By Zephyria 
Awakened by the alarm, Lee-eum stretched languidly and came outside. He had fallen asleep in the study last night after putting Young-shik to bed, and his whole body ached. He relaxed his muscles with stretching, but the house was quiet. Was Young-shik still asleep?
He went to the bedroom and quietly opened the door, but it was empty. He opened the bathroom, but it was the same. Strange. With a bad feeling, he went to the veranda and looked down, but nothing caught his eye. “Young-shik? Young-shik!” he called, but there was no answer.
Could he have gone out alone? Even if his body was an adult, his mind was still like a child. Lee-eum hurriedly grabbed his coat to go out, but stopped. He then discovered a note on the table.
【I’m going back. Thank you for everything. Take the money from my wallet. I’ll pay you back later.】
The neat handwriting was not that of a child. Could his memory have returned? When? Just last night, he was clinging to him like a child, asking to be hugged. Confused, he couldn’t let go of the paper, then took out the wallet he had put in his coat, but all the cash was gone.
Lee-eum sat down on the sofa with the empty wallet. Did he make it home okay? Why didn’t he wake me up? He could have told me honestly and said goodbye. He felt relieved, but also a little sad at heart.
In fact, Lee-eum was not the type to live with anyone. That’s why he became independent early, and he didn’t often let even his acquaintances sleep over at his house.
“Good. Good. He must have returned safely.”
He threw the wallet to one side and opened the refrigerator to take out water when the doorbell rang. Lee-eum unknowingly rushed out and flung the door open. “Young-shik?” he looked up, but Seon-gyu was standing there.
“What? Why did you open the door so fast?”
Lee-eum turned around and went back to his place. Seon-gyu, who followed, looked around the house and called out to Young-shik. “Young-shik. Hyung is here!” When no one appeared, he wandered around the rooms, and Lee-eum told Seon-gyu that Young-shik had disappeared.
“What? Disappeared where?”
“I think his memory came back. He was gone when I woke up. He left this behind.”
“He just left with his body?”
“No, he also diligently took money from my wallet.”
Come to think of it, he wasn’t afraid at all. He knew I was a cop, but he still took the money. He had no intention of reporting it or arguing with him if he met him. He just hoped that he would return home safely and reunite with his family. He hoped that he had a good family too.
Seon-gyu, who was looking at the words on the note, sighed, “Ah.” He had made thorough preparations to take him to the amusement park today, but he disappeared. It was so unfortunate. He was sad that Young-shik had disappeared, but he was also very disappointed that he could no longer do the high-paying part-time job.
“He should have said goodbye if he was going to leave. Or at least left his contact information. That’s why it’s useless to take in a black-haired beast. What’s the point of me playing with him in the playground until my back breaks? He’s just going to leave so heartlessly.”
Seon-gyu grumbled, and Lee-eum grabbed his car keys and told him to leave. Seon-gyu stuck his butt on the sofa and didn’t get up.
“Can’t I play PlayStation before I go?”
“No, you can’t.”
“You’re so heartless. You showed kindness to a nameless guy, but it’s hard for you to let your 20-year friend play PlayStation? Is that all our friendship is worth?”
Lee-eum was afraid that he would bring it up for days, so he made it clear that it was only for today. But while Lee-eum was getting ready for work, Seon-gyu was going on and on about his fight with his girlfriend last night, not PlayStation.
“Tell me honestly. Who was at fault?”
“You.”
“Listen to the end before you speak, you bastard.”
“Yeah, you.”
“You son of a bitch. And you call yourself a friend.”
“Get out. I need to change.”
“You’re so fussy. We’re both guys.”
Lee-eum finally kicked Seon-gyu out and stood in front of the mirror. As he was changing his clothes, Young-shik’s words suddenly flashed through his mind.
【You smell good, Mister. A sweet smell.】
Lee-eum put the back of his arm to his nose and inhaled. He couldn’t smell anything. Kim Yi-eum, who was lost in thought while looking at the desk calendar on one side, took out a small medicine bottle from the innermost part of the drawer. He put the medicine in his pocket and came outside, but Seon-gyu was engrossed in PlayStation.
“I’m leaving. Lock up well.”
Seon-gyu answered casually without even looking.
“Honey, make lots of money.”
“Get lost.”
