When I opened my eyes, I was in darkness. The darkness of the cool indigo blue.
I turned my head to look around, but suddenly I felt a stinging sensation like being stabbed in the cheek with a needle. Startled, I hurriedly reached for my hand, but there were only wet drops of water on my cheek.
it’s snow I continued to move to avoid the eye poking around my body, but the snow, just below my knees, groaned and grabbed my leg.
It was such a sharp sensation that it felt badly.
“… … Heh.”
A midsummer figure, squatting and writing something, was reflected over the blurred gaze.
The rustling sound coming from the simple table made of crumpled paper and delivery boxes pierced my ears.
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”
Midsummer, who had been jotting down a ballpoint pen for a while, got up with a soft moan.
“Are you going?”
“yes.”
“It goes fast.”
“Iknow, right. If it wasn’t for anyone else, I’d be leaving sooner.”
I led my staggering body towards the front door.
“It’s a no-brainer.”
Midsummer glanced at my face and said sarcastically.
“It’s such a moving movie.”
“I made it in the morning, so wash your face and eat. I also wrote down a few recipes that are easy to make, so make them when you have time. Don’t buy it every day.”
Han Yeo-reum put her hand on the doorknob for the last time.
“Wait a minute.”
Midsummer turned her head and looked at me with suspicious eyes.
“that… … . Thank you.”
“What is it? out of nowhere.”
“Nursing you.”
“Thank you for having nothing special, so please don’t overdo it. I didn’t mean to hear that.”
Midsummer’s voice that responded so calmly subsided.
“Like I said last time, I… … .”
“Are you going to give back what you received?”
Midsummer nodded.
“So next time.”
The eyes of midsummer are heading this way.
“Call me if there is anything.”
He seemed to be trying to play an expressionless expression, but he could not hide the anticipation in his eyes, reminiscent of a child on the eve of Christmas.
This is how a girl named midsummer finds rest. It was a way of thinking that was still difficult to understand, as if something was twisted.
“okay?”
“okay.”
“then.”
I looked around the living room.
The clothes manager towering from the wall and the air conditioners, air purifiers, washing machines, dryers and vacuum cleaners lined up next to it catch my eye. A large television and speakers occupying an entire wall are a bonus.
It’s like looking at a department store’s home appliance sales stand.
Yes, this is not a house. Home is a word that basically refers to a space where you can rest comfortably, but there is not a single table where you can sit comfortably and cook porridge.
Until now, I had been yelling at the subject of being homeless in a department store, shouting that it was cold. stupid guy.
“Let me ask you one thing.”
“yes?”
In the midsummer’s lips, a futile voice came out.
I now know exactly what I need for this house.
There was no more struggling in the cold, no more impulsive purchases. That’s why I didn’t even need his help.
But if there is a debt (債務), there is.
Debt for using him as a means to satisfy my low and hypocritical morals and for making me realize how ugly I am.
It was not a grace that could be repaid just by giving a few bucks.
“I want to buy some furniture, but I don’t have an eye for that. I need someone to watch with me.”
Then I’ll do whatever he wants. If there’s anything Midsummer gains from helping me, I’ll remain as an asshole who can’t even choose a table.
* * *
“How much more do I have to go? I’m going to die of back pain.”
Midsummer speaks to me in a train that runs through the dark with a rattling noise. His words seemed smaller than usual because of the sound of metal coming from outside.
“About five stops left.”
“Ham… … . Please wake me up when you arrive.”
Midsummer closed his eyes again. Suddenly, the chair we were sitting on caught my eye.
A hard, cold silver piece of iron that had only the minimal function of a chair, which seemed far from comfortable.
-Aren’t you going too far? There must be a furniture store around here, so why not go there?
As he said, it might have been better to use a nearby department store, furniture store, or at least an internet shopping mall. Because it’s fast and easy.
However, I didn’t like the furniture sold in such places because it felt like there was a chill somewhere. Like this iron chair I’m sitting on right now.
So I wanted to go there. even to check.
“The station is once dirty, uh, let’s see. So, if you go out of exit 6… … .”
A huge station where two different lines merge. The long corridor leading to the transfer hall, dotted underground shops, and numerous exits added to the complex impression of the station.
“It’s closer to going out this way.”
“You seem to have been there a lot.”
“Not to that extent.”
As I left the station, I carefully followed the street scene.
Blurred signboards and tin roofs that have been peeled off paint are scattered across the boulevard. So far it’s the same
However, I was able to feel the passage of time only when I discovered buildings with a sophisticated design that I had never seen before, protruding through them.
It has changed, here too.
“So why did you ask me to come here?”
Midsummer said The bridge of his nose was twitching a little, probably because of the pungent smell that was slowly flowing through the alley.
“It was my dream, to shop here.”
We went into the store which was seated near the station. It was a place where the old-fashioned brick exterior decoration stood out.
“welcome.”
“Can I take a look?”
