Suspicious Golden Sunday
A suspicious, golden Sunday morning. I'd headed out to the department store in Apgujeong at the crack of dawn. It was the same as when I'd gone to that exhibition with Kim Seo-yeon—nothing was as torturous as waking up early on a weekend. It was around 10 a.m. now. That wasn't super early for a weekday heading to school, but my body clock, tuned to weekend rhythms, was screaming that this was early morning.
"Yaaawn..."
A yawn slipped out naturally. I blinked dazedly.
"When's she gonna get here..."
It was already 10 minutes past our agreed time.
She'd left me with that utterly shameless message and was still nowhere in sight. She'd told me yesterday not to be late...
I glanced at the Kotok chat.
She seemed quiet on the surface, but her texts were surprisingly persistent. Not that it was without reason. It started after I'd bailed on her second guitar practice session and her plea to study together. Of course, I hadn't ghosted her for no reason—that was the day I'd planned to finish exam prep early and chill. I could compromise on a lot, but rest time was sacred. No choice there.
"Sorry. I'm a bit late."
She showed up a whopping 15 minutes late. I was about to snap at her emotionless tone, but the ragged breaths mixed in made me hold my tongue.
"...It's fine. Let's head in."
"Yeah. Let's go."
The place was pretty crowded for a weekend. We started on the first floor with cosmetics. Today's mission: pick a birthday gift for Kang Min-jun. Options for a 20-something guy who wasn't your boyfriend were slim.
"What should we get him?"
"What's your budget?"
"Hmm... 5 to 10?"
In that range, it was clothes or perfume. One or the other. Perfume seemed the best bet. From what I knew, he preferred picking out clothes himself anyway. And in the original story, he had a thing for scents.
"Mm... Wanna check out perfumes first?"
"Perfume? Sure. Any idea what scent he likes?"
"Probably something subtle and sweet, like melon."
I remembered visiting Kang Min-jun's place once. His dad's cologne was melon-scented, and Min-jun had said it smelled nice—like Dad. So, something in that family should hit the spot.
"Really? Let's look for that, then."
And so began our perfume hunt. Big brands, unknowns—tons of options.
"How much?"
"How long does the scent last?"
"Can you gift-wrap it?"
True to form as someone who wore perfume daily, she grilled the staff meticulously. Spritzing thin white strips and sniffing dozens of times. By the end, my nose was shot, but we found a solid, famous-brand melon one. Around 100,000 won—a tad over budget, but Lee Soo-min paid coolly.
"You not getting anything?"
"Me? Thinking Gift-ti-con for delivery. And some food."
Practical over vague. Might lack heart, but we'd done it since middle school. Add homemade snacks with effort, and I'd snag about two weeks of life extension. I wanted to get something else, but giving a guy perfume like her felt off.
"Oh? Okay. Well, gift's sorted. Anything else you wanna see here?"
"Here? Nah, think we're good."
Clothes crossed my mind briefly, but this was a department store, not an outlet. Not buying luxury, and it still felt awkward shopping here.
"Wanna head down and grab food?"
"Sounds good. What're you craving?"
"We'll decide there."
What to eat? My stomach twinged sourly. Last night's course meal with Ye-eun and Ha-rin had been meh—tiny portions, all tease, no fill. Videos said courses look small but satisfy; that place fell short. Nothing since, so I craved something hearty.
We hit the basement food court, scanning spots—
"Soo-min? And Jun-woo too?"
"Oh, Dae-joon-woo! What brings you here."
"...Huh?"
We ran into Kang Min-jun and Kim Seo-yeon.
We'd bumped into Kang Min-jun and Kim Seo-yeon by chance and snagged an empty table. They'd ordered together, said they'd grab it and left. Lee Soo-min and I sat there.
"......"
The air was suffocating. I stared at the chat notifying food ready. When's it coming? Latest was "order received." Frustrated, I toggled my phone screen on and off. Then glanced at Soo-min. Arms on the table, spacing out—no phone. Her brain was probably racing.
