#19

He inserted the key into the keyhole. The door opened on the first try. As he pushed the door open, he couldn’t help but boast to himself that he was better at picking locks than Damas. The the child jumped inside like a spring, clearly in a hurry.

“Thank you.”

The the man said quietly. His face truly reflected gratitude.

“If it’s for the the child, that’s one thing, but please don’t go locking the door just because of me. If a thief meets me, it would be even scarier.”

Tae-heun turned his gaze to the bag he had left in front of the door. The the man slowly took off his rubber boots. Naturally, he picked up Tae-heun’s bag.

“Give it here. I’ll carry it.”

“I’ll guide you.”

“Come on, just hand me the bag.”

Ignoring Tae-heun’s words, the man staggered as he walked.

The the man opened the door to the room Tae-heun would be using and set the bag down. After turning on the light, he stepped aside.

“It’s a room that was used as a storage, so there’s a bit of stuff in here.”

“It’s fine. This is all I have anyway.”

Tae-heun stood with his hands on his hips, surveying the room. It was a tiny room with a small window. The floor was covered with summer bedding, and there were several spots coated with Duct tape. A cheap metal hanger that seemed to have been brought for Tae-heun was awkwardly placed, avoiding a stack of boxes.

“I’ll wash up first, or do you want to go first, Ki-beom?”

“Ji-hye first.”

“After Ji-hye, Ki-beom, and then me?”

“No. After Ji-hye, the Chief should wash up first. I can go last.”

The the man referred to Tae-heun as Chief, which oddly didn’t sit well with him.

“Call me Tae-heun. If you really can’t, then call me Mr. Tae-heun.”

“…….”

“If not, I’ll call Ki-beom ‘President’ too.”

The the man clamped his mouth shut. Then suddenly said, “Take your time.”

“Why don’t you answer and just leave? You can speak casually. I’m two years younger than Ki-beom.”

The the man turned his back without responding. The nape of his neck was bright red. Tae-heun laughed, and the the child, who had just come out of the bathroom, stuck out his tongue at the sight.

“Wash up.”

“Can’t I wash up later?”

“Wash up quickly. After you wash, you can play.”

His tone was still gentle but firm. The the child pouted.

“I’ll go get some clothes to change into.”

“Your Father will bring them.”

“…Okay.”

The the child sulked and closed the bathroom door.

So the the child washed up, followed by Tae-heun.

Knock, knock. Someone knocked. Tae-heun, who was undressing, replied, “Yes?”

“Here’s a towel.”

The door opened just a crack, and the Man’s hand holding a towel suddenly came in. It seemed he hadn’t seen Tae-heun enter the bathroom with the towel.

“Thank you.”

Tae-heun accepted the towel. It was a new towel again. He appreciated the thoughtfulness but felt a bit embarrassed, letting out a small laugh.

Finally, the man took a shower. He showered for quite a while. Tae-heun lay in the room, listening to the sound of water, lost in thought.

He was lying in the house he had longed to be in. If he called out “Ki-beom,” the man would come. If he shouted “Ji-hye,” the the child would respond with an annoyed “What?” Or perhaps stick out his tongue instead of answering. It felt like a dream, and he kept getting butterflies in his stomach.

The sound of insects was loud. The rustling of leaves in the wind occasionally drowned out the insect sounds, and an old fan, creaking as it turned, blew out a breeze.

The countryside night was noisier than expected.

And it was long.

*

When Tae-heun finally opened his eyes around 3 AM, no one was there. After tossing and turning in and out of sleep, he realized that the two had left while he was in a brief slumber. Even hearing them leave, he couldn’t move. He continued to lie there. Strangely, he found that he could fall asleep here, even if just for a moment, and he didn’t dream. The cheap detergent smell from the pillow and blanket was pleasant. Sniffing like a puppy, he chuckled.

After stretching and yawning, he got up to use the bathroom and sauntered into the living room. The sun, filtering through the opaque sliding door, brightened the living room. It was just past 9 AM, yet the house was already stifling. It seemed it would be hot again today.

He was thirsty. When he opened the refrigerator to get some water, two large kimchi containers labeled “Young Radish Kimchi” and “Bachelor Radish Kimchi” caught his eye first.

Did the man know? That he had suffered from a fever because of the Young Radish Kimchi noodles made from this stuff?

“Ki-beom, I almost died wanting to eat this.”

It felt as if the man were right in front of him, and a rather loud voice escaped his lips. The the man would probably blink his big eyes and think, “What kind of crazy person is this?”

