We're Here - 2
The Friday evening was drawing near.
After finishing the loop around the country, after taking care of what needed doing in Seoul, I decided to drop off Dr. Jang, who’d traveled with us, near Tapgol Park. Whether it was the gourmet meals he’d had on the trip or something else, he was grinning from ear to ear.
We arrived in Jongno just as the evening glow was beginning to sink behind the buildings.
I turned toward the passenger seat and said, “We’re here.”
“Heh-heh. Ah, so it’s Friday already? I never could figure out why the good things end so fast. A trip around the whole country with a friend... I never even did that when I was young. I’ll never forget this until the day I die.”
“...”
Dr. Jang was old enough to mention his own death as casually as if he were talking about the weather. I found myself worrying that I’d dragged his frail body around too much.
“Weren’t you tired? You were out late every day, showing me around and all that.... We even took a boat, and went all the way to Jeju Island.”
“What, I slept just fine here. It was more comfortable than most hotels.”
Dr. Jang looked proudly at the camper van’s living space. His attachment to the place he’d been given shelter in for the past few days was plain to see.
“I got to try new things after all these years. Ate a lot of good food, too. Especially that galbijjim set meal in Suwon, and that... was it Daegu? The jjambbong I had there. I’m still thinking about it.”
“I’m glad it suited your taste.”
“President Seonwoo, you really are something. You don’t even look like the type to go on a gourmet tour, and yet you keep finding all these famous local places.”
“It just worked out that way.”
“At this rate, I’m more worried that this old man was the one who helped you. Half the time, the owner changed hands and I just handed things over to President Seonwoo.”
“Not at all. You were a huge help. I would’ve had trouble negotiating with a few of those places on my own.”
Dr. Jang had been more helpful than I could have hoped.
From the start, this whole journey had been launched to find his connections, but every time negotiations got stuck, the way he soothed cultural figures with that smooth, easy manner of his was exceptional.
I don’t know how impressive Dr. Jang was back when he was a professor. But there’s no way he didn’t know the film, theater, and entertainment worlds inside and out....
At the very least, he’d been someone who could speak on a national level. And I couldn’t help wondering why someone with that kind of past had fallen so far.
From one of the country’s leading cultural elders,
to a destitute old man living off drinks and handouts.
That definitely wasn’t a normal story. And given how sharp he was when it came to politics and economics, it wasn’t the kind of mistake you’d make from being careless with money, either.
“...”
But I couldn’t ask.
Dr. Jang himself seems reluctant to talk about his past unless it’s his work or his granddaughter.
Besides, today was July 9.
That left twenty-one days until the regression.
And there was still too much to do.
No matter how good a connection was, I didn’t have time to get any closer than this.
Still...
If....
Someday, we ended up becoming friends again.
In another round,
I wanted to hear his story.
That was how much this round had meant to me.
“If there’s another chance.”
“Hmm?”
“If fate allows it again.”
“...”
“Let’s travel the country again. Korea has a lot of good places to eat.”
“...”
Even if a sense of emptiness brushed past my heart, I wanted to make that promise with him again.
Dr. Jang didn’t answer.
He only reached out in silence
and gave my shoulder a light pat.
“Don’t take on too much.”
“...”
“You’re already busy enough trying to keep youthful, beautiful relationships alive. Don’t strain yourself trying to keep company with an old man like me.”
“That’s not it.”
“Yes, it is.”
Dr. Jang got out of the camper van.
“Hey.”
“Yes.”
“Do you remember the day we first met in May?”
“Yes.”
He pointed toward Tapgol Park and said, “Back then, I told you not to come here....”
“...”
“...But now that I think about it, I’m glad I met you. If I hadn’t, I’d have died in that corner over there, spending my whole life on regrets. I wouldn’t have known how lovely my granddaughter really was, and I’d have forgotten the heat of jjambbong broth....”
“...”
Jang Cheol looked at me.
His cloudy eyes held the force of the evening sunset.
“Thank you for talking to me. Thanks to you, I got to live again.”
“That’s not true.”
“Then I’ll be off.”
“Take care.”
“Get home safe. I hope everything you’ve been working on turns out well. I’m glad you don’t waste time like I did.”
“...”
I nodded.
“Thank you.”
“Mm.”
He walked off into the dim street.
With that worn-out bucket hat of his, his back slightly bent, the old man looked shabby.
But even that couldn’t strip away his last shred of dignity.
“...”
With Dr. Jang’s help, I was able to build a nationwide network of small cultural venues. I then relayed the news directly to Aurora Prism Entertainment.
I sent three billion won in budget.
And after ending the call with CEO Baek Su-cheol,
“...”
he had sounded shocked the entire time. It made sense. The ever-hidden Bigman had finally shown his face, so he’d have reason to be startled.
I held the steering wheel and stayed silent.
“...”
I’d shown myself.
I’d closed the distance.
I’d gone to them.
Not to issue orders from above, but because I couldn’t keep racing forward without running beside them.
Not just letting things drift away....
So I wouldn’t regret it.
