Chapter 51
Chapter 51
"Alright, shall we go?"
A little while later, Jae-gyu emerged from the room. Bom followed him, her expression slightly softened. Jae-gyu, who had said he was going to get his seal, had changed his clothes for some reason.
He was wearing a black shirt and perfectly fitted slacks, looking as if he were attending a funeral.
But...
'He looks different dressed like that.'
Internally, Bom thought Jae-gyu looked sexy in black. But that was only for a moment.
This wasn't the time to be thinking about clothes. Lee Jun's words still weighed heavily on her mind.
"Jae-gyu, we'll be back before dinner, right?"
"Well, we just need to go there and stamp the seal. We'll be back in Shinsu-eup before dinner."
Both of them were more subdued than usual. The car slowly set off.
"It'll take about an hour."
"Okay."
"You look tired; it might be better to catch some sleep."
"I'm fine."
This wasn't the time to sleep. Not with her mind in such a turmoil...
Her resolve, so firm before seeing the album, was now wavering.
As she gazed out with troubled eyes, Jae-gyu suddenly said something out of the blue.
"Do you know what ASMR is?"
"Huh?"
"Listen carefully."
"..."
Jae-gyu began tapping the steering wheel, tok-tok-tok-tok.
He scratched the dashboard with his fingernail, then brushed the air conditioner vent with the back of his hand, doing all sorts of things.
Swish, rustle, tap-tap, squeak
Listening to all the sounds Jae-gyu was making, Bom was dumbfounded.
"Ha..."
She couldn't understand how anyone could fall asleep to this, especially when her mind was already in such a mess, listening to mere sounds like these...
"...Bom."
"..."
"Bom-Bom."
...Bom slowly lifted her heavy eyelids. It took a few slow blinks for her to fully come to her senses.
"What...?"
"It's the sea."
"Huh?"
Bom quickly pulled a hand mirror from her bag and meticulously checked her face. Thankfully, she hadn't drooled. The fact that they were already at the sea meant they were almost at their destination.
"The sea?"
She suddenly realized the edge of her vision was a brilliant blue. Bom tore her eyes away from the mirror.
"It really is the sea..."
"Yes, we're almost at Haechon Village. The weather's nice, so it's really beautiful, isn't it?"
"Yes... it's so pretty."
The sea, sparkling like jewels reflecting the sunlight, stretched endlessly before them.
She had only seen the sea once, during a university MT. That was Wolmido in Incheon, where her parents wouldn't let her stay overnight, so she'd only shown her face before returning.
It was completely different from the sea she'd seen back then.
'So this is Jae-gyu's hometown.'
Not long after turning onto a winding, narrow road, a small village appeared. A harbor was visible, and the village atmosphere was chaotic.
Many of the old houses were abandoned. Banners everywhere were filled with slogans like 'Right to survive' and 'Absolute opposition.'
"It looks like the residents aren't welcoming the resort."
"I understand they welcomed it with open arms."
"But the banners look pretty fierce, don't they?"
According to Jae-gyu, they had to put up such opposition banners for the company to offer higher compensation or land prices. While there were some who genuinely opposed it, in Haechon Village's case, the profits were so substantial that hardly anyone truly wanted to hold onto their land.
"So, are you also deliberately selling late, Jae-gyu?"
"Not exactly..."
"Then why?"
"I didn't want to come here, but since you're coming with me, Bom, I figured I'd get it over with."
Why did he dislike coming here? Because of the incident? Bom followed Jae-gyu out of the car and walked along the village road. The salty scent of the sea drifted on the wind, brushing her nose.
Bom shielded her eyes from the sun with the back of her hand and took in the village scenery. If you ignored the development-opposition banners, it was a peaceful and quiet place.
Jae-gyu stepped a little distance away and made a call. It seemed to be to the Village Head.
"You said we'd meet at noon, old man, so why did you go to Geoje? Should I just leave?"
