46.
For several days, Haseo had been lost in intimacy with Choi Mujin. They hadn’t confined themselves to just the bedroom. The bathroom, living room, kitchen—their encounters continued everywhere. Even when Haseo went to the kitchen to cook because he was hungry, if their eyes met, their bodies would soon follow. And when Haseo was exhausted and sprawled out, Mujin would clean his body with a wet towel. Sometimes, Mujin would cook instead of Haseo when he couldn’t move properly.
His cooking wasn’t particularly special. Occasionally, a fried egg and meat would be placed on top of rice. Today was the same. Haseo stared at it before picking up his spoon. Ssamjang was spread on it as seasoning. What should this be called? While he was lost in thought, Mujin, who had already finished his portion, smiled.
“What, doesn’t it taste good?”
“No! It’s delicious!”
It really was surprisingly edible. Perhaps because the meat was well-cooked. Haseo ate his rice diligently. In truth, Haseo was curious about where Mujin had learned to cook like this. That curiosity was soon satisfied.
“When I was young, my parents weren’t proper human beings. So I had to prepare my own meals. But I’d never seen real cooking. I’d just put whatever I could on top of rice. Though often there wasn’t even rice.”
That was why he ended up making similar dishes frequently.
“I never really thought about learning to cook properly.”
Haseo listened attentively to Mujin’s story. Each time he shared pieces of his past, Haseo’s heart raced. Perhaps Mujin was opening up to him more than before. Even knowing the current situation wasn’t positive, he couldn’t help but harbor futile hopes.
“Just finish your rice.”
“Yes!”
As Haseo was finishing his remaining rice, suddenly a phone rang. Since Haseo didn’t have one, it must be Mujin’s. Mujin got up from his seat to answer the call.
‘Who could be calling?’
Though curious, he didn’t dare ask. He wanted to eavesdrop on the conversation, but Mujin must have gone into the small room because he couldn’t hear anything. After some time passed, Mujin returned.
“I think I need to go out for a while.”
Wondering what he meant, Haseo just blinked. Mujin made eye contact with him. His strangely intense gaze felt intimidating.
“Haseo.”
“Yes?”
“You’ll stay quietly at home, right?”
“Yes? Yes. But when will you be back?”
“I think I’ll be a bit late. But absolutely do not go out.”
With his waist aching from their repeated encounters, where would he go anyway? He did want to visit the hospital where his grandmother was, but Mujin wouldn’t permit it. So when he obediently answered, Mujin patted his head.
“Good. Stay at home until I return.”
“Yes.”
With those words, Mujin left the house. After being together constantly, his absence made the place feel empty. Even the remaining rice no longer seemed appetizing. Haseo got up on shaky legs, took the rice bowl, and headed to the kitchen. He put the leftover food into a pre-purchased food waste bag and began washing the dishes. Since they hadn’t used many dishes to begin with, washing up didn’t take long.
“I wonder if there are bed sheets.”
Occasionally, Mujin had changed the wet sheets. But since they hadn’t properly washed them, Haseo decided to run the washing machine. Fortunately, there was a washing machine in a storage-like space next to the kitchen. It wasn’t a drum washer but a top-loader, though judging by its shine, it looked like it had only been used a few times since purchase.
“Ugh.”
Though his waist hurt and he couldn’t move like before, it was better to do something. Otherwise, strange thoughts kept coming to mind. Haseo began slowly tidying up the house. Then something occurred to him.
‘Come to think of it, there aren’t any CCTVs here?’
Perhaps because they’d moved in hastily, there were no surveillance cameras. In Mujin’s original home, CCTVs were placed in conspicuously visible locations. And in hidden spots, there were even more devices. At first, he only knew about the visible ones, but he realized more over time. Mujin, seemingly distrustful of anyone who entered his home, had pathologically installed internal surveillance devices.
When that thought struck him, Haseo momentarily held his breath. He searched for the bag he had brought on the day he arrived. It contained photos taken with his grandmother and some money. When was the last time he saw his grandmother? Though not much time had passed, he wanted to check on her.
He felt this more strongly because he had met Sion during his last visit. Though everything seemed resolved, from Haseo’s perspective, nothing had been resolved at all.