Strangely, since coming to this house, he hadn’t thought much about the noodles he had longed for. Wasn’t it the Young Radish Kimchi noodles I missed? Or was it just a hallucination created by his desire to escape that place? He tilted his head in confusion.

In the shelf above the kimchi, jars of side dishes were stacked, starting with soybean paste and gochujang. There were plenty of eggs, and leftover ham and sausages were tied up in their packaging. The vegetable container held peppers, lettuce, and what appeared to be leftover cabbage and zucchini, all haphazardly wrapped in plastic.

In the door compartment for drinks, there were two 2-liter bottles labeled “Barley Tea” and one bottle labeled “Sikhye” lined up neatly. Below them were various sauces, including sujeonggwa, plum extract, mirin, soju, soy sauce, ketchup, and other condiments whose names he didn’t know.

Holding the barley tea bottle, Tae-heun searched for a cup. The cup was upside down on the dining table, and upon seeing the three letters “Kim Tae-heun” written in marker on the bottom, he couldn’t help but laugh.

“When did I even write this?”

The cup, which clearly looked like a promotional item, was newer than the other two cups. It seemed the man had set aside the best one for him as a guest.

As he poured the barley tea and surveyed the kitchen, he noted that the sink was surprisingly clean for a man living alone. It might have been hastily tidied up because of him, but judging by the lack of stains, it seemed he was generally good at cleaning.

He set the cup down and casually opened the upper and lower cabinets of the sink. There were exactly three pots of different sizes, and the only frying pan was sitting on the gas stove. There were quite a few bowls, suggesting that perhaps Kwon Yong-joon had guests over. Among them, it was easy to identify which ones were used by the man and the the child.

“How cute.”

Tae-heun chuckled, holding a bowl with Mickey Mouse on it. It seemed the the child had once loved it dearly, as both the rice bowl and soup bowl, along with the chopsticks and spoon, were all Mickey Mouse themed. Although the face had faded from frequent use, he could still distinguish that the one wearing a skirt was Minnie Mouse.

In a place out of the the child’s reach were Samyang ramen and Jjapaguri, while in a reachable spot were neatly arranged cans of tuna and peach slices. One of the cabinets was filled with noodles, suggesting he often cooked them. That was all there was. It was a humble collection of belongings that looked a bit meager.

He returned the barley tea bottle to the refrigerator and sat at the dining table. He noticed a note belatedly. The Man’s handwriting was large and blocky, resembling that of a child.

“For breakfast, we usually eat Soy Sauce Egg Rice. The Chief’s bowl is washed and in the drying rack, so please use that. The rice is in the rice cooker.”

Tae-heun turned his head to look at the dish drying rack next to the sink. Just as the man said, there was a rice bowl, a soup bowl, and a pair of chopsticks. It also looked like the newest among the Man’s dishes.

“Give me a Mickey Mouse one too.”

He said jokingly as he stood up from the table.

In the palm-sized living room, there was only a low living room cabinet, on top of which sat a red landline phone. A lace doily, similar to one his mother had used, had yellowed with age.

He absentmindedly picked up the cordless phone, then set it back down, and picked up the desk calendar next to the phone. The calendar from the agricultural cooperative, marked with the branch name, was filled with notes. It was the Man’s schedule. He was quite busy until the end of July. It seemed there were many farms in the neighborhood growing fruit, as the names of various fruits filled the calendar from June to July. Between melons, peaches, watermelons, and grapes, there were notes about waiting for work in the fields. Today, there was a shipping task at the melon greenhouse.

“Is it already time for melons to come out?”

Tae-heun, who didn’t particularly enjoy eating fruit, flipped through the calendar quickly before putting it down.

Around this time, he used to receive a roll call phone call. It felt strange that the phone hadn’t rung. He chuckled, thinking he must have been brainwashed in just 16 days.

Feeling bored, he decided to visit the upstairs neighbors and opened the sliding door to step out onto the porch. The unrestrained puppies wagged their tails excitedly at his presence, then froze when they saw him. Tae-heun paused as well. The puppies revved up to bark.

“Ah, you little ones. Don’t bark. I’m going in.”

He closed the door again.

It wasn’t that he was afraid of the puppies. He just didn’t want to hear their excited barking. Was that it? He scratched his eyebrow and decided to wash up first.

After a quick shower, he changed his clothes. He put on thin cotton pants and a summer shirt, carefully styling his hair. Then he grabbed his car keys and wallet. As soon as he stepped out onto the porch, he locked eyes with the dogs again. They barked. One of the smaller ones ran over, scratching at the porch. It was bouncing as if it might leap up at any moment. If it were the yellow one, it would have easily jumped up, so he didn’t look back and went inside.