What Kind of Relationship (6)
Sa Hae-geon picked me up and carried me to my room as I started dozing off while watching TV. In my half-asleep state, I said to him as he was leaving after covering me with a blanket:
“Thank you.”
Sa Hae-geon paused for a moment, then nodded and replied:
“Sleep well.”
“Mm, you too.”
After mumbling a response like Sa Hae-geon, I fell into a deep sleep not long after. Perhaps because I hadn’t slept well for the past two days while planning my escape, I was able to sleep soundly today without even dreaming once.
I woke up late in the morning feeling refreshed for the first time in a while. The spicy aroma tickling my nose made my mouth water. It seemed Sa Hae-geon had taken out the kimchi stew he had made yesterday.
Contrary to my worries about what to do if he served just white rice and soy sauce for breakfast today, Sa Hae-geon seemed to have softened his heart. As soon as I left the warm and fluffy goose down comforter and exited the room, I ran into Sa Hae-geon who was just coming to my room.
Sa Hae-geon blinked at me, then smiled slightly.
“Did you sleep well, hyung?”
“Oh, yeah. Did you sleep well too?”
Instead of quickly agreeing as I expected, he lowered his gaze slightly and said gloomily:
“No. I couldn’t sleep well…”
“Why?”
“I was worried you might leave again while I was sleeping. So I tossed and turned…”
Sa Hae-geon trailed off with a very sorrowful expression. If I had known he was the type to hold such a grudge, I wouldn’t have asked why he couldn’t sleep. When I couldn’t respond, just opening and closing my mouth, Sa Hae-geon added:
“But it’s okay. I’m an Esper, after all. I don’t get tired or exhausted just from not sleeping for a few days.”
“…That’s good then.”
Sa Hae-geon smiled slightly at my lukewarm response and gently tugged at my sleeve with his thumb and index finger.
“Let’s eat breakfast, hyung.”
“Oh, okay.”
The kitchen I followed him to was filled with delicious smells. Seeing the table set with steaming dishes, my stomach growled loudly. The pork kimchi stew and rolled omelette that hadn’t been on the table last night were now appetizingly laid out.
I sat at the table as if enchanted and picked up my spoon. Seeing the glistening kimchi stew, I couldn’t resist as my mouth watered.
“I’ll eat well.”
“Yes. Enjoy your meal.”
As I took a spoonful of rice, Sa Hae-geon brought a bowl and served the kimchi stew. He even put on nitrile gloves and started tearing the kimchi lengthwise. A bowl filled with kimchi torn into appropriate sizes, meat, and spicy broth was placed in front of me.
The moment I put the kimchi in my mouth with chopsticks, I let out an exclamation without realizing it.
“…It’s delicious.”
Perhaps because I had eaten a poor dinner, the taste of the kimchi stew seemed even more dramatic. The savory and rich taste of the pork harmonized well with the spicy kimchi stew. I chewed on the soft kimchi and put some pork in my mouth. With each bite of the tender meat, juices burst out, stimulating my taste buds.
“It’s really delicious, Hae-geon.”
“I’m glad.”
Embarrassed by the continued praise, Sa Hae-geon blushed and sat down in his seat. He glanced at me while eating his portion of kimchi stew and rice. It was uncomfortable to eat with his constant gaze. Finally, I put down my spoon and asked:
“What? Am I eating too fast?”
Sa Hae-geon blinked at my question and carefully said, pointing to his left cheek:
“No, it’s not that. There’s red pepper powder on this side of your cheek…”
“…Oh.”
When I wiped the cheek Sa Hae-geon pointed to, coarse red pepper powder came off. I felt a sudden rush of embarrassment. Worried there might be more, I wiped my cheek a few more times before picking up my spoon to resume eating.
After the meal, we sat on the sofa eating fruit Sa Hae-geon had brought and chatted about various things. I could definitely interact with him more comfortably than when I was wearing the prisoner uniform pajamas and ankle monitor.
“Anyway, seeing the gust in person was really scary. I was really surprised yesterday.”
“At the terminal?”
“Yeah. Oh, did you not feel it because you were in the car?”
“No. I saw it, but I didn’t have the chance to pay attention to it.”
“…Ah.”
The moment I realized what Sa Hae-geon meant, my lips closed weakly. Come to think of it, yesterday Sa Hae-geon must have been too focused on catching me to care about the gust or anything else. I watched Sa Hae-geon’s expression as I put a strawberry he had prepared into my mouth.
