Salt Society Chapter 48

I could see a shadow cast against the gate made of dense iron bars. Someone was sitting in front of the gate. Kihyun, looking at the gate where the shadow of the guy’s back was cast as darkly as if it had been cut out of paper, stopped in his tracks once more.

Then, suddenly, he could hear the sound of a voice.

“Then what am I supposed to do, the kid says he’s sick.”

There was a rustling sound along with the guy’s voice. It was noisy, as if he were trying to take something out of a bag. The guy’s hand appeared through the gap at the bottom of the gate. He could see him tossing his cell phone onto the ground carelessly. He must have found it bothersome to untie the bag with one hand.

They say smartphones are becoming popular, but Cho Yeonoh’s cell phone was still the same model as Kihyun’s. The flip-style phone was an old model that few people used now. Kihyun’s was in such bad shape that the battery joint was loose, and he went around with it taped up with Scotch tape.

The guy’s was not in that bad a state, but it wasn’t exactly clean either. Perhaps it was because he had used it for a long time. As he pulled the phone away from his ear, the voice of the person on the other end could be heard faintly through the receiver.

[…So, who is important to you right now. Is it me, or is it So Kihyun.]

…It was a familiar voice. A girl in the Omega class at the same school. She was the girlfriend Cho Yeonoh was dating lately. Since she had a cute appearance and a reputation for having a good personality, he had thought they were dating for a long time for once, but it seemed they were fighting. And over him, at that.

Kihyun raised his hand and scratched his cheek. He felt a strange sensation. …Wondering if he had indigestion despite not having eaten anything, he rubbed his solar plexus with his palm.

“What kind of nonsense is that. Is Yuna an outcast, does she have no friends? Why ask such a thing.”

Cho Yeonoh spoke in a tone of disbelief. The girl named Yuna seemed offended by Cho Yeonoh’s words and replied as if shouting.

[Don’t change the subject!]

Cho Yeonoh’s answer was simple.

“I don’t know. Think whatever you want.”

Then he folded the phone shut with a snap. Kihyun swallowed his breath instinctively. His palms felt itchy. After blinking his eyes blankly, he walked forward and opened the gate.

Even though the iron hinge creaked with a clicking sound, the guy did not look back. Kihyun saw that Cho Yeonoh’s summer uniform top was slightly wet from the rain.

“…”

Sitting down at the bottom of the gate, beside the guy’s side, a porridge shop bag, a bag with a pharmacy name printed on it, and a convenience store bag containing an ionic drink were lined up in a row. Suddenly, his throat tightened.

He himself only realized he was sick after coming home, but how on earth did you…

“Sogi, I’m hungry.”

Cho Yeonoh said without looking back at Kihyun. Kihyun turned his back without replying. He did that because there was nothing else he could do.

“Where is your father.”

Swallowing the thought that he sounded as natural as if he were calling his own father, Kihyun opened his tightened throat and answered.

“He’s busy.”

“You didn’t tell him you were sick again. That’s why he hasn’t come home yet.”

Well. Even if he had said he was sick, wouldn’t he have just ended up alone at home anyway.

After his mother’s funeral, the relationship between father and son began to fester from the inside. His parents loved each other, but that didn’t mean his mother had married a sweet and bright man. Kihyun’s father was the rigid and blunt type. Since Kihyun had a similar disposition, his mother used to take charge of mediating between the father and son, who had been clashing since he was young.

However, that was already several years ago, and the father and son lost her at the same time. It felt like the joint had fallen apart.

Perhaps because of that, his father tended to say a word or two more to Cho Yeonoh, who dropped by occasionally and acted affably.

“It can’t be helped. I guess I’m the only one who can nurse you.”

“Stop joking and go. It’s just a slight fever, what kind of nursing.”

“Why so much backtalk. I’m going to heat up the porridge, so just sit right there in the living room.”

At the scolding so typical of the guy, Kihyun gave a short laugh and went into the living room. Instead of sitting on the sofa, he sat on the floor below it and leaned his back against it, and a rattling sound came from the kitchen.

For a guy born into a wealthy family, he was quite handy, and even when he simply boiled ramen, it was much more edible than what Kihyun boiled. It was indeed fascinating to see him take out a pot to boil the porridge that Kihyun would have just roughly heated in the microwave.

“Hey, I’m eating ramen too.”

“…It’s on the right shelf.”

“I know. As if I wouldn’t know. I eat more ramen in this house than you do.”

