The Best of Tomorrow-Chapter 5Vol 2. .3

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I made it to the underground parking lot, and I did find the white car parked in the section Baek In-hyeok mentioned. But I couldn’t bring myself to actually sit in someone else’s car, so I hid behind a pillar. I had no idea what he was thinking when he handed me this key. He didn’t mean for me to drive it by myself, right? And he said it wasn’t a gift.

My legs trembled from the anxiety. This was Paju, for god’s sake. It was late, and this was the kind of location where even thinking about catching a bus, let alone a taxi, was laughable. If it were Seoul, I could’ve grabbed a Ddarungi bike and pedaled through the freezing wind until my feet gave out. But how was I supposed to get from Gyeonggi Province back to Seoul? I clenched my teeth and muttered Baek In-hyeok’s name under my breath. I was still fiddling with the smart key in my hand when a voice suddenly flew at me from behind.

“What are you doing here like this?”

I flinched and turned around. Seon-jae, whose face I’d barely seen in the dark earlier, was now standing there looking perfectly neat. Black slacks, a white crewneck sweatshirt.

“What the—hey, aren’t you cold? You came out dressed like that?”

More than the fact that Seon-jae had popped up behind me, it was his outfit that startled me. I had on a coat, a scarf, and even the gloves Seon-jae had given me—I’d armed myself with everything I could. And he was out here without even a jacket. Seon-jae motioned toward the car. The one Baek In-hyeok had told me about.

“I left it in the car.”

“The car...”

I lowered my eyes to look at the key in my hand. This? Was this the key to the car Seon-jae was talking about? Just as I was wondering that, Seon-jae’s hand brushed mine and snatched the key away.

“In-hyeok said you should wait in the car.”

“...Huh?”

I couldn’t close my gaping mouth. As I stood there frozen, Seon-jae brushed past me. I stared blankly at the spot where he’d been standing just moments ago, until his voice called my name from behind. A beat late, I turned my head, and Seon-jae tilted his.

“You’re not getting in?”

“...Huh?”

Like an idiot, I just kept spitting out question marks.

“Should I open the door for you?”

“No, no!”

I hurried over and climbed into the passenger seat. My rhythm was all over the place—too slow, then too rushed—making Seon-jae chuckle as he got in on the driver’s side. Buckling my seatbelt the moment I got in was pure habit. I turned my head to look at him. I got in because he told me to, but still—I needed to know what was going on.

“Wh-What is this? Whose car is it? Why are we getting in?”

“Who knows.”

Seon-jae shrugged as he started the engine. Then he turned and met my eyes.

“According to In-hyeok, this is all part of his big plan.”

“Plan?”

Seon-jae nodded.

“So this is Baek In-hyeok’s car?”

“No, it’s Hyeon-seong hyung’s.”

My eyes went wide.

“Wait—then don’t tell me the four of us are riding together? I’ll just take a taxi.”

I unbuckled my seatbelt and grabbed my bag, but Seon-jae chuckled and clicked the buckle back in place.

“They said they’re taking a taxi.”

“A taxi? Why? When they’ve got a car?”

To that, Seon-jae just shrugged again. I let out a scoff and placed my bag on my lap.

“What, did you think I was going to leave with In-hyeok?”

At that ridiculous thought, I whipped my head around and practically shouted.

“Are you insane?!”

“If you think that’s crazy, then I’m glad.”

I couldn’t breathe right. I just blinked and stared down at my bag. Ever since I got to Paju, everything had gone off the rails. Weird didn’t even begin to cover it. I mean, seriously—how was it that I ended up in the same row of the same theater as Ryu Seon-jae, Baek In-hyeok, and Woo Hyeon-seong, and then after the movie, I suddenly found myself getting into a car with Seon-jae? And it wasn’t even his car—it was Woo Hyeon-seong’s.

Seon-jae had one hand on the wheel and was flicking his fingers with the other as he gave me a long, quiet stare. His gaze made my lips go dry.

