Irresponsibility Chapter 1.5

“…I will go get the medicine.”

“Is it indigestion?”

“Yes. You gave pork belly to a person who can barely eat porridge, of course he would get indigestion. He must have forced himself to eat it.”

Baek Geonhyuk wore a blank expression at the words that were spat out through gritted teeth. Lee Hyunkyu let out a deep sigh and left the room.

Forced himself. Baek Geonhyuk rolled the words around in his mouth.

“Agh…”

Then, a stifled breath crept into his ear. He roughly rubbed the back of his neck and approached the bed. As he pulled up the blanket to cover him, their eyes met.

Joo Yeoun immediately closed his eyes. His eyelashes trembled on his white skin.

Baek Geonhyuk took a few steps back and sat on the floor. He braced his hands behind him, his gaze fixed on the gently rising and falling blanket, when he felt a slippery sensation.

It was grease. Seemingly from what had fallen in the morning.

“……”

As he was looking at his glistening fingers, Lee Hyunkyu entered the room.

“Mr. Joo Yeoun, please take your medicine.”

Does your head hurt? Yes, indigestion can cause headaches. You will feel better after taking the medicine. Baek Geonhyuk quietly watched Lee Hyunkyu, who spoke gently, and Joo Yeoun, who sat up.

Lee Hyunkyu watched Joo Yeoun take the medicine, set up an IV drip, and only then turned around. And he bumped into Baek Geonhyuk, who was sitting in the middle of the room.

“What are you doing?”

Lee Hyunkyu asked with a frown. It was because Baek Geonhyuk, sitting properly on the floor with his gaze fixed blankly on the bed, looked quite strange.

“Reflecting?”

Baek Geonhyuk answered without even looking at Lee Hyunkyu. At that answer, where only his lips moved, Lee Hyunkyu glanced back at the bed and said.

“Please do it outside.”

The huge body, which seemed like it would not budge, stood up easily at those words. Lee Hyunkyu opened his mouth as he watched the hand slowly close the door on the way out.

“Tomorrow morning…”

His voice was not even loud, but Baek Geonhyuk put his index finger to his lips and gestured for him to be quiet. Then, only after moving near the entrance, which was furthest from the master bedroom, did he open his mouth.

“What about the morning?”

Lee Hyunkyu, who had a bewildered expression for a moment, took out a medicine packet from his bag at those words.

“Please check if he is okay, and if he says he is in pain, give him the medicine.”

“……”

“Is it a bother, by any chance?”

Lee Hyunkyu gave him a contemptuous look. Whose fault is it that he is sick?

At the impure gaze, it was Baek Geonhyuk who would normally have poked Lee Hyunkyu and said, “insubordination.” But he only muttered with a calm face.

“I wonder if he will talk.”

“Sir?”

“Give it.”

When he asked back at the low mumble, Baek Geonhyuk held out his hand. Lee Hyunkyu placed the medicine packet in his hand and urged him.

“No other food until he finishes at least half a bowl of porridge.”

“Okay.”

“And even for people who are not sick, there are many who cannot eat pork belly in the morning.”

“Ah.” Baek Geonhyuk, who nodded, shut his mouth.

Lee Hyunkyu thought that was a strangely meek attitude. He had expected some shameless remark like, “when I was that age, I chewed on raw meat,” to come out. It seemed he had received quite a shock.

Well, Baek Geonhyuk would not be used to living with someone like Joo Yeoun. Having enlisted as soon as he became an adult, he spent his twenties in the special forces. This meant that he was always surrounded by people who were stronger than average.

Besides, since he himself was outstanding among them, how much more so would it be? The pride of the squad members, who said they were second to none in physical ability, would often crack in front of Baek Geonhyuk. He was the same. The emotion he felt when looking at Baek Geonhyuk asking, “You can not do this?” Of course, a sense of respect did arise, but to some extent—quite a lot—he was an ass.

“Lee Hyunkyu.”

Lee Hyunkyu, who had been lost in reminiscence, was startled back to his senses by the quiet voice. He was slightly scared that his thoughts had been caught, but Baek Geonhyuk only patted his shoulder.

“Thanks. Get to work.”

“Yes, sir. I will be on my way.”

Lee Hyunkyu wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and left through the entrance. Rattle, the sliding door opened heavily and then closed again.

After Lee Hyunkyu left, silence fell upon the house. Baek Geonhyuk glanced in the opposite direction and then entered the small room.

Having given Joo Yeoun the master bedroom, Baek Geonhyuk lived in the small room with a cot. The foldable cot was such that his shins would stick out when he lay down, and it would make a flimsy creaking sound every time he moved, but he was inherently insensitive about his sleeping arrangements. As long as there was a place to lay his head, he could fall asleep easily anywhere.

But that night, he could not fall asleep for a long time even after closing his eyes.

His nerves were on edge, as if he were on a mission, and even small noises sounded loud. The humming of the refrigerator, the sound of water flowing through the pipes, the sound of the wind outside the window, the sound of a more distant animal… and then he would find himself listening for the presence of the guest who had come to live in this house again.

Baek Geonhyuk eventually opened his eyes in the darkness. 03:11. After checking the clock, he tidied up his bed and got up.

I wonder if he is sleeping. He cast a slight glance down the hallway and entered the bathroom. He thought taking a shower would be too loud, so he just washed his face and brushed his teeth before coming out.