It seemed their appointment was running late. Bom gazed idly at the boats coming into the harbor. 'He grew up in a place like this,' she thought. It was fascinating.
One of the incoming boats was pulling out a net bag and transferring its catch into yellow baskets.
"I'm leaving. I have no regrets, and I don't want to stay here for another second."
She faintly heard the old man on the other end of the line making a whining sound again. Since they had come all this way, Bom felt it would be better to finish the business before leaving, for her own peace of mind. She approached the thoroughly annoyed Jae-gyu and spoke softly.
"Let's eat."
Jae-gyu pulled the receiver away for a moment, said "Ah," then quickly spoke to the old man.
"I'm going to eat and then leave, so if you can make it before then, come on over."
Click. After hanging up, Jae-gyu quickly looked around. He had parked the car near the harbor, and he saw that to the left was the village entrance, and to the right was the fish market.
"Let's have sashimi. That's the only good thing to eat here. Gukbap isn't really it."
Bom called out to Jae-gyu, who was walking ahead.
"Um, Jae-gyu."
"Yes?"
"I'm curious about the house you used to live in, Jae-gyu. Can I see it?"
What kind of reaction would he have? A nervous Bom swallowed dryly. Lee Jun had said that Jae-gyu committed arson there.
"...There's nothing to see there."
Jae-gyu hesitated. He avoided her gaze, and his fingertips twitched. Bom's heart sank at the sight.
"I want to see it."
She still didn't know. Not until she saw the place herself. Bom conveyed her clear intention, and Jae-gyu, who had been hesitating, swallowed a sigh.
"...Alright, let's go."
Jae-gyu bypassed the village entrance on the left. Then he climbed an isolated mountain. It was a gentle slope, but it felt strangely desolate. After pushing through sparse trees for about five minutes, they reached a gentle plateau.
On the fairly wide plateau, only the ruins of a destroyed home remained. Jae-gyu said indifferently.
"They didn't even bother to clear it away."
Amidst the blackened mounds of earth, fragments of the house's structure were visible here and there. A faded police line, marked 'DO NOT ENTER,' lay scattered among the ashes.
Bom felt the blood drain from her face. A fire really had occurred here.
"The house was here, but it all burned down."
"..."
"Bom, can I be alone for a moment? If you could just wait on that rock over there..."
Bom did as Jae-gyu wished. She sat on a rock and watched Jae-gyu in the ruins. Jae-gyu, who had been walking around examining the debris, stopped at one spot.
Then he collapsed, kneeling with both hands on the ground. His broad shoulders heaved.
In the quiet ruins of the home, only Jae-gyu's heavy breaths and the occasional sound of his palm resentfully striking the ground could be heard.
She knew instinctively.
'It wasn't Jae-gyu.'
He looked so pathetic that she wanted to go over and embrace him. She barely managed to suppress the urge to rush over and do just that.
She wanted to give Jae-gyu time to compose his turbulent emotions alone.
Yes, deep down, she had known all along what kind of man he was, the man with whom she had shared her feelings.
After a long while, Jae-gyu slowly stood up. Taking heavy steps, Jae-gyu stood before Bom, looking utterly distraught.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have suggested coming here..."
That was all she could say right now. After all, she was the one who had persuaded Jae-gyu, who was barely managing to live by burying this past, to come all the way here.
"...This was a place I had to come to. My father... passed away here."
Unexpectedly, Jae-gyu was the first to bring up his father. What incident could have led to his death? She listened intently, but no further words followed.
"...Shall we go down, Bom?"
Bom felt pity for Jae-gyu. She had first learned how terrifying the world could be when she was branded with the stigma of an affair. Jae-gyu's situation must have been even more severe.
Perhaps that's why he had been reluctant to come to his hometown. The stares and judgment from people must have been unbearably harsh.
While Bom was lost in these thoughts, the two of them had already descended from the mountain.
They passed through the village again, heading towards the fish market. Jae-gyu saw a sashimi restaurant at the entrance and was momentarily lost in thought.
