PHUW 55

The first to notice the car pulling in was Gom-i. The big ball of fur that had been pressed close against him stirred, and because of that, Haeri, who had been sleeping, naturally opened his eyes. At some point the sun had gone down, and the house was dark.

Beep.

At the sound of the door lock releasing, Gom-i, who had been stretching, wagged his tail and trotted quickly to the inner door. In that time, Haeri pushed his stiff body upright. His back and waist ached from having slept wrong. His arms and legs tingled and throbbed. Maybe it was from overexertion since morning, or maybe it was because he had collapsed on the living room carpet instead of a bed. As he tried to straighten out his creaking body, his face twisted in pain. Because of that, he missed the timing to greet Jeong Mok.

“You’re very late.”

Haeri asked while rolling his shoulders. Jeong Mok turned on the light instead of answering. His eyes, already uncomfortable from dried sleep in the corners, stung as the lights came on. He rubbed his eyes with his palms.

“Hyung-nim, do you happen to have any eye drops? My eyes sting a lot.”

Jeong Mok, who had switched on the lights without a word, just as indifferently went to the kitchen and searched the first aid kit.

“Artificial tears.”

With a flat, even voice, he held out a small plastic vial. Haeri took it without thinking.

“Snap off the tip and put a few drops in your eyes. It’s disposable, so throw it out after you use it.”

Haeri felt cold all over his body. Only then did he realize Jeong Mok hadn’t greeted him. The greetings came only from himself and Gom-i. Even with Gom-i constantly trailing him and poking his nose in, Jeong Mok didn’t so much as glance at him. He was icy cold.

It was no time to be putting in artificial tears. Haeri blinked his stinging eyes and rose awkwardly to his feet. Jeong Mok was already at his room door.

“Um, hyung-nim.”

He called urgently. Jeong Mok, who had just been about to step inside, stopped. The eyes that looked back at him were cold, like those of a stranger. The lump of chill that had lingered at his chest shot up again. A faint shiver brushed his upper arm.

“Let’s talk after I wash up first.”

“Ah, yes.”

Haeri could only nod. Jeong Mok entered his room and closed the door.

Normally the two spent most of their time in the living room or kitchen. When they happened to be in a bedroom, it was usually Haeri’s. So Jeong Mok’s door being closed had never been an issue. There was simply no reason to leave it open, so he closed it. And yet, strangely, the closed door unsettled him. It felt as though it hinted at something.

Before long, he could faintly hear the sound of water inside.

Gom-i came up and looked up at Haeri.
“Hyung-nim is washing up.”

Haeri patted Gom-i’s head. Instead of standing endlessly outside someone else’s door, he went to the kitchen.

The soybean paste stew he had cooked earlier was already cold. He put it back on the stove and pulled eggs from the fridge to fry. He set the side dishes on fresh plates and put the bubbling stew on the table still in its pot. While he was finding bowls and scooping rice, Jeong Mok, freshly showered and changed, came out.

“Hyung-nim, you’ll eat too, right?”

“…No.”

“Pardon? Did you already eat?”

Haeri stopped mid-scoop.

It was a bit late for dinner, but since there had been no word, he had assumed they would eat together. That was why he had restrained himself with just a few chunks of tofu from the stew even when his stomach had roared.

Jeong Mok glanced at the table and opened the fridge.

“I don’t have an appetite.”

He took out a can of beer, went to the sofa, and sat. He truly looked like he had no intention of eating.

Grrr

Catching the smell of the stew, Haeri’s stomach urged him to hurry and put food in. He set the bowl on the table and asked again.

“Am I really eating alone?”

“I told you to eat first.”

He answere, sounding a little irritated. Jeong Mok cracked open the can and turned on the TV with the remote. The news came on. His attitude said he didn’t want to talk about food anymore.

The mood was so cold that Haeri thought of not eating either. But his stomach was already twisting. And he needed to take his medicine, which was too harsh on an empty stomach.

“Then I’ll just eat a little.”

“…….”

Jeong Mok didn’t even look at him.

So Haeri ate alone. The stew he had made tasted pretty good. He put the fried egg he had made, enough for both, on top of his rice and mixed it with the stew. Maybe because he had skipped lunch, one bowl wasn’t enough. He scooped a little more rice, split the remaining egg in half, and put one half in his own bowl. The other he gave to Gom-i, who had been waiting by the table the whole time. Gom-i wolfed it down in an instant.

After quickly clearing the table, Haeri went to the living room. Then he carefully sat down beside the sofa.

“Um, hyung-nim.”

As soon as he spoke, the TV went off. Having finished his beer, Jeong Mok crushed the can and stood. Ignoring Haeri looking at him, he walked to the kitchen to put the can away. Gom-i trailed after him.

