Chapter 2: Lee Yunjae

Na Soyeon took a few bites of the blueberry cheesecake, closed her eyes, and let the perfect taste glide over her taste buds. Paired with a layered latte, the flavor was so good that once you tasted it, you wanted to come back for more. Opening her eyes, Na Soyeon saw the slightly anxious expression on Lee Yunjae's face reflected in her dark, bright eyes. She smiled softly, picked up a spoonful of cake, and offered it to Lee Yunjae, but he pursed his lips.

"Hmph, if you don't eat it, I will!" Seeing that Lee Yunjae was being ungrateful, Na Soyeon took back the spoon and put the cake in her own mouth, smacking her lips. "Your cake-making skills are getting better and better. This blueberry cheesecake is really top-notch!"

Lee Yunjae, seeing that Na Soyeon was dodging the issue, reached out and pulled the plate of cake in front of him. He handed a sticky note to Na Soyeon, tapping it a few times. The quiet café played soft music, and the tapping sound seemed out of place.

Hmph... Na Soyeon glared at Lee Yunjae with her beautiful eyes, but when she met his dark, deep gaze, she immediately deflated. "Alright, alright! I've already left S.M. Are you satisfied now? Give me back the cake!" She reached out and snatched the cake, taking a bite with a hint of anger, unsure whether she was mad at Lee Yunjae or something else.

"You were too rash... You gave up such a good opportunity. You could have become a member of Girls' Generation! Such a good opportunity might never come again!" Lee Yunjae quickly wrote on the sticky note and handed his phone to Na Soyeon, showing her the news of Girls' Generation winning the rookie award.

Na Soyeon glanced at it indifferently, then burst into laughter as if she had seen something funny. After a few seconds, she said, "Are you trying to make me see that Girls' Generation won the rookie award, or are you trying to make me mock you? You wrote the song, but the person holding the trophy on stage wasn't you! Oh, how tragic!"

Lee Yunjae glared at her unhappily and wrote on the paper, "I wrote that song for you. Without you on stage, without you singing it with them, it lost its original meaning. I don't care about the award; what I care about is that you're not among the nine of them!"

Na Soyeon felt a lump in her throat, put down the spoon, and touched Lee Yunjae's left cheek, smiling. "We've been together since we were young. We've always moved forward and backward together. What's so strange about that? I've been at S.M for two years. With my talent, I could easily become a top trainee at any agency. Do you think I'm afraid of not debuting?!"

"It's not that easy. You always do things without thinking. You've been like this since we were young; it's really frustrating!" Lee Yunjae tore off another sticky note and wrote a few words before handing it to Na Soyeon.

"Isn't that the tradition of our Park family? You've been with us for so long, don't you understand? We Park family members have simple minds. When I was a kid, I always relied on luck for 70% of my exams and only 30% on my ability. Being a trainee is the first thing I've ever taken seriously..." Na Soyeon sighed, reflecting on how she had managed to stick with it for so long, which seemed incredible to her now.

"You're just a stubborn fool. Back then, you spent all your time chasing stars, a true fan!" Lee Yunjae wrote quickly and without hesitation.

In the 90s, HOT and Sechs Kies were incredibly popular, and Na Soyeon was a die-hard fan of both groups. When she was chasing stars, Lee Yunjae often saw two sides of her: one moment she was obsessed with HOT, the next she was crazy about Sechs Kies. She was often contradictory, spending all her time chasing stars, which affected her studies.

"Hehe... Back then, if you didn't chase stars, you were out of it. Do you understand? Unlike you, who had the luck to be so close to them! It's such a pity that they've all disbanded now. Oh..." Na Soyeon couldn't help but feel sad, thinking about how her beloved groups had all disbanded, their glory days long gone. "Do you think Girls' Generation will also disband one day?"

Lee Yunjae glared at her fiercely and wrote, "Pfft! What are you talking about... They just won the rookie award, and you're already cursing them to disband? Even if they do, it won't be for another seven or eight years. I have high hopes for them!"

Na Soyeon stuck out her cute little tongue and said, "Don't talk about me. Aren't you also sad? You spent so many years at S.M, and just when you were about to debut, that incident happened... Look at how well JYJ is doing now. You were supposed to be the leader, but now you're just running a café!"

Lee Yunjae shook his head and wrote, "It's different... That was an accident, and I had no choice but to leave the company. When I found out you joined the company as a trainee, I even texted Yoochun and the others to take care of you! Who would have thought that at the crucial moment, you would back out?"