“Please.”
Ask the owner for permission and slowly look around the furniture displayed in the store.
“Hey, how about this?”
Where Midsummer pointed with her finger, there was a swivel chair. An alluring bright red cushion and a white body with a subtle luster.
It was a chair that imitated Ero Saarinen’s tulip chair, which has become commonplace now.
“There’s only one thing floating around in the house.”
“is it?”
It was pretty, but it looked too cold to me.
“Let’s go there too.”
I turned to the store next door. It was a place full of furniture with avant-garde designs suitable for concept cafes and art museums.
“what?”
Midsummer’s footsteps, who were looking at the furniture in unison, stopped in front of the chair with the bottom protruding like a top.
As we saw a while ago, it was a copy of a chair made by a famous overseas designer.
“How can this not fall over?”
Midsummer patted the chair as if in a strange way, then sat down and started to turn around.
It is a familiar sight.
“Why do you look like that?”
Midsummer noticed my gaze and stood up with a shy expression on her face.
“It just reminds me of someone who did the same thing as you.”
I once saw the original of that chair at an exhibition I went with Yu Ga-ryun. The figure of the guy who sat on a chair and turned around is still good in his eyes.
At that time, Garyun was smiling brightly.
“… … Well, did you find something you want to buy?”
“no.”
We left the store.
“Next time over there… … .”
“No, let’s go over there.”
I left the high-end furniture store on the street, and in the meantime, I stepped into a small alley.
It was the alley that I once walked with Chae Seol-ha.
* * *
“Wow.”
On the day when the wet wind blew past my cheeks, as I was leaving the printing shop and headed for the station, I looked around in surprise at the sudden groan that came out.
Chae Seol-ha, who had been fine until a while ago, was staggering behind him.
“it’s okay?”
“Yeah, uh, it’s suddenly buzzing. Maybe it’s just the smell of ink on an empty stomach.”
“Wait, I’ll go to the pharmacy.”
“No, it’s okay.”
Chae Seol-ha shook her head.
“I think it will get better if I get some air. I’m busy, so I’ll go first, I’ll walk around a bit.”
“Okay, are you the only one who smelled ink on an empty stomach?”
I opened my mouth wide and stuck out my tongue as if vomiting.
“Anyway, you’re good at talking.”
I can’t remember exactly what we talked about while walking. But it was definitely a lot of fun.
A shop that sells electronic parts you don’t know well, a pet shop with cute animals, and a small theater where everything is collapsing.
Chae Seol-ha and I arrived at this place at some point as we walked while chatting in vain with the insignificant scenery of the street.
And then.
* * *
When I woke up, I was running without realizing it. It was because he found a familiar signboard inside the alley.
His heart pounded against his chest, and sweat dripped down the back of his neck.
“No, why are you running all of a sudden?”
I caught my breath and reached for the doorknob. The door was still rusty and could not be opened.
“Ah, hello.”
Read at nobelmtl.com
A tense greeting comes out of his throat.
“Come here.”
In contrast to me, the owner spoke with an indifferent voice. He was assembling the chair with a clicking sound.
A wooden chair with a rough design that gives the opposite feeling to the chairs I’ve seen before catches my eye.
“Collock, ma’am, what kind of dust… .”
Midsummer, who inhaled the dust in the store, coughs and waves his hand.
“Are you looking for anything?”
“Old man, don’t you remember me?”
“yes?”
The owner, who heard the question, looked at my face with a puzzled look.
“I was there a few years ago. That’s why, you said they’re f*cking bastards who ate a decent chair.”
“I’m sorry. My memory is hazy these days.”
Excited about the first sight I saw, I walked around the alleys and saw the owner making a chair with a noble appearance like a craftsman I saw in a documentary chasing, and I entered the store as if possessed.
Then I stumbled on a piece of wood that was wallowing on the floor and smashed a sane chair loudly. If the owner hadn’t passed it on, he might have had to pay a large sum of money.
But be fuzzy
“… … okay. May I look around for a bit?”
I opened my mouth, feeling a little bitter.
“Do whatever you want.”
I slowly started looking around the store. and then found
Scratches made by a piece of wood that had bounced off the chair at that time remained clear even after a long time.
“excuse me.”
Midsummer wiped the dust off the chair and opened his mouth.
“Can’t I buy this?”
“why?”
Midsummer, who had been thinking about my question for a while, slowly parted her lips.
“… … Just, yo. I don’t know what to say, but it just looks good.”
“okay?”
“No, if you don’t like it, drink it. It’s up to you to decide.”
“That’s good, I was going to buy it here too.”
Certainly, it may look a little more rustic than the stylishly designed furniture created by famous designers. However, the furniture of this store contains the soul and heart of the maker.
At the same time, time stood there.
The times I had forgotten and thought I would have disappeared… … .
“How did you buy it?”
Midsummer murmurs as he leaves the store.
