Real Man

Chapter 69

Yoo-hyun had lived in Ulsan for a year, but he didn’t even know that there was such an old housing complex.

The transportation was inconvenient and he had to walk quite a bit to get to the hilltop.

Was it worth the trouble to find such a place?

He asked that question and Ha Jun Seok quickly answered.

“It was my dream to live in a rooftop room. Huh? But why did you bring so much stuff?”

“It’s yours.”

“Hey, come on.”

Ha Jun Seok took the tissue and flower pot that Yoo-hyun brought and climbed up the stairs quickly.

On the roof of the two-story house, there was a rooftop room.

Under the dim light, there were clothes hanging on the laundry line, a green-painted floor, and a cracked clay-colored floor.

It was exactly the kind of rooftop room scene that you would see in a drama.

Ha Jun Seok leaned his body on a pole by the railing and said.

“How is it? Isn’t the view amazing?”

Amazing my ass.

It was too dark to see anything.

The only thing visible was the street lights scattered here and there.

“Whatever. Let’s eat this.”

“Wow, what’s with the pig’s feet? Nice. Pig’s feet go well with soju.”

Yoo-hyun unpacked his luggage in the eight-pyeong rooftop room and came out to the floor wearing the training suit that Ha Jun Seok gave him.

There were pig’s feet that Yoo-hyun bought, dried snacks that were in Ha Jun Seok’s house, and soju and beer.

On top of that, there was a song playing from a small speaker that he picked up somewhere.

Ha Jun Seok chattered excitedly.

“Isn’t the atmosphere great? Hehe.”

“Oh my, you’re awesome.”

“I have a good taste in music. You like it? Remember these guys. They’re called Girls’ Generation. They just debuted and they’re really pretty.”

“What does being pretty have to do with music?”

“It matters, man. They’re going to be a hit. Just watch.”

Ha Jun Seok lifted his head confidently.

He looked quite funny, but he had to admit that he had a good sense of music.

Yoo-hyun chuckled and poured alcohol into an empty soju glass.

Drinking on the rooftop was quite atmospheric.

With delicious snacks and mood added, the two men clinked their paper cups and drank.

“Ahh, this is so good. Don’t you think?”

“Yeah. It’s nice.”

Ha Jun Seok had never lived in another region from the time he was born until he graduated from college.

As he said, he always lived with his parents.

“Somebody said to me. Everyone else is going up to get a job, but you’re going down. It’s true, though. There are construction companies in our area, too.”

“That’s true.”

He didn’t choose Ulsan because there was a particularly good company there.

He just wanted to go to a different region, and there was a company that matched his level in Ulsan.

“Haha, isn’t that funny?”

“What’s so funny? You look good, what.”

“Really?”

“Of course. I’m serious. Come on, have a drink.”

But now it was different.

He realized that a life that only chased money or success wasn’t necessarily desirable.

Maybe it was better to live like him, enjoying the present.

In a cheerful atmosphere, Yoo-hyun and Ha Jun Seok talked about various things.

How their work life was, how their daily life was, how their family situation was, and so on.

“Is Jae Hee doing well?”

“Why? Are you interested?”

“Puhahaha, can’t I ask? I’m just saying. Just… Ouch, it’s annoying. The alcohol is getting to me.”

Ha Jun Seok seemed embarrassed for some reason and lay down on the floor.

Yoo-hyun also laughed and pushed aside the empty soju bottles and lay down with him.

Whooosh.

The wind blowing in made the background sound instead of the turned-off speaker.

It felt good to just lie still.

They were looking at the night sky where the stars were not even visible when Ha Jun Seok opened his mouth.

“Yoo-hyun.”

“Hmm?”

“I’m sorry.”

Did he drink too much and get drunk?

It was an awkward atmosphere, so Yoo-hyun casually spat out a word.

“What are you talking about?”

“No, just…”

“Spit it out. I won’t hit you.”

Yoo-hyun tilted his head.

His friend’s voice trailed off as if he was really serious about what he was going to say.

Come to think of it, this was the first time they drank together.

