By Zephyria 
“…….”
Seo Yi-kyung blinked. Even so, Han Seung-jae did not disappear. Soon after, he turned his head to look this way. His cold eyes revealed no particular emotion. It wouldn’t have been strange to think they had run into each other by chance, had this not been in front of a hospital.
“Over there, Director Han is standing.”
Butler Do seemed to have only just noticed Han Seung-jae and gave Seo Yi-kyung a heads-up. However, Seo Yi-kyung had been keeping an eye on that spot since the moment he stepped out of the car.
As the two of them fixed their gaze on one spot, the attending physician, who had been greeting Seo Yi-kyung, followed their gaze. He then brightened up and hurried down the stairs.
Approaching Han Seung-jae, the physician spoke.
“Director Han, you’ve arrived. The treatment is all finished. There is a crack in the wrist, so I believe a cast for about another week will be necessary.”
The physician reported the details of Seo Yi-kyung’s condition. Despite this, Han Seung-jae spoke with cold lips without even looking at the doctor.
“Get in.”
Han Seung-jae extended his long arm toward Seo Yi-kyung, who was still standing beside the physician. Seo Yi-kyung felt that Han Seung-jae’s hand touching his back was similar to what he had felt in the water. It seemed he wasn’t putting much strength into his grip.
As Seo Yi-kyung climbed into the car, Butler Do bowed.
“I shall return to the residence first.”
Seo Yi-kyung nodded toward Butler Do. The door on the opposite side opened, and Han Seung-jae got into the car. The physician, who had followed them while murmuring, closed the car door himself. He seemed genuinely pleased that Han Seung-jae had made the trip here.
Secretary Park sat in the passenger seat, and the car departed leisurely. Seo Yi-kyung glanced at Han Seung-jae beside him. Unable to understand why Han Seung-jae had suddenly come to the hospital, he tried to guess his intentions.
Han Seung-jae looked down at the watch on his wrist as if checking the time, then suddenly turned his head. Seo Yi-kyung flinched his shoulders, as if he had been caught peeking.
Whether he knew it or not, or perhaps he simply didn’t care about such things, Han Seung-jae slowly scanned Seo Yi-kyung’s face. Soon, he fixed his gaze on the cast wrapped around the arm and asked.
“Did you eat lunch?”
It was already well past noon. Between the examination of the cracked arm and applying the cast, lunchtime had passed. However, because he had slept in and eaten a late breakfast with fruit, Seo Yi-kyung wasn’t hungry.
While Seo Yi-kyung remained silent, retracing the series of events in his head, Han Seung-jae added indifferently.
“If you haven’t eaten, join me. I haven’t had lunch yet.”
The sedan leaving Haseon Hospital drove in the opposite direction of the house. Seo Yi-kyung looked out the car window. It was a day with beautiful sunlight. And only after the sedan stopped and he stepped out did Seo Yi-kyung realize that Han Seung-jae had already decided they would eat lunch together, regardless of his answer. The place they arrived at was a magnificent hanok building.
“I will guide you inside. As requested, the meal has been prepared.”
An employee opened the door and guided them into the yojeong. As Seo Yi-kyung entered, the employee took his outer coat, hung it to one side, and stepped out. Soon after Seo Yi-kyung took his seat, the table began to be filled as if they had been waiting. On the table, where even a small brazier was placed, various meats and vegetables were lined up.
Doubt clouded Seo Yi-kyung’s eyes. The side dishes were excessive for a lunch meal. Looking at the filled food, Seo Yi-kyung looked up and met Han Seung-jae’s gaze. Then, Han Seung-jae spoke first.
“Why, do you not like the menu?”
“It’s not that.”
Not only had they never made an appointment, but Seo Yi-kyung’s visit to the hospital today had been unplanned. He thought it would be a light meal, but it wasn’t… The dishes filling the table looked like health-boosting restorative foods.
“Then, eat.”
Seo Yi-kyung moved his hesitating hand upward. Beside him, an employee sat and meticulously grilled meat on a palm-sized brazier.
He could have easily done this himself, but the employee’s movements were seamless.
Seo Yi-kyung moved his chopsticks, looking at the two pieces of glistening meat, mushrooms, and vegetables placed on his plate. The employee filled the plate as quickly as Seo Yi-kyung ate, matching his pace.
