It seemed this was what it meant for an enemy’s corpse to float down if you stay still. Though it was from childhood, the wound had been deeper because of that—moreover, hadn’t he been busy even at the wedding, erasing Young’s existence and only fawning over Kyung-heon?
He didn’t feel particularly sorry either. It was just utterly satisfying. Young stopped smiling excitedly and asked once more.
“So? Are you going to lend it to him?”
— Is that a level I can cover by lending? It would take going up to my parents to barely block it by a fingernail’s worth. Neither my parents nor I have any intention of lending it though.
Though Young was the one who received outright contempt, when it came to pent-up feelings toward Kwak Du-jin, Seong-jae wouldn’t fall behind either. He’d constantly heard unreasonable abuse and been ostracized just for being close to Young.
— Until recently he was going around flapping his mouth saying the bio transfer project was as good as decided for his company, but what a sight!
Perhaps because of that, Seong-jae showed no sign of sympathy either. Though they’d clashed and butted heads several times out of inability to hold back, they chatted excitedly for a while about how they’d done well not to get blood on their hands with personal revenge.
***
From Chairman Joo’s summons to the meal with Kyung-heon. The unexpectedly busy schedule was over. After sleeping soundly for one night, a leisurely daily life began again.
Young opened his eyes around lunchtime, and even after coming to his senses, he enjoyed short content on the bed for a long while before sluggishly coming out of bed.
Honestly, if it were up to his heart, he could live on the bed for ten thousand years. But there was no winning against hunger. Having barely escaped the bed, he filled his stomach with the meal the housekeeper who came by in the morning had prepared.
After eating, time in the living room began. He watched movies on a large screen that wasn’t inferior to a movie theater, connected a game console to float around on an uninhabited island’s sea, and then dove into the smartphone world to also examine how the world was turning.
Then came the moment when a resounding ringtone rang. It was a call coming from family members. Not a regular voice call, but a video call using the camera function.
In the early days of starting to live in the newlywed home, they’d called at all hours. Rather than missing the youngest who’d left home, it was out of concern that he might go wild with the reins off after leaving the family’s embrace. The intention to monitor whether he was going around to bars or clubs, or hanging out with some subhuman bastards was transparent. So he’d regretted a bit, wondering what use the marriage was.
Since he was holed up at home all day every day, it seemed they were reassured now too. No matter who called when, since he was lying on the sofa or bed in pajamas, they must have felt at ease. Now one daily welfare call was enough. Of course, even if the messenger rang incessantly.
Still, even Young could readily accept this much. He stretched his arm out long while lying on the sofa and connected the call. Then immediately, the face of his younger hyung Chan filled the screen.
“Oh, hyung.”
— Hey, Young, were you sleeping?
“No. I was just lying down.”
— Really? Aren’t you hungry?
“I ate. What about you, hyung?”
— I ate too. Ah, if you hadn’t eaten, I was going to send you sushi.
Young rubbed his cheek indifferently. It was because he wondered what this person, who knew better than anyone that he hated seafood, was suddenly talking about.
“What sushi?”
— No, I ate at a Japanese restaurant because I was meeting someone. But they made the beef fire sushi really well. I thought you’d like this too.
At the voice that was sincerely regretful, Young laughed out loud without realizing it.
The call with a clear purpose ended quickly. The moment of “Buy it for me next time,” “Okay, just tell me when you want to eat,” someone called for Chan from the side.
The screen turned off with a regret-filled greeting. Still, Young stared at the screen for a moment.
He was thinking that if they kept just this much distance, there might not be a need to specifically flee abroad or anything.
It wasn’t particularly serious contemplation. He soon put down the device and stretched long, sitting up his upper body. Since the atmosphere had been refreshed by the call with his younger hyung, he planned to leave the mobile world and try doing something else. Though at best it would be moving from a small screen to a large screen.
Just moving between screens made a day pass quickly. Though half a day had passed since waking up, he could handle all schedules with just one set of pajamas.
He wasn’t bored even spending several days like this. He didn’t feel restless either. Young, who hadn’t budged from the sofa until late at night, thought that playing and eating at home was indeed his calling. Thinking that, he picked up the remote control.
He planned to stop watching the variety show that had been on until now, and watch one classic masterpiece movie that was said to be famous but he’d never seen. Young diligently pressed the remote control buttons to search for the title. And the moment the search results appeared, a short notification rang from his quiet mobile phone.
Young picked up the device with an indifferent expression. He thought it would be at most a contact from family members or Seong-jae.
Joo Kyung-heon
I’m leaving the company now.
However, seeing the unexpected sender, he couldn’t continue being indifferent. He gasped and widened his eyes.
‘One hour a day, whether eating, drinking tea, or doing whatever.’
It had been just yesterday that Kyung-heon had said that. Though he’d accepted on his end, he hadn’t known he’d put it into action so immediately.
But a promise was a promise. It wasn’t time to debate whether it was unexpected or natural.
‘From the company to home… if he comes by car… since it’s night, if traffic isn’t jammed….’
Young quickly calculated and jumped up from the sofa. Kyung-heon would arrive in about 30 minutes from now.
They weren’t a couple in their 10th year, nor were they long-term dating couples who’d married after seeing everything there was to see. At least he should look presentable and greet him.
Young hurriedly entered the dressing room. After grabbing comfortable clothes instead of pajamas, and new underwear, he immediately headed to the bathroom.
A shower past midnight. And not even right after coming back from going out, but after being at home all day. If it were the original Lee Young, he would never do this. Since there wasn’t much time left until sleep anyway, he would have just endured like this and gone straight to bed. It hadn’t been just a day or two that he’d spent all day in pajamas, staying in the state he woke up in.
‘Is this paying too much attention when it’s supposed to be time to get comfortable?’
A question briefly arose, but only briefly. No matter what, he didn’t seem like someone to face in sleepwear yet.
Fortunately, there was plenty of time. It was enough to eliminate moisture until fluffy after finishing the shower. His heart was rushed, so he almost slipped several times and almost displayed his removed underwear. But everything was handled without incident.
Finally, around when the sound of the front door opening was heard, Young greeted Kyung-heon with a neat appearance that didn’t seem like someone who’d been rolling around at home all day.
“You’re here?”
Though at best, it couldn’t compare to Kyung-heon in his well-fitted suit.
“I contacted you when work ended, but my thinking was short. It’s too late, isn’t it?”
“No, well…. I was awake anyway. It’s fine.”
“Then that’s fortunate.”
“It would be better to change clothes and meet, right? I’m not sleepy yet, so comfortably wash… no, prepare…?”
He hadn’t known until now because he’d been rushing to wash and prepare, but had he been inwardly nervous? His words got tangled at a strange point. Even though it was something he could naturally say, the nuance somehow sounded strange, making him stammer.
“Yes, I’ll be right out.”
Still, it seemed the meaning was properly conveyed. Kyung-heon answered without unnecessary words and entered his room.
***
It seemed he was truly keeping his word. Kyung-heon returned quickly, just as he’d said.
He’d taken off his perfectly fitted suit and changed into homewear similar to Young’s. It was the first time seeing him in casual clothes, so Young looked at him with inner curiosity.
“…….”
“…….”
Honestly, Kyung-heon’s different appearance was fascinating, but the awkwardness left him unable to speak easily.
Now that they’d explicitly laid out the groundwork to be comfortable with each other, it somehow felt even more difficult. Their first meeting—when Young had visited as a courtesy and hadn’t known what to do with the sluggish response—seemed less awkward than this.
At this rate, won’t things get worse instead of more comfortable? Young was thinking this when Kyung-heon, apparently deciding he couldn’t take it anymore either, spoke first.
