The Last Date
The Last Date
At that time, they were only in their first year of middle school.
Junwoo, who no longer needed to walk on eggshells around his parents, invited Seoyun to his house to hang out to his heart's content.
At first, they thought it was just a young son's immature rebellion and let it slide, but...
Ever since he declared he wouldn't go to medical school, his relationship with his parents had completely fallen apart.
"Junwoo-ya."
"What."
"I'm saying this out of concern, but don't hide things too much, okay?"
"What? What are you talking about out of the blue..?"
"To that kid. Lee Seoyun."
Junhyeok specifically pointed out the relationship between Seoyun and Junwoo, who were still close.
"I'll handle it. Don't butt in."
"Yeah, well... it's your life to live. But if you keep lying, you're definitely going to regret it."
Junwoo's eccentric behavior began by creating 'inevitability disguised as coincidence' to devour Seoyun's heart.
He fabricated his family background, hobbies, friendships, school life, and everything else to create his own persona.
It was all a red pill that Seoyun, the person involved, didn't even dream of.
"So what."
Junhyeok, who had experienced life's hardships many times, gave bitter advice, but Junwoo didn't even pretend to listen.
Because he found the behavior of someone acting like they knew everything while knowing nothing to be unpleasant.
"Anyway, whatever... forget it. Take this."
There was one more envelope left.
"It's the house you wanted. It'll take about two months to finish the interior and everything, so you can move in right then."
A garden house on the outskirts of Gyeonggi-do worth over 4 billion won.
Junwoo had an unlimited credit card he could use as much as he wanted, but he needed his parents' consent for a house transaction worth hundreds of millions of won.
He asked his older brother instead of his parents, whom he didn't even want to see, and Junhyeok, unable to refuse his late-born younger brother's request, handled the house contract in a flash.
He made up an excuse to his parents that he bought it for investment purposes.
"Nice. Thanks."
The location was good, the structure was good, and the view was good.
He had gotten his hands on the mansion Junwoo had wanted exactly.
It was scheduled to be the newlywed home where he would spend his life with Seoyun in the future.
"The basement works properly, right?"
"Yeah. If you want, go check it yourself."
"I'm planning to go when I have time."
A smile bloomed on Junwoo's lips.
He packed the necessary items into his bag and turned his back without even saying goodbye.
Since his purpose was accomplished, there was no need to keep looking at his disgusting older brother's face.
"Hey, Junwoo-ya."
"What."
"Do you still hate Dad?"
"What..?"
The words thrown out of the blue stabbed a dagger into Junwoo's heart.
It was the moment when the anger toward his father, which he had been holding back all this time, flared up like a wildfire.
"Fuck, is that even something to say? I'm never going to see his face until I die, so don't bring up that shitty topic."
Intense anger toward his father.
A bad human being who tried to trample on his child's life for the glory of a doctor family.
Now that he was retired, he was making a fuss about entering politics.
"That little shit... he has no filter when talking to his older brother..."
Junhyeok sighed while looking at the door that had been slammed shut.
He didn't know how long he would have to put up with his late-born younger brother's tyranny, but he composed himself, thinking it was all his and his parents' karma.
3 PM, it was time for Seoyun to return home after finishing university lectures.
[I'm done now.]
Seoyun diligently sent a message to Junwoo as soon as the lecture ended.
[I'm on my way, so wait.]
[Okay.]
Standing blankly in front of the university main gate, she waited for Junwoo, checking every single person passing by on the street.
She thought he would come on foot, but a car approaching from afar honked its horn and called out to Seoyun.
"What are you doing? Get in quickly."
"Ah..."
Seoyun became conscious of the surrounding gazes and quickly ran over to sit in the passenger seat.
"Oh, no... what if someone sees us...?"
"Why? What's wrong? It's fine. And speak informally outside."
"Okay... yeah..."
Junwoo, who had spoken lightly as if it were someone else's business, reached out to Seoyun with the corners of his mouth twitching.
"Heu-eut..."
Rubbing the exposed bare legs, he felt a renewed sense of conquest.
The soft skin burrowed gently between his fingers.
It felt like all the stress accumulated throughout the day was disappearing.
"Seoyun-ah, did anything happen at school?"
"Yes? Ah, nothing happened..."
"Really? Then that's a relief."
Seoyun was always whining about how hard university life was.
He intended to listen to her complaints as a boyfriend, but even in this, Seoyun showed behavior of carefully withholding words.
