The Weekend Promise
There was only one bed.
The week from booking the lodging to graduation felt unusually long.
Min-ah and I met every day at school.
We ate lunch together as usual.
After class, we walked to the bus stop.
But sometimes, when our eyes met, one of us would quickly look away.
I didn’t ask what she was thinking.
I didn’t need to.
It was probably the same for her.
On graduation day, we wore our school uniforms for the last time.
We took photos with our friends.
In front of our parents, we smiled as usual.
While everyone else dispersed for a moment, Min-ah came over to my side.
“It’s really over now.”
“Yeah.”
Min-ah looked at my diploma once and asked,
“Remember next weekend?”
“Would I forget?”
“The answer came late.”
“When did it come late?”
“You sent the photo and answered after a long time.”
The moment I first saw the reservation screen flashed in my mind.
Two people.
One room.
One bed.
“I was surprised.”
“Not because you didn’t want to?”
Min-ah was smiling, but she waited for my answer.
“No.”
“Then it’s fine.”
Even after saying that, Min-ah didn’t immediately go back to her friends.
She held my hand for a moment, then let go.
“See you next week.”
A week later.
Min-ah and I were both adults now.
We wouldn’t wear uniforms anymore.
On the promised weekend morning, Min-ah stood at the bus terminal pulling a small travel bag.
Her luggage was heavier than on normal dates.
The moment I saw it, I felt the real weight of leaving.
Min-ah glanced at my bag and said,
“You only brought that?”
“What else do I need for one night?”
“Did you forget something?”
“No.”
“Toothbrush?”
“I brought it.”
“Charger?”
“I brought that too.”
Min-ah looked at me suspiciously.
“Why?”
“I was pretending to be calm.”
“You didn’t?”
“I did.”
Min-ah admitted it too easily, so I had nothing left to say.
The bus arrived.
We sat side by side heading to the suburban pension.
Familiar buildings faded from the window.
Min-ah checked the area around the pension on her phone and said,
“There’s a walking trail nearby.”
“It’s cold though?”
“Just a little walk.”
“What about dinner?”
“Let’s buy meat.”
It was a normal trip conversation.
But every time the lodging came up, the reservation screen kept flashing in my mind.
When the bus shook, Min-ah’s hand back touched my hand back.
It was the hand I had held countless times since we started dating.
But that day, every touch felt different.
In the end, I was the one to hold her hand first.
Min-ah laced our fingers and asked,
“Are you feeling better now?”
“What?”
“Your hand has been stiff since morning.”
“It wasn’t stiff.”
“It’s sweaty.”
I tried to pull away, but Min-ah didn’t let go.
“I didn’t say to let go.”
Same words as the first time I held her hand.
We were holding hands more naturally now.
But my heart was beating faster than before.
A while later, Min-ah looked out the window and said,
“Junho-ya.”
“Yeah.”
“You wanted to come with me, right?”
I answered immediately.
“Yeah.”
Min-ah finally smiled.
“That’s why I booked it.”
“I know.”
“Then it’s fine.”
When we arrived and checked the room, there was only one bed.
We had booked a room we knew about.
Still, seeing it in person made the words feel pointless.
Min-ah set her bag down and asked,
“Why are you looking at it like that?”
“What?”
“The bed.”
“I wasn’t looking.”
“You kept staring.”
Min-ah laughed.
I laughed along, but my face felt hot.
We unpacked and went outside.
We stopped at the mart and bought meat and ramen.
Min-ah added a few more snack packs.
“Are you going to eat all of this?”
“If anything’s left, we can take it back.”
We returned to the pension and grilled the meat.
Min-ah picked up the tongs but kept burning them.
In the end, I took the tongs from her.
“You can’t grill meat.”
“As long as you know how to eat it.”
“Eat the burned parts yourself.”
“Shouldn’t a boyfriend cook for you?”
Conversations like usual slowly eased the tension.
We ate and walked around.
We took several photos.
There were more photos of just the two of us than the ones where she asked me to take them.