It was pitch black outside. It was a time when everyone would still be asleep, so it was highly likely that Joo Yeoun was too.

Baek Geonhyuk walked quietly and stood in front of the master bedroom door. There were no sounds. He carefully opened the door and peered into the darkness, and he could see the pile of blankets on the bed rising and falling shallowly. Judging by the regular movement, it seemed he was asleep.

Baek Geonhyuk, silencing his footsteps, approached and stood by the bedside. His shadow, cast by the moonlight, half-covered the thin body. He glanced at the window high up on the wall and slowly sat down on the floor. The shadow that had covered Joo Yeoun gradually disappeared.

His eyes, accustomed to the dark, clearly captured the delicate silhouette. The face that had been swollen and puffy had now completely regained its original shape. The upturned tip of his nose and the slender jawline were prominent.

It did not seem like he was sleeping restlessly. Baek Geonhyuk, who looked at the two hands stretched out comfortably outside the blanket, turned his gaze back to the face. The skin looked slightly blue in the moonlight coming through the window.

It was then. The shadow of his eyelashes cast below his eyes gradually shortened.

It was awkward. As expected, Joo Yeoun, who had opened his eyes, soon trembled and gasped. Thinking he should reassure him, he opened his mouth.

“I am not trying to do anything strange…”

However, his voice, low because it was dawn, only created more fear for Yeoun. Yeoun, with goosebumps all over his body, squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them.

“Ahem.” Baek Geonhyuk cleared his throat and asked again.

“Is your stomach okay?”

Instead of a reply, Joo Yeoun’s chest heaved with short breaths.

“Is it okay to touch your body?”

“……”

Just a moment. Baek Geonhyuk whispered and reached out his hand.

Joo Yeoun’s eyes widened as he followed that hand. He could not move his body an inch, as if he were paralyzed by sleep. The most he could do was face the violence that would be inflicted upon him with wide-open eyes.

The large hand in the darkness advanced slowly through the air. When he realized its direction was towards his hand, Yeoun squeezed his eyes shut.

He is probably going to break the fingers on my left hand one by one, too. Tears, which he did not know when they had welled up, streamed down from the corners of his eyes.

“……”

He gritted his teeth and waited for the terrible pain, but only a light touch was felt on the back of his hand.

Joo Yeoun cautiously opened his eyes. His vision, blurry with tears, became clear only after blinking a couple more times.

His fingers, which he had imagined would be twisted into a strange shape, were fine. However, a long, thick finger was touching the back of his hand.

“Huuuh…”

A terrified breath escaped.

“Yeah, it is okay. I was just checking if your hand was cold.”

A low, quiet voice said. The hard fingertip tickled the back of his hand as it brushed down, causing Yeoun to flinch and curl his fingers.

“Is it okay if I touch a little more…”

The man, tilting his head slightly, looked at Yeoun’s face. It was dark, so he should not have been able to see anything, but he stared intently as if he could discern his expression.

“I will not touch anywhere else.”

His ear, where the low voice had flowed in, was soaked with tears. Yeoun just blinked his wet eyes without a word.

I will only touch your hand, the man said, and cupped Yeoun’s fingers. The shrunken white hand disappeared as if swallowed by the large hand.

“It is not cold.”

Baek Geonhyuk, who had lightly squeezed the slender fingers, immediately withdrew his hand. Then, as if to say he would not approach again, he placed his hand on his own thigh.

Silence flowed. Joo Yeoun tried hard to calm his constantly ragged breathing. It was because his own breathing sounded too loud.

“Sorry. I…”

Baek Geonhyuk, who had been continuing with a few words, shut his mouth when he saw the body tilted to the opposite side of the bed. His gaze also briefly touched the terrified face.

“…I put the medicine on the nightstand. Take it if your stomach hurts.”

As the large frame rose in the darkness, Joo Yeoun flinched. The thick blanket stirred so much that he was scared out of his wits, causing Baek Geonhyuk to look back. His steps, which had slowed for a moment to check his condition, quickened again at the unstable breathing.

The door closed, and the sound of footsteps grew more distant.

Only when he could no longer hear any presence did Joo Yeoun let out a long breath. A short breath, as if he had run a full sprint, burst out.

“Ah.”

As he breathed so heavily that his chest rose and fell, pain shot through his ribs. Yeoun fumbled to place a hand on his chest and focused on his breathing.

Only after his breathing returned and he felt he had escaped the nightmarish moment could he perceive his surroundings. The pillow was damp, and his face seemed to be as well. When he rubbed his wet cheek, his fingers, stained with lukewarm tears, grew a little cold.

“……”

Yeoun stared blankly at his fingers. He recalled the rough, warm sensation that had completely covered his fingers.

*

Another few days passed.

Yeoun opened his eyes to the sunlight streaming through the window. And around that time, he heard a knock. It is that man.

Because he had been looking at the doorway, their eyes met immediately.

Perhaps because time does have the power to heal, Joo Yeoun did not lose his mind like before. Although he tensed up his body every time the door opened, he did not scream or hide.

He was now able to read the change in the man’s expression, who slightly moved his eyebrow as if surprised that their eyes had met.

“Eat breakfast.”

He said, placing a tray on the nightstand.