RSL Ch 105

That day, Jae-yi hung up the phone with Seo-jin and immediately searched for plane tickets while sitting in the conference room. It was because he wanted to hear an apology, and he thought he would go and get it directly.

In fact, contact didn’t matter much. As always, it was enough for him to reach out first. If he missed him, he could just go see him. He had lived like that for 15 years, so he thought this was no big deal.

However, the fact that he was planning to live in Korea was a different story. That was unacceptable.

You should be here, by my side.

Leaving without a word was a different issue altogether. He didn’t know why Seo-jin had to go to Korea, but in any case, Jae-yi was determined not to allow it. It was a strange mindset that didn’t consider the wishes of the person involved, but at that time, he couldn’t see how odd it was.

Without hesitation, he clicked on a return flight a month later. There were two important lawsuits pending, and it was a difficult time to be away. When he told his boss he would work from home, he was even told he had lost his mind.

But it didn’t matter. He planned to go and find out what was going on and bring him back. Whatever it was, he would solve it. The excuse of attending a Bechtel party was just that—an excuse. From the very beginning, he was going to get him back. He had been foolishly confident about it at that time.

‘If I stay by your side for about a month, I thought I might figure it out.’

‘Figure out what?’

‘The reason you ran away.’

‘…’

Han Jae-yi could still vividly remember the look on Woo Seo-jin’s face as he reacted to those words on the plane they accidentally met. The dim cabin lights perfectly concealed his expression, but Jae-yi had noticed. Seo-jin was flustered. The way he bit his lip, unable to deny it, made it even more certain.

It was true. He had run away to Korea.

On one hand, that made him feel more at ease. Now that I’m here, it’s fine. You don’t have to worry about anything, he almost blurted this out.Seeing his gaunt appearance made him anxious and more hurried.

Why? What happened?

Han Jae-yi knew Woo Seo-jin well. He was the type who would avoid booking a flight to Korea even on purpose, struggling with his own country. If Woo Seo-jin had come all the way to Korea, it must have been something serious. That thought made Jae-yi feel even more justified in chasing after him. He had no intention of returning to Germany until he figured out the whole story. Seo-jin’s comment about why someone who was about to get married was acting like this was amusing.

Why? That wasn’t even a problem for him.

What mattered was that he was here.

Jae-yi didn’t think that feeling was abnormal. He had never doubted it even once until that game of hide-and-seek with him came to an end due to Gisella. The truth of their friendship, a relationship that had lasted for 15 years.

The reason Woo Seo-jin had run away to Korea, which he wanted to avoid so much. The lack of contact. The changed attitude. The tone of voice that built walls. All of it was because of Han Jae-yi himself, something he truly didn’t realize at that time.

With a rumble, the car wheels spun loudly. It was a sign that the road was starting to freeze. Jae-yi swallowed hard. He slowly released the brake again. The car glided forward smoothly. He put his thoughts aside for a moment and focused on driving.

He was almost home. He had just barely navigated through the tangled intersection and was now facing the hill. If he had arrived even a little later, he wouldn’t have made it this far.

As soon as he turned into the alley, a car coming from the opposite direction pulled out first. Luckily, he was able to park in the spot he had left. After turning off the engine, Jae-yi let out a deep breath without realizing it. Despite the ups and downs, he was relieved that he had made it.

He quietly entered the house. Leaving his bag at the front door, he carefully walked into the living room and took off his coat. The lights were on, indicating that Seo-jin had been awake late. It was just past 10 PM.

Jae-yi quietly opened the bedroom door. A dim bedside lamp illuminated the room, and Seo-jin turned his body toward him on the bed. He smiled weakly when he saw Jae-yi.

“…You really can’t be stopped.”

Yet he couldn’t hide his delight. His voice was hoarse. Seeing his flushed face made Jae-yi anxious, and he quickly approached him.

“You’re burning up.”

When he touched his forehead, it was clear he had a high fever. Jae-yi’s expression crumpled instantly.

“This doesn’t look good; shouldn’t we go to the hospital?”

“What for? I just said it’s a fever. It’s time for my medicine. I’ll be fine after I take it.”