Not satisfied with half an egg, Gomi poked his nose at him and even scratched Jeong Mok’s thigh with his paw. Jeong Mok kept ignoring him. Oblivious, Gom-i rose up on his hind legs and tried to put his front paws on Jeong Mok’s chest. Jeong Mok quickly twisted away.

Woof.

Gom-i, who had stumbled, tried to act cute. Jeong Mok not only looked down at him with coldness but also pushed away the nose he poked forward with a cold hand.

“Go to your master.”

The commanding voice was so frigid that even Haeri, watching from a distance, felt humiliated.

“Don’t bother hyung-nim, come here.”

Haeri called Gom-i. With ears and tail drooping, Gom-i trudged over. Seeing the one who had bounded about like a wild boar now so dejected, Haeri felt both pity and anger rise.

‘No matter how angry he is, there’s no need to scold someone who doesn’t know anything.’

No matter the reason for anger, this was not adult behavior.

If he thought about it, the direct cause of Jeong Mok’s anger was himself. He had insisted on bringing Gom-i, had promised he could care for him on his own, then ended up relying on Jeong Mok in every way. From start to finish, it was his doing.

All the more, he was Gom-i’s guardian. A guardian who must always side with him and protect him. To others, it was only twenty-four years, but to Haeri, it had been a long, desperate twenty-four years yearning for such unconditional protection. That was why, no matter who it was, even Jeong Mok, he couldn’t allow cowardly scolding of Gom-i.

“You didn’t do anything wrong. Don’t lose heart.”

Patting the dispirited Gom-i, Haeri rose resolutely to his feet.

“Hyung-nim, I have something to say.”

It was a start filled with spirit. Because of that, Jeong Mok, who had ignored him all along, finally turned his gaze.

His cold eyes fixed directly on Haeri. At the same time, his fists he had clenched so tightly lost strength, and the molars he had ground together loosened. That was how frightening Jeong Mok’s gaze was. It felt like something could happen at any moment.

Unlike Haeri, who faltered after rising so boldly, Jeong Mok replied in a flat voice.

“I have something too.”

“W… what is it?”

Since he had spoken first, he couldn’t argue that Jeong Mok should listen first. He had already lost the contest of momentum. In fact, it was doubtful there had ever been a chance of winning.

Dressed in simple training clothes after his shower, Jeong Mok stood with both hands in his pockets as if they were a luxury suit. His towel-dried hair was still damp, and he was barefoot. Yet the force that radiated from his whole body was like the boss of a corporate-style crime syndicate dressed in the finest attire.

“I thought it over.”

The voice that followed was low enough to make shoulders shrink. And dry, as if the beer he had drunk had drained all moisture, it was rough and grating.

“I don’t think this can go on.”

“…What do you mean?”

Instead of answering, Jeong Mok shifted his gaze from Haeri to Gom-i. The ice-cold look, like a snake, churned Haeri’s insides. He had so much to say, but what burst out was nothing more than a childish cry.

“No! You can’t throw Gom-i away! Absolutely not! I won’t let you abandon him!”

Haeri rushed to Gom-i and held his thick neck tightly.

“……”

“It’s really petty and unfair! You already decided, and now you say throw him out! The house is huge, you have plenty of money, so why! I didn’t know about bathing and brushing because it was my first time! From now on I won’t make you lift a finger, so don’t throw him away! He just doesn’t know any better yet! He’s just a big child! From now on I won’t let him touch the precious sofa or damage Song-i’s things. So don’t drive him out!”

He buried his face in Gomi’s neck. He would never let him go. Even if it was selfish stubbornness, he had nothing to say. But Jeong Mok too was being petty and unfair.

“If you send Gom-i away, I’ll leave too!”

Against Jeong Mok, who had shown him great kindness because he resembled Song-i, Haeri launched the harshest counterblow.

“What… did you just say?”

“I said if you send Gom-i away, I’ll leave too!”

Haeri snapped his head up and glared at him, as if to make him feel just how low it was to repeat such words.

Shock crossed the cold face. Healthy skin blanched white, and his unusually dark irises sank black, as though swallowing the darkness. Lips that had parted slightly closed tightly. His square jaw pulsed, his thick neck strained with veins. From his towering frame, well over 190 centimeters, a ferocious aura surged out.

“Ahn Haeri.”

The voice, leaking from between clenched molars, was terrifying. Haeri, forgetting he had been the one to provoke, froze under the overwhelming force.

“What did you just say?”

“I… I… um…”

As Haeri stammered, Jeong Mok stepped closer. Haeri’s head tilted back further and further.

Grrrrrrr.

Watching all along, Gom-i stepped forward and bared his teeth at Jeong Mok.