She'd seemed upbeat picking the gift earlier, but that was long gone. Smiling on the outside, but I could tell it wasn't real.
"Heh heh heh..."
And now emotional chuckles. I tapped my hand awkwardly. Waiting for them to return or food alert—whichever first.
Kotok!
"I'll go too."
Phone buzzed; I jumped up.
"Why'd you two come here all of a sudden."
Was there an event like this now? Racked my brain—nope.
"Mm..."
Didn't matter if there was. Problem was, eating comfortably now was impossible. Would've been a dopamine rush hearing the story later, but being in it sucked.
And...
It's bugging me.
Recent events making me paranoid?
"Oh, got it?"
The root cause of this mess. Kang Min-jun waved cheerfully. Food untouched—they planned to eat together.
"Soo-min go grab hers?"
"Yeah, bolted right after you guys left."
"When?"
"Like... two minutes ago?"
She'd just left. I recalled her order: spicy rice noodles from a far spot. She couldn't handle spice—impulse buy, probably. Anyway, perfect chance without her.
"You and Seo-yeon... on a date?"
"Nah, date? Seo-yeon wanted something, so we—ow!"
Kang Min-jun yelped mid-sentence. His glare at Kim Seo-yeon said it all.
What'd Seo-yeon want?
No way...
Shopping together, she picks something he likes: "Actually, this is your gift."?
Too far?
Birthday wasn't that soon. Weird imaginings anyway.
"What about you? With Soo-min? That bag—perfume?"
"Uh? Yeah..."
The bag Kang Min-jun pointed at: Soo-min's surprise perfume for him.
Damn, should've hidden it better.
Brain fog made me forget. How to play this off? Eyes darting.
"No way..."
"You know I've been into fashion lately, right?"
"Oh, yeah? Suits you. That outfit too—not the stuff your mom buys—"
"Anyway."
Cut off his tangent.
"Tried clothes, figured perfume next. Asked Soo-min for help."
"Ah... Makes sense. She wears it a lot."
Kang Min-jun nodded. Technically, she'd asked me, but close enough.
"......"
Kim Seo-yeon eyed me suspiciously still. Lips twitching like she had words, then—
"You—"
"Sorry. Late?"
"Nah, you're good."
Lee Soo-min arrived, apologizing. Kang Min-jun said fine; Seo-yeon swallowed her words.
"You?"
"Nothing. Let's eat."
She grabbed her spoon. What was she gonna say? Curious, but better not ask. Minimize talk now.
Why the hell are those two here...
Kim Seo-yeon tapped her foot, watching Lee Soo-min and Kang Min-jun chat.
Curious. Lee Soo-min and Lee Jun-woo. Bumping into them unexpectedly at the department store on a weekend. Why were they shopping together?
Date...? Nah.
Soo-min was after Min-jun. Seo-yeon had clocked it ages ago. Soo-min tried hiding it, but her actions—drunk or sober—shifted by target: Min-jun or Jun-woo.
But... lately, and that drinking party.
They hadn't seemed close before. Now? Suddenly buddy-buddy. Especially that party—saw them huddled in a dark alley. Didn't approach to avoid notice, but it looked serious. What were they saying? Super curious, but knowing Soo-min liked Min-jun, she'd brushed it off uneasy. Now this weekend sighting? Made her doubt if it was only Min-jun.
Or like me...
Did Soo-min like both Min-jun and Jun-woo? Jun-woo had gotten handsome lately, and he was thoughtful. Easy to catch feelings hanging out.
That thought... sparked suspicion.
"Huh? What? Something on my face?"
Lee Jun-woo's head tilt snapped her out. Ah, stared too hard lost in thought.
"Oh? Uh... this?"
"What is it?"
Face heating, she scrambled. Spotted sauce on his right cheek.
Tap tap. She tapped her own right cheek. He checked via phone camera.
"Ah, starving too hard..."
He wiped with tissue, excusing.
"Eat carefully."
She smiled softly watching—then felt eyes. Soo-min's. Gone when she turned, but definite.
Kim Seo-yeon Harboring Various Suspicions (Image)
