Old Wounds Reopened
Having put some distance between ourselves and school, Aju and I headed to the mart together to buy groceries. The whole way there I kept glancing around, unable to help myself.
“Riha oppa, are you looking for someone?”
“What? No, why would you ask that?”
“It’s nothing… You just seem to be looking around a lot.”
“Ah…”
I must have been too obvious. From Aju’s perspective, it probably looked pretty strange.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Okay… but it would be better if you didn’t do it at all.”
“Why?”
“…Never mind, just forget I said anything.”
“Huh?”
Aju threw my own words right back at me. I felt a flicker of curiosity, but I decided not to dwell on it, just like she’d asked.
I would learn the answer to that question a little later.
Who would have thought… that the sight of someone like me scanning our surroundings while standing next to Aju would look like a kidnapping…
It stung a little.
At the mart with Aju, I pushed the cart and followed her around. Honestly, the only thing I could cook was instant ramen, so I had no idea what we should buy.
“Riha oppa, you like egg dishes, right?”
“Yeah. Actually, I like everything you make.”
“Hehe, thank you. But I like egg dishes too, so tomorrow I’ll make omurice.”
“Okay, sounds good~”
Hearing my answer, Aju smiled brightly and placed a pack of eggs that was on sale into the cart. And that wasn’t all.
She chose mostly items that were on sale or the cheapest available. Saving money was clearly second nature to her.
It made her seem thrifty, but… sometimes it broke my heart.
“Aju. Now that I think about it, when was the last time you had beef?”
“Huh? Oh… I don’t think I have. Probably the last time was when you got that bonus, oppa.”
“That was ages ago. Wait here.”
“Riha oppa?”
I left the cart and walked to the center of the meat section she had been browsing. I picked up the most expensive hanwoo package there. Hmm… it really was expensive. Still, I had some savings, so it would work out somehow.
“Riha oppa. That’s really pricey.”
“Is it? Okay, then let’s get three.”
“Riha oppa!?”
Aju called out to me after I did the exact opposite of what her tone had suggested. In truth, it wasn’t that shocking an amount. It was just that Aju had never had the option to buy something this expensive before.
“It’s fine. I’m paying today anyway. Plus, I haven’t had a proper meal out since I was discharged. I want us both to treat ourselves a little. Can’t we?”
“Ah… well, if that’s what you want, oppa…”
“What about you, Aju?”
“Huh?”
“Do you dislike beef?”
At my mischievous question, Aju stared at the two packs of beef in my hands.
Gulp.
She swallowed quietly.
“I like it.”
“I can’t hear you. Say it louder.”
“…”
“Or I’ll cook it all for myself and not give you any.”
“Ugh… I like it.”
“Like what?”
“Beef.”
“What kind?”
“That beef.”
“Be more specific.”
“The really big and delicious-looking… beef that Riha oppa is holding.”
“There we go, good girl… Wait, huh?”
By this point I finally noticed how strange it sounded.
Why did this conversation about liking beef feel so weird?
The people around us were whispering.
And why were they giving us those strange looks? It seemed like they were glancing our way and murmuring to each other…
Had we really been having that bizarre a conversation?
...
..
.
Yeah, it was pretty weird.
“Ahem. So we’ve got the beef. What else do we need?”
“Um… we still need water and fruit.”
“Ooh, then shall we head to the fruit section first?”
“Sure.”
Just as we were about to move toward the fruit aisle, a store announcement suddenly rang out across the mart.
Attention please~ Starting now, we’re running a 10% discount on bottled water and fruit~ This offer is only available for the next ten minutes, so please hurry and take advantage of it while supplies last~
…What was that?
Did they normally run time-specific sales on water and fruit? I didn’t come to marts often, so I had no idea if this was normal.
While my head was spinning with question marks, Aju, who was standing right beside me, suddenly muttered.
“Ten bottles of water would be around three thousand won. One apple is about three thousand three hundred won. With a ten percent discount, even if we buy our usual amount, the remaining budget would be…”
Huh. Had a switch flipped inside her?
Aju had always been smart, but she was especially quick with numbers. Her mental math was… almost monstrous.
“Riha oppa, can I ask you for a favor?”
“You want me to grab the water, right?”
“Yes, exactly!”
That was what fifteen years of knowing each other did for you. We could read each other perfectly.
Still, if just asking me to buy some water made her eyes sparkle like that, what did that say about all the days I had spent trying to make her smile? Haha.
“Got it. I’ll push the cart, so you go ahead and get the apples.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.”
With sparkling eyes, Aju dashed toward the fruit section so fast I wondered if she had always been that quick. I watched her go with a small chuckle and headed toward the bottled water.
It was my first time at this particular mart, but the water section was pretty much the same in every store.
Let’s see… water should be…
…Huh?
Why…
“Why are you here?”
“…Riha.”
Why was Hwayeon here… my ex-girlfriend? The same ex I had broken up with just four days ago was staring at me with an equally shocked expression.
The encounter was so sudden that it felt like time had frozen.
But in that silence, I quickly pulled myself together. What mattered right now wasn’t Hwayeon. It was my promise to Aju.
“Sigh.”
“W-wait.”
Hwayeon grabbed my arm as I tried to walk past her without a second glance. Her dark blue hair swayed, and a familiar scent wafted toward me.
“What do you want?”
“Let’s… let’s talk for a second.”
“What is there to talk about when we’re already over?”
“It’s over, but! It’s over, but… we can still talk, can’t we?”
“I don’t want to.”