“...W-Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Have you thought about it?”

“Huh?”

“Us dating.”

Gulp. The sound of me swallowing echoed like thunder in my ears.

“Still haven’t?”

I bit my lip and nodded. Seon-jae nodded back like he understood and looked away.

“I’m pretty sure you said this when we first met. That you seriously fucking loved Ryu Seon-jae.”

My eyes widened. With a little more force, they might’ve popped right out. I couldn’t turn my head, so I just moved my eyes to the side. Seon-jae tilted his head without looking at me. I had no idea how he still remembered that, but maybe my words back then had just left that strong an impression. I felt like crying.

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The scenery outside the softly gliding car window passed by slowly. I kept sneaking glances at Seon-jae driving, like I couldn’t believe it was real. He caught me peeking, and the corners of his lips lifted.

“Just look. Don’t sneak around.”

I froze my face forward but my eyes kept shifting restlessly.

“When—when did I ever sneak a look?”

Clearing my throat, I rubbed my chin. It had been over a month since I came back to this timeline, but the image of Seon-jae in a school uniform still lingered in my mind. Maybe that image felt more familiar to me.

The silence in the car stretched. I turned my head to watch the scenery. The road to Seoul was wide open, and the Han River shimmered under the streetlights, veiled in night. There was a time I watched this same Han River with Seon-jae.

As I recalled that moment, that version of Seon-jae, music suddenly filled the car. I turned my head, listening. It was a song by Lee Moon-sae. The one we listened to together, sharing earbuds. My gaze drifted to Seon-jae. His profile faced straight ahead.

“Do you remember?”

“Yeah...”

How could I not. I had just been thinking about that day.

“I think it started back then.”

“What did?”

The music I loved, Lee Moon-sae’s voice, the beautiful lyrics—they all soaked into the mood.

“Me liking you.”

‘That’s strange.’

‘Huh?’

‘It’s really strange.’

‘......’

‘No matter how I think about it, it’s strange.’

My heart pounded, and I looked down at my knees to escape his face. The lyrics—‘Even if this world changes, my love will be forever with you’—softly echoed in my heart.

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With his arms crossed and his body hunched over, Woo Hyeon-seong shot daggers at Baek In-hyeok’s face. He regretted not demanding his car key back before or even after the movie started when Baek In-hyeok had asked to borrow it, saying he’d left something inside the car—and then never returned it.

When the movie ended, Woo Hyeon-seong walked slowly toward the restroom with Seon-jae. They chatted a bit. Hyeon-seong kept rambling about the movie’s plot, but Seon-jae didn’t seem to remember a single scene, like he’d watched a completely different film.

After coming out of the restroom, they couldn’t find Baek In-hyeok. And once they did find Baek In-hyeok, Seon-jae had vanished. Seriously, people just kept disappearing. As he grumbled about it, Baek In-hyeok gave him a sheepish smile and looped his arm through Hyeon-seong’s, leaning his head on his shoulder. “Gross, stop it,” Hyeon-seong grumbled as he shoved him off, completely unaware that his car had also just joined the list of things mysteriously ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) disappearing.

He’d been straight-up robbed of his car and his smart key. Baek In-hyeok claimed Seon-jae had driven off with it, but everyone knew Seon-jae wasn’t the type to pull that kind of nonsense. Clearly, this was all Baek In-hyeok’s doing. Having left his coat in the car, Woo Hyeon-seong was now left shivering on the curb waiting for a cab.

“Hyung, I’m sorry.”

“If you’re really sorry, give me your coat. Seriously.”

“Nope. You know I hate winter the most.”

“Well, I hate you.”

“Ahhh, hyung~”

Baek In-hyeok clung to Hyeon-seong’s side, pressing his body up against him. Normally, he’d have accepted the affection, but not today. Hyeon-seong’s face remained stone cold as he shook off his shoulder. Baek In-hyeok, whining with a nasal voice, stood up straight as he picked up a phone call.

