FLPR 3.1

Time flew by from Monday to Friday. Doyul was troubled by the report in front of him. He had written several reports for college assignments, but this was his first time writing a report while working. Since he mostly did physical work, he rarely had to write documents. Doyul frowned while sitting in front of his laptop.

Sooyeon had told him not to overthink it, to just write what he observed. He’d even added, rather kindly, that they weren’t expecting a professional-level report. Doyul had found that oddly reassuring. If their expectations were low, then maybe a subpar report wouldn’t be a big deal. Still, there was such a thing as a minimum standard. He sighed at the blank page.

“I can do this. They’re not expecting much anyway.” He started typing with a solemn expression. First, he thought it would be good to write in detail about Woohyun’s condition. He wrote that Woohyun participated well in class and understood well. In reality, he rarely had to help Woohyun. It was true that he had been smart since he was young. He realized it again and again. And he ate well without any particular food restrictions. Rather, he scolded Doyul for being picky and said that it was bad to be picky.

‘But he hates sour things.’

Doyul couldn’t eat sour food. He had eaten sour braised short ribs before and couldn’t get out of bed for several days. Maybe because of the trauma from that experience, whenever he ate sour food, his neck would stiffen and he would get goosebumps. Whenever he put something sour in his mouth, he would spit it out reflexively. Doyul got goosebumps again.

‘What else should I write? ’

He stared at the screen. Suddenly, he remembered Woohyun coming to his room every night, scared to sleep alone. For the first few days, he’d thought it was because Woohyun was still adjusting. But he continued to come, so he must genuinely be afraid of his room. Children were often scared of being alone in the dark. Doyul decided to request a nightlight for Woohyun’s room. Woohyun might stop coming to his room if he wasn’t scared anymore, but his comfort was more important than Doyul’s desires.

Hyung seems to be afraid of the dark in his room. If you could install a nightlight, I think he would be less scared and able to sleep alone.

Doyul wracked his brain, trying to think of a more professional way to phrase it, but he couldn’t come up with anything better, so he saved it as it was. He hadn’t written much, but a surprising amount of time had passed.

“Ugh, this isn’t easy…”

Writing the report felt more challenging than actually caring for Woohyun. He added the date and emailed the report. He doubted Hyobin would be impressed, but it was the best he could do. He closed the laptop and stood up.

“Whatever. I sent it.”

If there were any revisions or additions needed, they’d let him know. He decided to stop worrying about it.

And sure enough, the very next day, a nightlight was installed in Woohyun’s room.

There were no lessons on weekends. Doyul had free time, but that presented its own set of challenges. How could he keep Woohyun entertained? Should they go for a walk after breakfast? Or watch another animated movie? He leaned towards the walk. Woohyun seemed a bit restless from being cooped up indoors. The weather was still hot, but a short morning walk should be fine.

However, his plans were derailed when the doorbell rang shortly after breakfast. Doyul, who had just finished brushing his teeth and showering, found Woohyun sitting idly in the living room. He approached Yujung, who was standing outside Woohyun’s room.

“What’s going on? ”

“Oh, someone’s here to install the nightlight.”

Doyul gasped. They’d read his report from the previous night and acted on it immediately.

“Oh, I see.”

“Yes, they’ll be done quickly.”

“Okay!”

Doyul went into the living room and sat down next to Woohyun on the sofa.

“You won’t be scared at night anymore, Hyung.”

“Why?”

“They installed a small light in your room. You won’t be scared anymore.”

“…Oh.” Woohyun didn’t look pleased at all. Puzzled, Doyul asked gently,

“Are you upset, Hyung? ”

“No.”

“You seem upset. Why are you upset? ”

Woohyun just shook his head. Was he bothered by strangers being in his room? That was plausible. Doyul himself would be annoyed if strangers suddenly entered his room. He stroked Woohyun’s hair.

“How about we go for a walk after they leave? Let’s go get some ice cream at the convenience store.”

“Okay.” Woohyun’s face brightened. It was important to keep Woohyun’s condition a secret, but they had permission to take short walks near the house. It was a rural area with few passersby, and if Woohyun wore a hat, he wouldn’t be recognized.

Woohyun’s earlier claim of disliking ice cream had been a lie, a childish attempt at showing off. The day after he’d said that, they’d gone to buy ice cream, and he’d devoured it. Afterward, he’d even asked if they were going to get ice cream the next day.

Doyul hadn’t questioned him about it. Seeing Woohyun happy was enough.

Soon, the workers left, and they went to Woohyun’s room. Doyul looked around but couldn’t see the nightlight. Yujung handed Woohyun a remote control.

