The Third Hand
Loud laughter and singing echoed from every direction.
Each time, Yeo-won, who had no tolerance for places like this, would flinch and startle.
Jae-young had returned from the counter and was saying something, but the noise drowned him out. When Yeo-won frowned and tilted her head, he leaned his upper body closer.
“Senior! What’s your shoe size?”
“...Two hundred forty.”
She answered obediently even while wondering why he was asking. Jae-young disappeared for a moment, then came back carrying two pairs of bowling shoes.
“Let’s go. Our lane’s over there.”
Following him, she saw an empty lane. Jae-young sat down as though he belonged there and patted the seat beside him.
“You have to change your shoes.”
He smiled as he handed them over. Yeo-won kept glancing around uneasily before letting out a heavy sigh.
“...Jae-young, you said you had a favor to ask me.”
“Yes. This is it. I wanted to go bowling with you, Senior.”
Jae-young shrugged, his face saying he saw no issue at all.
Irritation flared inside her, but she had wronged him too many times to complain.
Still, if she had known the destination was a bowling alley, she never would have come. Looking at Jae-young, she saw he was dressed casually—loose jeans and a white sweatshirt that made him look like a college student.
In contrast, Yeo-won wore a white blouse, black slacks, and low-heeled dress shoes. She had dug out her old work clothes because she wanted to appear at least somewhat presentable when apologizing.
She had no idea what to say. If they were coming to a place like this, shouldn’t he have told her beforehand? As Yeo-won glared at the pins at the end of the lane, swallowing her anger, a dejected voice rose from below.
“Do you dislike bowling?”
When she looked down, Jae-young wore the same pitiful expression as a dog caught in the rain. She considered snapping at him, but the large bandage covering the back of his hand made her heart soften despite herself.
“...It’s not about liking or disliking it. I’ve never bowled before.”
Jae-young’s eyes widened at her answer.
“Not once?”
“No.”
Yeo-won barely managed to visit cafés. Crowded or enclosed spaces had always been on her list of places to avoid. Her complete lack of interest in sports only added to it.
Fortunately there were no ghosts in sight, yet she could not relax.
She silently began changing into the shoes Jae-young had given her.
The worn-looking shoes worried her for hygiene reasons, but she kept quiet. When she glanced at Jae-young after putting them on, he was still staring in blank astonishment.
“Is it that strange?”
“No, just unexpected.”
“Unexpected?”
“I thought you might enjoy this sort of thing.”
What exactly had given him that impression? She had never been outgoing even during her company days. Not seeing the need to correct him, Yeo-won simply changed the subject.
“What do I do now?”
She stood and asked. Since she was already here, she intended to finish quickly and go home. If one game of bowling could erase the earlier incident, it was a small price.
At her question, Jae-young jumped up from his seat and began explaining in a rush.
“Ah, first pick a ball you like. Then put your fingers in the holes like this and throw.”
Jae-young slipped his fingers into the three holes, took a natural stance, and released the ball. It shot down the lane with force and, accompanied by a crisp sound, knocked down all ten pins.
He clenched his fist in triumph.
Even Yeo-won, who knew little about bowling, understood that knocking down every pin was called a strike.
“Whoa, incredible.”
The person in the next lane supplied the admiration Yeo-won had not voiced. The man gave Jae-young a thumbs-up and called it cool. Jae-young answered with a smile.
“Just do it like that. Not difficult, right? Since it’s your first time, Senior, we should use a lighter ball… How about this one?”
The ball he handed her was surprisingly heavy. Yeo-won inserted her fingers into the holes the way she had seen him do and stepped up to the lane.
In short, all I have to do is knock the pins down.
Thinking it was no big deal, she hurled the ball with force just as Jae-young had. Her form was nowhere near as polished, but the ball still rolled straight. She watched with the hopeful thought that it might at least knock down five pins, if not all ten.
“Huh?”
Suddenly the ball veered into the gutter beside the lane. A sympathetic groan rose from the side.
“Ah, gutter ball…”
In the end, not a single pin fell, and the ball disappeared down the back. On the scoreboard overhead, Jae-young’s score showed 10 while hers displayed only a long dash.
“It went sideways so no points?”
“Yeah, but that happens a lot when you’re first starting.”
As Yeo-won continued staring at the scoreboard, Jae-young hurriedly offered comfort.
“It’s true. When I first bowled, I threw three gutter balls in a row. The people in the next lane laughed at me—I was so embarrassed I wanted to die!”
“…So gutter balls really are embarrassing.”
Jae-young sucked in a sharp breath. When Yeo-won narrowed her eyes at him, he shook his head vigorously.
“No! That’s not what I meant! I mean, it’s just…”
Watching him deny it with his entire body, she found herself smiling. His restless fidgeting looked exactly like a puppy desperate to go outside.
“I was joking.”
Even her tiny, almost soundless smile made Jae-young’s face light up with obvious joy.
He began explaining everything about bowling with a bright grin, then suggested a bet: if she scored over eighty points, he would grant her one wish.
She had brushed it off, saying she didn’t need anything, but since she was playing anyway, she wanted to reach at least fifty. Seeing Jae-young roll three consecutive strikes also strangely spurred her on.
