after a scandal, wooyoung, a defunct k-pop idol, runs away to his sister's hometown. he craves anonymity, yet his quiet routine is disrupted by a chance encounter- a local with a warm presence, who offers him a glimpse of a life beyond the spotlight...
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now that yeonjin had handed over the store to a particularly energised wooyoung and a perpetually playful san, wooyoung had many ideas about how the day would unfold.
he had considered many things, including whether this would become an unexpected somewhat-date. maybe they would talk about the old days over the coffee that san had brought for them? perhaps they'd just sit quietly and stock vinyl and records, but knowing san, he'd never go for something so boring and plain. he would much rather leave the store. unlike wooyoung, he did not appear to be the type of person who found joy in simple things like restocking empty shelves while surrounded by the soothing sounds of birds chirping outside.
knowing san, he was probably just about to ask wooyoung if they could just leave the shop, which wooyoung would say no to, but san would drag him out anyway. however, his potential plans were cut short when it began to rain heavily just minutes after yeonjin left with her car.
it was a bittersweet reminder of the upcoming winter. bitter, because it meant that time was passing quickly and that sooner or later, wooyoung would have to pack up his belongings and resume his life.
now that the power was out and it was raining cats and dogs, san had mentioned that there was a 'zero chance' of customers showing up for the rest of the stormy weather. wooyoung had reasonably assumed that this meant san was going to do the very thing that bores him to death: restock shelves. but no. the man, for all his restlessness and creativity, had other plans.
wooyoung, who was still perched behind the counter with nothing else to do, looked confused and amused at san, who was standing all the way near the beanbags. he was vigorously emptying a new rectangular cardboard box filled with albums, too preoccupied with his work to tell wooyoung what he was up to.
"are you going to tell me what you're trying to do, or...?" wooyoung called out. he was unable to get enthusiastic choi san to meet his gaze. san was deeply invested in his nonsense, as it turned out.
"you'll see in a few minutes," san said, finishing with a gasp of air as if he were doing some strenuous and demanding work.
wooyoung realised that words alone would not stop this man, so he reluctantly let him do his work. wooyoung's gaze returned to his phone, where he was watching random short films to pass the time.
in the minutes that passed, san had captured his attention in a variety of ways. first, there was the sound of scissors cutting cardboard. wooyoung turned to face san, only to find him crouching by the table, his face frowning in determination as he worked on the box. then there was the sound of something being thrown in yeonjin's backroom, or storage unit. san walked out of there seconds later, carrying a magnifying glass, tools, glue, and a small tub of paint. ten minutes later, he was blowing tirelessly on the box to dry the paint.
whatever san was planning, it was clearly something he was determined to see through to the end. he was up to many worrying things, but his silence while working was another factor, in addition to the soothing rain and thunder, that made wooyoung feel drowsy. his head began to tip, and he struggled to keep his eyes open.
