The Best of Tomorrow-Chapter 6Vol 2. .3

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“They could at least clean up their own cups, seriously.”

The table after the meeting looked like a warzone. Paper cups chewed up at the rim, teacups with cold tea still in them, scribbled-on scraps of paper, ripped tea bag wrappers—everything was strewn about. As she began placing cups onto a tray one by one, her phone vibrated in her pocket.

[PD-nim, are you really not going to let me set you up with someone?]

It was from Yoon Jong-woo, who worked in the props department at the station. Even though she’d told him she had a boyfriend, he kept sending her these kinds of messages every few weeks, like clockwork. Was he dense or just refusing to get the message?

[I’ve told you I have a boyfriend, how many times now, chief ㅠㅠ]

Honestly, she wanted to just reply with a single word: No. But social etiquette didn’t allow for that, so she even threw in a tearful emoji she didn’t mean.

[Come on, is your boyfriend even real?]

[You’ve been saying that since last year, but no one’s ever seen him. You think I don’t know you’re saying that just to avoid the setup?]

[This guy’s really decent. Just meet him once, please.]

“Haaah...”

The sigh escaped her lips on its own. Just reading the messages made her feel drained, like all her energy was leaking out. She sent back a few awkward emojis and a perfunctory “See you next time.”

“‘Real’? Seriously...”

The word itself sounded so empty it made her laugh hollowly. That Seon-jae of all people was now being called a ghost—what a joke.

She exited the chat with Yoon Jong-woo and noticed an unread message still sitting in Seon-jae’s thread.

[Yeah, did you eat?]

The timestamp showed it had arrived thirty minutes ago—right when she was in the middle of that meeting. He must be asking if she had lunch, even though it was nearly the end of the day. She propped her elbow on the meeting room chair and started typing back.

[Of course I did.]

[You know that kalguksu place we went with In-hyeok? lol I went there.]

[The radish kimchi got even chunkier...]

It had already been weeks since she last saw Seon-jae. He’d been abroad for a performance, and with the time difference, they only managed to exchange a few scattered messages before it got too late. She’d fall asleep waiting for a reply, then wake up to missed calls. She’d text back, Sorry, I was asleep, and hours later, he’d reply, It’s okay. I just wanted to hear your voice.

She stared at her silent phone for a moment, then slipped it back into her pocket.

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After the shoot, the crew moved on to the wrap-up party. She was exhausted and wanted to leave early, but she had the company credit card. And besides, it wasn’t the kind of gathering you could duck out of easily.

Shim Won-jun was diligently flipping meat on the grill, and she wandered from table to table, checking on things. Somehow, this felt more tiring than the actual shoot.

“Oh? PD-nim! Over here, over here!”

Someone waved her over—it was Yoon Jong-woo.

“You’ve been running around nonstop. Come sit and eat a bit.”

“Yeah, PD-nim. Here, chopsticks.”

The others at the table quickly cleared a spot for her, so she had no choice but to sit down. She ate a few pieces of meat, shared a couple of drinks, and was about to excuse herself when Yoon Jong-woo caught her by the sleeve.

“Hey, I’m genuinely curious—do you really have a boyfriend?”

He leaned forward as he asked. She took a sip ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ of soju and furrowed her brow.

“Chief, if this is another round of that same talk, I’m leaving.”

“No, don’t go! I’m asking seriously this time.”

“Well, I’m seriously answering. Why won’t you believe me?”

“You say you’ve been dating him for a while, but no one’s ever seen him. Since we’re on the topic, how about showing us a photo?”

“I don’t have any.”

“Not a single photo together? Come on, most people carry at least one.”

“Not just one. These days, you open your photo album and there’s hundreds,” someone added from nearby.

Just then, someone at the table casually reached out and grabbed her phone, which was lying face-down. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head. It was locked, of course, so they couldn’t access anything, but the rudeness made her feel instantly uncomfortable. She snatched it back and shoved it into her pocket.

“Even the wallpaper’s default.”

The meat she’d eaten earlier suddenly felt like it was sitting heavy in her chest.

Out of nowhere, Yoon Jong-woo slung an arm around the shoulder of the staffer next to him and gestured toward her.

“You know Park Geon-woo, right?”