“If you press this button, the lights will turn on. Press it now”

“Okay.” Woohyun pressed the button. Suddenly, the area near the curtains lit up. Doyul was impressed.

“Wow, nightlights are so cool these days. If you’re scared, Hyung, you can turn this on.”

“…” Woohyun didn’t reply.

“Let’s get changed and go out.”

“Okay.”

Doyul headed to his room. Strangely, Woohyun seemed to be in a bad mood again. Doyul tilted his head, confused. He couldn’t figure Woohyun out. Maybe a trip to get ice cream would cheer him up.

Even while changing clothes and going to the convenience store, Woohyun didn’t seem to be in a good mood. He didn’t eat ice cream or anything. The more this happened, the more anxious Doyul became. He couldn’t figure out why he was in a bad mood. When he asked why he was in a bad mood, Woohyun would just say that he wasn’t in a good mood.

Doyul chewed on the empty wrapper of his PapiX ice cream bar. He couldn’t think of anything to cheer Woohyun up. Then, he remembered the board game he’d bought. Kids liked games. Maybe playing a game would lift his spirits.

“Hyung, want to play a game? ”

“A game? ”

“I have a board game. Let’s play. The loser has to grant the winner a wish.”

Doyul was confident. If he won, he’d ask Woohyun why he was upset. Woohyun mumbled, “A wish…” then smiled.

“Okay, let’s play.”

“Best two out of three wins.”

“Alright.”

Doyul grinned. He knew he couldn’t beat the real Woohyun, but he was sure he could beat this Woohyun. He conveniently forgot that Woohyun was fiercely competitive and that he’d never beaten him at a game before.

When he returned home, Doyul took out the board game he had put in his bag. It was the game he had ordered after asking Sooyeon if he could order something like a delivery to this house. I had ordered a few things to play with Woohyun when his class ended too early or when he was bored in the evening. Doyul took out the game that seemed like it would take the longest out of all of them. When Doyul came out into the living room with the board game, Woohyun looked at it with an interested expression. Doyul put the board game down on the table and said,

“Okay, this is called Blue Marble. You roll the dice and move that many spaces.”

Doyul opened the box and took out the dice. He rolled them lightly across the table as a demonstration. Woohyun asked excitedly,

“Is it good to roll a high number? ”

“Hmm… not necessarily. Okay, let’s unfold the board. But first, we need to divide the money equally. See all the countries on the board? When you land in a country, you can buy it with this money.”

Doyul explained the rules. If you landed on someone else’s property, you had to pay rent. The person who went bankrupt lost. After explaining everything in detail, Doyul said confidently,

“Since this is your first time playing, Hyung, let’s make this a practice game.”

“Practice game? ”

“Yeah. It doesn’t count towards the bet! ”

Woohyun frowned slightly.

“So, even if I win, it doesn’t count? ”

“Nope. But it’s the same if I win. That’s why we decide beforehand.”

“Okay.” Woohyun nodded, seemingly satisfied. Doyul inwardly chuckled at Woohyun’s confidence. Of course, beginner’s luck was a possibility, but it was just luck. Doyul was willing to let him win one round. He didn’t want Woohyun to get upset if he kept winning.

His plan was simple: he’d win the practice game. Then, in the real game, he’d let Woohyun win the first round. He’d win the next two. That way, Woohyun wouldn’t get upset, and Doyul would achieve his goal. He held out his fist.

“Let’s play rock-paper-scissors to see who goes first.”

“Okay.”

“Rock, paper, scissors! ”

Woohyun won. He chose the purple rocket and placed it on the starting square. Doyul chose the blue one and placed it beside Woohyun’s. Woohyun rolled the dice with utmost seriousness. He got a seven.

“Beijing!”

“Are you going to buy this city? ”

“Yeah!”

“Beijing costs 80,000 won.”

Woohyun counted out 80,000 won from his pile of money. Doyul rolled the dice. He got a ten. Space Travel. It was a bit disappointing to land there so early, but it wasn’t bad. He smiled, feeling like the game was going in his favor.

About thirty minutes later, Woohyun, his lips pressed tightly together, rolled the dice. He let out a small whimper at the number he rolled. Doyul said, fake sympathy,

“Oh no, Hyung. You’re bankrupt.”

As expected, Doyul won the first round. It was because Woohyun was still unfamiliar with the rules. Doyul patted his back.

“It’s okay. It was just a practice game.”

“That’s right. The real game hasn’t started yet,” Woohyun said, his face serious. Doyul felt a flicker of nervousness. Winning had clearly ignited Woohyun’s competitive spirit. But Doyul had no intention of losing, except for the next round.

“Okay, let’s start the real game now! ”

“Yeah!”

They quickly cleared the board, their hands moving busily.