As soon as Seo-jin finished speaking, his phone vibrated on the bedside table. He was the type to keep track of his medicine time down to the second.

“Did you catch some weird virus? I’m telling you, let’s go to the hospital.”

“Are you kidding? You want to go to the emergency room for a cold in the middle of this chaos? I’d get scolded. I’ll take some fever reducer and sleep. Now that you’re here, I’m at ease.”

He then added that he had been worried the whole time. Seeing Seo-jin, who couldn’t sleep properly because of him, made Jae-yi feel a rush of guilt and sympathy. He lightly kissed his forehead.

“Okay. Do what you want. But from now on, I’ll take care of you, so don’t lift a finger. Do you want me to bring you your medicine? Is it that one?”

He nodded. Perhaps feeling a bit reassured, his expression became calmer. Seo-jin took the two pills Jae-yi handed him and put them in his mouth.

“Do you want to eat some soup? It’s still warm and perfect to eat.”

“Sure.”

He listened obediently, slightly pulling back the blanket and leaning his upper body against it. Jae-yi went to the living room and opened a can of tomato cream soup. He placed it on a tray with a spoon and set it on his lap. Then he stood there, watching Seo-jin slowly start to eat. He hadn’t even changed his clothes yet.

“How is it? I thought it wouldn’t be too salty for your taste.”

“Yeah, it’s good. But I don’t think I can eat it all.”

“Leave some.”

Jae-yi got up and brought water from the kitchen. Seo-jin continued to eat very slowly. He was fulfilling the duty of a sick person by eating enough and staying hydrated. Occasionally, he shivered as if feeling cold. The room was warm enough, but his broken body kept raising its temperature.

“Are you cold? Is the fever bad?”

Jae-yi touched Seo-jin’s forehead again. His bangs had fallen messily.

“It’ll go down soon. It was like this earlier too.”

Seo-jin looked up as if to say not to worry. He still had Jae-yi’s large hand resting on his forehead.

“A headache?”

“A little.”

“How about muscle pain?”

“It’s severe.”

“Ha….”

When Jae-yi sighed, he laughed.

“Why, does it hurt your heart?”

“Yeah. It feels like my heart is being torn apart.”

Seo-jin chuckled and got up. Leaving Jae-yi, who was whining in front of the patient, he went into the bathroom. Seo-jin wasn’t the type to groan and complain no matter how much he was in pain, so he did what he had to do even though his face was red and feverish.

A moment later, he came out with a toothbrush in his mouth. By then, Jae-yi had started to touch the soup Seo-jin had been eating.

“What are you doing?”

Seo-jin stopped him with a slurred pronunciation.

“We live together, so I can’t avoid it. We’re going to kiss anyway.”

Jae-yi ignored him and continued to eat the soup. Then his eyes met. Seo-jin was just standing there, brushing his teeth diligently without giving any particular response. He had a look that said he wouldn’t stop him if he really wanted to.

A smile crept onto Jae-yi’s lips as he opened another packaged container. He liked that side of Seo-jin. He was endlessly strict in public but quite generous in private. It seemed he would let the inefficient act of transferring a virus through a kiss slide.

Jae-yi put the crispy fried falafel in his mouth and chewed it. It burst with flavor. He had been starving since the afternoon, so he was hungry. He had given up on a wonderful Greek meal, but the Turkish food enjoyed in a warm home was perfect without any shortcomings. Meanwhile, Seo-jin returned from the bathroom and lay back down on the bed.

“I think I’ll fall asleep soon since I’m full.”

True to his words, his eyes were already half-closed.

“Go ahead and sleep. I have to shower anyway.”

Jae-yi stroked Seo-jin’s cheek, encouraging him to sleep.

“Are you really not going to work tomorrow?”

“I can’t even if I want to. The roads are a mess. I’m taking a vacation to roll around with you.”

“Shall we watch a movie? I’ve barely used the paid channel since I subscribed.”

“Sure, if you’re feeling okay.”

“I’ll be fine. I already feel better than earlier.”

