Chapter 7: The Gilded Sea and a Peculiar Host

I had also made a loose promise, or rather, an unspoken agreement, with Yoon Heesung. I had wondered when I would ever visit, but this seemed like the perfect opportunity.

Returning to the classroom, I gathered my bag. To avoid the hassle of going back and forth, I intended to stop by the villa and head straight home. Today, I would simply study at home.

Stepping out of the school gate, I searched for the address my homeroom teacher had sent me on my phone.

“It’s really out in the sticks, isn’t it?”

My villa was already quite a distance from the city center, but their place was even more remote. I had to walk another five minutes past my villa, heading towards the outskirts. It was incredibly secluded, clearly designed as a peaceful retreat.

As my teacher had mentioned, it was indeed close to my house.

After passing the alley leading to my villa, a narrow sidewalk appeared, barely wide enough for one person. This path was unfamiliar to me. I usually only went between school and home, so I never had reason to go beyond my villa’s alley.

More precisely, it was my first time seeing it in the daytime. I had stormed out once in anger after a fight with my mother, but that had been at night.

In the daytime, it was so quiet.

At night, the sea transformed, seeming somewhat eerie.

I walked to the very end of the sidewalk. The path abruptly ended where the pavement blocks were broken. Instead, in the distance, I saw a grassy field and an uphill slope.

‘Should I go up there?’

There was no other path to take from here. The villa must be up that slope. I continued my journey, trudging through sinking sand, past damp grass, and then stepped onto the incline.

It wasn’t as steep as it had appeared from below, but the still-bright sun quickly made me sweat. Despite the breeze rustling through the trees, the sunlight was so intense that my back was soon drenched. I worried it would be even harder to go up and down to the villa once the weather grew hotter.

I was almost at the very top when, without thinking, I turned my head to the left. I wasn’t sure if I was drawn by the direction of the wind or something else entirely.

Nevertheless, as I looked to my left, I involuntarily gasped.

“Wow…”

In that instant, I understood why the madam had come all the way to this rural area to recuperate.

An exclamation of awe escaped me. The water’s surface shimmered as if it had been gilded. The rolling waves resembled fine silk, and the ripples gracefully folded and unfolded like shimmering fabric.

Suddenly, the salty air felt cool and refreshing.

I had never felt this way before. My summer shirt fluttering, I gazed blankly at the water’s surface. It was strange. Why was I only feeling this appreciation now? Perhaps it was because this was the sea viewed from the villa, making it seem special.

We had been forced to move here, but these people had sought out a beautiful place to rest and stay for a while. Could that be why the scenery felt so much more magnificent?

‘Even so, it’s all the same sea.’

Realizing our differing circumstances anew, I continued up the remaining stretch of the slope.

Finally, wiping the sweat from my brow, I stood before the villa’s main gate and swallowed hard. Its exterior was simply overwhelming. The large, white wall was so clean it seemed polished daily, a stark contrast to our stained villa. I swallowed once more before pressing the doorbell.

Ding-dong.

The gate immediately swung open.

Clunk.

“…”

It was astonishing that the gate opened by itself, with no one appearing. Could they open the main gate from inside the house? Though no one seemed to be watching, I glanced around cautiously before carefully stepping inside.

Crossing the courtyard on white stepping stones, I encountered another gate, darker in color than the main one. ‘Why would a house need two gates?’ I wondered, but upon seeing the sight beyond, I felt even more intimidated than before.

My mother had told me countless times that this family was incredibly wealthy, but hearing it a hundred times couldn’t compare to seeing it once. Only now did I truly grasp the extent of Yoon Heesung’s family’s riches.

Accustomed to seeing only wild weeds, seeing a meticulously tended garden felt strange. Did they call someone to manage even this rural corner? I walked through the sprawling garden, taking small steps as I took it all in.

Towering trees that seemed to reach for the sky marked the beginning, followed by neat rows of smaller, precisely trimmed shrubs. Between them, stepping stones were laid out, guiding the path. Golden sunlight, ripened by the afternoon, settled upon the gray stones.

Here and there along the path, large and small circular lights peeked out. It seemed there were more lights here than all the streetlights I had seen on the way.

The problem arose while I was engrossed in my prolonged admiration.

‘Where is Yoon Heesung?’

The complex wasn’t just one building. As my mother had said, there were three. From the outside, it looked like a single grand villa, but in reality, three detached buildings encircled the garden. Their sizes varied, yet their exteriors bore a brotherly resemblance.

I had no idea where to go. Not even a shadow of a person was visible in the garden, so I couldn’t ask anyone for directions.

‘If they opened the main gate earlier, they must know I’m here. So why isn’t he coming out?’

