# Chapter 134
How much time had passed? Despite the air conditioner being on full blast, my stiff body soon began to heat up from the rising warmth.
“…Hey. Let go of me now.”
Our bodies were pressed too tightly together. As I spoke, averting my gaze downward, Moon Seoheon immediately loosened his arms. I watched the clearly defined muscles on his exposed forearms contract as I lightly pushed against his upper body, but he didn’t budge at all.
Puzzled, I raised my head to find his moist, damp eyes looking past me at something distant. Whether due to the moisture gathered there or because he was blankly staring into space, he definitely appeared to be in a daze. I quietly removed my hand from his body.
Judging by his condition, he seemed so drained that he might collapse if nudged, yet the strength with which he held me was so intense I couldn’t move an inch.
Deciding to let him do as he pleased, I dropped my arms, and soon Moon Seoheon’s face came down to my shoulder just like before. As I remained in his embrace for quite a while, I merely opened and closed my fingers repeatedly. I broke the awkward silence.
“I talked with Teacher Jaewon.”
“……”
“You’re quite something.”
A low laugh escaped me, still vividly recalling how surprised I was when I learned about Moon Seoheon’s identity. At the sound of my laughter, he embraced my upper body even more tightly.
Sensing we might stay like this for a while, I hesitated before asking.
“Aren’t you curious about me?”
My question made Moon Seoheon flinch. It was a subtle movement, but with our bodies pressed together, the tremor was clearly transmitted. I continued casually.
“My real name. It’s Nam Bowon.”
I finally revealed my true name, though I’d wondered if it was necessary. Honestly, I’d been thinking I should tell him someday. I’d constantly felt the need to somehow prove this absurd phenomenon. And part of me also wanted him to feel a bit estranged from me because of it.
As a small vibration was felt over my shoulder, a mumbling voice penetrated my ear. Though the words were muffled, they were clear enough to understand coming from right beside me.
My ear tickled as he repeatedly muttered my name as if committing it to memory. I cleared my throat unnecessarily and shared more information.
“And I’m 28 years old.”
“……”
Feeling his body stiffen slightly, I let out a faint, wry laugh. His reaction suggested this was even more surprising than learning my name. Well, it would be quite shocking to discover that the person inhabiting your same-aged friend’s body was actually much older.
Worried he might misunderstand and think I was putting on airs because of my age, I continued without pause.
“I work at a hotel back there. I’m currently working as a hotelier, but at first, I was assigned to the cooking department and really struggled. I’m not… very good at cooking.”
Moon Seoheon silently listened to what I was saying. Glancing at him, I saw his eyes were sparkling attentively.
“…But there was some gain from it. Honestly, I did more odd jobs than actual cooking, but I was good at those, so I endured for a long time. Maybe they saw me favorably because of that, and I was offered a permanent position. Since professional knowledge was required, I studied hard at that time. I was already preparing for the civil service exam anyway, so it wasn’t a big change…”
I didn’t want to speak in this awkward atmosphere, but seeing an opportunity, I brought up the topic, and Moon Seoheon was listening more seriously than I expected. After a moment of silence, I ended up sharing unnecessary stories.
Still, Moon Seoheon remained quiet. I closed my mouth briefly, wondering how much more I should say. In response, Moon Seoheon slightly raised his face from my shoulder.
His face, slightly flushed perhaps from the heat, was now directly facing mine. Moon Seoheon moved his lips as if finding it difficult to speak, then finally uttered.
“What about when you were young? …I heard your parents passed away early.”
“Ah. Did you hear that from the teacher?”
At my calm response, Moon Seoheon nodded slightly. Seeing his expression darken, I smiled faintly and hesitated whether to answer. Moon Seoheon’s shoulders slumped, as if he felt sorry for bringing up such a topic after asking out of curiosity. I actually found the situation somewhat amusing, as I truly no longer felt anything when talking about my parents.
People who somehow learned about my family history either expressed sympathy or tried to brush it off casually. But occasionally, I was also met with mockery, so I’d become emotionally detached to any kind of reaction.
It had been a long time since I parted with my family, and I could say I’d become indifferent due to being busy just trying to make a living.
Well, of course, there were dark periods. It would be best not to mention how I had to change orphanages twice due to financial difficulties, or how I once went up to a rooftop, or stood in front of a wide river for an entire day.
But besides that, I wasn’t sure what to say about my childhood. No matter how much I reflected on the past, not many good memories came to mind.
It was hard to speak about bad memories, or recollections that were really nothing special.
Seeing my expression, Moon Seoheon slightly frowned his eyebrows then let them droop. Noticing his obviously misunderstanding look, I quickly shook my head.
“There’s not much to tell really… Oh, I dropped out of high school in my second year and took the GED. I needed to earn money, so I worked part-time jobs.”
