GMC 162

“The CEO is a bit like a big brother. You know, the eldest.”

“Haha, I am the oldest, so you’re not wrong.”

“Thinking back, it’s funny how Choi Hwan used to call you ‘Hyung’ and all that.”

He hadn’t realized it while he had lost his memories, but looking back now, Yeon-rok knew that Choi Hwan had acted that way because he disliked the idea of him calling Yeom Cheon-ho familiarly. Recalling those events, Yeon-rok gathered his courage and spoke.

“Cheon-ho Hyung.”

“Yes, Yeon-rok-ah.”

Yeom Cheon-ho replied affectionately in a playful voice. Yeon-rok let out another mindless laugh.

Although he had been kidnapped by his biological father and dragged to this deserted island, he found this time quite pleasant and enjoyable. Perhaps because it was a deserted island, there were no annoying mosquitoes despite it being summer, and the air was cool. And so, Yeon-rok gazed at the stars with Yeom Cheon-ho until they were sick of it, then fell asleep.

When he opened his eyes the next day, he was lying on the bed in the cabin. Yeom Cheon-ho, lying beside him, was also—rarely—fully enjoying his morning slumber. Thus, the two of them skipped breakfast and lounged around until noon before finally getting up.

For lunch, they grilled the fish they had caught the day before and read books. For dinner, they made a crude sort of hoe-deopbap by mixing raw fish, rice cooked with heating packs, and cho-jang sauce. The next day at lunch, they grilled fish again, and for dinner, they dipped into their precious food supplies. By the fourth day, having grown completely sick of it, Yeon-rok was slowly picking at a rockfish when Yeom Cheon-ho, who had been eating silently beside him, admitted:

“It seems we are completely stranded on this deserted island.”

“It seems so…”

Yeon-rok’s voice trembled slightly, having deliberately ignored reality until now. Truly, no one was appearing in a boat. It was the worst-case scenario. With a sigh, Yeon-rok thought of the people he had been trying so hard to ignore.

“Um, would it be okay if we didn’t give any food to the people at the dock?”

“I’ve provided water every now and then, so it should be fine. A person can easily last a week without food. In fact, it’s better for us if they lose their strength from starving.”

Hearing Yeom Cheon-ho say that made Yeon-rok feel a bit more at ease. It wasn’t that he particularly wanted to care for those people; it was just that, as a matter of human decency, he couldn’t bear to let them die. After finishing their meal, Yeom Cheon-ho spoke.

“I’ve been thinking about a way to get out of here while resting. Would you like to hear it?”

“What way is that?”

Knowing that Yeom Cheon-ho had a plan made him feel much more relieved. He was the kind of person who seemed capable of figuring something out no matter how dire the situation.

“I have the phone I confiscated from Yoo Young-taek.”

“Really?”

Yeon-rok brightened for a moment, then immediately sank into worry. There must be a reason why Yeom Cheon-ho hadn’t requested rescue despite having a working phone.

“First, the battery is dead, so it needs to be charged. More importantly, the biggest problem is that this island is outside the cellular coverage area.”

It was truly bleak news. Yeom Cheon-ho continued to explain the solution.

“So, how about we go directly to an area where calls are possible?”

As he spoke, he pointed toward the mainland. Yeon-rok swallowed hard. In other words, Yeom Cheon-ho was suggesting they head out into the ocean.

“Do you happen to have a boat?”

Since the island contained all sorts of random items, he asked just in case, but the answer was negative.

“Since the assumption was that people would come and go by ship, no separate vehicle was provided. However, there are drums and extra twine, so I’m thinking of building a raft to either encounter a passing ship or head toward the mainland. While searching, I also found something that can replace oars.”

Listening to the explanation, Yeon-rok asked worriedly.

“What if the raft flips over because of the waves?”

“That’s why I’ll go alone. I just need to reach a spot where the phone gets a signal, and since I’m a good swimmer, even if the raft flips, it won’t be very difficult to survive if I add a few more safety devices.”

Upon hearing the answer, Yeon-rok’s anxiety grew even deeper. He truly didn’t want to be left alone on the island, but no matter how he thought about it, going out with a body that couldn’t even swim well would only make him a burden to Yeom Cheon-ho. With a sigh, he barely managed to swallow the words asking to go along.

“I suppose that’s the only way right now. But what about charging the phone?”

