Have You Ever Imagined It?
“Hello there, Sister-in-law.”
“Hey, you crazy bastard!!”
He was grinning at me like he’d been waiting for this moment. Seriously, that Kim Su-ho punk—you can never take your eyes off him for a second.
“Ah, sorry about that, ma’am. He suddenly started yelling curses.”
“It’s fine. Your friend seems really fun, doesn’t he, Chae-yeon?”
“Huh? Uh, yeah… I guess so.”
“I’m Jung-woo’s friend, Kim Su-ho.”
“Oh, hello.”
“Chae-yeon, I’ve finished all my errands, so Mom’s heading home. What about you?”
“Me? Um…”
“To-sin, we’ll go have some fun on our own. You take your time and enjoy yourself.”
The aunt, who had been quietly listening to the kids talk, smiled softly and headed home. The others left me behind and made their way toward the karaoke room.
In the atmosphere they created by stepping aside, only Chae-yeon and I remained.
“Hmm, what do you want to do? Let’s hang out for a bit before heading back.”
“Y-yeah. This situation came out of nowhere, so I’m a little flustered.”
I was just as flustered. Running into Chae-yeon by chance was one thing, but Su-ho’s surprise attack had left my mind in a haze, and now here we were, alone together.
Words and actions that would have felt completely natural before suddenly felt awkward, like we were back on the very first day we’d reunited.
“Want to walk around a little first?”
“S-sure.”
An awkward air flowed between us.
This was all Kim Su-ho’s fault. Why did he have to say something like that and create this atmosphere?
“Oh? You sent me a message? I didn’t see it.”
“Ah, yeah. We had a welcome party of sorts today because three new members joined the writers’ group.”
“And you’re still drinking lemonade in the middle of that? Don’t you get tired of only drinking one kind?”
“The taste is different at every café. There’s a certain fun in exploring them.”
“It’s not like you’re doing a food tour. Try a condensed milk latte or something. At least that doesn’t taste as much like coffee.”
“I’ve tried it. There’s still a coffee aftertaste.”
As we walked down the street crowded with countless people, I gently pulled Chae-yeon a little closer to my side.
There were so many people that if we kept any distance between us, we’d probably bump into strangers constantly.
“Downtown is nice, but it’s annoying how cars drive on the same streets where people walk.”
“I know. It feels dangerous sometimes.”
“What did you do with your mom?”
“Bank stuff. I told her I needed it, so she came home really late last night.”
“You must be tired. Shouldn’t you go home and rest?”
“It’s okay. I slept in late this morning.”
Every time she spoke, Chae-yeon kept glancing sideways at me, like she was reading my expression.
When I get home today, I’m definitely going to wring Kim Su-ho’s neck. He’d crossed the line too far to just let it slide. Chae-yeon wasn’t even alone—her mom was right there—and he still called her Sister-in-law.
“Don’t pay any attention to that prank my friend pulled earlier. He’s the type who jokes around a lot.”
“Huh? Oh, it’s fine. That kind of thing happens all the time when friends run into someone of the opposite sex.”
“I’ll make sure to tell him never to do it again.”
“It was funny. I was a little flustered, though.”
Maybe it was because I’d decided to just admit what I had to admit, but Su-ho’s words wouldn’t leave my head.
“Be honest. Aren’t you dating that childhood friend of yours?”
Dating Chae-yeon.
If we did, what would it feel like?
“Still, it’s a relief you have friends like that.”
“Friends? More like mortal enemies. They’re pretty close to enemies.”
“The fact that you have friends you can hang out with like that means you haven’t given up on human relationships.”
“Excuse me. Even if I don’t go outside much and hate meeting people, I’m not that bad.”
“That’s what I thought until you mentioned the writers’ group.”
She wasn’t wrong.
After the surgery, I hadn’t wanted to show my less-than-normal body to others, so I’d been too busy hiding myself. But as I gradually improved through writing novels, I started wanting to spend time with people who shared the same hobby.
That’s how the writers’ group came to be.
Even my mom had looked completely disbelieving when I told her I’d made one.
“But they’re all guys?”
“The platform I serialize on is mostly male users.”
“Even so, how is it possible there isn’t a single girl among five people?”
“Finding a female writer on that platform is like finding a star in the sky.”
Ah, but Su-ho had guessed she might be a girl after exchanging comments and emails. Her writing style was so soft and cute. Of course, that had all been business talk. He still gets teased for mistaking her for a girl back then.
“Want me to buy you some tanghulu?”
“Huh? It’s okay. I just ate.”
“You always ate dessert whenever we met. Why the sudden change?”
“I’m not really craving it today.”
“Your eyes are literally saying you want some, though?”
At my words, Chae-yeon’s face turned bright red and she quickly looked away.
Just like before, Chae-yeon was still terrible at hiding her feelings.
