NILWM - 57

“Sunbae. Would you like some tea? Something warm...”

“No, I’m okay.”

Juhyeok sat down in the seat where Jo Sumin had been sitting and took off his coat. The SG Bio pharmaceutical company ID card on a lanyard was slightly visible between his jacket. He smiled faintly at Min Yeseo, who was sitting across from him.

“Let’s just sit here for a bit and then go for dinner. I made a reservation at a restaurant near my place that I’m a regular at; is that okay? I said I’d feed you some meat.”

“A meat restaurant?”

“Sukiyaki.”

“Oh, I love that! I was just craving something hot and soupy.”

Min Yeseo smiled brightly. It was written all over her face that she would be happy eating anything with him. She looked at his expression and seemed a little worried. He was still handsome, but he looked a little tired after not seeing her for three weeks due to his busy work schedule.

“How is work? I heard the Innovative Energy Department is really tough...”

She wondered if he was also mentally exhausted. Even if it was a small startup, it must have been a world of difference from when he was the owner running his own business.

“It’s manageable. It’s not as hard as I thought. Aren’t you the one who’s having a harder time?”

“I’m not having a hard time at all. It’s just that the civil service work can be a bit complicated since there are a lot of foreigners in the area, but the public officials are so helpful.”

Min Yeseo had graduated early in the first semester of her senior year and had been working as a temporary employee replacing a person on parental leave at a district office since September.

Considering her university’s name and academic performance, she could have easily passed the public recruitment exams for most large companies, including SG Bio, where he worked. But for her, a work environment where she could fully devote herself to writing her novel from 6 p.m. every day was the top priority.

Just then, his phone rang. He looked at the caller ID, and a sharpness unconsciously entered his gaze, and he could feel Min Yeseo, who was sitting across from him, tense up.

“It’s work. I’ll be back after I make a quick call.”

He reassured her with a mechanical smile and headed for the building lobby connected to the cafe. It was a person he was not at all happy to hear from, but he couldn’t ignore her calls forever.

Because it was that damn blood relation. If she were just a stranger, he wouldn’t have to see her again for the rest of his life. He didn’t ask for or choose his family, but because of that damn blood relation, he couldn’t just cut her off completely.

• Juhyeok.

“What is it?”

• I just... called to see how you were doing.

Her gentle, overly refined tone made him want to vomit. He felt bile and nausea rising in his throat, and his stomach churned.

• You didn’t come for Chuseok, and you came to Sejong last time as well...

When he didn’t answer, Ryu Hyesu continued. Her sorrowful tone started to upset him again.

• Did you deliberately choose a time when I wouldn’t be here again?

“Is that why you called?”

• Hyeok. Can you please forgive your aunt now...?

“I told you not to call me that.”

His repressed anger burst through his clenched teeth. He was disgusted by the nickname she had called him when he was a child and didn’t know any better. She was a person who, behind her facade of kindness and righteousness, led a life that was more sordid and vulgar than anyone else.

• Juhyeok, my feelings for you, how I cherished and cared for you like my own son, were genuine. You were my first nephew, after all. You were so special. No matter what, please don’t doubt my affection...

“I was your first and last nephew.”

• Ju...

“This is so tiresome. Always the same things...”

A sob finally leaked from the other end of the phone.

“I’ve told you countless times to just leave me alone. If you mess up, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

He saw his face in the mirror at the end of the lobby. He looked frighteningly apathetic even to himself. He didn’t look like a human being when he was like this. That’s why he hated it even more. The people who made him this way were even more detestable and tedious.

• Juhyeok...

“I can only do so much to avoid you, so it would be great if you could cooperate as well from now on. If we both put in the effort, we won’t have to run into each other. Goodbye.”

He said it calmly and hung up. And this time, he finally blocked her number. He didn’t want to think about the future anymore.

His maternal grandmother’s health was always the same. It wasn’t getting particularly worse, nor was it improving significantly. He didn’t want her to die.

But if she were to find out everything, wouldn’t it be better for her to pass away before that? It would be best for her to pass away before she found out about her second daughter Ryu Hyesu’s bizarre behavior, how it was directly connected to the death of her eldest daughter and son-in-law, and how it even affected her grandson, causing him mental trauma.

“Is it an emergency at work? Do you have to go back to the office or something...”

“No. I got a report on my field work, and they said they had some questions. They won’t call again.”

Juhyeok returned to his seat and smiled at Yeseo. It was incredibly easy for him to pretend to be calm and regain his gentle demeanor as if nothing had happened.

Especially in front of Min Yeseo. He was almost completely unaffected by any external factors that could disturb him more than necessary, except for the ripples that Min Yeseo caused within him.