Just so we’re clear, I never keep in touch with someone after breaking up. I think holding onto that kind of attachment is a waste of time, and even if we did get back together, we’d just end up breaking up for the same reasons.
“Why didn’t you pick up yesterday…?”
I had said I had nothing to say, but Hwayeon was forcing the conversation anyway. It looked like I wouldn’t be able to leave until I finished this talk.
“Sigh. I don’t stay in touch with my exes. You know that.”
“Even so! I… I thought I was different from your other exes.”
“Why?”
“…I waited for you the entire time you were in the military.”
“And then I dumped you right after.”
“…”
Hit with cold facts, Hwayeon shut her mouth and let go of my arm. What could I possibly say here?
Actually, saying nothing at all was probably best.
“I told you last time. I wasn’t the one who ended it.”
“…Are you sure you weren’t drunk this time?”
But that comment was something I couldn’t let slide. She had been the one to say we should break up the moment she saw her boyfriend who had just been discharged. What was she even saying?
If it wasn’t her, did she think I was the one who suggested it?
“Sigh. I’m leaving. I need to buy water before the sale ends.”
“…Now that I think about it, why are you grocery shopping here? And buying so much, too.”
Hwayeon still seemed determined to keep talking. What now? The ten minutes were almost up.
No, more importantly… while we were standing here like this, maybe—
“Riha oppa! I was able to get the apples really fast!”
See… I knew Aju would show up.
My bad premonitions were always right on the money…
“…Aju?”
“Eh? Uh… Hwayeon… unnie?”
Aju, who had run over while only looking at my face, noticed Hwayeon standing right next to me. Her expression shifted to one of panic and her steps slowed.
Hwayeon looked back and forth between me and Aju, then scanned our surroundings before asking.
“…Where’s Daeho?”
“…” / “…”
The reason we both fell silent here was simple.
Anyone who knew our situation would understand immediately. But Hwayeon, who had no idea, naturally jumped to the wrong conclusion.
“I see… So that’s what’s going on.”
“You’re already with Aju right after breaking up with me? It hasn’t even been a week.”
“…You’re misunderstanding. It’s just… there are circumstances.”
“Then why are the two of you here alone instead of with three people? You’ve never done that before.”
“…”
It would have been easy to tell her that Daeho had died. She would probably realize her mistake, apologize, and leave us alone.
But… was I allowed to be the one to say it instead of Aju?
“Aju, tell me. Why are you… with Riha alone? And what is all this?”
“Hwayeon unnie, that’s…”
“And bottled water? Are you two playing house now?”
“…”
She wasn’t even trying, yet every word hit the mark perfectly…
In reality, the two of us were living together. Of course Daeho was there too, but… that was a fact only I knew. From the outside, it looked like the two of us were co-living by ourselves.
“You’re not going to say anything? Fine… I understand perfectly now.”
Hwayeon had never been the type to show her emotions this openly. If anything, she had always been on the quiet side. And she used to get along well with Aju, too…
“This worked out nicely. I was always the third wheel anyway.”
“What are you talking about?”
“…!”
Slap.
Hwayeon had been saying such strange things that I spoke up. The moment I did, a sharp sting bloomed across my cheek.
Judging from Hwayeon’s posture in front of me, it looked like I had just been slapped.
Wow. I had only ever seen that in dramas. Now it was happening to me.
“Riha oppa!”
I had been standing there in a daze, but Aju’s worried voice snapped me back to reality. She must have been startled.
“Don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt at all… I’m just a little surprised.”
I wasn’t the type to pick fights with just anyone or hold grudges against people. But getting suddenly slapped by an ex… so this was what it felt like.
“Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”
“…Consider this payback for everything I held in until now.”
“Hwayeon unnie.”
“Aju… don’t forget. If I could, I’d hit you too.”
Hwayeon glared at Aju, who was watching with a worried face, then added.
“But since I already slapped him once, I’ll let you off.”
I couldn’t hold back anymore.
“Hey.”
“Kyaa!”
Regardless of gender, I was physically strong. When I grabbed Hwayeon’s arm with real force, she let out a scream without meaning to.
I didn’t have the luxury of caring about that.
“What the hell do you mean? Why would you hit Aju—”
“…She didn’t tell you, huh. Well, that makes sense. She never told you once the whole time we were dating either.”
“Stop dodging the question and answer me! Why the hell did Aju have to get hit by you!”
“Riha oppa!”
I could say it with certainty.
If Aju hadn’t stopped me right then.
I definitely would have hit Hwayeon. With my fist.
“…Even in this situation, you’re not asking why I hit Aju. You’re asking why Aju got hit. Even though I was your girlfriend at the time.”
Hwayeon wore an expression that looked like she had given up on something.
The emotion I felt toward her in that moment was still pure rage.
“Just answer my question. Why did Aju have to get hit?”
“It’s simple… Of course a guy in the military would get angry at a girl who waited for him more patiently than his own girlfriend.”
“…You—!”
“Riha oppa… please.”
“…”
I felt Aju’s hand on my right fist, which was still clenched tight. Thanks to her, the anger that had shot up to the top of my head slowly subsided. The strength left my grip on Hwayeon’s arm, and she finally pulled free.
“You won’t even listen to me, but you listen so well to Aju…”
Hwayeon, who now refused to meet my eyes, was rubbing the spot where I had grabbed her.
“You two suit each other. I’ve always thought so.”
With those final words, she walked away from us.
All that remained was the silence.
“…” / “…”
I could only feel the warmth of Aju’s hand as she held mine without saying a word.