97.
‘How is it?’
With the island’s background behind him—which seemed both unrecognizably changed and eerily the same—Choi Jae-won asked this first. The village structure, where all residents had left for other places leaving only empty houses, and the location and appearance of the community hall where the three people including Lexy had stayed that season, remained unchanged. But the smoothly organized alleys and acacia trees planted without fail along every path gave it a strangely artificial appearance.
Actually, all Choi Jae-won said aloud was “How is it,” but to Ryu Ho-yeon it sounded as if he was asking how it felt to return like this after abandoning him. That was probably just his own guilty conscience.
‘What? What do you mean how is it… I don’t really know…’
For Ryu Ho-yeon, who was pretending to have lost his memory, every scene of this civilized deserted island was like sitting on pins and needles. Every path his eyes fell upon was where he had walked with Choi Jae-won, promising false peace and well-being, and every corner his gaze turned to was a regretful spot where he had left after putting Choi Jae-won to sleep.
Though it was certainly impossible, Ryu Ho-yeon felt so guilty that he momentarily suspected Choi Jae-won knew everything and was deliberately doing this.
‘Pfft. Why are you so tense? I’m not going to eat you. I just meant how do you feel about this place since we’ll be living here together. If there’s anything you don’t like, let me know. I’ll fix it right away.’
Choi Jae-won explained rather proudly that since he had bought the entire island, they wouldn’t encounter other people, so Ryu Ho-yeon could move around comfortably from now on.
No matter how much Choi Jae-won assured him it was fine, Ryu Ho-yeon had been noticeably anxious whenever the gazes of other staff members, Tumbes resort employees, or people they encountered at the airport fell on him, trying desperately to hide the scars on his face and other exposed areas.
Of course, this wasn’t the only reason they chose this isolated island as their residence in Korea, where no one could enter or leave without Choi Jae-won’s permission.
Though Ryu Ho-yeon didn’t know it, Choi Jae-won had purchased this island quite some time ago. While searching everywhere like a madman for the person who had left him, after the dungeon issue was resolved, he heard that the original island residents who had abandoned their homes were starting to return one by one.
He didn’t want to allow anyone else’s footsteps in a place filled with memories of Ryu Ho-yeon—memories that were not just sweet but life-threateningly intense. So Choi Jae-won immediately decided to buy the island. He paid several times the property value to residents who had already moved back. Thanks to this unexpected windfall from a chaebol with money to burn, they could all return to the mainland with smiles.
His family seemed to be inwardly seething, probably thinking he was once again making foolish gestures under the spell of a dead person’s ghost, but Choi Jae-won didn’t care. And now, miraculously, Ryu Ho-yeon had returned, and they were setting up a home together here. He had made the right decision to buy it. This was Choi Jae-won’s thoroughly personal conclusion.
But from the listener’s perspective, it was too strange to simply say “thank you” and move on.
Buying… an entire island?
Ryu Ho-yeon had to work hard to manage his expression as he faced the proud and triumphant-looking Choi Jae-won. In the third-rate dramas and romance novels he’d often watched, the so-called chaebol princes or male leads would casually spend money renting entire movie theaters or wrapping their partners in all kinds of expensive luxury goods, but he’d never heard of someone buying an entire island.
According to Choi Jae-won’s words, it seemed like this was the moment to be touched, but there was something unsettling about simply clapping hands and expressing joy.
Still, what could he do? Even knowing Choi Jae-won had some bizarre personality traits and unique tastes, Ryu Ho-yeon had no other boyfriend as precious and admirable as him.
So Ryu Ho-yeon had to reluctantly raise the corners of his mouth and say, “Ah, thank you…”
It was then.
“Cough.”
His throat felt ticklish, and suddenly a cough erupted.
Ryu Ho-yeon hurriedly covered his mouth. The coughing showed no sign of stopping, instead beginning to burst out continuously and loudly.
Only Choi Jae-won beside him was anxiously fretting, but it’s not like he could cough on Ryu Ho-yeon’s behalf. His bustling activity had no effect on stopping Ryu Ho-yeon’s cough.
“This won’t do. You need to take medicine right away. I’ll warm it up, just wait a moment.”
“I’m fine… cough cough.”
“See? You’re not fine at all.”
