RB 25

Eunho lifted his pale, ashen face.

“Hyung… How did I get here?”

“Don’t you remember? Hong Namyeong carried you here. How much did you drink to pass out like that?”

Such a terrible thing… When exactly had he gotten drunk? The fact that he couldn’t gauge it at all was even more terrifying.

Eunho clutched his throbbing head in agony before collapsing onto the bed. Even just breathing made him feel like his insides were churning.

Covering his mouth in discomfort, Eunho could no longer hold back and ran to the bathroom. The vomit he spewed into the toilet was entirely black. His momentary shock was quickly followed by three more rounds of vomiting.

Only after a long time did Eunho barely manage to crawl out of the bathroom. Having emptied his stomach, the nausea had somewhat subsided, but his head still throbbed as if someone were hammering it.

Facing his first-ever hangover, Eunho was completely helpless. Dragged by Seo Taehwa to sit at the dining table, he continued to suffer from an extreme headache.

“Did you drink a lot? How many bottles?”

Seo Taehwa placed a steaming bowl of bean sprout soup in front of him. Eunho sighed and shook his head.

“I don’t know… I don’t remember anything.”

“Are you a lightweight? Choi Yeorok seemed perfectly fine.”

It seemed like he was the only one who had made a fool of himself. The despair of that fact made Eunho want to scream into his hands.

Laughter came from the front. Seo Taehwa seemed to be enjoying the situation.

“It might not help, but at least try to sip the broth. It’ll settle your stomach.”

Eunho reluctantly picked up the spoon. His left hand trembled like that of an alcoholic. Clutching his left wrist, he barely managed to eat some soup. He followed Seo Taehwa’s advice, but he wasn’t sure if it was helping.

“Just when you finally got your act together, you turned into a mess overnight.”

Seo Taehwa rested his chin on his hand and scrutinized Eunho’s face. His expression was sharp, as if he could tell Eunho was in bad shape.

“I’m sorry…”

“What does it matter? At that age, it’s possible to black out from drinking. If you don’t remember, just play dumb. It’s not like you made some huge mistake.”

“Hyung, have you ever been like this?”

“No. I only drink until I feel good.”

“……”

“That’s why knowing your limit is important. You should know how many bottles it takes to knock you out. That’s your last line of defense.”

Seo Taehwa tapped the table impatiently. Eunho listened to the lecture with a guilty conscience, barely touching his soup.

“Should I ask Hong Namyeong about yesterday?”

Eunho glanced up. He really wanted that. His face, with drooping eyebrows, silently pleading, looked pitiful.

Seo Taehwa laughed and took out his phone.

“Alright. I’ll call him. But I’m not sure if he’ll answer.”

After a few rings, Secretary Hong’s characteristically blunt voice came through. Seo Taehwa placed the phone on the table and put it on speaker.

“Namyeong, what are you up to? Busy?”

-I’m on standby. Why?

“I was wondering how much Eunho drank yesterday. He says he doesn’t remember.”

-Probably around three and a half bottles.

“Is he insane!? What was he trying to do, kill himself?”

Seo Taehwa raised his voice in disbelief. Eunho, however, just thought, “So that’s how it was.”

“Did he do anything stupid while drunk?”

-Is this on speaker?

Secretary Hong was perceptive. What a ghost… Muttering to himself, Seo Taehwa urged him to answer, asking what it mattered if others were listening.

-Sim Eunho-ssi, you didn’t make any mistakes last night.

Hong Namyeong spoke directly to Eunho. He continued to explain what time they left the officetel and how they got home.

-He was a bit more rambling than usual, and there was a sudden incident where he took off his T-shirt in front of the director, but overall, it was acceptable. Ah… He did drool a bit on the sofa after falling asleep. But that’s something the cleaning service will handle, so no need to worry.

But the words that followed were enough to plunge Eunho into shock and horror. Rambling? I thought I was conversing normally… Why did I take off my T-shirt? Do I take off my clothes when I’m drunk?

In truth, from a certain point onward, he couldn’t remember anything about the conversation. He had no idea what he had said or how he had said it, nor could he gauge how pathetically Choi Yeorok must have viewed him.

“Ah, so nothing happened then? Yeorok didn’t say anything?”

-He didn’t mention anything else.

“Then that’s fine. Hang up.”

Seo Taehwa repeatedly pressed the end call button. His attention had been entirely on Eunho from the start. His face, already pale from the hangover, was now deathly white, as if he might faint at any moment.

Seo Taehwa quickly handed him a glass of water.

“Drink this. Water!”

“Hyung… I want to die.”

“No, this is really nothing. Do you know how Choi Yoonho acted when he was drunk? He even took off his underwear.”

That kind of thing wasn’t comforting. Eunho covered his face with both hands and let out a sigh heavy enough to sink the ground. Was it a blessing that he blacked out? If he remembered all the shameful things from last night, he didn’t think he could ever face Choi Yeorok again.

‎

‎

Secretary Hong quietly glanced in the rearview mirror. He could see Yeorok, sitting in the back seat, reading documents with a subtly twisted smile.

The inside of the sedan was quiet just before departure. Seo Taehwa’s clear voice from the phone speaker earlier had been loud enough to reach Yeorok’s ears.

“He doesn’t remember?”

“It seems so.”

“Blacked out. His drinking habits are somewhat selfish.”