What I bought were two chairs with backrests, a small table and a single bed. The owner said he would call the truck tomorrow and deliver it.
After I finished my calculations, as I was walking to the subway station, a sound came into my ear.
―Look lull… … .
As soon as the sound was over, Midsummer grabbed her stomach and bowed her head. My ears tingled with the red heat through my hair.
“what. Is it funny that people are hungry?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
It’s my fault that I lost my eye while buying furniture and forgot my meal time.
“Do you like cold noodles?”
“yes?”
“There is a good naengmyeon restaurant nearby. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to go.”
Midsummer quietly nodded at my question. Tracing my memories, I passed a few furniture stores and entered the alley.
It must have been around here. A two-story brick building… … .
“Why, again?”
But there was only a seven-story gray concrete building standing there.
When I saw the stupid and dull building covering the open sky, I was instantly annoyed.
Why did a restaurant boasting a tradition of 60 years become such a stupid concrete building?
“Originally, there used to be a naengmyeon restaurant here.”
“What is it, then you can’t eat it?”
In an alley of restaurants specializing in Hamheung naengmyeon with sashimi, there were three restaurants with different personalities, and visitors could choose their favorite restaurant according to their taste.
But in the end, this was the place that Dasom and I loved. When I thought of that, I suddenly cried.
“No, there are a few more over there.”
“That’s fortunate.”
We went to the restaurant across the street.
“Auntie, please give me two hoe-naengmyeon here.”
“Bachelor, it’s prepaid.”
“I will calculate and come. Card, please.”
In the past few years, the price of naengmyeon has risen by 2,000 won. Midsummer, who finished his calculations, began to wander around the restaurant.
“If you want to enjoy naengmyeon deliciously, use sesame oil, vinegar, mustard, sugar… … . Oh, this is it.”
Midsummer rattles the seasoning jars on the desk.
“It’s terribly complicated.”
“If you feel it is not enough while trying it, you can add little by little.”
Soon after, the cold noodles came out. I squirmed my chopsticks in an awkward mood and shoved them into my mouth.
it was cold It must be a little different from what I remembered, but what was wriggling in my mouth right now was definitely cold noodles. I thought it would be uncomfortable. He was also prepared to throw up.
but it’s cold Rather, it was a taste that I had never experienced before, so it was even fresh.
As I was thinking about why I didn’t know this simple fact on the subject that I had been to this street many times until now, I realized one thing.
never been there Dasom only listened to her sister and did not even try to eat it herself with a vague objection. Perhaps the act of trying something was terrifying.
it’s just cold
“What do you think.”
In front of me, raising my head as I asked the question, there was a pig scratching the bottom of the bowl with chopsticks with its lips red. I felt a little let down and raised my hand.
“Mom, please give me another hoenaengmyeon here. specially.”
“I don’t need that much.”
Midsummer scratched the bridge of his nose as if in embarrassment, and clouded the tail of his horse. I took the opportunity to talk to you.
“Can I ask you one more thing?”
At that one word, Midsummer blinked and looked at me. My words are very surprising.
“What?”
“packaging.”
Midsummer tilts her head.
“You literally put things in boxes and then seal them. It’s too much for me to do on my own.”
“What is it?”
“Things I bought at the department store last time. I want to dispose of it all at this time.”
* * *
“You don’t seem to have done anything, so why are you so tired… … .”
“Because I’ve been sitting on the subway for a long time.”
It was 7:00 when I got off the bus. The blazing purple sun was falling down the sky.
We walked up the hill on our way home, feeling the damp wind characteristic of early summer.
“There is.”
Midsummer opened his mouth.
“Why are you organizing them all of a sudden?”
“Because I knew it was stuff I didn’t need.”
Until then, I didn’t have the courage to let go. Maybe you’ll regret it after giving it up.
But you won’t know unless you try. If you don’t try it, it will remain as a department store for the rest of your life.
Suddenly, the scenery of Furniture Street came to my mind.
When I first stepped out of the station, it felt like everything had changed.
There were buildings I had never seen before, and my favorite restaurant had long since disappeared. The street I liked back then is no longer there. I thought so.
But it wasn’t. Although there were some changes, in the end, the dusty alleyways, the rustic signboards, and the furniture stores with the slightly indifferent owner clearly existed.
it changes
You no longer exist on the streets I walked with you. But the reverberations of you and me still lingered in the distance.
Even if the appearance of the street changes over time, the fact that we walked the street together will not change and will not be erased.
That was stupid.
Why didn’t I realize such a simple fact?
“Well, it’s not that difficult. Is the box still there?”
“Wait a minute.”
“yes?”
So now I won’t run away with strange excuses.
“Sorry, I have to go first.”
A few days ago, the face that made me sweat and trembled just by looking at it.
No more tremors So it’s a step forward.
My friend, understanding, and the person I liked as the opposite sex.
“… … You quit smoking, didn’t you?”
to the street where you are
