Chapter 82: Chapter 82
At that moment, Hojoon’s mother came in, holding persimmon punch on the tray.
“You came?”
Though she saw his mother several times, the latter greeted her with a smile all the time.
“If you feel the food is not enough, ask for more anytime.”
Standing up halfway, Arum received the tray and answered, “We’ve had enough already. So delicious.”
“Thanks. Oh, you came today with your friend. How nice of you! Please enjoy it, then.”
“Thanks.”
Jina also awkwardly stood up to bow.
“Thanks for coming even without Hojoon.”
“You’re welcome. I have come today to enjoy lotus rice. This friend of mine has told me she wants to taste it. Right?”
“It’s the first time I’ve tasted it. It really tastes delicious.”
Jina took pains to be on the same page, sweating.
“Good for you. By the way, when is he coming? Do you know already, Arum?”
“Pardon?”
“My son suddenly said he would go to France, and he really did. I thought that he left for France with you because reporters often went abroad for reporting. I thought he went to France with you to win over your heart.”
The moment she heard that, Arum’s heart sank.
That was totally an unexpected situation for her.
“Oh, France.”
She responded with a smile on purpose. She was so nervous, though. She spaced out in her mind. She wanted to say something to his mother, but couldn’t.
“Oops! Sorry, I have disturbed you for too long. When you get a call from him, just ask him to contact his mother. I’m worried, though he is an adult.”
“Oh, it looks like he’s really busy on a business trip. To be honest with you, I can’t contact him, either. Let me ask him to give you a call when I get through to him.”
Then, Arum made a bright smile on purpose.
“Thanks. Enjoy your meal. Let me bring more side dishes.”
She took out the empty plates and went out.
When the door closed, Jina breathed out the breath that she had been holding in patiently.
“I’m really surprised. Who went to France? Why did he fly to France? He flew there without contacting you at all? Just one call is enough, isn’t it?”
But Arum was just making a blank expression, as if she were not focusing at all.
“Arum Yang! Are you okay?”
Arum was at a loss on what to do.
She was just dumbfounded.
“Why are you so spaced out like that? France? What’s the big deal?”
While Jina was asking her, she was astonished.
“Gimme a break! Did he fly to France with Soran Cho?”
Jina’s guess was correct. Most likely, he did.
“Soran Cho, she studied in France, didn’t she? Dang it! Both of them must be crazy. Oh my, they’re driving me nuts.”
No matter what Jina said, it was just buzzing noise in Arum’s ears, far from any meaningful words.
‘After all, you’re the same as Konsu!’
Arum was filled with resentment against him.
France?
What were they doing now in France? Were they in love again, recollecting their past memories? Arum was lost in this kind of bad speculation.
“Hey, Arum Yang!”
Though Jina called her, Arum was ashamed to see her face.
‘Why is it that I keep meeting this kind of guy? Is it my greed that I want a guy who loves only me? Why is it so hard for me to find the right date when others easily find their lovers and enjoy dating?’
She felt ashamed of herself because she trusted and loved him even briefly.
‘After all, this guy let go of my hand.’
She felt miserable.
“They can’t do that!” Arum said to Jina.
And then Arum went on in an appealing tone, “Soran didn’t yet get divorced, right? She has her husband. How come she insists on having him?”
Jina said, “Arum…”
But Arum quickly cut in, “Do I have to understand them? What did I do wrong? Why am I to blame all the time?”
She buried her face in her knees.
Back in her villa, Arum stopped pressing the password of the door lock, letting out a sigh.
She always came back to this place with Hojoon.
Today, she felt it was too early to come back home alone. Though Jina was with her, she couldn’t get over her loneliness.
“Can you stay alone?” the moment she got out of the car, Jina asked with a worried look. When she closed the door, Jina asked, “Do you mind if I spend the night with you tonight?” If she had not told Jina she needed to sort her thinking out, Jina would have followed her.
She pressed the last number of the password.
The heavy front door was opened.
When she came inside, she finally relaxed. Nothing came to her mind at the moment. She just wanted to throw herself into the bed.
The fact that others were watching her was a scary thing. She had to control her emotions before others, let alone watch her words and actions. But she was freed from all that in her house.
Taking off her shoes, she sat on the wooden floor.
She tripped over a mini vacuum cleaner. A sharp pain bothered her.
She left it there after cleaning some debris in the morning.
“Dang it!”
She got annoyed. She tapped and pushed it to the side with her foot.
She turned on the light in the living room.
It was a mess.
As if her house had been robbed by a thief, everything was a mess. Nothing was in its right place. Sofa cushions were strewn over the floor, and the laundry she threw in front of the restroom was already full.
Her living room was a trash can itself.
She suddenly felt like throwing up.
When it’s about time to submit her articles, not only her house, but also her office desk were usually in a mess. But today, her living room was even messier.
Just like her complicated thoughts, her house was dirty, with everything there in a mess.
She heard that strange sound from the refrigerator when it’s in operation.
‘How I have ended up being in a miserable situation like this?’
She flopped down on the floor.
‘When can I clean all this stuff?’
She just freaked out at the thought of cleaning the whole house.
At that moment, she began to hear various noises in her quiet house.
‘What is that?’
She looked around. Obviously, she was alone. But she heard a buzzing noise.
It looked as if all the items in her house were complaining to the owner.
The clearest noise she could hear was from the refrigerator.
She got up and stood before it right away.
“What’s wrong with you?”
The refrigerator sneezed.
“I can’t get by because of the bad smell. Arum Yang! This refrigerator is not a place for fostering mold! Just open the door for me!”
Teased by that noise, she opened the door.
There were lots of mold inside the bag that contained chopped vegetables. Some of the vegetables were too rotten.
“Sorry.”
She let out a sigh subconsciously.
Recently, he saw a TV program on how to chop vegetables in small quantities and store them in a bag. She felt she could store and enjoy some nutritious vegetables, so she followed the method as instructed. But she didn’t eat them, and as a result, the vegetable bag turned into a food waste.
“Throw food waste at the right time. Never put it in the refrigerator! Look at the food waste left over from last year.”
The refrigerator had the dry heaves.
When she opened the freezer, she noticed several waste bags. She couldn’t tell whether it was a freezer or a trash can.
In fact, while living alone, she found it most difficult to dispose of food waste. Whenever she had food leftovers, she put them in the freezer. It was fine to put them in the freezer, but the problem was that she didn’t throw them away at the right time.
“Sorry.”
Arum apologized to the refrigerator.
“Look at me, too!”
She heard another noise. This time it was the sink.
“What’s the matter with you?”
When she turned and opened the door, there were all kinds of stuff mixed inside the sink, including plates of various sizes, and pots stacked up here and there, let alone disposable spoons and chopsticks. Besides, there were lots of canned foods and ramen past the expiration dates.
“How many plates do you use among all of them here?” the sink asked.
Maybe three or four?
In fact, she didn’t eat at home most of the weekdays. When she ate, she usually had salads, so she used only one plate.
“Can you dispose of all the unused plates here? I just feel stuffy.”
“But just in case…”
“You might want to use them in the future?”
Arum nodded at the sink.
When she had guests in her house or when she wanted to cook on her own, she needed them.
“Have you ever invited any guest to your house since you moved here? Have you ever cooked for them?”
“Nope.”
“I’ve witnessed what you’re doing. You usually ordered food.”
“No, I really wanted to cook.”
“Maybe you didn’t have time.”