‘She wanted to follow them.’
A belated realization came.
Grandmother had wanted to follow them. Grandfather and Mother who had passed away. However, she had endured because there was a remaining blood relative, because she was worried about me who would be left alone. I had no idea since she had never shown it.
And because she knew that feeling too well, she was predicting what choice I, who was stubborn just like family, would want to make in the future. That choice she wanted to stop but couldn’t quite stop when thinking of her own experience.
“……Yes.”
I answered with difficulty. I couldn’t press her fiercely asking what she meant, why she was talking like someone about to leave soon. Because even while having this conversation, Grandmother’s physical condition was clearly felt.
Grandmother’s body, which had fallen into a state of guiding depletion despite being a guide, had now begun to dry up and crack. Although she had barely opened her eyes relying on medication, her body that borrowed the power of medication no longer even struggled to generate guiding on its own. At least in this moment, my ability to know all of that, being more sensitive to waves than others, felt like a curse.
“I’ll definitely do that.”
I had no choice but to answer like that. Grandmother’s eyes were closing, and just as Grandmother guessed, it was clear I would make the choice to follow Grandmother.
So I just quietly buried Grandmother’s wish hoping that a moment would come among ten chances when I would choose life. For an instant, Do Ganghyun’s face came to mind, but I still didn’t know.
“…I’ll at least fill ten times.”
“Yes. For now, that’s enough. That’s enough.”
Grandmother quietly closed her eyes. This time, I truly sensed it. The fact that she wouldn’t open her eyes anymore. The fact that she would sleep like this, a sleep from which she would never wake for eternity. I couldn’t accept that fact and cried there for a long time.
***
Do Ganghyun thought. What on earth had happened inside for the kid’s face to be in this state.
‘What kind of face…’
The area around the eyes was all swollen, and red heat marks had risen all over the face including the cheeks. Unless one cried out desperately, it wasn’t easy to become like this, so he wondered what on earth had happened.
“Why is your face like that?”
“Ah… You haven’t left yet?”
Even the voice was all hoarse and locked up.
“I said I’d wait.”
“I’m sorry. I forgot to contact you.”
“That’s not what I meant, ha—”
Do Ganghyun sighed mid-sentence. Now wasn’t the time to press like this. Rather than questioning the reason, it was urgent to first take care of him and return home.
‘Grandmother woke up. Then shouldn’t you be smiling?’
Of course, he also knew what state Myeong Eunha’s grandmother was in. Even if she woke up, she would have fallen asleep again before long. However, something seemed off for crying simply because of that brief parting.
‘Anyone who saw would think you heard that she’d never wake up again.’
The thought that came to mind for a moment seemed unlikely, but he soon shook his head. The contact from the caregiver was just that Myeong Eunha had left the hospital room exhausted from crying.
Knowing Myeong Eunha who rushed to Grandmother’s news like a moth to flame, he had told them to definitely contact him too if there was anything wrong with the patient. Although the confirmation was late, news that she had regained consciousness this time was also left as a text. So if something had happened to the patient, another contact would have come in the middle long ago.
“Let’s go in for now.”
Do Ganghyun hurriedly hastened his steps. He wrapped his arm around Myeong Eunha’s shoulder and held firmly so as not to lose him.
An unreasonable anxiety arose that if he didn’t do this, he would lose Myeong Eunha forever. An instinctive sense also awakened that he shouldn’t leave Myeong Eunha alone to think deeply like this.
So he could ask the reason later. First, he had to soothe him so he could compose his emotions.
Questions like why he had to do this didn’t arise. What he needed was ‘imprint severance’ with Myeong Eunha, not Myeong Eunha himself, yet his body moved on its own.
In fact, thinking coldly, the more unstable Myeong Eunha’s mental state was, the more advantageous it was for Do Ganghyun himself. If Myeong Eunha made an extreme choice, the imprint would naturally be severed too.
It was cruel, but this was the reality between Myeong Eunha and him.
‘But why am I thinking as if Myeong Eunha would make such a choice?’
Belatedly, the thought that all his thinking and actions were excessive crossed Do Ganghyun’s mind. However, the fact that extreme choice, that word, was so hateful he couldn’t even bear to say it, remained unchanged.
