Venetian Mask - Hyunlix (ENG)

Twenty-Two

Lewis Capaldi - Before You Go
🎭

Felix woke up in bed. This time, the little alcohol he'd had hadn't caused him to lose his memory. The young man went over the previous evening in his head. He thought about Yeonjun's house, the buffet, the music. This time, he and his roommate didn't need to help out at the end of the party. So they went straight home afterwards, with Yeonjun as the driver, just like at the driveway. This didn't stop the blond from waking up at the same time as the masked ball. He said this to himself after looking at his watch for the first time that day.

He had also remembered his dance with Jinnie. When the blond thought about it, his ears turned red. Embarrassed, he put his hands in front of his face. Once he'd pulled himself together, he decided to stand up. The blond headed for the nearest mirror to take stock of his appearance. Still struggling to open his eyes, he could barely look at himself in the mirror. He did, however, note his messy hair and a trickle of dried drool on his face, showing that the blond had slept well. He left his room to join his roommate in the living room.

The blond had enjoyed the party. It really allowed him to forget his worries. Seungmin had also enjoyed the event.

Felix thought of a new hypothesis concerning the mask. Despite the party, the very next day the theme had come back to him. He thought of a quick assimilation between Jinnie and the possessor. In fact, she was the only person he could think of who he knew. His arguments being their meeting and the web as well as the reason for the big man's immediate closeness to the little man following their conversation in the archive room. A reason that Felix didn't know and that could have something to do with the mask. What's more, the tall man could have matched the person in the photo, if we take the argument of height and, possibly, hair color. But in the picture, the locks are thin and the color isn't very visible. What's more, his behavior at the party also raised suspicions about Jinnie. Why would he go and see the blond when they didn't really know each other? And last but not least, the tall man had attended the first party!

The blond knew that this hypothesis could be totally false and that the elements he had could only be coincidences. Nevertheless, he decided to follow his intuition and investigate Jinnie's side. One of his plans was to talk about the mask in front of him and observe his reactions and responses.

For his part, when Hyunjin awoke, he contacted Seungmin directly about their agreement of the previous day. Indeed, the day before, after receiving the guest list, he had decided to make direct contact with the blond's friend, in particular the one who had invited Felix to the ball. Hyunjin had thought the dark-haired man might know something about his lost accessory. And he did. When the fake blond told Seungmin about it, the dark-haired man was surprised to learn who the owner was, and that he'd come straight to him. Honestly, Seungmin thought Felix would have no chance of finding the owner, so when he heard Hyunjin make his declaration, his eyes sparkled. In the next instant, he made a wary face. "Why is he talking about this to me and not to Felix if he knew my friend had his mask? Besides, it's the first time he's spoken to me, so it's suspicious. But on the other hand, not many people know about this affair. Maybe he's honest...". Before any more antithetical thoughts ran through the dark-haired man's mind, he decided to ask his interlocutor all these questions. Hyunjin had answered each of his questions, explaining the situation so that Seungminwould understand. After that, the fake blond asked the dark-haired man a favor. He asked him to help Felix come to the assumption that he was the person who had lost the mask the blond possessed. Or at least to know where the boy stood with his research. The dark-haired man agreed, wishing to get it over with quickly, or at least in the next few days or weeks. The two then exchanged telephone numbers to keep in touch.

In the morning, Felix decided to get back in touch with Chae. The two hadn't been in touch since last Monday. The blond waited all day for a reply. During the day, he rested, as he had done at the ball. At lunch, the audiovisual student talked to Seungmin about the project. The dark-haired man told him that the project should be completed this weekend and officially published on their university website within the week. Félix was relieved that the work was finally finished. He would be able to see his interview proudly displayed on the art department with his name branded at the end, acknowledging his work.

Later that evening, around 6 p.m., Felix heard his cell phone ring. He switched it on and saw his girlfriend's reply, "I'm at the park, join me, I'll explain everything". The blond stared at his phone in disbelief. After a short moment, the young man slipped on his shoes with lightning speed. He was so quick that Seungmin had barely had time to ask a question about his behavior before the blond had already left.