By Zephyria 
Facing the sea breeze with a gentle wind and moderate waves, I was utterly flustered by my first-ever struggle of this kind. Is this what fishing is? I thought you just sat there elegantly, meditating while staring at the fishing rod… I didn’t know it required such an intense psychological war. And with a fish, no less?
“Hyung! Hold on tight! Hold it tight so it doesn’t move!”
“…Isn’t it better if it moves like this?”
“No, I mean, be careful not to let it get away!”
Jin-su, who had been shouting urgently from a rock slightly away from me, gently set down his own rod and trotted over. His movements were light and agile, contrasting with his large frame. My situation was the opposite. I was being tossed around by the fishing rod to the point where I had no dignity left, and even while trembling, I was doing my best to grip the rod tightly.
“Hurry up! Come here quickly! My arms hurt!”
“Wow, incredible! I think you hooked a huge one, Hyung. The strength it’s pulling with is no joke.”
“Exactly! Do you think I caught a shark?”
With a little exaggeration, it was believable enough to be a shark. What kind of stupid fish had gotten caught on my line… Jin-su shouted for me to be careful not to lean too far forward and fall, but I was too busy shaking and being jerked around by the rod to even answer.
Before I knew it, Jin-su had reached my side and gripped the rod firmly with me. As soon as I felt the strength of his arms, I stealthily relaxed my grip a bit. I felt like my arms were about to cramp, so sorry, but I had to rely on Jin-su’s strength. What’s the point of having an Alpha friend if not for help at times like this?
Having firmly stabilized the thrashing rod, Jin-su began to skillfully pull it upward. My first fishing experience was quite exciting, but the seaside in February was quite cold, making my body shiver instinctively. Between shivering from the cold and trembling from the fish, it was total chaos, but I didn’t let it show, thinking of Jin-su who had intentionally brought me here.
He told me he’d show me something fun, and I followed him, only to find out it was fishing… My pride had been wounded when he acted surprised that I’d never fished once while living on the island, so I had boldly followed him here. By boat, no less. This was a rocky islet about a fifteen-minute boat ride from the island.
It was a collection of fairly large rocks forming an island. He said it wasn’t well-known to the public and was mostly visited by the islanders. Contrary to Jin-su’s claim that it wasn’t that dangerous, it was nothing but rocks, which made me a bit scared. The moment the fishing rod was pulled up, a large spray of bubbles erupted from the spot.
With a sound loud enough to make me flinch, a fish broke the surface of the water. Then, a fish that was clearly large even at a glance flew over my head and landed on the ground. As soon as I saw the heavy thumping of the fish, an exclamation escaped my lips involuntarily. Jin-su skillfully removed the hook and placed the fish in the bucket he had brought.
“It’s not a shark, huh? It’s huge! I’m a beginner, but I caught it really well, right?”
“You did, Hyung. You’ve got a talent. To catch a big one like this on your first try. Let’s put this here. Wait a second.”
“Huh? Where are you going? Where are you going down to? Don’t go!”
Jin-su, who had been looking satisfied while checking the fish in the bucket, hopped down toward the base of the rocks. I didn’t know where there was to go down here. I moved a little to follow Jin-su as he shifted positions.
I was startled by the foam of the waves crashing against the rocks and tried to stop Jin-su, but he only smiled, saying it was fine. Then, standing with his legs apart, he scanned the crevices between the rocks where the water flowed in and began picking something up.
“Be careful! It’ll be bad if you slip! The water is cold, too…!”
“Geez, look at you worrying. Hyung, do you know how many times I’ve been here? I’m more familiar with this place than my own house.”
“Hey! Just because you’ve been here a hundred times doesn’t mean an accident won’t happen! Accidents happen in an instant!”
While nagging him and watching his actions with anxiety, I observed Jin-su as he just laughed at my words and continued picking things up. He scoured the surrounding area and began stacking things neatly into the bucket. Summoning my courage, I took a few steps closer, and my eyes naturally drifted to Jin-su’s hand. What is all that?
“What is that? Stones?”
“Clams and conchs.”
“Clams and conchs can be that big?”
In Jin-su’s hand were large, unnamed clams and conchs. He even smiled and held up the bucket to show me. I wondered when he had gathered so many; the previously empty bucket was now quite full of shellfish.
“I’ll prepare that fish for you. You should eat it with these when we get home. It doesn’t even compare to the store-bought stuff.”
“You’re saying that while your family runs a raw fish restaurant? But they really are huge. I guess everything here is big? Water is coming out of the clam!”
