He loves makgeolli so much. And it wasn’t a big deal anyway.”
“Did you even go on the blind date? You didn’t say much, and you have this handsome young man next to you.”
The lady picked up a piece of freshly grilled, steaming samgyeopsal and pointed at Yohan with her chopsticks. Heena glanced at him briefly, then quickly looked away, afraid he’d start asking for money again, saying she was making him a chaebol.
“Yes, of course. He and I are just close friends.”
“Oh my. What a waste, what a waste. Why wouldn’t such lovely young people be interested in each other?”
“I’m a lovely young woman, but where’s the lovely young man? Please find him for me.”
The lady burst out laughing at Heena’s lighthearted joke.
Heena liked the village elders, who laughed heartily at even trivial things. In Seoul, she had to rack her brains two or three times to decipher the silent power struggles and the true meaning behind the sarcastic jokes. She felt herself gradually becoming accustomed to the unpretentious and warm-hearted Jinhong-ri.
“Then, do you want to meet my grandson?”
Suddenly, Yohan’s eyes darted towards them like lightning and quickly retreated.
…Did something just sting? Was it my imagination?
“How old is your grandson? I have a feeling he’s very young.”
“He just turned twenty! Twenty is an adult.”
“Wow, you don’t look like someone with a twenty-year-old grandson!”
The lady covered her laughing mouth with her hand and giggled shyly.
“The more I see you, the more I like you.”
“But would a twenty-year-old grandson like me? I’m thirty-one.”
“What does age matter? If he likes you, that’s all that matters. Isn’t that right, young man?”
The lady suddenly asked Yohan for his agreement. However, Yohan responded cynically without taking his eyes off the grill.
“Of course, age matters. She’s still like a child, so it would be a disaster if she dated a twenty-year-old.”
Heena narrowed her eyes and rolled them. Is he jealous? What does this mean? Does it mean he still likes me?
