The Season I Loved You Without You - Chapter 47

CHAPTER 47

After the wedding, there was no quiet moment for the boutique employees to have coffee together as usual. It felt awkward with the boss around; even the country would have felt uncomfortable. Instead, Hee-kyung handed a card to Go-yeo.

“Boss! Take this!”

Hee-kyung passed a bouquet arranged with fresh decorations to Go-yeo. Go-yeo lightly smiled as she received the modest bouquet. Despite Hee-kyung’s hasty arrangement, the white and pink flowers harmonized reasonably well. Hee-kyung also offered a bouquet to Ga-eul.

“Ga-eul, you don’t have to hold flowers. Today, you are the flower itself.”

Hee-kyung’s words made the boutique staff laugh. Ga-eul accepted the bouquet, feeling embarrassed.

On the way home, the unfamiliar scent of flowers lingered in the car. Being among many people was exhausting. Go-yeo’s smooth forehead furrowed. She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them at the sound of vibration. Taking out her phone from the bag, she saw an unfamiliar number that wasn’t saved.

[There’s something I need to tell you. Make time.]

Ugh. Shameless and conscienceless.

Her finger hesitated over the block button. Not being able to block his continued contact felt like lingering regret. She had let him go, but couldn’t shake him off.

Since that day, she had fully realized her mistake, but her mind was still dizzy with thoughts of him. She quietly reasoned that this was inevitable.

It wasn’t a problem that would disappear overnight, like a habit. But she vowed never to entertain foolish thoughts of him and their future again. She was practicing letting fleeting thoughts naturally pass by.

Forgetting Moon Ji-hyuk was like learning to walk, stumbling, and getting back up repeatedly.

To fill the void of the long empty hours, Go-yeo decided to work hard. Since Ji-yeon had gone on her honeymoon, she needed to be diligent at the boutique.

Lost in thought, she heard the vibration again. Wondering if it was Ji-hyuk calling, Go-yeo’s neat eyebrows furrowed. But the source of the vibration was Ga-eul’s phone in the cup holder. He couldn’t answer as he was driving.

Go-yeo picked up the phone, checked the screen, and informed Ga-eul.

“Sister Anna is calling?”

Go-yeo noticed Ga-eul’s eyes widening in surprise.

“It doesn’t seem urgent. I can call her back later.”

Go-yeo nodded, putting the phone back in the cup holder, and the screen touched accidentally.

“Oh no. Answer it comfortably.”

She switched to speaker mode and handed the phone to Ga-eul.

– Hello? 

A bright and cheerful voice echoed, causing the person next to her to laugh. Was it common for people with similar fates to meet?

“Sister.”

– Ga-eul, I just wanted to check if you registered for the courses. And you’re moving today, right? Have you moved all your stuff?

“Can I call you back later? It’s not a good time to talk right now…”

– Oh my! I’m sorry. Got it. Let’s talk later. Give me a call.

“Got it.”

After the call ended, silence filled the car. Ga-eul felt as if he had been caught cheating. Even though there was no need for such feelings. Before he could say anything, she diverted the conversation to something more meaningful.

“So you’re moving today? Have you moved all your stuff?”

“I didn’t have much, so I moved early this morning.”

“You’re diligent.”

Ga-eul wanted to say more but found himself at a loss for words.

“How’s the new place?”

“It’s close to school, the rent is cheap, and it’s clean. I think I can stay there until graduation.”

Go-yeo didn’t know what the neighborhood was like, but she thought she could make it more comfortable for him.

“Wanna go see your new place?”

“Huh?”

“I mean, since we have nothing else to do, let’s go check it out now.”

Ga-eul was surprised by Go-yeo’s sudden suggestion but didn’t dislike it. Spending time with her was currently his only source of happiness.

It was a neighborhood of small multi-family houses clustered near the school. Among them, Ga-eul’s house was located in the innermost alley. They barely managed to park between the tightly packed cars on the street. When they opened the door leading to the outside after climbing the four flights of stairs, they saw a small house standing alone on the rooftop. It was an attic.

Whether the owner was concerned or not, the rooftop was neatly cleaned. There was no clutter, as one might expect on a rooftop.

The sunset colored the sky as darkness descended, creating a beautiful purple sky. Go-yeo was drawn to the rooftop railing. Because it was a high ground, countless green rooftops could be seen below, and despite it being winter, there was a faint scent of grass, perhaps because of the makeshift meadow beside the building.

As the sun set, lights came on in various places. Despite it being her first time seeing such a simple scenery, it felt surprisingly nice.

Ga-eul opened the door with a key instead of an electronic keycard and quickly inspected the house. The room that came into view at a glance was neatly cleaned, and the luggage brought in this morning was neatly piled up in one corner. So there was nothing much to organize, but suddenly the small house felt uncomfortably hot compared to his bedroom.