Only then did Do Ganghyun realize that he was now recalling death after seeing Myeong Eunha’s appearance and feeling repulsed by it. This was the instinct of an Esper afraid of losing his imprinted guide, but he had spent too long denying and turning away from Myeong Eunha to notice this.
‘Well, still, it’s a bit much for a person to die.’
So Do Ganghyun defined it as an emotion arising from humanitarian duty. Not knowing it might be a huge misconception.
‘If the imprint is severed in that way, there will be talk afterward too.’
He glanced down at Myeong Eunha who had entered his embrace.
Since he had devoted himself for his sake until now, even if it ended when it ended, it was right to give appropriate compensation. This was because the debt and humanitarian duty coming from that were on his mind. When he thought like that, his heart became much lighter.
‘Right. Even if the imprint is severed, I should look after him enough so he can take care of himself.’
Until then, getting along like now and spending time amicably.
Anyway, frequent guiding was essential to sever the imprint, and to capture the timing when Myeong Eunha’s guiding waves fluctuated, he had to advance their relationship.
He was convinced that all of this was for the greater good and that he would be able to give Myeong Eunha perfect compensation afterward. As he guessed, it seemed this had happened because he was worrying about his future along with Grandmother’s absence, but it was a needless worry.
“Let’s go eat and rest.”
Myeong Eunha didn’t answer. It seemed his stamina was exhausted as his legs lost strength and he walked wobbling. Do Ganghyun put a little more strength into the arm wrapped around his shoulder and hastened his steps. Today, it seemed he would have to feed him while skipping the medication.
“About Grandmother… I’ll help with that. If we look, there will be some way.”
At those words, Myeong Eunha suddenly raised his head. It was the first meaningful reaction since leaving the hospital. As expected, it was right that his mind was disturbed in relation to his grandmother. Although it was an experimental new drug being tested, she had already woken up twice using it, so what was so sad that he cried like this.
“…Thank you.”
Myeong Eunha whispered softly. His throat choked up again so his voice didn’t come out properly, but this time Do Ganghyun somehow felt good. Because he felt that all these reactions came out entirely because of himself.
***
As soon as they arrived home, although he had fed him normal food with the medication finally removed, Myeong Eunha couldn’t even eat a few spoonfuls before entering the room.
Since getting along with him appropriately, this was the first time seeing him struggle this much, so Do Ganghyun couldn’t even properly respond. Irritation rose from frustration, but thinking that leaving him alone for a while might be a solution at times like this, he just let it be. Since the anxious appearance he had felt at first had disappeared.
“…Sorry. I didn’t hear. Say it again.”
Just then, an important call that couldn’t be received while with Myeong Eunha also came. Do Ganghyun requested the words he had half-listened to again.
—Where are you selling your attention?
The other party, Do Ganghui, lowered her voice even more with a sigh. She also said she would contact him again later if it wasn’t a situation to answer the phone.
However, since it wasn’t a call pleasant enough to hear repeatedly, Do Ganghyun immediately concentrated on the conversation. She was needlessly cautious anyway.
‘She probably already looked into everything before calling.’
Do Ganghyun clicked his tongue and adjusted his grip on the phone.
Of course, it was right that it was a call with content secretive and covert enough to need to watch the surroundings. Because it was content about imprint severance drugs being obtained through illegal routes, nothing else. Still, there was no need to be this careful.
“It’s fine. Just say it.”
—Getting the drugs in this month, it seems it will take a bit of time.
“Why?”
—Securing the quantity was difficult. Some crazy bastard is stirring up this market, making it difficult to move rashly.
“Crazy bastard?”
Do Ganghyun slightly raised his eyebrows and turned his steps. Of course, there was no way the sound would reach the room where Myeong Eunha was, but it was just in case. He thought what was the point of showing the kid, who was already disturbed, the appearance of having a heavy-atmosphere call.
—Yeah. Whether they’ve got a tight grip on the overseas market too, it’s not easy. Still, the drug’s effect maintains even with a 2-week gap. I’ll get it soon, so if you take it while spacing it out for a while—
“It’s fine, so don’t rush and mess things up. I have spare medication.”
—…What?!
Then Do Ganghui screamed. She screamed so loudly that the receiver sound broke and was heard. Do Ganghyun, with sensitive senses, frowned and said it was noisy.
However, those words didn’t properly reach Do Ganghui. It couldn’t be helped. She couldn’t understand her younger brother’s words at all.
