[The Multi-Screen Date]
"Merrill, are you uncomfortable?"
When you're sitting on a potential one-trillion-won fortune, what does a university degree matter? Although she had continued her work as an Hermès model to help refine her personality, Merrill had dropped out of university at Yoon-gi's suggestion. Thanks to that, the conditions for Yoon-gi and Merrill to meet had increased. If they could only meet at specific times before, now it was a matter of simply adjusting their schedules if they wanted to see each other. That was why Yoon-gi and Merrill were on a date at a Korean movie theater like this.
"Not really? I've been through things like this many times."
The discomfort Yoon-gi was referring to was none other than the bodyguards. Since the discovery of the oil field, bodyguards were constantly swarming around Yoon-gi and Merrill. It wasn't quite like being glued together, but they maintained a distance that made it difficult for anyone else to squeeze in. A sort of breakwater had formed around them, with six people including Cha Pil-gyu providing security, preventing others from approaching. Even though there were many people passing by.
"I suppose you would have experienced it often."
"In the past, I was so shy and rarely went out of the house, so I didn't have many chances to feel uncomfortable. Now that my shyness has improved a lot, I'm fine."
"That was because of your grandfather's status, right?"
"That's about right. During war seasons, you never knew what might happen, so I always had security. But since I was mostly at home, it was effectively mansion security rather than VIP protection. Ho ho ho ho."
Seeing Merrill cover her mouth and laugh as if remembering the memories, Yoon-gi smiled as if relieved.
"Can you think of those days as memories now?"
"Hmm? Oh, yes. If my current life were unhappy, I would have had unhappy thoughts including the past, but since I'm happy now, the past feels like a memory."
"Ah, I can really relate to that."
Yoon-gi thought of the keyword 'military service,' which most Korean men could relate to. People who felt like they were going crazy while in the military, but then said it was good when they were discharged. Of course, if you told them to go back to the military, they would throw a bucketful of curses. This was the act of turning difficult times into memories, which also meant that the military was that much more grueling compared to society.
'Come to think of it, I hate my days as a laborer so much, but compared to the military, being a laborer is better.'
Not letting you sleep, starving you or forcing you to overeat, and not letting you sleep on days you weren't beaten. Because Yoon-gi had lived through such a filthy military life, he momentarily furrowed his brow and shuddered.
"Hm? Yoon, did you have painful days too?"
'Oops.'
Yoon-gi realized his mistake for a moment and quickly glossed over it.
"The days when Merrill wasn't by my side were the unhappy ones."
"Really...!"
Watching Merrill, who had a deep smile on her lips even while playfully tapping his shoulder, Yoon-gi reached the front of the theater.
"Merrill, look at that signboard. What do you think?"
The painted signboard hanging above the theater. Merrill's eyes went wide with fascination at the crude signboard, drawn with care by the man from the nearby sign shop.
"Wow! It's tacky! And it's fascinating!"
"Tacky?"
"Yes. It doesn't look like a real photo or a cartoon. This looks exactly like Cheol-su and Young-hee from the Korean textbooks I saw in your room the other day, right?"
Even Yoon-gi burst into laughter at Merrill's accurate assessment.
"Well, thinking about that awkward smile, it really does remind me of Cheol-su and Young-hee."
Would they look like that if Cheol-su and Young-hee were in their thirties? Of course, it wasn't the bucket hat that was Cheol-su's signature or the pigtails that were Young-hee's, but the painted signboard that awkwardly mimicked the movie's lead actors definitely brought Cheol-su and Young-hee to mind.
"How are the multiplexes in the U.S.?"
"In the U.S., they just write the lead actor's name and the movie title. And if you go near the multiplex, there are posters and flyers attached so you can tell what kind of movie it is."
"Then, shall I show you what a Korean poster is like?"
"Yes! It's tacky, but it's definitely fascinating, so it's fun."
It was a reaction similar to how people in the 2010s often reacted whenever they saw nostalgic posters at film company events. As a resident of the U.S., the ultimate capitalistic nation, Merrill was making relatively future-oriented judgments.
"Wow, why is it so dizzying? Can you understand the movie content by looking at this?"
A poster brought by a bodyguard. The theater employee, who had insisted it was impossible and wouldn't give the poster, had accepted a large sum of money and handed it over with a thank you, and that poster was now in Yoon-gi's hand.
"It certainly is, isn't it?"
"Yes. And what are these characters? I know the consonants and vowels of Hangul, but I don't know this at all."
"Ah, this? This is Hanja. Ancient Chinese characters."
"Ah, sometimes there were characters I didn't know at all between the Hangul, so that was Hanja?"
"Yes."
"But why does Korea use Chinese characters when they have Hangul?"
"So the citizens don't get too smart."
"Hmm...?"
"If they write it in a difficult way, the citizens won't understand it easily. The state doesn't want the citizens to become smart."
Because he had whispered it to Merrill in case of any eventuality, Merrill blushed regardless of the content of his words.
"Hmm..., I think I know what you mean. But this seems really inefficient? You have to convey the movie content immediately, but Hanja? Do all Koreans know Hanja?"
Yoon-gi shook his head.
"There are some people who know it to some extent, but not everyone can understand this."
"It's really inefficient..."
Yoon-gi wore a satisfied expression at Merrill's unvarnished assessment. It seemed he had gotten a handle on how to operate the multiplex.
"By the way, what do you think about this part?"
Yoon-gi translated a part of the Hangul poster.
"It's strange. Why explain the previous work this person appeared in here? If they are a famous actor, wouldn't people know without the previous work explanation?"
The poster Yoon-gi was holding was for an American movie. But the section for the male lead on that poster contained information about his previous work.