Her body had warmed from the movement, so Yeo-won tied her hair up tightly and threw herself into the game with more seriousness than anyone else.
At first she could barely hit a single pin, but little by little she began knocking them down. By pure coincidence she even rolled one strike.
Unable to contain herself, she cheered and clenched her fist tight.
“Nice, Senior! Is this seriously your first time? You’re really good!”
Jae-young came close and held up his palm. Yeo-won stared blankly for a second before awkwardly raising her own hand. He slapped it with a loud clap. The tingling in her palm felt strangely pleasant.
I thought sports were boring.
At some point her tension had completely dissolved.
Beside her, Jae-young—who had just rolled another strike—made a V sign with his fingers.
The gesture was so cheesy and ridiculous that Yeo-won burst out laughing too.
How long had it been since she laughed like this? She had laughed so hard that her facial muscles actually ached.
The woman who had planned to finish quickly and go home realized only later that she had played more than three full games. In the final game she finally broke eighty points and only then could she leave the bowling alley.
Outside it was fully night, and a slightly chilly wind blew. The breeze that would normally have felt cold instead pleasantly cooled her flushed, exercise-warmed face.
Checking the time, she saw it was already past ten. Only then did she remember Cheong-sil waiting alone at home.
She had stayed out far too long. She was about to head back when Jae-young pointed toward a café.
“Senior, want to grab a coffee?”
“Ah, I should really head home now…”
“Then drink it on the way. There’s a park behind here—if we cut through it, we’ll reach the station faster.”
When he tried to pay for the coffee again, Yeo-won quickly pushed her card forward.
“I’ll buy. You already paid for the bowling earlier.”
She handed him one of the freshly made hot coffees and headed toward the park he had mentioned.
“Today was really fun. You honestly have talent for this, Senior.”
“Hearing that from someone who scored well over two hundred points doesn’t make me happy at all.”
When Yeo-won grumbled, he laughed out loud. She took a sip of the warm coffee and looked ahead. Even though it was Friday night, the area was strangely deserted.
Was it always this empty?
She found it odd but soon brushed the thought aside. This wasn’t a bustling district, and a park at night would naturally have fewer people.
While listening to Jae-young’s idle chatter, her gaze drifted to the bandages wrapped around his hand.
Slowing her steps slightly, Yeo-won spoke with care.
“Jae-young.”
“Yes?”
“Thank you for helping me last time.”
“Ah, that café? Like I said then, I did it because I wanted to.”
“And I’m sorry.”
Yeo-won bowed her head fully as she apologized.
“Ah, why are you being so formal? It’s awkward. I told you it’s fine! Really.”
He waved his hands in the air and laughed. After a brief hesitation, Yeo-won took out the prepared envelope and offered it to him with both hands. Jae-young’s expression stiffened the moment he saw it.
“It’s not much, but it’s my sincere apology. I don’t know if it’s enough, but I hope you’ll accept it, Jae-young.”
“...Senior, I already told you last time—”
“I know. This isn’t about paying you off. I’m worried about you. Can’t you take it?”
Yeo-won had never intended to end the matter with a vague promise to repay the favor. For something like this, it was better to settle it clearly; that was why she had prepared the envelope in advance.
Yet the more enjoyable the time with him became, the more she wondered whether handing over the envelope was the right thing to do.
She hesitated, afraid he would feel offended again, but every time he moved she caught another glimpse of his injuries. The sight kept tugging at her.
The stronger those glimpses became, the more kinship, pity, and guilt rushed over her in waves, tightening her chest until it hurt.
That was why Yeo-won wanted so badly to urge him to seek treatment. Even if she could not help his overall situation, she did not want to add to his wounds.
In the end it was nothing but her own selfishness, but still—
Yet no matter how long she waited, Jae-young showed no sign of accepting the envelope.
“Jae-young…?”
When she looked up at him, the streetlight behind him cast his face in shadow.
“...Instead of this, there’s something else I want.”
His voice had dropped low, completely different from before. Yeo-won flinched and took an involuntary step back.
“But… where did you get that?”
His words came out clipped, one syllable at a time. The streetlights around them began to flicker as though malfunctioning. The gentle breeze that had been blowing suddenly died. The surroundings grew so quiet that even breathing seemed impossible to hear.
This feeling—she had experienced it once before.
“...Jae-young. You are Jae-young, right?”
She took another step back and asked urgently, but his hand shot out and clamped down hard on her shoulder.
At the same moment, a ringing noise loud enough to burst her eardrums exploded inside her head.
Her body shook uncontrollably. She still could not see his expression. Was the backlighting really that strong?
No. Something was covering it.
What?
When she looked down, both of Jae-young’s hands were resting neatly beside his thighs.
Then the hand gripping her shoulder right now was—
A vivid chill as if all the blood had drained from her body swept over her. Fear reached its peak; her teeth began to chatter. Just then, the clear sound of a bell rang from somewhere.
“Hiss!”
A cat that had appeared from nowhere crouched in front of Jae-young and hissed at him in warning.