#98
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Kang Jihan completed his discharge procedures after ten days.
Throughout those ten days, Nam Seonwoo acted as Kang Jihan’s guardian in place of Baek Heeyeon. Though he was annoyed at Kang Jihan’s thoughtless leap, it was clear that if he had been hit directly by the motorcycle, some part of his body would have been rendered useless. Gratitude was gratitude. And now they were lovers too.
The doctor removed the cast earlier than expected, saying the bone had properly fused, but Nam Seonwoo still wasn’t completely at ease. So he accompanied him to every single rehabilitation treatment session over the eight weeks.
Kang Jihan looked like he wanted to throw away his crutches at the first opportunity. Contrary to Nam Seonwoo’s concerns that he might halfheartedly approach the physical therapy, he diligently committed to the treatment.
After finishing treatment, Kang Jihan would look proud, as if expecting praise, which reminded Nam Seonwoo of how he approached their bet in their senior year of high school. That childish bet where Kang Jihan said he would let Nam Seonwoo call him by name if he completed a math workbook. Anyway, finding it endearing, Nam Seonwoo once ruffled his hair. When he asked why Kang Jihan was so diligent about treatment, he answered with feigned nonchalance:
“A person should be diligent.”
But the way he glanced sideways suggested he wanted praise. So Nam Seonwoo immediately recognized where those words came from. They were from the recently revised conditions for his ideal type.
“…To the point of stupidity?”
“To the point of stupidity.”
Behind Kang Jihan’s grinning face with its dimples, Nam Seonwoo could almost see nine fox tails wagging.
Nam Seonwoo treated Kang Jihan as usual. As he always had, like a Kang Jihan who didn’t possess memories of his past life.
He didn’t feel the need to tell him everything. It wasn’t a story he would believe even if told, and there was no reason to tell it. “You and I actually dated for fifteen years then broke up, and after I died, you followed me in death.” It wasn’t something that could be stated so plainly.
But he couldn’t completely forget the past as if it had never existed. Since those experiences had shaped the Kang Jihan who became the present Kang Jihan, Nam Seonwoo didn’t try to separate the two.
The gap in time was a problem he himself had to bear. After all, Kang Jihan had essentially given him this present moment as a gift.
Of course, there were times when memories of Kang Jihan’s actions from his previous life would surface, making Nam Seonwoo want to smack the Kang Jihan before him. At such times, Nam Seonwoo would lament, “You really need to treat me well, you know.” Even to such contextless remarks, Kang Jihan would always nod and say, “Yes.” Though it was annoying how he would answer without understanding what was being said, the fact that it ultimately made Nam Seonwoo laugh suggested that many of his grudges had been resolved.
Anyway, after the eight weeks of rehabilitation ended, Kang Jihan walked so normally that it was hard to believe he had been using crutches until just a few days ago. Seeing his increasingly lighter clothing, Nam Seonwoo belatedly realized it was summer. The summer that had swiftly arrived wasn’t colorful like spring, but still refreshingly blue. It was the same color as the sky he had looked up at with Kang Jihan by the Han River on a certain day when he was nineteen.
Many things had passed during the treatment period. The festival that Kim Minhwan had been making a fuss about was one of them.
The freshman peers were excited about their first university festival, but Nam Seonwoo was busy going straight to the hospital with Kang Jihan after his major classes ended. He didn’t regret not enjoying his youth. Not because he had already experienced the festival multiple times, but because he simply preferred walking with Kang Jihan. Following the shade of green trees, avoiding the occasional pine caterpillars, and sharing ice cream—those moments felt more like youth to him.
He got through midterms rather perfunctorily because of the treatment, but he couldn’t do the same with the team project. As the name suggested, it was a “team” project.
When the promised month of Manito ended, Park Jiyoung had called a meeting. Despite concerns about what kind of topic could be derived from Manito, the business school was indeed different. Park Jiyoung came up with a seemingly plausible topic: “Research on the Social Utility Value of Goodwill and Benevolence_Focusing on Manito.” Under her leadership, the role division also progressed efficiently.
Of course, things didn’t always go smoothly.
‘But Jihan’s report is almost…’
It was a session to compile everyone’s Manito activity records. While reviewing each other’s records, Park Jiyoung spoke in a bewildered voice.
‘It’s like you wrote a love letter.’
With an ominous feeling, Nam Seonwoo quickly shuffled through the printouts. Unlike others who had written one or two pages, the printout labeled “Kang Jihan” looked to be at least ten pages. And double-sided at that.
‘The partner analysis section is, how should I put it… Did you two meet separately by any chance?’