“Haha, I really wanted to do this. You know. It’s my first time living alone.”

“I know. You stayed in your hometown until college.”

“So someone said to me. Everyone else is going up to get a job, but you’re going down. It’s true, though. There are construction companies in our area, too.”

“That’s true.”

He didn’t choose Ulsan because there was a particularly good company there.

He just wanted to go to a different region, and there was a company that matched his level in Ulsan.

“Haha, isn’t that funny?”

“What’s so funny? You look good, what.”

“Really?”

“Of course. I’m serious. Come on, have a drink.”

But now it was different.

He realized that a life that only chased money or success wasn’t necessarily desirable.

Maybe it was better to live like him, enjoying the present.

In a cheerful atmosphere, Yoo-hyun and Ha Jun Seok talked about various things.

How their work life was, how their daily life was, how their family situation was, and so on.

“Remember that time? When we were in elementary school, no, it was national school. Hahaha.”

“What about that time?”

Yoo-hyun waited for Ha Jun Seok’s words that hesitated.

The vibration of the wooden floor from the back of his head seemed to show his friend’s feelings.

“That time you lost your black motor. Actually, I took it.”

“What’s that?”

“Kekeke, I knew you wouldn’t remember. We were in sixth grade, right? Mini cars were popular then. We always raced after school.”

“Did we?”

Ha Jun Seok looked at the sky as Yoo-hyun tilted his head.

“We did. We competed to see whose motor was better.”

“That’s childish.”

“It was very serious then. But then you bought an expensive black motor one day. I was so jealous of that.”

“…”

Yoo-hyun blinked his eyes.

He really had no idea what he was talking about.

It was natural that he didn’t remember something that happened 23 years ago.

Even if he did remember, it wouldn’t make any difference.

It wasn’t a special event or anything. How important could a mini car be?

But it seemed that it wasn’t like that for Ha Jun Seok.

“So I wanted to borrow it for a while, you know? But somehow I ended up taking it home without taking it out of my pocket.”

“Kid.”

“I wanted to tell you sooner, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t return it or use it and I left it on my desk for 10 years.”

It was amazing.

It was a strange feeling to hear someone tell him a story from his forgotten past.

Maybe he felt that way because it was something that definitely happened, even though he didn’t remember it.

Yoo-hyun asked.

“Did I cry when I lost it?”

“No way. You didn’t say anything. You acted like you never lost it. Maybe you knew. You were that kind of guy.”

“…”

As Yoo-hyun fell silent, Ha Jun Seok’s voice rose again.

“Hahaha, do you remember? We stole an adult video?”

“You did that too?”

“Kukuku, you really don’t remember, do you? I still remember it vividly. How nervous I was back then. My heart was pounding so hard.”

“You were like a thief.”

Yoo-hyun said with a poke, and Soja Ha Jun Seok glared at him.

“No, I wasn’t. I returned it after watching it, didn’t I?”

“Well, that was nice of you.”

“I still can’t believe it when I think about it. Who would have thought to steal a video and then go back and put it in the case again?”

“Haha.”

It was a funny situation, now that he thought about it.

Why did he do that?

Ha Jun Seok gave him the answer.

“Actually, it was me who suggested stealing it. I was so nervous the whole time I watched the movie. I felt like the video store owner would come running any minute.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I was very anxious even after the movie ended. But then you went to return it by yourself.”

Yoo-hyun exclaimed at the faint memory that came to him.

“Ah…”

“It must have been because of me. I was too scared. I was really grateful to you then.”

“You’re grateful for everything.”

“Kuhaha, right? Anyway, yeah. Ah… It feels good. To say what I wanted to say.”

Yoo-hyun turned his head slightly and looked at him.

Ha Jun Seok was still looking at the sky.

He couldn’t see him clearly in the dark, but he somehow knew what kind of expression he was making.

He must be making that characteristic nose wrinkle that he always did when he said something awkward.

Speaking of which, the rooftop room and the past stories.

It was a good time.

After that, Ha Jun Seok kept telling Yoo-hyun stories from their childhood that he didn’t remember at all.

