By Zephyria Thanks to Kwon Tae-hee’s haste, Seo Jeong-won arrived at the hospital without being late. Seo Jeong-won stopped in front of the hospital room, looking anxious. His hand, gripping the doorknob, trembled due to excessive tension.
“…Since it’s night, would it have been better to come tomorrow morning?”
“If I were your Hyung, I’d be happy to see my younger brother whether he came at night or dawn. So, go in.”
Kwon Tae-hee lightly gripped and released Seo Jeong-won’s shoulder as he hesitated. He even opened the door himself, as it seemed Seo Jeong-won wouldn’t be able to open it for hours if left alone. Seo Jeong-won stepped into the hospital room.
As the door creaked open, the caregiver, who had been sitting by the bed, slowly turned. She had a cardigan on and looked puzzled as she came to the door, but upon seeing who it was, she seemed surprised and swept her hand over her chest.
“Welcome, Jeong-won.”
Her voice was a little softer than usual. She nodded to Kwon Tae-hee, who was standing behind Seo Jeong-won, and then continued.
“Gyu-won has been waiting for you, wondering when you would come. He woke up several times today and just kept looking towards the door.”
“How is Hyung… is he okay?”
“He seems fine to me. He just fell asleep…”
Seo Jeong-won, who had been walking alongside the caregiver, saw Seo Gyu-won’s eyes flutter and quickly approached the bedside.
“Gyu-won must have known his brother was here.”
At the gentle voice, Seo Gyu-won’s gaze slowly turned. He stared at Seo Jeong-won for a long time with lifeless, blurry eyes before his eyelids trembled. His lips, covered by the respirator, twitched.
Seo Jeong-won moved his feet, which had been frozen in place. When he quietly approached and stopped in front of Seo Gyu-won, his face was already soaked.
“…Hyung.”
“…”
“Hyung.”
Then, he collapsed as if breaking down. He carefully took the hand that was thinner than a tree branch and rested his forehead on the back of the hand that seemed like it would break with the slightest pressure.
The fingers that had always clung to him slowly curled. Seo Jeong-won soon raised his head. Unable to hide his joy, he smiled, his wet eyes crinkling, and opened his mouth.
“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
“…”
“I really missed you, and we’re finally meeting. I… I’ve been doing well, Hyung. I’ve been living like everyone else, not too hard.”
Seo Gyu-won’s eyes trembled. Tears welled up in his weakly opened eyes and soon streamed down his temples. Seo Jeong-won stroked his face with a trembling hand.
Even the caregiver, who had been watching the two from behind, sniffled. She took out a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes, muttering that it was pitiful. Kwon Tae-hee came into view as the caregiver turned her head, as if unable to bear the sight of their sorrowful reunion any longer. He hadn’t come further inside and was leaning against the wall, merely listening to the brothers’ reunion.
“Oh…”
The caregiver was about to gesture for him to come inside, but upon seeing the index finger he raised in front of his shapely lips, she nodded. It seemed he didn’t want to disturb the two. He was as considerate as he was handsome.
“Does it hurt anywhere? Does he seem okay?”
A tearful voice flowed into Kwon Tae-hee’s ears. He didn’t like the voice filled with worry and affection. He had hoped he would wake up, but he hadn’t wished for him to wake up looking so healthy.
No, even though he had been continuously administering a Pheromone shower, was it really that effective? Or was he waking up to say goodbye to Seo Jeong-won before dying, like a last burst of vitality? It was that unrealistic of a situation.
“Oh, Jeong-won. The doctor in charge came by earlier. I didn’t hear the details, but he said that Gyu-won’s physical strength is too weak right now, so even basic tests are difficult.”
“Ah…”
“He said his organs aren’t functioning properly. He even said it was a miracle that he woke up… or so he said. He said we’ll have to wait and see for a while.”
The caregiver felt sorry, even though she was just honestly conveying what she had heard from the doctor. It was definitely a miracle that Seo Gyu-won had woken up, but it was just unfortunate that the situation wasn’t hopeful. Seeing the young face where joy and sorrow intersected, she regretted only saying good things before Seo Gyu-won woke up.
“Jeong-won?”
“…I’ll talk to the doctor in charge. Thank you for your concern.”
“It’s my job. But still, don’t worry too much. He’ll get better soon…”
Seo Jeong-won smiled at the words she added after hesitating. The caregiver patted his thin shoulder and then gasped softly as if she had remembered something. She put her hand to Seo Jeong-won’s ear and lowered her voice.
“Instead of that, why don’t you tell the person who came with you to come inside? He’s been over there the whole time.”
