OL Ch 23

Chapter 23

#3. The Consequences of Lying

“Hayun-ah, make sure your seatbelt is on properly. Is the air conditioning okay? It’ll be unbearable if we don’t turn it on today.”

“Yes,” Hayun promptly replied to his mother’s words.

‘Even if I said no, she would’ve turned it on anyway.’

The thought was clear evidence that something was wrong with his mind. Hayun tried hard to erase those words from his head, swallowing nervously lest they slip out inadvertently. He forced them deep down inside and looked out the window instead.

Despite some scattered clouds, the day was bright. The cicadas, survivors amidst all the chaos, cried out loudly as they sought mates. Hayun couldn’t understand why their instinctual calls filled him with envy and irritation. Feeling his eyes sting once more, he blinked rapidly, hoping the car’s air conditioning would help dry his tears quickly.

“Oh boy, I always get a headache when coming to this area.”

Soon after leaving the hospital, they encountered ongoing road construction. As a result, the lanes were chaotic. The lines zigzagged, widened inexplicably for single-lane traffic before narrowing again. The erased and redrawn lane markings further contributed to the confusion on the road. It wasn’t just Lee Inyeong who found navigating these roads challenging; cars ahead of them also swerved uncertainly. Consequently, they quickly got stuck at a traffic light.

The remaining street trees cast their shadows over the car. Observing the vibrant green leaves, Hayun inadvertently murmured:

“I thought summer would be over by the time I was discharged, but it’s not yet.”

“Well, summer won’t last long either. Before you know it, autumn will arrive, and then winter follows swiftly.”

“…..”

“By the way, you need new clothes, Hayun. All your old ones at home don’t fit anymore.”

“It’s okay, Mom. I can wear Kijun’s clothes.”

“Hey, do you realize how much bigger you are compared to Kijun? Maybe it doesn’t seem like that when you’re sitting in the wheelchair?”

Kijun was one of his twin younger brothers, three years junior to Hayun. The twins were fraternal, with the other being a younger sister. Hayun smiled awkwardly as he recalled their visit during his hospitalization. While Kijun might be short, he had a stocky build. Thus, borrowing his clothes wouldn’t pose a problem for Hayun, albeit limited to tops only.

“You have no idea how possessive he is about his clothes! If anyone wears them without permission, there’d be a huge argument and chaos.”

Inyeong shook her head as she recalled their fights.

“Jiha can wear Kijun’s clothes, but not vice versa. Of course, it’d only be natural for him to feel slighted.”

“Recently, they had a huge argument because Jiha kept wearing his new outfits out of spite. Jiha kept teasing Kijun to try her clothes on if he could, but when Kijun actually tried to put his head through, Jiha started tearing up.”

Inyeong mimicked both Kijun and Jiha during their squabble. Her exaggerated hand gestures accompanied by whiny sounds were hilarious yet unmistakably reminiscent of Kijun. In contrast, she imitated Jiha solely through lip movements.

Hayun bit his lip, barely suppressing his laughter, before noticing the traffic light about to change.

“Mom, the light is changing.”

“Oh dear.”

Inyeong resumed driving and advised Hayun that this wasn’t something to laugh about as he would soon be involved too, so it was best to prepare himself accordingly.

Hayun had never fought with his siblings before. He visited their family home only a few times a year—briefly on holidays or occasionally when visiting Mookyeong. Thus, there hadn’t been much opportunity for conflicts. Additionally, although he specialized in non-combat roles, having trained martial arts under Baek Jinha, he never considered getting into physical altercations.

But even living closely with Mookyeong, they never really had serious fights.

They did spar while learning martial arts, but due to their significant size difference, they never truly engaged in full combat. Moreover, Mookyeong always held back, fearing he might hurt Hayun. In daily life, there were hardly any reasons for them to fight.

Mookyeong usually lets things slide, often ending up with the short end of the stick. Whenever they received something nice, it was given to him first. If he didn’t want it, he would take it without hesitation. With food as well…

“…..”

The sudden memory brought unexpected tears to his eyes. Hayun pressed his body tightly against the window.

‘So pathetic.’

Everything in this world made me sad. At least for Hayun, this wasn’t the world he had known before. It felt like the original world had crumbled, and he alone fell into another world.

While he tried hard not to sob audibly, Inyeong turned on the radio. The traffic report and brief news updates were playing at that moment. Apparently, there had been an accident ahead causing significant delays.

“In any case, rushing each other will only make us later.”

The car alternated between short movements and long periods of idling. By the time they escaped the congested area, Hayun’s tears had dried up.