Ga-eul glanced at Go-yeo as if to go to her, but she stood at the rooftop railing, looking around. It felt unreal, but she was here. A place that would become Yoon Ga-eul’s own space. Go-yeo turned towards where Ga-eul was and approached him.

“I like the view from here.”

Her modest, quietly spoken comment carried a strange resonance. Perhaps she could make ordinary things feel extraordinary with her words, a kind of magic.

He felt regretful that they hadn’t seen the scenery together. If Ga-eul had been there, wouldn’t he have been included in Go-yeo’s scenery?

‘Like it.’

Could he also be included in those words?

Go-yeo stepped into his house. There was a small entrance with a makeshift kitchen, a tiny bathroom, and a room where a single mattress, a narrow wardrobe, a simple desk, and a chair were crammed in. The windows were covered with ivory-colored curtains, not visibly stained from frequent washing.

It was certainly not a place to praise, but it had a cozy atmosphere for living alone.

“You’ll get good sunlight.”

In winter, it was cold, and in summer, it would be hot, but it faced the south, directly catching the sunlight. It wasn’t too chilly, but it wasn’t a sunbathed spot either.

“This is all?”

There wasn’t much-unpacked luggage under the desk.

“Oh! I’m planning to bring the clothes the boss gave me next time.”

Go-yeo’s question wasn’t why he hadn’t brought anything she provided. Even without luggage, it seemed too bare, so she asked.

“…Wanna move somewhere else? I’ll find a nice studio apartment for you.”

Though she hesitated a bit before suggesting this due to liking the view here, proposing such a thing to him was as easy as breathing.

Of course, if she pushed forward with his mother’s hospital work like a compulsory task, he would follow. But his personal space was something she didn’t want to compromise. The answer was easy to anticipate.

“I’ll take the boss’ feelings into account. It’s convenient to go to school from here. My brother, who used to live here, also said this was the best.”

“Okay.”

Not wanting to stay in this state, she took him to a department store. They picked out essential items for him, such as bedding, pillows, towels, kitchenware, and so on.

While browsing, they found a plant in the plant section of the department store that resembled a red Congo. They even finished shopping, including that one plant.

Ga-eul placed the green and red air-purifying plant that Go-yeo had bought on the desk. He gently touched its wide leaves.

‘Take good care of it.’

He searched the internet on how to take care of the red Congo.

[Love me.]

Wow! That was the flower language of this plant. He couldn’t help but love its large green leaves.

* * *

The Eternal, located in the Sky Lounge of Twin Star Hotel, was a fairly atmospheric fine dining restaurant. With its floor-to-ceiling windows, one could see the entire Seoul cityscape. Since the private rooms seemed a bit stuffy with only half-sized windows, they opted for a regular table to enjoy the expansive view.

Go-yeo chose the menu in place of Ga-eul, who was seated across from her. Finding out about Ga-eul’s birthday was purely coincidental. While reviewing personnel records to hire more staff for the boutique due to a shortage of hands, she happened to come across Ga-eul’s. His birthday was in a few days.

Soon, he would be returning to school, and their chance encounters might become rare. So, she arranged this meeting as both a gesture of goodwill and an excuse.

Go-yeo took out a box from her bag. It was a card wallet from a brand popular among twenty-something students these days. She had engraved his initials inside the small palm-sized wallet.

“Here you go. It’s almost your birthday.”

Ga-eul, who had followed Go-yeo without knowing why they were here today, was taken aback by her words and widened his eyes in surprise.

There was no special meaning behind Go-yeo’s choice of wallet. The shopper recommended it, and she simply chose it from the selection. Nevertheless, she was glad that Ga-eul seemed to like it. He smiled genuinely as if expressing his happiness.

“Thank you, boss. I always seem to receive…”

“You can have it.”

To Go-yeo, he was someone who made her feel the joy of giving. Ga-eul smiled at her simple response.

Bread and wine were served, and they started their meal with appetizers of thinly sliced scallops with lemon zest dressing and a side of Beluga caviar, enough to whet their appetites.

Ga-eul talked about the red Congo plant. The red Congo she had brought from the boutique was also given to him. Since she seemed to lack the talent for growing plants and thought it was better to be with him than to let it die, she passed it on to him.

He said he had looked up a lot of information on the internet to take good care of it, with clear, transparent eyes like a serene lake. With him looking at her like that, she felt she could listen to anything he said with contentment. She nodded in agreement with his words, smiling softly.

So, the conclusion regarding the plant was that it might live longer if it wasn’t given too much water. It seemed like a universal truth that excess of anything was not good. They sipped their wine.

“Is it good?”

“Yes. It’s delicious.”

Lie. Go-yeo had often watched Ga-eul eat, so she knew when he genuinely enjoyed the taste and when he didn’t. He didn’t realize his brows furrowed slightly when he liked the taste. Currently, he was just diligently eating. It meant it was just average for him.

“The next one will be to your liking.”

Despite the pleasant atmosphere moments ago, the sudden sound seemed to shatter it, abruptly dispelling the mood.