Chapter 63
I stared up at Joo Kwon-oh, not knowing how to respond.
He genuinely wanted me, who had just arrived, to leave this place. Although he didn’t say it directly, I could clearly perceive the unspoken signals.
Why… why couldn’t he understand my concern and treat me like an unwelcome guest?
Feeling upset and worried, I hesitated for a while, unable to speak.
“Joo Kwon-oh. Dong-ho is here too.”
Just then, the terrace door opened, and Joo Kwon-oh’s brother appeared. Joo Kwon-oh’s head, which had been fixed on me, quickly turned towards his brother.
“Lee Dong-ho? Why is he here?”
“I ran into him at the mart earlier. He asked about you, so I told him. That you’re in the hospital.”
“Why are you going around telling people about this? It’s not good news.”
“He’s your high school classmate, should I hide it from him, you brat?”
“Haa. Alright. I’ll be there soon after I finish talking. You go to the room first, hyung.”
Joo Kwon-oh, who had been responding sharply, waved his hand at his brother as if annoyed.
“You’re not fighting, are you?”
“Are you crazy? How could I fight with him?”
“Right. It doesn’t look like there’s anywhere to hit anyway. Get along well with your friend.”
“Stop nagging and get out of here quickly.”
“This brat, telling his brother to ‘get out’.”
Unlike me, who flinched at the harsh words, Joo Kwon-oh’s brother didn’t seem to mind much. He closed the door and left quickly.
Anyway, from what I heard, it seems a high school classmate also came to visit after hearing the news. I don’t understand why I’m the only one who has to leave.
“You see? Things are complicated right now, and I’m not in my right mind. I can’t take care of you, so go back to Seoul first.”
But Joo Kwon-oh seemed to think the opposite of me.
“I’ll come as soon as I finish up here. I’ll buy a new phone today or tomorrow. They told me it’s better to buy a new one if it’s that broken.”
“……”
Is that what you have to say to me? How can you speak so coldly?
I wanted to open my mouth and argue right away. If I had to list the things that upset me in this situation, I could name more than ten.
But now I noticed that not only was his arm in a cast, but there was also a small bandage on Joo Kwon-oh’s left cheek.
I couldn’t add to his fatigue by whining to Joo Kwon-oh, who was already injured and in a dispute with one of the factory workers.
Above all… I was most afraid of being rejected by him if I insisted any further.
“Are you sure your arm doesn’t hurt?”
“Yeah. It’s fine.”
Joo Kwon-oh grinned and started moving his shoulder back and forth again, but then stopped abruptly, as if remembering that I had told him not to do that.
“…When will they remove the cast?”
“I don’t know yet. They’ll check again after some time, and when the doctor says it’s okay, they’ll remove it then. But they said it would heal quickly.”
“Are, are you sure it’s not serious?”
I asked again, feeling anxious.
“I told you it’s not.”
Why does Joo Kwon-oh’s answer seem so unconvincing, unlike usual?
“Why? Are you that worried?”
“…Yeah.”
The acrid smell flowing into my throat made my response a beat late. I unconsciously coughed a few times at the cigarette smell wafting from somewhere again.
“I’m not a kid, this little thing… Wait. What’s that smell?”
Joo Kwon-oh seemed to notice it too, furrowing his brow and looking around the terrace.
“Ah, shit. Who keeps smoking in the no-smoking area?”
“It’s okay, Kwon-oh.”
“What kind of inconsiderate bastard, the smoke is coming right at us.”
Joo Kwon-oh stuck his head out of the terrace to check the lower floor.
As he expected, a man in hospital clothes was smoking on the floor below.
As soon as I stretched my head out following Joo Kwon-oh, I made eye contact with the smoker. He was smoking not one, but two cigarettes held between his fingers.
“Hey, mister! Put out that cigarette.”
Joo Kwon-oh shouted fiercely towards the lower floor.
“What, boy? Who are you to tell me?”
“Does it matter who I am? Can’t you see it’s a no-smoking area?”
“I didn’t see it, you brat. How dare a wet-behind-the-ears kid raise his voice to an adult? Everyone smokes here, why are you only pestering me?”
“Kwon-oh, stop it. We can just go inside, right?”
As the conversation grew increasingly harsh, I nervously pulled on Joo Kwon-oh’s clothes.
“How can you smoke in a hospital full of patients? If you want to smoke, go outside.”
“Kids these days have no respect for adults, seriously. Kaaak, ptui!”
The man shouted loudly from the lower floor, as if wanting us to hear. Although I stopped the argument from continuing, I noticed that despite being a hospital terrace, cigarette butts were strewn all around.
Even though there was a trash can, garbage was carelessly thrown about, even getting kicked around. It seemed like a place where building management was lacking in many ways.
Joo Kwon-oh ran his hand through his hair with an irritated expression. Then, as if he knew what I was seeing and thinking, he said:
“See? This place is far from the city center and surrounded only by factories, so everyone in the hospital is like this. There are many foreigners too. There’s nowhere for you to have fun.”