"This place is still here."
The signboard looked more than ten years old and worn. The sign, which seemed to have originally read 'Hongjin's Sashimi Restaurant,' now appeared as 'Hong's Sashimi Restaurant' because the character '진' (jin) had fallen off. The fact that it hadn't been repaired even once was striking.
"Do you know this place?"
"Yes. It's a sashimi restaurant I came to once with my mother..."
'Then maybe there's something here Jae-gyu can remember fondly?' Bom vaguely wanted to let Jae-gyu experience at least a fragment of a good memory.
"Then let's eat here."
Jae-gyu seemed to be deliberating.
"Come on. You said you wanted sashimi."
Bom took Jae-gyu's hand and led him into the restaurant. She felt sorry for Jae-gyu, who kept shrinking back ever since they arrived in his hometown. Bom decided that she, at least, needed to be strong.
"It looks like business is doing pretty well here."
Even though it was daytime, three groups of Customers were sitting in the restaurant, enjoying drinks. After finding a table, the two of them looked at the menu hanging on the wall.
"Everything just says 'market price'."
"Don't worry about the price. It's caught fresh and brought straight here, so even if it's expensive, it's worth the money for its freshness. It's conger eel season right now, want to try some?"
She didn't know what it was, but Jae-gyu had never given her anything that didn't taste good. Bom readily accepted the recommended dish.
"Yes. I'm curious about the Conger Eel Sashimi."
Jae-gyu immediately ordered the Conger Eel Sashimi. He only ordered that, but a bottle of soju appeared on their table. When Bom looked at him quizzically, a middle-aged man who seemed to be the Restaurant Owner smiled brightly.
"Orders over 100,000 won get a free bottle of soju!"
'That's over 100,000 won?' Bom was surprised. Next, the middle-aged man brought over a tray laden with side dishes.
The side dishes were ordinary. Cabbage salad, cold mung bean pancakes, boiled octopus, baby potatoes, and fried eel bones were laid out on the table.
"There's nothing much to eat among the side dishes, so just eat the sashimi when it comes out. Conger eel sashimi is also called hamo-hoe, and it might have some small bones. Make sure to chew it thoroughly, or it'll get stuck in your throat."
Listening to Jae-gyu, Bom twisted open the soju bottle cap. She first filled her own glass halfway, then poured the same amount for Jae-gyu.
"Are you telling me to drink?"
Bom chuckled softly at Jae-gyu's question.
"I know you can't drink because you're driving, Jae-gyu. Just keep it there. You have to clink glasses with me when I drink alone."
In truth, she wanted to drink with him. She wished to share deep conversations and exchange drinks for a long time, but driving was the problem.
"Cheers."
Jae-gyu raised his glass and clinked it against hers. To soothe her troubled mind, Bom downed her first glass in one gulp.
The strong alcohol burned its way down her throat.
"Is something wrong?"
She had done something she regretted, and it upset her. It was now certain that Jae-gyu's father had passed away.
What story, then, lay behind Jae-gyu's past? She couldn't ask what she was curious about now, and it made her feel stifled.
"Um..."
Just as she was about to impulsively blurt out, 'Should we stay the night?', the sashimi arrived.
'Yoon Bom, get a grip. Ask Jae-gyu to stay the night? Are you crazy?'
It was a blessing that her mouth had been sealed by a hair's breadth. Bom tried to calm her surging emotions.
'We can talk about Jae-gyu when we get back to Shinsu-eup, so calm down,' she told herself.
"Is this hamo-hoe?"
"Yes, it might look like this, but the taste is incredible."
It was finely sliced on a large white plate. Its appearance wasn't much different from conger eel sashimi.
"Enjoy your meal."
The middle-aged female Restaurant Owner, who was setting down the plate, tilted her head slightly. She stared intently at Jae-gyu's face and mumbled a question.
"You wouldn't happen to be Jae-gyu, would you? Seon Jae-gyu?"