If Silk Flowers Bloom by the Water’s Edge Chapter 54

In winter, when the wind shook the tree branches, the best thing to do was sit in a warm room and peel tangerines. Jangsi’s family, perhaps feeling they owed a debt to Nanjubeol, was busy sending crates of the finest fruits, food, and clothes whenever the season came. It seemed as if doing so lessened their guilt for having abandoned their daughter in Nanjubeol.

Shinwoo was five, Jangsi twelve, and Chaho thirteen; all were sent to the Nanjubeol family at a young age, declaring they would become Haenangs. Once the rumor spread that Nanjubeol, despite being a great family, accepted Haenangs without prejudice, Yeonseo, Miyoung, and Haeju came to Nanjubeol one after another, like dried fish on a string.

Though they were the sons and daughters of orthodox warrior families, each had their own pain. What warrior doesn’t have a story? But among them, Jangsi’s was probably the most weary and painful.

Sarira had knowingly chosen Jangsi as a sacrifice. To torture and kill a person to create an evil Yogwi, and then implant that Yogwi into another person’s body. Jangsi was just a poor sacrifice who had been unlucky enough to be caught. The officiant of the ritual to put the Yogwi to rest was the grandmother, and Chaehwa, who was young at the time, participated as a Haenang. She had been able to use Yogwi freely since she turned seven, so she was more than qualified.

However, the ritual was so complex that even Nanjubeol had tried to refuse it. In a place where the officiant grandmother had left and she was alone with Jangsi, she met that Yogwi. The Yogwi that Chaho would later name ‘Janghee.’

Ultimately, as Chaehwa took over and conducted the ritual, she also found out that Janghee was a Yogwi acting under Sarira’s orders. That tenacious woman, who simply didn’t know when to give up, became the sole source of excitement in Chaehwa’s otherwise boring life.

Though now, a different excitement had appeared.

Chaehwa, who was opening the guest room door with a basket of tangerines, stopped in her tracks at the sound of a song.

Through the open door, Chaehwa peeked in cautiously. She could see Yirok lying on his side, looking at his phone. The song flowing from the phone was Chaehwa’s favorite.

Yirok shifted his ailing body, lying this way and that, changing positions frequently. Not only that, but he would also get up, look around, and then lie down again, repeating the cycle. It was the right time to knock, but for some reason, Chaehwa couldn’t bring herself to stop peeking.

He sits on the bed and looks at a book for a while, gets up to open the window and looks outside, then lies down again and plays another song. Chaehwa became curious about his actions, unable to stay still for even a minute.

Wondering if he was going crazy from boredom, Chaehwa knocked lightly on the door. At the sound of the door frame rattling, Yirok lifted his head with sharp vigilance. And his next actions were a series of surprises.

He turned off the music on his phone, sat up properly on the bed, and took out a book. Yirok, who had been so restless just 10 seconds ago, was suddenly pretending to be a model student. Chaehwa opened the door, searching for the now-vanished pretender.

“Yirok. I’m here.”

“Yeah.”

As he said that, Yirok didn’t even make eye contact, preoccupied with his reading. Such a pretender. Chaehwa, laughing silently over Yirok’s head, brought over a small stool.

“Eat this while you work.”

“I ate earlier.”

“White bread again?”

“Vegetable porridge.”

“Yeonrye must have brought it.”

Yirok nodded silently, but his thoughts were plain to see. How tedious it must be to fight off illness all day without being able to go out. A world where she was the only one who visited. The tips of the ears of Yirok, who seemed like the epitome of an indifferent man, were a different color from the rest of him.

“These are the notes from today’s class.”

Only then did Yirok raise his head and look at the notebook. He accepted it without refusal and showed a smile even before reading it properly. It seemed he had read the part with the worm-like scribbles written while dozing off. As he read on without scolding her, Chaehwa offered him a tangerine.

“They say vitamin C is good for your health.”

“That Jang… anyway, she gave you that, didn’t she.”

Yirok, who was transferring Chaehwa’s notes to his own notebook, stopped his pencil and asked. Chaehwa surreptitiously returned the tangerine to the basket and said.

“Yeah, Jangsi gave it to me.”

“Are you close?”

“Am I close with Jangsi?”

Yirok nodded and changed his gaze to a more insistent one as he looked at Chaehwa. Flustered, Chaehwa made a nasal sound and leaned back against the chair.

“Well? If you say we’re close, we’re close. Hmm, but not quite friends. More like a kind Haenang and a kind young lady.”

“Among the recent Haenangs, is there anyone who acts friendly towards you… anyone you found strange? Perhaps?”

“Oh my, Yirok. Are you conducting some kind of investigation now?”

“Is there or not.”

“I don’t know. Oh, I get it now. You’re jealous, Yirok. Worried that I’ll get close to the other Haenangs.”

