A Spot in the Playlist

Yoon Dae-eon, walking precariously as if hovering on the edge of drunkenness, glanced to his side.

Seon Ji-ha and Yoon Joo-myeong were walking flanking him in silence.

Yoon Joo-myeong walked with a rebellious air, hands shoved deep into his pockets.

Seon Ji-ha… simply followed behind Yoon Dae-eon without a word.

The drinking session had naturally come to an end a moment ago when Yoon Dae-eon returned from the restroom.

The moment he confirmed everyone was gone and stood up saying he should head home, the two Alphas had bolted upright as if they had been waiting for that exact second.

How many minutes had passed since the three of them began walking along the main road?

Yoon Dae-eon suddenly turned his gaze toward Yoon Joo-myeong.

“Come to think of it, Yoon Joo-myeong, what about your motorcycle?”

“……Ah, f*ck.”

“Who brings a motorcycle when they’re going out to drink anyway?”

“I can just go pick it up tomorrow.”

Yoon Joo-myeong replied brusquely.

Since his house wasn’t that far from the bar, it was a plausible plan.

When they reached a fork in the road, Yoon Dae-eon waved him off first.

“Yoon Joo-myeong, go on.”

“Why.”

“What do you mean ‘why’? Your house is that way.”

“I’m going to drop you off and then—”

“Why?”

Yoon Dae-eon asked as if he were genuinely curious.

Whenever the two of them went out drinking alone, Yoon Joo-myeong often walked him home.

But that was when it was just the two of them.

Today, Seon Ji-ha was here and heading in a similar direction, so why on earth?

Hearing Yoon Dae-eon’s “why,” Yoon Joo-myeong stared at Seon Ji-ha and ruffled his hair aggressively.

Then, as if giving up, he shoved his hands back into his pockets and stomped off toward his house.

Thump, thump, stomp, stomp.

The sound of his footsteps echoed, radiating pure irritation.

“Why is he sulking again?”

Watching Yoon Joo-myeong’s retreating back, Yoon Dae-eon let out a deep sigh.

It seemed he would have to endure a barrage of annoyed texts tomorrow morning.

“Senior, let’s go.”

“……Yes.”

“But why are you in a bad mood, Senior? Was the party not fun?”

“……”

It was only after returning from the restroom that he realized Seon Ji-ha was also in a bad mood.

The man, who had been sitting with his head bowed, had stared silently at Yoon Dae-eon the moment he returned.

Perhaps it was the lighting, but his eyes had looked somewhat moist.

Since he intended to ask once Yoon Joo-myeong was gone, Yoon Dae-eon moved his feet and waited patiently for Seon Ji-ha’s answer.

Seon Ji-ha, who had been gazing quietly at Yoon Dae-eon, parted his lips slightly.

“……Because I thought I might lose it.”

“Lose what? Did you leave something behind at the bar?”

“No.”

Yoon Dae-eon merely tilted his head at the cryptic response.

Even as they conversed, there was no sign of Seon Ji-ha’s mood lifting.

Before they knew it, they were nearing the area where their homes were located.

“Senior, do you want to stop by that park over there for a bit before going in?”

At Yoon Dae-eon’s question, Seon Ji-ha gave a slow nod and followed him toward the park.

Upon arriving, Yoon Dae-eon told Seon Ji-ha to sit on a bench for a moment.

Then, he ran off toward a nearby convenience store that was still open.

Entering the store, Yoon Dae-eon quickly grabbed two brown glass bottles, paid, and came back out.

He then cracked one of the bottles open with a click-pop and handed it to Seon Ji-ha, who was sitting obediently on the bench.

The label on the bottle read ‘Pak-Kkaen-Da,’ a hangover relief drink.

“Drink this. You’ll feel better.”

Seon Ji-ha quietly accepted the hangover cure.

The bottle, which had looked substantial enough in Yoon Dae-eon’s hand, looked significantly smaller once it was in Seon Ji-ha’s grasp.

Seon Ji-ha looked down at it silently.

‘He said I’ll feel better if I drink this.’

Mulling over Yoon Dae-eon’s words, Seon Ji-ha finally tilted his head back and downed the drink in one go.

The hangover cure, which he was trying for the first time, tasted more like a soft drink than medicine.

“Did you finish it? Good, and next… Ah, I didn’t bring my AirPods.”

Rummaging through his pockets, Yoon Dae-eon muttered in a disappointed tone.

Then, his eyes met Seon Ji-ha’s, who was watching him.

Yoon Dae-eon asked as if he had just remembered something.

“Senior, don’t you have earphones? You know, those… slightly old-fashioned wired ones.”

“……These……?”

Reaching into his pocket, Seon Ji-ha slowly pulled out a pair of wired earphones.

Despite clearly being an older model, they were clean and white as if they were brand new, without a hint of yellowing.

Yoon Dae-eon quickly snatched the offered earphones.

Fortunately, Yoon Dae-eon’s phone still had a jack where wired earphones could be plugged in.

After plugging them in, Yoon Dae-eon moved his thumb to quickly select a song.

Soon, he tucked the earbud marked ‘R’ into Seon Ji-ha’s ear.

-♬♪

An unfamiliar song began to flow through Seon Ji-ha’s earphones.

Yoon Dae-eon’s music.

No, rather, the songs Yoon Dae-eon kept in his playlist.

As Seon Ji-ha listened to the music blankly, Yoon Dae-eon spoke.

“The selection is okay, right? I only listen to what I like. I told you back then, didn’t I? That I still listen to the songs I liked in elementary school.”

“……I like it, the song.”

“You seem to be in a better mood now.”

Thump.

