Arcadia Chapter 3.5

Van, who smiled as if to say, “Tough luck,” quickly hardened his expression and got up from the chair. Wayne, who had just thrown it out there without any real expectation, got up with him and saw him off—unnecessarily, really unnecessarily. He even handed him the rabbit with its broken leg in a splint.

“Do you have a cage at home?”

“Apparently, I do.”

Van, who had completely forgotten about the rabbit, accepted the cage with a pale face. The rabbit, much calmer than during the day, twitched its nose and retreated to a corner. He had entrusted it to him just in case, but Wayne seemed to be more multitalented than he thought. Van, having been treated to a hearty meal, gotten some decent information, and even received the rabbit he had left in his care, walked out into the darkly settled garden without a word of thanks.

Wayne, who had come out to the doorway to see him off, waved. Van, hoisting up the cage, stared at the man for a moment, then asked a question he had been curious about all along.

“By the way, why did Michel entrust a job like that to us? And what are you that you know so much?”

Wayne, who hadn’t given a single hint until Van accepted the dinner invitation, smiled faintly as if he were asking something trivial. Then he nonchalantly smacked Van on the back of the head.

“I didn’t get it from Michel.”

“…What?”

As he turned around, dumbfounded, the door slowly closed. Through the narrowing gap of the door, Wayne’s figure was buried in the black shadow. He left one last remark and disappeared completely.

“My client is kinder than Michel.”

Van, left alone in the eerie garden, mulled over the man’s last words and suddenly felt a surge of anger. To think he acted like he had something going on with Michel! Van, not even realizing that he had revealed all his cards with his own mouth, glared at the front door before turning away. He wanted to give it a good kick, but it would be a disaster if the poor rabbit got scared and fainted.

Van, carrying a full stomach and the boy’s mistake, headed for the house where the high-priced alien was waiting.

From the next day on, Dia had to nurse the injured rabbit as punishment for harming an animal. The boy, who learned about rabbits through videos and text, took care of the injured creature with all his heart. He fed it hay and vegetables and carefully checked if its leg bone was setting properly whenever he had time. Van, who secretly watched this and erased the theory of Dia being a psychopath, breathed a sigh of relief. But it was too early to be relieved.

That day too, Dia, with his chin cupped in his hand, was staring blankly at the rabbit nibbling hay in the cage lined with layers of towels and repeating to himself.

Van doesn’t like it when I harm animals. I don’t like it when Van pays attention to other things. I hope it gets better soon and disappears quickly.

If Van had painstakingly delved into the boy’s inner thoughts, he would have noticed a thought process that had gone refreshingly astray from what he intended, but unfortunately, Van was not a professional educator. He was just a clumsy babysitter who watched the back of Dia’s head, who was wishing for the rabbit’s speedy disappearance, with a sense of pride.

A full three weeks had passed by the time Dia’s dark-hearted devotion reached the heavens and the rabbit, with its finally healed leg bone, was released into the forest.

“Stand up straight. Back right against it.”

“I feel like you’re pushing down on me, Van.”

“When did I? That’s ridiculous.”

Van let out a hollow laugh and pressed down on the top of Dia’s head, holding a pink colored pencil upright. As his elbows, held up as if in a ‘hurray’ pose, were positioned near Dia’s cheeks, the boy’s breath, inhaling and exhaling, tickled his chin.

Van looked at the boy’s long eyelashes and drew a line on the wall. He pulled Dia, who was standing still even after he took his hand off his head, and a pink line across the tiled-pattern wallpaper appeared. Van was at a loss for words and stared intently at the line, which was located at a considerable height.

Nearly a month had passed since the day the child had become a boy. It was more than enough time for the boy, who used to reach his collarbone, to grow significantly and catch up to Van’s height by a difference of one handspan. And that was after he had pressed down on his head as much as possible to compress him. Van, who was taller than the average male, broke into a cold sweat. It really seemed like it wouldn’t be long until he caught up to his height.

“…When did you get so tall?”

“I’ve been growing and growing. I guess you didn’t notice because you’re not interested in me.”

“I’m so interested it’s driving me crazy, so let’s not say things like that.”

Van, with a serious expression, grabbed the face of the boy, whose skill at making barbed remarks had grown along with his height. As he held his cheeks and turned his head from side to side, his sweet blond hair fluttered.

Van observed Dia for a long time and humbly accepted that his prediction had been completely wrong. Dia, who had reached roughly his mid-teens, had not lost any of the angelic beauty of his baby days. On the contrary, the closer he got to adulthood, the more his looks shone with an almost terrifying brilliance. Van looked into his eyes, which had a mysterious glint, and muttered calmly.

“I thought you would change.”

“Me?”

He thought, looking at the boy who widened his eyes slightly as if to ask what he meant.

This was a face that could make a fortune. If Dia were his child, he would have sent him to Hollywood by any means necessary. He tried to find flaws by comparing Dia to stars famous for their looks, but it was useless. A line of people would form who would package even just reciting lines to a camera as charm.