That was true. In Kihyun’s house, where they hadn’t eaten instant food at all since he was young because his mother was in poor health, if they bought a pack of ramen, they couldn’t even finish all five bags during that long shelf life and would always leave about two bags behind.

Then Cho Yeonoh, who barged in with great shamelesness, would finish off the remaining ramen. Kihyun was dumbfounded every time. He also hated seeing the guy, who had ignored him for several years, suddenly approach and come in and out of the house so shamelessly.

Kihyun’s lips flickered. He had never once asked the guy for the reason. Why he had avoided him, or exactly why he had decided not to meet him and then returned again. If it had been anyone else, he would have asked such a reason without hesitation, but with Cho Yeonoh, even such a question was slightly difficult. Because of that, Kihyun remained silent today as well.

Not much time had passed, but the savory smell of boiling porridge and the smell of cooking ramen wafted from the kitchen. Looking at him as he rummaged through the fridge like it was his own and took out an egg, then cracked it into the pot, he suddenly spoke.

“It’s delicious if you stir it.”

“Why interfere with someone else’s ramen. The patient should just eat the porridge.”

It was funny how he replied nonchalantly, as if he knew Kihyun was thinking of stealing a bite, so he let out a chuckle.

Before long, the guy came over carrying two pots stacked together, looking so stable that he wasn’t even worried. Come to think of it, when he came to Kihyun’s house, the one who prepared meals was neither the father, who was a civil servant and returned home late, nor Kihyun, but Cho Yeonoh.

Kihyun spoke while looking at the young radish kimchi that Cho Yeonoh had brought in a bowl.

“Tell your aunt and the lady that I’ll enjoy the radish kimchi.”

“You come and say it. Both women ask every day if you’re coming.”

The guy replied nonchalantly, placing a spoon and a water cup in front of Kihyun and only chopsticks in front of himself. It was natural for Cho Yeonoh’s mother to welcome him as he resembled his mother, who had been her friend, but it was puzzling that even the lady who looked after the housework at that house was looking for him.

“The lady too?”

“Yeah. Do something about the way you go around seducing older women.”

Then, he put a full serving of noodles into the ramen pot lid and ate a large mouthful with a slurping sound. It was absurd how a guy who grew up pampered in a wealthy house and had good table manners ate ramen so noisily whenever he came to Kihyun’s house.

“The broth is splashing into my porridge, you jerk.”

“Did you say Mister Jerk? There’s nothing you can’t say to your hyung-nim.”

Even so, it was fascinating how he pronounced things clearly without showing the inside of his mouth when he spoke.

“Ah, why is it so hot.”

Since it was already summer, perhaps because he had been standing in front of the fire, the guy fluttered his school shirt and then just took it off. Kihyun, looking indifferently at him as he even took off the plain white t-shirt he wore underneath, got up to get more water.

“What is it, I’ll do it.”

“Forget it. I’m just going to get water, so stop overreacting.”

Finding the way he was making a fuss absurd, as he passed by the guy, he gave his butt a light kick, and the guy ranted about him hitting his hyung-nim’s butt recklessly. Kihyun gave a short laugh, went into the kitchen, and poured cold water into his empty cup.

And just as he was about to bring it to his mouth, his gaze was suddenly drawn to Cho Yeonoh’s back as he sat with his back to him.

“…”

…Was that guy always that big? He thought their heights were similar even back in the first year of high school, but he didn’t know how it happened.

Kihyun wasn’t on the small side either, but he was anxious in a way unlike himself because his growth seemed to be stopping just short of 180cm. He wished he were just 1 or 2cm taller, but it wasn’t as easy as he hoped.

On the other hand, perhaps because Cho Yeonoh was born with Alpha traits, his physique was different from his own. Even in a school where Alpha and Beta boys, and Omega and Beta girls were taught separately, the reason why the guy was popular regardless of whether they were Omega or Beta girls was clear.

If someone is handsome, tall, from a wealthy family, and has good grades, everyone is bound to look back at them. The only ones with enough indifference to be friends beside such a guy were the equally impressive Lee Bumhee or himself, who wasn’t particularly impressive but had tough nerves.

Thinking about Cho Yeonoh, who got along well with everyone but had few deeply close friends, Kihyun realized that the guy had grown quite a bit compared to even just a month ago. Come to think of it, even his school pants were hanging short above his ankles. The back muscles that twitched whenever he moved his arms were like weapons.

…When did he grow like that? Kihyun, who was the tallest in his class in middle school, hadn’t grown much since then. At most 1 or 2cm a year. The reason he was concerned despite not being short was because of the difference between the guy’s shadow and his own that he saw whenever they left school.