"no, but how did you not know park bogum?" asked areum, her voice tinged with disbelief and a touch of exasperation.
the two had decided to linger at the café long after the book reading club had ended.
it was surprising how their casual conversation had led to such a close connection, especially given the fact that they had a feud about the accusations thrown at seungcheol from areum.
but it was even more surprising to discover that seungcheol had no clue about reply 1988, to be more precise, he had no idea who park bogum is
"now, now... it's been ages since i last watched kdrama," seungcheol said, setting down his cup of coffee with a resigned sigh.
"still, that's inexcusable!" areum retorted, her eyes wide with incredulity. "it's like not knowing who hannah montana is!"
seungcheol looked at her, his brows furrowing in confusion before his expression relaxed into a thoughtful frown. he was grappling with who this second figure areum had mentioned—Hannah Montana
leading areum to lean back in her chair, shaking her head in disbelief. her frustration was evident, but so was a growing amusement at seungcheol's bewildered expression.
"you've got so much to catch up on, sir..." she said, a mix of exasperation and playfulness in her tone.
"did you hit your head and lost your memories or something?" she added, a small smile tugging at her lips.
seungcheol chuckled softly, smiling at her choices of words, as if she had known from the start but surely she does not know it.
but obviously this has got nothing to do with park bogum, or hannah montana.
"i actually don't remember much," he confessed, his voice carrying a hint of vulnerability. "like, at all. i lost my memories back in 2020."
"2020?" areum repeated, her voice softening as she processed his words.
seungcheol nodded, his gaze steady.
"because... me too," areum said quietly, her heart aching with shared understanding.
"what seriously?"he asked, his curiosity now piqued.
the shift from talking about bogum to this was certainly striking
"a car accident, you?"
"a concussion from playing football."
it was as if they were having a conversation about foods
"im having ramen, you?" "ah im having fried rice"
areum nodded in sympathy. "that's rough. it must have been a tough recovery"
"yeah," seungcheol admitted, his expression reflecting the weight of the past. "it took me a while to get back to normal. i still have gaps in my memory."
"you're no different too. i mean, a car accident would hurt a lot compared to getting hit by a ball."
"mehh, i don't really have any recollection of the pain. i guess that's the bonus of having all of my memories..." areum stopped and made a 'wooshh' sound. "wiped out," she added.
"yeah, that's true," seungcheol said softly. "i had to piece things together too. it was like trying to fill in a blank canvas."
they shared a moment of silence, each reflecting on their own challenges. the atmosphere between them grew more intimate, as if their shared experiences had drawn them closer.
"it's funny," seungcheol said after a pause, "how something like this can make you feel so isolated, but then you meet someone who's been through something similar and it suddenly feels a bit less lonely."