“Yes, I’m standing in front of the parking lot entrance. Okay.”

It was the cab driver. Baek In-hyeok smiled and looked at Hyeon-seong like the cold was finally over. Hyeon-seong hunched over with his shoulders high as he spoke, his breath fogging the air.

“Was that her earlier?”

“Huh?”

Hyeon-seong, his cheeks red from the cold, turned his head.

“Seon-jae’s first love?”

Baek In-hyeok’s eyes went wide. He looked like he was thinking How did you know?

“Dude, I’ve got sky-high intuition.”

Baek In-hyeok nodded in impressed agreement.

“Meanwhile, Ryu Seon-jae’s intuition is six feet under.”

Hyeon-seong let out a snort of laughter. Thinking about Seon-jae nodding with zero suspicion when Baek In-hyeok had waved those movie tickets in his face... yeah. This whole thing had been orchestrated by Baek In-hyeok dragging Seon-jae along. It could’ve easily ended up being just Baek In-hyeok and Hyeon-seong at the theater.

“God, just imagining the two of us going alone is awful.”

Baek In-hyeok shook his head hard. Off in the distance, the headlights of a turning cab came into view. Baek In-hyeok raised his arm high and waved. Just then, Hyeon-seong let out a short “Ah!” like a lightbulb had gone off. Baek In-hyeok lowered his hand and looked at him.

“What?”

“Shit. They better not open the sun visor.”

“For that? Come on, they’re probably frozen solid and just staring straight ahead.”

The cab lights drew closer and closer. And in that growing light, Hyeon-seong’s troubled expression became even more obvious.

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Sitting there awkwardly, I opened the sun visor to look in the mirror. On the left side of the visor, there was a sticker photo. My eyes drifted toward it. The moment I saw the faces of a girl and boy pressed close together in the picture, I slammed the visor shut with a sharp thunk. The dull sound made Seon-jae glance over.

“What’s wrong?”

“Huh? Oh. Nothing.”

It was Woo Hyeon-seong. The girl was someone I’d never seen before, so probably not a celebrity. What is this? Then was the person Shim Won-jun mentioned in that rumor actually Woo Hyeon-seong? Only now did the tight feeling in my chest ease up a little. Of course. Seon-jae and I never even dated. We’d barely met a few times—there’s no way I’d be the subject of that kind of rumor.

“Do you have to go straight home?”

“...Huh?”

“If it’s okay, wanna stay with me a little longer?”

Thump—my heart skipped a beat. I’d been nervously biting at my lips, and I nodded.

“You don’t want to?”

Maybe he didn’t see me nod while looking ahead, because Seon-jae asked again.

“No? I said I’d like that.”

Seon-jae smiled faintly.

“I won’t keep you too long.”

It had long since passed 11 p.m.

Seon-jae didn’t say where we were going, and I didn’t ask either. He briefly stopped the car, got out alone, and came back with two takeout coffees.

Crossing the bridge, he turned the wheel into a blocked-off section in the middle, cordoned by barricades. It looked like an unopened lane.

“Huh? Are we allowed in here?”

“Yeah. In-hyeok and I used to come sometimes.”

He pulled into a corner and parked. Not that you could even call it parking—he just drove in and set the gear to park. Not a single other car was there.

We got out of the car with the coffee. Below the bridge was the Han River. The wide-open view stirred something inside me. City lights pierced the night like stars, their glow seeping into every part of the darkened scenery. It flickered like it would scatter, then sharpened into clarity, only to blur again.

I wrapped both hands around the cup, warming my palms, while Seon-jae fidgeted with his hands in his pocket and took out a Bluetooth earphone case. He took one earbud, wiped it clean with his thumb, and held it out to me. Just like that day, we each wore one earbud.