"Alright, alright! I know you care about me and are good to me! But I really don't want to stay at S.M anymore. After you left, I joined S.M the following year. Although many people took care of me, I felt that place wasn't right for me. There were friends, but also a lot of backstabbing! Be honest, have you never suspected that the accident was caused by someone?"

Lee Yunjae's eyes remained calm and deep, showing no ripples. Feeling Na Soyeon's intense gaze, he slowly shook his head.

As they chatted, the café had emptied out. Outside, snowflakes were falling, and the warm café was now only occupied by this brother and sister, who were chatting in this unique way.

The north wind howled, and the snow grew heavier, cold and piercing. Compared to the harsh nature, humans were so small and pitiful, only able to endure silently, forever enduring...

At 10 PM, the lights in the café went out. Na Soyeon wrapped herself up tightly and stood at the door, waiting for Lee Yunjae to lock it before picking up a plastic bag.

Na Soyeon casually linked her arm with Lee Yunjae's, her hand slipping into his warm coat pocket. She smiled, looking at his scarf and hat. "Yeah, I have good taste. Not bad, really not bad!" She then reached out with her other hand to adjust the thick scarf covering the lower half of his face.

"Alright, let's go. If we're late, we'll miss the bus!" Na Soyeon took a deep breath through the scarf, shivering slightly as the cold air entered her nostrils.

Following Na Soyeon, Lee Yunjae started jogging, occasionally stumbling due to the slippery ground, and they both laughed. To others, they looked like a sweet couple.

This winter was different from previous years, a bit unusual. While a heavy snowfall usually promised a good harvest, the cold was really unbearable. Lee Yunjae and Na Soyeon waited at the bus stop for about ten minutes, and a bus finally arrived.

Most people were tucked in their warm beds, so the bus was empty except for the driver. Once the bus stopped, they quickly got on, and the cold gradually dissipated as they were separated from the outside world.

They both sat at the back of the bus, with Na Soyeon by the window and Lee Yunjae next to her. They had known each other since they were young and were familiar with each other's quirks. Sitting at the back gave Na Soyeon a sense of security.

Na Soyeon drew ghost faces and smiley faces on the fogged-up window with her finger, but her drawing skills were not something Lee Yunjae could praise. He couldn't bear to look at it and added a few touches to her drawings, turning a frowning face into a smiling one.

"Hey... You ruined my work!" Na Soyeon glared at him, then took out an iPod from her bag, putting one earphone in her ear and the other in Lee Yunjae's. The iPod was playing "Gee."

...

The Tongjeong area was near Gangnam, but the bus made several stops, and it took a while. By the time they reached Gangnam's Cheongnyangni, it was already 11:30 PM.

"I'm here! Thanks for the trouble, you still have to take an hour-long bus ride back! Hehe..." Na Soyeon laughed, her eyes curved. Lee Yunjae lived in Tongjeong, and every time Na Soyeon went to the Left Bank Café, he would take her, so he had to spend two hours after closing the café to get home.

Lee Yunjae waved at her and made a phone call gesture. The bus started again, circling around and slowly heading back to Tongjeong.

Lee Yunjae lived in Heukseok-dong, near Tongjeong-dong, close to Korea University, and his Left Bank Café was also near Korea University.

When he got off the bus, a cold wind hit his face, as if it wanted to penetrate his bones. He tightened his scarf and walked to his dorm in Heukseok-dong with the bag.

After walking for about ten minutes, he turned into a dark alley and walked to the end, where a red brick house appeared at a corner of a crossroads.

The two-story red brick house had a small yard surrounded by white-painted wooden fences, with a staircase leading to the second floor.

Lee Yunjae walked into the yard and knocked on the door of the first-floor apartment. After a few seconds, a head appeared from the door, and upon seeing Lee Yunjae, the person smiled and opened the door. "Yunjae oppa, why are you so late today? Come in, Mom left some food for you, I'll heat it up for you!"

Lee Yunjae entered, closed the door, and took off his shoes at the entrance before walking into the house.

The first floor of the red brick house was occupied by the landlord, Lee Su-mi, and her daughter, Kim Min-ji. The second floor was his rented apartment. He usually ate dinner with the Lee family, paying some food expenses, but over time, Lee Su-mi grew fond of him and treated him like her own child, not even charging him for the food.

"Oppa, eat quickly. It's too cold outside today. My mom didn't go out to buy groceries, so this is all we have!" Kim Min-ji placed a bowl of white rice in front of Lee Yunjae, then brought out a bowl of heated bean sprout soup, a dish of kimchi, and a fried egg.

