#191

Seon-jae first asked if the man was okay.

His condition isn’t good at all. I was already on the phone with the old man this morning because of that, and he told me to wait, saying he’d finish everything by 2 PM no matter what. So, you’ll be hearing from him soon. But are you alright? You wouldn’t have called if you weren’t.

Seon-jae briefly told him that he was safe and that he had brought someone from Gimje with him. Gim Delivery immediately understood what Seon-jae was trying to say.

But is it really safe?

He was suspicious.

After all that fuss, are you sure it’ll be alright to take him now? You know I’m not working with you, right? Once I send him, I won’t look back. So, think carefully.

“I’m going to try to take him for now. It’s not like he’s safe next to you either, is he?”

It’s better than there.

“I’ll take him. Please return him.”

Seon-jae requested with a confident voice.

After a moment of hesitation, Gim Delivery said, “Oh, whatever,” and told him the meeting place.

Don’t be late. He might do something while he’s high on painkillers, so be on time.

“Yes. I’ll be there early, so don’t worry.”

Alright, then. See you there.

The meeting place was Jeonju Jeondong Cathedral.

He had already told the man that he had gone to Jeonju to find the stolen Korando, so it was the perfect place to meet the Man.

Seon-jae took the wheel again, and Yong was in charge of the map.

After driving for about 40 minutes and arriving at Jeondong Cathedral, Seon-jae jumped out of the car without even parking. He figured Yong would take care of it.

It was only after entering the cathedral that he realized he had arrived 20 minutes early. Even if Gim Delivery had arrived first, he would definitely send the man on time. Punctuality was an essential virtue for working in this industry.

Seon-jae waited for the Man, more nervous than ever. Time passed so slowly. He was sure five minutes had passed, but when he looked at his watch, only one minute had passed.

Then, right on time, the Man’s figure began to appear at the entrance of Jeondong Cathedral.

“Ki-beom!”

Seon-jae called out the Man’s name and ran towards him. He barely avoided falling several times because of his shoes and stood in front of the Man. He tried to hug him right away again, but the man took off his arm sling and opened his arms.

They looked at each other and smiled brightly, then embraced tightly.

“I thought I’d see you in Seoul,” the man said.

“I thought so too. But the work finished quickly.”

“What happened to the Korando?”

“What do you think happened? The owner will take it back.”

“What do you mean?”

The the man said, laughing.

“How’s your arm?”

Seon-jae asked, releasing the hug.

“It’s okay.”

The the man replied with a slightly dazed face. He was smiling weakly, and Seon-jae couldn’t tell if it was because of the drugs or because he was happy to see him, but it was clear that his pupils were dilated.

“Let’s go. Let’s get your arm treated first.”

“Can’t we meet Ji-hye first?”

Then he said, “I want to see Ji-hye.”

“Of course, we have to meet Ji-hye. But would Ji-hye like it if you had such a sloppy bandage on? You know how sharp her eyes are. Right?”

“Ah… I guess so. I think it’s okay.”

The the man muttered, looking down at his bandaged arm and sloppy arm sling.

“What about lunch?”

“I ate. What about Tae-heun?”

“I ate too.”

He had filled up with coffee at the rest stop, but he answered that he had eaten. He wasn’t hungry because he had eaten breakfast with Chairman Shin, and even if he was hungry, he would have forgotten about it the moment he saw the Man.

“What about Delivery Hyung?”

“He had to go to work, so he left first.”

“Work? Ah. The nursing home.”

“Yes.”

The the man believed that Gim Delivery really worked at a nursing home. It was partly because Gim Delivery acted so perfectly, but he originally believed whatever the other person said and had no suspicion. It was questionable whether he would even think of suspecting someone.

That’s why he believed in and followed someone like me.

Seon-jae smiled bitterly.

“Let’s go.”

“We’re going to Seoul, right?”

“Of course. We’re going to Seoul.”