Seon-jae put the case back in his pocket and pulled out his phone. It looked like he was choosing a song for us to listen to. Once he picked one, he slipped the phone back into his pocket and leaned against the railing, eyes fixed on the view. The sound of a flute and gentle guitar chords streamed through the earbud. It was a clear, clean sound. I followed his gaze toward the landscape. The music was instrumental at first, then vocals in an unfamiliar language followed, but it wasn’t bad. It matched the night scenery well.

“What’s the title?”

“The Child Who Counted Stars.”

I nodded slightly. It fit the view perfectly. If all that really were stars, just how many could we count?

“Chun-baek.”

While staring into the blackness where the river and sky met—where darkness erased the line between them—I turned my head. The light reflecting in Seon-jae’s eyes made them look like they sparkled like stars. His profile, gazing into the night, was beautiful.

“What were you like in high school?”

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

I gazed into the distance, feeling the warmth of the coffee in my hands. Back then, I was often drowning in deep sadness. Every day felt like I was wading through a swamp. Losing a friend I’d spent every day with was a huge event, a trial for me at that age. After Hyeon-joo transferred schools, I ate lunch alone, walked home alone, every day.

“I was really different from the me you saw.”

Seon-jae nodded silently. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

“That’s why there were so many sad songs on that MP3. I didn’t even care what the lyrics were—if it sounded sad, I liked it. That felt comforting somehow.”

“Yeah, I figured.”

I closed my mouth and curled my lips upward. A smile spread on my face without me realizing it. It felt nice, sharing something like this with Seon-jae.

“You said you time-traveled, so... back then, you didn’t even know who I was. It’s not like you liked me.”

“When?”

“In high school.”

I bit my lip and puffed air into my cheek, then nodded. That part was true.

“There was a time you got on the same bus I was on.”

Seon-jae’s memory flowed from his lips. A memory I didn’t have—a day I was present but didn’t remember.

“It was summer. We were both in our summer uniforms. I’d told myself I’d never approach you again, never even acknowledge you, so I tried to get off the bus before you saw me. But you got on with your head down, found a seat so naturally, and sat down. Even though the AC was on, you opened the window, leaned your head against the glass, and let the wind hit you. I watched you from the back for a long time.”

“......”

“Your hair blew in the wind, and the way it moved—it looked slow. Like it was floating.”

“......”

“You were beautiful.”

My thumb froze, mid-rub against the coffee cup.

“So I was first.”

I didn’t get it at first and turned to look up at Seon-jae’s face. He was staring ahead, then tilted his head and met my eyes.

“I liked you first. And I liked you longer.”

My heart pounded. It beat fast—loud enough that I felt it in every part of me.

“So don’t take too long thinking about it. I’ve already waited long enough.”

Seon-jae took a sip of his coffee after he finished. Then he turned his gaze and body forward.

“Maybe it’s the coffee,” he said, placing a hand over his chest.

“My heart’s racing.”

That’s what I should be saying. Seon-jae.

Every time I was with him, my heart raced. It wasn’t just my heart—my face flushed, my hands and feet tingled. My eyes went wide, my words stumbled, and it always showed. But Seon-jae always seemed so calm. Now you’re saying your heart’s racing? I studied his face. His ears were red.

“Are you cold? Should we get back in the car?”

I reached up and cupped Seon-jae’s ear with my hand. My hand was warm from the coffee, though the back was cold. Seon-jae’s eyes widened a little as he looked down at me. That moment felt like time had stopped. The song ended, and a calm melody followed. A sweet voice layered over it.

“Sol-ah.”

“...Huh?”

The same song flowed through our shared earphones. I was looking at Seon-jae, and Seon-jae was looking at me. He took my wrist, the one that was covering his ear, and gently pulled it down. He didn’t let go.

“Wanna date me?”

A wave rippled through my chest. It shook me completely. Everything else faded into darkness. All I could see was Seon-jae. His dark eyes—like the night had sunk into them.