Scanning the “Partner (Nam Seonwoo) Analysis” section, it was indeed filled with all sorts of bizarre content as Park Jiyoung had said. It was incomprehensible why he had derived correlations between his partner’s breathing patterns and moods, or why he had analyzed how to respond to his partner’s sleep-talking to ensure deep sleep, presenting it as some kind of analysis in such an inappropriate place.
‘Hmm… It’s good to be detailed, but these can’t be used for research. Still, if we include them as examples, we can show off in terms of diligence.’
‘Seonwoo hyung talks a lot in his sleep, huh.’
Park Jiyoung and Kim Minhwan read through that useless content with seriously expressions, underlining parts. Though Nam Seonwoo wanted to disappear right then, he managed to finish the meeting with a brazen face, leveraging his experience as a working adult.
And today was the day the results would be presented.
“Team 13 will now present.”
With Park Jiyoung’s clear voice, the classroom lights went off. Watching the large screen in the dark room gave the feeling of being in a movie theater. Suddenly recalling how they used to play movies all day in the classroom after the college entrance exam, Nam Seonwoo smiled, and then felt a ticklish sensation on his thigh. It was a finger.
Kang Jihan was looking straight ahead with one arm propped up. The hand that had sneaked under the desk poked his thigh again. It seemed like he was saying to look here, not there. Curious about what he was doing, Nam Seonwoo watched his pants, and soon the finger began to move. Nam Seonwoo lowered his voice.
“Stop it. It tickles.”
“Try to bear it.”
Kang Jihan whispered back and moved his finger again, as if telling him to focus. His fingertip, carefully tracing each stroke, was as meticulous as a child learning Korean for the first time. It made even Nam Seonwoo hold his breath and concentrate.
Nam Seonwoo mentally pronounced each completed character. Then Kang Jihan would move on to the next character as if confirming he was correct. “Movie,” “see”… At the particularly ticklish next character, Nam Seonwoo’s leg twitched, but the finger conversation continued.
“…want,” “to,” “go,” and finally a question mark.
At the completed sentence, Nam Seonwoo suppressed a laugh. It seemed Kang Jihan had also recalled their high school classroom.
In fact, it wasn’t exactly a good memory since they were about to break up at that time. Yet the fact that the scene played back vividly like a film suggested he had unconsciously preserved the moment that might have been their last. Then why did Kang Jihan remember that insignificant time? Such a question flashed through his mind, but he couldn’t continue his thought due to the poking finger demanding an answer.
Nam Seonwoo responded to the ticklish message. Extending his finger, he drew two circles on the back of Kang Jihan’s hand, and a faint laugh was heard from beside him.
“Our team’s topic began with a question. Why does the saying ‘If you show kindness, you’ll be taken advantage of’ circulate in modern society?”
Turning his gaze back to the podium, Nam Seonwoo’s mouth fell open at the PPT screen filled behind Park Jiyoung. The three-dimensional protruding font was colorfully rainbow-colored, and characters that one might have seen on TV a decade ago were placed in every corner. The reason for the laughter here and there earlier seemed to be because of this. But unlike the outdated PPT, Park Jiyoung’s expression was serious.
“People think of communication based on goodwill and benevolence as a weakness, and try not to be that way. But we all know from experience the thrill of showing goodwill. Everyone has played Manito at least once during school, right?”
Kim Minhwan was in charge of the PPT. Recalling how he had volunteered with confidence, Nam Seonwoo tried to glare at him, but couldn’t see him as he was blocked by Kang Jihan, who was resting his chin on the desk.
The seating arrangement, where they had been squeezed between the two during Contemporary Society class, had undergone a small change two months ago. Now the middle seat belonged to Kang Jihan, not Nam Seonwoo. Because of this, his reproachful gaze couldn’t reach the culprit of the PPT, but the presentation continued smoothly.
“Out of the thought of why we’ve forgotten that innocent feeling of secretly taking care of someone and rejoicing alone, we selected this topic.”
The hand that had been under the desk now wrapped around his thigh. Still staring straight ahead, Kang Jihan repeatedly gently squeezed and released the flesh of his thigh with his palm. His composure as he even nodded occasionally at the presenter’s words made Nam Seonwoo chuckle.
It was absurd how he played with his leg like a toy, but the lights were off now. Kang Jihan, who had now properly “learned,” at least didn’t do this in broad daylight. So Nam Seonwoo pretended not to notice and tolerated the secret hand play under the desk.
Thanks to Park Jiyoung’s eloquence, the flashy PPT no longer seemed very bothersome. Others seemed to feel the same, as heavy applause erupted from here and there when she finished her presentation. The professor immediately picked up the microphone.
“Manito. A nostalgic word. I was wondering what theme the PPT was going for, but did you intentionally enhance that retro feel? It’s really impressive.”
Kim Minhwan shifted in his seat as if embarrassed. Seeing his genuinely proud face, it seemed he had been sincere in his own way.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
