Cafe Boncha...
[PC: "I told you to come home sometime."]
["I'm busy at the moment. I'll try to come by during this week. Weekends are kinda hectic for me."]
["Your father is planning on visiting you in Hannam-dong. You know your father, he worries about you a lot."]
["Okay. I didn't have anything against that. Was that all you want to tell me?"]
["Everyone I know around me is handing out invitations for wedding and engagement party invitations, but here you are, just making coffee on this beautiful weekend."]
["That's what I do for a living. I showed it to you before. Besides, that's why I went to a blind date, mom."]
["When I think of that blind date, I can't even sleep at night. It's almost giving me a breakdown. How could your father send you to that place and meet him? Has the whole world collapsed and I died?! How can your father be sane? This time I can't ignore this either. Having a gangster husband is bad enough. Now, I have to look forward and accept a son-in-law who is also a gangster? I don't need that!]
"Whether or not we'll see each other again, isn't for you to decide, is it Miss Choi Jumi?"
His voice resonated in her mind.
["Your father declined the proposition of director of Haesung Hospital. He said 'how dare you push that doctor's son on our daughter?!' He throw the idea of you meeting the hospital director's son off at least two or three times, but he... Anyway, Hospital Director Song said he would arrange it."]
["Mom. Please calm down."]
["I should have just said no when he offered to set you up with Director Yoongyo. How could he drag you into this?!"]
["Nothing happened after that, don't worry. Okay?"]
["How could your father do this to you and get you involved with a gangster?! How?!"]
["Uh, I have customers to attend to. I'll call you later, Mom."]
Jumi hurriedly hung up the phone before hearing the answer on the other end and stuffed her cell phone deep into her apron's pocket. Huh, it was exhausting to talk to her mother nowadays. It was all the same conversations all over again.
People always said they were busy if they wanted to cut a phone call immediately, but what Jumi said wasn't a lie. The Boncha Café was busier than ever, with both Eunju, who was coming down from setting up the table on the second floor, and Inho, who was busy washing dishes, were all completely distracted.
"I'd like a hot latte, please."
"A cup of latte, is that for here?"
The customer nodded.
"I'll prepare it for you. One moment, please."
The man nodded once again, saying yes. A familiar card was handed over to her, and Jumi finished the payment method and turned around.
"Here's your cup of latte... please enjoy your coffee."
Eunju, who returned from clearing a table near the counter, glanced at the man having his drink and approached Jumi. The man who received the drink sat at the table by the window on the first floor.
"Boss, that man... Doesn't he come here really often?"
"Isn't he just one of our regulars?"
"Can't you see that he seems a little different from the other regulars, though? Every time he come over, he always sits right in front where he can see counter and only keeps looking this way, and he's always staring at you... I don't know if I'm being sensitive, but he's literally going to burn a hole in your face. Ah, Inho... What do you think?"
"About what?"
"That customer sitting by the window. He comes here two or three times a day, but doesn't it feel like he sits close to the booth every time and only stares at our boss?"
Inho seemed to be thinking for a moment, as if he was having a hard time answering. In the end, there was no concrete answer, but it seemed to mean that he agreed with Eunju. Jumi glanced back and looked at the creepy guy. It was a familiar sight. The customer who always sat there and looked at her intently, but...
"It looks like our boss's face will wear off soon."
"Well, we might be wrong. It could just be our imagination. Let's not make hasty assumptions and speculate. It's not good to jump to conclusions. By the way, I'll be leaving at noon and won't be back today, so you can head home at your own time."
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[TM: Are you coming to Jeonghyeon's engagement party today?]
Hyeseon told her that she was crazy because she was attending the ceremony.
TM: [I had to go. I wanted to see and witness it for myself. The sight of him being happy next to another woman other than me. That way, I felt like I could really move on and let him go without any regrets.]
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━
Jumi, who was trying to shake off random thoughts while cleaning the tea cups and organizing the dishes, left the Café only when the appointed time came. Although it wasn't a very large occasion, the engagement ceremony was extravagant, perhaps due to the influence of the bride-to-be, whose family owned a well-established mid-sized company.
Hyeseon shook her head, saying she couldn't understand the situation. She muttered endlessly, wondering why Jumi had come here. She won't receive anything good from these people. It was said that the sending of the wedding invitation contained impure intentions.
"Who even has engagement parties anymore?", Hyeseon complained. "Look at her, smiling like she's won the lottery. How can she smile like that? I mean, she must know you're here, right?"
"They invited me, so I have to come. If I do avoid it, it feels like I'm a sore loser because I'm jealous or something, right? I have to counter that, but in fact, they wanted to show me that they are living as a happy couple. Anyway, I came despite knowing their bad intentions."
Jumi accepted the whole situation calmly.