Days flashed before me. The days I had looked into Seon-jae’s eyes. Or the days Seon-jae had looked at me.

It had been two months for me. Two months, and I’d suddenly faced Seon-jae with no time to bury or rekindle my emotions—just hurled into it. But for Seon-jae, it had been many seasons, many changes in weather, many mornings and nights. I couldn’t even imagine how his feelings had changed in all that time. Did he go from hate to fondness, and back again? Did the memory of me grow faint, then vivid again, sometimes forgotten, then suddenly remembered?

I thought of the song on the iPod Seon-jae had given me. I cried so much listening to it that snowy day, because I didn’t want to say goodbye.

I pulled my hand back gently, slipping it from his grasp. As my arm moved behind me, my fingertips still rested in his. I turned my hand over and laced my fingers with his.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t hesitate because I didn’t like you.”

“......”

“It was because I didn’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

“I told you—me not liking you would be the bad thing.”

“I know.”

“......”

“There’s never been a time I didn’t like you.”

My heart was beating so fast I wanted to smile, but my lips froze. I looked up at Seon-jae’s face with an unintentionally stiff expression.

“I’ve never imagined you as my boyfriend before.”

“I believe in things even more ridiculous than that. Like the fact that you traveled through time.”

I toyed with Seon-jae’s fingers in mine. It felt like I was circling around, carrying my answer but taking the long way—like in a game of tag, running laps while holding the towel but never handing it over.

I wasn’t the straightforward type, like Seon-jae. I looked down at our joined hands. Seon-jae was offering his hand, as if waiting for my answer. I rubbed his knuckles with my thumb and lifted my head. Our eyes met.

This was the moment I set the towel behind Seon-jae’s back.

“Seon-jae.”

He met my gaze in silence. I squeezed his hand. I needed to finish the sentence—but strangely, I couldn’t breathe. My heart pounded too hard. I let out a shaky breath and let go of his hand. I sipped my coffee and turned my eyes away. Seon-jae stood there silently, furrowing his brows as if this turn of events wasn’t what he expected.

“What the—why’d you stop mid-sentence?”

“Huh? What? What do you mean—why’s your intuition so off?”

“What are you even talking about?”

“I’ve said enough already. Huh? That was basically the whole thing.”

“What whole thing? All you said was ‘Seon-jae’ and then nothing.”

As I kept backing away, Seon-jae stepped forward to match every step. His demanding tone made me laugh involuntarily. He looked confused, as if wondering what I found so funny.

“Dummy.”

I pulled the earbud from my ear and plugged it into Seon-jae’s. Now both earbuds were in his ears. Music cut off on my side, but it probably flowed even clearer into his. Holding both his ears with my hands, I pressed the earbud into place with my thumb and opened my mouth.

“I’m saying I like you.”

“......”

Seon-jae’s eyes quietly focused on me. His gaze was unreadable. With the music cut off, the night felt even deeper and more silent. The sound of cars slicing through the road stood out in the quiet.

We said nothing, just stared at each other.

I didn’t know what music was playing in his ears. Whatever he was focusing on, his eyes looked intense. Suddenly, a trace of moisture gathered in his eyes. I blinked wide.

“...Huh?”

I quickly pulled my hand away from his ear. Seon-jae pulled out the earbuds and shoved them into his pocket. The moisture in his eyes didn’t grow, but they glistened.

“Im Sol.”

“...Yeah?”

A faint smile spread across Seon-jae’s face as he looked at my flustered one. He placed his hand on my head and ruffled my hair.

“Can I hug you?”

My chest trembled like it was shaking loose. His hand stayed on my head. I blinked, then nodded. Seon-jae slid his hand from the back of my head down to my back and pulled me in tightly.

“Take care of me.”

“Uh... me too.”

“I know what you’re worried about. I’ll be careful. And I’ll treat you well.”

Still holding me, Seon-jae leaned back a little and smiled. It was such a clear and gentle smile.