She nodded. He was the guy who sometimes handed her canned drinks whenever they passed each other.

Park Geon-woo nudged Yoon Jong-woo with his elbow, whispering, “Please don’t.”

But Yoon Jong-woo plowed ahead.

“This guy says he likes you, PD-nim.”

She was so shocked she couldn’t even manage a “What?”

Park Geon-woo quickly covered Yoon Jong-woo’s mouth, but it was too late—the line had been delivered.

“He heard you were seeing someone and said he was going to give up. But that’s such a shame, right? What if it’s not true?”

The mood turned rowdy, and the party turned into a matchmaking circus in seconds. Flustered, Park Geon-woo tried to wave everyone off, but they kept egging the two of them on. Didn’t they hear her say she had a boyfriend just moments ago?

Now others besides Yoon Jong-woo were chiming in. They’d heard her boyfriend was always busy and barely around, so maybe she should just break up with him and go out with Geon-woo instead. Everyone was drunk, laughing like it was no big deal.

Was she the only one who found this incredibly awkward and uncomfortable?

She didn’t even bother forcing a polite laugh. She just stared blankly at the people around her, and finally someone broke the tension by calling out, “Ma’am! More drinks over here!”

The attention shifted, and the group began chatting about something else.

Yoon Jong-woo excused himself for the bathroom, and Park Geon-woo stepped out for a smoke, leaving behind a quick, Don’t mind them.

“Ah...”

She slumped back to her seat like someone who’d just taken a beating. Shim Won-jun glanced at her face as he flipped the meat.

“Did you drink a lot?”

“No. Not really... but now I kind of want to.”

She scanned the table, and Shim Won-jun reached for a soju bottle and filled her glass.

“Something happen? You look totally drained all of a sudden.”

She took a light sip and let the sharp taste spread across her tongue.

At first, she’d thought people were just making idle conversation. Some folks liked asking nosy questions without any real thought. But at some point, those questions had started feeling suffocating. Maybe it was because the answers never changed—but the questions kept coming anyway.

“I don’t know. They keep asking if my boyfriend’s even real, if he really exists. People are so weirdly invested in someone else’s relationship...”

She stared into her empty glass. Through the transparency, she could see the table beneath. Whenever she saw something this clear, she thought of Seon-jae.

Seon-jae always felt like someone who laid everything bare, who was entirely visible. But lately, there were moments when he didn’t feel close by. She shook her head. This was all Yoon Jong-woo’s fault. That annoying man.

She poured another shot and sent a message to Seon-jae.

[Seon-jae, are you asleep?]

She knew he probably was. Without waiting, she slipped the phone into her pocket and picked at some cold meat.

When she got home, she drank a little more. Pathetically, she took two cans of beer from the fridge and went up to the rooftop, using the night view as her side dish. After finishing the first can, her cheeks started to heat up. She touched her face—warm. Her heart began to beat a little faster.

She checked her recent calls. On the seventh line was her last call to Seon-jae: 1:30 PM. That had been their final conversation today. She tapped on his name and waited for it to connect. The dial tone dragged on.

“He’s not picking up.”

Tonight, she missed Seon-jae more than usual. She just wanted to tell him everything that had happened today, then fall asleep to the sound of his voice. She was still stuck in today, but Seon-jae was already in tomorrow. Maybe that’s why. Maybe that’s why he wasn’t answering.

She returned inside with the last of her beer. As she dumped the half-finished can down the sink, her chest ached. It felt like something inside her was leaking out through a hole.

There were days like this. Days when all she wanted was the sight of Seon-jae’s back.

When she couldn’t see him, she at least wanted that—just his back beside her. Today was one of those days.

When she missed him so much, and couldn’t even hear his voice, that distance became painfully real.

Saying Hello, and waiting for his reply to circle the globe back to her. A reply arriving after she’d already forgotten what she said. Calls where half of them went unanswered. A face she saw only once every few weeks. A birthday they couldn’t spend together. Anniversaries she’d stopped thinking about long ago.

She understood all of it in her head. But her heart still ached.

The kind of love she had always dreamed of and longed for... didn’t quite match the shape of the love she had now.

[Today, I really missed you so much.]

She stared blankly at the “unread” mark. Then flipped her phone over.