"As expected of my girlfriend. Very smart."
As he gave a light kiss on Merrill's cheek, Merrill leaned out her other cheek as if that wasn't enough, and Yoon-gi naturally kissed the remaining cheek as well. Then, a murderous intent was felt nearby. Because he had intentionally come to the theater at a hot time, there were many people passing by, and because of this, there were many people watching Yoon-gi and Merrill.
He heard the sound of resentment and envy dripping from them, but Yoon-gi actually enjoyed those gazes.
'Ah, this is so fun and thrilling. This is the taste of what the 'insiders' live for.'
It was a fun thing no matter how many times he experienced it. It was showing off this kind of appearance in front of many people. And this hobby of Yoon-gi's naturally produced victims, and they were none other than couples.
"Hey! Are you not turning your head?"
The sharp voice of a female college student. The long-haired male student had been staring blankly at Merrill before he came to his senses only after being slapped.
"Hee, Hee-ja!"
A couple's fight seen in real-time. Fortunately, Yoon-gi and Merrill entered the theater quickly, so there weren't more victims.
* * *
"How was the movie?"
"Umm..., there are so many movies in the U.S., I don't know why they brought that kind of movie."
He had chosen a foreign film out of the two movies playing at the theater to be considerate of Merrill, but Merrill was furrowing her brow.
"And what was that bald man who appeared in the news before the movie started?"
For a moment, Yoon-gi burst into laughter without realizing it.
"Puhahahaha!"
"Why, why are you like that?"
Seeing Merrill puff up her cheeks, thinking Yoon-gi was teasing her, Yoon-gi quickly finished his laughter and explained.
"That's our country's president."
"Hmm? President?"
"Yes. Because the penetration rate of TVs and radios in our country was very low, they informed us of the country's recent situation at the movie theater. Well, as of now, it's actually closer to regime glorification."
Because he had whispered this time too, Merrill blushed again and nodded.
"Korea is a truly strange country."
"Didn't that happen in the U.S.?"
"Umm..., I don't really know."
Merrill was, after all, an ordinary person in the U.S. Therefore, she wasn't very knowledgeable about various current events in the U.S., and since Yoon-gi's known and unknown fields were clearly divided, this topic ended here.
"By the way, Yoon. I'm hungry."
"Come to think of it, I'm a bit hungry too."
Yoon-gi looked around and confirmed that there was a Burger King, so he went inside with Merrill.
"Hamburgers are okay, right?"
"Hamburger? It's fattening..."
"It's okay, you just have to not eat the french fries."
"Aren't french fries the least fattening?"
Merrill's words were somewhat confusing. However, since there were no hygienic restaurants nearby that would suit Merrill's taste, Yoon-gi and Merrill went into the Burger King first.
"What do you mean french fries are the least fattening?"
"I'm the one who doesn't understand how you think hamburgers aren't fattening, Yoon!"
A moment later, when the bodyguard brought the hamburgers from the counter, Merrill understood the situation immediately.
"Ah, if it's this kind of hamburger, it won't be fattening."
"What kind of hamburger were you thinking of?"
"A hamburger that's incredibly thick, with two patties fried as if soaked in oil, and no vegetables, just drenched in sauce."
"...Are those the only hamburgers in the U.S.?"
"Not necessarily, but that perception is strong in my head. But this feels like McDonald's."
Since Lotteria was in '79, Burger King in '84, and McDonald's would enter a few years after that, there was no McDonald's in Korea yet.
"There's no McDonald's in Korea."
"Really? It's a place that's all over the world, wouldn't it enter Korea soon too?"
"Probably, right?"
Thinking of McDonald's, which would have quite a lot of stores in the future, Yoon-gi nodded.
"By the way, why don't Korean multiplexes have restaurants inside?"
"Because it's not a multiplex."
Merrill, who had been thinking about Yoon-gi's words for a moment, nodded several times with a single "Ah!"
A multiplex is a complex theater that must have at least 5 screens. However, the theater Yoon-gi and Merrill went to only had two screens.
"Merrill."
"Yes?"
When Yoon-gi called her, Merrill looked at Yoon-gi while lightly licking the hamburger sauce on her lips with her tongue.
"You have some here too."
Yoon-gi lightly wiped the sauce on the side of Merrill's lips with his finger and sucked on that finger without realizing it.
"Ah, that's dirty!"
"This?"
Watching the shy Merrill, Yoon-gi responded with confusion, then smiled and continued speaking.
"Merrill, thank you."
"Hmm? For what?"
"The sauce."
Merrill, whose shyness intensified for a moment, jumped up from her seat and shook Yoon-gi's head with both hands, but she never found out that Yoon-gi was thankful for a different meaning.
'This side is more fun anyway.'
* * *
Finishing their short two-day journey in Korea, Merrill stood at the airport gate as if she felt it was a pity.
"Sigh, it's such a pity that I could only stay for two days this time. The plane takes a full day round trip, but I could only stay in Korea for two days... This doesn't seem to pay off."
"Can't you not go?"
"...I can't help it because of the shoot."
"Ah..."
Seeing Yoon-gi's disappointed appearance, Merrill hugged Yoon-gi tightly as if she were satisfied yet regretful, and Yoon-gi also hugged Merrill tightly. And a moment later. Leaving the regret behind, Merrill, who had sent off Yoon-gi first because he had to leave due to his schedule, sighed deeply and waited for her turn at the gate. Meanwhile, suddenly, she felt someone stroking her waist from behind, and Merrill turned around in surprise.
"Y, Yoon?"
There was a reason the bodyguards hadn't stopped him.