For Choi Jae-won to show such a resolute expression in front of Ryu Ho-yeon would ordinarily be very rare, but recently circumstances had changed.
When it came to Ryu Ho-yeon’s physical condition, Choi Jae-won had become quite strict. Ryu Ho-yeon used to easily shake off minor physical discomforts with a single intense guiding, but now no contact they shared could improve his physical state. Perhaps it was a tug-of-war between responsibility and obsession.
And in fact, this very point was the main reason Choi Jae-won, who had intended to stay abroad with only Ryu Ho-yeon, chose to return to Korea.
Initially, Choi Jae-won had been looking for a suitable place to settle down in Tumbes, where Ryu Ho-yeon was found, or somewhere even more remote and isolated.
The most important condition was finding a place with minimal Korean traffic and almost complete isolation from external communication, where there would be absolutely no possibility of Lee Han-seo or the research director discovering Ryu Ho-yeon through any coincidence.
What he truly desired was to settle down with Ryu Ho-yeon alone in such a remote place and live intimately and perfectly together until they grew old and died. Choi Jae-won wanted Ryu Ho-yeon to confine him as much as he confined Ryu Ho-yeon. More precisely, he wanted Ryu Ho-yeon to yearn for him and desire him to that extent.
In any case, it was realistically difficult to expect this grand ambition to be fulfilled right away. Since their reunion had come at such an unexpected moment through an unforeseen opportunity, various preparations were significantly lacking.
So he had wanted to immerse himself in a honeymoon-like period for at least a few years ahead.
But Ryu Ho-yeon was sick. Very sick.
“Here, drink it all.”
“Ugh…”
The medicinal herbs, as bitter to the taste as they were good for the body, were prepared by an oriental medicine doctor who had been responsible for his grandfather’s seasonal health for several decades. The Choi Jae-won who used to be completely indifferent to things like acupuncture and herbal medicine was now gone.
“Don’t leave a single drop, all of it.”
“Uuugh…”
It was some time after they had started staying together at the almost fully chartered resort in Tumbes when Ryu Ho-yeon suddenly collapsed with a burning fever. Choi Jae-won was shocked to the point of fainting.
He had been wondering how to help alleviate the fatigue of someone who already spent all day resting, when suddenly the person collapsed right before him. Of course he would be shocked. Especially when that person was Ryu Ho-yeon, whom he cherished more than his own eyes.
When Choi Jae-won first set out to find Ryu Ho-yeon’s diamond, he hadn’t anticipated how things would turn out, so the only medical staff among his entourage was a forensic pathologist. The pathologist, who had expected to only examine unidentified remains but ended up getting a vacation of a month or two, noted that it had been a very long time since he had examined a living person as he carefully assessed Ryu Ho-yeon’s condition. He also received records from the local hospital where “Won” had been found.
The pathologist joked that it had been ages since he’d done a general examination, but he proceeded with treatment calmly. Fortunately, the fever subsided overnight. However, not all the news awaiting Choi Jae-won was hopeful.
The pathologist declared, with some exaggeration, that Ryu Ho-yeon was in such a state that it wouldn’t be strange if he stopped breathing at any moment.
He added that while the outside was so damaged, the internal organs couldn’t have remained intact. He also said that the function of every part was significantly decreased to the extent that it was difficult to specify any one area. Perhaps the complete loss of his abilities as an Esper was related to this, and it would be best to return to Korea immediately for an examination by specialists.
It was an obvious matter if one thought about it, but his vision had been blinded by the joy before him, preventing him from considering such points.
For Choi Jae-won, the highest priority was neither monopolizing Ryu Ho-yeon, nor confining him, nor loving him.
For Choi Jae-won, who had already lived for the past ten years in a world more hellish than hell without Ryu Ho-yeon, the top priority was always keeping Ryu Ho-yeon alive and healthy.
Looking down at Ryu Ho-yeon’s damaged face as he slept receiving IV fluids, he decided to return to Korea right then. Though choosing a nearly foreign deserted island as their first settlement could be considered his small indulgence.
“Don’t get sick.”
“I’m not sick.”
“Liar. Every time you open your mouth, it’s a lie.”
“…”
Choi Jae-won probably called Ryu Ho-yeon a liar for always claiming to be fine and not sick, but the person who was actually telling the big lie felt a pang in his heart and silently gulped down the medicine.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
