FH 1.6

The next morning, Ji-su woke up in a clean room free of cockroaches and silverfish. Since it was a guest room, there was no furniture other than a bed and a small chest of drawers.

The mattress was wide and plush, and it smelled pleasant. Despite sleeping under a thick duvet, he wasn’t hot thanks to the air conditioner. The pajamas he was wearing had been bought for him by Won-hyeop. He thought to himself that he had never worn pajamas this soft in his entire life.

When he had come out of the shower yesterday, Won-hyeop was nowhere to be seen in the living room. Having no reason to search for him, Ji-su didn’t wander through the maze-like expanse of the house and instead came straight to this guest room. Cookie had peeked through the doorway before disappearing. Because the room was so large and unfamiliar, he couldn’t fall asleep immediately. He finally drifted off late in the early hours of the morning, and upon waking, he faintly heard the sound of the front door opening and closing.

The first thing he felt upon waking was hunger. It wasn’t the extreme hunger accompanied by abdominal pain, but the ordinary hunger that most people commonly feel. His mind was clear, and he felt no dizziness. While the pressure on his tailbone remained, he felt a surge of strength emanating from somewhere in his body. Unable to easily get out of bed due to an indescribable sense of guilt, he waited until the Housekeeper knocked on the door. “Are you awake?”

Ji-su pushed himself up and sat up, bracing himself with the arm that wasn’t in a cast. His hands, which usually trembled every morning, did not shake today.

“…Yes, I’m awake.”

As he answered in a gloomy voice, the Housekeeper opened the door and entered. Cookie was with her.

“I’ve made some porridge. Eat it before it gets cold.”

“……Thank you.”

“And I heard the news. I heard you’re in charge of walking Cookie now? I’ll explain how to walk him later.”

“…Yes, thank you.”

The Housekeeper headed toward the living room, but Cookie entered the room and approached the bed. Looking at the dog staring quietly at him, Ji-su suppressed his anguish and spoke.

“…I’ll be the one taking you for walks from now on.”

Cookie brought his snout close as if to sniff him, and Ji-su stroked his head. The glossy black fur was soft. Cookie pushed his head forward, signaling for more petting, but Ji-su stopped and used his crutches to head out to the living room. Won-hyeop was not there. He had been inwardly tense, wondering if Won-hyeop might visit his room in the early hours, but he hadn’t heard any footsteps in his sleep.

The Housekeeper said as she served the porridge into a bowl.

“Just leave the bowl on the table when you’re finished. You don’t have to take it to the sink.”

“…Okay.”

Leaning his crutches against the chair and sitting at the table, Ji-su [unauthorized copy]looked down at the steaming beef porridge. For side dishes, there Read on Read BL Novelswere seasoned deodorant root, spinach, soy-braised [visit our site]eggs, braised tofu, and stir-fried seaweed stems.

Seeing the side dishes prepared with such care made his current situation feel strange. He was receiving free room and board at the home of Won-hyeop, who was neither an acquaintance nor a friend. Because the house felt more like a hotel than a home, the feeling was amplified. Nothing was old, worn, cracked, or creaky.

The Housekeeper busily moved back and forth through the hallway, cleaning the house. Ji-su scooped up a spoonful of porridge but couldn’t bring himself to eat it. As he just held the spoon, Cookie crawled under the table and looked up at him, twitching his black nose.

Ji-su put the spoon down and touched his stomach. He felt as though he had gained weight and his belly had protruded. As he slowly picked up the spoon again, a random thought occurred to him.

After hesitating, he spoke to Cookie.

“……Can you eat porridge?”

He had never raised a dog, so he didn’t know for sure, but he felt that he shouldn’t give the dog food meant for humans.

Unable to avoid eating, he took a small spoonful, but it was agonizing. His stomach growled and his mouth watered, but the act of swallowing it down his throat was a chore.

As he barely managed another small spoonful, a tumbler on the table caught his eye. The logo ‘Myeongshin Group’ was engraved on the surface. The same logo had been on the business card he received from Won-hyeop during the fender bender.