She subtly asked if he shouldn’t greet the person who helped Seo Gyu-won wake up. Her words made sense. If he woke up because of Kwon Tae-hee’s Pheromone shower even after they broke up, then he probably wanted to see him the most.
“Ah… yes, just a moment. Hyung, just a moment.”
Seo Jeong-won let go of Seo Gyu-won’s hand and straightened his bent back, having been too preoccupied with the fact that his Hyung had woken up to pay any attention to Kwon Tae-hee.
“…Executive Director.”
Kwon Tae-hee, who had been leaning against the wall, turned his head as if responding to the voice calling him. Seo Jeong-won, with reddened eyes, stood before him.
“…Aren’t you going to say hello to Hyung?”
“Should I? Would he like it?”
“…Probably.”
Kwon Tae-hee chuckled at the words that seemed so obvious. Wasn’t it too gruesome? To still like him even in that state, the mere thought of it sent shivers down his spine.
Kwon Tae-hee shook his head at Seo Jeong-won, who was looking up at him with wide eyes. Just as he was about to say that wouldn’t be the case, he was lightly pulled away by a hand that grabbed him. Seo Gyu-won, with a fairly clear gaze, was seen as he slowly raised his eyes from the thin, bare toes sticking out from under the thin blanket.
“…!”
Seo Gyu-won’s eyelids, which had been lying down, fluttered. His drooping eyelashes trembled like waves. He gnawed at the sheets with fingers that had no strength. His eyes, flushed with fever, quickly became bloodshot. The caregiver, flustered by the sound of him scratching his throat, grabbed Seo Gyu-won’s hand. It was a situation that was easy to misunderstand as a fairly desperate reaction.
“Gyu-won, are you uncomfortable anywhere?”
“Why… why is he like that? Hyung, are you sick somewhere? Is it not good?”
The caregiver massaged Seo Gyu-won’s arms and legs, trying to communicate with him. She asked where he was uncomfortable, wiped his eyes with a handkerchief, and constantly checked the machine placed by his head. His heart rate had increased slightly, but it wasn’t an emergency situation that required pressing the nurse call button. However, it was clear that Seo Gyu-won’s condition had worsened.
“It seems like it would be best to go back today, but what a shame.”
“…No. It’s late, and I was inconsiderate.”
“Oh, no. Gyu-won will be upset if you say that.”
The caregiver, who had been comforting the discouraged Seo Jeong-won, gently stepped aside as if telling him to say goodbye to Seo Gyu-won.
“Hyung, I’ll come again when it’s bright. In the daytime, I’ll come in the daytime.”
The caregiver smiled kindly at Seo Jeong-won, who was saying goodbye affectionately, and grabbed Seo Gyu-won’s hand. She checked the dry fingertips that were scratching the sheets and comforted him, saying it would be good to rest today. Seo Gyu-won blinked.
“Gyu-won seems so sad that Jeong-won is leaving.”
“…I’m sad too.”
Kwon Tae-hee was so dumbfounded by the current situation that he laughed. In his opinion, the reason Seo Gyu-won was acting like this wasn’t because of Seo Jeong-won. The moment he made eye contact with Seo Gyu-won, he realized that there were still remnants of emotions that he hadn’t been able to sort out.
The gaze directed at him was overflowing with lingering feelings. It was a unilaterally disgusting emotion. Seo Gyu-won’s eyes changed when he saw Seo Jeong-won, who was naturally standing next to him to leave. Seo Jeong-won and the caregiver didn’t notice the gap, but he did. How could he not know such persistent emotions?
Kwon Tae-hee instinctively pulled Seo Jeong-won and placed him behind his back. As if trying to protect Seo Jeong-won from something dangerous.
“Gyu-won.”
“…!”
“I’ll come again later with Jeong-won. It was nice to see you again.”
He smiled handsomely as he looked at Seo Gyu-won, who was looking up at him. At that moment, Seo Gyu-won’s eyes turned dull.
“I’ll be going now.”
Kwon Tae-hee politely greeted the caregiver and left the hospital room with Seo Jeong-won. He heard the caregiver’s voice from behind, telling them to go carefully. Seo Jeong-won, who was being dragged along by his hand, kept turning his head back as if he was sad.
“Executive Director.”
“Yes.”
“Am I… am I allowed to come to the hospital again?”
“When I go to work, Jeong-won can go to the hospital. I’ll assign a driver. It can’t be for too long, just stay for an hour or two and come back.”
Only after passing through the hospital hallway and stopping in front of the elevator did Kwon Tae-hee’s gaze reach Seo Jeong-won. Seo Jeong-won felt an unwarranted sense of defiance at the fairly firm gaze.