________________________________________

A little while later, the two of them sat facing each other in a private room on the second floor of a sukiyaki restaurant decorated to look like an actual onsen. The interior was cozy, and the course meal laid out in front of them was excellent both visually and tastefully.

Most of all, he was incredibly pleased that Min Yeseo was eating well without being picky. He was always the one with the annoyingly fussy palate, but her palate was quite agreeable. When the waiter used a torch to grill the green onions to give them a smoky flavor and then cooked the sirloin steak on top of them, Min Yeseo’s eyes sparkled even more like gems.

“Eat a lot.”

He pulled her plate toward him and generously placed the sliced steak on it.

“Sunbae, that’s too much! You should eat too.”

“I ate meat at a company lunch. Here, try dipping it in the truffle salt.”

Min Yeseo looked at him with eyes that seemed to be dripping with honey, as if she was touched. She was especially susceptible to his attentiveness. It was the same almost three years ago on the day they had their first meal alone at the pancake place.

After they finished the steak, they put vegetables, broth, and Korean beef in a hot pot and started cooking the sukiyaki in earnest. Again, he picked up the meat and diligently placed it only on Yeseo’s plate, and he seemed to enjoy watching her dip it in the egg wash and eat it as he told her to. He felt full just watching Min Yeseo eat.

Because of that, he felt a little regretful. He hoped she wouldn’t be too surprised by what he was about to tell her. At the same time, he also hoped it would cause a huge stir.

He didn’t want Min Yeseo to be in pain. He didn’t want her to cry either. But he liked it when she was in pain and shed tears because of him.

The sight of her getting anxious about a future where they would be physically distant, worrying that the distance might also cause an emotional rift, and breaking down in advance, always gave him a thrilling sense of pleasure.

He hid his unworthy anticipation of that pleasure and his twisted contradictions and continued to speak nonchalantly.

“Your district office job is a one-year contract, so it ends at the end of August next year, right? And the contest is in May of next year.”

“Yes. I’m preparing for it diligently. This is my second time, so I have to do better...!”

Min Yeseo gave an awkward smile. She had failed in the contest she had participated in for the first time this year and had submitted her work to several major publishing houses but had no success. She was currently waiting for the results from one new publishing house and was preparing for her next project.

“I was just thinking...”

“Yes?”

“Never mind, it’s nothing.”

Why don’t you just stay by my side and not do anything? I can give you a house, money, and whatever you want, so don’t go through all that trouble just to earn a few pennies.

He chewed and swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue along with the food. Honestly, he felt the same way about the fantasy novel. He couldn’t understand why a smart person like Min Yeseo would waste her time and energy on such a ridiculous thing and would continue to do so in the future.

Her talent is a waste. She could be doing something much more productive and constructive.

He took the matcha ice cream that came for dessert and placed it in front of Yeseo. He could truly do anything for her.

If she wanted to go to graduate school or study abroad, he could support her both materially and spiritually. Of course, the best thing would be for her to only look at him and live for him, but she would have to have some kind of social life.

“Yeseo... wait a second.”

His phone rang again. This time it was truly a call from the company. It was a direct line from his uncle’s chief secretary’s office. He let out a shallow sigh and pushed the affogato that was meant for him toward Yeseo as well.

“Work called again. Here, I don’t really want it, so eat mine too and wait for me for a bit.”

“...Okay, Sunbae.”

Min Yeseo nodded with a slightly worried look. Before he went outside, her face was briefly reflected in the glass door. Her eyes were as round as a deer’s, and she was watching his back with a spoon in her mouth. Her face was absolutely lovely.

________________________________________

When he came back to his seat, his face showed a hint of difficulty. His gaze brightened when he saw the empty dessert plate, but it soon darkened again.

“What do I do? I think I have to stop by the office for a bit. It’s not serious, but they said they need my help. You should go to the officetel first.”

Yeseo’s expression was dumbfounded as she looked at the clock. It was just a little past 7 o’clock, but he was being called back to the company at this hour; she felt so bad for him.

“Sunbae, are you sure it’s okay? You should rest after you get back, but if I’m there...”

“It’s Friday.”

I’ll be with you all weekend, so of course you should be there. Han Juhyeok added ambiguously, barely audible, and draped his scarf around Yeseo’s neck as she stood up and put on her coat. He was just as resistant to the cold now as he was back then.

Thankfully, the officetel he had recently moved into was only a five-minute walk from the restaurant. Yeseo saw Han Juhyeok off in the parking lot and was turning around to leave the restaurant building when a subtle scent of perfume wafted by, and someone called out to her.

“Excuse me... miss.”

“Yes?”

Yeseo was startled and turned around. A middle-aged woman she had never seen before was standing in front of the parking lot entrance.