Van imagined himself living as a parasite, sucking the lifeblood out of Dia, then shook his head. If you’re an alien, look like an alien; what’s the need to be so creepily beautiful?

“What a shame. I’m confident, too.”

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t need to know.”

Van let go of his face and pushed the boy’s back, telling him to go back to reading his book. Dia, who was no longer pushed back by a light touch, suddenly wrapped an arm around Van’s and, before he could avoid it, leaned in. Peck. A light, pecking kiss made an embarrassing sound. Van, who had received the sudden kiss, let out a chuckle and grabbed Dia’s face again with both hands.

“Well, look at you. Doing whatever you want.”

“You’re mine, so I can do whatever I want.”

Dia, with his lips sticking out, spouted insolent words. Amused by his tone, which somehow resembled Wayne’s, Van laughed, and Dia reached out and wrapped his arms tightly around his waist. Van, who was unexpectedly embraced by the boy, replied bluntly.

“Who decided that I’m yours?”

“It’s been decided.”

“When was it decided? I didn’t know.”

“From the moment you woke me up.”

Dia whispered, resting his chin on Van’s shoulder. Van didn’t understand exactly what the boy was saying, but he could tell the atmosphere was strange. Van, who had sensed a weird vibe based on experiences that couldn’t be counted even with all his fingers and toes, pushed Dia away and made a regretful expression.

“Don’t like me too much.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

He patted his shoulder a couple of times and turned to walk to the living room. When he glanced back, he saw the boy frowning as if in disapproval.

“Why the long face?”

“You said you loved me.”

“I do love you.”

Van, who had sprawled out on the sofa where books were scattered, propped his legs up on the table and muttered as if it were no big deal.

“I love you, and I love money, and I love this too.”

He nudged the container of chocolate chip cookies he had bought from the supermarket a couple of days ago with his foot. Dia’s face was stained with shock upon hearing the outrageous statement that his position was on par with chocolate chips. He seemed not to know the human tendency to want to tease someone more when they act like that. Van chuckled and picked at the boy’s childish innocence.

“Want me to tell you more? The things I love.”

Van waited for Dia’s reaction, prepared to bring up his favorite colors and brands if need be. The boy, whose growth was noticeable from a distance, parted the lips that had been moving silently.

“But you like me the best out of all of them.”

Contrary to the confident content, his lips, which always had a gentle smile, were drawn in a straight line. Van, who had been tapping the cookie container with the tip of his foot, shrugged and gave a lukewarm affirmation.

“Yeah? Then I guess so.”

Van, who had been laughing inanely, knowing that this kind of reaction would fuel the fire even more, was caught off guard and tumbled backward. Dia, who had suddenly climbed onto Van’s thighs, grabbed both of his flailing hands. Van, who had struggled in surprise and then burst into laughter, barely managed to block the boy who was rushing at him indiscriminately. Dia, joining in, laughed playfully and shook Van.

“Hey, hey!”

“Hurry up and say you only love me.”

“Ah, come on…. Dia!”

“Say you don’t need anything else but me.”

His upper body shook because of the boy who was shaking his captured wrists wildly. “No!” Van, who was about to flip his body over while shouting with laughter, suddenly had his face harden.

He had definitely used a moderate amount of force, but the boy’s body didn’t budge an inch. Even when he twisted his wrists or tried to sit up, he couldn’t move, as if he were pinned under a rocky mountain. Of course, if they were to seriously struggle, he could get away without difficulty, but the bewilderment was great.

Van, who had discovered a surprising side to the child he used to be able to lift easily with one arm, laughed awkwardly. Just as he was wondering when he had gotten so strong, Dia, with a deep smile on his lips, leaned down.

“Hurry up and say it. That you’ll live a chaste life from now on.”

“…Where did you learn a word like that, ah! Ouch, wait a minute. My back. My back.”

As the boy’s weight pressed down, the corner of a book dug into his spine. Van didn’t even have time to point out the bizarre choice of words and arched his back. Then the hand that had been holding his wrist let go and slipped into the gap between the sofa and his back.

Dia, who had wrapped an arm around Van’s waist, knocked the book underneath him to the floor with the back of his hand. Van, who was out of breath from laughing so much and struggling, panted lightly and rested his forehead on Dia’s shoulder.

“Your answer?”

Dia twisted his head and pressed their foreheads together. A wave of heat emanated from the boy’s body, which looked as cold as ice. Van, with a crooked smile, let out a sigh and escaped from Dia’s embrace. While stroking his now-empty arms, Dia, who had leaned his head against the leather sofa, threw a persistent gaze at him, so he had no choice but to answer vaguely.

“With me, it all depends on you.”

“Don’t get out of it like that.”

“Get out of it? I’m always serious.”

Van pinched Dia’s sullen cheek and headed for the stairs. Once he was out of the boy’s line of sight, Van soothed his uneasy feeling by scratching his own innocent neck. He had felt a sense of crisis for a moment, but it was unclear where the emotion came from.

Van, who had been thinking deeply, furrowed his brow. It was because his speculation had stretched into a dirty imagination. He shook his head to banish the filthy thoughts, went into his room, and closed the door firmly.