Seo-jin closed his eyes happily, omitting the part about it being because he was there. He answered softly to his ‘good night’ with a low ‘yeah’ and pulled the blanket up. His breathing gradually became even, and soon his grip relaxed. Jae-yi watched him for a while before tidying up the table and going out to the living room.

He exhaled a deep breath. For now, he was relieved. He had come home and checked on the patient’s condition. He had filled his stomach and given him medicine, so he could only hope that his body would fight off the illness throughout the night.

It was already past 11 PM. Jae-yi was also tired from the long drive, so he decided to go to bed.

He unpacked his things and quickly showered. After drying his hair, he climbed onto the bed where Seo-jin was sleeping. However, he still had work to finish.

Leaning against the headboard, he opened his laptop out of habit. Then he glanced at Seo-jin’s face, lying next to him like someone with numb legs. If he had been awake, he would have nagged him about working again. Jae-yi touched his forehead once more. He looked better than earlier, as if the fever had gone down a bit.

Jae-yi turned his gaze back to the laptop screen. He checked his emails. There were a few canceled appointments and some face-to-face meetings postponed to next week. It seemed that, as Johannes had said, a senior partner would be taking on one of the cases with him.

Tomorrow’s schedule was nothing special, except for one phone meeting in the afternoon. With some unexpected free time, he wanted to relax with Seo-jin. Since he was on sick leave, he didn’t have to be on standby at the airport. His flight schedule had been quite relaxed lately.

After returning to LH Airlines in April of the previous year, Seo-jin hadn’t been assigned long-haul flights for a while. He mostly flew short-haul routes within Europe, and his time spent abroad was significantly reduced. Thanks to this, their married life was incredibly satisfying. Being able to fall asleep together every night was wonderful, but it was even better that he was often home waiting for him.

Even though they’d been together for 17 years, he was always a busy person. How many times had he been left alone in Seo-jin’s empty house, waiting for him? Even during their school days, Jae-yi often waited alone in his empty room while he was at church. After his flight training began, it became almost routine.

It was the same when Jae-yi followed Seo-jin to Korea. Moving into his house uninvited had been fine, but it was lonelier than expected. And Jae-yi’s efforts were minimal. Even while living together, understanding why he was running away remained elusive. Seo-jin was often away on long-haul flights, leaving little opportunity for serious conversation.  

Around the time Jae-yi began sensing a shift in their relationship, Seo-jin’s reticence grew. His excuses became more evasive, and an unnecessary sense of anxiety crept in.  

Jae-yi had assumed he wouldn’t adapt to the new environment and would soon start missing Germany. After all, he had personal traumas tied to Korea. It seemed natural to expect that he would confide in Jae-yi quickly.  

But that expectation was completely wrong. Seo-jin was actively trying to adapt to Korean culture. He showed firm determination to settle down—buying a car, inviting people over. Strangely, these things felt unsettling.  

It seemed as if he was declaring that he would live a life without Jae-yi from now on. The growing number of unfamiliar people in his life was unpleasant, and the subtle way he grew closer to them felt even worse.  

Particularly irritating was the unmarried first officer who lived nearby. In hindsight, Jae-yi’s intuition had likely been at work, but at the time, it was just an unexplainable annoyance. The man’s smooth-talking manner and good looks only made him more unpleasant. His open friendliness toward Seo-jin, casually suggesting drinks with “just us later,” despite being mere colleagues, became increasingly aggravating.  

However, the real problem was Seo-jin’s attitude. He was the type to accept anything as long as it didn’t cross a line. If he allowed it, people could endlessly encroach upon his space. The thought of the first officer acting like a friendly neighbor, dropping by his house uninvited, was infuriating. Finding a way to take him back to Germany felt more necessary than ever—but it was proving to be incredibly difficult.  

It was then that Gisella came to Korea. She said something like that at the time. That being an adult means being able to do what needs to be done, even when you know you’ll regret it. 

When Jae-yi asked what there was to regret, she only replied that the answer would become clear soon enough. At the time, he was so immersed in Seo-jin’s situation that he couldn’t properly understand what she meant. In truth, even if he had understood, nothing would have changed. Jae-yi’s world, wrapped in the pretense of friendship, was already crumbling. Her appearance only accelerated that process a little more.