Weekend Date
After checking out at two in the afternoon, they stepped out of the hotel lobby into the soft April breeze that brushed their faces. Yeouido Han River Park was just one crosswalk away. Jung Na-yeon had thrown Hyun-soo’s shirt over last night’s knit dress. The oversized fit made the shoulders slip down, but she simply rolled up the sleeves and smiled as if it were nothing.
“Wearing this… it smells like you. I like it.”
“So now even my scent’s grown on you?”
“You’re the one who made it that way.”
She slipped her arm through his and pressed close as they walked. The cherry blossoms had just passed their peak; petals drifted on the wind, laying a soft pink carpet along the path.
They strolled slowly along the riverbank, Na-yeon’s hand tight around his. Families pedaled past on bicycles; couples sat scattered on picnic mats. She took in the scene, then rested her head against his shoulder.
“We must look just like them, right? An ordinary couple.”
“Probably.”
“I like that…”
She gave a small laugh and stroked the back of his hand.
A single petal settled in her hair; she never noticed, humming under her breath.
“Let’s sit here.”
Na-yeon guided him onto a bench and settled naturally onto his lap, utterly unconcerned with the glances of passersby.
“This time last year I came here alone.”
“By yourself?”
“Yeah. My husband was on a business trip. I couldn’t even reach him.”
She gazed at the river, her voice even.
“I sat on a bench by myself, ate chicken, and cried. Pretty pathetic, huh?”
“There’s nothing pathetic about that.”
She gave a short laugh and leaned her head against his shoulder again.
“But this year you’re right here next to me.”
She pulled out her phone and switched to the camera, flipping it to selfie mode and pressing her cheek to his.
“Let’s take one. Right here.”
“Like this?”
“Mm.”
Click.
The shutter sounded; she checked the screen and broke into a bright smile. The Han River and cherry blossoms filled the background. She saved the photo, then left a short, soft kiss on his lips.
“Can I set this as my lock screen?”
“If you want.”
She smiled with her eyes. Spring wind scattered petals between them.
“Being like this… it’s sweet.”
Color rose in her cheeks. At his words she bit her lip, trying to hold back a laugh, but it spilled out anyway.
“Hey, you can’t just say stuff like that out of nowhere.”
She gave his shoulder a light shove and turned her face away, yet the smile lingered at the corners of her mouth. Petals drifting on the breeze brushed her cheek. She caught one and held it out to him.
“A present.”
She winked playfully.
Then she rested her head on his shoulder once more and looked out at the river. A tour boat drifted past at a leisurely pace; a few seagulls trailed behind it.
“In ten years of marriage, no one ever said that to me.”
“Your husband never did?”
“He’s not the type.”
She spoke quietly, eyes on the water.
“That word—sweet. Even when we were dating he wasn’t good at saying things like that. But you just toss it out so easily.”
She pressed her palm against his, comparing sizes. His hand was much larger; she smiled, satisfied.
“I’m sweet too.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
She looked up at him, completely honest. Bare-faced, afternoon sunlight rested warmly on her skin.
“It’s things like this, you know. To other people we’re just sitting in a park. But to me this is huge.”
“That big?”
Na-yeon glanced around at the other couples and smiled.
“For them this is probably ordinary—coming to the Han River with your boyfriend on a Sunday. But for me it’s the first time in ten years.”
Her eyes grew moist, yet she didn’t cry. Instead she lifted his hand, pressed it to her cheek, and closed her eyes.
“I don’t want to go home today.”
She murmured with her eyes still shut.
“I wish time would just stop while we’re like this.”
“You want it to freeze right here?”
“Mm.”
She opened her eyes slowly and looked at his face.
“Want me to get ice cream? There’s a convenience store over there. I’ll go. What do you want?”
“Any cone is fine.”
“Got it.”
Na-yeon stood and headed for the store. Hyun-soo’s shirt fluttered in the wind over her dress. The light spring in her step made her look almost girlish, buoyant. Through the glass doors he watched her peer into the ice-cream freezer, deliberating for a long while before grabbing two and paying.