Leading the worried Yeon-rok, Yeom Cheon-ho moved to the highest point on the island. It was atop a sheer cliff, and there was a box in a spot that looked like someone had tried to dig. Yeom Cheon-ho opened the lid of the box. Inside was a solar charger inside a plastic pack. Yeon-rok doubted his own eyes.

A solar charger? This was here?

Yeom Cheon-ho quickly set up the black panel and took out Yoo Young-taek’s phone. He had wondered if it would work, but under the blazing summer sun, it began to charge immediately. Yeom Cheon-ho placed the phone, connected to the solar charger, inside the box.

After fishing and returning around sunset to check, the phone was fully charged. He checked just in case, but unfortunately, as Yeom Cheon-ho had said, the entire island was outside the coverage area. Heading out to sea was an unavoidable fate.

As soon as they woke up the next day, the two moved busily. First, they filled two empty drums, which had been set out to collect rainwater, with seawater to check for leaks. Fortunately, they were perfectly fine without a single leak.

“At least it’s a relief there are plenty of trees.”

Yeon-rok looked around as he spoke. However, the thought of personally logging trees to make a raft already made his vision go dark. Yeom Cheon-ho brought over a saw and a sickle from somewhere. Yeon-rok asked, bewildered.

“Why on earth is there no razor?”

“Haha. I wonder.”

Answering with an awkward laugh, Yeom Cheon-ho’s gaze was directed not at the forest, but at the cozy cabin. His eyes were gauging whether to tear off the roof. Yeon-rok was appalled.

“Surely you aren’t planning to tear that apart right now?”

“It will be less effort than logging and processing trees by hand.”

“But if you fail, we’ll have nowhere to stay!”

“I will succeed. I have to succeed. And even if I do fail, we can just stay in the basement.”

Because Yeom Cheon-ho spoke as if it were nothing, the worried Yeon-rok nodded. It was as Yeom Cheon-ho said. Whether it turned out for better or worse, they had to try.

Thus began the journey of building the raft. Fortunately, after inspecting the house, Yeom Cheon-ho suggested using the wood from the deck, so their shelter was preserved. Even though they only tore out the appropriate timber, the entire day passed.

The next day, after eating grilled fish—which they were now completely sick of—they went down to the dock. Out of consideration for Yeon-rok, Yeom Cheon-ho had moved the three people elsewhere, so he could avoid encountering his biological father. Yeon-rok looked around the dock with relief. In truth, it was so small it was embarrassing to call it a dock; it was just a place with a single bridge for ships to come and go.

“Then when are you leaving?”

“Once the assembly is successfully finished today, I’ll head out immediately to test it. The chances of success will be higher if I try while my physical strength is at its peak. Moreover…”

Yeom Cheon-ho trailed off. He brought up a possibility he had deliberately kept from mentioning for the sake of Yeon-rok’s mental health.

“By now, Yeom Cheon-ryul must have noticed my disappearance.”

“…Let’s get out of here as quickly as possible.”

Thinking about what kind of schemes he might have plotted in the meantime made him feel urgent. Not just for Yeom Cheon-ho, but he was also worried about Moon Gyeon-woo and Choi Hwan. The two of them worked hard, tying the drums and timber together with twine. Working under the scorching summer sun, drenched in sweat, Yeom Cheon-ho saw Yeon-rok’s exhausted face and declared a break.

“Let’s take a short break.”

“I’m hungry, should we eat something? I’ll go get it quickly.”

Yeon-rok jumped up and ran to the basement. He brought back some food to be loaded onto the raft and returned unauthorized unauthorized copycopyto the dock. Lunch, eaten under the shade of a tree while listening to the rushing sound of the waves, tasted like honey.

“Honestly, I feel like I could stay here for another week.”

“I feel the same. Above all, it’s even better because I’m with Yeon-rok-ssi.”

Facing Yeom Cheon-ho’s affectionate gaze, Yeon-rok’s cheeks flushed red. He pretended to be distracted by looking out at the distant sea before gathering his courage to speak.

“Um, once you go out to sea, it’ll probably be quite physically demanding, right?”

“I imagine so. I’m not sure what the currents will be like.”

“So… how about we bring your condition up to the maximum before then?”

Yeom Cheon-ho, who had been staring at the sea over Yeon-rok’s shoulder with narrowed eyes as if he had spotted something, turned his head. Immediately realizing the intention behind Yeon-rok’s words, he gave a beaming smile and opened his arms wide.

“Sounds good.”