That was the request my friend had made to me in this round.
I intended to honor it.
“...I should head back.”
I drove the camper van toward a convenience store, and that was where I ran into A-young.
It was an unexpected meeting.
And then there was her question.
“Oppa, are you Bigman?”
“...”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I took a moment to steady my breathing.
Then I answered honestly.
“...Yes.”
“...”
A-young stopped breathing.
“Big... Man-nim....”
“...”
What had she trusted enough to ask, and what had she trusted enough to accept?
I guess we shared too much for me to hide it with evidence alone.
A-young accepted the truth.
Her eyes trembled.
A few tears spilled out.
Her two hands, shaking badly, folded together.
She bit her lip and trembled like a squirrel standing in front of a cutting wind.
It was summer, when even standing still made sweat bead up on your skin.
“...”
No.
Maybe it was the cold sweat I’d broken out in myself.
“...”
In that dark hallway, inside a building still holding onto the heavy heat of summer, the distance I’d kept because I didn’t want to hurt her finally came to an end.
And ironically,
it happened to both of the connections I’d made in May, on the very same day.
One was a promise that had carried over between rounds.
The other was a hidden secret within this one.
Both of them had collapsed the space between us.
Was that what bonds were? Or was it simply the consequence of my own actions?
Either way.
I’d already answered.
“...”
“...”
I could have hidden it.
I could have dodged it.
I could have dragged the conversation on long enough to verify the evidence later.
If I’d really wanted to keep it hidden, I could have hidden it to the end.
But....
“...”
I simply couldn’t lie to her.
I felt like I’d regret it.
“...”
“...”
After the silence swelled to the point of bursting, what finally came was a cautious voice.
With her trembling hands clenched tight and her chin shaking, A-young asked me. Her whole body was shivering, but her eyes were warm and her voice was gentle. It was contradictory, but somehow natural.
“W-why... was it me?”
“The first time was a coincidence. I was scrolling past your stream, and I became interested in how hard you were trying to live.”
“...”
“The next time was a coincidence too. I passed by and saw you working at the convenience store. I could tell from your voice alone.”
“...”
“And then....”
“...”
“The last time, I got a little angry. And helpless.”
“What?”
A-young’s trembling eased a little.
“Why would someone so bright and sparkling... have to hide away in corners and practice like that? Why would nobody look at you.... It felt unfair.”
“...”
“After that, I started cheering for Aki-chan, for A-young, as a person.”
“...”
“That’s all.”
“Huh?”
The first time was a coincidence
The next time was a coincidence too
And then anger at something unjust
And finally, sincerity toward her
“...”
“...”
A-young hesitated for a moment. Then she caught her breath and fidgeted with her fingers. Her yellow hair swayed with the movement.
“Th-that... just for something like that... and you kept... giving everything, all the time....”
“I told you before.”
“!”
“Money isn’t a big deal to me.”
I said it calmly.
“More than money, I... value people’s hearts. Yours seemed to have a lot of that. I envied it, too. And I wanted to support you.”
“...”
“It might be hard to believe. But it’s true.”
“...”
Silence settled between us again.
“...”
“...”
A-young said, “I believe you.”
“You shouldn’t believe that so easily.”
“It isn’t easy.”
“?”
A-young smiled slightly. With her now-still hands folded gently together, she looked up with a brightened face and said, “You always watched over me, made a stage for me. Without saying anything... you listened to my stories, told me it was okay to be there, shared with the people who needed it, made allowances because you were worried it still wouldn’t be enough.... And also....”
“...”
“Mm, there’s too much.”
“Too much of what?”
A-young broke into a wide smile.
“The boss lady, Bigman, and you, oppa Taek... you’re all kind of fools like me. There are so many things that make me feel that way.”
“A fool? A-young, that’s....”
“And again.”
“?”
“Again, talking like you’re the one who matters least.”
“...”
“Always saying things like you’re about to leave somewhere.”
“...”
For a brief moment, while I was still frozen by her words, A-young stepped softly toward me. Before I had a chance to back away, her yellow hair shimmered just below my line of sight. Then she wrapped her arms tightly around my sweat-damp back.
She hugged me.
Brightness and warmth bloomed inside that damp, dark hallway. Afraid even to brush against it, I lifted my hands. In response, she held me even tighter.
Softness.
Shame.
I could feel everything in the warmth of our touching bodies.
“A-young....?”
“There was something I’ve wanted to say to you for a long time.”
“What is it?”
The answer came from below.
A yellow star shimmered as she said, “Thank you, Bigman. Because of you, I was able to live while dreaming.”
“...”
“I’m glad Bigman is oppa Taek....”
“...”
“Thank you. Really....”
“...”
There was a wetness in her voice. The shirt she’d buried her face against was slowly growing damp. It spread little by little, carrying a heat with it.
Whether it was sweat or tears....
I decided not to ask.
I only answered her words.
“...It’s nothing.”
“It’s not nothing.”
“...”
I’d heard that line somewhere before.
Today really did seem like an oddly fitting day.
I’m hearing the same words twice over.