“Dropped out?”
“Yeah. Thanks to that, I saved some money and had a bit of leeway even when I became an adult.”
Combining the five million won I received from the government when leaving the orphanage with my part-time job earnings meant I had no major financial problems. Looking back, I still thought that refusing the teachers’ advice and dropping out was a good decision.
As I nodded inwardly and raised the corners of my mouth, Moon Seoheon’s lips twisted in the opposite direction. What I had shared as a positive story with a sense of pride, he seemed to interpret differently.
With his eyes now clear as the moisture had disappeared, a coldness settled on his face. Without realizing it, I firmly closed my mouth and swallowed dryly, making the sound echo clearly.
“Hey, get off me now. It’s hot.”
Having nothing more to say, I rolled my eyes around before blurting this out, and only then did Moon Seoheon detach his tightly pressed upper body. His attitude was to quietly overlook my excuse, though its intent was obvious.
Though we both noticed, neither of us said anything.
* * *
“You’re recovering faster than expected. The sensation in your legs has almost completely returned, and it seems your diligent training is speeding up the improvement.”
The doctor smiled gently. Adding that young people’s cartilage heals quickly with good elasticity even after tearing, my mother, who had been anxious all day, was reassured.
However, despite the doctor’s continuing praise, there was distrust in my mother’s eyes as she looked at me. I brushed back my hair, wiping away the cold sweat trickling down my forehead.
That day, after persuading Moon Seoheon to leave, I was deep in thought when chaos erupted in the hospital room. Late at night, my parents rushed in, pale-faced, and removed anything that might be dangerous from the room.
Before I could hide my confusion, even Kwak Junhee and Maeng Moa barged in, leaving me with my mouth agape.
It seemed Yoon Taeho could be considered mentally vulnerable at that point. Moon Seoheon, who had come to the hospital room in alarm, said as much, and the expressions of those looking at me were frozen to the point they couldn’t speak, for the same reason.
I don’t know how Yoon Taeho had acted—I tried to request to see the video, but Kwak Junhee and Maeng Moa refused. They said the family was managing the footage, but even they shook their heads and wouldn’t explain in detail, so all I could do was infer from what Moon Seoheon had blurted out.
Moreover, they thought I might harm myself without them knowing, so there was nothing I could do.
“Let’s get up.”
“…Yes.”
Although my body had improved considerably since I first returned, I was still impaired and needed my mother’s support. As soon as we left the examination room, Moon Seoheon and Jung Hyoin, who had been waiting, pushed themselves away from the wall they were leaning against.
“Did you wait long? You could have waited in the hospital room.”
Jung Hyoin stood beside Moon Seoheon as he replied that it was fine. My mother, looking apologetic, checked the time and entrusted me to the two guys.
“I’m really sorry, boys. Originally, a caregiver was supposed to come, but because I was busy and changed the time… I have to go now, but please contact me if anything happens.”
“Yes.”
My mother lightly patted Moon Seoheon and Jung Hyoin’s shoulders in gratitude, looked at me with concern, and then left as her phone rang. I found it troubling that she trusted those guys more than me—I had no idea how they had persuaded my parents during my absence.
As Moon Seoheon naturally put his arm around my shoulder, I leaned on him instead of swallowing a sigh. Then I glanced at Jung Hyoin, who had come with Moon Seoheon, and just bit my lip.
Until we reached the hospital room and I sat on the bed, I quietly let myself be led, seeing no reason to refuse their assistance, but both guys remained silent. The real issue lay elsewhere.
The hospital room, cooled by the fully-blasted air conditioner, was growing uncomfortably cold in the strange silence. To break the mounting tension, I resigned myself and spoke first.
“I need to wash up. Can you help me?”
At my words breaking the silence, Moon Seoheon and Jung Hyoin, who had been standing still, began to move. They hesitated for a moment, looking intently at each other before turning their heads abruptly and approaching me from both sides.
I stared into space, feeling awkward. This is really… though I hated to say it myself, they were doing that, right? That power struggle over me. My eyes squeezed shut just at the thought, even though I hadn’t said it aloud.
I’m glad Maeng Moa didn’t come, though he had wanted to. He was said to be quite busy with full-fledged entertainment activities ahead of the school break. The same went for Kwak Junhee and Byeon Seungha.
Whether their families were providing some sort of education, despite the relaxed period after exams, these guys had become even busier. Thanks to that, I got a breather, but still.
Having known them for just a few months at most, these are surely just emotions misconstrued as simple attraction—I wish they would all just stop.
“Stand up. We need to take off your clothes first.”
Moon Seoheon extended his hand to me, who was perched awkwardly on the edge of the bed, slipped his hand under my armpit, and gently lifted me up.