I placed a Shine Muscat tanghulu and a Black Sapphire tanghulu in both of her hands.
“Thanks. You always buy me things.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Don’t you have a favorite dessert? I’ll buy it for you.”
“I like tiramisu and cheesecake.”
“If you could only choose one between tiramisu and cheesecake, which would you pick?”
That was one of the great unsolved dilemmas of my life.
Whenever I went to a place that sold both kinds of cake, I’d always buy two—one to eat right away and one to take home.
But if I had to choose only one…
I couldn’t decide.
“Pfft!! Why are you taking it so seriously?”
“This is an incredibly important question. I can’t choose.”
“If it’s that hard, why don’t you just eat tiramisu cheesecake?”
“When you combine two delicious foods into one, you usually just get some weird hybrid.”
“Now I’m curious. What would it even taste like?”
“Hmm, maybe the taste of cheese and coffee in one bite? Why are you making that face after bringing it up?”
“I imagined it. It sounds terrible.”
“Coffee and cheese aren’t a matching combination to begin with.”
While walking, we spotted a bookstore.
Chae-yeon’s eyes sparkled in front of it, like she’d thought of something she wanted to do.
“Jung-woo, let’s pick out books for each other.”
“Books? All of a sudden?”
“And on the first page, let’s write something we want to say to each other.”
“Hmm, that might take some time. I don’t have anything prepared.”
“I just thought of it too, so same here.”
We went inside the bookstore and wandered around separately, browsing the shelves.
What kind of book would suit Chae-yeon? She likes exercising, but a sports-related book probably wasn’t the best choice. A simple poetry collection or essay might be nice.
Even after narrowing it down, I’d never read much and had never given her a book as a gift before, so my hand kept hovering uselessly in the air. That’s when a small poetry book caught my eye.
It was mostly filled with poems about taking things easy in life. Since she’d mentioned being really busy lately, it didn’t seem like a bad choice.
“Jung-woo, did you pick one?”
“Yeah, I did.”
After paying for the books we’d chosen for each other, we wrote messages on the first pages.
I hope we can get close again and hang out without any awkwardness, just like before.
I’d been holding onto those words in my heart since the first day I saw Chae-yeon again, so I wrote them down without much hesitation.
“Here, a gift.”
You’re a more amazing person than you think.
I received an essay with a rather unique title. And on the first page…
First is health, second is also health. And since you’re already amazing just by existing like this, have some confidence.
After the surgery, I’d tried so hard to hide myself that my confidence and self-esteem had dropped a lot. Whenever I tried to say something to others, I’d get too conscious of my body and couldn’t speak properly. I’ve gotten much better now, though.
Had Chae-yeon noticed that about me?
The words fit my current situation perfectly.
“Thanks. These are really good words.”
“Don’t just use it as decoration—actually read it. I’ve read this book before, so I know the content. I’ll ask you about it later.”
“Should I write a book report and submit it?”
“If you submit a book report, I’ll stamp it with an approval seal.”
When we left the bookstore, the sky had already grown dark.
The night air was getting chilly.
“By the way, the sentence you wrote. Isn’t it a bit too formal?”
“You think that’s formal? I wrote it with so much sincerity.”
“We’ve gotten plenty close again and hang out often. Do you think it’s not enough?”
“It’s not that. I just wrote it because I want to get even closer to you.”
It still felt like there was a thin wall between us.
I wanted to tear down even that thin wall.
“If you want to get closer here, then how much closer do you want to get? Let’s put some distance between us.”
“That’s what I should be saying. You know me too well. Sometimes I think you know me better than my own mom.”
“That just means you haven’t changed at all.”
“If we’re going by that logic, you haven’t changed either. Your personality’s the same. Your tastes are the same. Your habits are the same.”
“What are you talking about? I’ve changed so much!!”
“From what I see, you’ve only changed on the outside.”
“How exactly have I changed on the outside?”
Chae-yeon’s question stopped me in my tracks.
How was I supposed to answer that?
Should I answer with the same sincerity I’d used when writing the message? Or should I lie?
The thing I hated most was repeating the same actions I’d taken in the past.
I was sick of hiding my true feelings and lying in any situation. I didn’t want to hide anymore.
“Why aren’t you answering? Say something.”
“You… you’ve gotten really pretty. There, happy?”
“…Huh?!”
“You’ve gotten so pretty that I can’t even compare you to how you used to look.”
I’d decided to speak from the heart, but saying something sincere was still difficult.
And since the person on the receiving end was Chae-yeon, I had no idea how to handle what came next.
I walked ahead without looking at her.
The atmosphere made it impossible to continue any conversation.
Had I made a mistake?
“Jung-woo.”
I turned at the sound of Chae-yeon’s voice coming from behind me.
“Have you ever imagined dating me?”