Seon-jae put the Man’s injured arm in the arm sling and linked his arm with his good arm.

The the man tried to pull away, but Seon-jae wouldn’t let him.

“What’s wrong with it? It’s just linking arms. It’s not like I’m asking for a kiss.”

“Still.”

“Still what? Let’s go.”

He pulled the man along.

The the man reluctantly followed, saying, “Tae-heun is really something.”

He barely raised one of the back seats that had been laid down to store luggage and had Yong sit there. Then, Seon-jae sat next to the man and headed for Seoul.

Yong simply said, “I’m Yong,” as his greeting. It was fortunate that he even greeted them, but the man kept glancing at him because he was wearing sunglasses even in the car.

“His eyes are weak. He keeps getting unexplained tears, so he has to wear sunglasses to feel better,” Seon-jae said, and the man quickly agreed again, saying, “Ah.” Then he cautiously asked if it was because his tear ducts were blocked. Seon-jae found the Man’s concern endearing and funny, so he teased Yong on purpose.

“Did you hear that? Your tear ducts might be blocked, so get a checkup.”

He said loudly, but there was no response.

He seemed similar to the Man, so he said, “You’re like Ki-beom, so quiet.”

“Well… yes.”

The Man’s reaction wasn’t very enthusiastic, as if he didn’t like being compared to Yong. When it came to being taciturn, Yong and the man were both the same. Nevertheless, the man seemed subtly concerned that he was that quiet. Seon-jae laughed to himself because the man was so cute.

The the man occasionally took something out of his pants pocket and chewed on it very carefully. He didn’t actually see what he was eating, and when he glanced back, the man was chewing, so he figured he was eating something.

But why isn’t he giving me any?

He smiled again, thinking silly thoughts.

Being with the man made the smile never leave his face. He just felt good. He was just happy, smiling like a fool over and over again. Even though it was already the fourth time he had traveled this road, including the sky road, he wasn’t bored at all. He was so bored of the four hours earlier, but now it was so short that he was surprised.

Compared to the last trip, when they only traveled on local roads and couldn’t stop at proper rest stops, this time they drove on the highway no matter what and stopped at every rest stop. He tasted the famous specialties of the rest stops with the Man. The specialties were mostly retort foods like hot dogs, walnut cookies, and potatoes, but both the man and Seon-jae ate them very deliciously, as if they were eating delicacies.

Gim Delivery was exaggerating.

Seon-jae thought as he ate a skewered rice cake covered in red sauce.

The the man looked more normal than anyone else. He didn’t look sick at all, he ate well, and he talked well. Maybe it was thanks to the painkillers, but he laughed a lot.

The problem occurred when they stopped at the Jukjeon Rest Stop for the last time. The Man, who had said he was going to the bathroom, didn’t come back. Seon-jae had sent the man to the bathroom and was waiting after buying a hot dog.

The the man liked hot dogs so much that he wanted to eat them every time they stopped at a rest stop, even after eating them. How could he just pass by when the man wanted to eat them? On the other hand, Yong was the type who didn’t eat any snacks at all, so he wouldn’t eat even one walnut cookie no matter how much he was urged.

Seon-jae, who was waiting for the man with hot dogs in both hands, kept peeking in front of the bathroom.

He figured he must be having a big bowel movement since he was taking so long. He had been eating continuously, so his stomach might hurt, or he might have diarrhea because he had eaten several greasy things that he didn’t usually eat. But he didn’t come out even when the hot dog had cooled and hardened.

Eventually, Seon-jae threw the hot dog in the trash and went into the bathroom, calling out to the Man.

“Ki-beom! Does your stomach hurt a lot? Should I buy medicine?”

He shouted.

Up until this point, Seon-jae thought the man had a stomachache, so his voice was full of playfulness. The men standing in front of the urinals turned around, without exception, at the shout of the pretty man who had suddenly burst into the bathroom, and even looked around, wondering who Ki-beom was.