Once past the traffic jam, it didn’t take long to reach home. Hayun helped Inyeong unload their luggage from the trunk. Due to his extended stay at the hospital, there were numerous items accumulated over time.

“Give me those. Mom can carry them.”

“Nope. I’ll carry them. This much is fine for me.”

“Aren’t they heavy?”

“Aren’t they heavy?” Hayun echoed Inyeong’s question with the same response. At this, Inyeong gently pinched Hayun’s cheek.

“You cheeky brat. I’ll just let Kijun do it.”

“Why bother? I can just do it.”

“Still, how long has it been since you took off the cast?”

“It’s heavy, so let’s hurry home, okay?” Hayun urged Inyeong along. She shook her head as she watched Hayun stubbornly hefting the luggage. Meanwhile, Hayun briskly walked towards the exit door. Inyeong quickly caught up to him and opened the door.

“Oh right, I need to give you a house key too.”

“…Okay.”

Hayun had never carried keys before, but now he needed one. As soon as he acknowledged this fact, Inyeong sucked in a sharp breath while pursing her lips. Perhaps, she thought Hayun might be sensitive about the topic.

“Well, I have no choice until my leg fully heals.”

“Yes, just carry it around until you’re healed. It should only be a few weeks at most.”

Hayun smiled instead of answering. He could have simply said ‘yes,’ but he lacked confidence to voice that word. Hayun tried not to think too deeply about this matter.

‘Later, much later. Let’s not worry about it until I’m completely fine.’

He didn’t know when that time would come, but it wasn’t now.

Upon entering their home, Hayun was greeted by both familiar and unfamiliar scents.

‘Was our house always like this?’

Nothing had changed physically. There was the family photo from his elementary school days hanging on one side of the living room, the old sofa, the electronic piano in the basement whose state of tune remained unknown, and the balcony filled with plants. Slowly, Hayun took in the sight of his surroundings.

“Hey, put the things down first.”

Inyeong tapped Hayun’s shoulder to remind him about putting down his bags. Startled, Hayun flinched, causing the bottles of drinks he held to clink loudly together. His heart sank, and his nerves were frayed instantly. Seeing his mother surprised by his tension, Hayun quickly composed himself with a smile.

“Oh, you startled me.”

Hayun chuckled as he placed his luggage under the sofa. He took the beverages to the kitchen and put away the books in Kijun’s room.

“By the way, what about your room? Can you really share with Kijun?”

“If he truly bothers me, I can sleep on the living room couch. Does Kijun snore?”

“He sometimes snores lightly when taking afternoon naps in the living room, but not sure at night.”

Inyeong had talked about their family with Hayun. She had briefly talked about them while they were at the hospital but hadn’t gone into detail like this.

‘I didn’t want to think about it back then.’

Whenever Inyeong talked about family, Hayun would subtly change the subject. However, thinking about it now, it might have been better to talk a little back then.

As evening approached, family members started returning home one by one. They felt awkward having Hayun around but tried not to show it, and Hayun played along pretending everything was normal.

Avoiding deep thoughts, he smiled when prompted, ate dinner as instructed, drank water, and consumed fruit. Afterwards, they sat together in the living room watching a drama none of them really followed.

Before they knew it, the day had come to an end. Hayun lay down on a blanket spread across Kijun’s bedroom floor.

‘It smells and is too cramped.’

As Inyeong had worried, the room was too small for two men to share. Kijun seemed uncomfortable as well, constantly shifting his position. Hayun silently lay there, blinking his eyes. He couldn’t sleep. After remaining still for some time, he thought Kijun had fallen asleep, but he suddenly opened his mouth.

“Hyung, you really can’t use your ability anymore?”

“…Yeah.”

“What will you do now?”

“I don’t know.”

What should he do now? Unhappy with Hayun’s response, Kijun let out a long sigh. Hayun clicked his tongue at him, which only made him huff louder. He glared towards where Kijun lay.

‘This little bastard…’

He clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly. However, instead of immediately getting up to punch Kijun, he continued pondering on the thoughts that had just crossed his mind moments ago.

What should he do now?

He felt dizzy and his breathing quickened. Hayun covered his face with both hands. He tried to regulate his breath but found it difficult. Curling up, he attempted to calm himself down. As cold sweat dripped from his body, Kijun suddenly started snoring loudly.

“Zzzzzzzzz, zzzzz.”

“…..”

It reached its peak, then gradually quieted down. Clutching tightly onto the blanket, Hayun trembled slightly. He quietly stifled his tears alone before leaving the room.

Hayun entered the living room and turned on the TV. He lowered the volume of the TV as it turned on. Only when no sound could be heard did he finally put down the remote control and lay on the couch.

Still, he couldn’t sleep.