“…The strawberries are sweet and delicious. You bought good ones.”
Sa Hae-geon nodded at my casual comment.
“Yes. They smelled good.”
“You eat too.”
Out of guilt, I picked up a strawberry and held it to his mouth. Sa Hae-geon’s eyes widened. Even as he reflexively opened his mouth to eat the strawberry, he still looked dumbfounded. Sa Hae-geon’s hands, which had been removing the strawberry stems one by one, gradually slowed down and then stopped.
Sa Hae-geon chewed the strawberry, moving his mouth, then stared at me. At that gaze, I realized something was wrong. He asked me haltingly with his lips reddened by strawberry juice:
“Why, why did you… why the strawberry…”
Sa Hae-geon’s gaze trembled helplessly, as if my action was quite perplexing. But it was the same for me too. I had just fed him the strawberry out of guilt and embarrassment, but I belatedly realized this was a somewhat strange situation.
After all, feeding something to someone else wasn’t exactly normal behavior. A subtle but clear expectation appeared on Sa Hae-geon’s face as he waited for my explanation. I had to quickly resolve this before his expectations grew uncontrollably.
“Ah, no… They were just delicious, so I wanted you to try too. I didn’t think much of it. Were you very surprised?”
“Yes, a little…”
Sa Hae-geon lowered his gaze and replied in a slightly dejected voice, different from his expectation. It was pitiful to just leave him like that, but I couldn’t help it. As if to change this atmosphere, an interesting story flowed from the TV at that moment.
[Citizens’ anxiety is growing day by day due to the gust that occurred once again in the heart of Seoul. To alleviate this anxiety and frustration even a little, we’ve invited Dr. Oh Geun-woo, an ability studies expert.]
I fixed my gaze on the TV while putting a strawberry in my mouth.
[Hello. I’m Oh Geun-woo, researching ability studies.]
[Yes, Doctor. Hello. First of all, thank you for coming here.]
[Oh, it’s nothing. If I can alleviate the public’s anxiety even a little, of course I should come running.]
[Yes. Then I’d like to ask you a few questions regarding this gust phenomenon.]
The announcer flipped through prepared materials and asked the bespectacled doctor:
[First, I’d like to ask about the cause of this gust. Even among netizens, opinions are divided on whether the gust occurred naturally or if it’s a phenomenon caused by an Esper. Given that the Ability Department hasn’t given a definitive answer, both possibilities exist, right? I’m curious about your thoughts, Doctor.]
[I’m well aware that various opinions are circulating. It’s a sensitive topic, but I don’t think we can define it as a natural phenomenon. This… the traces of ability use are just too evident.]
[Is that so?]
[Yes. And in fact, such indiscriminate occurrences of gusts are very… rare in our country. Especially in Seoul. I believe it’s the work of an Esper.]
[Then could it be the work of a specific Esper, as some netizens are suggesting?]
At this comment seemingly referring to Shin Woo-jun, Dr. Oh Geun-woo remained silent for a moment before nodding with difficulty.
[Well… considering the power of the gust, the frequency of occurrence, and various traces, he is a likely candidate. However, this is… delicate to mention.]
[Yes, I understand. Thank you for your answer, Doctor.]
The announcer then asked various questions from different perspectives, such as how much power would be needed to create a gust of this magnitude, and how much larger the gust area could become depending on the grade. Dr. Oh Geun-woo answered carefully while fiddling with his glasses.
[Yes, Doctor. Thank you for your valuable time today. Thanks to your kind explanations, I think many viewers’ curiosity and anxiety have been somewhat resolved.]
[Not at all. If anyone has more questions about abilities, please contact me via email, and I’ll respond sequentially.]
[Yes, like this… We’ve been talking with Dr. Oh Geun-woo, an ability studies expert. I hope this has alleviated some of your anxiety, viewers. This concludes today’s news. Thank you for watching.]
The news ended with the announcer’s closing comments. I stared blankly at the CCTV footage of the road near the Central Terminal shown behind the credits, then tilted my head. The silhouette of the person I had seen from the building rooftop yesterday was captured very faintly on the CCTV as well.
But it disappeared so quickly, as if dust stuck to the camera lens had blown away, that no one seemed to have noticed.