On the phone screen, nothing looked different from usual.
That was why I felt even more conscious.
Soon we’d be back in that room.
After our walk, we didn’t go inside immediately.
We sat side by side on the bench in front of the pension.
As the sun set, the air quickly cooled.
Min-ah pressed her body against my arm.
“When we go to university, we won’t see each other often, right?”
“We’ll see each other on weekends.”
“At first it’ll be busy.”
“Even so, we can make time.”
Min-ah fell quiet for a moment.
“When we get there, don’t get distracted by pretty girls.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m just warning you in advance.”
We held her cold hands and returned to the room.
Even after returning to the room, we didn’t shower right away.
We opened the snacks and sat opposite each other on the bed, turning on the TV.
Min-ah changed channels several times.
“There’s nothing good on.”
“Watch the one from earlier.”
“It’s boring.”
“I didn’t even watch it.”
“You weren’t watching either.”
She was right.
The bed was more on my mind than the screen.
Min-ah seemed to feel the same, fiddling with the remote.
In the end, I got up first.
“I’ll shower.”
“Okay.”
I closed the bathroom door and looked in the mirror.
It was the same face as always.
But after turning on the water, I stood there for a long time without moving.
If I stayed too long, it would look suspicious, so I showered quickly.
When I came out, Min-ah entered the bathroom with a towel and clothes.
While the sound of running water filled the bathroom, I only watched TV.
I didn’t catch a single word the people on screen were saying.
The door opened.
Min-ah was wearing a thin shirt and shorts.
Water droplets fell from the ends of her still-damp hair.
The scent of shampoo grew closer.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I wasn’t looking.”
“You were staring.”
Min-ah sat down beside me.
Our knees touched.
We could have avoided it, but neither of us did.
The TV sound filled the room.
Min-ah picked up the remote and turned off the screen.
The room suddenly went quiet.
“Why did you turn it off?”
“You weren’t watching.”
Min-ah looked at me.
She didn’t avoid my eyes.
I got closer first.
Our lips touched.
I tried to keep it short, but Min-ah grabbed the hem of my shirt.
We kissed again.
This time it lasted longer.
I hesitated, not knowing where to put my hands, and placed them on her waist.
Min-ah lay back, and the still-damp ends of her hair pressed against the pillow.
I followed, lowering my body.
The closer we got, the clearer Min-ah’s breathing became.
Min-ah grabbed my wrist.
I stopped, thinking she wanted me to push away.
But she didn’t let go.
Instead, she pulled me closer.
“Should I turn off the lights?”
“No.”
I reached for the first button of her shirt.
As my fingertips touched, Min-ah’s breathing quickened.
I unbuttoned the first button.
The second one didn’t come off as easily as I thought.
A few times my fingertips slipped, so Min-ah placed her hand over mine.
“I’ll do it.”
Min-ah unbuttoned the second button herself.
A while later, her voice grew smaller.
“It won’t work.”
“Why?”
Min-ah said without looking into my eyes,
“Turn it off.”
I pressed the switch on the bedside lamp.
Darkness descended.
Before my eyes adjusted, Min-ah’s hand wrapped around the back of my neck.
We kissed again.
This time Min-ah pulled me first.
When my hand slipped under her shirt, Min-ah took a short breath.
I tried to stop, but Min-ah didn’t let go.
“Keep going.”
The whisper reached my lips.
Min-ah’s breathing raced under my palm.
Clothes fell one by one onto the floor beneath the bed.
It was hard to see in the dark.
That’s why the sensations under my fingertips were clearer.
Min-ah pressed a small wrapped package into my hand.
“You know how to do this, right?”
“Yeah.”
It was a lie.
It took longer than I thought to tear the package open.
I heard Min-ah trying to hold back a laugh.
“Don’t laugh.”
“I wasn’t laughing.”
“You were.”
“A little.”
Min-ah pulled my neck again.
This time the laughter disappeared between our lips.
Our bodies touched.
At first, in the dark, we misaligned several times.