Suddenly curious, he picked up his phone. When he searched for ‘Myeongshin Group’ [Read on Read BL Novels]on the internet, surprisingly, several articles appeared [stolen content]along with a photo [unauthorized copy]of Won-hyeop’s face. There were many articles about signing business agreements with leading companies that anyone would recognize, or about expanding the business.

Looking further, he realized the reason he had never heard of Myeongshin Group was that he never watched the news, and even when he used products from Myeongshin Group subsidiaries, he hadn’t known they belonged to the group. Some of the subsidiaries had quite familiar names.

It had been a huge mistake to think that Myeongshin Group was a small-scale company. Won-hyeop wasn’t the head of a small firm with fourteen or fifteen employees; he was the Chairman running a respectable mid-sized enterprise.

✿✿✿

“Yes, I’ve arrived now.”

Jong-bae continued his phone conversation while looking around the house. The person on the other end was Jang-ho.

Black soot was clumped all over the insect screens of the veranda. Gray powder, whether it was dust or ash, had settled thickly on the window frames. It was also piled up white on the floor, so he didn’t dare go near that area.

[Report back as soon as the installation is finished.]

“Understood. By the way, when should I install them at the Seocho-dong house?”

[Either tomorrow or the day after.]

Jong-bae continued to survey the house. Jang-ho’s voice sounded busy, so he didn’t ask further and answered politely.

“I will call you back immediately once the installation is complete.”

After hanging up, Jong-bae checked his socks. He was wearing black socks, so it wasn’t very noticeable, but the soles were a mess of dust. As he brushed them off, a cockroach scurried past. It was about the size of a big toe.

“Shit, you scared me!”

Just as he let out a startled yell, his phone rang. It was the CCTV installation technician. Feeling utterly pissed off, he answered the phone with a scowl.

“Come on up. Yes, the third floor.”

What Won-hyeop had ordered were small CCTVs that were quite expensive for a typical household. The most important thing was that Ji-su must not notice the installation when he returned to this house.

Fortunately, there were many dark mold spots and stains on the ceiling and walls, and the ceiling was low, with the refrigerator almost touching it. Looking at the state of the house, it seemed Ji-su didn’t clean. Installing it on top of the refrigerator seemed appropriate.

Having previously lied on the mattress and scanned the walls and ceiling from Ji-su’s perspective, Jong-bae judged that there was no possibility stolen contentof Ji-su discovering the CCTV. Even [visit our site]if he did find it and freaked out, Jong-bae bore no responsibility. [Read on Read BL Novels]This was something Won-hyeop had ordered. He felt no pangs of conscience about installing CCTVs in a filthy house that was worse than a subway restroom. It was a house the owner had given up on managing. What was the difference between this house and the trash heap in front of the villa?

As he waved his hand at the flies buzzing around the house, he heard footsteps beyond the door. When he opened the front door and stepped out, the employee from the CCTV installation company was coming up the stairs.

Hoping to leave this wretched house as quickly as possible, Jong-bae said,

“Hello. Please come in. You can start the installation right away.”

✿✿✿

There were piles of documents on the desk.

Won-hyeop, who had returned after lunch, neither smoked nor drank coffee. After a short thirty-minute break, he promptly began working. Though they looked like menial tasks at a glance, there were plenty of documents that absolutely required the Chairman’s signature.

After signing for a while, he put down the pen and massaged his right thumb. Since he was young, his right thumb had been uncomfortable, so whenever he had to hold a pen for a long time, he had to massage it like this. He had received medical treatment once, and the doctor told him that the joint was permanently damaged and impossible to treat. He could use utensils well and had no problem writing. It was just that holding a pen for too long made it uncomfortable, as if it were under too much load.

While massaging his finger, Won-hyeop remembered and sent a message to Ji-su.

After waiting a moment, a reply came back quickly.

Ppyani

Yes. I’m home

1:14 PM

At the lack of charm in the answer, Won-hyeop wore a dissatisfied expression.

“So stiff.”

He heard a knock on the office door. When he told them to come in, Gi-uk entered along with Jang-ho. Gi-uk was the Head of the Finance and Accounting Division of Myeongshin Group and was in charge of fund management. He was managing one of the subsidiaries of Myeongshin Group, but he was far too young to be a CEO. Since his surname was Kang, he was commonly called ‘President Kang’.