He had thought he wasn’t particularly hungry, but the thinly sliced meat was tender and melted in his mouth. Seo Yi-kyung chewed slowly. The employee even grilled fruit and placed it on the plate. In doing so, the employee filled the plate primarily with the things Seo Yi-kyung reached for often.
How long had he been eating like that? Once the speed at which the food on Seo Yi-kyung’s plate disappeared dropped significantly, the employee withdrew.
“I guess the food doesn’t suit your taste.”
Seo Yi-kyung looked forward, still holding his chopsticks. Han Seung-jae watched him quietly before adding.
“I’ll make a reservation somewhere else next time.”
Listening to Han Seung-jae’s words, Seo Yi-kyung looked at the brazier in front of him. A piece of meat had been placed there, but because Han Seung-jae hadn’t eaten it, the employee had removed it after it had burnt black into ash.
And Seo Yi-kyung had been eating the meat the employee filled on his plate the whole time. If anything, the one whose taste the food didn’t suit was Han Seung-jae. He had barely eaten.
And yet, he had asked to eat lunch together.
As if breaking Seo Yi-kyung’s reverie, the door opened and an employee entered to set down dessert. Seo Yi-kyung looked down at the sujeonggwa and the neatly served dried persimmons before reaching out. He felt he couldn’t eat any more because he was full, but he picked up a dried persimmon and pressed it to his lips. Then, he murmured softly.
“I like this place, too.”
He felt Han Seung-jae’s gaze shifting toward him. Seo Yi-kyung felt heat rapidly rushing to his cheeks. It was only natural; if he wasn’t mistaken, didn’t it seem as though these restorative foods were specifically for him?
* * *
When the sedan stopped in front of the town house located in Seongbuk-dong, Secretary Park, who got out of the passenger seat, opened the rear door. As Seo Yi-kyung stepped out of the car, Butler Do, who had already come out to greet them, approached.
Secretary Park had contacted Butler Do to coordinate with the arrival time. Once he appeared, Secretary Park handed over a shopping bag. Inside were the dried persimmons Seo Yi-kyung had been eating.
As Butler Do opened the iron gate, Seo Yi-kyung went inside. Butler Do, following him in, spoke.
“Did you have a nice date?”
Seo Yi-kyung, walking through the garden, faltered. However, he continued walking so as not to let it show outwardly. A date. He had never thought of it as such. But hearing Butler Do’s words, he felt as if he had indeed been on one.
Perhaps he felt that way because the sunlight was nice and his stomach was full.
“Shall I bring tea to the painting studio?”
Seo Yi-kyung came out after changing clothes in the dressing room. Because he had to dress with one arm, it took some time, but he was now proficient in using one hand. He told Butler Do that he felt he couldn’t eat anything more because he was so full and headed toward the elevator.
Moreover, having gone to the hospital and unexpectedly meeting Han Seung-jae, he had been maintaining a certain level of tension, so his entire body felt heavy. The thought of going up to the bedroom to rest came first.
Seo Yi-kyung descended from the second floor and headed toward the bedroom.
He fiddled with his casted left arm. Since he was told he only needed to wear it for about another week, he would have to be careful not to let water touch it during that time.
Although he had become quite proficient at using only one hand, it would be a lie to say it wasn’t inconvenient to do things with one arm. If the attending physician at the hospital hadn’t earnestly requested it, Seo Yi-kyung would have said he wouldn’t wear something like a cast.
Suddenly, Seo Yi-kyung stopped walking. He turned around just before the bedroom door.
Then, he opened the door to the study and looked around the quiet interior. He had felt a similar sense of dissonance this morning. Specifically, in front of the door to the room where Min Ra-hyeon had stayed.
At the time, the physician had been waiting and he hadn’t had the capacity to think deeply, so he had let it pass.
Seo Yi-kyung reached behind him and closed the study door. The shelves were full of rare items of immeasurable value.
Nevertheless, Seo Yi-kyung walked forward, focusing on only one spot. He passed the desk, which perfectly reflected Han Seung-jae’s personality, and scanned the surroundings. While doing so, he recalled the image of Han Seung-jae putting something away.
In the room where Min Ra-hyeon had stayed, there was no suitcase containing his belongings. But wasn’t there one more of his items in this house? The self-defense gun Min Ra-hyeon possessed. And that item was also the one ‘Seo Yi-kyung’ had used last.
‘I think he put it around here.’
Eventually, Seo Yi-kyung reached out, as if mimicking the image of Han Seung-jae in his memory.