Lee Yunjae smiled and shook his head, indicating that he didn't mind, then pushed the bag to Kim Min-ji. She giggled and opened the bag, her eyes lighting up. Inside were half a blueberry cheesecake (the café sold triangular pieces, but this was a small round cake) and a cup of cappuccino.

"Oppa, you're so nice, I have a midnight snack again!" Kim Min-ji smiled, her eyes curved. Since Lee Yunjae rented the house, she could enjoy delicious cakes and coffee every night.

Lee Su-mi and Kim Min-ji were very caring towards him, and he, in turn, would bring leftover cakes from the café every night.

"Mmm... Oppa's skills are getting better, it's so delicious..." Kim Min-ji took a bite of the cake and a bite of a red strawberry, closing her eyes and savoring the wonderful taste.

Lee Yunjae smiled and wrote on a sticky note, "Go eat with Auntie, I'll clean up here!"

Kim Min-ji pouted, looking unhappy. Lee Yunjae continued writing, "What's wrong? Did you have a fight with Auntie? Are you in a cold war?"

Kim Min-ji opened and closed her mouth but couldn't say a word, sighing. "Today, I went shopping with my friends, and a talent scout approached me. He said I have a sweet image and could do commercials, and gave me a business card. Being a star would be great, and the agency is reputable and large. I happily told my mom, but she refused and is now in a cold war with me!"

Lee Yunjae took a few bites of rice, listening to Kim Min-ji's complaints. After she finished, he finished his meal, wiped his mouth, and wrote on the paper, "Silly girl, this is a good thing... But you must have said it the wrong way. Everyone knows how chaotic the entertainment industry is, and Auntie doesn't want you to enter it for your own good. However, the entertainment industry isn't entirely dirty; there are still some clean areas. You need to appeal to her emotions and reason with her!

Every girl has a dream of being a star. You're so beautiful, and it's not surprising that a talent scout noticed you. Go to bed with Auntie tonight, have a heart-to-heart talk, and try to get her understanding. Take her to the agency tomorrow. If it's not suitable, you can always come back; if it's a reputable agency, it could be a good opportunity for you. I think Auntie wouldn't stand in the way of your future.

Sometimes, I envy you for having such a caring mom!"

Perhaps there was a generation gap between Kim Min-ji and Lee Su-mi, but after Lee Yunjae's advice, she felt less depressed. She picked up a piece of melon from the cake and put it in Lee Yunjae's mouth, giggling.

When Lee Yunjae left, it was already 12:30 AM. The sky was dark, and the red brick house was surrounded by tall buildings with bright lights. Kim Min-ji saw Lee Yunjae off and, after a moment, walked to Lee Su-mi's bedroom.

On the second floor, Lee Yunjae opened the door, changed his shoes at the entrance, and walked into the house.

His rented apartment was clean, and Lee Su-mi cleaned it every week, making the floor shine. The house was small, with a small living room, a bedroom, and a bathroom inside the bedroom. The living room connected to a small terrace, and the opposite side was a road. The space was just right for a young man like Lee Yunjae.

The house was warmly decorated, all done by Na Soyeon. There were many of her self-portraits on the walls, making it feel like her territory.

After turning on the air conditioner, the house quickly warmed up. Lee Yunjae first poured a glass of warm water, then went into the bedroom, opened a drawer, and took out a brown glass bottle containing white pills.

He took two pills and swallowed them with the warm water. Soon, Lee Yunjae clenched his fists, his veins bulging, and the dark room was filled with his rolling on the bed, clutching his throat, as if he couldn't breathe. The pain was indescribable, and the sound of his groans and fists hitting the bed filled the room. In this small room, Lee Yunjae could let out his pain without restraint.

He tried to keep the noise to a minimum so as not to be noticed by the mother and daughter downstairs. After fifteen minutes, Lee Yunjae finally calmed down. He was drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked, and he was breathing heavily, lying motionless on the bed. After ten minutes, he got up and went to the bathroom to clean himself.

The warm yellow light spilled down, and the hot water from the showerhead poured down. Lee Yunjae, with his short hair, no longer had the warm smile he showed to Na Soyeon and Kim Min-ji. He looked lonely and cold, almost terrifying.

Steam filled the entire bathroom, and the mirror was fogged up. He wiped a hand across the mirror, creating an irregular circle. Looking at his reflection, he whispered, "Soon... I'll be back soon..." His voice was low and hoarse, and after a few words, he started coughing violently, his face turning red, and his eyes bloodshot.

The clear but irregular circle on the mirror was once again covered by steam, and the small, dim space was filled with a bleak white.

Note: The "vampire" here does not refer to the fictional vampire but is a metaphor.