"Anyway, are all rich people like this? They change a lot of clothes. How many dresses did she wear? They even have an engagement party first before the wedding. Look at how happy they are, pretending not to know you're attending, even though they know you will come. Hey, look at the way they laugh, especially her. Look at that ruthless, conniving woman. Does she finds it funny to steal and trap someone else's man? Jumi, you must know I'm here for you."
"What do you mean she stole my man? When have he ever been my man? He was never mine to begin with."
"Oh, come on. You know he liked you. Is there anyone who doesn't know that? Everyone knows that! But then Cho Yumi came along—Jumi... it's not okay. What are you doing by coming all the way here and saying this?"
"I guess that's all there was to it. It just wasn't meant to be. That's all."
"That's the problem with you. There's a reason for this and that and everything. You never stand up for yourself. And that's exactly why you got betrayed by a so-called friend..! You always assume there's a good reason for everything. You were aware that she was plotting to steal him from you. We're talking about our alleged friend."
"A man who truly loves his woman cannot be stolen by others. I guess this is where we ended up."
"So it's godspeed then. Do you want to congratulate them? We were fools to even think of that hussy as our friend."
"I don't want to congratulate them, but I also don't wish for things to go wrong for them."
"I don't understand you. Do you want to accept things like that?"
"It just wasn't meant to be."
"Haa, forget it."
"There's nothing I can do about it. I mean, who would want to marry a mobster's daughter anyway?"
"Let's go have a drink."
As Jumi was leaving the two people smiling brightly and receiving blessings, her eyes met with the bride to be, who was wearing a nude-toned dress. As if to show off, she linked her arm around the man in the tuxedo and leaned towards him.
I thought it would be bittersweet, but seeing the happiness of the man I used to love, who turned into a completely different person now wasn't as bad as I thought. It would be a lie if I said I didn't feel a pang of pain and regret in my heart because it was the first news I heard about Kim Jeonghyeon in a long time about his engagement ceremony, but after seeing them together with my own eyes, I really felt lighter. I really feel like I've let go of him since a long time ago.
"Let's go, Hyeseon."
"Okay..."
The two friends left the hotel. Holding the hand of Hyeseon, who looked like she was about to start swearing. As soon as they left the dining hall, a curse burst out of Hyeseon's mouth. Hyeseon tapped her head, asking what on earth were they thinking of coming here, but Jumi was relieved. She threw away all her regrets and turned away for good. She was satisfied with just that.
"Don't even think about going home today."
"Hey, wouldn't it be more miserable for the two of us to drink together?"
"No, it won't unless it's loud and crowded."
In fact, Jumi felt relieved that Hyeseon did the swearing she wanted to do. Hyeseon must have known her feelings, and raised her voice even louder, swearing as much as she could.
Contrary to Hyeseon's burning heart, slow jazz flowed rhythmically inside the bar. It was a place with a pretty nice atmosphere, with soft lighting that they both liked.
"This place looks expensive. Are you okay?"
"You are here with me, so yes I'm fine."
Hyeseon, smiling, raised her wine glass. This was a consideration for her as she does not like noisy atmospheres. Still, Jumi was both thankful and sorry that Hyeseon was concerned about her depressed mood.
Jumi hid her face from the blurring light and concentrated on her drink. She thought for no reason, she was worrying about what happened during the day.
Sometimes, she nodded her head in sync with Hyeseon's words, resting her chin and walking to the bar table not far away.
Jumi drank wine in silence, occasionally looking at the stool chair.
"I thought you were going to crash their party or something. But here you are, staying completely calm. You're too nice. Aren't you at least a little mad at them?"
"I just wanted to see... if he washappy with someone else. I figured that would help me move on and let it go. I actually feel much better now."
"Ah... but isn't it a bit strange? Why are they getting engaged in the winter? Isn't this a premarital pregnancy?"
"I guess they're doing it to get married in the spring, and if it was a premarital pregnancy, they would have kicked it all aside and held the wedding first."
"That's the problem with you. You were never aware of the problem. There must be a reason why this happened. So, to the bitch I thought was our friend... I hope she rots in hell!"
"What do you mean friends? I don't have any friends. Ah... except you, of course."
"Are you paying for all of this? This wine isn't too bad."
"Yes, so drink a lot."
"Yeah, just forget about them. There are plenty of other guys out there. Want me to set you up with someone? Actually, didn't your parents set you up on a blind date? How'd it go?"
"Not great. I only went because my dad made me."
"That's a bummer. Well, let's stop talking about this depressing stuff and have some drinks. Don't even think about going home early tonight!"
"Okay, okay..."
"One more martini, please!"
Jumi looked down at the wine glasses she had already emptied one after another. Before she knew it, the inside of the glass became transparent again and her reflection was reflected.
Does my own face look that bad?
Jumi rested her chin and looked around with tired, drunken eyes.
