Correction Chapter 56

Joohwan patted Jungmin’s shoulder a couple of times, then gripped it firmly once. He squeezed so hard that the shoulder throbbed for quite a while.

The smile vanished from Joohwan’s face as he left the room. He glanced back once at Jungmin’s dazed form sitting there, then walked leisurely back down the dark, empty hallway.

✽✽✽

“Haa.”

Jungmin checked his phone and then rubbed his dry face. There was still no word from Kim Joohwan.

He didn’t know what kind of bet it would be, or what the terms would be. Jungmin simply waited. He calmly proceeded with his departure preparations, firmly believing that he would win the bet Kim Joohwan had mentioned. He also finished composing the emails to be sent to his parents and Youngmin, timed to be delivered when he stepped onto foreign soil.

He was frighteningly composed while writing the emails. He just thought, was there really this much to say? After finishing almost all his preparations, Jungmin called Soohan.

─Yeah, Jungmin.

His voice was much better than before, but there was still a lack of energy somewhere. Jungmin had no idea what was happening within Soohan’s family. He didn’t ask, because Soohan didn’t seem to want to talk about it. However, the situation didn’t seem to be improving at all. In that situation, Ms. Sooeun would be crumbling more and more, and Soohan would have to comfort her while preparing their escape, so he was probably struggling in a way Jungmin couldn’t even begin to imagine.

“By any chance, can you have dinner with me tonight?”

─Of course.

“Okay. Then let’s go on a date.”

─A date?

It was understandable that Soohan would react this way. Jungmin had never once used a word commonly used between lovers. It was a line Jungmin himself hadn’t said in a very long time, and he fanned his face, slightly embarrassed that he was saying it to Soohan. What a relief. That Soohan couldn’t see him now. If he had, he would have definitely teased him.

“Why are you so quiet? If you don’t want to, then never mind.”

─No. There’s no way I wouldn’t want to. Yes, a date. We’ve never had one. Let’s do it.

Jungmin resisted the urge to say that this might be their last date in Korea. Soohan probably felt the same. Yet, they couldn’t afford a leisurely “real” date, so they decided to have a light dinner at a hotel restaurant located about halfway between Jungmin’s and Soohan’s homes.

He deliberately sought out a private space, in case there were watching eyes. Jungmin, who arrived first, looked down at the Seoul nightscape, thinking not of its beauty, but of the fact that he would soon be leaving this place. He never thought he would leave the country like this. It’s really true you never know what will happen in a person’s life.

“Jungmin.”

The door opened and Soohan came in. Jungmin stood up from his seat and waited until the manager closed the door before approaching him.

“Soohan hyung.”

Jungmin examined Soohan’s face first. Not only the dark circles, but his skin was also rough; just looking at his face, Jungmin could tell he hadn’t slept properly for several days. Of course, there were often times he couldn’t sleep when performing a major surgery, but this came with emotional distress, so his face couldn’t help but look worse.

“Have you been well?”

“Hyung…”

“Can I hug you?”

“Of course. Come here.”

At Soohan’s cautious request, Jungmin smiled bitterly and quickly pulled him into an embrace. Then he stroked Soohan’s head as it dropped onto his shoulder with a thud.

“Soohan hyung. Ji Soohan. You’re so strong. You’re doing well.”

“I don’t want to hear that from you… but still, it feels good.”

Soohan nuzzled his face against Jungmin’s shoulder like a child seeking comfort. Feeling his hair tickling his cheek, Jungmin smiled slightly and held his face. Then, he kissed him.

Soohan seemed surprised by his sudden action, but soon he grabbed Jungmin’s waist and kissed him deeply. It was a desperate and urgent kiss.

The two of them didn’t have time, so they had to confirm each other’s existence even in this way. Their lips parted, and panting for breath, the two men looked only into each other’s eyes.

“We… we can be together from now on, right?”

This was the first time he had met Soohan since that phone call.

“You’re trusting me and coming with me, right?”

So it seemed Soohan wanted to be reassured once more. To think that I find that side of him cute… Jungmin thought he was doomed. It seemed his heart had now completely tilted towards Soohan.

“Hyung, of course I trust you. But I’m not following you. I’m going to be with you. So you have to be with me too, hyung. You remember our promise, right?”

Jungmin took Soohan’s hand and kissed its back.

“I promise. I’ll be sure to keep that promise.”

This time, Soohan kissed the back of Jungmin’s hand. The two men pressed their foreheads together and smiled. Only now did they both feel at ease. It truly felt like they could do anything. Soon, the food they ordered arrived, and the two sat facing each other and talked.

“Sooeun will meet that guy at Gimpo first, take a plane, go to Japan, and then transfer to a flight to New Zealand.”

“So it’s been decided on New Zealand.”

It seemed the original destination was the United States, but they left that as a decoy, and chose New Zealand as the final destination.

“I’ll buy the plane tickets in the morning. I’ve already asked a friend who works at an airline. I did buy the two of their tickets in advance, but booked under different names. I’m planning to change the names right before check-in.”

Normally this would be impossible, but it seemed he had pulled strings for that as well.

“Those two have prepared so thoroughly that as long as they get out of Korea, there shouldn’t be a big problem. The immediate problem is us.”

That was true. For them, leaving the country might be easier than for Ji Sooeun’s side. The problem was after arriving in New Zealand. They would manage to settle down somehow, but it would take a lot of time to get to that point. That’s why Jungmin thought securing funds was the priority, and why he had asked Kim Joohwan.

Jungmin thought about how much he should say. He could keep it a secret, but he didn’t want to create secrets that Soohan didn’t know about.

“Soohan hyung.”

Seeing how he was speaking with such difficulty, it was highly likely that his family had blocked the siblings’ financial resources as a precaution.

“Don’t worry. I’m preparing for it, just in case.”

“What?”

“I have plenty of money. There’s what I received from my father… and I’ve saved everything I earned as a doctor, even if it was a meager salary, so it’s enough for you and me to settle down in New Zealand. The problem is I can’t get it out of the country right now… so I’m in the middle of resolving it with some help.”

If I win the bet.

“It’ll work out.”

“Help? From whom?”

“Ah, you’ll know him too, hyung. I asked Kim Joohwan. He’s someone who can move funds abroad. Plus, he has extensive connections in the airline industry, so he said he’d help you and me, and also Ms. Sooeun and her partner, just in case. He even said he could lend us a private jet if needed.”

Jungmin spoke as if it were no big deal. But Ji Soohan’s face grew progressively harder.

“Kim Joohwan?”

“Yeah. The one who came to the hospital before.”

“That man said he would help?”

Ji Soohan said, putting down his fork and knife. His expression had become more serious than Jungmin expected.

“Ah, if you’re worried that Kim Joohwan might go around talking, it’s fine. His personality is rotten and trashy, but he’s tight-lipped. No, it’s not that he’s tight-lipped, but that he doesn’t even bother with things he’s not interested in.”

“…Why of all people did you ask Kim Joohwan for help.”

“As far as I know, he’s the most capable person we can get help from right now? I know why you’re reacting that way, hyung. I thought about it enough. Still, I thought it would be better to get his help.”

Ji Soohan said nothing in response to Jungmin’s words. Jungmin didn’t know. He didn’t know why Ji Soohan was so sensitive to Kim Joohwan’s name. Because he was the only one who had seen that look in his eyes when they met at the hospital back then.

“He didn’t demand anything?”

“Demand?”

“A person like that wouldn’t just do it for free.”

About the bet… it’s probably better not to talk about it. It seemed this was something he would have to keep as a ‘secret’ out of necessity.

“He just said he’d do it. Said he felt bad for us too. He readily agreed to help.”