Wandering (8)
A carefree vacation without worrying about money is truly wonderful.
I ate what I wanted and did what I liked.
But strangely, I couldn't bring myself to touch the canvas and brushes.
It's quite an interesting situation.
When I was buried in work, I hated not having time to paint. Now that I have the time, I find myself not reaching for them.
But that's okay.
What I need right now is to do nothing for a while.
"La la la la."
I filled the open-air bath with warm water around noon and took a bath.
Bathing outside in broad daylight was a refreshing experience. I felt so good that a hum naturally came out.
"What should I eat for lunch today?"
Most of my meals were takeout.
There are foods available for delivery, but those are things I can eat in Seoul, so I prefer to visit local restaurants and get takeout.
"Should I get some octopus?"
I thought about buying aged octopus sashimi for lunch and having octopus ramen with soju in the evening.
I had seen octopus on the menu at a village of female divers I found while riding a scooter.
After bathing, I put on fresh clothes that were crisply dried by the sea breeze and bright sunlight.
Before riding my electric scooter, I covered my face with sunglasses and a mask and headed to the village of female divers, cutting through the wind.
I hung my helmet on the scooter and pressed a brimmed hat firmly on my head, then cautiously looked around.
There are quite a few tourists here. Moreover, it’s lunchtime, so there are many visitors from out of town. I need to be careful.
About thirty tourists were in the divers' village. They all glanced at me once because of my suspiciously covered face, but it didn’t seem like they recognized me.
"Lady, how do you sell the rock octopus?"
A grandmother diver cleaning sea squirts in a rubber basin answered me.
"Ah, 20,000 won."
"Please pack it for me."
"Do you want vegetables?"
"Yes, please include sesame oil and vinegar sauce."
"Okay, I'm a bit backed up with orders, so please sit there and wait a bit."
"Alright."
She pointed to a table.
It wasn’t for customers, but a small table near the door, probably where she rested when there were no customers.
I crossed my legs and enjoyed the view outside the door.
The village being close to the sea, watching the outside was quite enjoyable.
The distant sound of waves, the cries of seagulls, and a wide view. I thought living by the sea might be nice when I get older.
Despite the sea having taken my father.
I still like the sea.
'I'm resting well, thanks to Youngju.'
Even though it's a vacation to escape a bad situation, it feels like compensation for the hard times.
Then, I heard the gossip of four women at a nearby table.
"Did you watch TV yesterday? Lee Jae-hyun from Super Mix, they say he’s dating Su-jin from Red Candy. Looks like they’re openly acknowledging their relationship?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, I thought there was something fishy about them from the last variety show. They always stuck together even when they didn’t need to, so I had a feeling something was up."
"You always had a knack for this. Didn't you correctly predict that baseball announcer scandal a few years ago?"
"You're like a shaman, a shaman."
I chuckled at their conversation.
Do they really find it fun to gossip about celebrities even on a trip to Jeju Island?
Then, one of the women's comments made me frown.
"Hey, have you heard about Ban Jeong-hoon?"
"What, something about Yong-han?"
"Not that, there was an article a few days ago."
"What about?"
"That guy, you know, the CEO of the luxury brand in Italy."
"Monica?"
"Yeah."
"Wait, you don't know Monica's name? She's so hot right now. I went to the department store in Apgujeong the day before yesterday and bought this dress."
"The one you're wearing now?"
"Yeah, pretty, isn't it?"
"Wow, no wonder. How much is that cardigan?"
"750,000 won."
"Huh? Cheaper than I thought?"
"It's from the Aqua line. Black label cardigans go over 500."
"Ah, when can I ever wear something like that?"
"But what about Monica? What was the article about?"
"They say she's got something going on with Ban Jeong-hoon?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, the article just mentioned that there's a scandal between them, but the comments below are insane."
"What are they saying?"
"What do you think? They're saying they're involved, so that's why she got the store design contract."
"So, it's not Ban Jeong-hoon's talent but the result of wooing a woman?"
"They say so?"
"Wow, that's quite impressive in its own way. Isn't that a skill too?"
"Right, it doesn't matter what means you use as long as you succeed. Maybe that's why amateur painters can be overlooked?"
"Just become famous! Even if you crap, people will applaud you!"
"Like Andy Warhol!"
"Giggle."
I clenched my fist as I listened to the women's conversation.
'That's not something Andy Warhol said, you ignorant people.'
And what? Me and Monica have something going on? Ha, are the attacks on me still not over?
'Should I go on air and clarify?'
If I leave it as it is, irreversible stories might intensify even more fiercely.
I wanted to say something to the women gossiping about others, but revealing my presence here would be more troublesome, so I just clenched my fist and lowered my head.
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