Chapter 163 – Part 1
Sometimes I feel that Seoul is a very unique city.
If you look at the center, it is truly a state-of-the-art place, but when you come out like this, you get a retro smell.
Just like right now.
‘Hey…’
Just a moment ago, I was obviously in the middle of a well-developed city, but when I came to my senses, the scenery surrounding the taxi had changed to a friendly scenery that seemed to come down to a rural town.
Seo High School, which Ga-yeong once attended, stood in the middle of the landscape like a picture frame.
“Have fun.”
“Thank you!”
The impression of Seo High School, which I checked after getting out of the taxi that stopped with a squeaking sound, was a bit different from what I had expected.
I heard from Ga-young that it was built more than a hundred years ago, but for that matter, the exterior looked as clean as if it had been built not long ago.
Of course, only the school building gave off such a feeling, and the fences surrounding the school grounds contained the past years intact in me.
The impression I felt was just that far, but Ga-young, who once went to the school in front of her as a student, seemed to have a different impression.
I don’t know if Gayoung has been visiting this place for the first time in years, but she seemed unmistakably that she was visiting after a very long time.
Otherwise, there is no reason to look at the front gate of the school with those vague eyes.
However, if there was only longing or nostalgia in Gayoung’s eyes, it wasn’t like that.
I can’t be sure because it’s not mine, but the emotion that should be called remorse was also openly in Ga-young’s eyes.
The reason is probably because the school in front of her is the one Ga-yeong went to, but not the one she graduated from.
Tell me what to do
Ga-young said she dropped out of high school.
If it was natural, it was natural.
Because it was when she was in her high school that Gayoung got her Gina.
The fact that she chose this neighborhood over leaving places with more atmosphere and fun things to do had some influence on her.
It was because I wanted to leave her memories in this way to Ga-yeong, who would have only regrets and regrets when it comes to her memories of her high school days.
Of course, I was already aware that this was a risky move.
She’s good at making memories, but if she went wrong, she could have reminded Ga-young of her widowed husband.
Up to that point, she had chosen this town after considering everything.
If there is just one problem –
“Uh… I thought it was the school’s anniversary?”
The day I go is market day, so how can I not see the figures of those who should be crowded in the school at this time?
If possible, she wanted to sneak into the school and look inside, but it seemed like she would have to give up.
‘Write…’
What to do
I was thinking of looking around the school first and then walking around the surrounding streets.
My stomach growled and complained of hunger as I was chewing on the difficulty in the wind from the beginning.
Her face was a little hot at the sound that came out at an unexpected timing, but I thought it was okay.
Since Mt. Geumgang was also considered post-meal, I thought it wouldn’t be bad to change the plan slightly and eat first.
“Shall we eat lunch first?”
Saying that, she clung to Ga-yeong’s side and squeezed her hand.
Ga-yeong, who was engrossed in appreciating the scenery of the school, noticed her approaching me a step late and flinched and her shoulders trembled, but she did not let go of my hand.
“Ah, yes… Do you have anything you want to eat?”
“Um, well…”
Delicious food is good, but I wanted to go to a place where even a little bit of Ga-young’s memories remain.
“Shall we eat something simple like snack?”
That’s why I chose the snack food out of many menus.
There is no better place to make memories than the snack bar in front of the school.
“Snack bar···?”
“Yes, I don’t know this town well, so I’d like a senior to guide me.”
When she said that with a smile, what appeared on Gayoung’s face was ’embarrassment’.
Yes, of course.
It’s probably better than me, who’s new to this town, but Ga-yeong feels the same as the surrounding scenery.
Yuhan’s prediction was correct.
In fact, at this moment, Gayoung was feeling awkward.
It had no choice but to do so because it was the first time she had visited this town since dropping out.
It is said that even mountains and rivers change in 10 years, but it was the first time I had visited it.
Still, I was a bit familiar with the school scene, but I guess that’s how familiar it is.
Perhaps, even if you get out of this area just a little bit, you will wander around in unfamiliar scenery.
Still, I thought it would be better to move rather than stand in front of the school like now, so I cautiously led the way.
‘Snack bar···’
Speaking of snacking, there was another place that just came to mind.
Of course, considering how much time has passed, it’s highly likely that such a store would have disappeared without leaving even a trace of its existence… But just in case you don’t know.
It wouldn’t be a bad idea to check it now that you’ve decided to move anyway.
I started moving with that thought, but honestly, it wasn’t easy.
The only thing that didn’t change was the school, and the things surrounding it had all changed, as if proving that time had passed.
So, rather than feeling nostalgic, the feeling of unfamiliarity hit me first, but I was able to move forward somehow, following the traces of the past that remained here and there.
So when I finally reached my destination, the first thing I noticed was an old green sign.
The next thing that caught my eye was the faded red letters rather than what remained in my memory.
The moment they became one and entered the pupil, it felt as if I had gone back to my high school days.
In the middle of the changed landscape, the past was deeply embedded like a nail in the wall.