His voice made the black ink in his head gradually fade away.

“Do you remember when you got angry at Lee Yong Oh for stealing your side dish and we got beaten up badly?”

“Kukuku, I remember that. It was so unfair.”

“But do you remember when you secretly threw a ball at the back of his head and hit him? I thought you would become a pitcher later. Kukuku.”

“Puhahaha, did you?”

Yoo-hyun laughed out loud and Ha Jun Seok snickered.

“Do you remember when you held out until the end when we got beaten up by the student leader? You got hit until your butt burst. I got hit because of you too.”

“Ah… Kuku. Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

Ha Jun Seok waved his hand.

Yoo-hyun slowly faced his younger self.

He was timid and stubborn.

He was fragile, sensitive, and shy.

And he always had friends by his side.

“Ah… It’s so good.”

“The rooftop room is the best, right?”

“Seriously. It’s amazing.”

Maybe he had been trying to restore his broken friendship all this time.

He enjoyed being with them, but there was a 20-year gap in their experiences.

He tried harder to be nice to them because he felt sorry for the past, and he tried harder to fit in with them to please them.

He made phone calls that he didn’t want to make, and he took the initiative to help them with their jobs.

He thought that by doing so, he would gradually get closer and become true friends.

‘That wasn’t it.’

They had different interests, different places they belonged to, and different places they lived in now, but they shared old memories.

They grew up together through their immature childhood.

No matter what they looked like now, the past didn’t change, and the time they spent with their friends couldn’t have changed either.

He didn’t know that and built a wall and kept a distance by himself.

Swish.

He turned his head and saw Ha Jun Seok’s profile.

Not the wrinkled face of a 40-year-old, but the short-haired face of his childhood overlaid on his face.

It was the face of his friend that was in the eyes of young Yoo-hyun, who thought he had forgotten.

As if his appearance felt different, he also felt that the distance that was not visible was suddenly pulled closer.

Then Ha Jun Seok turned his head.

“Ahem.”

He met his eyes and coughed awkwardly as if he was embarrassed. He got up from his seat.

“Do you want to sober up?”

“I’m not drunk.”

You’re not drunk. Your face is red.

“Then have a drink with me.”

“Cool.”

The glasses were filled, and the conversation continued with memories as a side dish.

Yoo-hyun felt thankful for the long night.

The next day.

Park Seung Woo, the assistant manager he met in the morning, looked like he had lost his soul.

He said he was going to drink with his classmates in Ulsan, and he must have really drank a lot.

His eyes were still red even though it was morning.

Of course, Yoo-hyun wasn’t in a good condition either.

Park Seung Woo looked at him with pity and asked.

“Why do you look like that?”

“I drank too much because I met an old friend. Ugh, my head.”

He wasn’t pretending.

He was so absorbed in the conversation with Ha Jun Seok yesterday that he drank without thinking.

He usually didn’t skip running in the morning.

But today, he was too busy getting up and coming to work.

“Kuku, you’re more human-like now. I have a headache too. We have some time left, do you want to go to a sauna?”

“Is that okay?”

“We have some time left, what’s wrong with that? We’re on a business trip, we should have some freedom.”

“…”

Park Seung Woo, who was already a few steps ahead, turned around and gestured to him.

“What are you doing? Come on.”

Well, yeah, what’s wrong with that?

He was right, there were days like this.

Yoo-hyun smiled wryly and answered.

“Yes. I’m coming.”

After finishing the sauna and having bean sprout soup for hangover cure, Park Seung Woo glanced at Yoo-hyun.

He seemed to have something to say, but he kept looking around.

Yoo-hyun asked.

“Assistant manager, are you okay?”

“Yeah, sure. I’m fine. Hahaha. Should we get up?”

He laughed awkwardly like that, making it more weird.

“Yes. I’ll pay for this.”

“No, no. I’ll pay for it. Um, I have to pay for it.”

He waved his hand too much and said that.

“Sigh.”

Yoo-hyun let out a small sigh as he watched Park Seung Woo go to the cashier.

He thought he knew why he was acting like this.