She refused a plastic bag and came back at a quick little trot, one cone in each hand.
“I got chocolate and vanilla. You pick first—I’ll take whatever’s left.”
“Vanilla.”
“Here.”
When he chose, she unwrapped the remaining one and beamed. The first bite made her eyes go round.
“Ah—cold. My teeth hurt.”
“That’s what you get for eating so fast.”
“Is it?”
The shy smile she gave was pure—the look of a woman in love.
Na-yeon chewed and laughed. Under the warm sun the ice cream melted quickly; chocolate ran between her fingers and she licked it away.
She eyed his cone, tilting her head.
“Just one bite.”
“Here.”
He held it out; she took a bite.
“Hey, this one’s better.”
She puffed her cheeks in mock injustice.
“I deliberately left the chocolate for you. Don’t like that look on your face?”
“Was that it?”
“Don’t you remember the chocolate bar?”
At his words her expression softened with sudden emotion.
“Why’d your face change all of a sudden?”
“I’m just surprised you remember something so small.”
“I’m not that dense a guy.”
Hyun-soo gave a quiet laugh.
Na-yeon licked ice cream from the back of her hand and held her own cone out for him to try.
“This one’s good too, right?”
“Want to switch?”
“Should we?”
“I’m kidding.”
Every time the river wind rose, petals brushed past the ice cream. When one settled gently, she plucked it off with her fingers and smiled softly.
When they finished she pulled out wet wipes and cleaned his fingers one by one, carefully wiping the smudges between thumb and forefinger.
“Hyun-soo.”
“Yeah?”
“Let’s come out like this again next time.”
Walks like this along the Han River felt deeply sentimental and precious to her. Grand dates were fine, but these quiet moments—walking side by side, watching the scenery, sharing ice cream and conversation—meant everything. In all the years with her husband she had never known this kind of simple couple’s pleasure. Their relationship had gone straight from engagement to marriage. That was why these moments tasted so truly sweet to her.
Afternoon sunlight caught on the tips of Na-yeon’s lashes and glittered.
When the weekend date ended, Na-yeon and Hyun-soo returned home.
Hyun-soo opened the front door, looked around the living room, and spoke.
“He texted again saying he’s coming Tuesday, so we should clean up before then. My stuff’s everywhere—it’ll be a mess.”
Na-yeon closed the door and nodded slowly.
Her gaze swept the living room once.
Hyun-soo’s training jacket draped over the sofa arm, safety shoes lined up on top of the shoe cabinet, the bento bag on the dining table, his toothbrush and razor standing on the bathroom shelf. More than a month of traces had settled into every corner of the house.
She opened a living-room drawer and took out the photo-booth frame, running her fingers over it.
“This’ll have to go too, I guess.”
Her voice was calm, yet her grip on the frame tightened.
She went into the master bedroom and opened the closet.
Where her husband’s clothes had hung, Hyun-soo’s now filled more than half the space—shirts on hangers, underwear and socks folded in the drawers. She touched each one and let out a quiet sigh.
“We can put them up in the third-floor room.”
“Yeah, we should.”
“Let’s get up early Tuesday morning and clear everything out.”
Na-yeon closed the closet door and turned. The scent of him rose from the bedsheets; without thinking she brought the pillow to her nose, then stopped short.
“Sheets need washing, bathroom stuff has to move, and take your beer out of the fridge.”
She ticked items off on her fingers, voice businesslike, yet her eyes were unsteady.
Passing the wedding photo on the living-room wall, she paused briefly.
She looked at her husband’s face in the picture without expression, then turned away.
“I don’t even know what he’s coming to get. A suit? Golf clubs?”
She snorted and headed for the kitchen.
From the fridge she poured barley tea into two glasses and held one out to him.
“Thanks.”
Hyun-soo took the cool glass and drained it in one go.
“But you know…”
She looked up at him.
“Cleaning up the traces is fine. But that doesn’t mean you’re disappearing too.”
She tugged the front of his shirt and rested her forehead against his chest.
“By Tuesday evening he’ll be gone. We can just put everything back out then.”
She slipped gently into his arms and felt his warmth.