"Ah, now that I think about it... there was one special thing..."
"What is it?"
"Th-that, you know... the senior in the graduating class who contacted me over the weekend... they said they went missing..."
"And?"
"J-just saying..."
Seoyun turned her head, timidly mumbling.
Because she had a suspicion that Junwoo might be the culprit.
No, it was a thought closer to a wild guess than a suspicion.
"Yeah, Seoyun-ah. I heard the news too. It's a very unfortunate thing. They said they were kidnapped in a secluded place, right?"
"R-really..?"
"Yeah. They didn't die, but they were found with both eyeballs gouged out. The world is scary these days. Isn't it?"
"Yeah..."
Seoyun, who had been listening silently, tilted her head.
She knew it as a missing person case that hadn't been reported on the news yet, but Junwoo mentioned the kidnapping with a voice full of conviction.
Furthermore, found with both eyeballs gouged out..?
Such talk hadn't been heard among the students.
Seoyun's head was full of questions, but she just let it slide, thinking it was whatever.
"We're arriving soon. Get ready to get off."
"Yeah..."
Seoyun had no idea at this point.
The fact that the body of the senior in the graduating class, who died with both eyeballs gouged out, would be discovered in two weeks.
The place the two arrived at was a famous bakery in Seoul.
Junwoo, who parked on the shoulder with his hazard lights on, grabbed Seoyun's wrist and went into the bakery.
"Hello, I made a reservation this morning."
"Yes, what is your name?"
"It's Kim Junwoo."
"Ah~ One Strawberry Bomb cake and white champagne, right?"
"Yes."
Junwoo picked up the pre-ordered cake and paid.
Seoyun, visiting a high-end bakery for the first time, was blinking while looking at the flashy interior.
"Seoyun-ah, is there anything you want to eat?"
"Huh? Ah, no... it's okay."
"Don't decline, just pick. Today is a day for you and me to celebrate."
"Yeah..."
Seoyun, not knowing what they were celebrating, smiled awkwardly and averted her gaze.
The clerk, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation, clapped their hands and smiled brightly.
"Wow~ Are you two a couple? 100-day anniversary? Is it something like that?"
"Yes. Roughly something like that."
"Then that's great~ We're having an event. It's nothing big... we're taking Polaroid photos."
The meddlesome clerk took a Polaroid camera from under the counter and pointed to the photo zone.
In a space decorated in a medieval European style, large and small teddy bears were decorated along with gift boxes tied with ribbons.
A chandelier hanging from the ceiling was slowly rotating and reflecting light, and in the middle, there was a chair where a man and a woman could sit together.
"Try sitting together. I'll take a picture for you~"
"Yeah, well... Seoyun-ah, shall we take one?"
"Yeah..."
It seemed like retro-style outfits would suit it well, but Seoyun and Junwoo were dressed in shabby clothes.
It wasn't like they could say no now.
Unable to resist the smile of the clerk who was excited alone and holding the camera, the two sat side by side on the chair and clasped their hands.
The gap between the fixed chairs was narrow, so they pressed their shoulders together and leaned their bodies.
"Alright~ Look here~ One, two, three~"
Click ─
Simultaneously with the shot, the developed photo popped out from the bottom of the camera.
"It came out well~"
"Yes. It did."
A single photo taken while holding hands normally.
It was their first time taking a photo like this, so they were shy.
Seoyun, who had smiled awkwardly, was blushing and looking at the floor.
This too would become a precious scene of memories as time passed.
"I hope you both are happy. Be happy forever~!"
"Thank you."
Junwoo shoved the photo deep into his pocket and left the bakery.
It was a cozy photo shoot that might be the first and last.
Junwoo, who returned home without a word, stopped in front of the front door.
"Seoyun-ah, close your eyes."
"Huh? Yeah..."
The moment she obediently closed her eyes as told, Junwoo, who had opened the door lock and entered, grabbed Seoyun's wrist and pulled.
As if trying to do a surprise, he took steps slowly, one by one.
The place they arrived at was the Punishment room, completely blocked by soundproof walls on all sides.
"Ta-da~"
"Ah..."
"How is it?"
"I-it's good..."
Seoyun felt a chill run down her spine while looking around the alien room.
The Punishment room was covered all over with bumpy black tiles on all sides, and the ceiling and floor were the same.
A single transparent light bulb attached to the center of the ceiling was showing off its presence.
Since it was an LED bulb, there was no shortage in brightly illuminating the narrow room of about 16 square meters.