Every time, my heart beat faster.
“Sorry.”
Min-ah held my hand.
“Don’t keep saying sorry.”
Min-ah led me herself.
“Here.”
I pushed my body slowly.
Min-ah’s breath stopped for a moment.
I stopped too.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Just a second.”
Min-ah stayed still, holding my waist.
A moment later.
Min-ah moved first.
“Now it’s okay.”
I moved again.
At first, carefully.
Checking her expression bit by bit.
As my eyes adjusted to the dark, Min-ah’s face became visible.
Her face was as tense as mine.
But there was a faint smile at the corner of her mouth.
“Why are you smiling?”
“Your face is too serious.”
“For who?”
“Still cute.”
“Don’t say that now.”
“Why?”
“I can’t see your face.”
This time Min-ah buried her face in the pillow.
When I moved my waist, Min-ah’s hands grabbed my back.
Our breathing slowly synced.
The initial hesitation had vanished.
Min-ah called my name.
Short.
Hearing that voice, I could no longer stop.
“Look at me.”
Min-ah lifted her face from the pillow.
Our eyes met.
“I like you.”
Min-ah swallowed and smiled.
“Saying that at a time like this is unfair.”
“Then after this, I’ll say it again.”
Min-ah’s arms wrapped around my neck.
We didn’t separate until our breaths completely tangled.
For a while, we couldn’t speak.
Min-ah’s arm was still resting on my waist.
I picked up the water beside the bed and handed it to her.
The hand that received it trembled slightly.
“Your hand is shaking.”
“You’re shaking too.”
My hand was the same.
Min-ah drank the water and let out a small laugh.
“After we finished, you said you’d say it again.”
“What?”
“No need to know.”
Min-ah turned over.
I pulled her into my arms and kissed her forehead.
“I like you.”
Min-ah looked at me again.
“Me too.”
Min-ah came a little closer into my arms.
A while later, Min-ah asked,
“Were you very tense earlier?”
“No.”
“Lie.”
“You were too.”
“I said I was.”
Min-ah placed her hand on my chest.
My heart was still beating fast.
“Still like that.”
“For who?”
Min-ah let out a small laugh.
“Me too.”
Even though I had hugged her many times before.
That day, if I let go, it felt like something would end.
My arm twitched, but I didn’t move.
Min-ah’s breathing slowly evened out.
I listened to that sound and finally fell asleep after a while.
When I woke in the morning, Min-ah was sleeping beside me.
It was the same face as yesterday.
But it looked different from before.
It felt like something new had been added between us.
Min-ah woke, looked at me for a while, and asked,
“Why are you looking?”
“Just.”
“Another lie.”
Min-ah pulled the blanket up to her chin.
“No regrets?”
“None.”
I answered immediately.
Min-ah laughed.
“Me too.”
When I went into the bathroom, two toothbrushes stood side by side on the sink.
The blue one I brought and the white one that was hers.
It was an ordinary thing, but it gave me a strange feeling.
It looked like proof that we had really spent the night together.
Min-ah sent me one of the photos she had taken the day before.
A photo of the two of us sitting together on the bench in front of the pension.
“This one turned out well, right?”
“Yeah.”
Min-ah took my phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Just a second.”
A while later, she returned the phone.
The lock screen had changed to the photo I had just received.
“Why are you changing it freely?”
“Travel souvenir.”
Min-ah checked my expression.
“If you hate it, change it.”
On the screen, Min-ah leaned her head on my shoulder and smiled.
There was no reason to change it.
“I’ll just leave it.”
“Keep it?”
“Yeah.”
Min-ah smiled, satisfied.
As check-out time approached, we packed our luggage.
We picked up the clothes that had fallen under the bed.
Before opening the door, Min-ah called me.
“Junho-ya.”
“Yeah.”
“When you go to university, don’t look at other girls.”
“So soon?”
“Yeah. So soon.”
“Don’t look, okay?”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
Min-ah laughed.
That answer wasn’t a lie.