“I… didn’t come here to have fun, I came to see you.”
“You’ve seen me, so that’s enough, right? I’m really fine, so just go now, Jeong-ha. Okay?”
“……”
I was about to say something more, but it seemed pointless to insist in front of someone who clearly wanted me to leave, so I nodded weakly.
“…Alright.”
After making sure no one was around the terrace, I fumbled in my pocket for the things I had brought from Seoul.
“I’ll give you these before I go.”
“What are those?”
“Coffee and tea…. I bought them at the convenience store on the way.”
I was in such a hurry when paying at the convenience store that I forgot to ask for a bag and just stuffed everything inside my clothes before coming here.
After emptying my front pocket, I now rummaged through my back pocket. I could feel Joo Kwon-oh’s gaze on my face.
“These are jelly, gum, and candy. Eat them as snacks.”
“Ah.”
“Since your phone is broken too, I thought you might get bored, so I grabbed a few books from your place. They should be in the bag Kyung-won brought.”
“Oh… thanks.”
“Mm-hmm. Then… I’ll go.”
After piling snacks into Joo Kwon-oh’s hands and hospital gown pockets, I awkwardly stepped back.
“I’ll call you a taxi.”
“No, it’s okay. I can call one with the app.”
“It’s hard to get one here.”
“Hey, Joo Kwon-oh!”
Joo Kwon-oh’s brother shouted from outside again. I glanced at the door and shook my head.
“It’s okay. I can go alone. Your friend came… you should go in too.”
“Joo Kwon-oh!”
“Ah, what!”
“That person called again.”
“What? Shit, let me talk to them.”
Joo Kwon-oh answered, gritting his teeth. Then he quickly placed his hand on my shoulder and met my eyes.
“Jeong-ha, wait here for a moment. I’ll be right back to get you a taxi. Okay?”
Before I could answer, Joo Kwon-oh went inside the building to take the call.
“It’s dangerous, so don’t go anywhere. I’ll be right back!”
A few seconds later, Joo Kwon-oh popped out the door again to remind me once more. I nodded in a daze.
But several minutes passed, and Joo Kwon-oh didn’t return.
I couldn’t just wait here indefinitely, and feeling intimidated, I felt self-conscious about staying in this spot.
After standing awkwardly for a while, I went inside the building. Seeing Joo Kwon-oh’s friends gathered in front of his hospital room, I moved to go down the stairs.
It hurt that there seemed to be no place for me among all those people who had come.
“Student. Are you leaving? You’re Kwon-oh’s friend, right?”
As I was quietly going down the stairs trying not to be noticed, someone standing close behind me spoke. When I turned around, it was Joo Kwon-oh’s brother again.
“…Yes. Hello.”
I bowed my head in greeting.
“It’s a face I haven’t seen before. Thank you for coming all the way here to see Kwon-oh.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Why are you leaving so soon? Why don’t you stay a bit longer?”
“Ah. He seemed very busy today…”
I mumbled an answer, unable to say that Joo Kwon-oh had told me to leave. But his brother shook his head as if he understood.
“Your name is Ryu Jeong-ha, right? I saw the texts Kwon-oh sent you using my phone.”
Surprised that he knew my name, I could only move my lips silently.
“That brat Joo Kwon-oh particularly hates showing when he’s in pain. If he said anything strange, I hope you’ll understand and let it slide.”
“Ah.”
“He tends to act tougher in front of people he’s close to, so many misunderstand him. He’s my brother, but I don’t know why he acts like that.”
“……”
“You seem to be a student from the same Business Administration department. I’m telling you this because you seem different from the kids Kwon-oh usually hangs out with, and I don’t want you to misunderstand.”
I wasn’t in the Business Administration department, but I just nodded.
“Um, but… Is Kwon-oh badly hurt? We, we became close while working on a project last semester… I’m worried.”
“The doctor will check his condition again tomorrow and decide whether to go with non-surgical treatment or surgical treatment. But they said not to worry because it will heal with time.”
“Sur-surgery?”
When I raised my voice in surprise, Joo Kwon-oh’s brother waved his hand as if to calm me down.
“It’s just a possibility. We’ll know for sure tomorrow. If you’re curious, contact us tomorrow afternoon.”
“Ah… I see. Thank you for letting me know.”
“Alright. Then get home safely. Sorry we couldn’t even feed you today, everyone’s been so busy.”
Surgery means it’s serious, doesn’t it? They won’t know for sure whether surgery is needed until tomorrow. And he acted like everything was fine?
My heart was still pounding from what Joo Kwon-oh’s brother had said. But it was too late to go back and confront him now…
With dragging steps, I slipped out of the hospital while Joo Kwon-oh was distracted with his phone call.
Come to think of it, I didn’t even say goodbye to Choi Kyung-won. I should leave him a KakaoTalk message later.
As I crossed the hospital parking lot, my eyes began to sting. But I forced myself not to cry, holding back the tears until the end.