Sitting down next to Seon Ji-ha with a relieved smile, Yoon Dae-eon plugged the other earbud marked ‘L’ into his own ear.

He then opened his own portion of the hangover cure he hadn’t drunk yet and downed it.

Seon Ji-ha turned his head to watch him.

Yoon Dae-eon naturally wiped away a few drops of the liquid that had smudged on his lips with his forearm.

Suddenly, he let out a short laugh and spoke.

“Wow, it feels like it’s been forever. Sitting close like this and listening with wired earphones. Was middle school the last time? What about you, Senior? Do you listen with other people often?”

“……It’s my first time……”

“Really? That’s surprising. Hmm, what do you usually listen to, Senior? Should I add it to my playlist?”

Yoon Dae-eon asked, showing Seon Ji-ha the playlists on his phone.

At that, Seon Ji-ha fell silent for a moment.

In truth, Seon Ji-ha didn’t listen to this kind of music with wired earphones.

All he ever listened to through them were natural ASMR sounds to block out surrounding noise, or perhaps the news.

However, he wanted to add his own song to Yoon Dae-eon’s playlist.

The playlists he said he had been listening to for over ten years.

If it were added there, Seon Ji-ha’s song would also endure for years to come.

And every time he heard that song, Yoon Dae-eon would think of him.

Seon Ji-ha awkwardly reached out and took Yoon Dae-eon’s phone.

He began to slowly navigate the unfamiliar phone and the unfamiliar app.

It wasn’t as difficult as he had expected.

“Old pop? This song is good. Do you like old pop, Senior?”

“Yes……”

“I like it too. I think I’ll listen to this often since it’s so good.”

Seon Ji-ha handed the phone back to Yoon Dae-eon, who held it in his hand while staring up at the sky.

Seon Ji-ha gazed quietly at the brightly glowing phone screen in Yoon Dae-eon’s hand.

Between the songs in his playlist, the track Seon Ji-ha had inserted sat there quietly.

It would likely occupy a spot in Yoon Dae-eon’s playlist for a very long time.

A strange sense of pleasure washed over him.

Seon Ji-ha stared at Yoon Dae-eon’s phone with calm eyes for a long while.

Until the alcohol he hadn’t even drunk had completely worn off.

Returning home, Yoon Dae-eon clutched his head due to the lingering effects of the alcohol.

He had sat in the park with Seon Ji-ha and even listened to music to sober up, but it seemed he had only half-succeeded.

His mind was clear, but his head throbbed.

Whew.

Exhaling a sigh laced with the scent of alcohol, Yoon Dae-eon took off his shoes and entered the house.

A silent, empty interior awaited him.

With his eyes cast down, Yoon Dae-eon looked at the floor with a bitter expression.

Naturally, there was nothing but his own belongings in the entryway.

In fact, it wasn’t just the entryway; it was the same for everything else.

In this house, no items other than Yoon Dae-eon’s would ever enter again.

‘Will it stay like this forever?’

Yoon Dae-eon was a rare Beta, and it was difficult for him to marry or share deep connections with others.

The idea of someone else’s shoes being in the entryway of Yoon Dae-eon’s house every day in the future was…

It was a crushing loneliness that usually struck whenever he returned home alone.

Whenever it happened, Yoon Dae-eon immediately sought out the room deep inside.

It was the place where his parents’ belongings were kept—the room he told his friends not to enter.

“Mom. Dad. I’m home.”

Creeeak.

As he opened the door and stepped inside, the space with its yellow linoleum floor looked as if someone still lived there.

That is, if one ignored the funeral portraits placed on top of the wardrobe.

Instead of sitting on the neatly made bed, Yoon Dae-eon chose the chair at the desk against one wall.

As the headache grew worse while the alcohol wore off, he leaned his cheek against the desk and lay facedown.

“……”

He wanted to say something, but nothing came out except his warm breath.

He wasn’t the type of person to talk to himself, anyway.

As he lay there quietly looking around the room, Yoon Dae-eon eventually stood up and opened a desk drawer.

Inside, a jumble of pocketbooks, notebooks, bankbooks, and scraps of paper were mixed together.

Yoon Dae-eon looked inside with a smileless face.

The last memories his parents had left him were there.

As he flipped over a piece of white paper that had been face down, the words ‘Imprinting Certificate’ became visible.

Yoon Dae-eon knew what it was.

It was a certificate his mother had given him, always telling him to live as a manifested person and to use it if things truly became unbearable.

However, after his parents passed away, Yoon Dae-eon had gathered all these things and shoved them in here.

He didn’t want to use them.

This wasn’t just some Imprinting Certificate; it was the final piece of affection his parents had given him.

“I’d rather……”

‘I’d rather actually imprint with someone.’

‘Wouldn’t I be less lonely then?’

The words that almost escaped Yoon Dae-eon’s lips swirled in his head.

Having lived alone since his parents died, Yoon Dae-eon was now confused.

Was he lonely because his parents were gone, or was he facing the reality that he was a Beta who couldn’t belong anywhere?

Ding.

In the silent, empty house, the notification sound rang out exceptionally loud.

Yoon Dae-eon slowly pulled out his phone.

The name appearing on the screen was Senior Seon Ji-ha.

– [Senior Seon Ji-ha: Did you get home safe?] 10:21 PM

– [Senior Seon Ji-ha: Are you at home?]

– [Senior Seon Ji-ha: Dae-eon, are you sleeping?] 10:26 PM

At the moment when his loneliness had swelled to its peak, the arrival of Seon Ji-ha’s messages caused that feeling to deflate like a lie.

Looking down at it with blurry eyes, Yoon Dae-eon unconsciously let out a goofy grin.

And, as if it had been waiting for this exact moment, sleep finally found him…