Night Streets
"Today was the first day. How'd it go? Yewon, you start."
"First off... the kids are just too cute?"
Go Yewon answered with her head cocked to one side, and the rest of us smiled and nodded. Then Rahi spoke.
"They really are. I had my doubts about only taking the ones who looked well-behaved, but I didn't expect it to turn out this well."
"We still need to be ready for complaints, though. And if we get careless just because the kids are good, they'll notice right away. They're sharper than they let on. Anything else?"
At my question, Go Yewon thought for a moment, then shook her head.
"Not really. Just... I'm happy the gym that used to be so quiet is noisy now?"
"That's a relief. And you've memorized all their names?"
I asked it teasingly. Go Yewon flushed, glanced around, and mumbled.
"...I'll have them memorized soon."
"I wasn't expecting you to. Take your time."
"...Rahi, what you said hurts more, you know?"
"Then what about you, Rahi?"
"I guess you'd call it the feeling of coming home after a long time. It was nice. And I get to be with you, Shinwoo."
The moment she finished, Changsoo pulled a face of pure disgust and jeered.
"Ease up, seriously. Hyung's the weird one. A guy hears talk like that and his hands and feet curl right up."
"I decided I'd be honest in front of Shinwoo."
"Look who's talking, Instructor Changsoo."
Rahi, red-faced at my words, and I both turned toward Go Yewon, who was fighting down a smile.
"You were going at it a bit yourself, weren't you?"
"...You saw that too?"
"Saw what?"
"I didn't say anything."
It was Go Yewon who answered Rahi. Wearing a thoroughly mischievous grin, she turned to Changsoo.
"Instructor Changsoo's tastes are pretty refined, huh?"
"...Leave me alone. What am I supposed to do about the way I'm built?"
"Shinwoo, what's this about?"
"Well..."
After hearing my explanation, Rahi stared at Changsoo as if he were something foul. He only lifted his chin, as if to ask what the problem was.
"What. What. A little respect for people's tastes."
"...And if it goes wrong and she stops bringing her kid, then what?"
"It'll be fine. It's not like they're dating."
"...Is that how it is...?"
"I don't know either. Changsoo will handle it."
Rahi gave a small nod. While I was murmuring to her, Go Yewon studied Changsoo with open curiosity.
"You like the kid's mom?"
"What can I do about it. That's just what I'm drawn to."
"Why, though?"
"A woman with a kid means she was attractive enough that a man wanted to hold her, right? That's what I'm curious about. It starts as curiosity—what kind of charm is it?—and then the interest creeps in little by little. And there's something you only feel from a mature woman."
"Oh. There's actually some logic to that."
"You think a man's tastes are that simple?"
"Fair. They do say men are more delicate than women."
"I'm telling you, one little thing off and the interest dies on the spot."
"...Exactly where does it die? I ought to know."
Go Yewon whispered it while sneaking a look at me, but Changsoo only stared blankly at the ceiling and muttered.
"Ready to take notes?"
"Come on, it's not that serious."
"Well, seeing as you can't even memorize the kids' names, you probably should write it down."
"Honestly, I'm not that curious about Instructor Changsoo's tastes."
"Then don't ask."
Watching her laugh and needle him, she didn't seem to mind at all. In the worst case, a kid quitting would sting, but Changsoo was owed some reward too. That had been the understanding when I'd talked him into this. And since Yeona's mom had been the one to make the first move, maybe the worst wasn't worth worrying over.
"Oh, and..."
"Right. That, too..."
The talk ran on from there, and bit by bit we found things to fix and things to adjust. We were all around the same age, so there was no wall between us, and with Changsoo's tastes already out in the open, there wasn't much left to hide.
"Then that wraps it up."
"This is fun, though. Are we doing it every day?"
It was practically a tea party of gossip. All we were missing were the snacks. At Go Yewon's words, Rahi nodded and looked at me. Changsoo was shifting in his seat like he couldn't sit still, so it was about time I let him go.
"No. Special days, or once or twice a week?"
"I'd be fine doing it every day. It's fun."
"That works too. Changsoo, you should get going. You're stopping by home, right?"
"Yeah. I should at least change clothes before I head out. I'm off."
Somehow it was already past ten-thirty. I waved at him as he stood.
"Good work today. See you tomorrow."
"Yeah. You too, hyung. Director, Instructor Rahi—good work today, both of you."
With that he barely caught their goodbyes before shooting out of Go Yewon's Boxing & Yoga Gym like a bullet. Watching him go, Rahi turned to me, worry in her voice.
"...He'll really be all right, won't he?"
"Oh, don't worry about it. If anything, Changsoo's on the ordinary side. Tastes are just tastes."
Go Yewon answered over a sip of coffee. I was inclined to agree. And it was about time I told Rahi.
"Rahi."
"Yes?"
"I'm staying here tonight."
"Khak—!"
Go Yewon choked and spat her coffee, but Rahi and I only looked at each other. I didn't see her waver, or worry for me, or any unease. What I felt instead was a steady trust, the look of someone who believed in me, and, strangely, a hint of gratitude.
"...Please take good care of Yewon."
"Yeah. You'll be all right going alone?"
"Don't worry. If anything, Yewon's the one I'm worried about."