“That’s because it’s alive. These are really sweet and delicious if you eat them in the cold winter.”
“You just eat them?”
“You just purge them, then blanch them quickly in boiling water or grill them. In the summer, we go into the water to catch various things, but it’s too cold now.”
Seeing Jin-su gather the clams, I felt an impulse to try it myself. It seemed more interesting than fishing, which required standing still and waiting. Seeing me fidgeting while looking at the bucket, Jin-su reached out his hand to me.
“Hold my hand and come this way carefully. Be careful because it’s slippery. It’s easier to catch them over here, and there are quite a few.”
This was a first for me. Even though I had traveled deep sea paths following my father, I had never imagined something like this. Though I hesitated for fear of falling into the water, I soon found courage and wandered through the rock crevices on my own. I screamed when I slipped slightly and laughed loudly when I found a fairly large conch.
I felt as if the stress I’d received from Joo Min-hyeok over the past few days was being completely washed away. No, more than that, I wasn’t thinking about Joo Min-hyeok at all right now. After spending a long time like that, Jin-su looked around the sea and began packing the fishing rod and bucket.
“Let’s go now, Hyung. We have to leave before the wind gets too strong. Your feet are all wet, too. They’re a bit large, but there are socks and new shoes on the boat, so change into those. The weather is still cold, you’ll catch a cold.”
“Ah, already? That’s a shame. There were plenty of crabs over there, too.”
As soon as I heard Jin-su say it was time to go, I let out a grumble of disappointment. It had been a long time since I’d been so frantically absorbed in something. I was just picking up clams and looking at crabs in the rock crevices, yet I had lost myself in the immersion.
“We can just come back again. Besides, we’d need more than one bucket to pick them all up. We should only take as much as the sea gives us.”
“…As much as the sea gives? It’s this wide, and it only gives this little…?”
“No, it’s just a figure of speech. Hyung, you’re surprisingly funny.”
I wasn’t trying to be funny; I was genuinely disappointed. Still, listening to Jin-su, who knew the sea better than I did, I headed toward the boat. The February winter wind that hit my cheeks as the boat cut through the water was cold enough to make my face sting. However, that coldness wasn’t unpleasant; it was almost refreshing. This was a different experience from a cruise, which made it interesting.
“Isn’t that your second hyung?”
“Second hyung?”
While I was enjoying a time that felt like meditation, Jin-su called out to me. When I looked in the direction he was pointing, there was Seo-joo, waving and calling me. Ah, Seo-joo. Since people think Seo-joo is my hyung… for a moment, I almost made the mistake of saying I only have one hyung.
“He must have come out because he was worried about me.”
“I’m scared of that hyung…”
Looking at Seo-joo welcoming me, Jin-su’s face looked pouty as he grumbled. It seemed to be because he had been dealt with harshly in the past. Seeing Jin-su look intimidated, I felt sorry for him and comforted him.
“I told him we cleared up the misunderstanding. He’s just worried about me, so don’t take it to heart.”
At the time, Jin-su had been rude and Seo-joo had been somewhat menacing. Since this was their first meeting after they’d clashed like that, it might be awkward, so I decided I should act as a good bridge between them to avoid any embarrassment. By the time the boat reached the point where we had departed, Seo-joo rushed over.
“Did you have a good trip? I was so worried I couldn’t get anything done.”
Looking relieved to see me, Seo-joo’s expression brightened as he took the bucket in my hand to examine it. I lightly tapped the arm of Jin-su, who was repeating “He’s so overbearing with a grown brother” in a very small voice behind me. Don’t provoke Seo-joo. It’ll just be tiring.
“Anyway, thank you for taking Hyo… no, Hae-joo and helping him refresh his mood.”
“Huh? Not at all, Hyung-nim. I enjoyed it too.”
The conversation remained somewhat stiff, but it seemed the relationship had improved enough that they wouldn’t be snarling at each other the next time they met. It’s not like I’m raising children, but dealing with these kids is hard. We shared light conversation as we walked along the sea. It was a quite comfortable time.
However, Seo-joo, who was walking ahead of me, suddenly stopped. Stopping in an unexpected spot, Seo-joo just stood there without moving a muscle. Sensing something was wrong with him, I hurried to his side.
“What’s wrong?”
“Hyo, Hyung. Over there.”
Seo-joo spoke softly in a trembling voice, pointing somewhere.
“Isn’t that… His Majesty?”
Where Seo-joo pointed, there was Joo Min-hyeok, his grey coat fluttering in the wind, looking this way.