She observed their surrounding. A bartender handing a red-filled Cosmopolitan to the man across from him, a woman putting a glass of whiskey to her lips, and a man sitting alone across from them.
It seemed like she made eye contact with an awkward-looking man who was slightly aiming his head in their direction. He looked familiar somehow. He has round full-rimmed glasses and slightly long, shaggy hair. When their eyes meet, a surprised look dawned on him.
"Boss, that man... Doesn't he come here really often?"
"Haa..."
Jumi thought she saw a similar face. She stared at the back of the dark head, but the man didn't look at her directly anymore. The stiff back is bent towards a glass of whiskey. The head was lowered for a long time without any intention of rising. She must have misread it, or she may be being sensitive because Eunju said something meaningless.
"Huh?"
I must be imagining things. It's because I've become so sensitive these days.
"What's wrong? What is it? Is it someone you know here?"
"Uh, no. I guess I was wrong. I must've gotten them mixed up with someone else."
"Well, don't even think about going home yet. Let's just drink the night away."
Maybe I'm just on edge because of the engagement party... there's no way he's here.
"How about going to another pub for a second round? After all, soju is the best treatment for depression."
Jumi raised her glass to shake off unnecessary thoughts. It was true that she wasn't in a good mood all day.
The more I tried not to get depressed, the more I felt like I was being buried in it. The reason for this depression was unclear.
Hyeseon, who had been asking to go to the second round, received a call from her fiancé and started shuffling her feet if she had to go somewhere right away. Even though she said she didn't have to go, her whole body showed that she wanted to go. So they ended up finishing their sojourn sooner than she thought, thinking it went well.
As they climb up the stairs to the bar door and went outside, Jumi was filled with cold air. It had snowed a little when she was heading to the hotel earlier, but it soon subsided and only the cold wind blew steadily. Jumi's cheeks suddenly turned red from the cold. It was the beginning of a truly terrible winter. It's a season of the winter cold biting flesh that makes it useless to wear a scarf.
"Sorry, I have to go. See you later!"
"It's okay. I was feeling tired, too. Take care!"
"Then, I have to take a taxi. Call me when you reach home."
Jumi stood there facing the wind until Hyeseon's disappeared into the cloud of darkness and was no longer visible. Now alone, she felt like her heart was being pounded and smeared by the cold. The snow that hasn't cleared yet penetrated deep inside heart and made her feel very cold. However, it was not possible to dilute all the alcohol that had spread to her insides. A fireball was still boiling somewhere in her chest and stomach.
As the night deepened, she stood like that for a while with her chin buried deep inside her coat collar, and in the midst of the silence, Jumi heard the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. She turned around and saw no one.
What's going on? I thought I heard footsteps? Am I just imagining things? I keep getting this creepy feeling like someone's staring at my back. This happened to me once before.
Suddenly, Jumi remembered something during her college days. One day, she started to feel strange eyes following her behind her back, but she thought it was just her imagination.
Jumi, who felt like the man always hovered around her and sometimes sat next to her during class. She began to grow tired of being concerned about him. She was exhausted by the obsessive stalking.
During those times, Jeonghyeon, who noticed that she was having a hard time even though she didn't say anything to anyone, stayed by Jumi's side. She couldn't tell her parents about her staker situation or else she would be forced to follow her father's orders to pack up all her belongings and come home right away. The reason she survived the ordeal was the thought that it was okay, because of Jeonghyeon's protection.
However, after a few months her parents did learn about her stalking ordeal. Jumi found out that the man had been sent by one of her father's enemies, her luggages from her university room had been forcibly removed and brought to their family's home immediately. The struggle and fighting for power against her father to keep him in check, was the main reason for the stalking dilemma.
The stalking problem suddenly stopped and became quiet after Wooseok found out what had been done to her, but Jumi would still think about it sometimes. It was annoying and scary. Wherever she went, the eyes that followed her from afar, the gaze that seemed to be someone else's gaze, the unpleasant act of familiarity, the gaze that she felt in the dark when she returned home after studying at the library until late at night during the exam period, came to mind, and a chill ran down her spine. She swallowed hard again in fear.
I'm getting that same creepy vibe right now. Back then I had Jeonghyeon but now....
Am I really just imagining it?
As the footsteps gradually became closer and clearer, she stepped aside to see a person approaching her, and the man's skin touched the back of her hand. The sound of the man's breathing next to her came, and the feel of flesh grazing past her gave her goosebumps. The unpleasant feeling of sweat running down her back in this cold weather. Jumi looked to the side and saw a man with hunched shoulders walking quickly through the cold wind. She had a bad feeling, like the contact was intentional. The back of his head was the same as the one she saw earlier.
He's the same man! The creepy stalker from Boncha!
Her gut feeling told her so.
"Jumi."