Rahi smiled and shot Go Yewon a playful look, but Go Yewon was coughing too hard to notice. Just as Rahi's seriousness had rubbed off on me, was my mischief starting to rub off on her? I grinned.
"If you really want. Care to watch?"
"Sh-Shinwoo!"
"...Should I?"
"Hey..."
Go Yewon flushed and protested under her breath, but neither of us paid her any mind. If Rahi hadn't been on her period, I might have invited her too, if only to tease her. I hadn't forgotten, though, that this would be Go Yewon's first time.
"I... I didn't think you'd put it that bluntly..."
"Well, the two of you already talked it all out, didn't you?"
At that, both of them flinched. I let out a short laugh and slowly got to my feet.
"Come on. I'll walk you."
"Ah, no. I can go by myself."
"No. We should give Yewon time to tidy her room."
Go Yewon's eyes went round. She shot up from her seat as if she'd been launched.
"R-right. Just a minute. A minute is all I need."
"Take your time. Let me spend a little while with Rahi, too."
"Th-thank you..."
Still red-faced, stealing glances at the two of us, she bolted out of the gym. Rahi and I burst out laughing at the same time.
"Was I like that?"
"Cuter. I can still see you hanging off me in the entryway."
Rahi blushed, but when her hand reached for mine, I quietly took it.
"...Back then, I really thought my heart was going to burst."
"That highball line is still fresh, you know."
"...I don't even know why those words came to me."
"Still, maybe we ended up together because you were the one who went for it."
"...But thinking about it now."
"Yeah?"
"You liked me too, didn't you, Shinwoo?"
"Of course. Your body was incredible."
"...I'm glad."
"Why?"
"I... I started wondering if I'd just been stubborn about it."
I laughed under my breath and stroked her hair.
"Shall we go, then?"
"Yes."
When I picked up her bag, she immediately took it back and squeezed my hand tight. Her hand wasn't trembling. Nowhere in the way she looked at me did I feel anxiety, or sadness, or jealousy. If anything, it left me a little guilty.
"I guess it's really spring."
"Yeah. The plum blossoms are already starting to fall."
"They say the cherry blossoms are coming early this year."
"Oh, yeah?"
"Yes. Down south, I heard they're already out."
"That's fast. Almost two weeks early?"
"I know, right."
Hand in hand, we walked slowly toward the bus stop, talking about this and that. With no moon up, the street was quite dark, but the streetlamps had a charm of their own, and it made for a pleasant walk.
"When the flowers bloom, let's go see them."
"Yes..."
"And, uh, the cafe owner's name is Ju Hayeong."
When I brought up the silver town, a retirement community, and the pension village of vacation cottages that I'd discussed with Ju Hayeong, Rahi, who had been listening quietly, clapped her hands.
"That's nice. I never thought of that."
"Right? I'd only been thinking apartments or houses. The insides can be handled with a remodel."
"I like it. Then I'll feel a little less sorry toward you."
"...So it really was weighing on you."
"Of course... It's something Hyunji or I ought to be doing, and you said you would."
"I guess I dug in too hard."
"Actually, I know you were being considerate of me, too..."
"It's not like that."
She squeezed my hand, and I squeezed back, looking into her eyes.
"...No. I know. You look out for me a lot, Shinwoo."
"I told you, it isn't looking out for you."
"Shinwoo."
"Yeah?"
"...I love you. Truly."
"I love you too."
I held her quietly as she came into my arms, and a bus began to pull up to the stop.
"...Please kiss me."
"Yeah."
I kissed the lips of the woman looking quietly up at me, and as her arms came around my neck, I shared her warmth in silence.
"Please look after Yewon. That girl. She's even more of a fool in front of a man."
"Don't worry."
"...I'm glad you seem to like Yewon too, Shinwoo."
"I still like you more, for now. Not sure how it'll turn out."
I'd said it playfully, but the unwavering look in her eyes stopped the words in my throat.
"I'll work hard. So that you like me even more than Yewon."
"...I'll look forward to it?"
"...I'll live up to it."
Then, looking at me as if she hated to leave, she slowly drew out of my arms, climbed onto the bus, and waved. I waved back, and feeling her eyes still on me even after she sat, I waited until the bus had vanished completely.
She probably has no idea how much comfort I take from her.
Watching the back of the departing bus and remembering that smile, I found myself smiling without meaning to. I'd wondered if I was only feeding my own greed, and yet they seemed to like even that. A strange feeling. I turned slowly from the stop and headed back toward Go Yewon's Boxing & Yoga Gym.
We're still a little short on rapport. I'd wanted more time with Go Yewon, wanted to build that closeness and ease her slowly into sexual touch, but this wasn't bad either. It had started the same way with Rahi. She was the one who'd taught me that when you're building feelings, the order of physical intimacy doesn't matter all that much. It was also a decent chance to test how this virgin-hungry Special Internal Energy of mine would react. I was still me, after all. I'd reflected for a moment on that talk with Rahi, and already I was looking for my own gain again.
Well, what can you do. People don't change that easily.
I was mid-step when it hit. A sensation like something stabbing into my head raised goosebumps over my whole body. A strange sense of connection. It wasn't what I'd felt from Rahi, or from Ju Hayeong. At that thoroughly unpleasant feeling, the soft, yielding warmth I'd had toward Rahi locked rigid in an instant. Instinctively, I turned my gaze toward wherever it was coming from.