Chapter 98
“I’ll order delivery.”
“It’s fine.”
“No, it’s not fine. What did you buy? Seasoned?”
“Yes. But I bought it for you to eat, senior.”
“For me?”
When did I say I wanted chicken?
Seeming to read my thoughts from my expression, he spoke again. What followed was something I hadn’t even considered.
“When I asked what you wanted to eat after leaving the dungeon, you said chicken. Once you feel better, I’ll buy it again…”
He suddenly paused as he was speaking nonchalantly. Then, as if urgently trying to hold back laughter, the corner of his mouth twitched.
“Your expression is so damn funny right now. Do you need the bathroom?”
Thanks to that, the overflow of emotion I was feeling instantly shattered. I twitched one corner of my mouth like I was forcing a rotten smile, then pretended to be crazy and thoroughly messed up Song Ji-hyeok’s hair.
Ignoring his barking protests, I reopened the delivery app. As a Korean, skipping meals without a good reason was absolutely unacceptable. Moreover, Song Ji-hyeok would consume far more energy than others, so it was all the more important for him to eat well.
Since he responded indifferently to every menu suggestion, I chose samgyetang for nourishment. I remembered him enjoying it when it was served as lunch in the company cafeteria during summer. After placing the delivery order, I made sure to emphasize my thoughtfulness.
“I ordered special abalone samgyetang. If you were just a friend, I would have ordered regular samgyetang, but because it’s you, I specially chose an expensive one. I added ginseng too.”
“Didn’t you just order what you wanted to eat?”
“I don’t like ginseng. It makes my body heat up when I eat it.”
Perhaps because it was late evening, the delivery came faster than expected. Despite claiming indifference earlier, once the food was set up, Song Ji-hyeok devoured it in the blink of an eye.
Seeing him eat the side dishes diligently as well, I felt a swell of satisfaction. With him eating so well, it would have been terrible if I had taken his earlier refusal at face value.
The cleanup was Song Ji-hyeok’s responsibility. He swept all the delivery remnants into a plastic bag, went outside, and came back a few minutes later to sit in the chair. By then, quite some time had passed, and it was already past nine in the evening.
Unlike me, who had taken sick leave until tomorrow, Song Ji-hyeok had another intense day waiting for him tomorrow. Thinking it would be best for him to go home and rest, I spoke to him.
“You must be tired. You’ve eaten now, so go get some good rest.”
Song Ji-hyeok gave me a look that seemed to say, “What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Where would I go?”
“Huh?”
“You’re being discharged tomorrow, right? I’ll sleep here with you and take you home tomorrow.”
I understood what he meant a beat late and hurriedly declined.
“It’s fine. You don’t have to.”
“All pairs do this, apparently. There were restrictions when you were in a coma, but now that you’ve woken up, they said I should stay with you.”
“Who said?”
“The team leader.”
It was a magical word that instantly quelled my mild doubts. Well, if the team leader said so, that’s completely acceptable. Having Song Ji-hyeok beside me did feel reassuring somehow.
However, there was one thing that bothered me. There was a cot, but it seemed too small to accommodate Song Ji-hyeok both widthwise and lengthwise. His torso alone would fill the space, with his arms likely to fall to the ground and his legs sticking out.
“But won’t it be uncomfortable for you to sleep here? I think the sleeping quarters would be better.”
“If that’s the case, I might as well go home. It’s not about the place; it’s about being with you, senior.”
Right on cue, an announcement for lights-out played. From my observations while in the hospital room, the guild infirmary seemed to have stricter management than regular hospitals, perhaps to get injured individuals recovered and back to work as quickly as possible.
“I’m turning off the lights.”
Darkness fell at once, but since the door was slightly ajar, light from the corridor seeped in, preventing complete visual blockage. Watching Song Ji-hyeok approach, I patted the space next to me.
“Come up. Let’s sleep together here.”
“Is that okay?”
“Yeah. There’s enough space.”
Having Song Ji-hyeok sleep on the cot that seemed cramped even for me alone would have been cruel upon further reflection. And truly, there was enough space on the bed. Perhaps because most patients were sturdy Espers, the patient bed area seemed about 1.5 times wider than a regular bed.
Song Ji-hyeok didn’t insist like before. Seeing him promptly climb up beside me, it seemed to be a proposal he quite liked.
“If you hadn’t mentioned it, I was going to ask first.”