Is that why?
I bit my lip for no reason, and my chest was strangely agitated.
It was for this reason that I stepped towards the store as if possessed by something.
Together with Yuhan, he crossed the threshold that he once crossed with his classmates.
The inside of the store, which was entered like that, may have been older than the scenery that remained in my memory, but the appearance was the same.
It was an uncomfortable round chair that couldn’t be found even after washing your eyes and looking for a backrest, and so were the graffiti covering the walls that were originally white.
That was amazing
I never thought that this store would still be around.
Could it be that the owner is also the same?
“Shall we sit down?”
“Huh? Ah, huh…”
Coincidentally, the seat I was led to by Yuhan’s hand was also a seat I often sat in when I was in high school.
Could it be that he chose this position knowingly?
There’s no way…
Even thinking about it again, it was a ridiculous speculation, so I ate and laughed inwardly.
By the way, is Yuhan really okay with coming here?
They say boys hate old places…
I was worried that maybe he was holding back just because he was looking at my side, so I carefully looked at Yuhan’s face, but I couldn’t find anything like that.
Rather… He was scanning the scenery inside the store with his eyes full of interest.
When I saw it, I naturally became curious.
It’s just an old snack bar, so what’s so amazing about it that you scan it so meticulously?
“Are you curious?”
For some reason, seeing Yuhan’s engrossed appearance made me feel better.
So when I asked, Yuhan’s reaction was different from what he had expected.
“Yes? Ah, yes…”
Should I say I’m terribly ashamed?
Even though there was no reason to be ashamed.
Even so, she didn’t stop scanning the wall with her eyes.
As if they were looking for something there.
“Senior, how many times have you been here?”
The title of senior that came out of Yuhan’s mouth was still unfamiliar, but after hearing it a few times, the embarrassment was relatively less than when he heard it for the first time.
It was still the same as if the cheeks were getting hot.
“Um, well…”
Even when she asked how many times she had been there, she couldn’t give an exact answer.
It was a long time ago, so my memory is fuzzy.
Still, I remember coming here quite often when I was in school.
Probably at least once a week.
“Is it so?”
“Yeah, back then… There was only one shop nearby that I could go to.”
Nowadays, there are many franchises, but that was the case back then.
“Hmm, that’s right…”
Anyway, what are you looking for so hard?
“But what are you looking at?”
It must have been the moment when I asked out of curiosity because I couldn’t take my eyes off the wall even during the conversation.
Yuhan’s shoulders flinched and trembled as he kept glancing at the wall as if he had something bothering him.
And then, with a smile on her face that anyone could tell that it was forced, she evaded her words.
“Oh, no. It’s just that the graffiti on the wall is amazing…”
It felt somehow fresh.
I wanted to tease him for some reason seeing Yuhan who was always getting beaten up by Yuhan, but looking at Yuhan who was slightly embarrassed like that.
She thought that she wanted to pay back even a little bit of the embarrassment she had felt because of Yuhan.
I put on a school uniform that was not suitable for my age, so did my thoughts go back to that time?
There’s no way it would suit her then, and she would look childish for her age.
“No, I was looking very intently.”
I did it.
I ended up doing it.
Thanks to her, her face tried to get hot, but apart from that, the corners of her mouth itched for some reason when she saw Yuhan, who didn’t know what to do, like someone who had been stabbed.
At the same time, I became more curious.
What the hell was he looking for on the wall that made him so perplexed?
That was soon found out.
Yuhan, who kept glancing at me with his head slightly lowered as if to hide his expression, lowered his head and revealed the truth.
“I-I was wondering if your aunt’s name was written on it by any chance. Ah…”
“My, my name?”
Yuhan, realizing that he had broken the rules he had set for himself a little too late, hurriedly covered his mouth, but there was no time to pay attention to that.
Because it was so embarrassing.
I wondered what they were looking for so hard, but I never thought they were looking for my name on it.
It was only then that the graffiti covering the walls came into sight.
It was quite meaningful to write down meaningless names or names among friends, but most of the time, couples wrote their names side by side with a heart.
The fact that I was looking for my name in there… I wonder if I was worried that this name might be written side by side with another man’s name as I can see now.
‘Jealousy···’
Did you do it
In an instant, a thought flashed in my head, and I reflexively flinched.
It had to be.
Because something is different from before.
Wearing the school uniform, did even my head go back to that time?
If it had been like this before, it must have been embarrassing, but not now.
If it’s not embarrassing, it’s not, but a feeling of fullness that doubles it was rising from somewhere in the body.
I couldn’t open my mouth.
It felt like if I opened my mouth now, the stuff inside my body would leak out through my mouth.
That’s why it seemed like Yuhan would find out about those feelings.
At the same time, the silence around me began to feel strangely anxious.
Still, I couldn’t open my mouth.
I did it even though I knew it wouldn’t do me any good to leave it like that.
It must have been in the midst of not being able to do this or that.
I’m sorry
A scream from the battered door broke the silence.