“…”

It seemed I shouldn’t apply my commoner’s assumptions to Yoon Heesung’s house.

‘Perhaps an employee, not Yoon Heesung, opened the gate.’

Yoon Heesung clearly had no idea I was here. What should I do now? I stood dumbfounded in the middle of the vast garden when suddenly,

“Oh!”

Someone grabbed my arm and forcefully spun me around. I felt my body turn in the direction I was being pulled.

“You actually came?”

A scent wafted across my face as the wind blew. It wasn’t the subtle grassy fragrance of the garden; it was Yoon Heesung’s scent. His hair was wet, as if he had just showered.

Yoon Heesung, dressed in casual clothes, looked much more relaxed than he did in his school uniform. Perhaps it was the absence of the buttoned-up collar and neatly tied tie. Or perhaps it was the thin knit sweater that suited him as if it were custom-made.

Upon seeing Yoon Heesung’s face, the words I had intended to say shattered.

“…”

‘Why am I like this? I thought he was strange. I definitely did.’

Looking at his cheeks, which shimmered pale in the sunlight, at his straight nose, at his lips curved in a boyish smile… my mind kept refusing to cooperate. The faint scent of soap also distracted me. Despite his oddness, he was truly handsome.

I weighed the words in my mouth, turning them over and over.

‘The teacher, told me, that you didn’t answer the phone, but why didn’t you come to school? They said Friday was the seat change, and I absolutely had to come that day.’

As I pondered how to combine and articulate any of these, Yoon Heesung seemed utterly uninterested in why I had come. Without asking, he simply grabbed my arm and started walking.

‘He’s dragging me again…’

My arm, exposed beneath my summer shirt, was still held fast. This was only the second time his skin, hotter than the blazing sun, had touched mine, yet I was already accustomed to it. This time, I didn’t resist and silently allowed myself to be led.

Yoon Heesung led me to the building on the far left. It had a digital lock, but he simply turned the handle, and it opened instantly. Pushing open the heavy, black door with surprising ease, Yoon Heesung pulled me further inside.

The interior shared a similar ambiance with the building’s exterior. The space seemed minimally furnished.

Beyond the entrance hall was a corridor, and a short flight of three stairs at the end of the hallway led up to the living room. It seemed designed to allow one to sit slightly elevated and observe the outside.

And for good reason. The entire front of the living room was a glass wall. The expansive floor-to-ceiling window stretched up to the second floor.

“Oh…”

The two floors were connected by this continuous facade. Thanks to it, the sky and sea were fully visible through the window. Nothing obstructed the view. I could see even wider and farther than when I had climbed the slope earlier.

The interior, which had moments ago struck me as minimally decorated, suddenly felt opulent. It was a more luxurious spectacle than any ornament.

Of course, living here, you could see the sea just by looking up from anywhere. I could see the sea in the distance even on my way from school to home. Yet, until now, I had never felt any particular emotion looking at its undulating, wrinkled surface. That was certainly true, but seeing it from here was different. It was a fact I had already realized while climbing the hill.

‘…It’s truly beautiful.’

“…”

My admiration faltered as I suddenly realized there was no other sign of life in the house. When we fell silent, no sound could be heard. Only Yoon Heesung and I were in this vast space. Neither the madam nor any hired help, like my mother, were present.

Along with that, I also realized I was gawking blankly at someone else’s home. I quickly turned my head to the side.

As if he had been waiting, Yoon Heesung met my gaze. He had been watching me, who was gawking blankly.

I suddenly felt acutely embarrassed.

“Hey, what are you… looking at? Don’t look.”

“Why did you suddenly lower your head?”

Yoon Heesung tugged forcefully on my arm. ‘Why do you think?’ I wondered. Then I noticed Yoon Heesung’s hand still clung to my arm like a leech.

“Can’t you let go now?”

Yoon Heesung merely lowered his gaze to my arm. Then, slowly, he released his grip. It felt as though he was reluctantly letting go. Idly rubbing my throbbing arm, I brought up the reason for my visit.

“The teacher said we’re changing seats on Friday, and you absolutely have to come to school.”

“Okay.”

“And there’s homework today too.”

“Okay.”

Yoon Heesung replied diligently, like an obedient child. In contrast to his glaring presence earlier, his answers were docile. One might expect surprise from a classmate who suddenly showed up at their house unannounced, yet there was none. It was as if he had known I would come.

‘His mind must be as calm as a lake.’

He also seemed to have a peculiar lack of something. As the host, Yoon Heesung didn’t offer me a seat. As a result, we stood dumbfounded in the middle of the living room, staring blankly at each other.

‘He’s really… he seems strange, but also mild-mannered…’

As I thought this, our eyes met.