Second Half Chapter 33

Jerim, squinting as hard as he could to check the time, jolted upright in shock. Even during vacations, he rarely woke up past 9:00, but it was currently approaching 1:00 PM. His daily rhythm had been completely wrecked just because he drank a bit last night. Jerim kicked off the covers and got out of bed irritably.

He found a pair of tracksuit pants among the clothes strewn under the bed, threw them on, and headed into the bathroom, where bright sunlight streamed through the open window. Even as he put the call on speaker to brush his teeth and shave, his mother’s twittering nagging continued.

— You drank, didn’t you? Honestly. Going around drinking when you live alone! You’re determined to become an old bachelor…

“I don’t have children, so how could I be a widower…?”

— Ugh! You never back down from a single word. Is your stomach okay? You said there was a Korean restaurant nearby, right? Go and have some dried pollack soup at least. Don’t skip meals just because of heartburn. Are you taking your red ginseng regularly?

“Yeees. Don’t worry. I’ve lived alone for years; do you really think I can’t look after my own meals?”

The nearby Korean restaurant didn’t sell polarizing dishes like dried pollack soup, and the red ginseng he had filmed an actual commercial for was currently gathering dust in the kitchen cupboard while growing lush mold, but he chose not to say that. Once he rinsed off the shaving foam and finished washing his face with cold water, his headache subsided to some degree.

When Jerim replied with a much more stable voice, his mother let out a long sigh as if relieved of a great burden.

— I suppose so, but… when on earth are you planning to get married?

“Madam, the topic change just now was so sudden I can’t adapt. Is one lovely son like me not enough?”

— Don’t try to slide past it with jokes. Are you dating anyone lately? Even though you’re a kid who used to have scandals popping up once in a while, why is it so quiet these days?

“You shouldn’t be curious about the love life of a son who’s nearly thirty. Oh, by the way, how about you try dating, Madam? Should I introduce you to a cool Mister? Our manager happens to be a divorcé.”

— Ban Jerim!

At the shout that sounded like it would burst his eardrums, Jerim pulled the phone away from his ear. He ambled toward the kitchen, responding half-heartedly to his mother’s nagging.

— Did your popularity drop or something? There’s no way… I gave birth to my kids and made sure all their faces turned out handsome…

“That’s right. Out of the three siblings, I especially take after our mother, so I’m bound to be quite good-looking. I’m always thankful for that.”

— If you know you’re thankful, why don’t you think about giving me a grandchild who looks just like you? Son.

“Got it, got it.”

— Don’t just give a half-hearted answer.

“How can I make it sound sincere… ‘I’m really going to get married soon. I even want to have three kids.'”

Coming down the stairs and turning the corner of the hallway, he muttered in Spanish with a solemn tone as if making a serious vow. It was a type of joke the mother and son used to play to get used to the language when they first moved to Spain. Jokes are in Spanish.

It was a joke he didn’t need to make after his mother returned to Korea, but under the pretext that it was a waste to forget the foreign language she had learned with such effort, his mother often requested that he speak to her in Spanish. She seemed to continue watching Spanish movies and dramas without subtitles. Thanks to these efforts and jokes continuing until this very day, his mother was still able to speak Spanish fluently.

— You keep trying to tease your mom. Oh, and about that talisman I gave you, you’re keeping it well…

It was just as his mother on the other end of the line let out a laugh, saying she couldn’t deal with him.

“…”

“…”

Jerim froze the moment he spotted the figure sitting at the dining table. The expression on the man who, without even asking the owner, had taken milk out of the fridge and was skillfully mixing cereal, was like that of a Yaksha. It almost looked like an expression used for looking at trash.

What has that bastard’s mood twisted this time in broad daylight… no, more importantly. Jerim raised a trembling index finger.

“You, why are you here… and your clothes…”

His lower half was hidden by the table so it was impossible to tell what state he was in, but it was certain that he was cooling off his upper body by baring it. That is, unless his eyesight had gone bad along with the memories that had been heatedly blown away as a side effect of drinking.

At the tone that treated him like a flasher trespassing on the property, Aaron snapped back as if offended.

“You’re baring just as much as I am.”

“Fuck, this is my house, isn’t it? O-oh, wait, is it?”

“It is your house. Did your memory really cut out after just three glasses of beer? Impressive.”

Jerim immediately scratched his head vigorously, trying to recall the memories of last night.

Did we sleep together? Did I finally cause an accident? Did being drunk make me abandon the path of a civilized man? And with an ex-boyfriend who has a history of cheating, of all people?

He agreed a hundred percent with the saying that starting a broken relationship again is no different from picking back up trash you already threw away. That’s why Jerim had never once harbored the thought of reuniting with an ex, no matter who they were.

He didn’t have many opportunities since he was dumped every time anyway, but even on the rare occasion the other person reached out again, Jerim firmly rejected them. Because it was obvious that the person would inevitably break up with him again for the exact same reason they bid farewell the first time.

Besides, since dating became increasingly predictable the more you did it, he didn’t want to start again while knowing the clearly defined end. It was the same logic as not wanting to watch a movie you already know the ending to.

— What is it? Did something happen?

“N-no. I’ll call you back later.”

Even so, if we did sleep together… I should probably say let’s pretend it never happened. Let’s not bring up any nonsense about a reunion first, and just say that since I’m the captain and you’re a team member, it won’t do for us to become awkward over a one-night mistake. Jerim hung up the phone while devising a plan that would make even a piece of trash weep.

To Jerim, who was worrying with a stiff face about how to broach the subject, Aaron spoke up first. To be precise, it was sarcasm.

“Talking to your lover about family planning in broad daylight. I should say it’s just like you… but I didn’t know you were dating a Spaniard. …Who’s the partner?”

His tone, asking if it was perhaps someone he knew, was as menacing as a threat. His amber eyes, shining brightly as if he were about to skin someone alive, were the same. But instead of being scared, Jerim rubbed his arms where goosebumps had broken out from the cringe.

“Crazy, who’s a lover? That was my mother. Don’t say such disgusting things.”

“Your mother? That’s even weirder. Why do you talk to your parent about things like that in broad daylight?”

“Because it was a joke. Anyway, why are you eating cereal in someone else’s house?”

He had eaten quite a lot. Jerim, who picked up the cereal box, shook it, and even checked the empty milk bottle, clicked his tongue.

“I couldn’t help it. I was hungry, but you wouldn’t wake up. But then, I was scared I’d be beaten to death if I went up to the second floor to wake you.”

The menacing aura he had been exuding just a moment ago suddenly softened as he feigned being scared. Jerim narrowed his eyes in disbelief at the sight of him transforming instantly from a fierce wolf into a timid puppy. Aaron snatched the cereal box back, poured the few remaining bits into his bowl, and replied.

“You said you’d cut my dick off the moment I set a single foot in the second-floor bedroom.”

At those words, Jerim’s memories of yesterday began to return one by one. Aaron walking with him when he insisted on walking, him being the first to suggest Aaron stay over because he felt too uneasy just sending him off, and how he had threatened him after actually letting him in, fearing he might get excited over nothing.

Catching Jerim’s expression as it turned various colors from guilt and regret, Aaron smirked.

“Seems like your memory is slowly returning? Then I don’t need to go out of my way to explain why I’m in your house, do I?”

“Mhm.”

Jerim dropped his chin at an ambiguous angle. For now, it seemed a relief that the accident he feared hadn’t happened…

He knew it was the timing to say thank you and sorry, but his mouth simply wouldn’t open. If it had been William or Lehmann, he would have made all sorts of fuss about how hard they worked and thanked them before making them a special Korean coffee, but why did it have to be Aaron?