Message from the Past
The name that appeared on the screen was Song Arin.
She was my ex-girlfriend, two years older than me.
After breaking up with Yuna, my friends had dragged me to a blind date while I was still drowning in heartbreak. But I wasn't in any mood to meet someone new. I downed drink after drink without even looking at my date properly.
Then, at some point, she approached me and spoke softly.
I still vaguely remember the conversation we had that night. When she asked why I looked so miserable, the alcohol loosened my tongue and I poured out everything about Yuna—including the good memories and even our intimate moments.
As we talked, she grew more and more interested in me. The conversation stretched on, and the glasses kept emptying. Eventually—
'We crossed the line.'
Yeah. That's what happened.
Even though I was drunk, the memory of that night remained crystal clear. She had been incredibly excited too. She said it was the most ecstatic experience of her life and let out moans I'd never heard from her before, revealing a completely different side of herself from the one she'd shown at the bar.
Watching her, I became certain. The reason Yuna left me wasn't because of our physical relationship.
But then…
After we slept together, she confessed to me first. Wanting to forget Yuna, I accepted without much thought. That's how we became a couple, and the time we spent together gradually increased.
Yet the ending was no different from Yuna's. One day, she suddenly sent a one-sided breakup notice and disappeared from my side as if running away.
But now, years later, a message that had suddenly popped out of the dusty drawer of memories threw me into confusion.
'What nerve does she have to contact me out of the blue?'
Of course I felt displeased. She had left without any explanation, and now she was asking how I was doing.
Yuna, who was currently humming beside me, had also abandoned me in the same way. But our reunion had been an unexpected coincidence, and more than anything, she was my first love—the one I'd shared the deepest feelings with.
On the other hand, Arin wasn't someone I held the same level of attachment or lingering feelings for.
I frowned and was about to turn off my phone screen when a thought flashed through my mind.
'What if… she left me for the exact same reason Yuna did?'
Yuna's terrifying obsession. The severe withdrawal symptoms that made normal life impossible without being with me. What if Arin had suffered the same thing after sleeping with me and ran away because she couldn't handle it…?
If that were the case, then the hypothesis that all my ex-girlfriends' reasons for breaking up with me stemmed from my own constitution would hold true.
'I need to confirm this.'
I glanced at Yuna. She was still completely absorbed in choosing a menu on her phone app.
Keeping my emotions as neutral as possible, I sent Arin a dry reply.
I was dumbfounded.
'She dumped me like that and now she wants me to be doing well?'
Suppressing a hollow laugh, I replied briefly.
'Reasons?'
I swallowed without realizing it. Could the "reasons" she mentioned be the same thing Yuna had gone through?
My suspicions only deepened.
I gripped my phone tightly, lost in thought. Honestly, I had no desire to sit face-to-face with her again. But if there really was something wrong with me—if I was the cause of Yuna's breakdown—then I needed to meet her to find out.
And if she had left for the same reason as Yuna…
'Then I have some responsibility too.'
Of course, that didn't justify their one-sided breakups. No matter what circumstances they had, there must have been a way to solve the problem together.
'This place…'
It was the cafe we used to frequent when we were dating. The fact that both Yuna and Arin still remembered our past together gave me a strange feeling.
A chance?
It was an odd choice of words, but I ended the conversation without replying further. My mind felt… unsettled.
"Dohun? Why do you look like that? Is something wrong?"
Yuna noticed my dark expression and asked with a worried face.
"Huh? Oh, no, it's nothing."
My shoulders twitched like someone caught stealing. But then I realized there was no reason for me to be this flustered. We weren't exactly a couple, even if our relationship was ambiguous. Still, seeing her smiling brightly at me made it strangely awkward to say I was going to meet an ex-girlfriend.
"Tomorrow… a friend I haven't seen in a while contacted me to meet up."
I forced a smile while avoiding her gaze.
"A friend? Ah… I see."
Yuna's voice trembled slightly. She tried to hide her disappointment, but her eyes were filled with regret. She must have expected to spend tomorrow with me as well.
"You'll come back late…?"
She fidgeted with her fingers and asked cautiously.
"Well… I'm not sure when we'll finish."
At my answer, Yuna's shoulders visibly drooped. But she quickly forced a cheerful smile.
"R-Right! You've been busy with work, so you probably haven't seen your friends much. This is a good chance to catch up!"
I let out a small laugh at her pitiful attempt to act strong.
"Don't worry. I'll try to come back early."
"No! It's not often you get to meet a friend, so don't worry about me and have fun."
Her obvious bluff suddenly sparked a mischievous urge in me. I leaned in close and whispered into her ear.
"Then… we won't be able to do it tomorrow. Are you really okay with that?"
"Hik!"
Yuna's shoulders jumped at my blunt provocation. Her neck flushed bright red in an instant. She couldn't even lift her head and just stared down, completely silent.
After mumbling for a while, she finally spoke in a barely audible voice.
"Then… could you come back a little early…?"
"Hahaha!"
Her adorable honesty about her desires made me burst into laughter. Until yesterday, I hadn't been able to read her thoughts, but now I understood what lay beneath. Thanks to that, we could talk openly like this without any reservations.
Of course, I still felt like Yuna was hiding something. But I was no different. At least I no longer felt anxious about not knowing her true feelings.
Ring ring ring—!!
Just as we were laughing and chatting, Yuna's phone rang loudly.
"Huh? Who could that be?"
When she checked the screen, her smile vanished and her face turned pale. Startled, she looked at me and shouted in a hurry.
"I-I need to take this call!"
Click!
She rushed into the bathroom and shut the door tightly.
'What was that? Whose call made her react like that?'
I stared at the closed bathroom door, puzzled. But remembering that Yuna was a celebrity, I understood. Given her profession, it could be a confidential call.
While she was on the phone, I leaned against the wall and fell back into thought. Meeting Arin tomorrow to gauge her intentions was important, but there was one more thing I needed to check first.
'If there's really something wrong with my body… I should get it checked medically too.'
Yuna had gone to the hospital and found nothing wrong. So maybe the abnormality was in me? I decided to stop by the hospital for a checkup before meeting Arin tomorrow.
Suddenly, my father's bitter words echoed in my mind again.
'You're the type who won't receive complete love from women, just like your father.'
Had Father known something? Could some trait of his have been passed down to me? Even if I wanted to ask now, he had passed away long ago. My only remaining family, my mother, had essentially cut ties after his death, and we hadn't spoken in years.
As these gloomy thoughts from the past chained together and my mood sank, the bathroom door suddenly burst open.
Bang!
Yuna rushed out, her face drained of color.
"Dohun!"
Her urgent, terrified voice made me jump to my feet as well.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
Yuna waved her clenched fists frantically, looking completely lost.
"M-My manager…! She's coming to this officetel right now!"
"What?!"
A scream of shock escaped me. Our precarious cohabitation with Yuna, and the relationship we'd only just begun to anchor, was about to be hit by an unexpected storm.