“What?”
“If I could sleep next to you.”
As expected, he had it all planned out.
Song Ji-hyeok didn’t just take the space next to me. He quickly lay down on the bed first and claimed the only pillow as if it were natural. Instead, he stretched his right arm out under the pillow and patted his forearm, as if telling me to lie there.
Your arm will fall asleep. Can you handle it?
Though I briefly thought “Is this right?”, I decided that what’s good is good, and I also nestled down.
I was immediately enveloped by a somewhat strange feeling. Having slept like this for several days on a field bed while in the dungeon, the situation itself wasn’t awkward. It was just that my heart fluttered unstably due to the drastically different surroundings compared to then.
In the dungeon, I was never really asleep even when sleeping, as I was alert to sounds from outside, but now it felt surreal to spend such a silent night. Continuously recalling the time in the field made me fear that the anxiety I had just shaken off would cling to me again like a nightmare.
No, that can’t happen.
Trying to snap out of it, I pressed and released the area under my brow, then faced Song Ji-hyeok and plunked my right leg over his. While I was at it, I also extended my arm to wrap around his waist.
“What are you doing?”
“Let’s call it even—you’re my body pillow instead of paying rent.”
“Who decided that?”
“Me, of course.”
“When did you become so shameless?”
Why do you think? Because I know you’ll go along with almost any joke or prank now. Because I know you play along even while grumbling.
“Oh, I’m sleepy. Let’s just go to sleep.”
I naturally changed the subject while hugging my one-day body pillow a bit tighter.
But this body pillow is quite large and very firm. Still, feeling a much warmer body temperature than a real body pillow, I closed my eyes again and tried to sleep.
***
The next morning, after breakfast, I received another physical examination. As my consciousness returned, my physical functions seemed to quickly restore to normal. After hearing that everything was fine, I was able to be discharged safely.
Inside the elevator, I pressed the button for the 6th floor instead of the basement. Though I was on sick leave until today, I wasn’t being overzealous trying to go to work; I just wanted to briefly show my face to teammates who must have been worried.
To be more honest, I had a strong desire to see my teammates. Though thankfully none of our team members who participated in this battle had died or been severely injured, I felt I needed to see them with my own eyes to believe it.
With a slightly racing heart, I walked down the corridor when someone emerged from the adjacent lounge. It was an Esper from Team 2 in combat uniform. He hesitated slightly upon seeing me, then showed an unexpected behavior.
“Hello.”
At the sudden greeting, I unconsciously looked around. What? Is he greeting me…?
No, Song Ji-hyeok is behind me.
‘That makes sense.’
I had heard that the Esper before me had a fierce personality matching his rugged appearance. Yet here he was, greeting someone like a docile sheep, but Song Ji-hyeok didn’t even give him a glance.
Knowing how awkward it feels to have a greeting ignored, I returned the greeting to prevent an uncomfortable atmosphere.
“Hello.”
Was he touched by that? The Esper from another team, who would normally treat me like an invisible person, spoke to me again. This time, he was definitely addressing me.
“Are you feeling better? I heard you were badly injured…”
“Stop concerning yourself with someone else’s Guide.”
An intrusive voice cut in. When I turned around again, Song Ji-hyeok was looking down at the Esper with an emotionless, cold gaze.
Wait a minute, now that I look…
“I-I’m sorry. I’ll be going now.”
I snapped back to attention and looked forward again. The Esper, who had bowed his head so deeply I could see his crown, quickly moved away. There was no particular reason to hold him back, so I immediately spoke to Song Ji-hyeok.
“Did you get taller?”
“I don’t know.”
“Get measured sometime. I think you’ve grown taller.”
“If you say so, then I guess it’s true.”
Envying his unwavering confidence, I continued walking. When I finally reached the office door, I placed my finger on the fingerprint recognition pad.
It feels like it’s been quite a while since I opened a door like this. No, it actually has been a while. This is the first time in seven years that I’ve been away for more than 20 days.
The space that appeared when I opened the door was exactly as I remembered it. Despite the vast area having few people, it still felt vibrant and bustling. And then, coincidentally, I made eye contact with Gitae hyung, who had just turned his head.
“Su-hyeon!”
With that one word, everyone’s attention turned to me. Starting with Gitae hyung, who had jumped up, they all rushed around me as if by agreement.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