‘Grandmother.’
Haseo bit his lip. Mujin had told him not to leave the house. But there was nothing in this house monitoring him. Just in case, he slightly opened the door to peek outside, but there was no one guarding the front. Usually, Mujin would have stationed at least one person.
‘Just for a moment, couldn’t I go out and come back?’
This house wasn’t far from Mujin’s original home. And his grandmother’s hospital was relatively close to there. He felt he might be able to see his grandmother’s face before Mujin returned.
‘It’s not like I’m trying to run away.’
Haseo quickly dressed and picked up his bag. It really would be just for a moment.
* * *
Grotesque. That was Jeong Heejun’s impression while staying at Choi Mujin’s house. He was staying in the guest room, which, judging by the traces left, seemed to have been used by someone. The closet was full of clothes, and the drawers contained miscellaneous items.
‘Who used it?’
He guessed it might have been the young man he encountered when first entering this house.
With a pretty face and round, beautiful eyes. Though he wasn’t particularly fond of men, that face strangely caught his attention.
‘He seems somewhat familiar too.’
Where had he seen him before? Heejun, who was generally good at remembering faces, tried to recall. Even as he did so, his hands didn’t stop moving. This house was strange, and the room was no exception. Besides the visible CCTVs, there were several hidden ones. There also appeared to be listening devices, all blatantly exposed.
Given that they were in places easily found with minimal effort, the room’s owner must have known about them. As he examined the room, he noticed something sticking out from under the closet. Thinking it might be trash, he pulled it out and found it was a photograph.
‘It’s rare to see printed photos these days.’
In the old-looking photo stood a young child. The child, smiling awkwardly as if unaccustomed to being photographed, looked very cute. And after seeing it, Heejun recalled the child’s name.
“Lee Haseo…”
Heejun had once lived in Seoul. Though he soon moved to Daegu, where his mother’s family was from, he still cherished those memories. That’s because he had met a friend there worth remembering for a lifetime.
When young, Heejun had been small and skinny. His mother was weak and couldn’t take good care of him, so he was dirty and disliked by other children. Children who simply frowned and walked past were tolerable. Some children openly insulted and hit Heejun. At that time, there was one child who helped him.
‘Hey! Why are you bullying a friend!’
It was Lee Haseo. Even then, Haseo wasn’t particularly big or strong. But he was stubborn in his beliefs.
‘My grandmother said we should get along well with friends!’
Wearing clothes that were old but clean, Haseo rushed at the children who were bullying Heejun. Far from hitting them, he got hit instead, but some of the girls who were watching took Haseo’s side.
‘That’s right! We should get along with friends!’
‘Don’t hit Haseo!’
With his pretty face and stubbornness, Haseo was somewhat popular among his classmates. As the girls joined in, and some boys followed, the bullies retreated, though not without complaints. After that, Heejun’s school life became a bit easier. Haseo would always include Heejun in whatever he was doing.
As a result, Heejun grew to like Haseo more and more. It was a natural progression to become fond of a friend with lovable features who made efforts for him. As they became friends, they visited each other’s homes. Though they couldn’t offer grand hospitality, the memories of playing together remained.
“Is it really you, Haseo?”
Heejun rubbed his forehead with his thumb. Even after moving to Daegu, he often missed Haseo. He lived diligently, thinking he’d like to meet him again someday. But to think he’d encounter Haseo in a place like this? He didn’t want to believe it, but his instinct told him it was indeed Haseo.
‘Why?’
Though Haseo only had his grandmother as family, he was a child who lived righteously. He would occasionally play pranks, but he knew his boundaries. So why was he with someone like Choi Mujin?
‘In a house like this.’
Heejun gritted his teeth. No matter how he thought about it, no positive reason came to mind. His father was essentially no different from a gangster, and Mujin under him was no different. To think Haseo had been taken by such a person.
‘Haseo’s family was struggling too.’
When his mother collapsed, Heejun experienced a situation where debt increased despite working like mad. Perhaps Haseo had gone through something similar. Given Haseo’s build, he would’ve found it difficult to do hard labor, making it more challenging to earn money.
‘Maybe.’
Could Haseo be in a dangerous situation?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