“Forget it. Let’s not talk about it.”

Yirok turned his gaze back to the notebook as if to ignore her, but Chaehwa didn’t give up and slid off her stool, sidling up to the bed. One side of the bed dipped, causing Yirok’s pencil to waver for a moment. They were close enough to touch if either one decided to. His motivation sapped, Yirok closed the notebook and leaned back against the pillow.

“You’re really fearless.”

“Me? Why?”

“Maintain a minimum distance.”

“If you eat a tangerine.”

Chaehwa took out a tangerine she had hidden in her sleeve and placed it on her palm. Yirok looked at the tangerine, then heartlessly turned his head to the other side.

“I’m not eating it. If I eat it once, you’ll ask me to eat it a second time. Won’t you ask why I’m not eating it today when I ate it last time? So I’m not eating it. It’s annoying just thinking about it.”

“Is Jangsi bothering you?”

“I’m saying it’s better not to create troublesome situations. Having to say things I don’t want to say, seeing people I don’t want to see… all because of a tangerine.”

“Yirok, I understand what you’re saying. I won’t tell anyone you ate it. So just eat it. This is a really good tangerine.”

Chaehwa personally peeled the tangerine and took out the juicy segment. She split it in half and brought it to Yirok’s mouth. The smirk on Yirok’s lips that said, as if I’d eat it, was caught. It was a clear, condescending smile, but Chaehwa, having seen what she’d seen, was confident.

“If you don’t eat it, I’m not coming tomorrow, okay? Huh? I’m busy as it is.”

She didn’t have a speck of a schedule, but Chaehwa bluffed. She was determined to make the picky eater, who ate nothing but white bread, eat a tangerine. But Yirok, who should have been sneering at the childish threat, was silent for some reason.

Instead, weren’t the corners of his mouth turning down as if he were hurt, and wasn’t he scoffing?

“I knew it. I’m not even surprised.”

“Huh?”

“It’s nothing. A promise to bring notes… it was a trivial thing from the start, wasn’t it? For someone like you.”

“What do you mean, someone like me?”

Why didn’t those twisting, chilly words hurt? Perhaps because his eyes were sad, the corners of his mouth were drooping, and if Chaehwa were to put it all together to her liking, it meant he wanted her to come.

Without another word, Yirok, who was glaring at the innocent notebook, said in a low voice.

“Someone who has many places to go.”

Chaehwa’s hand holding the tangerine suffered a crash. Yirok placed the notebook on the windowsill and lay down on the bed. Shielding himself with the blanket, Yirok spoke slowly.

“I get it, so go. I’m tired.”

Chaehwa looked at those stubbornly closed eyes, then slowly stood up from the bed. ‘Someone who has many places to go,’ he’d said. Contrary to his words, Chaehwa was a lonely outcast. She wasn’t one to hang out with the Haenangs, nor was she one to associate with the adults, so she spent every day glued to her phone.

She gently placed a hand on Yirok’s forehead, which was burning up with fever. Yirok, who opened his eyes at the affectionate touch, looked up as if asking why she hadn’t left. Chaehwa smiled softly and popped the half-tangerine into his mouth. Yirok, who had eaten it by surprise, blinked slowly.

“You ate this, so I’m coming tomorrow too.”

Without spitting out what was in his mouth, Yirok slowly began to chew. Then, sitting up, he gazed at Chaehwa, who was giving him a fawning eye-smile. Chaehwa sat down next to Yirok and said playfully.

“Move over. I’m going to fall.”

Yirok acted like someone who didn’t know where to look, then slowly made room. Sitting side by side on the bed, the two did their own things. Yirok took out the unfinished notes and began transferring them to his book. Chaehwa sat beside him and took out her phone.

As a soft song spread through the room, the two found each other’s eyes as if on cue.

“Yirok. Should I teach you what I learned in class today?”

Yirok, after staring for a moment, shook his head and quickly lowered his eyes. Leaning in to peek at Yirok’s neat handwriting, Chaehwa momentarily forgot her phone.

Accidentally, and frequently, Chaehwa’s silk and Yirok’s t-shirt brushed against each other. The point where their arms touched was hot, but neither of them pointed it out. They had a strong desire to pull away because it was uncomfortable, but on the other hand, they wanted to leave it that way forever.

Yirok was ambidextrous, so if his left arm hurt, he would write with his right. But today, Yirok kept writing with his left hand. Both of them were aware of the precarious contact but pretended not to know and let it be.

Chaehwa, while watching Yirok write, quietly put the remaining half of the tangerine into her mouth. Her lips moved so that not even the sound of chewing could be heard.

It felt like she would get pleasantly sick to her stomach. Mulling over that strange phrase, the two of them stayed together until the afternoon. It was a strange time, through and through.