But no matter how much he called the Man’s name, there was no answer, and not even a figure similar to the man could be seen. So, he knocked on each of the closed doors and checked who was inside in turn. The the man wasn’t in the partitioned bathroom, which didn’t have many stalls.

Did they get separated?

He went back to the place where they sold hot dogs and checked the restaurant and supermarket inside the rest stop, just in case. Even though there weren’t many people on a weekday afternoon, he couldn’t find the Man.

Only then did Seon-jae and Yong, who was following him, realize that the situation was unusual, and they quickly scattered outside the rest stop. The two ran in opposite directions as if they had always been a team. Seon-jae searched the gas station, and Yong searched the parking lot. They even stopped a bus that was about to depart and looked inside.

The two met again and headed to the back of the Jukjeon Rest Stop this time. Yong ran to the employee’s commute path, and Seon-jae ran to the back road leading to the village.

Not far from the rest stop, the man was standing with his back turned.

“Ki-beom!”

Seon-jae called out to the man in a loud voice. But he didn’t react, as if he hadn’t heard. He had no choice but to approach the Man.

“What are you doing here?”

He stood in front of the Man, panting.

The the man didn’t even look at Seon-jae and was holding a very dirty teddy bear with its stomach torn and stuffing spilling out. He hugged it tightly as if it were a precious treasure and gently rocked it from side to side. Like he was lulling a newborn baby to sleep.

So, it seemed that the man had mistaken the teddy bear for a the child.

“Ki-beom!”

Seon-jae called out to the man again.

Then the man raised his head and said, “Shh.”

“Don’t wake her. She just fell asleep.”

He whispered to someone other than Seon-jae.

Seon-jae was dumbfounded, but since the top priority was to get the man to safety, he decided to play along.

“What did you say the the child’s name was?”

He asked quietly.

“Ji-hye. I named her. Isn’t it pretty?”

The the man smiled contentedly and then gently held out the teddy bear towards Seon-jae.

Ji-hye. Seon-jae looked down at the dirty doll and sighed softly.

The the man had returned to 10 years ago, when Ji-hye was a newborn the child.

“It’s pretty. You named her well. But is it okay to bring her here like this?”

“It’s not. We’ll be in big trouble if we get caught.”

The the man replied in a low, rapid voice. He looked around with anxious eyes.

“By whom?”

“Silly. Dr. Choi.”

“Dr. Choi?”

Then the man nodded.

“What are you going to do?”

“What do you mean? I have to raise her.”

“Is that okay?”

“Of course. That’s why she gave her to me.”

The the man raised his head again and stared at Seon-jae.

“Who?”

“Who else? It’s you, Maria.”

The the man smiled brightly.

“Thank you. Thank you so much for entrusting me with such a precious gift. I’ll raise her well,” he added.

Seon-jae didn’t know if Maria was a name or a nickname, but it was clear that she was at least a Galilla Orphanage resident.

“What about the orphanage?”

Seon-jae asked cautiously.

“Don’t even mention that place. It’s been so long since I graduated, and you’re still talking about the orphanage. You forget about it too!”

The the man suddenly became serious. His face even turned red.

“Okay, okay. I understand. Don’t get angry.”

Seon-jae soothed the Man.

“But how are you going to raise her alone?”

“I have a plan. Don’t worry and go quickly. Or you’ll get caught.”

The the man answered Seon-jae’s question while constantly looking around.

“Maria, go quickly. I think we’re going to get caught. I have a bad feeling.”

The the man pushed Seon-jae away and urged him to leave.

He roughly knew that a girl named Maria had entrusted the the child to the Man, but he had no idea what the situation was at the time, or why Maria had tried to entrust her the child to the Man.

Then Yong appeared.

“Yoon Ki-beom!”

Damn it. Seon-jae quickly turned around and gestured with both arms, signaling her to stop.

But it was already too late.

192 – Chapter Title Without Number