Lee-eum came down to the parking lot and looked around. I hope he got home safe. Let’s not think about it anymore. After the car started, Lee-eum opened the window. The fine dust was gone for the first time in a while, and the sky was blue, so he felt good. An exciting song was playing on the radio.
His sadness was only temporary, and he felt relieved at the thought that he could live comfortably in his own home from today. Lee-eum hummed and tapped the steering wheel with his fingers to the music.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Oh my god. Look how thin your face is. You’ve been through a lot…”
“Madam Lee missed me a lot. Your pretty face has become half its size. I’m upset.”
Even at her son’s cheesy joke, Madam Lee swallowed her tears and affectionately touched her son’s face again and again. She didn’t seem to notice that his face had become cleaner because he had been eating and sleeping well.
Choi Won-joon left Kim Yi-eum’s house and immediately contacted Director Lee. At the word that he should come pick him up, he arrived in 30 minutes, a distance of 1 hour. He could guess how much he had been on pins and needles. He was shaking the water off his head after washing up when his Hyungs burst into the room this time.
“Choi Won-joon!”
They were called Hyungs, but they were more than 10 years older than the youngest Won-joon, and they cherished Won-joon as much as his mother did. Chairman Choi was watching Won-joon, who was surrounded by the three and being fawned over, with a displeased look from afar.
“I heard it from Director Lee. Even if you lost your memory, how could you be indebted to a cop’s house? It’s a disgrace to our family.”
Won-joon smiled cheesily and scratched his father.
“He’s a grateful person. He even hugged me tightly when I slept.”
Chairman Choi frowned.
“What, what did he do? What with a Beta?”
Then his mother and Hyungs stepped in.
“Stop it, Father. Won-joon must have had his reasons.”
“He lost his memory. He was like a child, what could he do? You know that Won-joon was afraid of sleeping alone when he was young. I don’t like the police either, but I wish you would fix that attitude of yours.”
“That’s right, Father. We should just be grateful that Won-joon came back safely.”
Chairman Choi was choked up and shouted.
“Do you know what kind of family that guy is from to say such a thing!”
The eyes of the three turned to Chairman Choi. Chairman Choi couldn’t bring himself to tell the truth and turned away. He was certainly happy that his son had returned safely, but why did that human’s son have to help? He just thought that it was best not to get involved any further.
In the chaotic atmosphere, Won-joon clapped his hands and focused everyone’s attention.
“Well, I know you’re all happy to see me, but can you please go back? I have a mountain of work to do.”
“You can take a day off today, right?”
“Let’s go to the hospital first. You fell, what if you have a crack in your bone?”
“Mother, please get him some tonic. His face has become very haggard.”
Won-joon pushed the three of them on the back because his head was throbbing. Please stop, please leave. His mother looked regretful, as if she couldn’t bear to leave.
“Please, Mother. Director Lee is crying because of me.”
His mother wiped away her tears and smiled.
“Okay, I understand. It’s good that you came back safely. Call me if anything else happens. Okay?”
“Yes, I will.”
“I’ll be able to sleep soundly tonight.”
His mother stroked Won-joon’s cheeks once more with both hands, then grabbed her bag and turned around. His Hyungs were just as affectionate, but only Chairman Choi was walking away alone. The door opened and closed, and Won-joon, who was left alone, sighed quietly and shook his head.
After that, he spent a hectic day. He checked the accumulated emails and had a long conversation with Director Lee about work-related matters. He spent time without rest, and before he knew it, the sun had set and it was evening. Won-joon closed his laptop, got up from his seat, went to the BAR, filled a glass with ice, poured whiskey, and drank it all in one gulp.
He frowned at the feeling that his throat was burning and sauntered to the bedroom. He took off his top, wore only his pants, lay down as he was, and stared at the ceiling. Fatigue was coming, but strangely, he couldn’t fall asleep even when he closed his eyes.
Tossing and turning, he took something out of his pocket. It was the business card he had taken from Kim Yi-eum’s wallet along with the money.
“Kim, Lee-eum.”
Who gave him that name, what does it mean, I wonder. Is he thinking of me now? No, he’s probably relieved. Won-joon smiled quietly, reached up, and turned off the light. He waited to fall asleep in the pitch-black darkness, but his mind became clearer and clearer. He tossed and turned and cursed.
“Shit, it’s starting again.”