Won-hyeop asked Jang-ho abruptly.

“What do twenty-somethings these days like to eat?”

Picking up the pen again, Won-hyeop massaged his right thumb one last time and continued signing the documents.

“I mean Ppyani. I’m thinking of buying some late-night snacks on my way home from work, but I don’t know what would be appropriate.”

Jang-ho had come because he had business to discuss, and Gi-uk had come because Won-hyeop had called him. However, Won-hyeop only spoke of what he wanted to say.

“Since twenty-somethings these days are used to delivery food, anything should be fine.”

“For example?”

“Chicken or pizza would be safe.”

Gi-uk remained silent, not knowing who ‘Ppyani’ referred to.

“However, greasy food might not be good. Isn’t student Ji-su eating porridge?”

Jang-ho, who had already answered a few questions about [unauthorized copy]Ji-su over the [visit our site]phone from Gyeong-jin [unauthorized copy]yesterday evening, added a comment within a very reasonable range.

“Meat dishes would be better than fried food.”

Won-hyeop nodded based on this simple judgment.

“Meat sounds good. Get a portion of jokbal from a decent place so I can bring it when I leave work this evening.”

“Understood.”

Jang-ho handed the document in his hand to Won-hyeop. Recalling the conversation Gyeong-jin had over the phone yesterday, he continued.

“If there are psychiatric issues, there is a high possibility that student Ji-su will be uncooperative with treatment. Even if you buy it, he might not eat it.”

“If he doesn’t eat, I’ll force-feed him.”

Since Won-hyeop had left work early yesterday, he was busy today; he quickly scanned the document with his eyes and asked Jang-ho something else.

“What did Chairman Lee say regarding the schedule for the new business sharing session?”

“He said the fourth Wednesday and Thursday of this month are fine.”

“Then set it for Wednesday.”

As Won-hyeop continued signing busily, Jang-ho paused for a beat before speaking.

“Isn’t the last Wednesday of this month a memorial service day?”

Won-hyeop checked the calendar belatedly. Since he hadn’t marked it separately, he only understood after checking the date.

The last Wednesday of the month was his mother’s memorial service. Even though he had observed it for nearly forty years, not just one or two, he never remembered it in advance. He considered it insignificant and forgot it every year.

It was a day when he had to see a string of people he hated, but Won-hyeop showed no sign of being troubled. He simply said indifferently,

“Then set it for Thursday.”

✿✿✿

“Cookie, let’s go back inside now….”

Standing on his crutches, Ji-su wiped his forehead with his cast as sweat beaded up. Cookie took a stance as if asking him to throw the ball, so he had no choice but to throw it far. As the ball rolled into the corner of the yard, Cookie chased after it breathlessly, his ears flapping.

The Housekeeper had said she would walk Cookie only until today and had already taken him for a morning walk a few hours ago. Normally, he should have gone for an afternoon walk an hour later, but he decided to skip it today. The daytime temperature was too high. The sky was clear and bright, but it was absolutely not walking weather.

Cookie, having brought the ball back, spat it out on the ground and took a stance again. Ji-su found it strange that he felt no dizziness, yet he felt uneasy and threw the ball with a dark expression. When Cookie quickly brought it back and posed for another throw, Ji-su hid his hand behind his back.

“That’s it. I’m not throwing it anymore.”

Cookie jumped and barked once. Woof!

Ji-su shook his head.

“No.”

Wiping the sweat from his temples, he looked down at the main gate [stolen content]below the stone steps. No matter stolen contenthow little interest he had [unauthorized copy]in houses or cars, spending a boring day of recuperation made him curious about the market value of this house.

Looking at the size of the house, he should have realized sooner that Won-hyeop was a great man of wealth, but he had been ignorant.

The tumbler had belonged to the Housekeeper. He heard she had received it from Jang-ho.

“…Let’s go in.”

When he opened the terrace door and entered the house first, Cookie circled the yard a few times as if reluctant to come inside. When he called, “Cookie,” the dog finally entered the living room. Every time he stepped on the marble floor, there was a chap, chap sound of paws.