After leaving a short comment, Yeorok focused back on the documents. A faint smile still lingered at the corners of his mouth.

Secretary Hong silently observed the back seat. Wondering if Yeorok might give any other instructions. But hr kept his mouth firmly shut, his lowered gaze moving only over the documents.

“What are you doing? Aren’t we leaving?”

“Ah, yes. Sorry.”

Secretary Hong hurriedly drove the car. The face that had gone blank for a while grew tense again. Even though he held the steering wheel tightly, his eyes kept drifting to the rear-view mirror because the back seat bothered him.

From what Hong Namyeong felt, Choi Yeorok seemed to treat Sim Eunho a little more specially than others. He gave him time, and he paid more attention than usual. Because he served Choi Yeorok from the closest distance, it was clear to him that there was something different in how he treated Sim Eunho.

So he thought naturally that more talk about Sim Eunho would follow. But it seemed he had been mistaken. Choi Yeorok stayed indifferent and never cared about others without a purpose.

Secretary Hong realized once again that Sim Eunho was nothing more than a consumable to him.

Yes, people don’t change easily. The idea that Choi Yeorok would treat someone as special was absurd from the start.

‎

‎

Eunho, though suffering from a terrible hangover, completed the day’s schedule. He had overslept and pushed things back a little, but it only meant he had to sleep later.

‘Ugh, you smell like alcohol! I can’t do the procedure in this state! Just lie down! Get an IV at least.’

He had been turned away by Ahn Jaehwan, of course…

Instead of a scar-removal procedure, Eunho got a vitamin injection to flush out the toxins. Thanks to that his condition improved, but side effects followed. As the hangover that had stuck to him like a leech faded, the cut-off memories started to come back.

‘Keep gaining weight…’

That time when he grumbled to Choi Yeorok that he didn’t like the diet.

‘I had a scar here but you can’t see it now. It’s completely gone.’

That time when he suddenly lifted his shirt and showed his side.

Every time something came back, Eunho grabbed his head. Even if he kicked the air in shame, he could not undo the past.

What reaction had Choi Yeorok shown at those times? The most important memory stayed distant. Eunho shook his head and gave up trying to recall. It was better not to know.

One thing fortunate was that chances to face Choi Yeorok were rare. Even though they lived within one compound, Yeorok never came to the annex without a special reason, and Eunho could not step into the mansion.

The problem was the meeting on Wednesday. With what face should he meet Choi Yeorok? Not finding an answer, each day felt heavy.

***

He wanted to hold onto time, but a week went by quickly.

Now Eunho was eating dinner alone with Seo Taehwa, glancing constantly at the wall clock. It was already 8 p.m. Thinking he could not delay it anymore, he cautiously spoke.

“Um… hyung.”

“Yeah.”

“My condition isn’t good… I want to sleep early today.”

Seo Taehwa raised his eyes and stared quietly at Eunho’s face. The lie was obvious, but the expression on his face looked so earnest that he wondered if he should pretend not to notice.

“Yeorok will come later though.”

“That’s right…”

“What’s wrong with your body?”

“My stomach kind of hurts… and I feel queasy.”

Wasn’t that the typical sign of nerves? Seo Taehwa held back what he wanted to say. He bit his lips tightly, thinking he might laugh. Eunho’s attempt to escape the meeting looked only cute.

“Will it be fine if you just avoid it today? You’ll have to meet him sometime.”

“…I’m not ready yet.”

Eunho ran his hand through his bangs and wound pasta noodles he would not eat around his fork. His gloomy face aside, his actions were exactly like Choi Yoonho. Even at times like this, Eunho immersed himself fully in the role.

“So, do you want me to tell Choi Yeorok not to come?”

“……”

Eunho answered only with a desperate gaze. His face looked like he would cry, and Seo Taehwa could not help but laugh.

“Alright. I’ll explain it well.”

Seo Taehwa took out his phone in front of Eunho. He even joked for him to just trust him. Before the call connected, he cleared his throat lightly.

“Uh… Yeorok-ah, is it okay to talk? So, you see. Eunho-ssi isn’t feeling well. He’s not sick, just… I think he needs to sleep early. So there’s no need for you to come today.”

As the call continued, Eunho’s ears perked. Even if he listened hard, he could not hear the other side’s voice. But by Seo Taehwa’s tone, he could guess what kind of exchange was happening.

Seo Taehwa covered the situation smoothly with skilled speech. Listening to it, even Eunho might have been fooled.

“Uh… that’s true. But can’t you just overlook it? Imagine how embarrassed he must be.”

But the problem was that Choi Yeorok was not an easy man to deal with.

When the lie was caught at once, Eunho dropped his fork. Clang-! The sound of it hitting the plate made Seo Taehwa glance sideways. He sent an apologetic look to the dazed Eunho.

“…Alright. Yes. I’ll tell him.”

The closing words nailed it in. Seo Taehwa put down the phone with an awkward smile.

“Sorry. He didn’t buy it.”

“…Hyung.”

“He said not to think of running away and to wait quietly.”

Embarrassed from failing after boasting, Seo Taehwa scratched the back of his head. Then he quietly stood and started clearing the table. The pasta had already gone soggy, unfit to eat anyway.

“If you’re tired, go up to your room and lie down. There’s still plenty of time.”

“No, it’s fine.”

Eunho sighed in resignation. He had no thought of blaming Seo Taehwa. Instead, he only felt sorry for making things difficult for him.