As he limped into the room on his crutches, Cookie followed. The Housekeeper was cleaning the next room. Ji-su touched his stomach out of habit and then left the room again with an anxious expression.

Seeing the Housekeeper coming out of the next room, he asked cautiously.

“By any chance, is there a scale in the house?”

“No. Why? To weigh yourself?”

“……No, it’s nothing.”

Since the Housekeeper looked busy, Ji-su didn’t ask further and went back into his room. The room was dim, but he intentionally didn’t turn on the light to save on electricity.

Thinking about electricity costs reminded him of the taxi fare. It was money that couldn’t be recovered, but it felt agonizingly wasteful. If he had used that money for food, or rather, for bus fare, he could have taken the bus three or four more times. Why on earth did he take a taxi?

As he sank into gloom, the fact that he had to eat dinner in three hours tormented his mind. He was so anxious he couldn’t sit still.

As he walked around the room on his crutches, Cookie paced the room in the same way, following close behind him. When he sat on the bed, Cookie approached and sat down, resting his rump.

He didn’t want to eat dinner, but ironically, his appetite was returning. He wanted something other than porridge. Frozen foods like ham, sausages, grilled beef patties, or chicken nuggets. When he recalled his childhood memories, he only remembered being hit on the head by his father for secretly eating them while they were still partially frozen, yet he craved them.

Thinking about the things he wanted to eat made him feel pathetic. Tears came to his eyes at the thought of his situation, trembling in anticipation of mealtime.

As he lay face down on the bed and sobbed quietly, Cookie snorted and licked his temple with his tongue.

“Stop it, hngh….”

He covered his temple with his arm stolen contentand sobbed until he grew exhausted and [Read on Read BL Novels]fell asleep just like that.

When he opened his eyes to the sound of the Housekeeper calling him, it was already dinner time. Cookie was not in the room. He hadn’t woken up drenched in sweat as usual, nor did his heart ache the moment he woke. His eyes were swollen from crying, but since his bare limbs were dry and the duvet was plush, his face, which had been pressed down, didn’t hurt.

Before sitting up and grabbing his crutches, he checked the bone structure on the back of his hand. He also checked the thickness of his thighs. He felt as though he had plumped up in the meantime. Forcing back his tears, he went out to the living room, and the Housekeeper placed a bowl of porridge on the kitchen table.

“Have some dinner.”

It was almost time for the Housekeeper to leave for the day. Cookie was under the table.

“Eat some side dishes too. They’re delicious.”

Answering “Yes” in a powerless voice, Ji-su sat in the chair, but he couldn’t bring himself to eat and only held the spoon in his hand. His eyes gradually turned red. A single tear dropped, and as he wiped it with the back of his hand, Cookie looked up at him blankly from under the table.

The Housekeeper went out to the yard. The reason he looked back at the porridge pot while crying was due to a sudden thought. He didn’t know where this sudden burst of courage came from. He quickly picked up the porridge bowl, stood up, and limped toward the pot. Since he could only use one hand, he set the bowl down, opened the pot lid, and poured the porridge back in. After shaking it out while keeping an eye on the yard, he set the bowl down and closed the lid. Then he returned to his seat.

He pretended to eat, hoping the Housekeeper wouldn’t notice that he had returned the porridge when she opened the pot. In the bowl, there remained an amount that wouldn’t even make two spoonfuls even if scraped clean.

A short while later, the Housekeeper entered the visit our siteliving room, but she didn’t come to the kitchen unauthorized copyand instead entered another room.

Ji-su stalled while holding the spoon and only picked out and ate the beef bits remaining in the bowl. He felt it was a waste, but he didn’t eat the grains of rice; he took the bowl to the sink and poured water into it. He tidied up the side dishes and returned to the room with Cookie, but he decided not to take his nutritional supplements. Just in case, he checked his phone, but there was no contact from Won-hyeop. He was bothered by the obsession that he had to reply immediately.

As he sat on the bed touching his stomach, the Housekeeper peered into the room while passing through the hallway.